Babylon 5
- Thread starter Kail
- Start date
The plot thickens in Season 3.
As I mentioned, there are shows from the time period and earlier with budgets lower than B5's (including the example I gave, Captain Power, which was also a live-action SF series with primitive CGI visual effects on which JMS worked) that still managed to shoot on location once in a while.
While I agree with you that B5 would've benefited from location shooting, I just want to point out that CAPTAIN POWER while low-budget was constantly going over budget, according to JMS. Which is why he tried to make B5 more cost-effective.
I always liked Londo. Maybe I'm just cruel, but I felt no sympathy for the Narn. G'kar was an exception, but just about every other Narn was a boorish thug and I did really care if they got wiped out or conquered.
But, that's just me. One thing I'd really like to mention, Londo received no satisfaction about bombing the Narn homeworld. You can see how horrified he is. Refa, on the other hand, was probably toasting and laughing with his comrades. There's a difference there that really puts a different spin on similar actions.
But, that's just me. One thing I'd really like to mention, Londo received no satisfaction about bombing the Narn homeworld. You can see how horrified he is. Refa, on the other hand, was probably toasting and laughing with his comrades. There's a difference there that really puts a different spin on similar actions.
Being jerks makes you deserve to be brutally conquered and enslaved?
Londo is a great character. The sort of character who knows what's right and wrong but does wrong anyway because it's in his best interest.
Londo is a great character. The sort of character who knows what's right and wrong but does wrong anyway because it's in his best interest.
I kinda see where you are coming from. Especially with the smaller league worlds characterization was definitely lacking. I would say the Drazi was the biggest example of this. They were mostly comic relief, simple minded buffoons or just plain quick to anger. Then when at one point when someone says to a individual Drazi that don't give up, I know you're people, you are proud and noble or something like that... I have to say that I don't really feel the proudness or nobleness.
Kail, I'm not sure you saw, or maybe don't remember, my post laying out the definitive viewing order. I've used it several times through and it has always made sense. See my post again here:
http://www.trekbbs.com/threads/babylon-5.277345/page-4#post-11374053
To add: The Gathering should be watching first, before everything else. Oh well.
Just watch ASAP.
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That's pretty much it in a nutshell. She wanted more screen time, JMS said it wasn't time. She asked to be released and JMS wrote her a heck of a great exit episode (IMO).
<nitpicking a bit> Not 9-5 but far below the standard for many shows - probably around a 11-12 hour day. There are strict union rules for the number of hours in between shooting and all of the actors make a point of telling how there was never a 'forced call' (less than 12 hours between leaving and reporting back to work - for anything, even for makeups that would take 2-3 hours) and seldom any significant overtime. JMS said that they generally wrapped by 7:00 PM and sometimes as early as 6:00 PM.
B5's budget was between $800-$900,000 per episode.
The only known example of Shatner's humility.
You know because of this thread, I've been re-watching bits of the show, especially the 5th and 1st seasons. And I just realized that I'm as old as Commander Sinclair was — 39.
I always preferred Michael O'Hare's Sinclair. Sheridan was more the traditional sci-fi hero, but Sinclair was more introspective. In fact, Sinclair reminds me a bit of how Kirk was in the early part of TOS's first season — introspective, obsessed with his job and a bit buttoned-up.
Yet, O'Hare had this comforting ease in his performance. Sinclair never came across as the military jarhead. He came across as just an average guy, who'd been through hell and was haunted by his war experience.
I met O'Hare at San Diego Comic Con, right before the first season premiered. He was there with JMS, Harlan Ellison, Jerry Doyle and Andrea Thompson. On the panel, you could tell that O'Hare was just as thoughtful as the character he portrayed.
To this day, Sinclair and Delenn remain my two favorite characters on the show. It's a shame and tragedy about O'Hare (and I'll refrain from posting articles and videos on that for fear of spoiling what happens to the character down the road.)
I always preferred Michael O'Hare's Sinclair. Sheridan was more the traditional sci-fi hero, but Sinclair was more introspective. In fact, Sinclair reminds me a bit of how Kirk was in the early part of TOS's first season — introspective, obsessed with his job and a bit buttoned-up.
Yet, O'Hare had this comforting ease in his performance. Sinclair never came across as the military jarhead. He came across as just an average guy, who'd been through hell and was haunted by his war experience.
I met O'Hare at San Diego Comic Con, right before the first season premiered. He was there with JMS, Harlan Ellison, Jerry Doyle and Andrea Thompson. On the panel, you could tell that O'Hare was just as thoughtful as the character he portrayed.
To this day, Sinclair and Delenn remain my two favorite characters on the show. It's a shame and tragedy about O'Hare (and I'll refrain from posting articles and videos on that for fear of spoiling what happens to the character down the road.)
BTW, there's a new Facebook page that some of you might be interested in since some of the questions it covers have come up here. It's called Babylon 5: FAQ & Urban Legends. There's no spoiler protection but we're gathering some of the most common questions about the show into one place. It's a reference more than for discussion but you're welcome to copy anything from it to other areas in order to discuss.
Given that funds were quite constrained, I think Babylon 5 did a remarkably good job of story telling.
The concentration was making sure that every cent went to what was on the screen. When you compare today's lists of producers for an hour-long show to B5, it's pretty amazing. JMS, Doug Netter, John Copeland and (for the first two seasons) Larry DiTillio as story editor was all there was. Compare that to the new BSG (another mostly-space-based show) where there were 14 producers of various sorts-and that's only counting ones with 20 or more episodes. Not to say that they all didn't have many and wonderful contributions, but that's definitely something that adds to the cost per episode.
Thank you! I appreciate that. I just got my season 3 DVDs and have started watching episode 1.
A few thoughts. The F/X are getting better. I liked how they brought in Jeff Conaway's character last season. I first noticed him, basically as an extra. I thought it odd at the time. "Hey, that's Jeff Conaway from Taxi. What's he doing just wondering around in the background?" Then we saw him more and more, and I guess now he's a regular. In retrospect, I thought that was cool. Usually a new character gets an "introduction", but they way they worked him in, was like he had been there all along.
I've also noticed the opening credits have drastically changed. "Our last best chance for peace has failed", "the year of the shadow war..." I can't think of another show that has done that.
Claudia just keeps getting better looking.
Londo now has a widows peak on his head, and I believe a streak of grey. Perhaps his choices are weighing on him.
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