JMS on CompuServe (Apr 10, 1996) *POSSIBLE SPOILERS* 2/3
Brent Barrett
brent.barrett at 24stex.com
Wed Apr 10 11:42:06 EDT 1996
[ Continued from previous section -- BB ]
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WARNING !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The following posts may contain SPOILERS for
upcoming Babylon 5 episodes.
Continue at your own risk.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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THE FOLLOWING MATERIAL IS THE COPYRIGHT OF THE
RESPECTIVE MESSAGE AUTHORS AND CANNOT BE
REPRODUCED IN ANY FORM WITHOUT THE EXPRESSED
PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR.
Note that JMS has expressed his public permission
that all of his messages may be reproduced freely.
I give permission for my summaries to be reposted in
any form, however I reserve all rights to them and
the right to revoke this permission at any time.
#: 483679 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 11:19:44
Sb: #483145-#<Severed Dreams, WOW>
Fm: PHILIP HORNSEY
>>(Look for Robert England in an upcoming episode playing a very different sort
of character than he's played elsewhere lately.)
Did you ever actually write for "V" other than the script posted here? I ask
since he was on essentially all of them, and wondered if that is where you ran
across him.
Phil^^^^
FREE MARS!
#: 483790 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 14:01:10
Sb: #483679-<Severed Dreams, WOW>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
No, I had no involvement in V2 (which is simultaneously and
appropriately the term for the series, and the German rocket-bomb that plagued
Britain). I just knew of Robert's work in general.
jms
#: 483681 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 11:19:49
Sb: #483486-#<Severed Dreams, WOW>
Fm: PHILIP HORNSEY
>> Yeah. Bill kept bugging me to put him in a scene with June, but I just
felt it'd get in the way.
You could have played it straight. It woulda worked...
Phil^^^^
FREE MARS!
#: 483791 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 14:01:13
Sb: #483681-<Severed Dreams, WOW>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
It would've worked, but the scene would've forever been about the
mini-LIS reunion. If it isn't important to the story, it shouldn't be there.
jms
[ Summary: Wonders a bit about what Delenn said in "Severed Dreams"
concerning Dukhat and her relationship to him. ]
#: 483792 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 14:01:15
Sb: #483704-<Severed Dreams>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yes, Dukhat was killed at the start of the Minbari war (that *caused*
the Minbari war), and the Council did without a leader for a long time. She
was taught and sponsored by Dukhat.
jms
#: 483747 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 13:22:33
Sb: #483660-#J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: TOM KNUDSEN
Kevin,
<Or do I have this backwards????>
You do. Joe has never given any indication that he was thinking of
leaving here. He HAS stopped interacting with the USENET group. I think he
said something about being involved in the moderated newsgroup being set up as
we speak.
Tom^^^^
"The avalanche has ALREADY started. It is too late
for the pebbles to vote." - Kosh Naranek
#: 483804 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 14:18:27
Sb: #483747-#J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Actually, the moderated group is now up and running. It's a lot of fun.
rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
jms
[ Summary: Wanted to see some dialog aboard the EA loyal ships in
"Severed Dreams." ]
#: 483805 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 14:18:30
Sb: #483661-#B5: The Other Side
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Bear in mind that if we had gone over to the other captains and what was
going on in the other ships, to make room for those scenes we would've had to
cut anywhere from 3-5 minutes of the other stuff. You can't just add to the
show's time; if that goes in, something else has to come out. So you'd
probably have to cut the scene between Sheridan and his father since that was
the only stand-alone set piece.
Any time you write something, you must decide "who is it about?" This
episode was about *our characters*, the ones we've come to care about, and how
they deal with this. To take away from that and spend time with people we've
never seen before, and won't see again, would be to cheat our characters of the
time on screen needed to pay off all the things we've set up over the years.
Would it have been an interesting aside to show the other captains?
Sure. In a movie, with an open-ended running time, I probably would have. But
there's nothing I would want to cut out of the episode as it now stands to make
room for it.
jms
[ Summary: Wants to know if we will see, before these eight new episodes are
over, Sheridan learn that he's not been told the whole truth to date. ]
#: 483983 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 18:53:38
Sb: #483741-Universes: ST vs. B5
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Could be....
jms
[ Summary: Thinks "Ceremonies of Light & Dark" worked well coming directly
after "Severed Dreams." ]
#: 483984 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 18:53:39
Sb: #483820-<Cermonies of Lt&Drk>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Thanks. I was kind of afraid that after the big Stuff Blowing Up
Episode, anything afterward would be a let down because it couldn't have the
same level of huge action (without killing everyone making the show). So the
way to deal with that is to go in an entirely different direction; I was hoping
that'd work, and glad that so far it has.
jms
#: 483859 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 15:37:22
Sb: #483805-#B5: The Other Side
Fm: JOHN M. GRAHAM
Joe --
Any chance of talking WB into some sort of two-hour special at some highlight
of the arc, or is this just too difficult in syndication?
-John
#: 483985 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 18:53:41
Sb: #483859-B5: The Other Side
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
It's too difficult to sell a one-shot thing like that in syndication,
I've been told.
jms
#: 483880 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 16:13:21
Sb: #482278-#<Severed Dreams battle>
Fm: JOHN L. FJELLSTAD
> That would've been killed off-camera. We tried to fit in
> every ship getting nailed, but finally realized it would've
> required another half an act.
That's cool. Just wondering what happened to and whether you was planning to
use the ship for something else. Another thing I was wondering about was, how
long is an act in viewing time? What is considered an act?
John
WARPing around the Globe
#: 483986 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 18:53:43
Sb: #483880-<Severed Dreams battle>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
An act is a discrete dramatic unit separated by commercials front and
back. An act can be anywhere from 6-11 minutes as a rule; act 4 of SD was
about 8:20, as I recall.
jms
[ Summary: Loved "Severed Dreams" and wants to know if we'll learn any
more about the fate of Anna Sheridan this season. ]
#: 483987 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 18:53:44
Sb: #483883-<Severed Dreams>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Thanks...and we'll certainly hear more about Anna Sheridan's fate this
season.
jms
[ Summary: Points out that some comic writers get good deals with DC, and
that some other comic publishers don't hassle their writers like DC is
doing. Uses Neil Gaiman's Sandman as an example. ]
#: 483988 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 18:53:47
Sb: #483900-Comic Disappointment
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Thanks. As for Sandman...well, Neil's a special case in every sense of
the word.
jms
#: 483911 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 16:58:04
Sb: #483804-#J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: TOM KNUDSEN
Joe,
<Actually, the moderated group is now up and running. It's a lot of
fun. rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated>
Actually, I haven't been on USENET much. What would be the average
message load if I wanted to start reading the new group?
Tom^^^^
"The avalanche has ALREADY started. It is too late
for the pebbles to vote." - Kosh Naranek
#: 483989 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 18:53:48
Sb: #483911-J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
I think the moderated group has had about 1800 messages so far since it
went on-line last week.
jms
[ Summary: Comments that she should have known that Jerry Doyle's hand in
his pocket in the final scene of "Severed Dreams" wasn't a sign that he
had broken his arm, as "Garibaldi _always_ has his hands in his
pockets." ]
#: 483990 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 18:53:51
Sb: #483913-Universes: ST vs. B5
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Actually, though, because he *did* have his hand in his pocket, it let
me handle the break in the next episode without stretching credulity too far.
It was...well...I guess you'd call that part of it a lucky break.
jms
#: 483917 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 17:11:03
Sb: #B5 Supportability Issues
Fm: MICHAEL ZITAGLIO
Hi Joe,
I was talking with my friend Ben today about Severed Dreams. He thought
it was the best Sci Fi episode ever.. and he watched them all! Anyway, since we
are both engineers and work in aviation support equipment, we started
discussing supportability of B5. Now that they are cut off from Earth, how
will they support themselves? Take the Starfurys and Thunderbolts for
instance. B5 now has a newer model of Starfury with more capabilities ( new
weapons, atmospheric flight, etc) that they didnt expect to get. How will they
support these? They will need spare parts, and peculiar support equipment for
the Thunderbolts such as weapons dollies ( and the weapons themselves),
ordnance loaders, flight control actuator equipment, maintenance platforms,
spotting dollies ( I dont know if the Furies are maintained in zero g or not)
etc . By the way, how do they get back into the station?
Spares would be their most urgent concern since the majority of Furys
sustained damage in the battle. Never mind the basic logistical needs of food
and other consumable supplies ( medical supplies for example).
Just some things we think about on our breaks. I know the message is a little
detailed but thats what you get for writing an episode like Severed Dreams and
lighting a fire under our butts!!!!
We are all very proud of you.
Mike and Terri
#: 483991 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
08-Apr-96 18:53:54
Sb: #483917-B5 Supportability Issues
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Fighters re-enter via the main docking bay and are recharged and lowered
into the fighter bays.
No question, spare parts would be a problem, and they'll have to
cannibalize a lot (plus whatever they scrounged up from the fighters blown
apart outside).
jms
[ Summary: Loved "Severed Dreams," but wonder what military purpose Furys
could possibly have. ]
#: 483993 S5/Babylon 5: General
08-Apr-96 19:04:19
Sb: #483822-#combat ops: StarFuries
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Starfuries serve a *lot* of functions which we've shown before on the
series.
They can take out a ship's defensive screens and countermeasures,
allowing access by the big ships' armaments. In a group, they can take out a
good sized ship on their own (a la the Centauri cruiser in "Fall of Night").
They also serve to protect the station's defense grid from aggressor
starfuries.
Also, a number of small support ships, including a Hyperion class ship
came through as part of the "carrier group" that went after the station. It
was up to the starfuries to take care of those ships while B5 and the other
destroyers took out the biggest threats.
jms
[ Continued in next section -- BB ]
/*********************************************
* Brent Barrett brent.barrett at 24stex.com *
* Senior Software Engineer Automedia, Inc *
* http://www.ailink.com *
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