For our Round 7 pick,
The Don Lapre Appreciation Society selects in the
Fantasy/Sci-Fi category,
"Babylon 5"
-from
Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon_5
Quote:
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on the Babylon 5 space station: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict in the late 2250s and early 2260s. With its prominent use of pre-planned story arcs, the series was often described as a "novel for television."[1][2]
The pilot film premiered on February 22, 1993. The regular series aired from January 26, 1994 and ran for five full seasons, winning two Hugos for Best Dramatic Presentation[3] and two Emmy awards - for makeup and visual effects.[4] The show spawned six television films and a spin-off series, Crusade, which aired in 1999 and ran for thirteen episodes. On July 31, 2007, a DVD was released containing two short films about selected characters from the series.
Straczynski set five goals for Babylon 5. He said that the show "would have to be good science fiction" as well as good television ("rarely are [sci-fi] shows both good [sci-fi] and good TV; [they're] generally one or the other"); it would have to do for science fiction television what Hill Street Blues had done for police dramas, by taking an adult approach to the subject; it would have to be reasonably budgeted, and "it would have to look unlike anything ever seen before on TV, presenting individual stories against a much broader canvas."[7] He further stressed that his approach was "to take [sci-fi] seriously, to build characters for grown-ups (not a Wesley in the bunch), to incorporate real science but keep the characters at the center of the story."[7] Some of the staples of television science fiction were also out of the question (the show would have "no kids or cute robots"[8]). The idea was not to present a perfect utopian future, but one with greed and homelessness; one where characters grow, develop, live, and die; one where not everything was the same at the end of the day's events. Citing Mark Twain as an influence, Straczynski said he wanted the show to be a mirror to the real world and to covertly teach.[5]
Creator and showrunner J. Michael Straczynski wrote 92 of the 110 episodes of Babylon 5. He also scripted all 44 episodes in the third and fourth seasons;[13] according to Straczynski, a feat never before accomplished in American television.[14] Other writers to have contributed scripts to the show include Peter David, Neil Gaiman, Kathryn M. Drennan, Lawrence G. DiTillio, D.C. Fontana, and David Gerrold. Harlan Ellison, a creative consultant on the show, received story credits for two episodes.[15] Each writer was informed of the over-arching storyline, enabling the show to be produced consistently under-budget. The rules of production were strict; scripts were written six episodes in advance, and changes could not be made once production had started.[16]
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My favorite Sci-fi series on the small screen and even surpassing theatrical sci-fi in many respects. What stands out for me is the triumph of planning and continuity that no other screen Sci-Fi has achieved (with the possible exception of Doctor Who).
Five seasons of 22 episodes almost completely planned in advance resulted in an epic story that didn't lose its direction and continuity like so many other TV or movie series. *coughX-Files* *coughStarWars*
The acting of Andreas Katsulas as "
G'Kar" and Peter Jurasik as "
Londo Mollari" in particular is as good as it gets on television.
Sorry no youtube clips for now. My Flash plug-in is broken so I'll have to add them later.