When Does Babylon 5 not get boring?? lol...
- Thread starter Joerib
- Start date
I resist comparisons between the two. B5 was essentially pre-conceived and pre-written, while DS9 was handled much more "on the fly". B5 was great because it was great from the outset...but DS9 surely deserves props for being able to come up with great ideas that hadn't been planned to happen all along.
I just don't believe in comparing the two given the difference in approach.
I just don't believe in comparing the two given the difference in approach.
But that doesn't mean there was no destiny. In the original timeline document that JMS wrote before filming on the first season started, the Grey Council was convinced that Sinclair was part of a long-standing Minbari prophecy. Some thought that he was to save them while others interpreted the prophecy to mean that he'd destroy the Minbari. That's why Delenn took the post as Ambassador to B5.The scene in the TNT version of the B5 pilot movie where Kosh first meets Sinclair and addresses him as Valen was dubbed in for the 1998 special edition of the pilot (along with Kosh’s glowing hand) – neither happened in the 1993 original. Because in 1993 Sinclair wasn’t going to be Valen, that story idea (and a few others) only developed later. ; )Re DS9 and BSG, maybe the starting point for DS9 was uncomfortably similar. Space station, OK, but a space station whose commander Has A Destiny? Oh, dear, oh, dear.
Jan
True. But Sinclair’s destiny (if I understand it correctly, and I probably haven’t ; ) originally had more to do with his marriage to Delenn and him being the father of the “chosen one” type thing who would unify the humans/Minbari in some way and bring peace to the universe, or some such. And less to do with super powerful aliens and his direct involvement – though then again, one of the original ideas was to take B4 forward after the Minbari Warrior caste destroyed B5.
Anyway, it’s all water under the bridge.
btw, I’m soooooo glad that cliché ridden set of ideas never came close to making it on screen. As he said himself, in some ways it turned out far better than he originally envisaged.
Anyway, it’s all water under the bridge.
btw, I’m soooooo glad that cliché ridden set of ideas never came close to making it on screen. As he said himself, in some ways it turned out far better than he originally envisaged.
Season two is what got me interested (airing at 1am on Sunday on a local station after all the other syndicated sci-fi - Voyager and The Outer Limits for most of the run I watched). I remember watching the pilot movie in prime time on that same local station (aired in the slot opened up due to the boycott of naked tail on NYPD Blue), but I also remember turning it off after about 30 minutes because it just seemed like a bunch of weird crap someone threw together.
The commercials for season two piqued my interest in that it seemed like a different and exciting show, and so I was pulled in. After "War Without End" in season three, my brother and I found a guy at the local comic shop who had season one on VHS; it filled in some blanks, but I really only enjoyed "Babylon Squared".
The commercials for season two piqued my interest in that it seemed like a different and exciting show, and so I was pulled in. After "War Without End" in season three, my brother and I found a guy at the local comic shop who had season one on VHS; it filled in some blanks, but I really only enjoyed "Babylon Squared".
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Lately, my problems with B5 is that sometimes they'd set things up and tell an interesting story but still manage to "wuss out" by the end.
Case in point: Garibaldi's betrayal of Sheridan. Garibaldi pretty much was right about Sheridan letting his Cult of Personality go on and how Sheridan seemed to believe in his infallibility a bit too much but in the end we find out this was all due to Bester putting into Mind Control Directives in Garibaldi so he could use him.
It would've been more interesting if Garibaldi did what he did from his own will, including betraying Sheridan.
Case in point: Garibaldi's betrayal of Sheridan. Garibaldi pretty much was right about Sheridan letting his Cult of Personality go on and how Sheridan seemed to believe in his infallibility a bit too much but in the end we find out this was all due to Bester putting into Mind Control Directives in Garibaldi so he could use him.
It would've been more interesting if Garibaldi did what he did from his own will, including betraying Sheridan.
But the way he acted after Bester "released" him made it clear he wouldn't have done that to Sheridan.
If he wasn't under any control or personality augmentation, and did that to Sheridan of his own will then it would've made for a better story.
Sure, he'd never be able to make up for it and be off the show from then on...
If he wasn't under any control or personality augmentation, and did that to Sheridan of his own will then it would've made for a better story.
Sure, he'd never be able to make up for it and be off the show from then on...
While I don't disagree, one could argue that the story arc showed that Garibaldi absolutely could and would betray Sheridan *IF* Sheridan had been acting as extreme and out of control as Garibaldi thought he was. Indeed, even then he was reticent to turn him over to Clark.
I like this better than if they'd done a full reprogram on him and turned him into an automaton or implanted a sleeper personality. THAT would have been a cop-out. Everything he says and does is still Garibaldi, just with all the dials turned up to 11.
What I do think was missing however was a scene between Sheridan and Garibaldi after everything had come out. Presumably this took place off screen, but it is a little distracting how the series just side steps around it.
I was disturbed by that as well, they needed to have some kind of closure between the two. The lack of the actual wedding between Sheridan and Delenn disturbed me too.
If there was one thing that bothered me about the series as a whole, it was the lack of anything between Garibaldi and Sheridan after Face of the Enemy. I mean we spend the entire season focusing on them breaking apart and then they are all buddy buddy after one episode which resolves everything. Personally, this to coincide with Garibaldi's storyline in Season 5 about his alcoholism would have been a great Season 5 storyline, better than what we got in the first half at least. Then it all wraps up in the "Objects" episodes, but at least it makes things more well rounded.
That's another thing, JMS said that Garibaldi was basically right about his concerns with Sheridan and the cult of personality growing around him but nothing ever came of this.
The whole "He was controlled by Bester" thing basically made his valid concerns worthless and no one ever questions the Cult of personality again.
The whole "He was controlled by Bester" thing basically made his valid concerns worthless and no one ever questions the Cult of personality again.
Season 1 is great, if you seen seasons 2-4....
if you not liking it by say, mid way season 2, it might not be your show...
if you not liking it by say, mid way season 2, it might not be your show...
I was enjoying it by the end of the first season, though there were some pretty boring episodes especially early on. The show as a whole kind of ramps up as it goes along and there's consistently more good episodes.
If you make it to Za'ha'dum and you still don't like it, run away. Of course you'd be halfway done by then.
If you make it to Za'ha'dum and you still don't like it, run away. Of course you'd be halfway done by then.
One thing about B5 some people might not be used to is that there's no set tone and the pacing isn't the same from one episode to the next. You might end up with a very quiet episode about a personal problem after a big episode where several major events that change the galaxy happen. JMS called it "roller coaster" writing. Go light, then heavy, then funny, then dark, etc.
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