Still the best

I wish to report a troubling finding: for me, watching an episode of Babylon 5 is like opening a bag of potato chips with the mission statement of eating only the first potato chip and then sealing that bag up. It simply does not work that way. The next morning I wake up with an empty bag of potato chips, with a Vorlon sleeping next to me.

It’s still the best science fiction series that American television has turned out since the original Star Trek.

“The purpose of this meeting is to determine how best to completely f*** with everyone’s heads.” “Yes.“

“But what about Battlestar Galactica?” I hear you protesting, referring of course to the recent “reimagining” (rather than the disco-era original), which gobbled up so much praise that you would’ve thought it was M*A*S*H. I liked Galactica, but Galactica had a habit of going so dark that it was no longer entertaining at various points during its run. Babylon 5, on the other hand, was always entertaining. Even at its low ebbs (Grey 17 probably should have remained missing), it was fun to watch, as opposed to the punishing slog through some of Galactica’s more anguished, tortured story developments.

I’d also argue that Babylon 5 nudged doors open that Galactica then had more freedom to kick down forcefully; fans of BSG should cast an appreciative eye back to J. Michael Straczynski’s sometimes flawed but always-engaging planned-out-from-beginning-to-end saga. B5 also helped numerous other shows, simply by being the non-Star-Trek space-based sci-fi show that made it, and thus proving that Star Trek wasn’t a singular syndicated phenomenon. Let’s not also forget its stubbornly pioneering use of computer aniamtion and graphics at a time when it was miniature models or nothing. Later syndicated success stories – Hercules, Xena, Earth: Final Conflict, Andromeda – owe Babylon 5 a debt of gratitude.

And the audience does too. B5 was never afraid to put an issue on the table without resolving it with a pat, audience-pleasing answer. The debate was still alive well into the show’s original run as to whether or not the main characters’ political/military secession from Earth was “right” – and, even then, if it was handled correctly. Galactica sparks debate about what happens when society goes to hell. Babylon 5 sparks debate about what happens that takes society to that point; this is a show that should be repeated, often, right now, and watched closely. It’s extremely political, but in the best tradition of the original Star Trek, since it takes place in a stylized future and not the present, they got away with it.

There have been numerous attempts to revive the format with different characters, or different configurations of the existing characters (several members of the core cast have died since the show reached its natural, planned conclusion). Quite frankly, it’s best to ignore those and stick to the pilot and 110 hour-long episodes; that’s where the core of the story, and its exploration of political and sometimes profoundly philosophical issues, lies.

To say that the acting is off-the-scale is an understatement. Writer and creator J. Michael Straczynski had a habit of crafting dialogue that was denser than most campaign speeches; it’s to the credit of the actors that they somehow managed to make this very-scripted dialogue sound off-the-cuff and naturalistic as often as they did. This is a show that demands a new level of appreciation of Bruce Boxleitner and his castmates.

The fact that I end up watching the whole show all over again every few years, finding new layers and new meanings that the writers couldn’t possibly have anticipated in the mid 1990s, does amount to an admission that I miss Babylon 5 quite a bit… but I also appreciate that it said its piece, left some doors ajar in the TV landscape for future acclaimed shows to stride through with confidence, and ended on cue rather than being forced to stick around after the end of the party, waking up next to an empty bag of potato chips and a sleeping Vorlon the next morning.

Check it out on DVD or online sometime. It’s worth the ride.