Babylon 5-best Sci-fi Ever?

[kmiller1610]

Okay, I finished season 5 and actually had more problems with the second half of the season. The story line seems to degenerate into a very careful and very long goodbye. I found it emotionally satisfying, but mostly predictable. One thing that is really excellent about seasons 1-4 is how the storyline keeps you guessing. There are so many mysteries floating around and so many conflicted, complex characters. After Byron died, I was expecting the Psi-corp to move front and center.........

Still, B5 does get high marks for a complete story. The last 4 - 5 episodes reminded me of the very LONG ending of "Return of the King...."

[Vyse]

Well I've been renting the DVDs from Netflix, and I am nearly done with S5. When it comes to serial style Sci-Fi B5 is by far the best show I've seen. The few stand alone episodes of B5 aren't that good though, which used to be SG-1's strength, before SG-1 became bad. S1-S6 of SG-1 is tied with Firefly for me, followed by DS9. I LOVED the acting on B5, especially Peter Jurasik and Andreas Katsulas (may he RIP). S5 isn't as good as the others, but it was largely the studios fault. I just fell in love with the story and the characters, and everything in the B5 universe is so laid in detail and mythology, that it nearly reaches a Tolkien-esque sense of realism.

[Lord Shiva]

Ecapped off by Enterprise which flattened a square mile of Trek precedents, it could be considered the greatest.

Some of us liked Enterprise. I thought other then Season 2, the show was fantastic.

As for Babylon, I'd say it was GREAT, but not the BEST. The best would have to be Stargate, obviously

[Vyse]

IMHO S1-S3 of ENT were dreadful. When Manny Coto took over in S4 it was great, except for that awful series finale written by B&B. Stargate Started to go downhill in S7, and has never recovered. B5 had a long story, and constant continuity, something Trek forgot after DS9, and SG-1 forgot after S6.

[Easter Lily]

Some of us liked Enterprise. I thought other then Season 2, the show was fantastic.

As for Babylon, I'd say it was GREAT, but not the BEST. The best would have to be Stargate, obviously

They are two different shows obviously but do you know why I think B5 is better than Stargate? It is because of this...

"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, Ms Sakai, they walk near Sigma 957. And they must walk there alone." (G'Kar in "Mind War")

Dialogue... dialogue is king in B5...

[Tok'Ra Hostess]

Dialogue... dialogue is king in B5...

And continuity... continuity was king in B5....

And character growth.....

And showing the repercussions for all decisions made or avoided....

And old plotlines were not abandonned mid-way through the series....

And I could go on....

[Vyse]

And continuity... continuity was king in B5....

And character growth.....

And showing the repercussions for all decisions made or avoided....

And old plotlines were not abandonned mid-way through the series....

And I could go on....

Very true, B5 was one of the few shows ever on TV to show consequences and repercussions. One thing I love about B5, there was no reset button, no relying on that over used story device.

[kmiller1610]

I think the ONLY reason I rate SG-1 over B-5 is because of the acting. The writing and continuity in B5 is so good, but many of the main characters are competent, but not highly engaging. I would put Sinclair, Sheriden and Lockley in that category and they had major roles. When Londo or Gkar or Garibaldi or Ivanova or Delenn (or any of the great guest stars) enter the scene, it all gets so much better that the uneveness is evident. Now you get used to the weaker players and sort of filter them out over time. But SG-1, at least in seasons 2-6, had no weak spots in their front line of actors. I never felt any let down or lost my sense of immersion: The General, the Doctor, SG-1 itself were all convincing, appealing and less "theatrical" and more natural than B-5.

Also, SG-1 has FAR better continuity in seasons 2-7 than any other Sc-Fi series other than B-5 IMHO....

[Commander Ivanova]

I think the ONLY reason I rate SG-1 over B-5 is because of the acting. The writing and continuity in B5 is so good, but many of the main characters are competent, but not highly engaging. I would put Sinclair, Sheriden and Lockley in that category and they had major roles. When Londo or Gkar or Garibaldi or Ivanova or Delenn (or any of the great guest stars) enter the scene, it all gets so much better that the uneveness is evident. ....

You make a very good point about some of the acting letting down the overall vision of B5. But as a whole, it was a stunning piece of work.

[Ancient 1]

Very true, B5 was one of the few shows ever on TV to show consequences and repercussions. One thing I love about B5, there was no reset button, no relying on that over used story device.

Excellent point, that is if you are referring to Time Travel. B5's story line only messed with it on one or two occasions and both were tied to the disappearence of B4. The loose ends got tied very nicely and the concept was never revisited so that it never became old or hackneyed.

[Easter Lily]

And continuity... continuity was king in B5....

And character growth.....

And showing the repercussions for all decisions made or avoided....

And old plotlines were not abandonned mid-way through the series....

And I could go on....

Oh absolutely... I'm one of the converted...
But I'm so in love with words and I love the words that JMS put into the mouths of his characters. They are pearls... all of them... or as Rodney McKay would say, "gold"...
Even BSG with all its great sense of continuity cannot as yet boast of such dialogue or mythos.

[Vyse]

Excellent point, that is if you are referring to Time Travel. B5's story line only messed with it on one or two occasions and both were tied to the disappearence of B4. The loose ends got tied very nicely and the concept was never revisited so that it never became old or hackneyed.

What I mean by "Reset Button" is thatg after a conflict is over everything returns to the status quo. Voyager and ENT use this to death, and more recently Smallville. The thing I love about B5 is that everything moves forward, a conflict may be over, but everything changes. This makes the story feel more realistic.

[Ancient 1]

What I mean by "Reset Button" is thatg after a conflict is over everything returns to the status quo. Voyager and ENT use this to death, and more recently Smallville. The thing I love about B5 is that everything moves forward, a conflict may be over, but everything changes. This makes the story feel more realistic.

I concede you that point too.

[kmiller1610]

Love the reset button image. If you think back to Trek:TOS and really every SciFi series until B5, writers were given a writers guide that supplied a framework, but each ep was a stand alone drama. That was true of MOST television, including westerns, cop shows, etc.

B5 changed that. In fact the strong story arcs of many shows since, especially Stargate Sg-1, which borrowed from everybody, owe a lot to B5. Even the somewhat similar Deep Space 9 suddenly sprouted a cohesive story line 4 years after its premier, just about the time when B5 was wrapping up....

[Vyse]

I finally just finished watching S5 of B5. I was in tears when B5 exploded, and Sheridian gone. No TV show has ever affected me this way, all I can say is wow. While the first of S5 was weak, the last part of it is amazing. I'm nearly speechless now.