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The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5
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===========================================================================
| This text is compiled from posts by J. Michael Straczynski on the Usenet
| group alt.tv.babylon-5. This document contains material Copyright 1993
| J. Michael Straczynski. He has given permission for his words to be
| redistributed online, as long as they are marked as being copyright JMS.
| This document, as well as other Babylon-5 related material, is available
| by anonymous FTP at ftp.hyperion.com.
===========================================================================
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 01:31:09 -0500
Subject: When does the series begin bro
The series goes on the air around January 26th.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 01:35:38 -0500
Subject: Legal aspects of the Bablyon 5
Going over all the information required for a decent answer to your
question would take a very long time; suffice to say that we continue to
look to the legal aspects of the B5 universe for complications and areas
of conflict; and we're thinking through that legal system *very* carefully;
look for some interesting extrapolations on this subject later in our first
season....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 01:36:03 -0500
Subject: Takashima Query/Observation
No one on B5 knows of Laurel's complicity. With the removal of her
character, certain aspects of that arc have been transferred elsewhere.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 01:42:21 -0500
Subject: Re: Query to JMS on a minor po
In "Midnight," Sinclair had to be pretty much in command mode all
during the episode as a character, so that influences the result. But in
later episodes, we get him out of those situations, out of uniform, and
into other settings where he can be more relaxed. So that's coming, and
you'll see it *very* early on in the first season.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 02:26:25 -0500
Subject: "Mind War" Spoiler
Most telepaths fall into the category of P1 through P10; all Psi Cops
are P12s. This is something we've established elsewhere, in earlier
discussions. They're the Men in Black. They don't talk much. They don't
have to.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 1 Dec 1993 20:07:29 -0500
Subject: Bab-5..Too good to be true?
If there's anything about "Midnight" that I would change...ehh...
that's a tough question to ask any producer or writer. I can't think of
anything I've done that I wouldn't want to go back and tweak. The only
real drawback we had was that we were still building sets as we filmed
our first few episodes, so we didn't have access to all of the full range
of sets. Not that we really needed them, the story works fine in the
sets we had, but we could've moved one or two shots around into different
sets just for variety.
But aside from general tweaking, I don't think there's really
anything I'd change in it. My problem is that I'm too close to it, and
there are a number of episodes we shot afterward that blow it right out
of the water in terms of quality, production values and the rest; I'd
have to say that my favorite shows to date, in order, would be The
Parliament of Dreams, Mind War, And the Sky Full of Stars, Soul Hunter,
Born to the Purple, Midnight, Believers, Infection, The War Prayer,
Survivors and Grail. Chrysalis, which we're shooting now, will probably
take over the Favorite #2 spot from Mind War. We're fighting to make
every episode better than the one before it.
We're going to have a brass plaque put up here in the offices one
of these days, before we finish, saying, "If you're not here to kick ass,
get out."
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 2 Dec 1993 02:36:51 -0500
Subject: Re: Bab-5..Too good to be true
My feelings toward "Sky" haven't changed one iota; it's still got
things in it you've never seen before on television. I put "Parliament"
and "Mind War" in front because the performances are just so wonderful,
so compelling...and from a selfish reason, because I think I did some of
the best writing I've ever done in those two episodes. "Sky" remains an
absolutely compelling piece of work, and it's got some visuals that'll
just knock you out. This is like asking a parent which is his favorite
child; it's not always the obvious choice, the biggest and strongest and
fastest; it's the one with the little quirks and eccentricities that he
likes the most. Ditto here.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 2 Dec 1993 03:29:25 -0500
Subject: Re: Some Wanna-See's revisited
The uniforms have pockets
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 2 Dec 1993 20:44:00 -0500
Subject: showing on channel 4?
Yes, Channel 4 in England has bought B5.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 3 Dec 1993 14:39:52 -0500
Subject: Teepers
Psi Corps level P11 are generally administrators.
"Teepers" is an interesting term. Origin?
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 3 Dec 1993 19:47:03 -0500
Subject: Questions
Silvana Gallardo played Dr. Maya Hernandez in "Believers."
We're actually using a fairly large number of Hispanic actors in the
series, along with other groups. Just cast an actor named Jose Rey as a
character named Eduardo Delvientos, as well as a great number of asians
and african americans as senators, advisors, doctors, and so on.
It's been my belief, and I'll say it again, that if we go to the
stars at all, we're ALL going...or no one's going. We've got to get past
this crap.
Kosh's voice is done by an actor, overlaid on musical notes which
are Kosh's natural voice-tones. (We hear the English via translator
device.)
The February Cinefantastique will have a cover story on the B5 series.
There are a number of major magazines planning B5 stuff, but it's
premature to announce them at this time.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 4 Dec 1993 23:33:53 -0500
Subject: Still using toaster?
The Toaster is still being used. The comments re: silicon graphics
workstations are hallucinations.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 5 Dec 1993 18:46:18 -0500
Subject: Re: *SPOILERS* Episode Info
RE: "Believers" ... "if this isn't done REALLY well...."
It was.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 5 Dec 1993 18:46:37 -0500
Subject: Little tiny bug in pilot? (new
Kosh's ship had to decelerate in order to dock inside the station.
This is a reality of spaceflight...you must both accelerate and
decelerate. Both take time. Especially if you're going to dock. Plus
there was time involved in setting up the docking procedure, turning over
control to Babylon Control, lining up vectors and so on.
The fighters didn't have to worry about any of this. They came
shooting through the gate and barely slowed at all, speeding over to B5
and taking up position.
There have now been several situations in which we've been accused
of "mistakes" that have, instead, simply been things done scientifically
accurately. I have to say (and this isn't directed at you, just more of
a general statement), we're not going to hand everyone everything on a
silver platter, serving up pablum...the nature of a *science fiction*
series is that you should THINK about things. The acceleration/deceleration
thing is one example; some thought about why this would be would have led
to the answer.
And, as evidenced by other messages here, others have taken the time
to look at it from that perspective. Which I think is great.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 5 Dec 1993 19:48:19 -0500
Subject: A Couple Questions
There may be a two-parter in our first season, though not the
cliffhanger episode. Which is all I can say on that at this time.
Re: science advisors...we have a few we use from time to time, but
for the most part our people KNOW sf, and those who design the EFX KNOW
science, and our writers are good SF writers, so it really isn't much of
a problem, we haven't had to go outside much at all. We had to go to our
medical advisor recently for some terminology, but we're happily very
self-sufficient in that regard. Nearly everyone involved in the show from
a certain level on is a techno-wonk, and will sit for *hours* with you
discussing how many feet per second a starfury travels when it first
drops out of the cobra bay (I believe it's 32 fps), and so on.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 6 Dec 1993 03:13:20 -0500
Subject: starships
The EA starships are...too cool to try and describe here. Better
to let you see them in action. (And no, no warp nacelles...that's
another show....)
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 04:58:33 -0500
Subject: Re: starships
I'll try to get the specs from Ron; I'd hazard a guess that some
of the larger cruisers, like the passenger liner Asimov, are about 2
kilometers across, much too large to fit into B5, so they have to use
smaller transports to shuttle passengers to and from B5.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 05:52:30 -0500
Subject: Re: Teepers
BTW, the Psi Corps is not officially part of the military, though
they're regulated by the government.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 05:52:55 -0500
Subject: Pilot Question? Religion?
Religion is actually a fairly common topic in the B5 series; it's
in "By Any Means Necessary," "The Parliament of Dreams," and several other
episodes, sometimes subtly, sometimes as a main theme. And we will be
dealing with cross-pollinization of religion across species and worlds,
and you will see some of the Centauri pantheon of gods.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 05:53:00 -0500
Subject: Alright, another tiny question
Your memory is faulty. It was stated in the pilot that Kosh's ship
took roughly 4 days to travel via hyperspace to B5. That's from Vorlon
space; we don't know where the fleet was when it entered jump. Because
such ships can make their own jump points, it could've been a lot closer
to B5 space when it went in. (And was.)
RE: your other point...it's not normally expected in the course of an
average day that an invading fleet is going to come through; and in the
course of the series, that's NOT a common problem. Troops Attacking The
Station is too easy a story. What the gate is set up to do is recognize
the energy signature/coded frequency of an incoming ship or ships. It
doesn't determine the size of the ship until it's about to come out, and
thus adjust the placement of the gate sections accordingly. If there were
a war on, the allowable frequencies and codes would be changed regularly
to prevent this problem.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 05:53:16 -0500
Subject: Re: Questions
Of course, one problem with your message is that there are very few
black australian actors in L.A., particularly if you're talking about
aborigine actors. This complicates casting. That said, however, we are
casting outside the usual American parameters as much as we can...and
there *were* "turbans" (to use your phrase) in the pilot; check the
business room scene, and others. And there are more in the series. We
are working as hard as possible to get as wide a view of the future as we
can.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 05:54:20 -0500
Subject: Re: Teepers
Psi's can start at P1 and work their way up a level or two, or
start right out at an untrained P10 level...though they're not noted for
their stability.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 06:53:42 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
Let me make one point clear re: my attitudes toward religion. I'm
an atheist. Plain and simple. Unlike many who claim to be christians,
I've actually *read* the Bible. Cover to cover. *Twice*. It has some
very good writing, and some pretty awful writing. I tip my hat to ANYONE
who can get through Deuteronomy and Numbers without drowsing...while the
story of Job has some of the best writing imaginable.
That said...I have no desire or interest in bashing somebody's
religion as long as that somebody stays out of my face. In terms of my
writing, and my shows...if a writer wants to be honest, he has to look at
the full spectrum of human experience and treat it honestly. And though
I do not believe as some might, there is some human impulse that keeps
dragging us toward belief. It is part of the human process of trying to
solve the problem of life, the universe and everything (to quote Adams).
And you have to respect that, even if you don't agree with it. So I tend
to treat the subject with respect. Also with humor, on occasion, but
never to bash.
Fanatics of *any* stripe are, however, ripe targets.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 19:29:53 -0500
Subject: Re: New GIF's...
BTW, there will be a satellite feed of B5 series promos Friday the
10th of December (12:30-12:45 p.m. ET), Thursday the 9th (9:45-10 p.m. ET),
and Monday December 13th (3:30-3:45 p.m. ET) on Galaxy 4, Channel 21,
audio 5.8=stereo (left), 6.2=stereo right, 6.8 mono mix.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 7 Dec 1993 22:28:26 -0500
Subject: Starship.gif
I think what you're referring to in starship.gif is NOT something
that was uploaded by, or authorized by us...and is based on a photo that
appeared, mistakenly, in Starlog, which had nothing to do with our
series. (Several such photos appeared in that spread, including a brick
foundry.) The starship.gif file has *nothing* to do with Babylon 5, and
should be deleted from the ftp site.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 8 Dec 1993 01:49:43 -0500
Subject: Starship.gif
Jesus...don't yell. I was talking as myself, about how fast a
Starfury drops out of the cobra bay, this isn't B5 canon, this didn't show
up in a script, this is just informal talk. I'm sure if we have to go
into measurements in the show, we'll either go metric or find some new
system altogether. (I believe we've used kilometers in at least one
episode.) Anyway...relax....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 8 Dec 1993 13:52:22 -0500
Subject: What is the economic system?
The Earth economy still runs on basic capitalism; the corporations
under-write surveying and exploitation of planets, in some cases then
selling what they find to the government in return for a piece of the
profits, or via direct exploitation itself. (By law they're forbidden
from exploiting or strip-mining worlds with sentient life.) There is
also, as we discover in one episode, a big market for archaeologists
who dig into now-dead worlds for whatever technology they can find, which
might have been ancient there, but are new to us.
There are a whole bunch of ships in Earthforce; it's been ten years
since the war, and they've had considerable time to regroup.
Currently we're closed to specs, but that may change in year two.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 8 Dec 1993 13:52:41 -0500
Subject: Re: Jump Gates and Inertia
"What is the principle behind the jump gate?"
Manufactured by Whammo.
(Still working out the details.....)
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 8 Dec 1993 14:19:48 -0500
Subject: Alright, another tiny question
Okay, okay, 8 days not four...I knew it weren't no 3 weeks, though.
The one thing to remember is that travel in hyperspace isn't the main
problem; the real problem, time-wise, is the period required to get from
a world to its nearest jump gate. It might take 4 days to travel from
World X to the gate, and 1 day to B5 in hyperspace...while another race,
1 day from the gate, and 1 day to B5 in hyperspace, only has 2 travel
days.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 8 Dec 1993 21:05:22 -0500
Subject: Returned mail: Service unavail
"Is Delenn being used, or is she using?"
Yes...and that's *not* an evasion of the question.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 02:33:23 -0500
Subject: Re: What is the economic syste
The corporations sell some discoveries to the government if the
government is in a better position to exploit the find. The corps aren't
all-powerful; they have limits as well. If they find something they can
exploit commercially themselves, and which they have the resources to get,
then of course they'll do it themselves. If the discovery is of greatest
military utility, and is a real pain in the ass to get, they'll sell the
info to the government in exchange for certain rights and fees.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 14:48:51 -0500
Subject: Success of B5
"These people know what they are doing."
Then someone please tell me why I can never pull together matching
socks in the morning....
Sentiment appreciated. And with luck, we won't disappoint.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 14:49:21 -0500
Subject: JMS - Please keep...
Yes, we're keeping the power-up sounds of the weapons, and the
discharge sound.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 14:49:39 -0500
Subject: Re: space suits
How can I get a copy of this russian space catalog?
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 14:49:59 -0500
Subject: Re: Starship.gif
There are plans for cast-related shots to be uploaded in time, yes.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 9 Dec 1993 21:49:24 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
"...it is very rare to see a character on TV with religious beliefs
who *isn't* a fanatic."
Excuse me while I reach for my baseball bat. You've just struck a
nerve.
That is the biggest line of crap in the world, perpetuated by the
religious right and parrotted all over the place as though it were true,
and it's not. The television landscape, past and present, is *littered*
with religious-type people who are sympathetically portrayed. I don't
have my volume of TOTAL TELEVISION with me at the moment, but just off
the top of my head...there were bunches of prayerful folks in "Little
House on the Prarie," in "Father Murphy," in the "Father Dowling"
mysteries, in "Helltown"...not to mention the many, MANY times they
appear in dramatic series (we had about 5 sympathetic priest/reverend
characters per season in "Murder, She Wrote").
One can *say* that it is rare, but saying it doesn't make it so.
There have been religious people as stars of shows (I left out "Dr.
Quinn" with guest stars of this nature) and guest stars of shows, as
recurring characters and regular characters, in dramas and sitcoms....
Now: I've just named you a whole bunch of series, and once I get to
my library can name you a lot more. I for one would very much appreciate
it if you could name one -- just ONE -- series with an atheist as the
lead character. An avowed atheist, just as Father Dowling is an avowed
priest.
(Oh, yeah, and let's not forget the practicing catholics, protestants
and jews portrayed in "Picket Fences.")
Your serve.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 10 Dec 1993 21:02:31 -0500
Subject: Poll
If I might make a suggestion...it seems to me that a poll on the
B5 pilot at this time is fairly useless. In most cases, it's been almost
a year since anyone's seen the pilot, and that will affect things. It's
also a little unfair to do it at this time. We've hashed and rehashed
the pilot, its qualities and deficits, over and over and over...we're
six weeks from the *series* going on line...would it not be better to
do a poll of the series instead, once it gets going?
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 10 Dec 1993 21:03:46 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
I didn't mention other (non-Western) religions because that wasn't
what we were discussing at the moment. But having said that...we do
plan on showcasing other religions (human) as well as western ones.
If you don't see much of it on other TV, here's why: because those
who complain most that, in a country with freedom of religion, their
group (evangelicals) isn't portrayed enough then turn around and raise
absolute hell the moment ANY other religion is portrayed on TV in an
even remotely sympathetic fashion. It took years for television to show
jews on TV; we're still working on the rest. If you show a Moslem or a
Zen monk on TV, you get hate mail accusing you of advancing the cause of
satanism...similar letters go to networks and sponsors and studios.
It's ironic that those who complain of persecution the loudest, ard
(are) generally the ones with the most power, and the quickest to
persecute someone else if it serves their purposes.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 10 Dec 1993 21:08:35 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
I'm sorry, but there *are* accurate portrayals of christians and
other religious people on television. (And please don't cite TV Guide to
me as a reference on *anything*...they buy into the okeydoke just like
anybody else because they don't challenge the premise and investigate the
actual facts.) I would point out that David Kelley, producer of "Picket
Fences," just got an award from Catholics in Media for his portrayal of
that group of believers. (Does that group fit one's definition of a
group whose every, smallest, tiniest decision is based on the bible? It
probably doesn't, but that group is only a very small percentage of the
population, despite their volume.) Maybe the evangelicals don't
consider Catholics, and portrayals of catholics, as christians, but that
is an issue between you and them, not you and TV.
There's a sympathetic, realistic minister on "Dr. Quinn" as well as
on many other shows.
Now, you again cite the party line about christians and other
believers being portrayed as knife-weilding maniacs on TV. Please now
cite to me your specific examples. I have been willing to provide you
with specifics to the contrary. Let's see what evidence you have about
this fleet of maniac christians committing murders. Names and shows,
please.
See, what happens here is that people begin to fall for the Big Lie.
Someone says "X is true." And uncritical people accept this without
really stopping to investigate for themselves. They spread the statement
that X is true, until finally everyone's saying it...but it isn't true.
This is a *prime* example of this.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 11 Dec 1993 01:10:53 -0500
Subject: Re: Alright, another tiny ques
A little shamelessness is good for the soul...and yes, good writing
can be very sexy...something about strengthening the fingers by hours and
hours spent behind the keyboard....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 11 Dec 1993 03:19:02 -0500
Subject: Re: Using "God" and other idio
So far I don't think you're making an ass of yourself at all.
And as a pagan, I think you'll be quite intrigued by something
we're doing (actually, several things we're doing) in an episode entitled
"The Parliament of Dreams."
The points you make re: the use of vocabulary are very close to my
heart. I grew up reading mountains of books, chewing through Bradbury
and Matheson and Clarke, as well as mainstream novels, history,
philosophy and the literature of other cultures. I love the rhythm and
flow and sense of language, the simple elegance of an honestly stated
emotion, and the lightning and thunder of argument. (Which is one reason
I enjoyed spending time in Ireland lately, running around Dublin and
New Grange and -- I'm about to massacre the spelling -- Glen de loch; the
Irish people are the biggest bunch of high-verbals you'll ever find.)
I grew up on books, and radio drama, and reading plays and writing
all of the above. Serling, Corwin, Chayefsky, Bradbury and Ellison tended
to be the templates I looked to when I was learning, not how to write, but
how to *listen*. And I'm constantly feeling as though I'm just now, after
several books, 500+ articles, short stories, and over 100 produced
television scripts...just *now* learning a little of what it means to
write...and how far I have to go. It's a real challenge. There are
moments when I fire up an -- just about ANY episode -- of the original
Twilight Zone, or some episodes of Night Gallery (such as Serling's
"They're Tearing Down Tim Riley's Bar") and I'm ashamed to even call
myself a writer in that company.
Anyway, now *I'm* running off at the fingers....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 11 Dec 1993 19:14:33 -0500
Subject: Recreation in B5
Sports/recreation are things we're still trying to work out; not the
conceptual part, but the part about "okay, how do we SHOOT this?" I'm
not big on "virtual reality" parlors or combat...I think people will still
be more interested in playing with real people than pixels. So we're
trying to find ways we can visualize, in a TV series, things like zero-G
tag or football, other sports that use our unique space environment. One
possibility is now being worked on, and we'll see if we can work it out
for this season. In any event, it's definitely something we're thinking
about...I just don't want to rush into doing it until I know we can do it
properly.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 11 Dec 1993 22:51:12 -0500
Subject: Thoughts from a lurker
Though there was CGI involved with Power, it was Ron who really
brought the idea of doing CGI for B5 to the forefront; we'd previously
figured on using models. This was about 2 years before we went on the
air with the pilot.
We're trying to work out the languages to some detail, but not as
much as I'd like, at this point. It'll probably have to wait until the
post-season hiatus before I can sit down and really start pulling
together a rough dictionary of sorts.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 12 Dec 1993 18:55:05 -0500
Subject: Gays
We have no intention of avoiding the gay question. We will not,
however, do a "gay story," which is usually described by those friends and
acquaintances of mine in derogatory terms...a la, "fags are people too."
The sense I get is that they resent the hell out of that kind of
patronizing approach. The one suggestion that comes most often is, "Why
not simply introduce a character, we get to know that character over the
run of a season, and at some point discover, practically in passing, that
this person is bi or gay...*don't* make a big issue out of it, just show
it."
And that's what we're going to do.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 13 Dec 1993 00:04:30 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
How Orson Scott Card treats christians in his books, or how Marvel
comics does so, is a whole other discussion. It's also something of a
distraction. We're talking about TeeVee at the moment. And what usually
happens in these discussions is what is happening here...bogus statistics
are thrown out, and then when challenged, people turn to smoke and turn
the discussion to other areas. As for the Crusades...yes, christians did
a lot of killing in the name of religion. One might not like that, but
that also happens to be history. It happened. Even today, some looney
or other gets it into his head that god told him to go up to the belltower
and start shooting at people. People who commit suicide because they
think god told them to, or kill their families. They are, however, the
minority; the properly classified Lunatic Fringe. For the most part, we
seem to have evolved (if one can use that in a discussion of religion)
past organized activities to where only a few still pull this stuff.
I have no problem with christians, or moslems, or any other group
provided that they don't attempt to circumvent my own rights, and disallow
my own views within my own group. I have a number of friends who are
absolute, solid Born Agains. One of them is one of the country's most
regarded cult-busters. And we have *constant* go-arounds over the issues
of the day, from every possible perspective...a value, I think, in having
friends outside *SHOWBIZ*. It keeps you in touch with views you don't
necessarily agree with. Generally speaking, no one really changes the
other's beliefs, or lack thereof, but one does walk away with a better
understanding of the other positions involved.
The one thing that all of my Born Again friends have in common is
that they haven't shuttered their critical faculties; they believe that
they were given the facility to think logically by god for a *reason*,
and they apply that reason in equal measure to their faith. When one of
the apostles wanted to put his hand in Jesus's side to verify that he was
indeed up and walking around again, he wasn't told "No, forget it, just
take my word for it," he was allowed to do so. Because reasoning is part
of what makes us who and what we are, and sets us above the beasts of the
field. One of the greatest figures in the old testament is Solomon, who
was esteemed because of his *wisdom* as well as his faith. He thought
things through in a logical, critical fashion, and came up with solutions.
It's only uncritical thinking that I have a problem with.
And what this has to do with Babylon 5 is anyone's guess....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 14 Dec 1993 01:43:11 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
Garibaldi is an agnostic. Ivanova is jewish. Sinclair was raised
catholic and underwent training as a Jesuit. Dr. Franklin is a
Foundationist. Catherine Sakai is buddhist.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 14 Dec 1993 15:55:56 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
I didn't say, and didn't intend to imply, that as you say, religion
CAUSES insane actions. What it can do is to legitimize some actions, and
provoke others. As an illustration of the former: the Bible was used to
justify everything from the Crusades to slavery. Incorrectly, as many
believers are quick to point out today. In the case of the latter: where
generally speaking rock'n'roll does not encourage you to believe that you
are being spoken to by supernatural beings, or that you were born sinful,
and those more weird albums that do get into this stuff are generally not
credible or recognized or legitimate...religion comes replete with devils
and gods and is given fair legitimacy by society. If you have someone
with a fragile ego, someone who may be inclined toward hearing voices,
someone who is already a touch disturbed, such elements may contribute to
or exacerbate the problem. Cause the problem? No. Contribute? That's
another issue....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 14 Dec 1993 15:56:18 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
Of course there are atheists in high command ranks; I was asked to
name those who had religions. Atheism, despite what some say, is not a
religion. As for the ambassadors...I didn't know what could really be
accomplished by naming their religions. If I said -- as happens to be
true, as we'll seen in an ep called "By Any Means" -- that G'Kar is a
follower of G'Quan...what would that mean to anyone?
jms
(Computer glitch in the above...the title is "By Any Means
Necessary.")
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 14 Dec 1993 15:57:13 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
What kind of Jewish Ivanova is...is something she's trying to
resolve in her own head.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 14 Dec 1993 23:40:35 -0500
Subject: sexy language (Was: Using "God
In what areas of my writing would I like to see improvement? ALL of
them. And if I ever STOP looking for areas to improve...pick out a
comely shroud, because I'm dead.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 15 Dec 1993 13:58:47 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
"Have you been dodging the question of what Foundationism is?"
Of course I've been dodging it. What I can say for now is that it
has nothing to do with Asimov other than an echo in the name; the nature
of Foundationism is separate and distinct, dealing with a spiritual
Foundation of a particular nature. It's a new religion that has come up
in the time between the present and 2258.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 17 Dec 1993 15:20:45 -0500
Subject: Promos
Warner Bros. Domestic Television Distribution writes and assembles
the promos, and gets them to the stations, which then have the option of
running them as-is, or editing to their own preference.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 17 Dec 1993 18:36:29 -0500
Subject: Re: Pilot Question? Religion?
"I've yet to see proof for the nonexistence of god."
It is impossible to prove a negative, and it should not be the goal
of any discussion to try and force someone to either prove a negative, or
concede the validity of the opposing view. In other words...if you say,
"There are green penguins in the North Pole," it is not incumbent upon
me to prove that there are, in fact, no green penguins in the North
Pole. It is incumbent upon the person making the *statement* to prove
his assertion. If it cannot be proven, then it must be dismissed.
Much is made of the notion that faith is something that should not
require proof, that god objects to the idea of proving things. But this
position is not scripturally sound or based. Christ made the repeated
implication that he was there as the culmination of prophecy, that his
walking around was living proof of prophecy...so clearly he felt no
problem with offering proof *himself*, and offering himself AS proof, as
a living person. (I'm not taking a stance I accept theologically, only
arguing the logic behind doctrine itself.) When one of his disciples
refused to believe that it was he arisen from the grave, he didn't say,
"No, just take my word for it," he invited his disciple to stick his hand
in the wound. When Moses was called upon to prove his statements that he
was speaking to Pharoah on behalf of god, *he* certainly had no problem
with proving his statements, through the transformation of the staff and
the numerous plagues that followed.
The whole notion that religion must proceed ONLY on faith, and that
no proof can be required, is in *total* contradiction to what is actually
in the bible, as acted by the key figures in both the old and new
testaments. It is an assertion made only some time thereafter, when the
supposed proofs chronicled in the bible -- miracles, apparitions, the
freezing in place of the sun, frog-rains and open wounds -- ceased to make
regular appearances.
If Christ, asked to provide proof of his ressurrected self, has no
problem at all with providing such proof, I cannot understand why anyone
calling himself a Christian would have a problem with such a request.
But then, as Mark Twain said, "If Christ were alive today, there is one
thing he would not be: a Christian."
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 18 Dec 1993 01:14:50 -0500
Subject: Fan Scripts
The problem, of course, with (to use your term) "fan scripts" is that
B5 is unlike just about any other SF series ever done for American
television: it is a NOVEL for TV. To clarify by way of comparison: let's
say you're writing a novel. And someone out there wants to write a spec
chapter for that novel, without the knowledge of where you want to go with
the novel overall. It becomes next to impossible.
This show is not hard-up for ideas, as some others have been in the
past. Basically every single episode is broken-out in synopsis or outline
for a full five-year run...110 episodes. Now, we won't necessarily use
all of those stories; there's room in each season set aside for non-arc
related stories developed in close association with our writers. Which
generally means assigning them a story, or giving them an incident which
must take place in the story, while leaving the overall episode story to
the writer to develop.
*Every* episode this season, with one exception, has been based on an
assigned premise, which I've written and given or described in detail to
the writer. (The exception is DC Fontana's second story/script for us,
"Legacies." The first one was assigned to get her well acquainted with
our universe, after which she's in a better position to develop her own
stuff in close coordination with us, and the overall story arc...when she
developed "Legacies," we had to be sure to give her a certain number of
scripts that circle the area she chose to explore, so that she would know
where that part of the arc was going.)
Nonetheless, we're still determined to find some way to integrate
newer writers with pros. A fan script, for instance, might work as a
sample, but almost certainly couldn't be bought on its own terms. (And
btw, this is actually the rule in nearly every series out there; even ST
almost never buys a spec wholecloth, only in exceptional cases...as a
matter of course, the spec just gets the writer in the door to pitch a
story. The difference here is that a spec might get the writer in the B56
(B5) door to *get* a story assigned. But again, we're still working out
the dynamic of how that works. The other complication, of course, is that
we want to concentrate on using established SF writers, since that is the
venue least tapped by other shows.)
The model created by ST in this regard has virtually nothing to do
with how 90% of TV series work, and definitely nothing to do with the way
B5 works.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 19 Dec 1993 21:31:34 -0500
Subject: Tech manual?
Ron's chomping at the bit (actually, he's chomped THROUGH the bit)
to do a tech manual. I wouldn't be surprised if there were one sooner or
later, if the series is as successful as hoped for, but it's still a bit
down the road. As for merchandising...it's not so much that I'm against
it, I just don't want it to get in the way, and it *won't* get in the way.
I won't allow it. So I try to keep some measure of distance between me
and that stuff. If a deal gets made, all that matters to me is that it's
done properly, and presented in continuity with the rest of the B5
universe. Mainly, I don't want this to get out of control, or turn into
a "franchise."
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:27:35 -0500
Subject: Re: Threads Wanted
Never did get the cap, no...haven't had the nerve to wear the shirt
yet around the B5 office. Somebody might ask me to explain it...and I'm
not entirely sure that I could....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:30:24 -0500
Subject: Re: Program Guides, something
I haven't yet heard the final disposition on the schedule for
airing; we'll have plenty done, enough to run them straight through, but I
don't know if PTEN will do that, or show new ones, then rerun a few, then
more new ones, as they did with the other PTEN shows. When I do know, I'll
be sure to post the info.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:45:15 -0500
Subject: Re: Tech manual? (computer ba
Yes, PTEN is putting out an electronic/computer program that will
be freeware, and will contain photos, inside info, some of the theme
music in a .wav file, stuff about the station and the characters, and so
on. The already posted gif files aren't part of that.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:47:30 -0500
Subject: Question on writing...
Well, it's not really like ST *or* NYPD (or many other alphabet
shows). It's kind of a weird balancing act.
As with any television show, in any given episode there is a Problem
facing our characters. A danger, a negotiation, a visitor, whatever; it
has to be dealt with within that hour. But when all is said and done,
little threads have been introduced that begin to very lightly link other
shows together. For instance, a thread introduced in "Midnight" rises
again in "Legacies" and "By Any Means Necessary." In other shows, there
is a character introduced who returns later, upon whose return visit we
learn something different about them. Some threads won't even LOOK like
threads the first time you see an episode; they'll just skate past
without drawing undue attention. It's only later, on seeing some later
shows, that you will suddenly twig to something in the first episode.
The best comparison I can come up with is one of those rohrscharch tests,
where it looks like an inkblot picture of an urn...until someone tells
you that it's actually two people kissing...and then suddenly, WHAM!, you
see it, and now you can't see anything else, and can't believe you didn't
see it in the first place.
That, at least, is the theory. We'll see how it all works starting
in about a month. It's really an experiment; no one's done anything this
large, over so great a planned span before. Should be interesting....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:48:59 -0500
Subject: Children
There are not, as a rule, many kids on B5. They are more the
exception than the rule, and even there mainly traveling to or from one
place to another with their families. This is not a place where you come
to raise families; it's a way-station, not a destination. And given the
fates of B1-B4, nearly everyone who chooses to come work there has left
their families for a period of X-years to earn fairly good sized salaries
working B5 (hazard pay and all that).
Hybrids are impossible in the B5 universe without direct genetic
alteration. You can't just have casual mating. Interspecies sex may
present opportunities for exploration, but the chances of a Narn
impregnating a human are about the same as a human impregnating a fish
and producing a motorcycle.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:57:49 -0500
Subject: Re: Program Guides, something
The summary categories seem fine; I'd add one that wouldn't be used
in all cases, but often enough to merit inclusion: "Important Stuff We
Didn't Know Was Important Until Later."
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 02:57:56 -0500
Subject: A Couple Questions
Structure: teaser, four acts, tag. The four acts are longer than
five acts (per act), and let you get a little deeper into the story by
a smidge. And no clear idea yet on the exact scheduling info.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 19:37:30 -0500
Subject: Re: Merchandising Babylon5
I don't know if any company yet has approached or acquired the RPG
rights. And I don't *really* know enough about the area to suggest
anyone, although most of the RPGs that I own are by Chaosium.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 20:35:54 -0500
Subject: Re: Children
No, G'Kar wasn't lying to Lyta; he mentions in passing that there
would have to be some genetic manipulation, so that part still obtains.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 21 Dec 1993 20:36:39 -0500
Subject: Making of?
Yes, there will be a "Making Of Babylon 5" documentary, and it'll be
hosted/narrated by Walter Koenig. Expect it to air in most markets a few
days prior to the series launch.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 22 Dec 1993 04:00:21 -0500
Subject: Re: Making of?
The documentary is on the making of the SERIES, not the pilot; it's
a whole new critter, and we're being more careful not to let anyone get
cutsie this time. Looks like it'll be okay. In any event, it'll focus on
current stuff, not old stuff.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 22 Dec 1993 16:32:47 -0500
Subject: Commercials... yuck. :(
Get me the full information on which station, and what was shown, and
I'll convey this to Warners, which will take care of it.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 23 Dec 1993 21:57:56 -0500
Subject: Re: Children
As I've noted elsewhere, G'Kar made mention of the need for
genetic alteration/modification during the scene with Lyta. Beyond that,
though, G'Kar's personal perversion is sex with humans, which no one else
seems quite able to understand....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 24 Dec 1993 17:42:36 -0500
Subject: Cinefantastique Article
I would not describe n'grath as a "Mafia boss," since that's a very
specific term. Nor is it really any kind of organization. He's a fixer,
somebody you go to when you need something...a bodyguard, forged
identicards, what-have-you.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 24 Dec 1993 20:14:27 -0500
Subject: Re: *SPOILERS* Episode Info
The production order was determined only by production requirements,
not the story. The airdate schedule is the one that matters.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 24 Dec 1993 23:46:29 -0500
Subject: Re: Cinefantastique Article
The B5 cover story in CFQ should be in the March issue, which will
be out around the first week of February/last part of January.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 25 Dec 1993 22:44:38 -0500
Subject: Re: B5 FAQL: Babylon 5 Frequen
"YET another Asian woman whose only purpose in a TV show is to be
the love interest of the leading non-Asian man, really bites."
Tell me, how do you come to the conclusion that this is Catherine
Sakai's ONLY purpose? Have you read the scripts? She has a relationship
with the commander, yes. If you choose to define a woman only in terms of
her relationship with a man, that's your choice, but certainly not what I
have in mind.
Catherine Sakai is a surveyer. She has her own business. She has her
own ship. In some episode, she has nothing whatsoever to do with the
commander, she's off doing her own business. In "Mind War," as one
example, we see her for 30 seconds with the commander in the morning, with
both going off to their respective jobs, and that's it...the rest of the
story she's in is exclusively hers, concerning something she runs into
while on a survey run.
Moreover, she has a role in the overall arc of the story that is
considerably outside being somebody's main squeeze. Perhaps you might
consider actually *seeing* the show, and her character, before judging
it. If you're going to speak out against prejudice, as your message
seems to imply, perhaps you should start with your own prejudices against
something you haven't even seen yet, and stop judging women characters
solely in terms of who they're involved with. One of the areas I'm most
proud of in my writing is the development of *very* strong female
characters...and Catherine Sakai is one of the strongest, and most
independent I've come up with yet. So how about you hold off judgment
until you've actually *seen* who she is, and what she does...?
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 26 Dec 1993 03:58:48 -0500
Subject: Paintings in B5
The matte interior of the B5 garden was done very quickly, in a very
brief period of time, when the model we'd built of the Garden ended up
unsatisfactory. We actually built a model of the thing, which was abou5
(about) 10-12 feet long, big enough to walk through, showing the circular
walls and garden...but it just didn't work for us. So Ron quickly put
together the garden matte used in the pilot.
We've re-done that, and I think it's better. I think it works best
in some of the night scenes, as in the Fresh Air Restaurant you'll see in
"Born to the Purple" and other episodes, but it's better. The only
problem that I still have with it is that we've used a slight haze to the
garden CGI/matte, since looking across about half a kilometer of open air
you'd *get* a haze like that, but for my tastes it kinda flattens it out
a bit, you lose the contrasts and kicks. Others like it a lot. It's
something we're still tweaking for best effect.
The core shuttle, with its component CGI element, has been totally
redesigned.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 26 Dec 1993 18:12:21 -0500
Subject: book?
Your friend is mistaken. When I created Babylon 5 -- my own concept
-- Warners did a search to make sure that the title hadn't been used or
copyrighted elsewhere. The search turned up a number of Babylon 2's, one
Babylon 3, and an unpublished song entitled Babylon 4, but happily, no
Babylon 5. There has not been a book published with that name, insofar
as we have ever been able to tell. It's most likely that what your friend
is thinking of is a book entitled "Alas, Babylon," by Pat Frank, which is
a very fine novel indeed, and was written in about the period you mention.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 26 Dec 1993 23:16:07 -0500
Subject: B5 on break?
The cast and crew have a production break from last Thursday until
just after New Year's. It's a chance for all concerned to catch their
breath. The writing continues during this time, as does much of the CGI
and a few other areas.
Don't have the details on the U.K. situation yet.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 27 Dec 1993 03:44:23 -0500
Subject: book?
The image/history/metaphor of Babylon has been used and interpreted
throughout history, in books, songs, legends, you name it. If you really
dig into the history of the place, there's a lot there to lend itself to
examination.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 27 Dec 1993 03:44:32 -0500
Subject: Re: Tamlym Tomita
I will tell you a true thing: it's been so long since we finished
the pilot, and I've now directly supervised and written the bulk of 16
episodes, and...I honestly can't remember how tightly sequential the
individual scenes were/are in the pilot. It all blurs after a while,
after the sheer bulk of the series to date. I'll try and check it out.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 27 Dec 1993 18:26:34 -0500
Subject: Art, music, and 1%
I would much rather let you see the answer to that question (pop
culture) in the series rather than answer it here and blow it.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 27 Dec 1993 23:22:24 -0500
Subject: Re: B5 FAQL / Minorities in B5
I agree strongly with the points you raise. And that's something we
have been working toward in the series. We try to fill out background,
security details, business folks, travelers, and all the other divisions on
B5 with an equal measure of ethnic backgrounds, and we strive to make the
show 50/50 male/female. If you also look at our roster of regular and
recurring characters, that too is about 50/50 male/female. We've also
worked to keep that ratio *behind* the scenes as well...50% of our writers,
directors and crew are female, many in the latter category holding jobs
not traditionally open to women. And it's only served to make the show
better. Our casting director has strict marching orders that, unless a
script specifically calls for a particular ethnic background for a part,
that part is to be open to *all* backgrounds. So we see a mix for just
about every major and minor role.
And yes, there are some people with hot-buttons about caucasian male/
ethnic female relationships, and some with hot-buttons about ethnic male/
caucasian female relationships. I say a pox on *both* their houses. So
we're doing both. The Sinclair/Sakai relationship is an example of the
former, and we cast a dynamite black actor in a relationship story
opposite Andrea Thompson. The only thing a responsible producer can do,
I believe, is cast what's right for the story, for whoever is the best
performer, and if somebody doesn't like it, screw 'em. As someone at the
BBC once said, "There are some people we *want* to offend."
What astonishes me most is that, 25-30 years after Trek gave us the
first inter-racial kiss on TV, we're still discussing this and working on
this. We're headed for the 21st century in 6 years (well, 7 if you count
2001 as actually the first year of the 21st century) people...*deal* with
it.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 28 Dec 1993 18:43:56 -0500
Subject: Jump Gates (Nitpicking)
1) Jump gates can only give you the frequency identification of a
given ship some minutes prior to exiting hyperspace; just as it's about
to exit, you can get much more detailed information, such as silhouette,
mass, and so on. By then it's pretty much out...but at least you know as
soon as it's out what it is.
2) You can't just shut down a jump gate like a light bulb. It is a
VERY powerful piece of equipment, and it takes a long time to shut down and
a long time to start up again. It's like a nuclear or fusion reactor in
that respect. If you shut it down, it'll *stay* down for some time, which
may put you in a very bad position if you have to leave fast, and that's
the only way out.
(During the Earth/Minbari war, jump gates created by the Earth
Alliance were programmed only to accept certain coded frequenies that were
changed regularly. [That should read frequencies.] This helped prevent
Minbari ships using EA gates.)
3) Really large ship, such as war cruisers and long-range explorer
vessels are powerful enough to punch their own entance into hyperspace,
creating a jump point. (Something you'll see happen in our first
episode, btw.) They can go in and out of hyperspace on their own, so
they don't strictly need a gate, which is primarily a) for smaller craft
incapable of generating their own jump point, and b) to help larger craft
conserve energy. The Vorlon fleet could have come in via its own jump
point, but the gate was there, and it allowed them to separate their
smaller attack fleet while in hyperspace, so they could all come out
together, as opposed to releasing them after making their own jump point.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 28 Dec 1993 18:56:28 -0500
Subject: Re: Nitpick about pilot
On your point that B5 looks and feels and, arguably, *is* something
that humanity could build, is nominally within our grasp...this is
something that we've been building toward for a while, is part of what we
want to do with the show. At a recent screening of some episodes for cast
and crew, the one most frequent comment I got afterward was that it *felt*
real, that this felt like how it might really be to work and live out on
the fringe. Many SF futures are so far beyond our grasp as to enter the
realm of unattainable fantasy...I'd like to point to something as more
within our grasp, to remind us that we can do this, and that maybe we
SHOULD do this.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 29 Dec 1993 01:59:07 -0500
Subject: Feb Cinefantastique
I always look blurry in photos because I am by nature unfocused.
Even inches away I'm fuzzy.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 29 Dec 1993 23:58:38 -0500
Subject: B5 series premier - who is rig
Given that the first episode won't be downlinked to the stations
until January 20th, that puts the odds of it being broadcast on the 5th
at fairly small, I should think....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 29 Dec 1993 23:58:44 -0500
Subject: Casting
We've had no problem getting the word out, or getting people to
understand our casting preferences. The usual reaction is pleased
astonishment....
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 30 Dec 1993 20:53:34 -0500
Subject: Re: B5 FAQL / Minorities in B5
We're working on the variations within each race, not as throughly or
consistently as I'd like, but we're working on it.
As for the commander...I could answer your question in more detail,
but I can't without blowing a lot of what's being prepared. He isn't just
male by default, or by auctorial preference (though certainly I will be
putting in a lot of my own background into him, and into Garibaldi); there
is a very specific reason why he has to be male. As for being caucasian,
we auditioned from every group looking for the right person who did the
best job in the audition. He was the best for that part. That's really
about as deep as it goes. We were prepared to cast whowever walked in the
door and nailed the part. That was Michael.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 30 Dec 1993 20:55:47 -0500
Subject: Time Slot for Babylon 5
The word that B5 will be on Sundays opposite Lois, SQ and others is
both unsubstantiated and untrue and has been retracted by the persons
posting that information. In the majority of markets, it'll be on
Wednesdays at 8 p.m., though some stations will be showing it on other
days.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 31 Dec 1993 18:43:33 -0500
Subject: Questions,Questions and More Q
To a message with nothing but questions, a reply with nothing but
answers.
Yes. It would seem so, yes. Probably, but so far nothing's been set
as far as I know. No. There are contingencies, but the B5 story ends at
year five, period. I can't even consider that possibility at this time.
Yes.
jms
From: straczynski@genie.geis.com
Date: 31 Dec 1993 18:58:11 -0500
Subject: Re: !SPOILER! Program Guide en
Actually, n'grath is all lower space, Kosh Naranek uses both upper
and loser case.
jms