Revisiting Babylon 5 by Embassy

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Revisiting Babylon 5

POSTED BY: EMBASSY
UPDATED: Saturday, July 30, 2005 16:36
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Saturday, July 30, 2005 5:55 AM

We have been rewatching Babylon 5 a fair bit lately since finding a low-cost packaged set of all five seasons. What's remarkable is that with ten years of hindsight, how amateurish and cartoony the effects look. There are all sorts of quibbles you can make with Babylon 5, such as the dramatic pacing of the fourth and fifth seasons, or the quality of some of the acting, and these things have been discussed lavishly in Babylon 5 fandom online for years.

But looking back on it now, I get a "The Last Starfighter" vibe off of B5. I recall at the time looking forward intensely to to each episode, because at the end of the day good storytelling will prevail. But the dialog scenes look cramped and "soap opera" to me, and the CGI scenes seem little better than what I can do on my laptop now with Maya.

I bring this up because it impressed me at the time, and I have to pause a moment and reflect at how far CGI effects have progressed in the years between B5 on the one hand and Firefly or BSG on the other.

Still, I think that when we look back a decade hence, we're going to be pleasantly surprised at how well the look and feel of Firefly will hold up.

What can we anticipate the technology of the near future will offer, to enhance SF-type story telling? Actually believable aliens rather than muppets or people with prosthetic body parts?

"We Need More Cowbell"

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Saturday, July 30, 2005 7:32 AM

GROUNDED

The outdated CG doesn't bother me in the slightest - pretty much everything else does though... ;)

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Saturday, July 30, 2005 8:40 AM

CITIZEN

The effects are about the same as you could do then in lightwave, on a workstation.
Since thats what they were done on...

A woman drove me to drink and I didn't even have the decency to thank her.
--W.C. Fields

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Saturday, July 30, 2005 9:54 AM

LEEH

The effects may be flat, and Ghu knows the acting was never all that great, but B5 broke new ground by telling a connected story that spanned five (well, four, since JMS had to wrap up early in case he didn't get a fifth eason) years in a coherent, compelling fashion. Prior to B5, TV sf was always episodic, in Star Trek fashion. I loved the fact that B5 unfolded as a unified narrative.

I have been revisiting it as well, especially in these dark political times. JMS lacks Joss's gift with words, but he has his own sense of humor, so there is plenty of good comedy to balance out the dark drama. And although JMS does not have as sophisticated a sense of character--at least, not with his humans; his aliens are pretty amazing--you can see his characters developing complexity over time.

For me, bottom line re: B5--it was the best sf on TV, and is only now being supplanted by "Galactica." FF would have surpassed both, had it had time to develop. Sigh.

"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle. . . ."

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Saturday, July 30, 2005 9:56 AM

LEEH

Oh, and by the way, when the hell are you finding time to revisit B5--or rather, how are you dragging Mrs. Embassy away from Enterprise to do so?

I can't wait to get back into second season (I'm just at "Signs and Portents"). Post-Nov. 2nd, it will have real resonance. . . .

"Well, my days of not taking you seriously are certainly coming to a middle. . . ."

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Saturday, July 30, 2005 4:36 PM

EMBASSY

On ebay. Message me here and I'll put you in touch with my source. They're Japanese, but not subtitled or anything - It's all five seasons for about 80 bucks.

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