New Babylon

If you're a fan of Babylon 5, you'll be interested to know (if you don't already) that a direct-to-DVD movie is being released at the end of July. I haven't yet decided what to make of this (though whatever I come up with, it probably won't stop me from buying it).

On the one hand, I have a pretty pristine memory of how brilliant Babylon 5 ended up being, once the whole story was told. I'm not sure I need or want another chapter in the story.

On the other hand, I did actually read some of the novels that were published after the close of the show, based on outlines provided by the creator of the series himself. They were actually very good stories (not just good "licensed fiction"), and added quite a lot to the universe. They showed that more could be a good thing.

On another hand (yes, I'm over my limit of hands at this point), not all of Babylon 5 was that great. Someone at my office has been trying to get into the show recently, and has been trudging his way through season one on DVD. And even though I love the series, I can remember back on how relatively lackluster that first season was. I find myself constantly "apologizing" for the show -- assuring this guy that if he just sticks through the rough stuff, Babylon 5 will be a really rewarding experience down the road. Though it does make me sometimes wonder how it ever survived beyond year one, with some of the real stinkers from that first season.

Particularly dreadful were the "TV movies" already made for Babylon 5. As I recall, those were about as bad as Babylon 5 got. Watching Martin Sheen ham it up as a Soul Hunter in "The River of Souls" made me grateful the performance didn't interfere with him not long after being cast in The West Wing. And the spinoff movie attempted a few years back, The Legend of the Rangers? Ugh.

In short, I find myself in an interesting state of mind. I loved Babylon 5, and yet I'm really nervous -- not excited -- at the prospect of seeing more of it. And that coupled with recently having to defend season one of the show so much, it almost has me wondering... was the show really as good as I remember? Or am I remembering it more fondly that it actually was, just because it was really the first show to execute a long "story arc" as is so much more commonplace on television today?

Maybe over the summer, when all the shows are off the air or in reruns, I'll work my way through the series again on DVD and find out whether there are rose-colored glasses over my memory of Babylon 5.