For our first Extra edition of The Audio Guide to Babylon 5, Chip welcomes “Mojo,” senior computer animator during B5’s first three seasons and pilot, working with Ron Thornton’s Foundation Imaging. Be amazed at the raw processing power of the computers used to make “The Gathering”! Learn just how groundbreaking Foundation’s work was! Find out just what it … Continue reading EXTRA: B5 Animator “Mojo” Interviewed →
“It’s the end. But the moment has been prepared for.” In this pop culture-poaching edition of B5AG (seriously, we apologize for the Scarecrow and Mrs. King theme) we bring The Incomparable‘s Jason Snell back for something of a regeneration story (OK, that’s our last Doctor Who reference. Ish.) as we welcome the arrival of Bruce Boxleitner as Captain … Continue reading Episode 23: “Points of Departure” →
The first-season finale is upon us! Joining Chip, Erika and Shannon to tackle “Chrysalis” in a bumper edition of The Audio Guide to Babylon 5 are B5 newcomer Steven Schapansky and longtime fan (and Adventures with the Wife in Space author) Neil Perryman. We talk about revelations and turning points, DVD mastering and pajamas. Thank … Continue reading Episode 22: “Chrysalis” →
It’s the penultimate episode of Season 1, the calm before the storm, in which the worlds of the Minbari warrior caste and Earth’s Psi Corps collide in the presence of a human teenager. We’re talking “Legacies,” complete with an “I was right” dance by Chip.
Erika, Shannon and Chip debate the finer points of mixed martial arts and wonder aloud what happens when you have an episode without a discernable “A” plot. Grab a Zima and sit back!
Danger, Will Robinson! OK, now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s enjoy a nice little reunion between two Lost in Space veterans (except they never actually share the screen) and learn the “finer” parts of Centauri physiognomy (“finer” is not meant literally). It’s a legal medical thriller and a barroom brawl thoroughly inhabiting … Continue reading Episode 19: “The Quality of Mercy” →
Just a little, inconsequential story about that predecessor station to B5 that disappeared without a trace, right? Presenting “Babylon Squared,” with all of the signs and portents it entails. And because you can’t do a podcast about “something squared” with just three hosts, we brought in our guest L.M. Myles from Doctor Who: Verity! to … Continue reading Episode 18: “Babylon Squared” →
It’s two, two B5 episodes for the price of one, as Erika, Shannon and the convalescing Chip tackle both parts of “A Voice in the Wilderness.” What did they think of the mystery of Epsilon 3? Did the Great Machine’s choices of Sinclair, Londo and Draal make any kind of sense? And what did Steven … Continue reading Episode 17: “A Voice in the Wilderness” →
Erika and Shannon are joined once more by Steven Schapansky of Radio Free Skaro to talk about an episode in which all of Sinclair’s chickens come home to roost. If you were one of those fans who wondered how the character could keep sidestepping Bester, military bureaucrats and politicians, “Eyes” cheerfully tells you, “He can’t!” … Continue reading Episode 16: “Eyes” →
Erika and Chip are on opposite ends of the spectrum. One only has eyes for David Warner. The other would prefer a date with a na’ka’leen feeder than to watch “Grail” again. How does Shannon hold it all together? And who’s our special musical guest? (That last one’s easy. It’s the fantastically anthemic rockers out … Continue reading Episode 15: “Grail” →
J. Michael Stracynski once described certain B5 episodes as “WHAM” episodes, episodes that kicked the series arc forward or had otherwise momentous events. “And the Sky Full of Stars” was the first. This is a bigger one. Or so Chip repeatedly and excitedly enthuses. To paraphrase Mr. Morden, “So tell me what ya want, what … Continue reading Episode 14: “Signs and Portents” →
Union-busting and horticulture come together in a surprisingly good mixture, as the Dockworkers’ Guild, an officious Senate negotiator, Londo and G’Kar combine to give Sinclair his worst 48 hours yet. There’s a lot of stubble and open-collar acting, but also an intriguing look at the world behind the space station. Won’t you join us for … Continue reading Episode 13: “By Any Means Necessary” →
“Podcasting again, Uncle Mike?” Garibaldi has a Really Bad Day, but that’s peanuts compared to what almost happens to the Earth Alliance President. We reflect on what happens when Ivanova and Kemmer let their hair down, Garibaldi lets his guard down and Sinclair just tries to be everyone’s Dad. (Got spoilery thoughts about this and … Continue reading Episode 12: “Survivors” →
Chip: “This is such a depressing (but good!) episode, I’m thinking about editing in a medley into the podcast somewhere to sort of lift our spirits. You know, The Partridge Family theme, Pharrell’s ‘Happy,’ that Ren and Stimpy ‘Happy Happy Joy Joy’ song…” Jason Snell, host and leader of The Incomparable family of podcasts and this B5AG‘s special … Continue reading Episode 11: “Believers” →
Na’Toth goes nuts. Earth makes a deal for immortality. A genocidal maniac plots her greatest revenge. And a good cigar is a Cuban. It’s “Deathwalker,” wherein one of the quieter races on the B5 Advisory Council flexes its muscle and Talia contemplates leaving the service industry. Who’s on Team Abbut?
Radio Free Skaro‘s Steven Schapansky joins Shannon, Chip and Erika as we explore what someone new to Babylon 5 makes of “And the Sky Full of Stars,” probably the first “WHAM!” episode of the series. Sinclair’s character arc kicks into high gear as the mystery of the Battle of the Line is foregrounded, and your … Continue reading Episode 9: “And the Sky Full of Stars” →
Like the Mark Twain short story itself (included as bonus audio at the end of the podcast), its namesake B5 episode “The War Prayer” is in no way, shape or form subtle. Find out what Erika, Shannon and Chip thought of this first foray into the B5 universe for legendary Star Trek writer D.C. Fontana.
We’ve got our first guest co-host, and he’s a doozy: please welcome Chicago Sun-Times columnist and podcaster Andy Ihnatko to the B5AG Advisory Council, as we tackle “Mind War.” The telepath storyline expands significantly with the introduction of the PsiCops and Bester, and for a second straight episode G’Kar and the Narns shed their Klingonish … Continue reading Episode 7: “Mind War” →
So many fishies, gods by the bushel, curiously attached spectacles and little red fruit: it’s an episode that Shannon and Chip thought would be a perfect jumping-on point and Erika kinda dreaded. Welcome to “The Parliament of Dreams”!
We’ll come right out and say it: “Infection” ain’t exactly high art. There’s some stuff that works, some stuff that REALLY doesn’t, and more than a few allusions to the future of the series. That makes it worth watching, considering and enjoying (in places) with your co-hosts, who debate organic technology and soliloquies. And one … Continue reading Episode 5: “Infection” →
Babylon 5‘s first proper love story revolves around the most unlikely subject, Londo Mollari, while security chief Garibaldi tracks down someone who’s making clandestine phone calls over the super-secure line. Will it lead to sabotage? Point to conspiracy? Or provide a weepy character moment? Meanwhile, on 2014 Earth, Chip repeatedly gets himself into trouble for … Continue reading Episode 4: “Born to the Purple” →
Babylon 5 takes a dip into the metaphysical as a stealer/liberator/preserver/destroyer of souls causes havoc on the station, threatens an ambassador, reveals secrets and chants annoyingly. We’ll talk about regular physics as well as the meta kind, compare the new doctor to the old one (as Doctor Who podcasters tend to do anyway) and argue … Continue reading Episode 3: “Soul Hunter” →
Now we’re cookin’ with phased plasma! The first season of B5 opens with “Midnight on the Firing Line,” which moves like a Ferrari compared to “The Gathering.” (Totally a Volvo: dependable and robust, yet slightly lacking in the zero-to-60s.) What do we think of the new faces? Are Ivanova and Winters a step forward or … Continue reading Episode 2: “Midnight on the Firing Line” →
And so it REALLY begins! Erika watched BOTH the original edit and the TNT-funded producer’s cut! Shannon mourned the Gravity Rings! (She wasn’t alone.) That’s right, we’re officially starting the Audio Guide to Babylon 5 with the pilot movie, “The Gathering.” “Holla at MURDER, SHE WROTE. Woo!”
Welcome to The Audio Guide to Babylon 5! Herewith our manifesto: this is a book club without books, an episode-by-episode walkthrough of one of the most influential and important modern SF series. Each podcast begins with a spoiler-free discussion of the episode for new viewers, then we give listeners a jumping-off point and switch to … Continue reading Episode 0: “And So It Begins” →
