B5 Watchthrough: By Any Means Necessary

[ariela]

 



Watch this one in full. 

The B-story, with Londo and G'Kar wrangling, provides some good character moments for both. 

The A-plot is one of Season 1's better written, directed, and acted. It's an old-fashioned union story, and a good glimpse of Babylon 5 functioning as both a trade hub and a military base--and the potential conflicts of interest that entails. It was written by JMS's wife, Kathryn Drennan, after some pushback from JMS, who didn't want to give the appearance of (or engage in) nepotism. Fortunately for everyone, she won that argument... and delivered. While it doesn't exactly provide any *details* that are important to the arc, it sets the stage for B5's often-contentious relationship with EarthGov. 

The most obvious ancestor to The Expanse is Battlestar Galactica, but BSG arguably owes more to B5 than the various Star Treks, even given Ron Moore's work on DS9. This episode (and the upcoming two-parter Voice in the Wilderness in its exploration of Mars' rebellious relationship with Earth), with its working-class space residents versus privileged Earthers, show some scifi DNA that skipped a generation and went straight from B5 to The Expanse.

The Rush Act, incidentally, is named for Rush Limbaugh, a characteristically sly dig that probably dates it (when was the last time he was relevant?) but is fun nonetheless. 

Deep dive:

• Rowan Kaiser's analysis and review at the AV Club.
• The Lurker's Guide episode page.