Babylon 5: Rewatching Season 4

[Brian G Turner]

The first few episodes of Season 4 continue on the dramatic highs we saw through Season 3.

Here's the thing - on the last rewatch I stopped watching after episode 6, Into the Fire, when Sheridan forces a resolution of the Shadow War.

It means the series ends with a strong finale, with all the major plot arcs resolved - and a happy ending. Once Londo redeems himself I hate to see what happens after. I seem to remember the writing starting to weaken after, too.

However, I've promised the kids we'll watch everything, so maybe I'll change my mind on it.

Despite my criticisms, though, Babylon 5 at its peak was easily the best TV show I've ever seen - and never seen anything else come close to matching it.

My youngest describes it as "the best old-fashioned show" she's seen, and my eldest describes it as "a story for nerds, by nerds, which means it's perfect".

Anyway, with some trepidation, time to finish the rest of the series. And just maybe it will feel better than the last time I watched it, a very long time ago.

 

[Glaysher]

For me what makes season 4 so strong made season 5 so weak. By accelerating through the story line in fear of being cancelled we had a highly paced season with the major story lines completed. Then after being renewed for season 5 we go further than planned and it feels like a tack on to the story.

 

[tinkerdan]

I would agree with this::

For me what makes season 4 so strong made season 5 so weak. By accelerating through the story line in fear of being cancelled we had a highly paced season with the major story lines completed. Then after being renewed for season 5 we go further than planned and it feels like a tack on to the story.

Also they were beginning to get more irons in the fire with Crusade which might have been a mistake.

I'm not sure if it has been noted before but this site::
Lurker's Guide: Episode List
:: has a pretty full chart of episodes and analysis and extras for anyone trying to sort things out.
might be helpful.

 

[J-Sun]

Weird synchronicity and I only post because of it. I'll try your Lurker's Guide, @tinkerdan (thanks) and maybe it'll help. I've seen random eps of B5 back when and just never got into it. I recently came across a DVD set of s4 for cheap, so picked it up for the heck of it. I know jumping into s4 would not be recommended but I feel like I at least mostly know what's going on based on my earlier random viewing and, ironically, I've actually already seen most of these so far (I also just finished watching ep6.)

I just don't get it. This isn't an attack like "B5 sucks!" This is just my own personal impressions and confusions. I mean, my review is "Lord, it wasn't good" but I fully acknowledge a lot of people love it and I could just be missing everything. The special effects are even worse than Space: Above and Beyond's or any early CGI show I've seen. CGI's gotten pretty good and practical effects used to be pretty good but there was this bad period in between and B5 is the worst of it. And then, even when not CGI, there are major problems. I know Trek is goofy because of the "bumpy foreheads" thing but what is up with the Centaurians having weird hair as basically their single alien characteristic (visible, I mean, excluding two hearts and all)? And what can possibly explain the Minbari's weird heads? At least ST's stuff has no biological or practical argument against it. Bumpy foreheads are no more of a plus or minus than bumpy ears. And then there are constant minor irritants like doors being shaped funny and hinged at the top. Okay, set that aside, because it's just superficial. So the acting strikes me as poor. Ivanova's not unattractive, so I used to think she was okay but she's not, nor is anyone else. The kid from Lost in Space, the worst guy in Taxi, whatever Bruce Boxleitner was (I forget), and a sort of pseudo-Bruce Willis-ish guy and people with funny accents? All very wooden. So set that aside as just part of the mechanics of TV and not about the core story. But the core story - what JMS always gets raves on - seems to be very conventional, the vibe of the whole thing isn't remotely science fictional but is fantasy (again, Star Wars does this but does it a lot better to me), and the dialog is so... pontifical and grandiose. One of my friends back in the day made fun of the scene in Excalibur (a generally spiffy film) we were watching where Arthur says, "I will build a... ROUND!!!... table!..." and that's always stuck in my head as the signature "grandiose overdoing it" moment and all of B5 seems like that. I dunno. I love DS9 on one hand and Star Wars on the other and can watch S:AAB's crappy CGI and I prefer them all to this.

I wasn't overly impressed with the first few eps of the DVD but thought, "hell, I paid for it, I'll watch it and see if it doesn't grow on me or click for me" but, after ep6, I just feel like watching one or two more as a last chance and expect to quit after that. So set me straight, folks! What am I missing?

 

[tinkerdan]

Can't speak for anyone else.
For me I loved the show even through the strange disappointments such as the replacement of Sheridan for Sinclair.
One thing was that it wasn't Star Trek or Star Wars and at the time those two seemed to dominate.
I also enjoyed the long arc story and how most episodes had their own internal arc that would complete that episode or travel over two or three while the main arc kept going.

I didn't get caught up with the quality of CGI though I do think it was adequate to the show and it's time. ( Once again showcasing my ignorance of some of the important things in life.)

There were rough spots in the acting and I think you might find some acknowledgment of that even in the lurkers guide. I always appreciated the Ivanova character and Claudia Christian; though there is one particular episode where her acting did seem to go OTT and that always perplexed me.

Perhaps another draw for me was the use of Cameo appearances such as that radio personality from my home town. And Penn and Tiller and Harlan Ellison. (To name a few.)
@J-Sun
I have to admit though that you have some of the most important episodes in the season you have and if you can't get those to work for you within the outline you've laid out, I'm not sure what to suggest other than to find some way to watch the first season and if it's just as much sour grapes then you probably won't care much for the rest.

 

[Brian G Turner]

I recently came across a DVD set of s4 for cheap, so picked it up for the heck of it. I know jumping into s4 would not be recommended

As all the major plot arcs effectively resolve in the first 6 episodes, what you've effectively done is the equivalent of watching the last 10 minutes of a film you've glanced through. I doubt anyone would get much enjoyment from that.

What Babylon 5 does incredibly well is set up a complex web of plots and subplots, and then maintains a sense of consistency and continuity with these in a way that no other show - before or since - ever has. A lot of deep themes are touched upon and cleverly handled. Characters change and develop through the series.

The enjoyment comes from seeing how all this is revealed and then resolved. There are a lot of surprises along the way, and a ton of tension and excitement because of it.

Back to rewatching, and saw episode 7 last night - Epiphanies - and it flowed smoothly from the previously episode. Interesting, surprising, and certainly continues the mood, so it certainly didn't disappoint. I just don't want to see some of the character downfall moments we are coming!

 

[Glaysher]

As all the major plot arcs effectively resolve in the first 6 episodes, what you've effectively done is the equivalent of watching the last 10 minutes of a film you've glanced through. I doubt anyone would get much enjoyment from that.

What Babylon 5 does incredibly well is set up a complex web of plots and subplots, and then maintains a sense of consistency and continuity with these in a way that no other show - before or since - ever has. A lot of deep themes are touched upon and cleverly handled. Characters change and develop through the series.

The enjoyment comes from seeing how all this is revealed and then resolved. There are a lot of surprises along the way, and a ton of tension and excitement because of it.

Back to rewatching, and saw episode 7 last night - Epiphanies - and it flowed smoothly from the previously episode. Interesting, surprising, and certainly continues the mood, so it certainly didn't disappoint. I just don't want to see some of the character downfall moments we are coming!

I agree. Season 4 packs the punch it does because of what came before. You wouldn't need to watch every single episode from season 1 to 3 to appreciate 4 but you do need to see all the main plot episodes.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Well, I did finish watching Season 4 and generally did enjoy it. It still grates on me somewhat that Sheridan drops his leadership of the fleet to find his father - and even though he expects a trap, he takes no precautions. Even worse is how easy it is to free him after...

Also, the Shadow War - the biggest of the story arcs - is resolved in 10 episodes, but the Earth War one takes another 11.

I still think of the second half of Season 4 as the weaker, and although it does tie up all major storylines, I feel that the end of the Shadow War is the best natural ending for the story - it completes the biggest stories, while leaving others open with the knowledge that eventually they will be resolved. That also leaves the show on much more of a high, as later episodes can be something of a downer, not least with Marcus.

 

[Rodders]

Season four had some outstanding bits to it. I remember the capture of Sheridan to be quite upsetting to me. Not so much because of the fact that he was captured, (we all know that was going to happen), but I felt really helpless when he was being roughed up in the bar. I felt that I wanted to help, but couldn't. It had a pretty profound effect on my at the time.

Garibaldi's use by the Psy-Corp was also pretty spiteful Andy I vividly remember the scene in the train where Bester reveals everything to Garibaldi and ponders whether to leave him trapped, paralysed and mute on the train with the knowledge of what his actions had led to constantly being repeated in his head. Quite harsh.

Season four was a good series and I enjoyed it immensely. Some excellent space battles too.