OK, I just recently finished watching Season 1 of Babylon 5 - this is my first time ever seeing this show.

And, I am extremely impressed by this series! Amazing!! Very intelligent, well-written, & well-acted sci-fi show set in a fully realized futuristic universe with detailed histories & interesting back-stories for many of the characters, etc. The prosthetics/make-up for the aliens are excellent, and the exterior space CGI effects are nice - they are '90's-era video-game-ish, and that's not a criticism.

I find this show far superior to most other sci-fi TV shows, including most of the incarnations of Star Trek I've seen & which the show is unfairly compared to. It was much better than ST: Deep Space Nine - hands down. In fact, I would have to say that, just based on this first season, this series is probably one of my top ten TV shows of all time - and that's saying a lot, since I've seen A LOT of TV shows over the years.   And, just based on this 1st season, I can honestly say that there were 0 weak or sub-par episodes.  All of them were strong & well-done.  It's rare that this happens, especially with sci-fi series.

Some comments on the first season:

-All of the actors have great chemistry together; you can really believe that they're friends & have a lot of respect for each other - especially Ivanova/Captain Sinclar/Garbaldi.

-The show boldly addresses a lot of social issues that continue to be important today, all in a sci-fi setting, i.e.: Parents who don't want to medically treat their dying/sick children because of their religious beliefs; the rights of workers to earn a living wage & operate under safe conditions; appropriate punishment(s) for dangerous criminals; alcoholism; post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); etc.

-B5 features two of the most gorgeous, stunning actresses I've ever seen in film or TV, i.e. Claudia Christian as Ivanova & Andrea Thompson as Talia Winters. CC was especially impressive in her portrayal as Ivanova; tough/no-nonsense & also very feminine. And, AT was incredible - gorgeous, sultry, with an amazing voice. Also, I liked how neither woman ever took any crap from anyone

-The episode involving Ivanova mourning the death of her father was extremely touching/moving. It was also interesting to see the character being emotionally vulnerable here, given that we didn't see her express much emotion (other than anger - LOL) in other episodes.

-Londo Mollari is great comic relief on the show, but is definitely not a clown or fool. I like how he is always pretending to be friends with the other characters, but it's soon obvious that - in most cases - he only want their "friendship" in order to get something from them - which typically involves having them inadvertently buying his drinks/paying for his food, trying to get Captain Sinclair to do special favors for him, etc. What an obvious scam-artist

-The sub-plot involving Captain Sinclair having been tortured/brain-washed by the Minbari years before is creepy & disturbing.  Based on what I read, it sounds like this will be revisited in later seasons.

-Interesting that some of the guest stars on the show include Walter Koenig (Chekov on ST: TOS) and Bill Mumy (from the original Lost in Space series) as Lenier; their inclusion was a nice homage to these older, well-known sci-fi franchises.

-Going along with the above, being a big fan of TV/movies, it's cool to see this show has so many recognizable guest stars, i.e. David Warner, Mary Woronov (who I wasn't aware played an alien character until reading this thread; I'm a huge fan of the '80's films Eating Raoul & Night of the Comet, and haven't seen Woronov in much else), and many others. Also, in many cases, I recognize an actor/actress on the show, but can't quite place their name or where I've seen them before...

-It's sad that the final episode (22) of S01 was the final episode for Michael O'Hare (Commander Sinclar), who had to leave the show due to health issues. I haven't seen the later seasons, but I can't see Bruce B. playing the role of Commander as well. That being said, I will reserve judgement until I actually see the remaining seasons.

Note that I'm not reading too much of this thread (due to the review(s) of the later seasons seasons, and I don't want to read too many spoilers) - but I will definitely revisit this once I finish the series.

In closing, I wanted to thank the OP for starting this thread & to all of the others who have kept this going.

Again, great show!

Bruce Boxleitner's John Sheridan is a different character, which is why the change works. he isn't trying to be Sinclair. He is the station commander; but, he has his own way of doing things. Sinclair was more spiritual (studied under Jesuits, meditates) and has a love of Tennyson and his Idylls of the King. He is a quieter leader, one who commands respect by calmly handling things. When he gets angry, it means something. Sheridan was more direct, more of a classic military type; but, a good leader and he had a spiritual side, though more in an openness to new ideas. He's a bit more in your face, which worked well, as the later chapters require more direct action and Boxleitner was an old hand at that kind of thing.

Michael O'Hare recorded scenes for the second season, so he will pop up, and then closed out his character's arc in the third. He isn't gone for good.

To me, Babylon 5 is probably the best, most complete sci-fo series on tv and one of the best shows featured on television. I love original Trek; but, it was episodic, occasionally contradictory, and sometimes goofy. There was no plan for the 5 year mission. Some episodes are tremendous, some good, some okay, and some just bad. It set a high standard, to be sure. Next Gen had a better budget and visuals, and some of the acting (such as Patrick Stewart) was well above the level of much of the original series. However, it was a little too PC and utopian, even compared to the original. It really didn't tackle social issues well, often resorting to overly dramatic metaphor that kind of beat you over the head. not all of it, certainly. It also had a tendency to resort to technobabble to save the day. I was just never able to get into the later series, as I could never connect to the characters and didn't really enjoy the stories I watched.

B5 was conceived as a whole story, so things have meaning within it. innocuous scenes can have deep repercussions later on. Social problems that have existed for thousands of years have not been resolved in 300 years. meeting aliens didn't suddenly make us more enlightened; it gave us someone else to fear and distrust. Economic problems were not solved with a technological wand. People's emotions were still there. It was also willing to tackle religion in a balanced manner. It showed that various spiritual beliefs still existed and did so in relative harmony with others. It showed that alien contact made some expand their thinking of spiritual matters, absorbing ideas from other races. It showed different levels of technology and political power. It showed how fascism takes hold and how it can best be fought. It showed that choices have consequences, good and bad. It showed that heroes often come in very unlikely packages, as you will see with a few characters.

One of the brilliant aspects of the show was the amount of thought put into the potential pitfalls of series television. JMS felt that budget limitations were workable, if you had a plan. He knew actors would come and go, so he built in tradoors to remove them and insert new characters to take over their story role. By plotting how things would progress across season arcs, production could plan for more expensive episodes, balancing them with more contained ones. That way, the bang for the buck was on display where the story needed it. The used their limitations to be creative. The production and costume designers had come from the theatrical world and were used to having minimal budgets. They knew how to make costumes that fit the story, without having to create them from scratch. They made futuristic suits by taking contemporary clothing and tweaking them (removing lapels, changing collars, altering the cut, etc...). They used rich colors that photographed well. They gave design aesthetics to different races, so their mode of dress, spaceships, and design accents would be unique and serve as a visual signature for that group. Compare that to the more functional look of Trek, as well as repetitive use of decorative elements.

B5 also built their sets to be repurposed for other sets. The commander's office was also used for the council chamber, by moving some walls and redressing furniture. Since it is on a space station, there would be a similar set up for various quarters; but, they had each character inhabit their environment.

These touches add so much to things, making it come alive, despite financial limitations. They were smart in their casting and put good actors in interesting roles. Turhan Bey had come back to the US to accept an award and got cast in a few projects and B5 showed how good he was, and what a loss he was to Hollywood when he went back to Europe. Walter Koenig got to play against type and really crafted a great, complex villain.

There is so much to love in this series. As I point out, from time to time, it wasn't perfect. Some episodes hit a dull note, some performances are a bit below par. Some effects do not work well. However, it tends to be the minority.

I hope you enjoy the rest of the seasons as much as the first. Really, given that the first is a bit uneven and is finding its way (both in story and production) and spends a lot of time introducing things, you have seen the show at its weakest. From there, it grows and gets better and better.

Though it's taken me a while, I've gone through Seasons 2 & 3 and am now starting Season 4. I can unequivocally say that Babylon 5 is by far & hands-down the best sci-fi TV series of all time, and I don't say that lightly.

Without going into a specific review of each season, here are some highlights:

- Bruce B.'s Captain Sheridan is a completely different character than O'Hare's Captain Sinclair, but BB's approach works well here - and really fits the much more intense & dangerous situations that he comes across in Seasons 2-on.  No offense to O'Hare, but I don't see Sinclair pulling this off as well Sheridan.

- The series continues to present social issues that were/are relevant, all in a sci-fi setting - i.e.: rights for workers (the dock workers strike episode), physicians becoming addicted to drugs/stimulants due to stress & overwork etc. (re: the disturbing storyline involving Dr. Franklin), etc.

- One of my favorite episodes focused on Dr. Franklin's reconciliation with his father. Very poignant & relatable.

- Very realistic depiction of war & how it causes the opposing sides to dehumanize & demonize the enemy.

- Another great episode was the one focused on Jack The Ripper titled "Comes the Inquisitor". The JTR crimes in 1880's London have always creeped me out, especially since they never caught the perpetrator & never found out who it was for that matter. So, this episode depicting JTR as someone who was kidnapped by the Vorlons (which explained why he stopped killing in 1888) was disturbing.

- The special effects improve with each season; very impressive space battles, spaceships, set pieces, aliens, etc.

- I was pleasantly surprised to see that Ivanova & Talia (the gorgeous blonde telepath) were obviously lovers for a brief period. Very bold to depict a lesbian relationship in a '90's sci-fi TV series, and may have been ground-breaking to some extent. Though I'm a straight guy, I have no problem seeing women together. Blue is the Warmest Color is one of my favorite films But, I digress.

IIRC, Crusade got screwed by TNT.

It was slated for cancellation before it ever aired. TNT suits never saw B5 and did not understand JMS’ Shakespearean aspirations. They thought Crusade was going to be about fistfights and sexy space babes every week, so the creative team was immediately at loggerheads as soon as TNT started sending notes.

The dozen episodes that exist are not great, but then again the first dozen episodes of B5 have most of the stinkers (Infection!) so who knows? Crusade might have been headed somewhere awesome. As with firefly, we will never know.

I recently saw the 1999 thirteen-episode series Crusade, which is connected to Babylon 5 to some extent. It takes place in the same universe, and does feature Captain Elizabeth Lochley in some episodes; Dr. Franklin is also in at least one episode. Chronologically, the show seems to take place not long after Sheridan/Delenn, Dr. Franklin, Garibaldi, and others leave Babylon 5 towards the end of the series, but long before the "flash forward" that showed Sheridan's ultimate fate - 20?! years later.

Crusade was mildly interesting, and followed a ship that was sent out on a mission to try to find a cure for a deadly virus that was devastating humanity on Earth. The show was OK, but seemed disjointed at times & the episodes I saw appeared to even be out of order (I watched this on DVD). I may have liked this better had it continued & had a more cohesive storyline. However, it's tough to judge something after only 13 episodes.