Platypus in Space

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I finally finished watching all five seasons of J. Michael Strazinsky's Babylon 5 today. I can remember seeing the pilot episode when it first aired as a teenager and being hooked. It was a sci-fi television show, and suffered from all the weaknesses of the genre, and yet this show was ever so much more. There's a Je ne sais qua to Babylon 5 that transcends the hokiness of rubber masks and funny hair to reach just a whiff of Shakespeare, Tacitus, Tennyson, and Dostoevsky. With all its epic scale there is a profound humanness in the characters that carries the viewer through each well-crafted season to the final end. Unlike any other American show I can think of, Babylon 5 was a series that was planned with a beginning, middle, and an end; five seasons in all. There was no attempt to run the show into the ground just to make money, and an unprecedented boldness in its attempt to tell one continuous story. And it paid off! I could go on, but I don't want to let to give out any spoilers for those who haven't seen it yet. If you haven't, go ahead and give it a try!

Comments

Linds said…
Please tell me you're watching Battlestar Galactica in its new incarnation.
12:01 AM
James said…
As soon as I get a chance. ;-) We don't have cable and Netflix is still only a distant shape on the horizon. :-)
9:27 AM
Linds said…
We actually borrowed season 1 and 2.0 on dvd from a friend who's a fan, and then downloaded season 2.5 from iTunes at only $2 each (which worked out to under $20 -- a fair investment, since we were completely hooked by then). Failing that, I'm sure you can find them on bit torrent somewhere.

We would lend them to you, but (1) we live 6 hours away and (2) we don't own anything on dvd. Barring that, we'd love to help you out!
4:31 PM
Marcy said…
Glad you enjoyed it! Besides the planned story, it was also good because, unlike some previous sci-fi shows I could mention, it didn't assume that being in space would eliminate most human interpersonal conflict. That's one of Battlestar's good points, too.

I want to watch it again sometime soon; I watched most of it with Joi and Rachel when I was still rooming with them, but not all of it. It's been too long since I've seen the 5th season.

Oh, and yeah, I don't read your blog very often... just stopped by the Flinter's blog, and then came here. (=
6:01 PM
James said…
No problem, good to see you Marcy!
10:07 AM
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