Babylon 5

[Jan]

I'm especially envious of people who received their copy early after Amazon promised mine would be delivered on Friday but instead decided to keep me hanging until Monday. It's probably not going to be essential B5, much like Lost Tales. I think Crusade would have the best prospect for a reboot - although it would need a different name. A reboot of B5 in a different timeline is kind of same old, same old.

It feels like you may be confused about what The Road Home is. It's not a reboot, and not the reimagining that was originally going to be on the CW. The animated THE ROAD HOME stands on its own, starting out in the universe we knew and taking Sheridan on an adventure through time and alternate realities.

The reboot/reimagining is on hold until after the strikes are settled. The rights have been returned to WB so once that's over it can be shopped. It's entirely different from the animated (hoped for) series.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

From the spoiler posted above my post, it sounded like this animated movie was setting things up for a reboot if not itself a reboot. I'd have to see the movie to decide for myself. My comment was about preferring a reboot of Crusade, not B5. I know the latter is on hold. I have no problem with a reboot per se - I just want it to be entertaining.

 

[Snatcher42]

What The Road Home is/isn't setting up:

Spoiler

The Road Home starts in the existing universe (mostly, there are subtle retcons), but ends in a different one. According to JMS interviews in SFX and on Facebook, this new timeline would be the basis for future animated movies if they happen. However, it is unrelated to the live action reboot. So basically this movie establishes a possible 'B5 animated universe' separate from everything else.

 

[Dee1891]

From the spoiler posted above my post, it sounded like this animated movie was setting things up for a reboot if not itself a reboot. I'd have to see the movie to decide for myself. My comment was about preferring a reboot of Crusade, not B5. I know the latter is on hold. I have no problem with a reboot per se - I just want it to be entertaining.

Actually, I would like to see a reboot of "Crusade". The series was starting to get good when TNT cancelled it.

 

[Seven of Five]

With this B5 movie and the return of Futurama, I feel like I've had an extra long hug from an old friend that I haven't seen in a while.

Spoiler

I thought they did a great job with the look of the station and the characters.

The recasts that were used were mostly very well done. G'Kar in particular almost had me in tears with his appearance to Sheridan at the rim.

Shedian slipping through time (and different realities), was a fun way to bring back old characters.

Great to see Zathras again, even if we can never be sure which Zathras it was.

There was a lot more comedy than I ever imagined, The computer asking Shedian if he was having a bad day when he ordered for the self-destruct!

On the whole, it was just very heartwarming story, and very B5.

Bring on a new show now please TPTB.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

It feels like you may be confused about what The Road Home is. It's not a reboot, and not the reimagining that was originally going to be on the CW. The animated THE ROAD HOME stands on its own, starting out in the universe we knew and taking Sheridan on an adventure through time and alternate realities.

The reboot/reimagining is on hold until after the strikes are settled. The rights have been returned to WB so once that's over it can be shopped. It's entirely different from the animated (hoped for) series.

The "making of" documentary Babylon 5 Forever on the Blu-ray specifically refers to The Road Home as a reboot, which once more leads me to believe that any live action series might be based on the timeline where this animated movie ends up. In this new universe, I think there's scope to combine a B5 theme with where Crusade would have gone in the second season.

 

[Jan]

The "making of" documentary Babylon 5 Forever on the Blu-ray specifically refers to The Road Home as a reboot, which once more leads me to believe that any live action series might be based on the timeline where this animated movie ends up. In this new universe, I think there's scope to combine a B5 theme with where Crusade would have gone in the second season.

JMS has said that any more animated movies are separate from the reimagining.

I just fired it up on Amazon Prime and even though I've seen the opening sequence many times, I still get goosebumps at "I was there..."

 

[The Nth Doctor]

I'll take a look at the previous comments after I get my thoughts out, but I just finished The Road Home and I loved every moment of it. Such a sweet and perfect story for Sheridan that felt both respectful of the whole cast of characters while adding something new to the larger story.

Spoiler: Favorite moment

Of all of the alternate timelines, the one where the Vorlons proved yet again that they're such assholes was my favorite.

Because who better to hang out with at the end times than Susan and Londo?

I absolutely died with every sarcastic, sardonic, witty comment from each of them.

Truly the best apocalyptic partners.

Spoiler: My singular disappointment

No love for Vir or Zack. At least we got that dedication card at the end, but their absence stood out greatly. Yes, we got a brief silent cameo for Vir, but it was still disappointing that neither of them got even a single speaking scene with Sheridan.

Edited to add some additional thoughts:

Spoiler

I thought G'Kar as the avatar of the universe to speak with Sheridan was perfection. The only choice.

I do wish Anthony Morgado was a bit closer to Andreas Katsulas, but then I think only Phil LaMarr's Franklin and Paul Guyet's Zathras were the only ones that did a great job recapturing those voices.

That said, that isn't essential and I think everyone did a good job in capturing the spirit of those characters, Morgado included especially during the aforementioned conversation.

 

[Booji]

I thought The Road Home was very good. The voice cast did a nice job and the story was fun. A few things did bug me...

Spoiler

The animation of the Starfuries and some of the other ships was bad. Really corny looking. The rest of the animation I liked.

What's up with the altered B5 crew shot when Sheridan departs for Minbar? No Zack and a few others. No sword for Talon? Vir has earrings and a goatee? Just some weird, completely unnecessary changes.

Ending in a mirror universe instead of the prime one I'm a bit meh on. I suppose we don't really need to see more Sheridan/Delenn, but it just seems off. I really don't have any interest right now in seeing the animated show continue if it follows the mirror universe.

 

[Farscape One]

Just finished watching. Really liked it. It was like saying hi to an old friend.

If you watch to the end of the credits, they list all the actors who've passed, and has Sheridan's tribute from "Sleeping in Light".

TO ABSENT FRIENDS
IN MEMORY, STILL BRIGHT

I definitely shed a couple single man tears after seeing that.

I'll be watching the feature and the commentary sometime in the next few days.

 

[JoeZhang]

As a more casual fan - I thought this was pretty boring.

Did this change in production because the discussion about the blue socks felt like it was setting a scene where he thought he got home but his socks were green.

Also the Universe we saw at the end makes little sense. The absence of a certain character would lead to a radically different outcome in the present.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Like Lost Tales, The Road Home would seem to have a limited potential audience. I don't envisage that many people who are unfamiliar with B5 would watch it, and if they did, they might end up very confused. The fans are going to buy and watch it for the sake of nostalgia, of course. I thought The Road Home was better entertainment than Lost Tales, but it's still pretty much non-essential. I haven't listened to the commentary yet to see if the apparent inconsistencies in the ending are explained. I could probably come up with some rationale myself, but I'm not inclined to make the effort.

 

[DarKush]

I like B5, but I can't say I'm an absolute diehard so there were doubtless things I missed when looking at The Road Home. It was neat that B5 got another chance to live again, and awesome that many of the actors still with us reprised their roles. I was underwhelmed with the story though.

Spoiler

I was hoping they would really play with the idea of alternate realities more than they did. This could've been a great chance to see some of the Dilgar War or what the station would've been like if "The Gathering" crew had stuck around longer.

Spoiler

I did like a lot of the designs here, especially for the Shadows. They never looked better in my opinion.

The voice acting for the most part I thought was good.

Spoiler

Phil LaMarr nailed Dr. Franklin. I thought the voice actor for Garibaldi got the voice right as the film went on. I didn't think G'Kar's voice actor sounded like Andreas Katsulas, however, I do think he brought a G'Kar-like gravitas to the role. I also was impressed with Bruce Boxleitner's work here, he sounds basically the same as he did on B5, and then when he met the younger version of himself, I like how he made that distinct.

Spoiler

I was hoping to see more of the future, but I can get going back to the past, especially for nostalgic fans who want to see old friends once more.

While I was a bit underwhelmed, I do hope the film does well and they make more animated stories as well as bolstering a live-action revival.

 

[KamenRiderBlade]

I got my Blu-Ray today, I'll watch it later tonight.

 

[Steve Roby]

Well, that was okay. JMS still really needs someone to tell him to cut some of his self-indulgent dialogue out, especially the lame attempts at humour (Zathras not understand IP law, Zathras probably mean trademark, not copyright). The philosophizing is pretty damn weak, just repeating "quantum physics" and "observer effect" every few minutes. The love stuff kind of works, but even though it has some setup, all the banging on about quantum observers drowns it out. It feels a bit anticlimactic, not least because it isn't the climax. The stuff after his departure, with various characters getting in a couple of lines, feels like it's meant to be the real fanwank climax.

I didn't like the animation when I first saw the previews but I got used to it pretty quickly. The music -- was there music? It barely registered. The substitute voices ranged from passable to quite good. And, while it ended up essentially going nowhere and doing nothing, other than letting old B5 fans see the gang again, it was still much, much easier to sit through than River of Souls, Legend of the Rangers, or Lost Tales. It's not impossible that I would watch this again. But, as a couple of others have said, it's one for the diehards. This is not something you'd show someone to try to get them into B5 if they'd never seen it.

 

[Booji]

But, as a couple of others have said, it's one for the diehards. This is not something you'd show someone to try to get them into B5 if they'd never seen it.

I have to agree with this. JMS can say all he wants that the movie contains everything you need to follow along if you're a first timer, but that's simply not true. You'd be completely lost coming into this movie B5 blind.

Anyway, I would like to add that, after rewatching it last night, Zathras absolutely steals the show And the humor, overall, is excellent.

And in my own head canon, the newly designed Shadow ships are Shadow motherships we never saw on the show.

 

[StarMan]

I'm glad I watched it. Did it blow me away? No. Was I left wondering what this really adds after so many years? Yes.

G'Kar as the Universe - thumbs up.
Peter Jurasik - thumbs UP.
Newly designed Shadow vessels - hard thumbs down.

Also - Shadow foot soldiers? Okay, it's animated. Still, it didn't feel true to the idea that this was an all-powerful race of ancients that used younger races as cannon fodder. Or can wave it away 'cause alt-universe?

The majority of the humor didn't land for me either, unfortunately.

Anyway, it was watchable and enjoyable enough in spots.

 

[Timby]

I have to agree with this. JMS can say all he wants that the movie contains everything you need to follow along if you're a first timer, but that's simply not true. You'd be completely lost coming into this movie B5 blind.

Yeah. I haven't watched the show cover-to-cover in probably five or six years, and even though I'm a ludicrously detail-oriented guy, I was still going, "... Huh?" at various points. The thing was decent enough, I guess, but I don't think I'll go out of my way to re-watch it anytime soon.

This was less an original movie and more of a victory lap.

Well, that was okay. JMS still really needs someone to tell him to cut some of his self-indulgent dialogue out, especially the lame attempts at humour (Zathras not understand IP law, Zathras probably mean trademark, not copyright). The philosophizing is pretty damn weak, just repeating "quantum physics" and "observer effect" every few minutes. The love stuff kind of works, but even though it has some setup, all the banging on about quantum observers drowns it out. It feels a bit anticlimactic, not least because it isn't the climax. The stuff after his departure, with various characters getting in a couple of lines, feels like it's meant to be the real fanwank climax.

Between Crusade, Legend of the Rangers, The Lost Tales, his comic book runs on Spider-Man and Superman (Superman: Grounded ) and now this, I'm convinced more than ever that Straczynski had one really, really great idea that he began developing in the late '80s, he was able to brute-force it into existence with the original show, and he's been chasing that dragon ever since.

 

[Saul]

I loved it. It was so nice to see these characters and the setting of B5 again. Can't we just skip the reboot and continue on with animated movies covering Crusade and the telepath war?

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

I'd be happy with animated movies as well, but they'd only attract a small audience. A reboot that removes the superfluous fluff but includes variations on the themes of the Shadow war, the Crusade arc and the telepath war would suit me. Otherwise, I doubt you're going to get new viewers onboard if it requires them to watch a 30-year old series with over 100 episodes to get up to speed.