By the Rivers of Babylon 5
Political corruption, giant cosmic evils and libraries
One of my most pleasant discoveries since arriving at Imperial has been the amazing science fiction library. For a small membership fee anybody can borrow items from its vast collection of over 9000 books and 1800 DVDs. It’s allowed me to see brilliant films, such as Donnie Darko, and TV shows such as Firefly and, most recently, Babylon 5.
Never reaching the widespread recognition of Star Trek it nevertheless has a well-deserved reputation in science fiction circles as one of the best television shows of the genre. It focuses on the space station Babylon 5, built by humanity in the aftermath of the deadly Minbari War as an attempt to foster peace throughout the galaxy. In the first four seasons the station’s crew have to face the re-emergence of an ancient evil, the Shadows, and a corrupt government back at home. Filled with political intrigue and moral dilemmas, I can safely say that there was nothing like Babylon 5 on TV until the new Battlestar Galactica came out.
That’s not to say it doesn’t have its faults. The show consistently aimed its attempts at humour at the lowest common denominator, often resulting in their abject failure in a show with so serious a tone. The deeply moving episode ‘Day of the Dead’, where many of the characters saw visions of their dead friends and enemies, was almost completely spoiled by the appearance of the comedians Rebo and Zooty, played by Penn and Teller. They were made out to be sharp political satirists and the greatest comic minds of their generation but turned out to be a lame Laurel and Hardy style double act. When almost the entire cast burst out laughing at their antics near the beginning of the episode I began to worry that there was a gas leak on the station.
The show is also quite dull and slow-paced at its beginning. While most people say it picks up in its second season, for me it only reached its true potential in the brilliant season three episode ‘Messages from Earth’ when the conflict with Earth begins in earnest. This was always my favourite storyline, as government corruption is easier to relate to than giant cosmic evil.
I hope that these comments don’t put you off. I am, in fact, only stalling for time as I simply cannot find words to describe how good this show can be. I even enjoyed season five, which got a mixed reception from the fans.
If you watch no other science fiction, watch Babylon 5. At its worst it’s still as good as a mediocre Star Trek episode and at its best its Hugo-award-winning good.
