It was the Dawn of the Third Age of Mankind

[Warped9]

I, too, just watched "Soul Hunter" again. You certainly have a different perspective when you know ahead of time how everything fits together.

I love the music in B5, especially the early seasons. And the first season opening theme remains one of my favourites of SF. I, too, wish Nagrath had been more effective and convincing. But one of my all time favourite aliens in SF was the Nakaleen feeder from "The Grail."

One thing I loved about B5 is how they tried to show space as truly three dimensional with no up or down. Ships were shown in all sorts of orientations. I love the Starfury design--one of the coolest things in SF hardware. And we get a good look at it in operation when Sinclair is trying to capture the Soul Hunter's damaged ship.

Regarding Sinclair. I've always liked his character and never really agreed with all the criticism directed at him.

 

[Mal]

I love the music in B5, especially the early seasons. And the first season opening theme remains one of my favourites of SF.

The Intro to Season 1 is just awesome. Not till Season 5 does the show really top it (for me).

 

[RoJoHen]

Bleh. Season 1 Ivanova was so annoying.

She's also Russian. Did you know that's she's Russian? She also hates the PsiCorp. The PsiCorp sucks. They were mean to her mother...who is probably Russian, too...just like Ivanova...who is Russian.

 

[Mal]

Infection

Oh poor, poor reviled 1x04 Infection. Where's the love? There are a few glaring problems right off the bat with the episode, for example, why does Nelson kill the customs guy? Mr. Morden would have just bribed him. It would be so much more appropriate - IPX throwing around it's cash (Mr. Morden worked for IPX too!); and we learn that Garibaldi has a very checkered past (in the course of his interview with the ISN reporter), so bribery on the station would have made him seem even more sketchy. But no, JMS just beats us upside the head: IPX IS EVILLL!

The one thing I love about Infection, is that it sets the stage for Max Eilerson, one of my favorite characters in the B5 'verse, and a regular on the short-lived spin-off Crusade. That's the second problem with this episode, I feel nothing for Steven's "old friend from University" Vance (note to all: never trust a man named Vance). Clearly JMS can (and did) come up with the very awesome Max. But characterization just fell flat here.

And then, of course, the second half of the episode descends into bad B-movie cheese that essentially boils down to Nazi = bad. Thanks JMS, didn't know that. Anyway, TNG's Arsenal of Freedom did the whole weapon-turning-on-creator thing much better.

Trivia: I do believe this is the first mention of the Great Maker.

It is nice to see Michael and Sinclair as friends. And it's nice to know Michael can talk to Sinclair about his "death wish" or survivor's guilt or whatever. This will lead to Sinclair trusting Michael with an investigation into the hole in his mind.

So, is it worth it? Should we just skip Infection and pretend like it never happened? No. And there's a simple reason why. Ask 10 different B5 fans about their favorite episode, or actor, or story, or character, and you'll get 10 different answers. But there's one thing every B5 fan agrees on: Infection is the worst episode. Period. And for that reason alone it is special. And for that reason, above all others, we must persevere.

 

[Pauln6]

I wish they'd kept N'Grath too. And I wish that Timov had been given more than one appearance too.

 

[Deckerd]

Bleh. Season 1 Ivanova was so annoying.

She's also Russian. Did you know that's she's Russian? She also hates the PsiCorp. The PsiCorp sucks. They were mean to her mother...who is probably Russian, too...just like Ivanova...who is Russian.

 

[Reverend]

Bleh. Season 1 Ivanova was so annoying.

She's also Russian. Did you know that's she's Russian? She also hates the PsiCorp. The PsiCorp sucks. They were mean to her mother...who is probably Russian, too...just like Ivanova...who is Russian.

You know, I never spotted any of that!

(Mr. Morden worked for IPX too!)

I can't believe I'm nitpicking this, but I just spent most of my free time yesterday plotting out the Syria Planum incident for the B5 wiki and I've got IPX and all that jazz on the brain. Anyway, Morden wasn't actually working for IPX, he was on loan to the Icarus mission from Earthforce New Technologies, just like Donne was on loan from Psi Corps and Anna Sheridan was a free agent on temporary contract.

Oh and while we're talking about 'Infection', blink and you'll miss it but there's a brief allusion to the IPX dig on Syria Planum where Garibaldi is talking to the ISN reporter about how he first met Sinclair.

 

[Mal]

One thing I love about B5 that I would probably hate about any other show is how much it looks like a production of its era. Everything about it is SO 90s sci-fi, and yet it still manages to hold its appeal as a series all these years later. Hair styles, set design, costumes - it all screams "what we thought the future would look like back in the 90s." And I love it.

It's sad, but this really prevents new people from watching the show (maybe MooreRon will do a reboot, ala nBSG). DS9 has held up much better (I'm talking just about the way the show looks). Heck, even TNG looks more modern than B5 - and it was made in the 80's!

 

[Deckerd]

(maybe MooreRon will do a reboot, ala nBSG).

Who?

 

[Mal]

The Parliament of Dreams

Do you know what the last Xon said just before he died? Aaaagh!
​

Now that's what I call B5! We get Londo joking about genocide, just before he passes out drunk ("In purple, I'm stunning!"). And then there's Sakai.

Oh Sakai. Who doesn't have that old girlfriend - the one you run into every now and then - the one you're so happy to see (and fuck, for old-time's sake); and then, inevitably, it dawns on both of you why you broke up in the first place.

The bitch is sexy! She can recite your favorite poem from memory (is it just me, or is that a very, very rare skill in women?). Sakai went to the Academy with Sinclair, she's pulling in big bucks, and the man (like all men) quickly tries to switch off his cell phone whenever he's around her Ah, the more things change, the more they stay the same...

We also meet the gorgeous Na'toth, in an unfortunate B-plot (which tells us years in advance that G'kar can take a pretty good beating without giving a scream to his tormentor). But at least the B-plot involves G'kar cooking and singing, and being the G'kar that we love. (The man loves 'em ho's, judging from the panties lying around his quarters. He and Mollari: two sides of the same coin...)

And of course we meet Lenneir. Poor Lenneir. Delenn uses every line on him that Dukat used on her (from Atonement and In the Beginning). The few lines she leaves out, she incorporates into the ceremony ("will you follow me into fire..."). And she starts playing with poor Lenneir's heart from the moment she meets him: no wonder the guy eventually flips out in Season 5.

Cougar grabs Lenneir's arm

Well, as they say, and so it begins...

 

[Mal]

1x06 Mind War

No one here is exactly what he appears.
​

The teaser alone has so much meaning once you've seen the show a couple of times. Ironheart's ship is stopped by Black-Omega fighters (and as they said it on screen, I could hear Bester's voice in my head: "black-omega was my baby"). Sakai is headed for talks with a mega-corp and Jeff is unsure that's such a great idea. Would this type of thing have eventually led to her disappearance at Zahadum, ala Anna? Finally, Sinclair is headed to talks with the dock-workers because of budget cuts, something that comes to a head in By Any Means Necessary.

Anyway, Sakai is headed to... Sigma 957, and she needs G'kar's permission to go there. And he says no. For her own good. We learn that jump-gates are made out of Quantium 40.

Garibaldi silently checks out Talia in the elevator (as men are wont to do). Talia elbows him in the stomach. That seems a bit much?!?

Personally, I don't care for the A-plot with Ironheart and Bester. Ironheart was Talia's old teacher, they were sleeping together, he was experimented on and made a super-teep, along with the gimp from A Race Through Dark Places (actually, don't we see him in Chrysalis too?). I really wish they had used Apesanahkwat in this episode. He is so much better than Ironheart! Anyway, Ironheart gives Talia the gift of telekinesis, but fails to sense that she's a freaking undercover agent (see Divided Loyalties), and then he becomes a First One.

Trivia: we meet the traitor who shoots Garibaldi in the back!

G'kar - There are things in the universe billions of years older than either of our races. They're vast, timeless, and if they're aware of us at all, it is as little more than ants, and we have as much chance of communicating with them as an ant has with us. We know, we've tried, and we've learned that we can either stay out from underfoot or be stepped on.
​

Sakai - That's it? That's all you know?
​

G'Kar - Yes, they are a mystery. And I am both terrified and reassured to know that there are still wonders in the universe, that we have not yet explained everything. Whatever they are, Miss Sakai, they walk near Sigma 957, and they must walk there alone.
​

Now that's B5!

On his way out, Bester gives Sinclair a "Be Seeing You" salute famous from The Prisoner.

 

[Reverend]

Garibaldi silently checks out Talia in the elevator (as men are wont to do). Talia elbows him in the stomach. That seems a bit much?!?

Being caught looking is one thing. Being caught thinking about it by a telepath who's right in front of you is something else. Whatever was going though his head, ee probably deserved it.

 

[OmahaStar]

I wish they'd kept N'Grath too.

He was busy dying on Buffy.

 

[lennier1]

Garibaldi silently checks out Talia in the elevator (as men are wont to do). Talia elbows him in the stomach. That seems a bit much?!?

Being caught looking is one thing. Being caught thinking about it by a telepath who's right in front of you is something else. Whatever was going though his head, ee probably deserved it.

Considering all the stuff going on in Garibaldi's mind it's probably a good thing she didn't perform a deep scan.

 

[JoeD80]

But there's one thing every B5 fan agrees on: Infection is the worst episode. Period.

It's actually one of my favorites.

Morden wasn't actually working for IPX, he was on loan to the Icarus mission from Earthforce New Technologies, just like Donne was on loan from Psi Corps and Anna Sheridan was a free agent on temporary contract.

I don't think that came from the show. Was that in The Shadow Within? Morden was on the IPX ship either way though.

it all screams "what we thought the future would look like back in the 90s." And I love it.

It's sad, but this really prevents new people from watching the show (maybe MooreRon will do a reboot, ala nBSG). DS9 has held up much better (I'm talking just about the way the show looks).

Isn't this like not watching original series Star Trek because it's too 60s? To me it's like saying "that book was written in 1885 so it has no value!" Their loss.

Sakai is headed for talks with a mega-corp and Jeff is unsure that's such a great idea. Would this type of thing have eventually led to her disappearance at Zahadum, ala Anna?

No. The expedition occurred prior to the first season, or you wouldn't have Morden in Signs and Portents, or Catherine would already have Shadow implants. Maybe she would disappear and get into trouble with the Shadows, but it couldn't involve the Z'ha'dum expedition.

 

[Reverend]

Morden wasn't actually working for IPX, he was on loan to the Icarus mission from Earthforce New Technologies, just like Donne was on loan from Psi Corps and Anna Sheridan was a free agent on temporary contract.

I don't think that came from the show. Was that in The Shadow Within? Morden was on the IPX ship either way though.

Yup and like I said, I was being really nitpicky, but only for the aforementioned reasons.

 

[Mal]

(Mr. Morden worked for IPX too!)
I can't believe I'm nitpicking this, but I just spent most of my free time yesterday plotting out the Syria Planum incident for the B5 wiki and I've got IPX and all that jazz on the brain. Anyway, Morden wasn't actually working for IPX, he was on loan to the Icarus mission from Earthforce New Technologies, just like Donne was on loan from Psi Corps and Anna Sheridan was a free agent on temporary contract.

Well before the Icarus, Anna was definitely working for IPX ("She could fill out the end of her contract with IPX in peace," TSW p.6; "She knew that working for the corporation she was dealing with the devil," TSW p.52).

So I think it's safe to say that Anna works for IPX, and all her protestations that "I just freelance for them," TSW p.57, is just a little self-delusion, since she has a contract with them, but still thinks they are evil.

By the way, the Icarus is owned by IPX. See TSW p.52.

But this is probably what you're referring to:

"A member of the the archaeology team who was neither a Ph.D. nor an archaeologist nor an employee of IPX. Mr. Donne, the personnel roster read, of Psi Corps." TSW, p.53 (italics original).

So you are right, Ms. Donne was not working for IPX.

"And then there was a final member of the archaeological team, on loan from Earthforce. Earthforce employees contracted out to IPX had occasionally accompanied expeditions, but IPX preferred to bring in Earthforce personnel after they had something to sell and had calculated an asking price.... At least this Earthforce contract employee had a Ph.D. in archeology... this archeologist had taken a leave of absence from his job about six months ago, and had only been reactivated for this expedition." TSW, p.54-55.

I suspect Mr. Morden was working for IPX. The Shadow Within says that Earthforce would "contract out" their people to IPX. What that means? Your guess is as good as mine. But think of it this way: Talia and Lyta were members of the Psi Corps, but they would work for whoever they could get to hire them (in fact, it was to get work that Lyta rejoined the Corps, remember?). Still, when Talia was working for Taro Isogi (A Spider in the Web, she was working for him, not the Corps. That's what it means to get a contract - you work for them and they pay you for your work.

Ms. Donne of the Psi Corps did not have a contract with IPX, rather, the Psi Corps forced IPX to allow someone from the Corps to accompany the mission ("IPX had granted Donne a place on board. The pressure from Psi Corps must have been terrific." TSW, p.53-54).

But Mr. Morden was "contracted" out to IPX, the way Talia had a contract with Taro Isogi (or with Kosh for that matter, in Deathwalker).

TL;DR: I agree with you that Ms. Donne was not working for IPX. I do think Anna was working for IPX. The case with Mr. Morden is more ambiguous (surprise, surprise), but I'm leaning towards him actually working for IPX for the Icarus mission.

 

[Reverend]

I rather think I was making a distinction between freelancers on contract and those like Max, Chang and Trent who are "company people". As in they're permanently on the pay role, not on a contract by contract basis like Anna. It's a fine line for sure, but I dare say it's significant.

 

[lennier1]

Seeing as how IPX was more or less a front to get their hands on alien technology (organic weapons and similar stuff) it's it's mostly semantics anyway.

There were regular employees, "temps" and consultants/passengers. Some were closer to the inner circle while others had no clue what was really going on.

 

[Mal]

The War Prayer

What's love got to do, got to do with it? What's love, but a second hand emotion.
​

- Londo to Vir & co. (a slight paraphrase)
​

With all the craziness in Arizona these days, the Anti-Alien themes in 1x07 The War Prayer take on a whole new resonance. That's what makes a show like Babylon 5 great: it wasn't just topical for it's time, rather, it chose to tackle tough perennial issues that often have no clear-cut answer; and no clear-cut solution either. And I don't just mean Nightwatch or the Civil War arc etc. - I mean these deep currents running throughout B5, such as the recurrent anti-alien problems.

The episode starts with a nice insight into Minbari culture. I've always been a huge fan of the Minbari farewell gesture: place your hand over the other person's boob, and nod down deep and soulfully.

We also get to see G'kar doing his arabesque protesting/incitement to riot, which is good practice for when he loses his seat on the Council and the Narn become subject once again to Centauri rule.

Best of all are Londo's running series of eminently quotable lines:

"LOVE!? What does love have to do with marriage?!"
​

and

"My shoes are too tight and I have forgotten how to dance."
​

and

"You are children, and children should be allowed to dance."
​

and

"These are my three wives: Pestilence, famine, and death."​

To the last, I can just hear Vir saying, "It is a pleasure to meet you!"

We get a little exposition re: Lyta and Ben Kyle for those who didn't see The Gathering. I like how Ivanova questions the Vorlons (saying: who knows how much of that Encounter suit is necessary, and how much is just to keep up appearances. Well, as Londo would say, we live our lives for appearances...).

Ivanova is once again clueless about love (or should I say, for the first time, since the Marcus arc won't happen for years). Her old flame turns out to be a raving bigot (with nice hair). Sinclair does a good job of ingratiating himself to Biggs - "were you in the war Biggs?" is a great line, cause these are precisely the types of people who never were in the war:

Many of those who avoided the war became advocates of a muscular foreign policy. When I was on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I would be invited to meetings in the Pentagon or the White House to discuss troop deployments. In those meetings, I encountered far too many Democrats and Republicans who did not serve in the war when they had a chance, and who overcompensated for their unease by sending others into harm’s way.
​

We also learn that the Minbari "allowed" the humans to win. Ah, if only Sinclair knew why...

That's how crazy relevant B5 is: two of the biggest issues of the day all in one hour of TV!