
Steven Furst’s role on Babylon 5 was a remarkable example of a sci-fi sidekick - Tomte
https://www.theverge.com/2017/6/18/15826064/steven-furst-babylon-5-vir-cotto-science-fiction-sidekick
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tnecniv
Babylon 5 should get way more love. It was ambitious in a way it's
contemporaries weren't [1]. The fact that J. Michael Straczynski wrote the
majority of the episodes is both unheard of and shows in how consistent and
well-crafted the universe is. Pretty much every character is complex,
motivated, and portrayed expertly.

It was the first TV show to regularly use CGI. Unfortunately, it hasn't aged
well compared to Star Trek. If you can tolerate that, I can't sing the
series's praises high enough.

[1] With the exception of Deep Space 9, and there's always that rumor that
they stole the idea for DS9 from B5...

~~~
cbanek
I think one of the problems is B5 is not really episodic, it's a serial story
that you really need to be following. But back in the 90s, this was pretty
hard to do over such a long period of time.

It's meant to be binged, or at least watched without missing an episode. And
it's that good to be worthy of it.

G'Kar lives!

~~~
wnevets
A Babylon 5 being created in the age of breaking bad and game of thrones would
be amazing.

~~~
WorldMaker
It also can be argued that the age of Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones only
happened because Babylon 5 was ahead of its time enough to scout some of the
territory.

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AdamJacobMuller
It seems like too many involved with Babylon 5 are dying far too young.

When Richard Biggs died, I was sad, but I thought a revival could still be
possible and be enjoyable. When Andreas Katsulas died, I knew any revival
would suffer without his presence.

Now at some point with Jerry Doyle, Jeff Conway and now Stephen Furst have
passed beyond the veil and I've come to realize that I don't want any more
Babylon 5 -- except for a TOS/TNG-like remastering with new CGI -- I'd pay a
lot for that.

I feel almost cruel pointing it out because they were limited print runs and
you can't really buy them (no digital copies exist as far as I know, and the
print copies are costly) but there exists an amazing set of books
([http://www.cafepress.com/b5books](http://www.cafepress.com/b5books)). Each
volume has copies of a few scripts from the show, but the real magic is a
series of stories written by JMS for every book and each episode of B5. They
go into detail about the production of the show and production of television
shows in general and just how ground-breaking Babylon 5 was in general. The
show was just as revolutionary behind the scenes as it was on screen. The
books go into great detail to explain what happened to season 5 and -- at the
risk of a BuzzFeed-style headline -- it's not what you think.

As a consolation prize for those who cannot read those books, I suggest
Claudia Christians Memoir (Babylon Confidential
[https://www.amazon.com/Babylon-Confidential-Memoir-Love-
Addi...](https://www.amazon.com/Babylon-Confidential-Memoir-Love-
Addiction/dp/1937856062)). It's quite good -- even and especially the non-
Babylon 5 parts.

Each of these deaths from Babylon 5 leaves me profoundly sad because I highly
doubt I will ever see another show that I enjoy as much as I enjoyed Babylon
5. I'm not sure that anyone will make another show with such depth and
intricacy, though I will be watching the final two seasons of Game of Thrones
with deep anticipation.

~~~
PhantomGremlin
_It seems like too many involved with Babylon 5 are dying far too young._

Don't forget Michael O'Hare. Not that he had much involvement after the first
season, but still, dying at age 60 is much too young.

Also Tim Choate. A bit player, but I really loved the character. _Yes. Yes.
Zathras is used to being beast of burden to other people 's needs. Very sad
life. Probably have... very sad death. But... at least there is Symmetry_

~~~
AdamJacobMuller
I did forget Tim Choate, which is sad, I loved Zathras. At least a different
Zathras lives on, somewhere, sometime.

I had no idea Michael O'Hare died :(

While I know his departure from the show was unplanned, I admire the skill
with which JMS wove his departure into the fabric of the show. He took what
would have been a liability to any other writer/showrunner and turned it into
a huge asset. For example, the whole Lyta/Talia/Lyta situation was entirely
externally dictated to him, but he managed to turn it into some fantastic
storylines. I am still sad about not exploring any Ivanova romance plot lines.
Marcus and Talia fighting for Ivanova's affection would have been amazing.

------
ronilan
"Cats!"

[https://youtu.be/PZ66wHRhe2U](https://youtu.be/PZ66wHRhe2U)

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throwanem
God bless, and may flights of Vorlons sing him to his rest.

~~~
tnecniv
Spoiler!

~~~
throwanem
Yes - now...

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mrslave
I only watched Bab5 for the first time last year and it launched straight into
my top 5. There are some old sci-fi shows that can be easily watched in spite
of dated graphics (Bab5, ST:TOS, ST:TNG) and some you can't (BSG).

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coreyp_1
Does anyone know where Babylon 5 can be streamed (legally)?

~~~
matchagaucho
[https://www.go90.com/shows/babylon5](https://www.go90.com/shows/babylon5)
(U.S. Only)

~~~
coreyp_1
Thank you!!!

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throwaway7645
Vir!!!

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douche
Vir was possibly my favorite character on B5. I'm going to have to go watch
the whole thing again.

~~~
andreyf
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8MjQ5Z7ZNo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8MjQ5Z7ZNo)

~~~
mavhc
The original fruit ninja

