The Babylon Project Podcast
Raul Ybarra and Jim Arrowood
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Top 10 The Babylon Project Podcast Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best The Babylon Project Podcast episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to The Babylon Project Podcast for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite The Babylon Project Podcast episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
BPP Novel 8: Personal Agendas
The Babylon Project Podcast
07/05/21 • 78 min
Here we are, looking at the second to last standalone novel Personal Agendas, by Al Sarrantonio. We approached this one with cautious optimism, since it follows a very well written novel that brought us home to the Babylon 5 universe we all love so much. Turns out we weren’t let down; the book warranted our optimism. There were highs and a few lows though, but overall it was well-received.
Personal Agendas filled in some of the backstory revolving around G’Kar’s captivity on Centauri Prime under the ruthless rule of Cartagia. For those familiar with the television series, you know Sarrantonio focused this story on a very dark and heavy set of events. He does this well, and attempted to give the reader a break now and then through several other light-hearted, if not cute, side stories. This worked with mixed results. At the center of the story, G’Kar and Londo form a secret alliance. G’Kar is going to suffer and place himself at great personal risk to assist in the killing of Emperor Cartagia. This could cost him his life. Meanwhile, in exchange, Londo will work to end the Centauri rule over the Narn Homeworld. Things get a little sideways when Londo is captured by a squad of well-intentioned Narn, intending to free G’Kar. They work in ignorance of what’s actually in play, and what they’re putting at risk in terms of liberation for the citizens of both worlds. A basic knowledge of the television series ensures you already know both of our heroes will survive, however, the main story here is told well enough that it becomes a page-turner as you’re left wondering just how this will resolve in a manner that doesn’t disconnect from the series.
Readers will either find the B-stories amusing, perhaps even funny at times, or they’ll find them annoying. Either way, they’re a welcome relief to the high-stakes drama and emotional heaviness of the main story.
In the end we enjoyed the book very much, and we think you will too. Our ratings were a 3, a 4, and a 4.5 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 3.83.
Next time we meet, we’ll discuss the ninth and final standalone novel, To Dream in the City of Sorrows, by Kathryn Drennan. If you’ve participated in the many seasons of the podcast, then you know we’ve mentioned this novel many times. We’re anticipating something great!
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
Just remember... When there’s no boom today, there’s boom tomorrow. There’s always boom tomorrow!
BPP Novel 5: The Touch of Your Shadow, the Whisper of your Name
The Babylon Project Podcast
04/05/21 • 72 min
Next up, we read The Touch of Your Shadow, the Whisper of Your Name, by Neil Barrett, Jr. This is the fifth of nine stand-alone novels. Given how the first four weren’t that great, we were hopeful this one might shine a little, but ultimately we were disappointed. While not as bad as Clark’s Law, this book felt like a short story crammed into a full-length novel. As a result, this made Barrett’s book just okay, at best. And that’s not a strong endorsement. There was also an issue with where the story fits in the overall timeline. The book never says, and there’s disagreement out on the web. The best estimate is provided by the Lurker’s Guide, and even that doesn’t fully address the continuity issues. The bottom line is, by the time this novel was written, the TV series was in the third season, yet it seems like the author may have never watched an episode.
We’re back to riots on the station, and they’re presented in a way that suggests this is sort of a normal thing. Balanced against the TV show, we know this isn’t the case, so the suggestion is becoming somewhat annoying now that it’s appeared in several of the novels. While not well done, the reader can assume that some of this is caused by, or enflamed by, the emergence of an alien entity that causes everyone on the station to misbehave. It’s a reasonable explanation, but somehow still falls short, primarily based on how the author unfolds the story. In the end, a giant, green worm-like creature (9 million miles long and half a million miles wide!) approaches the station. It’s somehow real, but also not real, in that while everyone can see it, it doesn’t register on sensors. No one knows what it is, where it came from, if it’s hostile or not, or where it’s going. The odd behavior of station personnel seems to increase in severity as the creature draws closer. In response, forces from Earth and B5 approach it, examine it as best they can, and even fire at it, with no real consequences. While this appeared to be a way to build drama, it didn’t. Frankly, it took too long and made the story boring.
The space worm finally arrives and passes through the station (or the station passes through the worm...) and everything returns to normal. We’d like to tell you there’s more to the story than that, but there really isn’t. The worm is referred to as a shadow because of the problem that it’s seen but not apparently substantive. By the way, there’s no connection between this shadow and THE Shadows we’re all familiar with from the B5 universe. Your hosts seemed to agree there were enough comedic elements here (intentional or not, like Fermi’s Angels) that this may have been better written as a light-hearted comedy novel. But it wasn’t, so some of these kinds of characters and events fell flat or just seemed silly since they weren’t a part of a real attempt at humor. There was also some agreement that the one redeeming character in the story was Martina Coles—someone who could have been better developed and even appeared in other novels. But she was unique to this story, and not a part of the TV show or subsequent books. Oh well.
Two interesting aspects of the story that we briefly discussed toward the end of the program. First, there was a real potential for a cool story about a creature (the space worm) that even the Vorlons didn’t have knowledge of. This could have been very interesting and even a little terrifying. The author toyed with this concept a bit, but in the end, let it fall on the floor. Second, this novel is in some ways comparable to the movie Thirdspace. The movie wasn’t all that great either, but there are some real similarities between the two. We leave that for your consideration.
Well, we unanimously disliked the book—sadly a developing trend. Our ratings were a 1.3, a 0.5, and a 1.5 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 1.1. Once again, based on the much higher ratings out there on the socials (GoodReads, Amazon, etc.), if any of our listeners enjoyed this, we genuinely want to hear why. Not to be critical of you, but to see if the three of us missed something in our own reading of the material. Also, keep in mind, these standalone novels are what they are, and aren’t considered canon except for the 7th and 9th books. With that in mind, it’s a little easier to manage expectations. It also means we’re drawing closer to at least two that should be pretty good. Not saying numbers six and eight aren’t good—we just don’t know yet. Then as noted during the episode, the three trilogies are all considered to be solid and definitely worth the time to read, so hang in there.
Please continue reading along and join us next time when we discuss the sixth stand-alone novel, Betrayals, by S.M. Sterling.
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylo...
BPP The Passing of the Techno-mages #3: Invoking Darkness
The Babylon Project Podcast
05/02/22 • 78 min
Invoking Darkness was written by Jeanne Cavelos. The story takes place starting in August 2260 through 2261, covering just five months. As we discuss the third and final novel in the trilogy, it’s worth noting that the overarching story is tragic, alluded to by the collective title “Passing of the Technomages”. It’s noteworthy as well that the second novel’s title was somewhat optimistic (Summoning Light), but the story concludes with Invoking Darkness, an apparent downward turn. A good bit of this book makes direct ties into the story captured in episodes of the original Babylon 5 series. If you’ve seen the show, you’ll recognize them; if you haven’t, then when you watch the show, we trust you’ll be excited to see the hooks that were put in place then, for the events that JMS envisioned Jeanne Cavelos would capture in this set of books.
War is underway and the Shadows appear poised to win. Tied to the television show, John Sheridan appears convinced by a Shadow controlled version of his former wife (Anna) to travel to Z’ha’dum as the Shadows try to win him over to their side. This would eliminate the problem that he is to them...the “nexus”...as he is also the vessel containing what remains of the Vorlon Kosh. At the same time, Galen is assigned to depart the Technomage’s place of hiding, locate and kill three rogue members of the Technomage order. It is during and through this assignment, he ends up on Z’ha’dum while John Sheridan is there, and uses his powers in an attempt to tip the balance of the war. While chartered to kill the rogue members of the order, engaging in direct conflict with the Shadows, and especially on their homeworld, runs directly in conflict with the decision the Circle made to go into hiding. Without permission, Galen risks it all...for everyone. Storylines interweave quite a bit and we see just how events unfold to ultimately bring about the passing of the Technomages. Don’t make assumptions about what that ending for the Order looks like. The novel is definitely worth reading to see just what that looks like!
Our ratings were a 4.5, 4.5 and 4 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 4.33!
While Invoking Darkness was the final novel in the B5 universe, we do have two more episodes of content for you. There were also six short stories, most of them penned by JMS himself. We intend to cover them in the order they were published, beginning with the first three in the next episode: “Shadow of His Thought; “Genius Loci”; and “Space, Time, and the Incurable Romantic”.
Please join us next time for what will be the penultimate episode of the Babylon Project Podcast. As always, we hope you can read along with us, and join in on the conversation!
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
BPP Legions of Fire #3: Out of the Darkness
The Babylon Project Podcast
02/07/22 • 91 min
The third book of the Legions of Fire trilogy was phenomenal. We don’t know how the conclusion of the story, written in Out of the Darkness, could have been any better. As with the second novel, this one carried the reader into a new set of scenes, and a new set of perspectives as smoothly as a scene change in a great film. It was masterful.
Out of the Darkness was written by Peter David and based on a script written by JMS. Based on dates given in the novel, the story opens in 2275 (within a couple years before the end of the second novel), and carries us into 2278—just a year or so after the second novel ends, and in the last year captured in the movie “In the Beginning”.
The first novel was primarily Londo’s story; the second novel was primarily Vir’s story; and we decided the story in this novel was told in a way to be the interwoven and concluding stories of Londo; Vir; and John and Delenn. Peter David was masterful in how he wove these stories together in this book, focused on the primary characters, but also keeping the necessary cloud of other main/supporting characters in play. He showed equal mastery in how he very tightly wove all three novels in this trilogy together, as well as seamlessly place the events in the trilogy within the canonical narrative of the greater B5 universe.
With Londo’s story, we see the end that we knew was coming. He dies in office, in defiance of the Drakh and their Keeper that lives on (and in) him. He dies at the hands of G’Kar. In this exchange, G’Kar dies as well, at the hands of Londo (and his Keeper). What we didn’t know until now was how these two characters end up killing each other. This was incredible story-telling in that these two have been what amounts to lifelong enemies, colleagues and friends. The telling of the end of the story for Londo and G’Kar is emotional and frankly, respectful.
Regarding Vir’s story, we see all the work come to fruition that he’s done with the resistance, called “The Legions of Fire”, and with his allies the Technomages. He and his forces are postured to expose the secret presence of the Drakh, their full and enslaving control over Emperor Mollari and the Centauri government, and to also heal the wounds between the Republic and the Interstellar Alliance. Vir has truly grown into a powerful and mature political leader and warrior, and in spite of a few significant gaffs, an honorable man. This postures him to lead in the future, and put him on the best possible footing to gain the respect and trust needed to restore the Centauri Republic’s relationship with the IA.
Finally, we see John and Delenn—the two most powerful people in the IA. While this is true throughout the books we’ve read, we really see them here as parents. Their son David is a young man now and we get a good picture of the kind of young man he is. Smart? Sure—just look at his parents. Angsty? Definitely—he’s at that age that teen angst is a real thing. His moodiness and “know it all” attitude is probably exacerbated by just how smart he truly is, and all that he’s seen as the son of John and Delenn. Overall though, we see a sophomoric teenage boy who is striving to leave childhood behind and become a man. But this birthday is significant for a more sinister reason, foreshadowed earlier in the storyline. Emperor Mollari, under the control of his Drakh handler, hides Keeper in an Imperial Urn. During an awkward visit with John and Delenn years prior, he presents the urn to them as a gift to be given to David upon his 16th birthday. That day has come. While David is alone in his room, the Keeper emerges, attaches itself to him, and takes control. The Keeper then has David steal a shuttle and fly to Centauri Prime as an unwitting hostage for Durla to use to control and hopefully kill President Sheridan, as a critical part of the Centauri and Drakh attack the IA and Earth.
The novel concludes when the Legions of Fire brings Durla’s “Tower of Power” (secretly the headquarters and a primary operating base for the Drakh on Centauri Prime) down explosively, literally resulting in a rain of Drakh body parts falling on the streets and people of the capital city. In concert with this, Vir makes it clear to the people of Centauri Prime that the Drakh have been using their government as an instrument to prepare for and now to wage war against the IA. Londo is dead. In an attempt to grab power, Durla is killed as well, and the Drakh are exposed. Vir, already in touch with the IA, and having informed John and Delenn their son is safe, is left to pave the way for a new and friendly relationship with the IA. He does so now, not as an ambassador, but as the new Emperor of the Centauri Republic.
We can’t really do justice to this novel, or really this incredible story told across this trilogy. This set of books is truly the culmination of the entire Babylon 5 story. We can’t think of anyone who could have told that story better f...
BPP Crusade 103 – The Well of Forever
The Babylon Project Podcast
06/08/20 • 92 min
Welcome back! We’re three episodes into Crusade and as you’ll hear, still reminding each other that this is a new show, with new characters who need to develop—meaning the actors and writers haven’t quite found the familiarity with the characters just yet, but that’s to be expected. This episode is one of only a few written by someone other than JMS.
Things kick off quickly, and a little ominously, with a Psi Corps ship approaching the Excalibur. We’re introduced to Mr. Jones, a Psi Cop of sorts, who is there to perform a scan and review of the First Officer, Mr. Matheson. We learn that the Senate has abolished Psi Corps (at least as we knew it, even though Jones’ ship is prominently marked with the Psi Corps logo and he wears a Psi Corps pin) but has apparently retained a form of the organization akin to an Internal Affairs activity, that ensures telepaths who now live among the Normals aren’t abusing their abilities. That said, through the episode we watch unethical behavior from Mr. Jones that rivals any of the abuses of power we saw in Babylon 5.
This takes place while the Excalibur is under way to a mysterious location within Hyperspace—a little known and understood place called The Well of Forever. Galen talks Captain Gideon into tying his ship and the Excalibur’s navigation systems together to find and reach the Well by suggesting there might be something there that could help contribute to the cure of the plague on Earth. What that might be is a mystery, as are most things that Galen appears to know. With Gideon convinced, the ships are connected and the search begins.
Jones conducts his scan of Matheson in a less than professional way, while mentioning Matheson is a sort of folk hero, who therefore requires additional oversight. Jones almost sounds jealous, but may also be using this as an excuse to look for something valuable that has nothing to do with his official duties. When the scan is complete, Matheson complains to Jones that he violated the rules and obtained “operational information”. Jones simply dismisses this, using his authority to threaten Matheson to be quiet.
Excalibur reaches the expected location of the Well only to find it’s not there. The agreement was that if the Well wasn’t there, Excalibur would immediately return to normal space. When Gideon tells Galen they’re turning around only to learn Galen has hijacked the Excalibur’s navigation system so that he could continue the search without interference from the crew. This was a significant betrayal of trust and Gideon tells him it’s mutiny. Galen doesn’t appear to care. They find the Well of Forever shortly after this exchange, but the damage is done to the relationship. We learn the Well is a sort of burial ground and Gideon’s motive for seeing it out at any expense was a promise he made to a loved one to carry her remains there for burial. They learn that the structure of the Well contains significant and rare elements, and a solid core of Quantium 40—the stuff Jump Gates are made of and rely on, but nothing that appears to be of any value in terms of helping to cure the plague. This adds to Gideon’s frustration as he realizes Galen knew this and the suggestion there might be something that could help save Earth was also a lie. Galen lied to get the Captain to agree to make the voyage, already knowing that once that happened, he’d hijack the ship. Now that the mission is complete, Galen returns control of the Excalibur to Gideon and they safely depart.
During these events, Matheson told Gideon that during his scan, Jones took operational data—something he wasn’t authorized to do, nor did he have an official need for. Gideon, with the help of Dureena, puts a plan in place to confront Mr. Jones. As things wind down, that confrontation occurs in a manner that causes Mr. Jones to admit he was scanning people without authority. Gideon then holds this over his head to ensure no bad report will go out about Matheson, nor will operational data about the ship’s mission (specifically about the Well of Forever) will be released.
Having broken the Captain’s trust, Galen is going to depart the ship and suggests to Gideon he won’t return unless welcomed. Gideon reminds him of his betrayal and that while he kept his honorable promise to his dead friend to get her to the Well of Forever, he acted without honor to do so. Galen seemed to think the ends justify the means; Gideon didn’t agree—nor did your hosts. We’re left wondering if Galen will ever be able to restore the trust others had placed in him.
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on
BPP Legions of Fire #2: Armies of Light and Dark
The Babylon Project Podcast
01/03/22 • 83 min
We rolled right into the second book of the Legions of Fire trilogy: Armies of Light and Dark, and we weren’t disappointed! This book flows seamlessly from the first, with the story shifting from focusing on Londo to putting Vir center stage.
Armies of Light and Dark was written by Peter David and based on a script written by JMS. The story opens in 2267 and carries us into 2277. These dates come directly from references early, and also late in the book.
Vir, the Centauri Ambassador to Babylon 5, takes center stage as we see his life balancing between being marginalized on the Station by everyone else there (due to the Centauri Republic’s failed moral standing and subsequent war with the Alliance); and a status back on Centauri Prime that almost feels like he’s been deemed Persona Non Grata by his own people. When home, he goes almost unnoticed. When he’s noticed by most in power (except for Londo) the attitude toward him seems to be annoyance. Consistent with what we already know about the Drakh control of the Republic, we clearly see Vir’s been cast aside to serve on Babylon 5 to keep him out of the way, while the truly powerful (under Drakh control) rebuild the Republic’s cities openly, and the military (secretly), to wage war once again.
We watch Vir grow up...maturing personally and professionally. He’s changing from the naive aide to the previous ambassador, into a mature and very politically savvy politician and strategist. This matters because of what he learns, and as a result, the action he takes to save his own people and home world—all facilitated by his perceived insignificance in the eyes of everyone else. It becomes obvious to Vir that while Londo is the Emperor, Minister Durla is exercising a signifiant and growing amount of power as the defacto ruler of the emerging police state. Before the book concludes, Durla maneuvers himself into the position of Prime Minister (facilitated by the Drakh), and is publicly the second most powerful member of the government, with only to Emperor Mollari to answer to. With Londo under direct Drakh control, Durla is effectively running the government, building a powerful military in secret, and using some forces openly to invade and take control of smaller words who are outside of the Centauri’s real vital interests. This is all done under the guise of putting down threats to the Republic, and on a more peaceful (sounding) note, to create jobs and gain the resources required to help rebuild what the Interstellar Alliance destroyed in the war. While these actions are offensive and almost imperial in nature, because of the relative insignificance of the worlds falling to the diminished Centauri Republic, the IA looks the other way. In reality, these are intended as bases from which to draw resources in order to establish the military the Republic needs to confront the IA.
Vir quietly and expertly establishes credible intelligence networks among the Centauri people, specifically those who have grown aware something sinister is going on. He also continues to work with the Technomages, granting him information and some capabilities that only they can bring. While things play out with Londo and Durla, Vir has become the primary influencer, if not the leader, of an increasingly powerful resistance movement on Centauri Prime. Allied with the Technomages, Vir is putting the pieces in place for this maturing resistance movement to eventually take back the Republic from the Drakh. With the help of the Technomages, he also finds the secret Planet Killer facility. Time is running out for Vir, the Technomages, and the resistance on Centauri Prime to set the necessary conditions to take action and end the war that’s about to be unleashed by the Drakh against Earth and the IA.
An incredible book, full of action, and driving us toward what can only be an incredible ending. We were all eager to jump right into the next book. Our ratings were a 5, 5 and 5 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 5!
Next time we’ll discuss the third and final book in the series, optimistically called Out of the Darkness. As always, we hope you can read along with us, and join in on the conversation.
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
Just remember... If there’s no boom today, there’s boom tomorrow. There’s always boom tomorrow!
BPP Psi Corps #2 – Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendant
The Babylon Project Podcast
10/04/21 • 106 min
With the second book in the “Psi Corps Trilogy” under our belts, we’re back to discuss the continuing story as captured in Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendant. As mentioned previously, this set of books was based on a script written by JMS, and are considered canon, and all three were written by J. Gregory Keyes. The second novel in the set begins in about 2190 when Al Bester was just six years old, and tells us his story right up until his first visit to Babylon 5, covering another 60 years of time. This novel really is Bester’s story.
The story is told in four parts (five if you count the epilogue), interestingly titled Thesis, Antithesis, Synthesis, and Ascendance. As the story unfolds, we see how Alfred Bester became the Bester we all know and hate—or perhaps love to hate. As an orphan, entrusted to the Psi Corps, Bester is one of the very first true children of the Corps, giving particular weight to the statement we’re all familiar with, “The Corps is Mother, the Corps is Father”. His training is difficult, and as a social misfit, life as a student and child of the Corps isn’t necessarily suited to his personality. Even so, he’s inspired by a particular teacher/mentor, finds his way, and in fact becomes truly invested in and zealously embraces the Corps. As a young man he has enough confidence in himself that he attempts to capture a wanted “Blip” (a rogue telepath). This doesn’t go well at all, his motives and loyalty are questioned, and as the dust settles, his punishment is severe. After his punishment ends, his mentor, who sees a lot of promise in Bester, brings him on another hunt. The danger of these hunts convinces Bester even more that the Corps is right and best for all teeps, and his loyalty is cemented into place.
Also during this time, Bester falls in love, and is completely devoted to the young woman until she decides to go rogue. In a heartbreaking moment, he chooses the Corps over his love for her, turns her in, and she’s arrested.
As the story continues, Bester is finally sent out to apprehend a Blip named Stone. During this pursuit, he and his partner get information on another (more dangerous) Blip named Walters, the leader of a rogue movement. Things go with difficulty and Bester ends up in the hospital, where he makes himself useful scanning dying people for information for the Corps. This experience also takes a toll on him. Once recovered, he is paired by the Corps with a wife, giving us some insight into the Corps’ breeding program. He doesn’t love her, but he stays with her because of his loyalty to the Corps. Bester also works an assignment to Mars.
On Mars he meets Lyta, who assists him with a murder case. He’s also sent to an asteroid for a secret meeting with Director Johnston, who it turns out harbored a severe bias against Bestor. The meeting was arranged to allow the Director to kill Bester and remove what he perceived was a problem within the Corps. Instead, Bester kills him in a staged accident. Along the way we’re introduced to Byron—yes, that Byron—and at the end of the novel, Bester is sent to Babylon 5 to capture Jason Ironheart.
Like the first novel in this trilogy, the second one covers a significant span of years. Even so, it was incredibly readable, held great continuity with the first novel and within itself, and set the stage for what can only be an incredible conclusion in the third and final novel of the set. We’ll suggest to you that these first two books might give you a dizzying view and perspective of Bester than you’ve had before. Our ratings were a 5, 5 and 5 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 5. None of us could wait to get the next book started!
Next time we’ll discuss the third and final book in the Psi Corps Trilogy, called Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester. We have no doubt it will be a powerful and fitting end to the story.
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
BPP – Legend of the Rangers
The Babylon Project Podcast
04/13/20 • 111 min
This is our fourth movie review of five for your hosts. “Legend of the Rangers: To Live and Die in Starlight” takes place in 2265, between the end of Season 5 (2263) and A Call to Arms (2266). It originally aired on January 19th, 2002 on the Sci Fi Channel. Written by JMS, it was intended to be a pilot for a new series, although it did not go to series due to low ratings.
The consensus from your hosts going in was this may be the least favorite of the movies we’ve looked at. As we’ve seen with other movies in the set, the volume of content in the movie probably warranted an episode-length effort, but it was drawn out to fill the time required of a feature-length film. There was so much promise for some incredible Ranger-focused story, providing real depth to a very interesting character set in the B5 universe. We were a little disappointed. The movie opens with some boom, and with a new ship, a new threat, and a mystery that the Interstellar Alliance has discovered: or perhaps awakened.
The storyline for the movie begins when we see a Ranger (David Martel), who chooses to withdraw and survive a lost battle to fight again another day, being reprimanded and punished for staying alive. At this time in the history of the Rangers, with the Shadow War behind them and so far from a credible interstellar threat, there is emphasis on the Ranger’s motto—an oath—that obligates them to “live for the one, and die for the one.” G’Kar, still a delegate for his world, is present on Minbar and takes the opportunity to add his thoughts (wisdom) to the debate about the Ranger’s fate, resulting in some softer options for how to punish Martel for surviving.
We learn the new ship we saw is called the Valen: a first-of-a-kind cruiser class Ranger vessel, with capabilities different from the White Stars. Another ship is also brought into the story: an old Ranger attack ship called the “Liandra”, supposedly haunted by its former crew who died onboard. As a result of the discussions about Martel’s future, he is detailed to command the old and under-maintained Liandra, along with a small, rag-tag crew. The little bit of background we get about this diverse crew could have been (should have been?) a much more significant and interesting part of the story, but this is one of the places movie fell short. The Liandra and Valen launch on mission to take an Alliance delegation to a secret conference on Beta Durani 7.
They arrive to discover the colony destroyed, and they’re attacked by three vessels sent from a previously unknown entity called The Hand. Both ships end up disabled, the dignitaries are moved to the Liandra (living for the one), and in a heroic effort the Valen is destroyed when it rams one of the threat ships (dying for the one) to allow the survival of the dignitaries.
The last half of the movie revolves around learning more about The Hand, and how to deal with the threat. The Hand appears to be another old race (never mentioned in the original series or other movies) who have arrived from another space (but not Thirdspace)—a place of apparent total darkness. We also learn there’s a traitor onboard the Liandra and among the Alliance ambassadorial delegation, further frustrating the effort to defeat the threat.
When it’s all said and done, The Hand is defeated through a plan involving a minefield, selectively shooting mines, the use of grenades, and a race back to the nearest Jump Gate. When the battle is over, our heroes have destroyed The Hand’s capital ship with 50 grenades, making this whole part of the storyline almost comical. The known universe is saved, and as things begin to wrap up back on Minbar, the Council seems apologetic for its earlier philosophical stubbornness, closing the loop on what may be a more balanced approach to the motto: to live for the one and die for the one; and attempting to make it clear why the movie’s subtitle was “To Live and Die in Starlight”.
Was it hideous? No. Was it good? Not really. There was a lot of promise with what the story was built around, but if the movie was intended to sell someone on the production of a new series, it miserably failed. Frankly, it was surprising to us that it was written by JMS, and left us with the impression the movie may have actually convinced producers that he wasn’t really serious about this concept as a new series.
Please join us next time as we review the final movie of the set: A Call to Arms.
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at...
BPP Novel 4: Clark’s Law
The Babylon Project Podcast
03/01/21 • 65 min
The next stand-alone novel we read and reviewed is Jim Mortimore’s Clark’s Law. This is the only novel he wrote within the B5 universe, although he has writing credits for novelizations within the Dr. Who universe. The print copy was published by Dell in February 1996, and ran 288 pages. The story takes place in 2259, at the end of Season 2 and occurs between “Comes the Inquisitor” and “The Fall of Night”. sometime prior to “The Coming of Shadows” (Season 2, Episode 9). This book is not considered canon.
Well, we went from liking the previous novel quite a bit to not liking this one at all. Here’s the story: A newly discovered species called the Tuchanq come aboard Babylon 5 and in short order an unfortunate series of events results in several of the Tuchanq losing consciousness. This species never sleeps, but instead gains rest and maintains individual identity through a complex series of songs. What wasn’t known or understood by station inhabitants (including the command team) is that when a Tuchanq loses consciousness, they essentially lose their minds. D’Arc, commits a murder, is rendered unconscious and is left with the mind of an infant or child. The moral discussion that ensues and guides the story is that this “new” creature with no memory or identity related to the one that committed the murder, can not be held responsible for the crime. In a tangential power play, President Clark is trying to bolster his growing dictatorial control of Earth, and uses the incident to to prejudge D’Arc and mandate the death penalty for the crime, showing he’s a strong president and wiling to do what it takes to maintain order and discipline to protect the people and allies of Earth. This sets the stage for the tension of the primary storyline, as Capt Sheridan and his officers struggle with how to handle what’s morally right versus the unjust mandate to execute D’Arc.
In an odd and very unbalanced side story, we are shown a Babylon 5 where significant rioting is occurring while it seems the station officials are either unwilling or unable (or both?) to simply maintain the peace. It’s through this series of events we noticed that almost all the major characters were written inconsistently with those we know from the series. Also unfolding at the same time is the primary side story of G’Kar and Londo, in which G’Kar attempts to brutally murder Londo and then commit ritual suicide. In an incredibly planned and deliberate act, G’Kar stabs Londo brutally, and leaves him to die. The author leaves us with the impression, this was a major decision, but not really a big deal for G’Kar. These weren’t the characters of the TV series. The same was particularly true of Ivanova and Vir, Franklin, and to some extent Sheridan.
The significant events that took place in this novel didn’t come close to fitting into the B5 story arc we all know and love. It was truly as if Mortimore was given basic plot points and the B5 story bible, but he never actually watched an episode of the show. Outside of the specific disconnection of the characters as written, versus the show, none of these very significant events ever manifest in the series: G’Kar’s attempted murder of Londo, the existence of a species called the Tuchanq, many other species also mentioned that we’ve never seen, rioting on the station, a very muted and passive Commander Ivanova, etc.
All the themes we could identify in the book have run through the previous novels. Your hosts presumed that there was probably a master list of themes provided by JMS to all these authors to incorporate into their writing as the specific stories allowed. In Clark’s Law, we saw elements of crime and punishment, deceit and false accusations for political gain, corrupt government (specifically Earth), capital punishment, conflicts of morality and the growing tension between Earth and Mars.
One final note: we all agreed the author appeared to use the novel as an instrument to lecture his readers on his particular views of several of these moral issues, especially capital punishment. He also seemed to take a very odd shot at liberal democracies in general, and arguably the specific form of a federal republic. Well written Science Fiction has always had a significant role in examining social and ethical issues (contentious ones in particular) by placing the issue at the heart of fictional events and writing about them in a way that the reader is outside of the issues. In this case, the author failed to do this. The story was so badly written, he came across as lecturing us with his perspectives rather than letting us work out our own perspectives based on the story.
We unanimously disliked this book. Our ratings were a 1.5, a 0.5, and a 1 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 1. We’d never tell someone not to read a book, but this is one we’d warn you away from unless you have nothing better to do.
Please continue reading along an...
BPP The Passing of the Techno-mages #2: Summoning Light
The Babylon Project Podcast
04/04/22 • 83 min
Picking up right where Casting Shadows left off, Summoning Light chronicles Galen’s assignment immediately after becoming a Technomage, focusing on the order’s assessments and preparations for the coming Shadow War. Driving the storyline here: the Technomages know their order is a risk of extermination and wrestle with whether to stand and fight (and just how to do that), or to go into hiding and save the order for another day, hopefully in a post-Shadow War universe where they’d be able to operate and remain true to the purpose of their order. The information that drives the ultimate decision, and the most exciting wrinkle revealed in the book: the technology the Technomages rely upon is of Shadow origins! This creates a number of problems. Morally/ethically, the order seems to stand against everything the Shadows stand for. Practically, can the Shadows essentially hijack the Mages’ tech and use them for evil. Related, and finally, with this fact now in the open, can the Mages truly ally with the rest of the universe, operate freely, and even potentially count on working with the Vorlons (the bitter enemies of the Shadows)?
The biggest problem this knowledge creates is a schism among members of the order itself. Many, especially Galen, are more than offended by the members of the Circle, who have known of the origins of their tech and kept it secret. All this while leading an order that explicitly doesn’t keep secrets from itself. Confidence and trust in what is viewed as betrayal leads to uncertainty and some amount of chaos. When the Circle decides the order to go into hiding, some disagree and would rather fight the Shadows, consistent with the Order’s purpose. The Technomages can’t trust their leadership, and to add fuel to the fire, members are actively being engaged and manipulated by the Shadows. If they won’t come to heel, they will destroy them. Through the several months covered by the story, we see Galen maturing as a man and as a Technomage, growing in his understanding and use of the unique power he has (and boy is he powerful!), and he begins to realize his unique place and role in the upcoming war.
One of the major storylines in this book is just how the Technomages orchestrate their movement into hiding. Parts of how this was done were captured in the original Babylon 5 series, Season 2, Episode 3 (Geometry of Shadows). Jeanne Cavelos does a great job of expanding on the little bit we saw, and explaining the Babylon 5 station’s role in the deceit the Mages created to allow themselves to hide the members of the Order.
Summoning Light was written by Jeanne Cavelos. The story takes place immediately following the last book, beginning in January 2259 and covering only a few months. It definitely bridges the gap between the first and third novels in the series, and serves very well to set up the events in the final book, and the final chapter in the story is this aptly-named trilogy “The Passing of the Technomages”.
Our ratings were a 4.5, 5 and 4 (out of 5), giving us an overall Boom Scale rating of 4.5!
Join us next time for the third and final book in the trilogy: Invoking Darkness. As always, we hope you can read along with us, and join in on the conversation!
You can find us at http://www.BabylonProjectPodcast.wordpress.com, on Facebook at The Babylon Project Podcast or on iTunes. You can email us at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.
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