Z'ha Dum

[Brian G Turner]

Before Sheridan goes to Z'ha Dum, Kosh tells him not to go, and that he won't be there for him if he does.

During the Babylon 4 future scenes, Delenn tells Sheridan implicitly not to go to Z'ha Dum.

After Sheridan goes, the new Vorlon ambassasor states that Sheridan has "opened an unexpected door".

My question is:

Was Sheridan always going to go to Z'ha Dum?

I'm still trying to figure out whether he did something different - or simply played out history as would happen.

Kosh said he wouldn't be there for him - but because Sheridan carried a piece of Kosh, Kosh therefore actually was. Does this play for Sheridan having Freewill and the ability to confound the history of the future - or simply that Kosh was not telling a whole truth?

If Sheridan did have the choice, why should he never have gone? After the attack by Sheridan on the Shadows at Z'ha Dum, they move a base onto Centauri Prime. Is this the consequence that was to be avoided so long as Sheridan didn't go to Z'ha Dum?

But was it ever a consequence that could ever be avoided?

As for the unexpected door - first hearing is that Sheridan has done the unexpected by going to Z'ha Dum - but was it really nothing more than discovering Lorien?

I still can't figure out the whole "should he/shouldn't he" go to Z'ha Dum question - namely: what was originally going to happen; did Sheridan change anything; and why the dire warning about going?

 

[manephelien]

"If you go to Z'ha'dûm, you will die."

I think it was nothing more and nothing less than a personal warning to Sheridan not to go. He died, and although Lorien brought him back to life, it shortened his life by at least 30 years.

Also, it was only after he went there that the Shadows started to travel openly again. It may have precipitated their plans for another war, although I'm not entirely sure that's a bad thing, since they were relatively badly prepared for the reception they got from the younger races.

This whole Z'ha'dûm episode reminds me a lot of Tolkien. Z'ha'dûm itself sounds a lot like a corruption of Khazad-dûm, the Dwarvish name for Moria. Lorien is also a shorter name for Lothlórien, the land of the Elves, where the immortal folk dwelt. When Anna Sheridan went to Z'ha'dûm earlier, she woke the Shadows up, rather like the Fellowship did when they disturbed the balrog of Morgoth...

 

[greenman]

The shadows had been moving opening before Sheridan went to Z'ha'Dum, if anything his actions caused them to go into hiding.

The way I see it is that Kosh had a different outlook to the Vorlon's in general. He had IMHO become closer to the younger races and disillisioned with the cycle of wars with the Shadows and hoped that Sheridan meeting Lorien might stop them. For the rest of the Vorlon's Sheridan was probabley viewed as just another leader to unite the other races agenst the Shadows so his direct attack on Z'ha'Dum was a supprize to them.

 

[Brian G Turner]

I guess the other big question is why Sheridan was warned not to go to Z'ha Dum by Delenn. What outcome would have been averted, and better for everybody, if he hadn't have gone? With the Shadow vessels surrounding B5 after he left the station, would he even have had a choice?

 

[Frontierzone]

i believe Delenn was simply reacting emotionally. Remember. Delenn's warning was given while John was "unstuck" in time, and Delenn was telling him while they were in their cell together. She knew the outcome. She was in love. She knew that, if John went to Z'ha'dum, his life would be shortened. She didn't want to be a widow so soon. It was a purely emotional response. Deep down, I think, she knew that going to Z'ha'dum, even though it meant the ultimate sacrifice, was, in the end, necessary.

"No greater love has a man than this, that he lay down his life for a friend."

 

[Dave]

Whoa! I shouldn't have read these spoilers about Sheridan. I'm a B5 newbie and only just watched the Z'ha'Dum episode. I was thinking that how, so far, history had not been changed at all. Similar questions to Brian's also came to me. He was told before that the future cannot be changed. Sheridan's goal in going to Z'ha'Dum was to stop the destruction of Centauri Prime, so he failed by going there, but I can't actually see another way to achieve overall victory. I agree, he had no choice but to go to Z'ha'Dum.

With the Shadow vessels surrounding B5 after he left the station, would he even have had a choice?

Exactly so, the Shadows could very easily have destroyed B5, and Sheridan with it if he stayed behind, if they had wanted to do that at the end of Season 3. Their goal was different; to turn Sheridan to support them. I'm not sure I trust the explanation given by the Shadow agents to John about why they want this, but clearly John is more important to the final outcome than B5 is. There next step would have been to threaten John with the destruction of B5 if he didn't co-operate ("removing his support mechanism.") After that failed, they would have probably killed him anyway. We were told by "the middle-man" that if John was killed another would "come around and replace him," but maybe that person would be more amenable to working for the Shadows.

Delenn's behaviour here is odd, but I think Frontierzone is correct. She was too personally emotionally involved. I'm sure she also still has some more secrets she is holding out on John, but you will know about those that better than me.

Sheridan once said that he knew everything that went on in B5. This episode clearly shows that he does, in the way he organised his covert attack on Z'ha'Dum. I guess they will break it all down and reveal it all in the next episode, but I hadn't realised about the "dying" part. I just thought Garibaldi had gone to pick him up.

In any case, the original wait between this episode and the first episode of Season 4 must have been enormous. Season 3 was great with this episode and the War without End two-parter being stand-out. I didn't expect Sinclair to return nor the fact that he was really Valen.

 

[Dave]

Now that I've watched Season 4 I can correct myself. Since this Season was planned as the end of the series, although I haven't yet seen Season 5 it shouldn't really matter.

He was told before that the future cannot be changed. Sheridan's goal in going to Z'ha'Dum was to stop the destruction of Centauri Prime, so he failed by going there, but I can't actually see another way to achieve overall victory. I agree, he had no choice but to go to Z'ha'Dum.

The destruction of Centuari Prime hasn't happened (yet). Londo Mollari has only just been announced Emperor. Yet, Mollari's comment to Sheridan in the future was "you have caused this." There was a definite sense that the destruction in the future was more immediate, although Mollari was shown as very old. So, I'm a little confused with the whole segment now. Even more confusing is that Vir Cotto was not shown as so old as he took the place of Londo (as prophesied.) I'm sure the this will be covered in Season 5, but I clearly Sheridan did change the future (or move events further forward.)

 

[Brian G Turner]

A couple of interesting points were made to me about this:

By "opening a new door" one interpretation is that normally the Shadow/Vorlons conducted war by proxy. In this instance, they would have manipulated the newer races from afar, then when it had reached a certain conclusion, both withdrawn - waiting for the cycle to continue.

But by going to Z'ha Dum, Sheridan made a direct attack on the Shadow homeworld. That forced both the Shadows and Vorlons to come to the fore and attack directly, hence the Planet Killer.

Hence the warnings are for Sheridan not to go to Z'ha Dum because that escalated the conflict into something much bigger and more destructive than anything in the previous cycles.

Another unexpected consequence was that Sheridan met Lorien, who was the one figure that both Vorlons and Shadows could listen to and respect - and thus bring the cycle of conflict to an end.

 

[Frost Giant]

But by going to Z'ha Dum, Sheridan made a direct attack on the Shadow homeworld.

Exactly, I don't think they were expecting Sheridan to destroy the capital city of the Shadows in that surprise attack. From what Vir told Ivanova, it threw them into complete chaos. I also got the impression (especially from earlier episodes like "In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum") that Kosh and Delenn were concerned that the Shadows might be able to influence Sheridan by using his wife against him.
As Brian said, getting both sides to dust off their planet killers was something everyone wanted to avoid.