1 of 3

Write now Article Tools

Could this science fiction series Babylon 5, created by J. Michael Straczynski, brilliantly written and directed, with inspired casting, and production, be regarded as signs and portents for the current political, economic and social factors currently being played out upon this world's stage?

Comprising of the initial pilot, followed by a television series spanning five-seasons between January 1994 and November 1998, interspersed with further five TV movies and a spin off series Crusade, (ended prematurely), has been required viewing for me at least once and sometimes twice a year ever since.

The principle dozen characters, along with, regular minor and guest actors, play out these archetypal roles of heroes, villains and anti- heroes against a back drop of planetary and inter-planetary social, political, religious, ideological and philosophical aspirations and machinations.
Coupled with the themes of personal goals and drives, familiar and cultural identities, party loyalties, clan and clandestine allegiances' and operations, from both Earther and none Earther alike, which in turn either lend support to or conflict with the noble ideal of the Greater Good, and how all of these different factors allow each party to reinterpreted their own concept of and apply limits to, or indeed, break the bonds of, this ideal.

Straczynski set the plot in the relatively near future (2256-7) and begins ten years after the Earth - Minbari War (2242) in which the human race was driven nearly to extinction by the technologically advanced Minbari, who had embarked on a Jihad or holy war with the Earthers after the killing of their leader Dukhat by an inexperienced, first contact commander and crew of the Amundsen, who mistook Minbari custom as a threat, with the successful construction of a diplomatic station space station, dedicated to peace, born out of a proposal of Senator David Indiri from New Delhi India and launched by President Luis Santiago (2249).
The Babylon Project was initially funded by the Earth Alliance alone, but the first three Babylon stations met with misfortune. B1 suffered infrastructure collapsed, B2 was sabotaged, B3 was damaged beyond repair by an explosion, B4, the largest and most expensive of the stations, disappeared, reappeared, then disappeared and reappeared then finally disappeared again in Sector 14.
B5 was the Earth Alliances' last chance to honour this project that they knew they could not afford, and substantial contributions were made by Minbari

• 1
• 2
• 3
• ...
• 8
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about TV show reviews: Babylon 5?
We want to hear your view. Write now!