Then it could burn a hole into space. The weapon doesn't need to be any stronger then to take down the toughest species. I don't think they had species with super heat resistant skin.
Taking someone down should not necessarily mean killing them.
Biggles<font color=#AAFFAA>The Man Without a Face</font>
So, to you, melting through a thin piece of metal takes just as much energy as melting through a thick piece, and range is irrelevant?
No. A thin piece of metal equals just kick it in.
Being able to melt it with a PPG equals easy enough to kick in or the weapon is over powered. Dangerously so.
Biggles<font color=#AAFFAA>The Man Without a Face</font>
I wasn't aware that metal thickness was an absolute, with only two thicknesses possible: thick, can't be be melted; or thin, can be melted and kicked in. It never occured to you that you could have a peice of metal too thick to kick in (which is, frankly, not going to be very thick at all - we're talking about metal here, not wood) but still able to be melted by the superhot, dense cloud of helium that was fired at it from very close range?
And they could do that in every episode. Then there's shaky cam while they look through the room and zooming in on their eyes all the time, with the camera man acting like he's drunk, because everything filmed should be like that.
I'm following the 'How they Were Aired' version of the order of Crusade. So there. :P I ame far too tired to be doing this so lets see how bad of a job I did.
In that order:
War Zone
1) Short recap of a call to arms. Through ISN.
2) Caption Gideon beats up a mutineer who fears catching the Drakh plague one on one. Silliness.
3) Gideon's ship jumps into damaged ships and pieces of ships.
4) Over 240 destroyers lost and six to seven thousand people dead in the Drakh attack.
5) Gideon on an exploration ship. Had been on a destroyer.
6) Gideon ordered to Mars.
7) Galen (ooh I spelled it right) in a black background looking into a crystal ball with the exploration ship Gideon is on jumping. He says "And so it begins" The Vorlon's words. After reading the books it seems out of place.
8) An Earth force destroyer chasing and fighting a Drakh ship from the attack on Earth. Both heavily damaged. The Drakh ship lands on a planet. The Earth ship launches a beacon. Is the Earth ship destroyed?
9) An archaeologist, one Max Eilerson, (will that be the last time I spell that correctly?) sees the Drakh ship fall across the sky as it crashes.
10) Gideon shown the riots on Earth. He gets the job of looking for a cure.
He has about five years before humans on Earth fall to the disease.
Gideon will get the Excalibur. He gets the job because he was dealing with aliens on the explorer ship, the rest being too old, too cautious. Gideon will fight if needs be. There was some politics involved.
Gideon thinks he can do it.
11) The #2 shuttle with Eilerson gets shot down by the downed Drakh.
There too far out to send a message. The other pilot, Trace, to try sending the message from space.
12) Gideon gets assigned some crew members I don't recall seeing further in the show. Except for the Dr.
13) Dureena tries to get assigned to the crew. Gideon says 'yes'!
14) Excalibur is 1.25 miles long.
15) Dureena mentions another not there. Galen following Excalibur.
16) The destroyer that followed, fighting the Drakh ship was destroyed.
No one made it to a life pod, or did the writer miss something?
Trace hot wired the Destroyer's beacon.
17) Galen's voice tells Gideon he will be there when he needs him.
18) Trace's message got through. The Excalibur goes to the planet were the archaeologist et all are. Gideon saves them from the advancing Drakh footmen.
19) On to the crashed Drakh ship. An ambush, Gideon's side wins.
Drakh ships jump in to go to there sides rescue.
On the crashed ship Drakh try to shoot the advancing Excalibur crew. Galen takes them out.
The Drakh Caption is found on the crashed ship. The Drakh ships eliminated.
20) Interrogating the Drakh Caption. It considers it self a prisoner of war. It also speaks English.
It says 'And when your world is gone who will support you? Who will you serve? Who will you be?' There are several colonies scale face. They could become a protectorate of the Minbari Federation. :P
21) Eilerson along with Trace asked to join Excalibur's crew.
22) Galen knows Gideon because he rescued him
-in a different setting-
After his ship was destroyed.
Galen says he was kicked out of the hiding place.
Galen ask Gideon if he needs help. Gideon says yes. (not stupidly proud)
Galen ask Gideon what he wants.
A: To find a cure for the Drakh plague.
Q: Were he is going.
A: Any were he has to.
Q: Who does he serve and who does he trust.
A: He doesn't know.
Galen says 'Then I will go with you.'
What I got from this episode
A) The crew is being assembled.
B) Gideon can have his way on at least some points.
C) The Drakh know way more about us then we know about them. Is Londo there servant at this point?
If you have a say in the matter, why are you actually watching them as aired when you could instead watch them in the proper order and not have to worry about glaring discontinuity?
As aired it should have fewer discontinuity's. <--- the spell check said to put the ' in there.
There shouldn't be the odd uniform back and forth or the running all the way back to B5 for a meeting.
Excalibur is packaged for story that isn't the order it aired or was made. On that point I disagree with JMS.
I went to a wedding a weak ago and I'm still not up to snuff. I want to do two a weak but I just can't.
I didn't think dancing wile sitting on my cane would kill me this much.
Aside from the uniforms, there's actually less continuity errors in the "JMS" order. I don't know what exactly, but I read the reason for the order and it explains some things.
For example, during the Black uniform they use the viral shield, but it isn't discovered and developed until the Red/gray uniform. Big continuity error right there. Hence the jumbled up JMS order.
Biggles<font color=#AAFFAA>The Man Without a Face</font>
[QUOTE=Chaosed;173040]Excalibur is packaged for story that isn't the order it aired or was made. On that point I disagree with JMS.[/QUOTE]
You disagree with the guy who planned and wrote the story about which order it should be told in?
Have you been reading this thingy here? I disagree with him on a few things. I recall him saying somewhere that the Minbari would make it to being energy beings and him also saying they wouldn't.
He changed his mind about something. I like the old way better. Witch is agreeing with him and disagreeing with him. The only difference is were in the 4th dimension it takes place.
He never changed his mind at all. TNT had fucked with Crusade from the beginning. His final "order" is the best he could make out of the mess. The original airing was part of that mess.
IMO, the worst part of his order is the inclusion of War Zone and that other really crappy episode with Mr Welles (one of the worst shows in the B5 universe, methinks), which don't make sense for continuity reasons. Disclude those, and the updated order makes perfect sense (aside from uniform changes).
After recently watching both Crusade and Season 1 of B5, Crusade was much better. Season 1 was actually almost awful much of the time. It is amazing how much the genra has matured in that time (BSG and Firefly for example)
yeah but it has always got better as well. I mean, look at sci-fi in the early the mid 80s, prior to Next Generation. Season 1 owns that. In 10 years, what's not to say that BSG and Firefly would be dated?
I think the problem with season 1 was the filler episodes really. There were some genuinely fantastic episodes that stand up to some s4 episodes aside from production values (Believers, Parliament of Dreams, Quality of Mercy come to mind), but then you have many episodes that still had that random, Star Trek episodic mediocrity. And its best to forget TKO.
Biggles<font color=#AAFFAA>The Man Without a Face</font>
Being harsh to season 1 seems to be the in-thing of the past couple of years. Personally, I still find it just as enjoyable (which is to say, greatly so) as I did when I first watched it.
Being enjoyable isn't always the same has quality/high production values etc etc. Its like old video games. There are many I still enjoy (which is to say, greatly so), but the lack of modern conventions (such as zooming in and out to the mouse cursor) is noticeable. I think the reason why being critical of season 1 is in vogue is because we are now seeing it from the current reference point. Those who understand the context of when the show was made are able to look past it.
[QUOTE=Biggles;173140]Being harsh to season 1 seems to be the in-thing of the past couple of years. Personally, I still find it just as enjoyable (which is to say, greatly so) as I did when I first watched it.[/QUOTE]
While I enjoy Season 1 of B5, I do still see it as fairly weak (and occasionally laughably bad). And relative to 2-4, this quality level becomes even more pronounced. Taking it further and comparing it to modern series results in a bar so high that fair comparison is nearly impossible.
It may have proven its worth through the completion of the story arcs, but the pacing was almost unbearable. Knowing where it leads [B]now[/B] means I can toss aside some of my potential concerns and appreciate it for what additions it made to the sum.
Biggles<font color=#AAFFAA>The Man Without a Face</font>
I don't find it weak or poor quality, either. The props and effects obviously aren't up to the standards of a modern series, but the writing, directing and acting are all excellent (except for TKO), and the pacing works well as a slow, ominous building-up of Bad StuffTM before the storm begins to hit over the course of what, to the characters, appears to be just another normal year.
From season one to season two I see were the story goes from being too much like a book to being a tv show. It seemed to be very chapter based. Then smoothed out as JMS seemed to get the hang of telling the story for tv.
Sinclair may have worked great for the book but not for a general tv audience.
Something else I think is good about season 1 is that you don't know what's important when you first see it. I totally agree that the season is better when you've seen the whole show already, but I don't it's bad exactly. I'll never say that B5 is perfect, but it's still my favorite show.
AND GRAIL RULES MAN!!!!!!!!
1) 'It's here again!' A man shouts to the woman at a counsel. He opens a curtain. He sees a giant red eye looking back.
Excalibur gets called in. It is a giant dragon.
2) Galen ask what color the dragon is. Gold, Gideon tells him. He tells Gideon he will be asking him to go along.
3) Three ships at this low teck planet counting the Excalibur. The two others are Earth ships big enough to have rotating middles.
4) The people on the plaint are low teck by there choice.
5) There is a mineral in the plaint that counters viruses. Hopefully it will slow the Drakh plague.
6) Problems started after the mining was ratcheted up. Electronics fused, ship missing for a few days latter returned with the engines missing, replaced with something like peanut butter. No one has been hurt.
7) Galen says just him and Gideon should go in local disguise.
8) The coin faux pas.
9) Locals ask Gideon and Galen to get out of town. Short spooky entrance, Locals told to leave them alone. told they belong to him. Alwin, the man is called by a local. Alwin tells the locals that Gideon and Galen bring information from the border.
Border? Are there nations? is it a border in space?
10) Galen tells Alwin 'hello, good to see you again.' The gold dragon gave Alwin away.
11) Galen gives up Gideon as the caption of the Excalibur. Galen tells Alwin Gideon can be trusted.
12) Alwin owns up to causing the trouble. Gideon explains how much the mineral could help fight the Drakh plague.
Alwin tells, shows the poulited watter, air, strip mine. Destroyed the best farm land. The people who were there have no were to go. They will die.
The miners wouldn't go away from the town. The locals can't deal with the disruption.
Alwin has held back so far. He says 'If they come with guns they will leave in boxes.'
13) Locals take hostages, tell the miners to go.
14) Elrick died just after they left the hiding place.
15) Alwin wrinkles his face at being told about the threat to kill the hostages unless the miners go.
16) A lieutenant sent down to straighten things out. The Golden dragon attacks. The lieutenant says it is a hologram. The ship flies through it.
17) Gideon tells Alwin that things have escalated and for him to stay out or people will die.
18) The military take the inn. Alwin has a spookie entrance. He makes hologram demons that can become physical for a punch or a bite. Galen likes them.
19) The lieutenant gets captured.
20) Villager wants to press there victory. Galen tells him his side can't win.
He retorts with they can as long as they have Alwin. Alwins point of view seems to have changed with that statement.
21) The bar maid passes out. Alwin examens her and says she it dieing. The mineing process is sending more mineral into the air then her body can handle.
22) Excalibur has better medical equipment then the Teckno-mage? What?!?
The barmaid's father says 'a life for a life'.
23) Alwin angry at the village people gives his 'If you do that you are no better then them.' speech. He tells them they can't win.
24) Excalibur confirms Alwin's diagnosis. The other caption wants a 2ed opinion,... Wouldn't that be a 3ed?
25) Galen tells Gideon of Alwin's plan to destroy one of the ships. That caption tells Gideon to fire on Alwin. He couldn't possibly move his ship or anything /shrugs. The whole mine is blasted.
26) The barmaid is ok. Now that the mining operation is glassed over the miners are willing to move.
The villagers free there hostages and will help the miners to find a new place to mine. The miners will need that help.
Not Star Trek were a touch of a button would give them the answer they need.
Both sides want to work together now.
27) Alwin lived! He will move on. Gideon says this plaint could be his home. Galen says he already has a home.
What I got from this episode
A) For the people who didn't notice this is the order from the box set. They fooled me. ;) This show should be much latter not the 2ed episode. With the where's Galen going to call home part.
1) A transport with Psy markings docks with the Excalibur. Matheson to be interrogated. Something he has to go through to work along normals.
Teeps have been permitted to work with normals sense the senate disbanded the Psy Corps.
2) During a meeting to decide were to go next Galen says they should go to the Well of Forever. He has a rock that makes a map. He makes it sound interesting. No one else there seems to have herd of it.
Galen says it is an open book full of answers if one is to listen. Galen says his ship can't maneuver in the strong gravitational currents so he will need the Excalibur. His ship is as strong as plot demands.
It will take several days to get there. Eilerson discounts it as: Galen having a magic rock that provides Galen with a mystical place that is a metaphorical book that gives answers to questions to answers to questions they haven't asked yet.
Galen doesn't look happy at Eilerson having said that.
3) They need to merge Galen's ship's navigation with the Excalibur's.
4) Matheson will have a more thorough scan then regular as he is the first Teep to be aloud this position. The interrogator finds the location to were there going. Matheson thinks that was inappropriate.
5) Galen's question is 'Why' Will he find the answer at the well?
6) Matheson blows off steam from the interrogation to Gideon. Tells him about 'Jones' as there all called, peeking into there destination.
7) The 'Humping'
8) Gideon gives Galen's location one more day to find. Galen is listening in on them over a microphone elsewhere.
9) Time is up for the search for the Well. Gideon to go back. Galen won't allow him to stop looking. As the navigation is tied into his ship Gideon can't do anything about it.
Gideon ask Galen why he betrayed him. Galen says a promise he made. To be fulfilled at all cost.
10) 'Jones' tells Gideon of Matheson's miner mistakes. Calls them important because of his (Matheson) position. Gideon blows it off.
11) Hyperspace increases Teep abilities much lick in B5. However here it seems only to work on Teeps who are outside of the ship. In B5 it worked on ships also. It didn't seem to work on B5 it self though.
For the reason of the increased Teep abilities Matheson isn't allowed to go outside.
12) A dense hyperspace 'vale' is found. They enter and the 'Well' is found.
13) Galen levies for the 'Well'. Gideon levies shortly after.
14) Eilerson excited about the mineral and metal wealth on the 'Well'. Dureena tells him to stop looking at the composition report. It is a mausoleum. It marks the passing of a highly advanced race or culture. It is a place of memory she tells him.
15) Gideon ask Galen if now he would tell him what this is all about.
Gales says her name was Isabelle. (the PI jokes get a workout) She was the best of us. Galen's love not his wife. She had spent her life looking for this place.
No matter the cost Galen would take her here to rest. He did love her.
16) Galen does a ritual for Isabelle's ashes.
17) Eilerson gets nothing out of finding the 'Well'
18 Gideon gets back at 'Jones' by having Dureena think of a bomb. Both agree to forget about the 'transgressions'
19) Matheson gets some time alone in hyperspace. He is quit excited.
20) Galen to leave for a wile. He asks Gideon if he will be welcomed back. Gideon tells him he betrayed his trust. He tells Galen that he is too important to keep away.
Galen tells Gideon he fulfilled a promise. He promises Gideon he will nevor again betray his trust. He promises.
21) Dureena ask Galen what the answers were.
For Eilerson that there are somethings he can't have. All Eilerson's location recordings for the 'Well' are erased.
Gideon got his but wasn't listening so will have to look else were.
Dureena's question about someone who didn't just want money or power answered. Seems to have been Galen.
Galen's may take a little longer.
What I got from this episode
A) The interrogator, 'Jones' as there all called, snooped out the Excalibur's destination. Did this have something to do with were the show was to go with Earth having worked with the Shadows? Is the new Teep department in on leftover Shadow teck?
B) Gideon's answer had something to do with a photo of people, it looked something like a school photo. He had also mentioned 300 reasons.
1) Galen ask Eilerson what it says again. Eilerson gives a mono log that the forty languages he has found so far all say the same thing. That it isn't worth there time. Can't cut through or tunnel under (Dureena is up on the wall) if they use explosives it will most likely destroy what ever it is that is in the building.
Galen uses a small fireball to get Eilerson's attention. Ask what exactly it says. Eilerson's reply: 'Enter freely through the path of sorrows.'
2) Galen makes Dureena cry. How she failed to get in and so forth. He then uses the tears to open the door. (he apologies to Dureena)
3) There is a globe smoky filled. Gidean thinks there is a being in it. The smoke mostly clears, Gideon has a flash back of a military ship making a jump point. A shadow ship destroys it. End flash back, the globe goes all smoky.
4) Gideon orders the globe taken. Dureena tells Eilerson Gideon leaves no one behind.
5) Gideon on Excalibur alone with the globe says he knows someone is in it.There are words at the bottom of the screen implying the globe inhabitant is telepathic. The words say 'You are in pain' Gideon says that were all in pain. Some back and forth then Gideon has a flash back. Gideon is ordered out side of a space war ship to fix 'it' Gideon is out in space a way back to get a better view. The ship takes off leaving Gideon behind. A shadow ship shoots it as it formed and is ready to enter a jump point. The same flash back as before only longer it seems to me.
Gideon alone in space when lots of small ships go by. Gideon opens a communication channel and with much emotional wording ask for help. They all seem to go by then one stops and picks him up.
A man tells him to rest. It is Galen. In a different spot in the flash back Gideon is in a debriefing the EA doesn't believe him. The flashback goes to a different setting; Cards and gambling. One of the people is out of cash, offers a box says. Calls it an 'apocalypse box' he is given permission to use it as collateral. Gideon wins to the surprise of the man. The man seems glad to be rid of it. It gives the owner an edge says the man, It is older then mankind. It lies he says, not all the time, just enough.
The box chimes The man looks nervous. He runs outside and gets hit by a 'skimmer'. He says he is free and not to call foe medical help No other way out. You see... he then dies.
Flash back over. Gideon worries about being black mailed. The being says it wants nothing.
6) Matheson's turn. He has a flash back of being in a Psy Corps room being told the resistance is being pushed back. Psy Corps has captured a high P12 and is holding her prisoner. She is on sleepers. Matheson gets the job as the stronger Teeps are busy. The prisoner gets Matheson to check on the returned resistance Teeps. There all dead as she told him. She talks him into not giving her the sleepers. Her talk of freedom worked. She then sets off a homing device. This secret base gets bombed. The globe being forgives him.
7) Galen's turn. Galen tells the being that it leaches off others. That it has no feelings of it's own. It lives off forgiveness. Flash back to a woman in a bed. Galen saying the ship had been destroyed. They can't call out. They have to wait until others come looking for them. He says they were sold out by three of there own. She says she is dieing and wants Galen to stay not go for help. She says that if there is a way she will send a message. She then dies. End flash back.
Galen gets into a 'is there a god responsible?' discussion with it. Gideon walking by stops Galen from blasting the globe.
8) Gideon decides to put the globe back for others.
9) Seems like Galen didn't accept forgiveness for himself as he is ridding in the tube car wile Gideon is saying some people will just keep going around not able to stop. Gideon and Matheson sleep better now.
10) As they leave the globe back were they got it another ship lands.
11) Galen gets a strange message. His name and the word love. the rest is lost. Indeterminable were it came from.
He recalls 'her' saying she would send a message if she could. To corny. I barfed several times.
What I got from this episode.
A) Quick way to get background with flash backs.
B) I despise beings that live off emotions. Seems trite to me. :P
1) Excalibur gets redirected. Gideon says there minutes away from a sight. General Thompson insist, he has Sheridan's permission. Gideon goes.
2) Eilerson bugged by IPX for information on sights. He hasn't given them anything in a wile.
3) 30 people escaped the Earth quarantine. Did they manage to go before the Drakh plague? Excalibur sent to get them.
4) Theta 49. From space I can see Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. St. James bay and Hudson bay along with Newfoundland island. ;)
5) An old man with a hood covering most of his face. A man walks up to him (Mr. Black) The man with the hood seems to be a shaman. The stones say the other man and his group is a bad omen. No second role. The old man says the man brought a curse to his people and the old man expects to die.
6) Dr. Chambers to use a new nano virus shield on Gideon. Good for 48 hours.
7) Gideon and Chambers are talking to one of the 'escapees' who says he will say nothing. they can talk to Black when he gets back. The escapee doesn't trust Earth. He clams they left before the plague was dropped.
Black shows up. He will alow his blood to be checked, only his blood. Black will cooperate to get rid of them faster.
8) Dureena and the old man. She pulls his hood back, the old man is one of here species. The old man dies. Dureena was told by him to seek the moor. there are others of her species there. There is a village. She is not the last.
9) Black's blood taken, he offers to have there ship destroyed, to maroon them here if they have the plague. Black talking to an escapee now believes what the old man's stones said. They mustn't leave if infected. The other escapee would go.
10) Dureena finds the group of her species praying. Dureena calls the Excalibur, to Chambers to check out the 'indigenous' life she found.
11) Gideon tells General Thompson that the escapees are infected. Thompson tells Gideon to get the travel history of the escapee's ship and give it to him. Then Gideon is to erase the records. Gideon finds that odd.
12) Chambers found cyber components in Black's blood. There shouldn't be any. Goes along with B5 history. :)
13) Black's military history requires ultra violet clearance.
14) The tail of how Dureena's people got here. They were workers to found a colony. Something appeared (looks just like shadow ships) shot up there ship. Some life pods that made it. No communicational equipment made it. They were forgotten.
15) Chambers pokes into the escapee's ship. She finds a sealed package with the contents infected. (she has a hand held device that beeps when it's close to infection. It doesn't work on people though)
Gideon has the ships records. They left before the plague hit. Chambers thinks the escapees were infected on purpose. The package made by Prozeta Corp.
16) Eilerson helps Gideon with Prozeta Corp. They make fake meet. He warns Gideon he will die if he looks deeper.
17) 100 colonist survived, from Dureena's people. Dureena tells them there the last of there people. Dureena wants this kept secret.
18) The escapee who would run if infected grabs Chambers.
19) Gideon retrieves Black's military history. Gropo in the Minbari war, Battle of the line, he looks kind of young for that. Transfered to Earth Force bioweapons. The experiments failed, abandoned.
Chamber's kidnappers to make a run for it with there ship and Chambers as a human shield. Black and others not with the kidnappers. Excalibur chasing.
20) As seen from the planet, Boom boom boom big bright flash.
21) Gideon shows General Thompson record of the escapee's ship destroyed.
Gideon tells the General there food was contaminated. Thats were they got the plague. Thompson will look into it.
22) The escapees ship was destroyed after they got off. Gideon put up a satellite to warn of the plague. Animals have it here it warns. The soldiers were infected to hide the cyber experiments. Earth now thinks them dead. They should be left alone.
23 Gideon has access for high security codes from a poker game.
24) Chambers gives Dureena's people one year only. There DNA is closer to the 'template' the plague has.
25) Eilerson found out about Dureena's people from a scan. He keeps it a secret though.
What I got from this episode
A) Earth Force is willing to spread the plague to keep secrets.
Comments
Taking someone down should not necessarily mean killing them.
Being able to melt it with a PPG equals easy enough to kick in or the weapon is over powered. Dangerously so.
'I wasn't aware that metal thickness was an absolute'
Now you know.
In that order:
War Zone
1) Short recap of a call to arms. Through ISN.
2) Caption Gideon beats up a mutineer who fears catching the Drakh plague one on one. Silliness.
3) Gideon's ship jumps into damaged ships and pieces of ships.
4) Over 240 destroyers lost and six to seven thousand people dead in the Drakh attack.
5) Gideon on an exploration ship. Had been on a destroyer.
6) Gideon ordered to Mars.
7) Galen (ooh I spelled it right) in a black background looking into a crystal ball with the exploration ship Gideon is on jumping. He says "And so it begins" The Vorlon's words. After reading the books it seems out of place.
8) An Earth force destroyer chasing and fighting a Drakh ship from the attack on Earth. Both heavily damaged. The Drakh ship lands on a planet. The Earth ship launches a beacon. Is the Earth ship destroyed?
9) An archaeologist, one Max Eilerson, (will that be the last time I spell that correctly?) sees the Drakh ship fall across the sky as it crashes.
10) Gideon shown the riots on Earth. He gets the job of looking for a cure.
He has about five years before humans on Earth fall to the disease.
Gideon will get the Excalibur. He gets the job because he was dealing with aliens on the explorer ship, the rest being too old, too cautious. Gideon will fight if needs be. There was some politics involved.
Gideon thinks he can do it.
11) The #2 shuttle with Eilerson gets shot down by the downed Drakh.
There too far out to send a message. The other pilot, Trace, to try sending the message from space.
12) Gideon gets assigned some crew members I don't recall seeing further in the show. Except for the Dr.
13) Dureena tries to get assigned to the crew. Gideon says 'yes'!
14) Excalibur is 1.25 miles long.
15) Dureena mentions another not there. Galen following Excalibur.
16) The destroyer that followed, fighting the Drakh ship was destroyed.
No one made it to a life pod, or did the writer miss something?
Trace hot wired the Destroyer's beacon.
17) Galen's voice tells Gideon he will be there when he needs him.
18) Trace's message got through. The Excalibur goes to the planet were the archaeologist et all are. Gideon saves them from the advancing Drakh footmen.
19) On to the crashed Drakh ship. An ambush, Gideon's side wins.
Drakh ships jump in to go to there sides rescue.
On the crashed ship Drakh try to shoot the advancing Excalibur crew. Galen takes them out.
The Drakh Caption is found on the crashed ship. The Drakh ships eliminated.
20) Interrogating the Drakh Caption. It considers it self a prisoner of war. It also speaks English.
It says 'And when your world is gone who will support you? Who will you serve? Who will you be?' There are several colonies scale face. They could become a protectorate of the Minbari Federation. :P
21) Eilerson along with Trace asked to join Excalibur's crew.
22) Galen knows Gideon because he rescued him
-in a different setting-
After his ship was destroyed.
Galen says he was kicked out of the hiding place.
Galen ask Gideon if he needs help. Gideon says yes. (not stupidly proud)
Galen ask Gideon what he wants.
A: To find a cure for the Drakh plague.
Q: Were he is going.
A: Any were he has to.
Q: Who does he serve and who does he trust.
A: He doesn't know.
Galen says 'Then I will go with you.'
What I got from this episode
A) The crew is being assembled.
B) Gideon can have his way on at least some points.
C) The Drakh know way more about us then we know about them. Is Londo there servant at this point?
There shouldn't be the odd uniform back and forth or the running all the way back to B5 for a meeting.
Excalibur is packaged for story that isn't the order it aired or was made. On that point I disagree with JMS.
I went to a wedding a weak ago and I'm still not up to snuff. I want to do two a weak but I just can't.
I didn't think dancing wile sitting on my cane would kill me this much.
For example, during the Black uniform they use the viral shield, but it isn't discovered and developed until the Red/gray uniform. Big continuity error right there. Hence the jumbled up JMS order.
You disagree with the guy who planned and wrote the story about which order it should be told in?
He changed his mind about something. I like the old way better. Witch is agreeing with him and disagreeing with him. The only difference is were in the 4th dimension it takes place.
IMO, the worst part of his order is the inclusion of War Zone and that other really crappy episode with Mr Welles (one of the worst shows in the B5 universe, methinks), which don't make sense for continuity reasons. Disclude those, and the updated order makes perfect sense (aside from uniform changes).
I think the problem with season 1 was the filler episodes really. There were some genuinely fantastic episodes that stand up to some s4 episodes aside from production values (Believers, Parliament of Dreams, Quality of Mercy come to mind), but then you have many episodes that still had that random, Star Trek episodic mediocrity. And its best to forget TKO.
While I enjoy Season 1 of B5, I do still see it as fairly weak (and occasionally laughably bad). And relative to 2-4, this quality level becomes even more pronounced. Taking it further and comparing it to modern series results in a bar so high that fair comparison is nearly impossible.
It may have proven its worth through the completion of the story arcs, but the pacing was almost unbearable. Knowing where it leads [B]now[/B] means I can toss aside some of my potential concerns and appreciate it for what additions it made to the sum.
Sinclair may have worked great for the book but not for a general tv audience.
AND GRAIL RULES MAN!!!!!!!!
The Long Road
1) 'It's here again!' A man shouts to the woman at a counsel. He opens a curtain. He sees a giant red eye looking back.
Excalibur gets called in. It is a giant dragon.
2) Galen ask what color the dragon is. Gold, Gideon tells him. He tells Gideon he will be asking him to go along.
3) Three ships at this low teck planet counting the Excalibur. The two others are Earth ships big enough to have rotating middles.
4) The people on the plaint are low teck by there choice.
5) There is a mineral in the plaint that counters viruses. Hopefully it will slow the Drakh plague.
6) Problems started after the mining was ratcheted up. Electronics fused, ship missing for a few days latter returned with the engines missing, replaced with something like peanut butter. No one has been hurt.
7) Galen says just him and Gideon should go in local disguise.
8) The coin faux pas.
9) Locals ask Gideon and Galen to get out of town. Short spooky entrance, Locals told to leave them alone. told they belong to him. Alwin, the man is called by a local. Alwin tells the locals that Gideon and Galen bring information from the border.
Border? Are there nations? is it a border in space?
10) Galen tells Alwin 'hello, good to see you again.' The gold dragon gave Alwin away.
11) Galen gives up Gideon as the caption of the Excalibur. Galen tells Alwin Gideon can be trusted.
12) Alwin owns up to causing the trouble. Gideon explains how much the mineral could help fight the Drakh plague.
Alwin tells, shows the poulited watter, air, strip mine. Destroyed the best farm land. The people who were there have no were to go. They will die.
The miners wouldn't go away from the town. The locals can't deal with the disruption.
Alwin has held back so far. He says 'If they come with guns they will leave in boxes.'
13) Locals take hostages, tell the miners to go.
14) Elrick died just after they left the hiding place.
15) Alwin wrinkles his face at being told about the threat to kill the hostages unless the miners go.
16) A lieutenant sent down to straighten things out. The Golden dragon attacks. The lieutenant says it is a hologram. The ship flies through it.
17) Gideon tells Alwin that things have escalated and for him to stay out or people will die.
18) The military take the inn. Alwin has a spookie entrance. He makes hologram demons that can become physical for a punch or a bite. Galen likes them.
19) The lieutenant gets captured.
20) Villager wants to press there victory. Galen tells him his side can't win.
He retorts with they can as long as they have Alwin. Alwins point of view seems to have changed with that statement.
21) The bar maid passes out. Alwin examens her and says she it dieing. The mineing process is sending more mineral into the air then her body can handle.
22) Excalibur has better medical equipment then the Teckno-mage? What?!?
The barmaid's father says 'a life for a life'.
23) Alwin angry at the village people gives his 'If you do that you are no better then them.' speech. He tells them they can't win.
24) Excalibur confirms Alwin's diagnosis. The other caption wants a 2ed opinion,... Wouldn't that be a 3ed?
25) Galen tells Gideon of Alwin's plan to destroy one of the ships. That caption tells Gideon to fire on Alwin. He couldn't possibly move his ship or anything /shrugs. The whole mine is blasted.
26) The barmaid is ok. Now that the mining operation is glassed over the miners are willing to move.
The villagers free there hostages and will help the miners to find a new place to mine. The miners will need that help.
Not Star Trek were a touch of a button would give them the answer they need.
Both sides want to work together now.
27) Alwin lived! He will move on. Gideon says this plaint could be his home. Galen says he already has a home.
What I got from this episode
A) For the people who didn't notice this is the order from the box set. They fooled me. ;) This show should be much latter not the 2ed episode. With the where's Galen going to call home part.
B) Tecno-mages teck is the level of plot.
1) A transport with Psy markings docks with the Excalibur. Matheson to be interrogated. Something he has to go through to work along normals.
Teeps have been permitted to work with normals sense the senate disbanded the Psy Corps.
2) During a meeting to decide were to go next Galen says they should go to the Well of Forever. He has a rock that makes a map. He makes it sound interesting. No one else there seems to have herd of it.
Galen says it is an open book full of answers if one is to listen. Galen says his ship can't maneuver in the strong gravitational currents so he will need the Excalibur. His ship is as strong as plot demands.
It will take several days to get there. Eilerson discounts it as: Galen having a magic rock that provides Galen with a mystical place that is a metaphorical book that gives answers to questions to answers to questions they haven't asked yet.
Galen doesn't look happy at Eilerson having said that.
3) They need to merge Galen's ship's navigation with the Excalibur's.
4) Matheson will have a more thorough scan then regular as he is the first Teep to be aloud this position. The interrogator finds the location to were there going. Matheson thinks that was inappropriate.
5) Galen's question is 'Why' Will he find the answer at the well?
6) Matheson blows off steam from the interrogation to Gideon. Tells him about 'Jones' as there all called, peeking into there destination.
7) The 'Humping'
8) Gideon gives Galen's location one more day to find. Galen is listening in on them over a microphone elsewhere.
9) Time is up for the search for the Well. Gideon to go back. Galen won't allow him to stop looking. As the navigation is tied into his ship Gideon can't do anything about it.
Gideon ask Galen why he betrayed him. Galen says a promise he made. To be fulfilled at all cost.
10) 'Jones' tells Gideon of Matheson's miner mistakes. Calls them important because of his (Matheson) position. Gideon blows it off.
11) Hyperspace increases Teep abilities much lick in B5. However here it seems only to work on Teeps who are outside of the ship. In B5 it worked on ships also. It didn't seem to work on B5 it self though.
For the reason of the increased Teep abilities Matheson isn't allowed to go outside.
12) A dense hyperspace 'vale' is found. They enter and the 'Well' is found.
13) Galen levies for the 'Well'. Gideon levies shortly after.
14) Eilerson excited about the mineral and metal wealth on the 'Well'. Dureena tells him to stop looking at the composition report. It is a mausoleum. It marks the passing of a highly advanced race or culture. It is a place of memory she tells him.
15) Gideon ask Galen if now he would tell him what this is all about.
Gales says her name was Isabelle. (the PI jokes get a workout) She was the best of us. Galen's love not his wife. She had spent her life looking for this place.
No matter the cost Galen would take her here to rest. He did love her.
16) Galen does a ritual for Isabelle's ashes.
17) Eilerson gets nothing out of finding the 'Well'
18 Gideon gets back at 'Jones' by having Dureena think of a bomb. Both agree to forget about the 'transgressions'
19) Matheson gets some time alone in hyperspace. He is quit excited.
20) Galen to leave for a wile. He asks Gideon if he will be welcomed back. Gideon tells him he betrayed his trust. He tells Galen that he is too important to keep away.
Galen tells Gideon he fulfilled a promise. He promises Gideon he will nevor again betray his trust. He promises.
21) Dureena ask Galen what the answers were.
For Eilerson that there are somethings he can't have. All Eilerson's location recordings for the 'Well' are erased.
Gideon got his but wasn't listening so will have to look else were.
Dureena's question about someone who didn't just want money or power answered. Seems to have been Galen.
Galen's may take a little longer.
What I got from this episode
A) The interrogator, 'Jones' as there all called, snooped out the Excalibur's destination. Did this have something to do with were the show was to go with Earth having worked with the Shadows? Is the new Teep department in on leftover Shadow teck?
B) Gideon's answer had something to do with a photo of people, it looked something like a school photo. He had also mentioned 300 reasons.
1) Galen ask Eilerson what it says again. Eilerson gives a mono log that the forty languages he has found so far all say the same thing. That it isn't worth there time. Can't cut through or tunnel under (Dureena is up on the wall) if they use explosives it will most likely destroy what ever it is that is in the building.
Galen uses a small fireball to get Eilerson's attention. Ask what exactly it says. Eilerson's reply: 'Enter freely through the path of sorrows.'
2) Galen makes Dureena cry. How she failed to get in and so forth. He then uses the tears to open the door. (he apologies to Dureena)
3) There is a globe smoky filled. Gidean thinks there is a being in it. The smoke mostly clears, Gideon has a flash back of a military ship making a jump point. A shadow ship destroys it. End flash back, the globe goes all smoky.
4) Gideon orders the globe taken. Dureena tells Eilerson Gideon leaves no one behind.
5) Gideon on Excalibur alone with the globe says he knows someone is in it.There are words at the bottom of the screen implying the globe inhabitant is telepathic. The words say 'You are in pain' Gideon says that were all in pain. Some back and forth then Gideon has a flash back. Gideon is ordered out side of a space war ship to fix 'it' Gideon is out in space a way back to get a better view. The ship takes off leaving Gideon behind. A shadow ship shoots it as it formed and is ready to enter a jump point. The same flash back as before only longer it seems to me.
Gideon alone in space when lots of small ships go by. Gideon opens a communication channel and with much emotional wording ask for help. They all seem to go by then one stops and picks him up.
A man tells him to rest. It is Galen. In a different spot in the flash back Gideon is in a debriefing the EA doesn't believe him. The flashback goes to a different setting; Cards and gambling. One of the people is out of cash, offers a box says. Calls it an 'apocalypse box' he is given permission to use it as collateral. Gideon wins to the surprise of the man. The man seems glad to be rid of it. It gives the owner an edge says the man, It is older then mankind. It lies he says, not all the time, just enough.
The box chimes The man looks nervous. He runs outside and gets hit by a 'skimmer'. He says he is free and not to call foe medical help No other way out. You see... he then dies.
Flash back over. Gideon worries about being black mailed. The being says it wants nothing.
6) Matheson's turn. He has a flash back of being in a Psy Corps room being told the resistance is being pushed back. Psy Corps has captured a high P12 and is holding her prisoner. She is on sleepers. Matheson gets the job as the stronger Teeps are busy. The prisoner gets Matheson to check on the returned resistance Teeps. There all dead as she told him. She talks him into not giving her the sleepers. Her talk of freedom worked. She then sets off a homing device. This secret base gets bombed. The globe being forgives him.
7) Galen's turn. Galen tells the being that it leaches off others. That it has no feelings of it's own. It lives off forgiveness. Flash back to a woman in a bed. Galen saying the ship had been destroyed. They can't call out. They have to wait until others come looking for them. He says they were sold out by three of there own. She says she is dieing and wants Galen to stay not go for help. She says that if there is a way she will send a message. She then dies. End flash back.
Galen gets into a 'is there a god responsible?' discussion with it. Gideon walking by stops Galen from blasting the globe.
8) Gideon decides to put the globe back for others.
9) Seems like Galen didn't accept forgiveness for himself as he is ridding in the tube car wile Gideon is saying some people will just keep going around not able to stop. Gideon and Matheson sleep better now.
10) As they leave the globe back were they got it another ship lands.
11) Galen gets a strange message. His name and the word love. the rest is lost. Indeterminable were it came from.
He recalls 'her' saying she would send a message if she could. To corny. I barfed several times.
What I got from this episode.
A) Quick way to get background with flash backs.
B) I despise beings that live off emotions. Seems trite to me. :P
1) Excalibur gets redirected. Gideon says there minutes away from a sight. General Thompson insist, he has Sheridan's permission. Gideon goes.
2) Eilerson bugged by IPX for information on sights. He hasn't given them anything in a wile.
3) 30 people escaped the Earth quarantine. Did they manage to go before the Drakh plague? Excalibur sent to get them.
4) Theta 49. From space I can see Lakes Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. St. James bay and Hudson bay along with Newfoundland island. ;)
5) An old man with a hood covering most of his face. A man walks up to him (Mr. Black) The man with the hood seems to be a shaman. The stones say the other man and his group is a bad omen. No second role. The old man says the man brought a curse to his people and the old man expects to die.
6) Dr. Chambers to use a new nano virus shield on Gideon. Good for 48 hours.
7) Gideon and Chambers are talking to one of the 'escapees' who says he will say nothing. they can talk to Black when he gets back. The escapee doesn't trust Earth. He clams they left before the plague was dropped.
Black shows up. He will alow his blood to be checked, only his blood. Black will cooperate to get rid of them faster.
8) Dureena and the old man. She pulls his hood back, the old man is one of here species. The old man dies. Dureena was told by him to seek the moor. there are others of her species there. There is a village. She is not the last.
9) Black's blood taken, he offers to have there ship destroyed, to maroon them here if they have the plague. Black talking to an escapee now believes what the old man's stones said. They mustn't leave if infected. The other escapee would go.
10) Dureena finds the group of her species praying. Dureena calls the Excalibur, to Chambers to check out the 'indigenous' life she found.
11) Gideon tells General Thompson that the escapees are infected. Thompson tells Gideon to get the travel history of the escapee's ship and give it to him. Then Gideon is to erase the records. Gideon finds that odd.
12) Chambers found cyber components in Black's blood. There shouldn't be any. Goes along with B5 history. :)
13) Black's military history requires ultra violet clearance.
14) The tail of how Dureena's people got here. They were workers to found a colony. Something appeared (looks just like shadow ships) shot up there ship. Some life pods that made it. No communicational equipment made it. They were forgotten.
15) Chambers pokes into the escapee's ship. She finds a sealed package with the contents infected. (she has a hand held device that beeps when it's close to infection. It doesn't work on people though)
Gideon has the ships records. They left before the plague hit. Chambers thinks the escapees were infected on purpose. The package made by Prozeta Corp.
16) Eilerson helps Gideon with Prozeta Corp. They make fake meet. He warns Gideon he will die if he looks deeper.
17) 100 colonist survived, from Dureena's people. Dureena tells them there the last of there people. Dureena wants this kept secret.
18) The escapee who would run if infected grabs Chambers.
19) Gideon retrieves Black's military history. Gropo in the Minbari war, Battle of the line, he looks kind of young for that. Transfered to Earth Force bioweapons. The experiments failed, abandoned.
Chamber's kidnappers to make a run for it with there ship and Chambers as a human shield. Black and others not with the kidnappers. Excalibur chasing.
20) As seen from the planet, Boom boom boom big bright flash.
21) Gideon shows General Thompson record of the escapee's ship destroyed.
Gideon tells the General there food was contaminated. Thats were they got the plague. Thompson will look into it.
22) The escapees ship was destroyed after they got off. Gideon put up a satellite to warn of the plague. Animals have it here it warns. The soldiers were infected to hide the cyber experiments. Earth now thinks them dead. They should be left alone.
23 Gideon has access for high security codes from a poker game.
24) Chambers gives Dureena's people one year only. There DNA is closer to the 'template' the plague has.
25) Eilerson found out about Dureena's people from a scan. He keeps it a secret though.
What I got from this episode
A) Earth Force is willing to spread the plague to keep secrets.