#am I talking about Sinclair? am I talking about Delenn? am I talking about Sheridan?

[therighthandofvengeance]

you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me

[woodsfae]

Babylon 5 s02e07: A Race Through Dark Places

s02 Table of Contents • previous episode

Station budget relies on the civilian traffic, but the military traffic has been higher than usual, so they’re running on a deficit, since the military doesn’t reimburse the station for funds lost by the mandatory re-routing of civilian business. And they want want to charge Sheridan and Ivanova 30 credits a week to stay in their current quarters, which are a whole 7 square feet bigger than the next size down which would remain free. All this sounds exactly some some bs the USA would pull and is completely believable.

My!!! guy!!!! Bester is back! And on a day when I’ve found a totally legal and normal way to screencap for some gifs again. hell to the yeah. Prediction: I’m gonna like this one. He’s got a new, scary sidekick.

Oh I love him, he’s so terrifying and perfect.

Telepath: “He’s dead.” Bester: “It doesn’t matter. I caught it, just before he died. Betrayed by his final thoughts.”

He’s my special little guy. But does this mean Talia is involved with the underground telepaths?? She was really not down with whatsherface not going to PsiCorps.

Sheridan is just down to fight whenever anyone squares up even a little. What is 30 credits? I have nothing to compare it against. Is it like, a nice meal for two? A month’s wages for a dock worker? I feel like this is the first hard number for a price I’ve seen so far.

Going for the easy questions I see, Delenn! Just quickly, explain humanity. Awww she’s so cute. Dinner date with Sinclair! He was dtf (down to fight) 2 seconds ago and now he’s dtf (down to flee) and figure out if this is a date or not.

Sheridan: “One day they’re shooting at you, the next they’re taking you out to dinner. Hah! What a universe.”

He looks bemused and delighted. I’m delighted. This episode will have everything if only Susan and Talia will be allowed to be onscreen at the same time.

OMFG they’re in the same room at the same time!!!

Sheridan: “I’d like to talk to my people for a moment.” Bester and Talia: *leaves the room* Me: “Talia where the fuck are you goin...oh. Telepath. well frag that.”

Garibaldi: “Want, agree, that has nothing to do with it. The law is the law.”

And that’s ACAB baby. When the law is unjust, those that uphold the law are unjust.

Garibaldi: “That’s damn ironic, isn’t it? That the corps got started because we were afraid of telepaths? Now we’re victims of our own fears. And we took away every right they had and shoved them into a big, black box called Psi Corps. Now look at em. Black uniforms, jackboots, giving orders. Some days they scare the hell out of me.“ Sheridan: “Yeah If you ask me, we created our own monster. And maybe we deserve it.“

Good advice by Ivanova. Read the logs about the Jason Ironheart Incident.

Lots of good background info being dropped. Talia wouldn’t notice a surface scan, she keeps walls up to block out the background noise, but Bester wasn’t and heard someone calling him a murderer.

“Bester will try to stop up, so we don’t have any choice. We have to kill him.”

I agree, but also, oh man my special guy. :(

DELENN YOU BABE. Well no wonder Sheridan falls for her. She’s humaning it up like a bossbabe for this date.

It’s genuinely astonishing that Ivanova has nothing whatsoever to do with the underground (that she’ll admit to). I think odds are relatively good that she actually does. Perhaps Dr Franklin is? He’s been a little revolutionary.

Date’s going well. Humor is an excellent bonding point.

Bester reaching out to Talia civilly. We love to see it, only for the drama.

Love to see the return of Jason Ironheart CGI Ascended!

Also love the lingering, artful shots of Talia being angsty in profile.

The penny!! Is she or isn’t she a telekinetic?? I am once again asking for Talia Telekinesis Skills. AND YES THERE IT IS BABYYYYY. Now that’s some self defense.

Earthforce locked them out of their rooms! Those asshats. It’s so sweet how willing Susan is to go along with all Sheridan’s schemes.

Mary Had A Little Lamb has never been so ominous.

OK, so now that they’re sleeping in Sheridan’s office she’s quite a bit more disgruntled.

Ivanova: “Were you like this when you were married?” Sheridan: “Yeah!” Ivanova: “That woman was a saint.”

John you have a huge crush. Repeating all the jokes you heard from your dinner date and practically blushing over thinking about it is peak crush behavior.

DS9 nod? Those are raktajino mugs that Bester and Talia are using.

Fishing for info, fishing for informants, and unfortunately not so distracted that he missed the assassins. Who should really learn to shield their thoughts if they’re gonna be assassinating level 15 telepaths. And throwing Talia in a closet. A literal closet. lol.

This is the one and only anger fit Garibaldi can throw that I support.

Oh well, not really a closet I guess. Man, she gets manhandled a lot.

I agree, wake up girlie. The Corps are not benign and you don’t even believe what you’re saying.

Dun dun dun! Franklin does have connections. Called it.

Oh, the gloves are a PsiCorps requirement! Continuing yikes. Excellent control mechanism. They’re a high control cult. What you wear, where you live, who you talk to, who you touch, how you live, where and how you work, who you marry. About as high control as you get.

oooof, and forced pregnancy. I wonder if the baby got a guide for a year and then it was on its own as soon as it could walk.

“You’re asking me to take everything I believe and turn it upside-down.”

yeah, that’s hard to do when you’re ready to deconstruct from cult life, let alone when you’re kidnapped by kindly telepaths who insistently tell you horror stories of PsiCorps as some kind of guided deconstruction.

Invoking Jason Ironheart is absolutely the way to get Talia to help. I’m rooting so hard for them! And for Bester to survive and continue to commit atrocities for my viewing pleasure. I’m a simple person.

DOCTOR STEPHEN FRANKLIN YOU DUPLICITOUS BADASS! This episode is everything. I’m vibrating. Generally I like to feel good about predicting things even partially correctly but I only said maybe Dr Franklin has connections, not that he’s running the whole operation, and I’m gonna own that being only very partial. This is baller.

He’s a conspiracy theories that are real guy like Sheridan is, but only for telepathy! Secret doctor network!! The unofficial clinic!!

Alas, Sheridan, but “I agree but the laws“ is not moral best practice.

Bester! My evil little fellow.

Talia grew a hell of a spine in the last ten minutes.

Collective telepathy!!!

“The corps is Mother. The corps is Father. I know where my loyalties lie.”

I don’t see how this could play out any way but that these people are dead, but that would also be totally bonkers considering she just planned something with Dr Franklin and Sheridan.

LITERALLY all faked? d a m n

I am extremely into collectivist telepathy. It’s super tragic that they are discouraged from touching even each other. All of them must be just so touch starved.

Doctor Franklin has just shot up a mile in my estimation of him as a person. He got a lot of points for treating Poor Murdered Child, but I also don’t like thinking about that episode. (0/1 stars, will never watch again)

Ah, so Sheridan also has a way with pedantry. Is this a commentary on how rigid military regulations makes for twisting-the-hell-out-of-the-rules geniuses?

Insert incoherent babble here about gloves-off Talia smiling at be-robed Susan smiling at her! Oh this episode is everything I could have wanted. Definitely a 5/5 star one for me! And certainly my favorite of the season so far!

next episode

[rosallora]

S2E22 The Fall of Night

Attache to attache communication... Vir and Lennier love. Instant adoration for that relationship. Same time tomorrow.

And of course... G’kar was right about the Centauri pushing for more worlds.

Oh my god. He really isn’t the same Londo. He’s just... he can’t stand down.

Ministry of Peace... always a good sign (sarcasm).

Oh Ivanova... no family. She has Sheridan at least, and Garibaldi! And the ambassadors. I love her very much. And I love that she’s unwilling to leave Babylon 5, to betray her fellows, to join the Night Watch... she’s a wonderful character. I wish she had gotten to be with Talia. I miss Talia.

The Night Watch, oof. It’s back.

Why won’t the Minister of Peace (Lantz) talk with G’kar? I am just. Augh.

OHHH MY GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ALLIANCE? WITH THE CENTAURI? WHAT THE FUCK!

I cannot believe this is happening. GET OUT THERE FIGHTERS, IT’S TIME! And YAY! The Narn are safe :)

I can’t wait for Babylon 5 to go rogue. We’re gonna see it. So far!

I fucking hate Welles! He can burn in Helles.

Kosh OUTSIDE THE SUIT! Beautiful. Amazing. Very Gender.

We’re going FULL thoughtpolice. YEP. YEP. Sedition is a powerful thing.

I love Sheridan’s reaction to Kosh’s true form - the idea that the Vorlons have been manipulating people from the very beginning. It really says it out loud, really makes it clear. Love it.

And Christ on a Cracker. We’re going to get Rogue Bab5. There’s no way that we’re going neutral on this. And there’s no way we’re going to be abiding by the shithole called Earthdome.

Anyways - that’s a wrap on Season 2.

I’m trying to get my thoughts together. I like the side stories - Keffler chief among them. He had a full arc, he found his own personal closure. His story is done, and it’s a catapult into the future.

I want G’kar to continue being a part of the show, and I want for him to continue doing what he can for the Narn. Seeing him advocate in the streets, speaking up against the Centauri... he’s a brave man. I know that my admiration of him will likely only grow more as the show enters Season 3.

I have a suspicion that Ivanova will join the Night Watch, if only to have a woman on the inside.  The way that the offer was given to her, and her consideration in the last shot of Season 2 really confirmed that for me. The fact that we also ENDED with Ivanova in frame suggests to me that next season we might also see a shift in station power.

Sheridan has done a good job as captain, but I think it might be time for her to take the helm. Sheridan is very much a soldier, and he does operate like one. I think that his obedience to the rules will definitely force him out - or really, his refusal to find the loopholes that Sinclair might have. I think that Sheridan will have to step down from his position, and I believe that could be an interesting direction for the show to go in. If not, then not!

I have high hopes for Vir and Lennier going into Season 3. I love the attaches, though Na’toth has pretty much disappeared from the show at this point. But the mutual expression of worry that the two of them exchanged showed a special kind of commiseration between the two that I’d like to follow. Lennier’s continued support of Delenn is also big - sometimes she’s just silly, she messes up, and he’s there for her. I think Lennier is my FAVORITE attache by far! But I look forward to Vir perhaps working AGAINST the Centauri, and taking the actions that he felt that he was too helpless to in Season 2. He’s my horse to bet on.

The Talia/Ivanova thing will HAUNT ME FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE. I hope we can get Talia back.

See you in Season 3!

[conundrumoftime]

Dear Unsent Letters Writer

Hello and thank you so much for writing for me! Please think of all my prompts for the tags as suggestions rather than things I’ve got my heart set on - as long as you avoid my DNWs, I’m happy if write whatever calls to you. I’ve got a broader likes/DNWs section here and then some specifics for each fandom.

Silmarillion: 

Melian and Sauron - Maiar bickering calls to my very soul. This could be during the time Melian's in Doriath (maybe Sauron is trying to formally negotiate on Morgoth’s behalf? Or maybe he’s just annoyed that she gets to have her own kingdom in Middle-earth but he’s in the Velar’s bad books?) Maybe Sauron's writing a report on Melian and her activities for Morgoth, or maybe they both keep diaries about their existence in Middle-earth. Or maybe a later Sauron is writing something to about Melian after she's left Middle-earth for good? 

Maedhros & Any of the Sons of Feanor - I’d love a glimpse into Maedhros’s mind when he’s still trying to get an alliance together to fight Morgoth - how frustrating must it be when your own brothers are making life harder? Or maybe something later, letters to or diary entries about brothers that have died (this can include Amrod (or Amras!) dying when the ships burn if you want). Or maybe it’s a last letter left behind for Maglor.

Fingon/Maedhros - Maybe Maedhros writing something about or unsent to Fingon after the Feanorians arrive in Beleriand, and Maedhros realises they are not in fact sending the ships back for the others; maybe Fingon writing something from the ice during the same time. Or maybe an exchange between them later on? I’m more into angst than fluff for them, but I am more than happy with them genuinely loving each other and saying so despite all else that is happening.

Babylon 5:

Delenn & Susan Ivanova - love them both, love angst and tragedy, love anything that dives into Delenn’s somewhat turbulent past and how she feels about that (or how she feels about anyone else learning about that). They must have so much to talk about after Sheridan’s death. Or maybe it’s a letter sent in s5, after Ivanova leaves? Or maybe earlier on - what if Ivanova had found out some of what Sinclair was looking into (what does ‘Satai’ mean, etc) - what would Delenn do or say?

Marcus Cole/Susan Ivanova - while a big fan of the tragedy here, I am also 100% up for a canon-divergence happily ever after in their case, whichever you’d prefer!

For All Mankind:

Margo Madison/Sergei Nikulov - I’d love something early on when they’re not admitting their feelings but still trying to find out whether the other one stands. Or perhaps later on in the lead to the end of Season 3. (I haven’t yet seen all of Season 4, so if you could keep canon events as s3-and-earlier timeframe that would be lovely!)

Ghosts:

Margot Fawcett/Julian Fawcett - would love any take on Julian writing to her after his death, especially if it mentions the political career of their daughter (good for you, Rachel!)

Star Trek: DS9:

Elim Garak & Odo: Anything, at any point, Terok Nor era or DS9 era. I just love their canon interactions.

Jadzia Dax & Kira Nerys: I love Dax’s interest in matchmaking and getting a bit too involved in other people’s relationships, and I’d love to hear more about what she thinks of Kira’s.

Baldur’s Gate:

Dammon & Karlach, Dammon/Karlach: I’d love her to write back to him after the version of the epilogue in which he writes to her. I’d also love to read anything before that - maybe he’s writing to her to find out more about her engine works while still trying to fix it, and gets to know and like her better as they exchange letters that way?

Gale & Tara: Assuming Tara has some way to send a message (maybe that’s why she ended up catching the carrier pigeons), what would she write to Gale when they were apart? What does she think about Mystra, or about Gale’s plans? 

Original works:

Here I’d be happy to receive whatever strikes you as interesting and fun to write! I love anything that includes people having different angles on the past; rivals having more in common than they like to admit; people dealing with guilt; people dealing with the weight of their own history or the expectations of their role/culture/world; or all forms of bickering.

Likes, DNWs, and ‘everyone DNWs this but I love it’s:

General likes: Angst, complicated feelings, stories that dive into a character and what motivates them, questions of loyalty and of how the past affects the present. Happy with any degree of smut from ‘none at all’ to ‘E-rated’. Other things I like in fics: parenthood/kidfic (prefer if it’s about the emotional feels of the adult characters rather than cute kid things); canonverse AUs of the ‘what if this thing happened differently?’ variety; worldbuilding in fantasy/sci-fi fandoms; and established relationships being complicated. 

DNWs: Non-canonverse AUs (canon divergence is fine); bashing of characters or ships (individual characters can like who they like but I’d prefer the narrative wasn’t weighing in behind them); traumatic birth or pregnancy loss; noncon as a major plot element (dubcon is fine); heavy dom/sub dynamics with a male dom and female sub; underage; watersports and scat.

Things that are often DNWed that I like and you are welcome to write for me: Infidelity, preferably in the sense of overlapping pairings and feelings for multiple people (not if it’s infidelity to get one ship out of the way); first- and second-person POV; ambiguous endings; pregnancy; sibling incest.

[acrazyobsession]

Babylon 5 - 2x08

“A Race Through Dark Places”

I don’t recall seeing so many white shirts in Season 1. And now Ivanova has been without her uniform jacket two episodes in a row (and Sheridan in this one as well).

And I am with Sheridan on the whole quarters thing! Why should they have to pay rent? They are in charge of the station and deserve to have better quarters. I thought Sheridan’s idea in the end was brilliant.

Oh no! Bester is back. I had heard he would make more appearances. Trying to find who is “underground railroading” unregistered telepaths.

Sheridan: "Abso-fragging-Iutely. Bunch of butt-scratching, hand-wringing penny-pinching let’s stick it to the new guy pinheads.” LOL

So…I know we got some information at the beginning of the season about why the Minbari had surrendered and why Sinclair was so important in their plan. However, there are still quite a few things about Delenn that haven’t been answered. I thought that this transformation was going to be part of what she was “hiding” but it doesn’t seem as though that is what it was. But I guess as I type this things are dawning on me��was it the fact that she was part of the Grey Council and she is pretending to be an Ambassador? But that doesn’t explain the weird symbol that appeared on her forehead when Morden came to talk with her.

Speaking of Delenn…Oh my goodness. Oh my goodness. She is just so freaking adorable! Did she seriously just ask the Captain on a date without even knowing it?

Delenn: “And if I am to be a bridge of understanding between humans and Minbari it would help if I knew more about you people.” Sheridan: “I see. So, what would you suggest?” Delenn: “Dinner.” Sheridan: “Dinner?” Delenn: “Dinner. In all my time here, I have rarely sat and just talked with you or with any other human. And I think that I would like to.”

I had to look up interviews with Mira and see what she is like in real life. I haven’t seen her in anything else. I didn’t realize she was from Yugoslavia. I love that what I thought was Delenn’s Minbari accent is really just the way Mira talks. 

I am really surprised that Bester’s appearance went as smoothly as it did. I don’t recall exactly how his last dealings with the crew went, but I just expected there to be more contention.

Garibaldi: “It’s damn ironic, isn't it? The Corps got started because we were afraid of telepaths. Now they're victims of our own fears. We took away every right they had and shoved them into a big black box called Psi Corps. Now look at them. Black uniforms, jackboots, giving orders.Some days, they scare the hell out of me.” Sheridan: “If you ask me, we created our own monster. And maybe we deserve it.”

OMG! Delenn is going to give Sheridan a heart attack! Everyone is looking at her. Gone is her adorable space elf attire and in its place is a stunning black dress. And the hair! I am laughing so hard - I don’t know why. She has no idea the kind of position she has put the Captain in and what it looks like.

Delenn: “It appears my choice was successful. The woman who sold me this told me that I would definitely ‘turn heads’.” Sheridan: “Yeah, well, if they turned much further, you'd be sued for whiplash.

These two are going to freaking kill me!! The waiter yawning in the background. They are still sitting talking.

So did Winters not only get the ability to move objects with her mind but also the ability to block being read? What a great trick they were able to play on Bester!!

[steal-this-idea]

Babylon 5 rewatch continues...

Now with a LINK to the original post that I had let grow to unreasonable length instead of forcing the two people who will see this scroll through ever last piece of dumb shit I’ve had to say first!

JUMP TO ORIGINAL LONG POST HERE

(Learning Curve)

I’ve taken the talk on meditation to heart (the “anyone can meditate in silence” bit) to the point where I think I can become impatient or even annoyed by those who insist upon quiet to do so (think especially for certain sports like golf and tennis...like, if you’re to the point where you’re a professional, some asshole in the stands should be able to neither faze you nor distract you)

If garlic stinks then what’s saffron? (the meal where Garibaldi starts laying into Lochley’s past and Zack is obliquely commenting on it, asking if anyone thinks the food tastes funny, suggesting saffron when it starts getting awkward and concluding garlic after Lochley puts Garibaldi in his place)

Continuing my Takashima just disappeared rant: N’grath, our season 1 praying mantis gangster, gets a mention in this episode but Lt.Cmdr. Takashima? Who’s she?

I do love that the Minbari are an advanced race but not an impassionate one...which honestly makes them scarier, as the Earth-Minbari War shown to us throughout “In the Beginning” demonstrated...

Meaning does not exist independently... I wonder if this episode is where I got that idea from?

(Strange Relations)

I don’t hate the ex-wife of Sheridan revelation of Capt. Lochley. If anything, it kinda complements how Cmdr. Sinclair got appointed to run Babylon 5. I assume, like with the Minbari when the station first came online, Sheridan insisted on veto power over anyone EarthGov might select to run Babylon 5. I wonder if Capt. Lochley was far down the list too?

Zip ties: Still good enough for the 23½ century :-)

The bottle tossing Hyach is at it again...

(Secrets of the Soul)

I do like Season 5 being like a mirror of Season 1 and giving us more standalone type episodes which allows us to be given closer looks at members of the (former) League of Non-Aligned Worlds. This episode, the Hyach; the next episode, the Brakir; and the one after that, the Drazi.

And I have to say this again. Even when he’s cheesy, I don’t hate Byron.

I think Lyta made me love bangs :-)

I liked the detail of the Drazi record not being in English

Also, why didn’t we learn Byron’s secrets too? While, yes, dramatic effect for the later episode, sure...why not? I suppose also Lyta’s walls coming down during her intimacy may have simply flooded everything else out too. Hard to say. I also wonder why Lyta’s eyes went black during their lovemaking when, since this is a Vorlon-influenced memory, they should’ve glowed white? Again, I’m sure it had something to do with dramatic effect...

(Day of the Dead)

I love that Capt. Lochley hates Rebo & Zooty. It’s like, ugh...these hacks :-)

And I also love Delenn’s reaction to one of their jokes. I wonder what Mira Furlan was thinking about to get herself to laugh so heartily and convincingly?

Nice that the guest spots got end credits billing and not upfront so as not to spoil the surprise (unlike what happened with Anna Sheridan). I wonder if that cost TNT a fine with the Screen Actors Guild? I know Lucas always had to pay a fine to get out of putting traditional title screen credits over the start of each Star Wars film.

I presume there is plenty of A.U. fiction out there about who the other characters would have met had they been on the other side of the line?

Do you think Kosh would have appeared in its encounter suit to Sheridan had he been there or would it have been more open like in the death dream sequence (or even in its true squid-like form)?

(In the Kingdom of the Blind)

The Centauri are ultra racist. That dude’s not even attempting discretion: he’s gonna talk shit about Narns right in front of a Narn with not even a hint of concern that G’Kar might understand what he’s saying or be capable of feeling hurt by it.

As much as I hate what Byron did after learning how telepaths came to be and what they were intended for, I also can’t imagine an equivalent shock that could so forcefully shake the very foundations of my world and thus how I would react to such knowledge...

Would the Drakh have worked better if they didn’t have visible sclera? I just can’t help but feel if their eyes were entirely black or red instead of looking human, if it would have increased their visual menace or just made them look goofy?

But that lighting on the Drakh’s reveal though...magnificent

Isn’t that a Brakiri warship? How could it have been unarmed? I’m not in any way justifying the attack on them but, like, of *all* the ships you could’ve used to illustrate an attack on a commercial transport...

(A Tragedy of Telepaths)

I’ll admit I’ve tried using the “There’s No Bomb” technique in my desperate attempts to quell my allergies. Trying to tell my itchy, runny nose that, despite its objections, there’s no need to sneeze. There’s. No need. To sneeze...

Can’t say it ever worked though...

Byron just dropping that some worlds developed telepaths naturally which seems strange because I thought I recalled JMS mentioning that if a species were to develop telepathy they’d never advance to civilization. Being a telepath would just be another technique a predator could use to snare prey and/or a technique a prey animal could use to avoid being eaten.

Still, if I’m going to grant him this, I wonder if the Soul Hunters were an example of natural telepaths? The behavior of the two we meet in the show’s second episode is reminiscent of telepath behavior we witness in later episodes (like Byron sensing that man’s impending death and the Soul Hunter being able to pick up on Delenn’s secrets as the machine she was hooked up to slowly killed her). Were Soul Hunters like vultures originally? Always feeling for the impending death of an animal so they could eat that night? But that particular ability wouldn’t necessarily have prevented the kind of generalization necessary for the development of language, tools, and technology so the ability served them rather than limited them and as they developed and went to the stars, the idea of preserving special souls became of paramount importance to their raison d’être. Comments? Concerns? Good idea? Poorly thought out idea?

G’KAR: Would you like some jala? It’s cold.

LONDO: Get that away from me. Jala needs to be hot. It takes heat to cultivate its flavor. To consume cold jala is to insult a Centauri. I don’t even know where you got it.

G’KAR: I saw it on a tray heading into the south end of the palace. I assumed no one would mind if I took it.

LONDO: That’s right. Only Narns can stomach it cold.

It would be interesting to have a culture which marks the peaces rather than the wars. I don’t even know if that would be so far-fetched to imagine such a people given the Incas made “constellations” out of the dark parts of the sky as well as its luminous parts.

Byron’s demand for compensation is SOOO much more reasonable than his threat of blackmail. It’s a shame he didn’t think of it first...

Is the Interstellar Alliance basically the Minbari Empire? Minbar’s going to be the home office of the ISA. After the White Star fleet (which really cannot be rebuilt), the Minbari military is the strongest in the known galaxy and I have to assume it is their fleet the ISA would lean on in the event of a major war between powers. I don’t know. I just think of it like if we were to form an EarthGov right now and it actually had real power, its power would almost certainly be heavily reliant on U.S. military might, making an EarthGov like a de facto U.S. empire, no? It’s outside the scope of Babylon 5, but I wonder if such a thing will come up in the ISA’s future?

Babylon 5 did for me with telepaths what Buffy the Vampire Slayer did for vampires. I can no longer accept any alternative :-)

(Phoenix Rising)

I wonder how this telepath colony plot would have unfolded differently had Byron had the foresight to have some non-human telepaths among them so they wouldn’t be wholly under Earth’s jurisdiction?

Do you think Bester spoke to his underlings at the briefing because he *had* to or was it solely for our, the viewer’s, benefit? I just think back to when Bester first met with Sinclair...

Regarding Bester’s “How stupid do you think I am?” speech: I’m so glad JMS didn’t pad the scene by going to commercial as the music climaxed with Garibaldi holding a PPG to him. That immediate release of dramatic tension because there never was any there to begin with; that subversion of expectations, was an effective choice.

I don’t drink but after that scene, I’d probably start drinking too...

Peter’s telekinesis seems underwhelming. I suppose I could blame it on the show’s ability to do that special effect (the ring Eilerson fires in that episode of Crusade was an effect done well). But how hard was he casting those objects? I feel like I could throw harder and more accurately; like his telekinesis was really an inefficient way to go about things, y’know?

I know from reading around that had Claudia Christian remained on the show, she would’ve been the one to fall for Byron and I have to admit it’s still hard imagining Ivanova in that role. I think I’m glad she didn’t not because it would be unbelievable but just that it would be yet another tragic love and broken trust story for her and it’s like, damn, give this woman a break already...hasn’t she suffered enough?

Did Byron program his followers with that hymn? The way they gather around him before he immolates them is practically instinctual. I suppose it’s not so far-fetched. Byron *is* a strong P12 and more than once he desperately tried to get back to his people in order to calm them down suggesting his hold over them may not have been charisma alone. I don’t know...

(The Ragged Edge)

The Drazi with the vomit bag on the shuttle, haha. I love those touches they put into the show :-)

Is it my imagination or is G’Kar’s room less red?

[believerindaydreams]

dreaming of oranges

...I’m not sure if this will exorcise the fic or serve as prelude to a novel. Could go either way. 

“Why here? Why not the Agamemnon, or Earth- why’s it always this station I catch myself dreaming about?”

Ivanova shrugs as she walks, waves at the bustling Zocalo. As full and bustling as he’s ever seen it, and they have to struggle their way through the crowds. “You know why, Sheridan. Unfinished business. Babylon 5’s still haunting you because you’re not done with us yet.”

“Officially I am. ” He starts down a side turning, but Ivanova tuts a negative and grabs his hand, hurrying them along down the central corridor. The feel of her cool palm against his own obscurely embarrasses him. “Officially I’ve been kicked upstairs for good. Ambassador Sheridan, Entil'zha and Starkiller- what the hell do they want me on their planet for? I’d swap all this prestige and ritual malarkey for the milk run to Mars, any day.”

“And there goes the self-censor,” Susan says, stopping abruptly at a sidewalk cafe. She sits down, waves for a menu; he follows suit. “You realise that’s the first time you’ve actually brought yourself to say it? Instead of smiling aimlessly and insisting everything’s fine.”

“You go where you’re told in Earthforce. Not where you want to be- you know, I can’t read this.” Wavy, graceful, meaningless lines crisscross the grimy paper.

“Then I’ll order for both of us. It’s not true, John.”

“What isn’t?”

“You don’t stop existing just because you’ve fallen down the Minbari gravity well. There’s people here who still worry about you, who still care about whether you’re all right.”

“Know what your problem is? Ivanova would give me a boot up the backside for implying she was this sentimental.”

“You’re right,” Susan admits; and somehow melts, shimmering, into Delenn.

He’s seen plenty of Minbari in the last month, more than he ever consciously noticed during the year on Babylon 5. Which means nothing, actually. It didn’t require a standard to tell him that her movements are graceful, or the steadiness of her gaze reassuring. That he’s come to find even that cool, carved ridge of bone beautiful, for being what it is; simply part of her.

“The heart does as the heart does,” Delenn says. “Why so much fear, John?”

Her hands, he wouldn’t even dream about touching. “I never was much of a loner,” Sheridan says, frowning at the bowl in front of him. His chopsticks draw out noodles of thin, curling paper, in elegant curlicues; puzzled, he lays them down untasted. “First my family was always around, then I entered Earthforce, I’ve never really been alone in my life. Now I’m two jumps away from anybody of my own species, whole light years away from the closest human- and don’t tell me that Minbari souls are the same. I’m not going to be politically correct in my own damned dream.”

“They’re my people. You’ll come to appreciate them in time, as you did with me.” She dips her chopsticks into his bowl. Fishes out a slip of paper. Smiles, as she pops it in his mouth, and the taste bursts against his tongue- abrupt, potent, so unbelievably sensual that the sheer pleasure of it hurts like crazy-

and Sheridan wakes, to find himself nestled in a cramped ball against the wall. Again. These angular beds take some getting used to.

Groaning, he reaches out for the one object that’s always close by. Wavers in something close to sheer blind panic when he can’t find it immediately- and then his hand clenches around it, hard. He slaps it on with the relief of a committed addict.

His stolen, unauthorised link, still hooked up to comms and cameras and reports, all the paraphernalia of Babylon 5’s activities. How exactly Ivanova fixed up standard-issue Earthforce equipement to function this far away from the station, he doesn’t know. Doesn’t plan to ask. All that matters is that it works; that in the hour of the wolf, he can lie here and simply listen, be reassured that humanity’s still carrying on out there. Noisy and erratic as ever.

“I wonder if telepaths get to feeling like this, when they’re on blockers,” Sheridan says aloud. “It’d go a long way towards explaining Psi Corps.”

“Talking to yourself again, Captain?”

“Not if I’m taking to you, Garibaldi- what’s the matter, can’t a guy do a little dishonest eavesdropping once in a while?”

“It’s not once in a while or anything close to that. Want the timestamps for how often you’ve been lurking? Two, three hours a night minimum, at times when all good ambassadors ought to be tucked up in bed.”

“Michael, I spend the rest of my day staring at Minbari. Talking to Minbari, learning their languages, asking how high when they tell me to jump. I need some time off to remember the whole galaxy doesn’t wear robes and spend five hours eating dinner.”

There’s a sigh at the other end. “I know, I know. That’s why I haven’t reported you.”

Tempting as it is to match Garibaldi’s sardonic tone, the man’s still a security chief, and he’s still violating more Earthforce regs than he can count. “Thank you.”

“Yeesh. Don’t do that.“

“Do what?”

“Be so sincere. You sounded like Lennier for a second there- whoops, I gotta go. Sinclair’s on the horn.”

It is not, Sheridan assures himself at intervals, anything like jealousy. Just because the man’s a fellow veteran of the Battle of the Line, has his initials and his post and his station, that doesn’t mean he’s jealous of Jeffrey Sinclair. Whoever his replacement was would have rankled just as much. 

Probably.

He switches off the link, sets the bed back in order, and lies down again. Not much chance of getting back to sleep, with only an hour to go before his wakeup call, but he might as well make the attempt...

(Sheridan sleeps; and dreams of Delenn.)

[woodsfae]

Babylon 5 s01e15: Grail First Previous

ToC

Never gonna be over how ridiculously soothing it is to see these dated graphics.

MINBARI AND DELENN HOORAY. Who is this human they venerate so highly?

Jinxo! What a great name. Deuce, suits this blackmailing dick.

Deuce has a Centauri Murder Accomplice? Or is the trauma literally being touched by their Tummy Sex Tentacles?

Wtf, Kosh ALSO has tummy tentacles that look exactly like Centauri Tummy Tentacles and helps lowlifes keep their thumb on their blackmailees? That’s a … choice.

🫠

lmao I love this beleaguered judge trying to rule on century-old alien abductions on earthlings.

Aldous Gajic is the personage Lennier and Delenn are so honored to meet. And he knows he’s a bit of a personage, too. Seeking the Holy Grail! There is so much mysticism in Babylon 5 and it always sideswipes me a bit when it crops up without notice. What else is real? The shroud of christ? Is the tree that Buddha gained enlightenment underneath in some alien’s arboretum? edit: I am now re-aware of the fact that the Bodhi tree Siddhartha sat beneath is still alive! The exact same tree, or at least one that's old enough and in the right spot to be the exact tree. Trees be ANCIENT!

“How sad. He is a holy man. A true seeker. Among my people, a true seeker is treated with the utmost reverence and respect. It doesn’t matter that his Grail may or may not exist. What matters is that he strives for the perfection of his soul and the salvation of his race. And that he has never wavered or lost faith.”

This reminds me very much of the Creepy Murderous Shak Tot speech from s01e02:

“Not all. Only the special ones. Leaders, thinkers, poets, dreamers, blessed lunatics. [...] We enshrine them, we worship them, talk to them, listen to them. We learn.”

No wonder the Shak Tot are drawn to the Minbari. They cultivate and celebrate dreamers, blessed lunatics, etc.

Interesting exchange between Delenn and Sinclair. Again. All their exchanges are so laden with double meaning and hidden meaning and intrigue that I suspect Delenn is on the show so relatively little compared to Londo/G’Kar to preserve the impact she always has.

Sinclair: “I wish [Aldous Gajic] luck. He’s probably the only true seeker we have.” Delenn: “Then perhaps you do not know yourself as well as you think.”

The fondness in their eyes when they look at each other is unbearable! If I didn’t suspect from seeing gifsets that Delenn ends up with someone not-yet-on-the-show (John Sheridan, I believe. Been waiting for him to appear) I’d be frothing at the mouth at their clear, deep affection for each other.

Nothing says I can’t froth over it regardless, but it does put a damper on parts of my foaming.

Ah, Mirriam Runningdear (a fantastic name) is only mindwiped, not dead. Kosh has mindwiping abilities. Yikes. And the Vorlon are freaked out about telepaths? What in the fuck.

Perhaps Talia could reprogram Mirriam with basic knowledge and human functions instead of going the long way ‘round by painstakingly teaching her absolutely everything starting with muscle control?!

Michael Garibaldi. Why do you have to keep being such a damn cop? Violently cleaning out the slums isn’t in any way conducive to solving poverty, crime, or ending the human drive to migrate in search of a better life.

Probably safer for Jinxo’s (Thomas Jordan) health and safety to leave, but he’s frantic to stay, for unknown reasons. He’s a highly skilled space station builder and worked on all 5 Babylons. What does he know? What safety function is he providing or think that he’s providing? (he has lovely green eyes)

Desmond Muzychenko. Much better name than Deuce, really.

Jinxo firmly believes that if leaves Babylon 5, it’ll be destroyed like all the other Babylons.

“I don’t have the curse, I am the curse.”

dun dun dunn!!! I typo’ed ‘fun’ four times trying to write ‘dun,’ and I think it deserves to be written if it tried so hard to be immortalized. Fun!

Babylon 1 was destroyed by sabotage right after he took a leave. Same for Babylon 2. B3 blew up after he took leave, hence the nickname Jinxo. B4, he didn’t take leave. Left once it was done, and he watched the station wrinkle “twisted like putty, then just disappeared. The minute I left.”

Aldous: “I’d say that you have the wrong nickname. They should have called you “Lucky.” […] To have escaped the worst each time - that’s a blessing. You’re a very lucky man. Perhaps each time you were exactly where you were meant to be.” Jinxo: “I never thought of it like that.” Aldous: “We never do.”

He seems to be a very kind man.

Na’ka’leen feeder is a critter the Centauri discovered during their colonization empire stage that can mindwipe people. Is Kosh (or a mystery Vorlon, I guess) running around with a highly illegal Crime Pet? What does this mean for Centauri Tummy Tentacles?

Londo seems seriously and genuinely disturbed about one perhaps being on Babylon 5.

The Minbari are so intense about helping a Seeker. Well, the religious half of them. When the warriors agree with the religious “it is a terrible thing, a terrible power, as recent events have shown us. Let us hope it never again happens in our lifetime.”

Well that’s unnerving. And now I expect it to happen again at least once a season.

Written words cannot express how freaky the non-Kosh voice coming out of this Vorlon-esque encounter suit is. I’m guessing it is a na’ka’leen and they’re highly predatory, and unfortunately sentient.

Where did Deuce get a Vorlon encounter suit??

Why WHY are there so many tentacles lately. Did tentacle porn spike in popularity in 1994? Don’t answer that.

Third pronunciation of Gajic so far. I have a lot of sympathy for this guy. I get about the same rate of novel pronunciations per introduction ratio for my name.

Vir is one-upping the Minbari is what he’s doing. Londo would care more if he was one-upping G’Kar, of course.

Panaceas and mystical methods of healing are a big theme in this season so far. Going to be interesting to see if/when they have a breakthrough that sticks.

Aldous is a fantastic staff fighter. And so earnest about cultivating Thomas “Jinxo” Jordan as a Seeker and blessed lunatic the Shak Tot would risk their lives to collect.

That didn’t really sound like Kosh. Feeder?

Tazer to the back > staff skillz

It really must be terrifying, thinking there’s a rogue Vorlon doing the bidding of the rising Boss Thug of the underworld.

Aldous is probably the most mystical thing to happen in the show so far. Ordering a bizarre, brain sucking Dalek-alike around successfully!

Aaaand it’s escaping. Bad news for sentients everywhere. idk if it’s going to eat Aldous, or die in his arms but I’d bet on one of the two.

hm, neither. But a Holy Mission being passed on to Thomas Jordan as Aldous dies is both fitting and spooky.

“[Aldous] found what he was looking for. What we’re all looking for: a reason. […] [a reason for] Everything, Commander. Everything.”

I do hope Garibaldi loses some sleep over the Curse, though.

[Thomas’ ship jumps away] Garibaldi: “No boom?” Sinclair: “No boom.” Ivanova: “No boom today, boom tomorrow. There’s always a boom tomorrow…what? Look, someone’s got to have some damn perspective around here! Boom. Sooner or later,”

Please can I have some Talia/Susan content. Just a touch. Even a glance! I'm dying, I'm starving!

Onwards!

[woodsfae]

Babylon 5 s02e01 Points of Departure

s01 table of contents • s01 wrap-up • previous episode: s01e22

I did pinky promise!

That's definitely John Sheridan. Captain (?) of the Agamemnon.

Partner: Is that the new captain? What happened to the old one?

Me: Nothing has happened to the commander. The commander of deep space 9 is still in command.

Partner: .... ???

oops, heh. Got my Star Trek brain on 100% of the time.

There is still so much going on. The episode has only been going on about thirty seconds and I already feel like there’s ten new plot threads. Sheridan, Sheridan’s deep animosity for, and ability to defeat, Minbari. Minbari warships in Earth space.

And there’s still all the old plot threads! Which I am pretty sure I remember OK. I was dead dog tired last night.

Love Ivanova’s threats! “Knock it the fuck off or I’m putting you in the fusion reactor.” I’ll help.

I appreciate Ivanova doing a little recap.

Oh, dang, that’s more abrupt than I thought Sinclair’s departure would be. Just a Gold Level message that, fyi, he left sometime in the last 8 days and he won’t be back. Bye guy.

That’s great rationale. The Minbari want Sinclair, so they get him. But we’re sending the guy who kicked the Minbari’s ass to command B5, since the Minbari picked their fave for the last one.

And Delenn never got to tell Sinclair the Super Secret Info!

Sooooo the Sheridan/Delenn endgame is going to be Enemies to Lovers?

LOVE Ivanova’s second recap. She should recap everything that needs recapping.

I can’t believe we just found out about vibe showers but haven’t gotten a single, sexy vibe shower scene. This is the 90s. Can I expect a titillating Susan/Talia life-saving co-showering scene?

Good set-up for Sheridan being a sympathetic, likeable figure. Ivanova did not enjoy running the station by herself for over a week, and anyone she’s stoked to see, I’m stoked to see!

Oooo. Betrayal and Minbari on Minbari violence. Sheridan the Star Killer! What a name!

Ivanova: I’ll say a prayer for [Garibaldi] tonight. Dr Franklin: He’s agnostic. Ivanova: Then I’ll say half a prayer.

That’s the friendly Ivanova vs Garibaldi antagonism I’ve always loved so much.

Kalain is going to be a problem, but I’m not sure how, precisely. Or how it’s going to help wrap up any of those many, many plot threads dropped last episode or this one so far.

Hostility! Sheridan vs Minbari: may it bring much interesting viewing. And Sheridan’s just super casually name dropping the Grey Council and Minbari cultural knowledge when that stuff seemed to have been extremely under wraps last season. A shift in worldbuilding, or proof of Sheridan’s Super Secret Classified Knowledge for character building? Questions, questions.

NO, you can’t hurt Lennier, he’s too adorably sweet. Even with that hilarious two-finger martial arts (??) stance. Indisposed is a way to describe Delenn’s condition, but considering how unsure she and Lennier seemed to be of her survival, very sweetly optimistic.

Yeah, where’s the Trigati? 

Oh shit! Lennier is about to drop some Super Classified Minbari Info?! Fuck yea.

I’m SO MAD that HBO is currently ahead of Firefox’s plug-ins so I can’t gif every second of Delenn in front of all those explosions.

The horrible truth is...humans are Minbari? Sort of?

This is a step up in the mysticism! I love it! How totally bonkers. So bonkers, it feels like a real religious belief. The Greater Minbari Souls aren’t reincarnating well into Minbari babies, and new Minbari have seemed lesser recently because, for some reason, they’re reincarnating into humans. What the fuck, I mean, did JMS do way too many shrooms in the 80s?

Ahhhh maybe don’t talk about the super secret Minbari-Human soul exchange in the middle of the crowded bridge, though?

OK, I now have worldbuilding answers, but way more questions. I’ve been wondering forever if they have faster-than-light communication, and they do - Sheridan sends a message through the jump point. But then he says the Minbari warship looking for the Trigati was waiting in hyperspace. A...space outside of normal space that the jump points send ships through and brings them back into normal space in other locations?

Oof, And Sheridan can’t win with the Minbari. They’re mad at him for this, too.

Ivanova: I learned awhile ago that there’s enough guilt in the world without grabbing around for more.

Nice exposition, Lennier. But how will the Earthers discover this on their own? I’m intrigued by both that, and by how Delenn’s chrysalis keeps growing. And the weeping, and the cracking.

I appreciate that, although Sheridan feels too superstitious about his speech to not give it, he just goes and gives it to an empty command dome.

Going to miss Sinclair. But I like Sheridan so far.

next episode