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605 lines
26 KiB
<h2><a name="OV">Overview</a></h2>
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<blockquote><cite>
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Delenn is in danger when a soul hunter, an alien who captures the souls of
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the dying, arrives at the station.
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</cite>
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<a href="http://us.imdb.com/M/person-exact?+Sheppard,+William+Morgan">W. Morgan Sheppard</a> as Soul Hunter #1.
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<a href="http://us.imdb.com/Name?Snyder,+John+(I)">John Snyder</a> as Soul Hunter #2.
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</blockquote>
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<pre>
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Sub-genre: Suspense
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<a href="/lurk/p5/intro.html">P5 Rating</a>: <a href="/lurk/p5/002">7.05</a>
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Production number: 102
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Original air date: February 2, 1994
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<a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006HAZ4/thelurkersguidet">DVD release date</a>: November 5, 2002
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Written by J. Michael Straczynski
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Directed by Jim Johnston
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</pre>
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<h3><a name="WF">Watch For</a></h3>
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<ul>
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<li> <a name="WF:1">The Soul Hunter</a> mentions the death of someone
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to Sinclair. That name will come up again.
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<li> <a href="#NO.fluid">A fluid flowing the wrong way.</a>
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</ul>
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<p>
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<hr size=3>
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<p>
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<H2><A NAME="BP">Backplot</A></H2>
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<ul>
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<li> <A NAME="BP:1">The soul hunter of this episode has visited</A>
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Earth before.
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<li> <A NAME="BP:2">Minbari are trained from childhood to protect their</A>
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souls from soul hunters.
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<li> <A NAME="BP:3">The soul hunter had a unique perspective on a</A>
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significant event in Minbari history:
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<BLOCKQUOTE>
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[to Sinclair] "Minbari: jealous, selfish, private. We have
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saved only a few - very rare. The rarest of all, their leader
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Dukat, dying; your fault, your war; the pinnacle of Minbari
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evolution. We came, I, others. They made a wall of bodies to
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stop us! He died. And his dreams, his ideas - all that he was,
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all that he could ever be - gone... wasted... jealous..."
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</BLOCKQUOTE>
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Later he recognizes Delenn from the Grey Council, which was
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responsible for stopping him.
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</ul>
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<H2><A NAME="UQ">Unanswered Questions</A></H2>
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<ul>
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:1">Why do all races but humans know about soul
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hunters?</A>
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Since they all share the Minbari's fear of them, do most of them
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share the <A HREF="#AN:2:2">Minbari belief in reincarnation</A>?
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:2">Why are so many non-humans</A> <A HREF="#NO:2">moving
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to
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Earth</A>? They must face a fair amount of prejudice there.
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(cf: <A HREF="007.html">"The War Prayer"</A>)
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:3">What are the "certain classes" of Minbari in which</A>
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Delenn says soul hunters have always taken a particular interest?
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:4">"Your fault, your war," says the soul hunter to</A>
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Sinclair, recounting <A HREF="#BP:3">Dukat's death</A>. Was he
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referring to humans in general, Sinclair in particular, or Dukat?
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:5">"If only you could see," says the soul hunter to</A>
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Franklin. Apparently he can actually observe the soul's
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departure from a dying body. Later we see, possibly through
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Delenn's eyes, a blue wispy something escape as she breaks a
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soul vessel. Does this mean that Minbari too can see souls?
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:6">With a glimpse into Delenn's soul, the soul hunter</A>
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exclaims, "You would plan such a thing? You would <EM>do</EM>
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such a thing? Incredible." He's had a long history with the
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Minbari - what would so surprise him? (Revealed in
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<a href="022.html">"Chrysalis"</a> and
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<a href="024.html">"Revelations"</a>)
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:7">Recovering in Medlab, Delenn says to Sinclair,</A>
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"I knew you would come. We were right about you." Clearly, the
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Minbari have made predictions about him. However, Sinclair
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didn't really prove anything about his character by rescuing
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Delenn - someone else could easily have been the one to find her.
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Perhaps he's just fulfilled part of a prophecy, thereby
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confirming his role in it.
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(cf: <A HREF="005.html">"Parliament of Dreams"</A>)
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:8">Combining the above questions, does Delenn's</A>
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incredible plan involve the Minbari predictions about Sinclair?
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<li> <A NAME="UQ:9">As the soul hunter himself challenged, why is one</A>
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of the great Minbari leaders acting as their ambassador on
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Babylon 5? Sinclair is now wondering the same thing.
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</ul>
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<H2><A NAME="AN">Analysis</A></H2>
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<ul>
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<li> <A NAME="AN:1">Delenn meets Sinclair just as he's going to check</A>
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out the injured pilot, and offers to help him ID the fellow. She
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has a knack for being at the right place at the right time.
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(cf: <A HREF="../synops/000.html#delenn-timing">"The Gathering"</A>).
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<li> <A NAME="AN:3">Sinclair did not call for backup when he</A>
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encountered the soul hunter, even though there were four others
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nearby searching for Delenn. He has a tendency to put himself into
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dangerous situations. (cf: <A HREF="004.html">"Infection"</A>)
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<li> <A NAME="AN:2">During this episode there are three different</A>
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stories told about the soul. Sinclair heard all three, and doesn't
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know which to believe. All he knows is what he saw.
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<dl>
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<dt> <A NAME="AN:2:1"><B>Franklin:</B></A>
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<dd> There is no soul that survives the body. With advanced
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technology, he allows, one could preserve a record of
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someone's personality, but death is death.
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<dt> <A NAME="AN:2:2"><B>Delenn:</B></A>
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<dd> All sentients have immortal souls. When a Minbari dies its
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soul merges with the souls of other dead Minbari. These
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are
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recycled into future generations, so as individuals advance
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their own souls, the Minbari as a whole advance.
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<dt> <A NAME="AN:2:3"><B>soul hunter:</B></A>
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<dd> All sentients have <em>ephemeral</em> souls. When a person
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dies, the soul expires into oblivion. However, soul
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hunters
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have a prescient attraction to death - if they so choose
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they
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can capture and preserve a soul "for the greater good" at
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the
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moment it leaves the body. They carry with them a bag full
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of
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the souls they have "saved", each in its own glass vessel.
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</dl>
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For a Minbari, the soul hunter's method of preservation is true
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death, for it cuts a soul off from the rest and diminishes the next
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generation; for a soul hunter, the true loss is
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<em>uncollected</em>
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souls.<br>
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These are completely irreconcilable belief systems.
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</ul>
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<H2><A NAME="NO">Notes</A></H2>
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<ul>
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<li> <A NAME="NO:1">Dr. Franklin arrives on the starliner Asimov, which</A>
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we see again later.
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<li> <A NAME="NO:2">Dr. Kyle is on his way to a new assignment working</A>
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with the president. He's much needed there what with "so many
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aliens migrating to Earth," as Franklin puts it.
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<li> <A NAME="NO:3">The average human lifespan is almost 100 years.</A>
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<li> <A NAME="NO.4">Ivanova conducts a simple funeral with these words:</A>
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"From the stars we came, and to the stars we return, from now
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until the end of time. We therefore commit this body to the deep."
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<li> <A NAME="NO:5">The soul hunter tells Sinclair his opinion of the</A>
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Minbari: "pale, bloodless, look in their eyes and see nothing
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but mirrors, infinities of reflection..."
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<li> <a name="NO.fluid">When Delenn is recovering</a> in medlab
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at the end of the episode, she's attached to a machine that should
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presumably be pumping blood back into her body. But the fluid is
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flowing out of her instead. The shot was played backwards so the
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director could get the camera movement he wanted.
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</ul>
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<H2><A NAME="JS">jms speaks</A></H2>
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<ul>
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<p>
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<li> Well, I just saw a cut of the episode that's going to air second, the
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one guest-starring Morgan Shepherd. Oh, man...on the question of
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Did you learn anything from the pilot...this thing *moves* like a
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sumbitch. It's a very unusual, very *creepy* episode in many ways.
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And filled with character stuff...and a good bit of background about
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some of our characters rendered in active ways. I'm really dying to
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see what people think of this one when it airs. It manages to take
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what would normally be considered a science *fantasy* issue, and deal
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with it from a science fiction perspective, without compromising on
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the latter at all. It's a very, *very* strong episode.
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<p>
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<li> <EM>Who's right, the soul hunter or the minbari?</EM><br>
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Yes.
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<p>
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<li> We leave the question open: Is he actually taking souls, or simply
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encoding the personality matrix and, in essence, creating an artificial
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version of the individual's personality?
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<p>
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<li> The various characters take their own stands, which vary. Franklin
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only considers the possibility of cloning someone's personality
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matrix, for instance. And again, it depends on how you *define* soul.
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The Soul Hunter defines it not as something supernatural, but as the
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collection of thoughts, personality, feelings and the very essence of
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the person that dies with the body. That definition is broad enough
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to encompass just about anything. Then you get into the more
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specific ideas of what a soul is.
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<p>
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One person at a post production house we've used has indicated that
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he has "theological problems" with working on that episode; not
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because it's *against* what he believes -- he's worked on horror
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movies and stuff with devils and the like -- but because it takes a
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point of view he doesn't much like...in that he has to sit and defend
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the whole *context* of his ideas...meaning, it's making him think.
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He can just poo-poo the stuff against what he believes, support what
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he does believe in...but he isn't quite sure where this show comes
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down, or where it makes *him* come down. I've had any number of
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problems with people on a show before, but this is the first time
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I've run into a theological problem.
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<p>
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<li> What the soul was, who's right, and even whether this is SF or
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Science Fantasy, was it explained enough to merit one over the other
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... how can I put this...? I don't want to spoon-feed stuff to
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people. What I want is not to hit someone with a MORAL, or a message,
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or "This is what a soul is," or "This is what makes it an SF series,"
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I want to start discussions. Arguments. Preferably a bar fight or
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two.
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<p>
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We present an issue. Here are the sides. Now...what do YOU think
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about it? I want this show to ask, "Who are you? Where are you
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going?" That's half the fun. Some of my favorites pastimes in
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college were sitting in the commons, or the library, arguing this
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stuff from every possible angle. You think I'm gonna tell you what
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to think? What it means? No. The goal is to provoke discussion.
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Preferably passionate discussion.
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<p>
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Otherwise I might as well just start renting billboards and putting
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up signs.
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<p>
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<li> Re: why soul hunter #1's ship was out of control...the second soul
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hunter comments that they've been tracking him, and caught up with
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him a few days ago. They attacked, "and he escaped, his ship
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damaged." That is what brought him here...and led his pursuers to
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this place as well.
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<p>
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<li> <em>Will we see more soul hunters?</em><br>
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Eventually.
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<p>
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<li> And yes, humans would probably have *heard* of Soul Hunters,
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distantly, as a legend. I see no reason why they would believe they
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existed, particularly with a title like that, unless and until
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actually encountering one.
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<p>
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<li> Re: Sinclair's actions toward the Soul Hunter...the device he uses was
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trained on Delenn. It was spiraling up to full power throughout the
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scene. Just as Sinclair's thrown, you see it starting to come to
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critical mass...it's shooting at Delenn. There isn't/wasn't time to
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sit there and figure out how it works, and shut off the right button.
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He turned it so that it faced away from her...and the Hunter was caught
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in his own machine.
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<p>
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There was nowhere else to go with the machine.
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<p>
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<li> In "Soul Hunter," Franklin notes that the average human life span is
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now about a hundred years. It's quite a bit longer for the other races;
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G'Kar is about 70 or more, but is considered mid-range, equal to a human
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in early 40s, among Narns. Delenn is in about the same position, equal
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to 30s-40s in her terms, but in years a bit older. They are a pretty
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long lived people. Centauri aren't quite as long-lived, but they do a
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bit better than the Narns. The Vorlons......are.
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<p>
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<li> To the question about a Soul Hunter's strength...yes, it is *very*
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considerable. Even with one arm he was able to slam the hell out of
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the commander, pick him up and again slam him against a wall before
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throwing him about 10 feet across the room. Had he not been stopped,
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and stopped good, yes, he would've torn Sinclair to ribbons.
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<p>
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<li> Delenn was shattering the soul globes in order to let the souls
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escape, rather than playing with them. Look on the floor around her,
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and you'll see shattered globes. There should also be a sound of
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them breaking in her hands, the light goes out, and something
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escapes....
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<p>
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<li>@@@911503837 <em>Was Delenn only releasing Minbari souls, or all the souls?</em><br>
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It would be any and all so imprisoned.
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<p>
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<li> You're most definitely welcome; it was something we did to honor
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Asimov, who determined the shape of this genre for many writers.
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<p>
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<li> Why is part of me tempted to decide that around the year 2223 the
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most revered figure in Earthforce Command was General Ira Asimov, a
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brilliant strategist for whom the liner was named....?
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<p>
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There are certain benefits to a design-your-own-future universe....
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<p>
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<li> I deeply admired Asimov. Harlan Ellison, this series consultant, was
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as dear a friend to Asimov as anyone could be. I named the starliner
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after Asimov shortly after his death, because I will personally miss
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him, and for Harlan, as his friend.
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<p>
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<li> In your complaints regarding the commander flying off on occasional
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missions (and he only does it about 3 times out of 22 episodes, so I
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hardly see this as a problem), you are forgetting several other
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*realities* of military life. If you're a pilot, even as a commander,
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you have to log in X-number of hours flying time per month in order to
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continue to qualify for flight pay. This is a *requirement*. And it
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doesn't just mean flying around the station a few times.
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<p>
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Second, many commanders -- as recently as Vietnam and afterward --
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did and continue to go out on missions and sorties because it is
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rather expected of them, and because it maintains the respect of the
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rest of the squadron(s).
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<p>
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Third, and possibly most important, Earthforce is the same as the
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contermporary Air Force in one important respect: promotion up the
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ranks is tied *directly* to combat experience and, in this case,
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combat flying. That's why women fighter pilots and helicopter pilots
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have been fighting so *vigorously* to be allowed to fly combat
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missions; they know that they can't be promoted fully up the line
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without that. Sinclair has no desire to be a commander all his life,
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he'd like to move on. Hence it behooves him to get in combat time
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whenever possible.
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<p>
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Your statement that it "doesn't wash" has nothing to do with how the
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military *actually* works, and everything to do with the skewed and
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inaccurate portrayal of the military that you get from Trek. This is
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absolutely legitimate, and the B5 mailbox these days is partly
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crammed with letters from vets thanking us for getting this part
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right.
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<p>
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I suppose I could mention this in passing in dialogue, but then it
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becomes a matter of sticking in dialogue not because it's important
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to an episode, but because some folks would like things explained to
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them. I don't think that's my responsibility.
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<p>
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<li> I answered you elsewhere here on this topic earlier this evening.
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To just nit for a moment, to say that Sinclair picks up "every
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derelict ship" seems a little unfair...he's picked up *one*, and only
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one, and only picks up one this entire season. Why him? A) Because
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he's good at it, B) he could use the flight pay, C) it'll look good
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on his record, and D) because as he says as he leaves, it's a
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potential first-contact situation. (NOt to mention E, that he has a
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death-wish.)
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<p>
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I would submit to you that this is NOT the same as having one
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character do a zillion different jobs on the station. I think that
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you're reacting to something you've seen on Trek, and are assuming
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based on an example of one that we're doing it in B5 as well. We're
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not. Also, in "Purple," Garibaldi sends a different team out to
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handle the gunfire, so there are others who do things. Question
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becomes, how many new and recurring characters do you want to
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introduce? There are currently *14* regular and recurring characters
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on B5, and there are many folks who are saying that's too many. As it
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is, we do introduce an aide to Garibaldi who takes care of some stuff
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for him. Just as Sinclair delegates to Ivanova, and Ivanova delegates
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to the observation dome techs.
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<p>
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I just feel that you're leaping to a conclusion based on a paucity of
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evidence, built upon your experiences with another show. We're simply
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not doing this.
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<p>
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<li> Normally, I don't tend to respond to negatives, because I don't
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generally want to get in the way or be perceived to be getting in the
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way of criticism. I don't. But I feel I have to respond to some of
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this. If the show is open to criticism, then it seems to me that
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some of the critiques should be open as well. And some of these I
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think are quite unfair.
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<p>
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1) When did they move the jump gate (re: the time required to get from
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the gate by Kosh's ship, as opposed to the Hunter ship). They/we
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didn't. Once again, and I wish people could remember this, Kosh's
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ship BEGAN TO DECELERATE the instant it emerged from the gate, in
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order to dock with B5 without smashing into it. The Soul Hunter ship
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was out of control, careening in at full speed. (This was a widely
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discussed reason why the Vorlon fleet got to B5 so quickly as vs.
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Kosh's ship. They were moving fast to get into striking position.)
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<p>
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2) The Hunter's ship was on autopilot, set to come out of the first
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gate it came to.
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<p>
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3) There was still time for the station's defense grid to blow the
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ship. Yes, pieces would have continued onward, but a hell of a lot
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of its inertia would've been taken out by the incoming fire, and any
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remaining pieces would've either been taken out as well, or would
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have been so small as to not damage the hull (which is *very* thick
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at that point) given its blast-enforced deceleration.
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<p>
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4) Yes, Sinclair would've gone up with it. You pays your money, you
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takes your chances.
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<p>
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5) There was no "the Earth is going to explode" story here; you have
|
|
a ship colliding with the station, that has to be stopped. It has
|
|
to be stopped within the period between when it emerges from the gate,
|
|
and the time it would collide. You want to know how much time you
|
|
have to work in. Maybe it's a dramatic device, but it's also exactly
|
|
what you would do. What would you prefer? "Lieutenant Commander,
|
|
how much longer until impact?" "Uh...I dunno...can you hang on a
|
|
second?"
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
6) Re: the "funny forehead" comment...it was not what I've understood
|
|
the FF syndrome to mean...a regular head with a little treatment on
|
|
the front. This was a whole-head prosthetic, covering the entire back
|
|
of the head. So wrong on that one. And re: n'grath having 6 legs
|
|
rather than 4...who're you to say that? Ever seen a praying mantis?
|
|
Do all insects all over the galaxy have to have six legs to qualify?
|
|
You don't like minimal makeup, you don't like full-body prosthetics
|
|
...you understand that this comes out as "nothing will please me
|
|
except a real alien." You tell me where to find one in Central
|
|
Casting, and I'll hire him.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
7) Okay, here's my biggest gripe: the note that the soul aspect was
|
|
Trek and "katra." Let me be clear on this: I don't give a damn what
|
|
Trek has or has not done now, long ago, or will do in the future.
|
|
We can't be constantly looking over our shoulder, limiting our
|
|
universe because of another show. If your only frame of reference
|
|
when it comes to discussing the soul is Star Trek, then that's
|
|
profoundly disappointing, but it's got nothing to do with me. The
|
|
basic concept goes back to the beginnings of civilization (that your
|
|
soul can be captured somehow). Further, there were no soul hunters
|
|
in ST, it was placement of one's spirit in another body. I'm getting
|
|
real tired of the notion that if Trek did something, nobody else ever
|
|
can do it. Like the person who said that Trek invented nanotechnology,
|
|
and thus when we used it in the pilot episode in the nanotech machine
|
|
G'Kar swallows, we were just copying Trek's nanites.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
I refuse to surrender creative control of this series to the ghost of
|
|
Star Trek's used notions. From time to time, we'll cross into areas
|
|
they have also touched. We'll touch it differently. Deal with it.
|
|
But please don't put a Star Trek (tm) tag on the soul, and the history
|
|
of the soul.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
8) You say a guard's gun was taken *twice* in this episode. Where is
|
|
#2 (if #1 is the medlab guard)? I see a guard being attacked from
|
|
behind, but not his gun being taken.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
9) Re: the second soul hunter's makeup being "inferior" to the first:
|
|
they were essentially exactly the same...same material, same design,
|
|
minus the stone, which varied...I'm sorry, but they were made, applied
|
|
and used in exactly the same way.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
10) Why drain her of blood? Why the hell not? In some countries,
|
|
that was used as a means of execution. Bleeding was also used (in
|
|
theory) to heal. Okay, let's say he used poison. "Why use poison?"
|
|
you probably would've asked. "Oh, it was the old poison gag, and
|
|
they find a convenient antidote." There's no difference.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
11) How did the hunter relate his sense of death to a wall map? I
|
|
ask again...why not? If you can buy it happens at all, why not? How
|
|
is that any different than walking through a hall, or being drawn to
|
|
a planet? This is strictly a straw-man example, as is much of what
|
|
you cite.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
This, frankly, is what I find so offensive in your note. You take
|
|
things that as a matter of opinion you might have done differently,
|
|
and then try to hold it up as a fault. You set up straw man
|
|
arguments that could be just as easily turned around on anything,
|
|
mischaracterizing something in order to take a cheap shot.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
12) Why didn't Sinclair link in when he found the hunter? Because he
|
|
only "found" the hunter when he was being SHOT AT. And at that point
|
|
you don't want to raise your voice because you'll be shot at again.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
13) You complain that the soul globes seemed to wait until the moment
|
|
Sinclair freed them to act (as though it were the bag that had been
|
|
holding them in). Sure, they could've emerged...and floated. A lot
|
|
of good that would've done them. What they needed was someone who
|
|
could stop him, and that was Sinclair's task. They were able to
|
|
distract the hunter long enough for that to happen. Minus Sinclair,
|
|
what were they supposed to do, bedazzle him to death?
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
14) Re: shining things into the camera = NBC Mystery Movie. See point
|
|
11a above. I'm not responsible for your cultural reference points.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
I don't mean to yell, but thing is, I don't mind genuine criticism, if
|
|
we specifically do something that is objectively *wrong*. If you
|
|
don't like something, that's also fine. But I'm tired of people who
|
|
confuse opinion with fact, and that if it isn't done their way, then
|
|
it isn't somehow *right*...and the notion that Star Trek has invented,
|
|
patented and qualified for sole claim on whole aspects of our history,
|
|
literature, culture, theology and language, and that anybody who
|
|
touches on these areas is just doing Trek stuff.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
As far as I'm concerned, the Trek-soul-katra thing treated the soul as
|
|
little more than a misplaced pair of sunglasses. Here we tried to get
|
|
into the issues *behind* the soul...where does it come from, where
|
|
does it go, does it survive the death of the body, or does it go on
|
|
...to give some mystery and beauty to the notion. To have it
|
|
dismissed as just another riff on katra is offensive and insulting
|
|
and narrow. And all of those issues just seemed to flit by without
|
|
comment.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
I don't mean to get angry, but this is one I'm very proud of, and to
|
|
see it sideswiped and mischaracterized and straw-man'd to death in
|
|
this fashion is just something that I had to respond to.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<li> Re: your statement that the headwear of the S.H. is "stolen" from
|
|
the Ferengi...may I be so bold as to respond to your rather loud note
|
|
with some volume of my own? To wit: watch something other than Star
|
|
Trek, and maybe spend a little time learning stuff about your own
|
|
world. The headware is based upon the kind used in various african
|
|
and aboriginal tribes. Trek didn't invent it; we have photos of its
|
|
use through history, as well as sketches going back further. As it
|
|
happens, the costume designer has never seen "DS9," doesn't watch TNG,
|
|
has no idea what a Ferengi is. Neither do I intend to not do
|
|
something, based in real history, just because some other show has
|
|
done drawn on that same background.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
You clearly think that if something appeared in ST, then ST must have
|
|
invented it, and that if it appears anywhere else, it must've been
|
|
influenced by ST. Wrong on both counts. I would suggest that you
|
|
have been watching too much ST, and not nearly enough of the Discovery
|
|
Channel.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<li> Re: the medical tools...we brought in a medical science consultant,
|
|
who helped us design our instruments. His sense was that we're moving
|
|
more and more toward light as a system of treatment, non-invasive
|
|
procedures, that sort of thing. No, there aren't anything like those
|
|
devices in today's operating rooms...but this is 250 years from now.
|
|
In any event, it *is* based on the latest info we're getting on new
|
|
science from our medical advisor.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<li> 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.
|
|
|
|
<p>
|
|
<li> Garibaldi is quite aware of n'grath...and knowing that if he just
|
|
vanished, somebody'd take his place in five minutes, prefers the
|
|
trouble he knows to the trouble he'd have to track down.
|
|
|
|
</ul>
|
|
|
|
<HR>
|
|
Originally compiled by Matthew Ryan <i>mattryan@pobox.com</i>
|