Babylon 5

[CalliArcale]

Blame JMS, not the actors. <img src="/images/icons/wink.gif" /> JMS felt that he was putting too much onto Sinclair, what with him becoming a certain important figure to the Minbari (details withheld for spoiler reasons), to also have him be the person who leads the present fight against the Shadows. So he brought in a new character, thereby splitting these two huge plot elements between two characters. Personally, I think it was a wise choice, especially because it made the timing work out so much better and also allowed Sinclair the unique opportunity to be Ranger One twice! <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[larper]

That might be what JMS has said. But I will never buy it. Michael (Sinclair) wanted out of his 5 year commitment. He wanted to move back to NYC where he was a stage actor. Meanwhile, the studios wanted a big name to boost ratings, and they had access to Bruce (Sheridan). JMS had to turn his original idea upside down to fit the new character in. He felt he could not do a "now played by" because "Babylon Squared" had already been shown, and they would have had to go back and redo a lot of footage.<br /><br />Instead, JMS had to rewrite existing plot elements to give Sheridan the same backstory as Sinclair, most notably the whole Satai issue.<br /><br />It is plainly evident from Season 1 that<br /><br />1) Sinclair, not Sheridan, marries Delenn.<br />2) Sinclair, not Sheridan, goes to Zhahadum and falls.<br />3) Sinclair is the One, not the three of them together.<br /><br />The arc changed drammatically from his original vision, due to the realities of life. I simply wish he would put his original, pure idea down on paper as a novel, or series of 5 novels. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong><font color="#ff0000">Vote </font><font color="#3366ff">Libertarian</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[yevaud]

A brief aside here is that I'd recorded the original pilot onto VHS, and still have it kicking around. Perhaps I'll go watch it tonight. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>

 

[larper]

Thompson left after seaon 3 I believe. <br /><br />She was supposed to be a big weapon against the Shadows. Originally, the traitor was Takashima in the pilot, who was replaced by Ivanova. Since many characters from the pilot were already changed, JMS simply moved the traitor storyline from Takashima to Ivanova. This is evident in (dang, cannot remember episode names) the episode where Sheridan is kidnapped by the Shribe and has the big dream. But suddenly, Thompson wants to leave too (what is the use of asking someone if they are available for 5 years), so he has to quickly change the traitor thread over to her. A big part of the arc is just dropped on the floor at this point (Bureau 13, the Agemmemnon captain, etc).<br /><br />At least he salvaged something by bringing Lyta back. Her original experience scanning Kosh added some interesting stuff. But, poor Garibaldi. His girl is a traitor and is gone in the blink of an eye. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong><font color="#ff0000">Vote </font><font color="#3366ff">Libertarian</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[yevaud]

As Llondo once said to no one in particular, "Nice Shark. Pretty Shark."<br /><br />(He'd likened Humans and their interactions to those of the Shark, you see) <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><em>Differential Diagnosis:  </em>"<strong><em>I am both amused and annoyed that you think I should be less stubborn than you are</em></strong>."<br /> </p> </div>

 

[Saiph]

oops, sinclair, my bad.<br /><br /><br />Frankly, I didn't like Sinclair as a character. Some of that may have been the writing in season one, but he seemed really, stiff and far to confident in his choices.<br /><br />They were similar characters in background and general outlook, yes, but I think JMS did a good job of distinguishing them in behavior.<br /><br />I rather liked the resulting plot. I'll have to rewatch the series sometime to see if there are any glaring holes that can't be resolved. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p align="center"><font color="#c0c0c0"><br /></font></p><p align="center"><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">--------</font></em></font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">----</font></em></font><font color="#666699">SaiphMOD@gmail.com </font><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">-------------------</font></em></font></p><p><font color="#999999"><em><font size="1">"This is my Timey Wimey Detector.  Goes "bing" when there's stuff.  It also fries eggs at 30 paces, wether you want it to or not actually.  I've learned to stay away from hens: It's not pretty when they blow" -- </font></em></font><font size="1" color="#999999">The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[spacester]

crazyeddie: I'm almost embarassed to admit that I didn't like Babylon 5 when I saw the first couple of episodes. <br /><br />dragon04: I found it extremely cheesy as well originally.<br /><br />I had a similar experience. I first saw it over the shoulder of a person I was talking to, it was on a TV on the other side of the room, audio off. Well truthfully, I wasn't talking to this person, I was mostly just trying to appear to be listening as he prattled. I had some time to watch the images.<br /><br />Of course, I could tell it was a new SF show (~ episode 106), but at the time I judged the quality of a SF show by the special effects (having given up on story lines and character development and other old-fashioned concepts). So all I saw was cheese. I mean that CGI was sooo primitive, lol!<br /><br />But that became the delicious irony of the series from a production standpoint. I did make a point of watching this cheesy new show the next week, intending to give it the ol' MST3K treatment. Boy was I surprised! Not too shabby! By the following week I was hooked.<br /><br />The ironic part is that B5 made an ENOURMOUS contribution to the development of PC video cards and software. That cheesy graphics I saw was coming off of a PC!!!! That just blew my mind. They spurred sales of that video toaster card and the rest is history. And after a short time, I was way too deep in the intricacies of JMS' galaxy to give a darn if I could tell it was a blue screen shot.<br /><br />Easily the best SF in the history of television, ST does not even come close. ST can claim a bigger impact on culture, by far, but for sheer craftsmanship, JMS may never be equaled in history!<br /><br />I really like the suggestion of one per week for 4 weeks and then a long break; that would be awesome. I feel privileged to have watched the original airings; it was, as others have said, an incomparable experience. My own personal peak TV viewing experience, or top three anyway. (I don't own a TV, so I've missed a <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[larper]

<blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr /><p>Frankly, I didn't like Sinclair as a character.<p><hr /></p></p></blockquote><br />Many people had a problem with Michael O'hare, and was probably one of the reasons the studio pushed for a bigger name.<br /><br />O'hare was a NY stage actor. I don't know if B5 was his first TV experience, but it was certainly among his first. I heard he kinda didn't like it, and longed for the stage again.<br /><br />But, O'hare had a presence and a voice that Boxleitner could never match. I had a hard time getting used to Michael, but once I did, I could never really accept Bruce, especially when I also had to adjust to the dramatically changed story line.<br /><br />All I can say is, could you imagine Michael meeting the "beauty in the dark" instead of Bruce? *sigh* <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><strong><font color="#ff0000">Vote </font><font color="#3366ff">Libertarian</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[spacester]

I really didn't like Bruce before he was on B5. I considered him a hack actor and I was aghast when I first saw Captain Sheridan. Horrified! I don't even remember why though, because he won me over in fairly short order. I wasn't burdened with too much inside knowledge, so I had no clue if it was all part of the master plan.<br /><br />So I assumed it was all part of the master plan. And in that light, I thought the casting was brilliant! lol The voices in particular. BB even ended up impressing me with his voice skills.<br /><br />Now that I have learned more about the behind the scenes story, it strikes me that one of the many genious things about B5 for me was its adaptability. Of course, I was so smitten with the writing alone, that I probably missed a lot of continuity things like that anyway. I was too busy pondering the foreshadowing and other intricacies to want to care about flaws, which itself was a singular experience and very refreshing, every week. <br /><br />Somehow B5 made me not care about the flaws, while for some reason ST was just begging to be picked apart and criticized. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>