Season 1 was used as the season to use the more common Sci-Fi plots and get them out of the way before getting to the main story which ran in Seasons 2, 3 & 4. Season 5 is weak because the main “A” plot was shortened and shoved into the end of Season 4, so it was really using the B plot as the A plot and the C plot as the B plot. Plus Tracy Scoggins really was not as good or interesting as Captain Lochley, vs Claudia Christian as Captain Susan Ivanova.
Your Babylon 5 Recommendation
- Thread starter HugeLobes
- Start date
Best show ever, l may be a Trek fan but B5 is simply the best show ever. The first season can seem like a struggle but upon a rewatch you will be stunned at how much was in the open. Standaline episodes were never it's strong point but these become less and less as the series progresses.
One thing I will say about the acting, characters like G'Kar and Londo will give performances that will rival anything on tv. But in the end the story arc is the real Star here and you will not find anything as complex or complete tv and this really laid the foundation for other shows to become serialised.
One thing I will say about the acting, characters like G'Kar and Londo will give performances that will rival anything on tv. But in the end the story arc is the real Star here and you will not find anything as complex or complete tv and this really laid the foundation for other shows to become serialised.
It's the best sci fi show ever.
(I just said that to counter the negatives).
There actually is brilliance along the way, as well as some tedium. But overall I thought it was an amazing experience that I wouldn't have wanted to miss.
Those who complain about the effects may not realize that B5 was the ground breaker for TV-budget digital effects. They did it first, learned, developed, and grew, and other shows have them to thank. Don't be ungrateful.
Forbin, cool name BTW, the FX were very good at the time and as a "hard science guy" I loved how they would show the fighters maneuvering in zero G but in comparison to todays FX they are pretty bad. Does not diminish the great stories.
Well sure, because they were at the beginning. Like, special effects in general weren't as good in 1930 as they were in 1968 or 77. You have to take that into consideration while watching Flash Gordon serials as opposed to 2001 or Star Wars.
Season 5 of B5 always felt like that last chapter in the final book of LotR to me. After 2.9 books of one story we get a random other thing tacked on the end.
Babylon 5 is a slow burn in the first season, but I think once you get to the 2 part episode about the planet, the series kicks it into gear, and Chrysalis is still my second favorite finale of the season finales (The first being the third season finale).
As for Season 5, The back half of the season is just as good as anything that came before.
As for Season 5, The back half of the season is just as good as anything that came before.
Same here it is almost as if they haven't watched the whole season, that second half is as good as anything that has come before.
Well with Season 5, it just seems like the plots were being stretched from their originally intended smaller size to something that would cover 21 episodes. Season 5 really needed a different A plot, like maybe a plot that could’ve setup “Crusade”.
Bit of B5 nerd history, B5 was on the PTN network which basically died at end of season 4. There was such a huge fear that B5 wouldn't get a 5th season that JMS compressed the arc, moved things from S5 in to S4 and even filmed Sleeping In Light as the season final. Then TNT decided to pick up B5 so a new S4 final had to be filmed and a whole bunch of material that would have been background fodder in S4 (the Teep stuff) became a main A plot for the first half of the fifth season. To further compound things Claudia Christian departed the show (thats a whole other thing) so her part was given to Lita.
Can you imagine the impact of a Ivanova who had kept her secret for so long had to then turn to the very organisation she despised
Yep that first half isn't great, the actor playing Byron was really badly miscast but once that is out of the way its back to be solid.
I would recommend season 1 episode Deathwalker.
The episode is related to the Dilgar war, which Earth fought and won before the Minbari war. The Dilgar war is seldom mentioned because it took place decades earlier before the timeline of the tv series but it was the war that made the Earth Ailliance a respected major power.
The episode is related to the Dilgar war, which Earth fought and won before the Minbari war. The Dilgar war is seldom mentioned because it took place decades earlier before the timeline of the tv series but it was the war that made the Earth Ailliance a respected major power.
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The Shadow ships were some of the best "evil" ships ever. They still looked cool when I rewatched the series last year.
I was sitting down with a friend watching "Space Seed". She was a new convert to all things Trek. She loved them all but TOS, hated the hamminess of Shatner. As we watched she commented on just how bad the exterior shots of the Enterprise orbiting the planet were and I had to tell her "These are the remastered episodes. You should have seen the originals." As we watched I also pointed out when the doubles took over during the fight in engineering. I guess it's all relative and just up to what you can accept without taking you out of the story.
I still laugh when I think about the old Flash Gorden serials. The ship obviously hanging from strings with the exhaust smoke just going up from the back of the model, so bad LOL.
The first time we see a Shadow ship was amazing. It was threatening, huge, and I think it still holds up on repeated viewings. How I saw the Shadow ship is the same feeling I had when I saw the Borg ship for the first time.
I consider it a little unfortunate that I don't recall the actual episode they were watching at the time.
The Borg ship in "Q Who" was iconic. The tension is already up because Our Heroes are someplace they shouldn't be, and then a ship comes along that's a perfect cube, almost actively defying everything we've seen in starship design to date in favor of a bold "We don't give a damn what our ships look like, and why should we?" aesthetic.
I suppose it would be interesting if it turned out the Borg built their ships to look that way on purpose.
The Borg ship in "Q Who" was iconic. The tension is already up because Our Heroes are someplace they shouldn't be, and then a ship comes along that's a perfect cube, almost actively defying everything we've seen in starship design to date in favor of a bold "We don't give a damn what our ships look like, and why should we?" aesthetic.
I suppose it would be interesting if it turned out the Borg built their ships to look that way on purpose.
And spaceflight featured blue skies (well, gray), and clouds. We were so innocent back then.
I think DS9 holds up better than B5, but for a run of several episodes in season 3, B5 was one of the most intense TV experiences I've had. I've got issues with the acting and with the dialogue and a few other things, but the plotting could really crank up the tension.
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