OK.

So I am in possession of 61GB/110 episodes of Babylon 5.

Is it really worth the time and effort to watch??!

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpb1OXvNNMc[/video]

I’m quite a Science Fiction fan, and I remember it being on TV, but not if it’s any good.

I watched S2Ep1 the other day on advice and it seemed really dull, but I guess even Firefly has a dull bit…..

Thoughts?

What happened to Babylon Zoo?

They floated away. [Always wanted to go…]

i’m a massive geek, i liked it. But I haven’t seen it since it was on telly though, so it might actually be awful.

i remember enjoying storylines that only got explained a few series later.

Cougar to the forum

Cougar to the forum

IMHO yes it is worth watching assuming you like Sci fi

Sorts of fades a bit in the middle then picks up again

I largely enjoyed it at the time but I have no great desire to revisit it.

It did some things differently to the prevailing Star Trek series of the time which added some interest. The original plan was for 5 seasons but it looked like they wouldn’t get funding for the fifth season so they crammed lots of epic stuff into the latter part of the third season and the fourth season. They then got the fifth season which suffered from their need to come up with storylines that weren’t part of the original plan.

I have the feeling that the special effects have dated fairly badly.

Its most influential feature was its overarching story. Big story arcs in sci-fi shows have become far more common since Babylon 5 happened.

Was good at the time but wouldn’t watch it again. I think I gave up on it in season 3 for a bit. I did see an episode on sky a few months ago and it looked pretty dated now.

I hated it when it came out. Re-watched it while procrastinating over my PhD a few years back and really enjoyed it. The first series is painful…then it gets better. The overall story is excellent.

procrastinating over my PhD

Perfect for me then 🙂

Yes.

Although I would use t’internet and skip as many of the ‘monster of the week’ episodes as possible.

I tend to watch it when feeling ill.

it looked pretty dated now.

At the time it was revolutionary as it was initially done on the cheap with a network of Commodore Amigas (souped up, admittedly), which was pretty cool.

First series is pretty average, then it picks up, then it gets dreadful, then it picks up again. It’s pretty dated, the writing is massively variable and it gets chewy at times but it’s ok.

The films are a bit odd, but they fill in a lot of the space when things jump a bit, this will be of use.

Somehow I also got my PhD 🙂

!

Cougar to the forum

Wasn’t he in it?

They then got the fifth season which suffered from their need to come up with storylines that weren’t part of the original plan

That makes sense, I enjoyed it but always felt it lost it’s way toward the end

It held together surprisingly well despite the cancellation/uncancelation shenanigans. I enjoyed it, well worth the watch imo though it’s pretty slow.

I think tradition dictates you choose either babylon 5 or deep space 9, then are a dick about it. But I reckon ds9 might be more watchable now. It had more outright filler though.

I’m not sure any of it would be watchable now – TV has got so much better in the last decade or so.

The main arc episodes are pretty good but I remember some of the filler being pretty painful. I suspect the special effects won’t be that special anymore, I remember reading that they wanted to include more but the time they took to render was the limiting factor. And I’d agree with BBSB, it did seem to peter out after the order v chaos struggle resolved.

As I remember, the first series wasn’t great, series 2-4 picked up and were brilliant in places, series five was OK.
I always remember “Who are you?” and “What do you want?” as the key questions.
One of the original arc-story series (other than Buffy) an idea which has unfortunately ruined Dr Who.

choose either babylon 5 or deep space 9

I watched both at the time, and have been considering watching DS9 now it’s on Netflix. I greatly preferred B5 over DS9 though. I’m sure they both look pretty dated now though.

Still trying to decide on re-watching Farscape too.

Its worth a watch but its definitely not “gateway” sci-fi like something like BSG. If you’ve never seen it and you are a Sci-Fi fan though fill yer boots.

think tradition dictates you choose either babylon 5 or deep space 9, then are a dick about it. But I reckon ds9 might be more watchable now. It had more outright filler though.

I think there is a fair case for saying the DS9 ripped off the best bits from Babylon 5 but i’d agree it stands up a bit better today largely because they could afford fancy sets and half decent actors

TV has got so much better in the last decade or so.

We obviously get different channels …mainstream tv is dire but the exceptionally good shows still exist but, IMHO, they are less common

I enjoyed both B5 and DS9 and i agree DS9 had more shows that added nothing to the arc…the use of th eholo sweet was clever though leading to excellent stories.

Farscape..god yes rewatching it now..pre bought the end for that

Goroundbreaking but Rigel is its C3P0 in that I just want to kill i tevery time I see it.

half decent actors

This is one of the real issues with babylon 5. It’s really rare these days to see properly poor acting make it to the screen but B5 is stuffed full of it.

mainstream tv is dire

I never said anything about mainstream.. one of the best things to happen to TV is Netflix and similar – we can go through all the good stuff and demand more without being drip-fed by the TV chanenls.

Babylon 5 and for that matter Deep Space 9 seemed to both suffer from the same problem for me, as soon as you set something on a space station it had a whiff of shit about it. Can’t explain why but it seemed to have something to do with the limited scope and they never seemed to really go anywhere.

Let’s give Krull a try, and we can discuss it later

Boba Fatt
as soon as you set something on a space station it had a whiff of shit about it.

I think that’s because you can’t just open a window after a “i had a curry last night” poo….. 😉

I remember being pretty excited by B5, at the time the SFX were ground-breaking; instead of shonky models being moved around against bluescreen backgrounds, with explosions that were just wrong in a supposedly zero-G, vacuum environment, the ships moved in a fashion that looked appropriate to being in space, having mass, and actually looking solid and huge.
You could always tell where the budget was tight, and where they thought they could really splurge; lots and lots and lots of ships meant they had the cash to get the toys out, ‘bottle’ episodes, with just a couple of cast members in a single room with lots of yakking meant the accountants were in control.
Certainly true that the threat of being shut down meant cramming stuff and rushing the ending, the reprieve meaning they had to try, desperately, to find a way of filling an entire season.
Yes it was patchy, but I much prefered it to DS9, (I’d never really been a Trek fan), and by comparison to stuff like Andromeda, it was up there with The Wire or Breaking Bad! And Andromeda just seemed to go on and on and on and on and on and on…..
Always wish I’d bought a Shadow Ship garage kit, extraordinary looking thing, and impossible to find, now.
Still available, it seems; at a price: http://www.timeless-hobbies.com/babylon-5.html

Just found someone selling a Revell Star Fury kit; how much? 😯
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Revell-Monogram-Babylon-5-Starfury-Mk-1-BNIB-VERY-SCARCE-/221696786847

Desperate to raise money to get out of Wellingborough, and I don’t blame them!

Two possible wrongs here, a Sci fi youtube clip, with a U2 backing track.

[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=GB&v=MipPH24q4yk&hl=en-GB[/video]

I loved it, the complete story and end to end link was amazing. Was Sheridan’s line not “get the hell out of our galaxy”?

Still got the videos of the episodes when the whole thing came together in a wwwwoooooaaahhhh way. Magic stuff.

Not seen any of the non series guff.

one of the best things to happen to TV is Netflix and similar – we can go through all the good stuff and demand more without being drip-fed by the TV chanenls.

I am also not sure that the internet can really be classed as television anymore than we can call it the cinema.

Basically you meant you like the way you can watch shows now.It would have been easier if you had said that and I dont disagree its a good delivery method for content.
Its not prolific in original content yet and it remains to be seen what the full impact is IMHO

You know, the effects have aged far better than I thought. I mean, it looks less good than Eve Online but it still works and the ships have a lot of solidity, most people get that wrong even now.

i liked the series tbh.

some interesting characters and storylines.

also liked the episode where the security chief was building a kawasaki ninja bike in his dorm 8)

always felt very drawn to commander ivanova 😳

I am also not sure that the internet can really be classed as television anymore than we can call it the cinema.

The TV shows on there have all been on TV.

The point about it is that it allows us to watch much more of the good stuff, and less of the dross. And we can watch it more quickly too. So I think they will be under pressure to produce much more good telly.

However I think that TV was improving before this. A big upturn in quality starting about.. six or seven years ago maybe.

Dont ask my why I know this but I am pretty sure she did a porn or Playboy type shoot

Just checked and yes

She posed nude for Playboy magazine in October 1999

However I think that TV was improving before this. A big upturn in quality starting about.. six or seven years ago maybe.

I’d say it started further back than that – HBO were producing The Sopranos and Oz in the late 90s and they definitely seemed a cut above what went before.

Yeah you are probably right. I didnt’ watch the Sopranos but I think it probably kick started things.

The point about it is that it allows us to watch much more of the good stuff, and less of the dross. And we can watch it more quickly too. So I think they will be under pressure to produce much more good telly

All they do is buy good shows that have been on tv already and let us watch repeats. As the shows have been on tv I am not sure what you mean by more quickly.

I fail to see how this means tv is better as their is more dross now and less quality IMHO. the former { due to channel numbers] is not really debatable though the later could be.