more thoughts on b5

[rivendellrose]

And still more.



Episode 7: ____ of Souls

Another Byron episode, fast on the heels of "Strange Relations." And this one doesn't have Bester to make it interesting. Imagine my joy. Ended with creepy sex-flashbacks, mad Shadow eyes, Vorlons, and babies in jars. Can't tell you most of the rest, because I was knitting. Another foot or so of Ravenclaw scarf isn't a bad thing to get out of an episode, I guess...

Episode 8: Day of the Dead

I've been both dreading and looking forward to this episode for quite a while, ever since accidentally stumbling on some vague spoilers about it... and especially since Jessi and I noticed that one of the chapter titles was "Sold: One Space Station." If I'd known that it was written by Neil scary-trousers Gaiman, I probably would've gone crazy waiting for it. And it was pretty much all I could have hoped for. ♥

I will say, I like Lochley all the more for being the only person on the station who shares my opinion of Rebo-and-Zooty style comedy. I guess I'm just... dead inside or something; JMS described them in a little interview bit as similar to the three stooges or something, and he's right - I just can't find them all that terribly funny. I want to sometimes, but... nah. Everyone else's reactions were priceless, though - Sheridan looked like a kid meeting Santa Claus, and if Delenn had been grinning any more brightly she probably would have caused a supernova. I would say that was the cutest thing in this episode, but G'Kar in his pyjamas (particularly curled up on the floor, snuggling the book of G'Quan) is too close to call a difference between, as was his intensely indignant response to Lochley asking if he was familiar with the moral code of the alliance. "I wrote it!" Indeed. And Corwin practicing the hat trick? Such a cute little woobie.

See how good I was, oszras? I wrote two whole paragraphs before mentioning Lennier and his whole part in this episode. Are you proud of me? But I can't resist any further. ;) I was, of course, thrilled to see him again, and especially pleased by how happy Delenn was to see him (see, Lennier? She really did miss you). And she's right, of course - he looks quite dapper and mature in his ranger robes. Between him and Vir, I'm awash in nostalgic feelings about how much our naive little aides have grown up. ♥ So much love for them.

By now I've forgotten the number of times Jessi and I looked sideways at each other and said "Gaiman" in response to a particular line or image, but what I'm left with is the sort of... creepy/appealing appearance of the Brakiri, the delightful sugar skulls stolen straight out of Mexican folk traditions, but who am I to complain, and the delicious pathetic quality of Lochley arranging an interstellar relay from her own quarters. Poor Lochley.

The 'dead' were an interesting mixed bag. I thought it was wonderful to see Adira again (thank goodness they got the same actress, I was very worried about that for the instant before we could see her clearly), and Peter Jurasik did a wonderful job of getting across all of Londo's feelings about her, as always. Same with Dodger, who I was delighted to see again - I liked her so much the first time she was around, and her and Garibaldi are so much cuter a couple than he is/was with stupid Lise. Lochley and Zoe... I have mixed feelings about this one. First off, the actress who played Zoe was cute, and I liked the way she played the part. And I liked the idea of Lochley having a much less straight-laced past (well... other than a random marriage to a big dumb puppy). On the other hand... what is it with this show and relationships? For crying out loud, the tragedy gets kind of heavy after a while. More than that, I felt like the tragedy, in this case, was kind of... all I can think to say is "pasted on," which really showed what horrible influences my housemates are. Seriously, though - we barely know Lochley. It's hard to work up a whole hell of a lot of emotion over her twenty-years-ago failed relationship with this other girl we've only just met. Especially once I realized what was really bothering me about the whole deal... namely, how this would likely have gone if Claudia Christian hadn't left. Three guesses as to who would've showed up in her quarters.... leaving me bawling my eyeballs out, most likely, being as how we all actually knew Marcus, and most of the fans I've talked to really liked him.

And then there's Morden. As Jessi pointed out, there must be good eating in the afterlife - Morden has filled out a bit since we last saw him, and got a haircut, too. And he's a caffeine addict, of course... and also creepy as ever. Poor Lennier. He's just... not that bright, lately. *Hugs him* And JMS is totally going to kill him, the vicious bastard. He kills or gets rid of all my favorite characters! Mean mean mean mean mean writer.

The look on Sheridan's face when Lochley said the word "Kosh" had me laughing all the rest of the night. We had to rewind it to see it again. He's totally got a daddy complex over Kosh, now. "...Daddy?" Yes, Sheridan. Your creepy-scary, completely incomprehensible, glowy, encounter-suited daddy loves you enough to send a message from the afterlife. Too bad you can't understand it. And even if you could you'd probably ignore it, just like last time. XD

How did I forget to mention Lennier's delight over Rebo and Zooty? I'd always known this episode was going to break my brain... I just didn't know how. That was... truly surreal.

I swear I'll write real posts again soon... it just takes me so long to write these reviews that I don't have time for a lot else in my little bits of online free time. :P

Comments

[oszras.livejournal.com]

Dear god the episode where Byron and Lyta have sex creeps the hell out of me. It's all the telepaths staring at them while they do it. I said I've got privacy issues and so that scene....I felt dirty. And not in the nice way either. Byron getting pissed at the Vorlons is understandable but the way he goes about it is just so stupid, it even surpasses Sheridan in stupidity. Gah. *stabs Byron violently*

Now I loved the scene with Lochley and Zoe. Especially when Zoe says something like 'we had fun right?' and Lochley says 'no we were cold, hungry and scared'. That just made me like her really after that even when I didn't want to. They all have tragic pasts and such and yeah it gets old but I really liked that scene. Loved Doger and Adira. And the scene with Morden and Lennier.

Hated Rebo and Zooty. Bleh. Oh, Corwin my little woobie, I just loved that he *technically* slept with G'Kar. XD

And I had no idea Neil Gaiman wrote the episode! Wow.

I commend you on making two paragraphs. :D

Oh and Kosh and Sheridan. We all know Sheridan has Daddy issues but I thought the same thing when Lochley mentioned him. Sheridan has Daddy issues all over the place. :D

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

A comment! Someone loves me!

...It's been kind of a crazy day here. I relish the distraction. :D

IT'S SO CREEPY AND WRONG!!! Yeah, I forgot to mention the creepy scary-cult-gone-horribly-wrong way the teeps were all watching them. I don't have that big of privacy issues, but that was just scary. Like they were waiting to fall on them and eat them, or maybe worship them, I don't know. Either way, creepy. And yes, Byron is a freak. "We're peace-loving and non-violent, and we're proud of what we are! What? The Vorlons made us what we are? They ruined us and caused us pain and we deserve a homeland no matter who it kills!!!" Contradictory much, man? *Headdesk*

I did love that line of Lochley's. I liked the thing with Zoe... I just got distracted right at the beginning with the notion of "this is what they would have done with Marcus..." and after that, I was totally shot for enjoying what was actually in front of me, because I was living the vicarious nonexistant-but-theoretical angst of a post-death Susan and Marcus scene. ...I love both of them so much.

...Let us never speak of Corwin and G'Kar in the same breath ever again. XD

Isn't that awesome? I so totally ♥ him.

(I'm really kind of going nuts with the hearts lately... not sure what's up with that.)

Go me!

And yes. Yes, he... oh, Sheridan. He's such a big dumb puppy. And he just... grows on me, without my even noticing. And then I'm grinning my head off because of his doofy smile. *Headdesk* My S4 DVDs came in the mail yesterday, so miss_arel and I watched the gag reel and... ohmigod Bruce Boxleitner is the cutest thing in that gag reel. He's adorable! And so... dorky and silly and cute. Agh.

[oszras.livejournal.com]

Yay first comment! :D

Oh, man it freaked me out so much I will never watch that epi again. And still I can remember that scene clearly. *shudders*

And yeah he's such a hypocrite. I call his little telepath friends Cult of the Zombie Hippies. None of them talk, they all have hair issues, privacy issues and they stare at you. What Lyta sees in Byron I'll never know, he's a freaking cyborg with bad hair! This is worse than Delenn and Sheridan.

You know I always wonder why the IA didn't give them the Markab world. Granted they'd have to clean it up and drag a jumpgate over to the system but still...

That distracted me as well, 'cause we had Adira, Morden, Dodger. All the old cast and then Zoe and Lochley. It was good, and I liked her in it but I kept thinking 'Ivanova would have gotten to finally boink Marcus and have a whole 'nother set of issues/angst and it would have been so good. She would also worry over said boinking made her a necrophieliac (sp?). Or maybe not but I'd wonder about it.

XD But G'Kar could teach him all sorts of things, plus he has sexy spots. XD

I just checked out 'Stardust' by Gaiman I haven't had a chance to read it yet but now that I know Gaiman wrote that episode I'm excited to read it.

He does grow on you like mold or something. I *know* I'll have this ear splitting grin and I have no idea why until I realize it's Sheridan I'm grinning over.

I heart Bruce he is such a dork. He makes me giggle, and he's always making fun of Sheridan which just cracks me up to no end.

Oooh, so are you going to go back and watch 'Rising Star' for the Lennier/Delenn scene? I can't wait to see if you think I'm right about her body language.

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

It does kind of stick with you... honestly, I find all those teeps creepy as all hell. Scary people. Very scary. o_O And yes, they are totally a cult of zombie hippies. The thing with Byron... I was talking about it with miss_arel last night, and we think that no matter what actor they'd cast, nothing really could have saved that character from being creepy and obnoxious. I really can't imagine those lines being delivered well, at least not with the kind of direction the actor was apparently recieving. Maybe if the director had allowed the actor to go in a completely different direction... I don't know. He's just a horrible, horrible character, I think.

...You know, that's a really good point? Byron mentions "worlds on the edges of your territory that you don't care about" or something like that, but... the Markab world would be perfect! It's already uninhabited, there shouldn't be anything else wrong with it, and it even has buildings and infrastructure already!

Ivanova would have gotten to finally boink Marcus and have a whole 'nother set of issues/angst and it would have been so good. She would also worry over said boinking made her a necrophieliac (sp?).

Exactly! First she'd be suspicious, then she'd bitch him out for what he did to save her, and then somewhere along the line he'd point out that he came back from the dead for her and is only there for one night... and I have no doubt that they'd end up in bed, either after or immediately followed by a rousing debate about, yes, whether or not this constituted necrophilia. Then in the morning (after being exceedingly cute and woobie and romantic) he would disappear, leaving Susan, as you said, with even more angst than she started out with. Because I'm convinced that somewhere in all of that she'd be forced to admit to herself that she could, in time, have loved Marcus, and they could have been happy together. Or maybe I'm wrong, but that's my totally lost-in-the-romance take on the situation.

I hope you like it! I much more highly recommend his graphic novels, but his regular print novels aren't bad at all - they just tend to be more of an acquired taste, from what I've seen.

I can't wait to watch the cast commentary on S4, so I can hear this making-fun-of-Sheridan that you keep telling me about. I'm sure that'll amuse the heck out of me. And yes, I'm sure I will eventually rewatch 'Rising Star,' but mostly because I want to see it with my own eyes (again). I totally believe you about the body language, since later episodes have proved that she did indeed realize what was going on, and it pretty much had to be in that scene.

[oszras.livejournal.com]

The character is horrible and I don't know what would have had to happen to save the character from the depths of suckiness the he is. Now I see his point that the teeps were being used by Psi Corp and normals but it's so bogged down by all the other crap he spouts (like poetry and *singing*) that I *want* Bester to win. I don't care about him or his Cult, the only sympathy I have is for Lyta and since she chose that I have very little for her. I understand JMS had to go back and rewrite eight scripts because CC left but really it was handled so badly I never want to watch it again.

I immediately thought of the Markab when Byron started spouting on and on about having a homeworld. Truthfully, someone would have to clean up all the dead, the carcasses etc. and get the utilities working and all. But the teeps and perhaps some other people could help in doing that and they already have a jumpgate from Z'aha dum just sitting there with no homeworld using it. So it's a perfect solution I don't know why Delenn, Sheridan or JMS didn't think of it. I know he wanted to have the whole Teep war going down but it would have saved so many viewers from the pain of that plot.

See? That would have been perfect. I would have loved to have seen the conversation about whether or not it was necrophilia...It would have been priceless. Also it would have given her more angst but maybe it would have helped her let some of her pain go too. She would have finally gotten to ream him out, say goodbye and maybe even thank you.

Didn't she already admit she could have had something with him though? In 'Rising Star'? I took her saying that she recongized what they could have had but she was to afraid to risk her heart. Or maybe I misread what she said.

Graphic novels? I didn't know he wrote any, hell I just found out JMS wrote comics...Do you read any comics?

I'm actually getting back into comics again, but there are so many...I'd read some as a kid but I had no idea what was going on. There's not like one Superman or Batman comic line there's like twenty and they have all these crossovers and such...makes a girl's mind boggle!

He really goes to town with Jerry Doyle (Garibaldi) and CC in the Season 2 commentary but he's hilarious in S4 too. In fact I think in the S4 is the one where he bashes Sheridan for being such a dork. XD

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

I have just now been told by nolivingman that JMS had originally intended to hook up Byron with Susan. For her sake, I am now almost grateful that she left. Because that just... no. No. A world, nay, a whole fecking universe of no. EAGH.

The necrophilia conversation would have been hilarious - they're exactly the kind of people who would have that debate and make it delightful to watch. :D And yes, it was hinted in "Rising Star" that she might eventually have been able to accept him... but that's kind of human nature, you know? As soon as an opportunity is completely out of grasp, we tend to pull a "wait, no, I changed my mind!!!" kind of thing. I've done that with most of my exes, to be sure... as soon as it's completely fecking impossible for me to patch things over with them (or, in one spectacularly stupid case, pretty much the day after I broke up with them....) I start having Major Doubts. I can only imagine what that'd be like if the person had not only died, but intentionally given up his/her life to save yours. Huge guilt there, and a whole lot of 20/20 hindsight. Whether or not they would actually have gotten together if he'd lived... I think they would have. But I think they're both the most adorable and sexy things since... something really adorable and sexy, so I'm biased.

Ohdeargodyes, he's written some fabulous ones. Try for the Sandman books - those are the best, from what I'm told. I've only read one so far, but I'm hoping to borrow from my friends as soon as possible. I'm... kind of a late-bloomer in comics? I didn't read them at all until the last few years, when I've finally started to get over the awkwardness I feel about the whole genre. For the longest time I found that my eyes would wander, or I'd get irritated with the art style, or... any number of things distracted me, anyway. But my friends all read graphic novels and comics, so I've been slowly acclimated, and now am working my way through backlogs of things I find interesting. Like League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (infinitely better than the craptastically hilarious movie, although completely disturbing in a lot of parts...), Sandman, Joss Whedon's run on Astonishing X-Men, and, currently, JMS's take on Spiderman. Haven't started that one yet, but it looks interesting. I basically just read what my friends hand me, because they've all been in the genre so much longer that I doubt I could ever get through all the stuff they've read. ;)

[oszras.livejournal.com]

Heh. Weird, I just commented on that particular fact about Susan and Byron in one of my comments to you. Sorry about that, all the comments I mean but I've been trying to get up to speed on my f-list. And yes, now I know where all the good crack has been going...to JMS and the writers of the X-Files. Seriously, have you seen some of the later epi's in XF? There so cracky you just have to watch them for the WTF-ness of them.

You're right, I've had similar 'oh crap what did I do!' thoughts as well. And yeah that whole 'he died' for me would mess you up especially if you knew you might could've had something with him.

I want try out some Superman comics. He's a woobie for me, Clark Kent is like Sheridan a big 'ole huggable puppy except he seems a lot more, erm, smarter sometimes. Plus, I will admit it now I'm a Clark/Lois shipper from way back I blame the tv show. Yes you my hit me now, I did watch Lois and Clark and I liked it, well until Lois had a clone and said clone ate tree frogs. That just got wayyyy to weird for me.

I want to check out Batman as well 'cause Catwoman/Batman was so awesome in the BR movie and because of the BB movie too. I always did love Bats in a different way from Supes though. I got why Bat did the things he did and he's so delicously conflicted.

Also JLA and Wonder Woman hold some intrest for me as well. I don't even remember Linda Carter as WW but she just sticks out in my mind as an awesome character and the whole Amazon thing was cool. With the movie coming out I want to read up on her just so I can see if Joss did WW justice. Plus the bracelets? So cool. XD

Hmm, I bought a graphic novel of the LEG when the movie came out but I think it was based on the movie not the real novel. I've heard that Alan Moore's stuff is really good. I've never been into Spidey, don't know why really because I would have thought he would be the one I would like. He just never interested me really when you've got Supes, Batman, Catwoman and the rest. But I'm gonna have to check out the JMS ones just to see if he brought something to the character or just slaughtered him. XD

[jfrog78.livejournal.com]

The best part of the souls episode was to see poor londo happy again. I love Londo. He has deserved everything that has happened to him. But to see him mature from the bufoon in season one to a man traped by the webs he spun through the rest, this one moment he again can feel real joy and let that stone of a heart melt and beat again.

By the by I love when you review the episodes I can't wait to see what you think of the later ones!

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

You're right, that was nice. I still miss the happy-go-lucky buffoon of the first season (I always make sure to show his big scene from "Parliament of Dreams" to new potential fans, because it was the scene that hooked me on the series), but I love that Londo has grown up some, and be a more genuinely mature adult about everything in life, the good and the bad.

Thank you! I worry sometimes that I'm irritating people with my nattering, so it's good to have positive feedback on that. And I can't wait to see the later episodes, either!