Am I the only Babylon 5 fan who's happy at this news?
I mean, it might suck, but it might be great. We'll never know if they don't try
I'm really curious at the least. I really do hope they pull it off.
Am I the only Babylon 5 fan who's happy at this news?
I mean, it might suck, but it might be great. We'll never know if they don't try
I'm very happy about this, the CW had and has a lot of shows I like a lot especially genre shows.
Nah, Zack is wearing a Rangers emblem in that scene. I always thought he was supposed to be some sort of go-between for the Alliance/Rangers and the Centauri.
You have my axe. There are many rough things about the original that I hope this does better. So long as some things are better then the original which I dont think is hard to do I will always have the original. For example the original i never really came to care much about dr Franklin. I just never cared much about him compared to Bashir and crusher so his character could definitely be improved. I think if we can get a little more with low level characters to flesh the station out like the bsg reboot and deep space 9 would also be an improvement. The original wasn't perfect, but the whole of it was incredible.
People always think that before a recast and then it turns out to not be a big deal at all.
Yeah, when he mentioned the new BSG that's exactly what came to mind. BSG took the basics: a rag-tag fleet on the run from a race of robots that had nearly exterminated humanity, under the command of a man named Adama, and spun it off into something very different in tone and execution from the original. I think the main difference here is that B5 is generally regarded as a great concept that was well executed for the time and constraints they had, whereas BSG was a good concept that was not executed well…and I say that as a fan of the original BSG.Why assume "reboot" just means the same story and same characters with new actors? JMS already basically said this isn't the case on Twitter. He's a better writer than that
Am I the only Babylon 5 fan who's happy at this news?
I mean, it might suck, but it might be great. We'll never know if they don't try
Why assume "reboot" just means the same story and same characters with new actors? JMS already basically said this isn't the case on Twitter. He's a better writer than that
Feel like I'm taking crazy pills reading a lot of the discourse surrounding this news. Gonna stay optimistic and excited but when negativity runs so rampant it really sours the word of mouth potential of a thing
Inject it into my veinsI mean it probably won't be the same story. It will be the original plot that he was forced to alter as half the cast quit between the pilot and first episode, and then half of the replacement cast quit piecemeal over the next 4 seasons. BY the end of the show there are like 3 actors who had been there for the whole thing.
B5 without having to use JMS' contingency plots would be a very different story.
I would not expect a full 22 episode season. They usually start with a 13 episode pilot season and renew it at that amount unless it hits riverdale/arrowverse metrics with their preferred demographics. Those tent pole series for the network are the ones that get 22 episode orders.
If you like superheroes give Superman & Lois a chance. It's the best live action Superman depiction in decades.
It's why I'm hopeful if they reintroduce a Talia/Ivanova relationship again, it can actually pan out.I feel a hell of a lot more secure with it on CW than on pretty much any other network.
CW has been the most reliable source of genre TV for years. They took a superhero show starring a C tier batman clone and spun that off into 7 other series. They did crisis on infinite earths on a TV budget. They had the first openly queer live action super hero. They've had 3 leading characters being queer across 2 series.They not only let constantine be bi when they brought him to legends, but actually made his relationship with with a man into a significant part of a seasonal plot. They've had two main shows and one miniseries headlined by POC.
That people are bitching about budget indicates that there's isn't much else to worry about. And frankly, it's crazy to assume B5 would have a budget comparable to star trek and star wars. Both those properties are decades old and have been a part of the pop culture environment in some form or another pretty much the entire time. B5 was barely part of pop culture when it was on. It was always the Bad News Bears of space opera.
Do we think JMS's writing will hold up to modern day scrutiny?
Do we think JMS's writing will hold up to modern day scrutiny?
Also, good luck replacing the old cast. Should be a continuation, not a reboot.
That said, better than nothing!
Babylon 5 is far more relevant now then when it aired.Do we think JMS's writing will hold up to modern day scrutiny?
Also, good luck replacing the old cast. Should be a continuation, not a reboot.
That said, better than nothing!
The time for a continuation ended years ago. Unfortunately over half the cast has passed away, and the lack of those characters would cast a shadow over any continuation. I agree that re-casting those characters would be difficult, if this was going to be a straight up reboot, but it doesn't sound like it is.Do we think JMS's writing will hold up to modern day scrutiny?
Also, good luck replacing the old cast. Should be a continuation, not a reboot.
That said, better than nothing!
The time for a continuation ended years ago. Unfortunately over half the cast has passed away, and the lack of those characters would cast a shadow over any continuation. I agree that re-casting those characters would be difficult, if this was going to be a straight up reboot, but it doesn't sound like it is.
And what's wrong with JMS' writing? If anything, B5 has only improved with age…sadly, because some of the things in the series have moved from a sci-fi "what if" to real life.
It's why I'm hopeful if they reintroduce a Talia/Ivanova relationship again, it can actually pan out.
The thing is scifi really has no place on TV anymore so the CW is the only place for it. It's just that audience has certain expectations and it just seems expected that they'll have to make some changes.
That said, the shows are weird in that you have the batshit stuff that people presumably hate-watch or watching in a so bad it's good kind of way like the DCEU stuff and Riverdale and Supernatural, and then you have all their science fiction/vampire shows that are very much tied to relationship dramas, and then you have random shit like Walker. So I'm not sure where B5 would fit into that lineup. lol
In the previous series, characters would be absent for several episodes at a time but the actors would still get top billing and probably paid for every episode as if they were in it. I can't see that happening now.
I wonder if it's actually easier to cast as "you're all recurring, you only get paid if you're in the episode" now vs then either from a union perspective or an actors are willing to go for that perspective.
Wow, I didn't know you guys were B5 heads like me...Toronto B5 Crew official t-shirts incoming.
They were only paid for the episodes they appeared in that was one of the cost saving measures due to the limited budget, I remember an interview with Bill Mumy were he said he only had a six episode guarantee when he signed on which means he's a regular and has to make himself available for the entire season but is only guaranteed six episodes that he appears in and is paid for.In the previous series, characters would be absent for several episodes at a time but the actors would still get top billing and probably paid for every episode as if they were in it. I can't see that happening now.
They were only paid for the episodes they appeared in that was one of the cost saving measures due to the limited budget, I remember an interview with Bill Mumy were he said he only had a six episode guarantee when he signed on which means he's a regular and has to make himself available for the entire season but is only guaranteed six episodes that he appears in and is paid for.
Babylon 5 could have never afforded to pay their entire credited cast for every episode.
Wow, I didn't know you guys were B5 heads like me...Toronto B5 Crew official t-shirts incoming.
I bought the remaster on iTunes when it came out, but haven't rewatched it.I grabbed the DVD set when it was on sale for like $70 earlier this year and just finished my watch through a few weeks ago.
Am I the only Babylon 5 fan who's happy at this news?
I mean, it might suck, but it might be great. We'll never know if they don't try
The themes about using fear of terrorism to drum up public support for reductions of liberties, increased monitoring, etc all were super relevant in the 2000s.
The xenophobia and anti-alient sentiment were more relevant during the Trump admin.
The anti-science bent of the pandemic episode felt completely relevant when my daughter and I watched it again last year when the remaster came out.
The show so far has been evergreen in that regard, but that's what happens when you lean on history for your examples, and you are willing to tackle religion and creeping fascism and xenophobia and substance abuse and such.
There are some things in the show's favour this time. For one, Babylon 5 being widely available on hbo max in much better quality probably has shown some positive viewing figures for the show.I think we should pause briefly to remember the show hasn't been given the go-ahead. It sounds likely that it'll make the cut, especially with The CW being... The CW. But JMS has sounded pretty praiseworthy toward potential business partners in the past, including when the B5 feature film was in the cards, only for things to burn up.
I think it's 80% likely this is a thing, but yeah.
Therelevnt the 2000s further emphasize your point since the series had ended in the late 90s as wellThe themes about using fear of terrorism to drum up public support for reductions of liberties, increased monitoring, etc all were super relevant in the 2000s.
The xenophobia and anti-alient sentiment were more relevant during the Trump admin.
The anti-science bent of the pandemic episode felt completely relevant when my daughter and I watched it again last year when the remaster came out.
The show so far has been evergreen in that regard, but that's what happens when you lean on history for your examples, and you are willing to tackle religion and creeping fascism and xenophobia and substance abuse and such.
Rebuild of Babylon 5.0
Kosh will have full memory of the original series.
Don't tell JMS I said that.
Was also thinking there had to have been at least one or two terrible execs who are no longer a part of the equation because the first thing I thought of after the reboot announcement was this very blunt, cold response JMS posted that he had received from WB via his agent back in 2018: