JMS on CompuServe (Apr 10, 1996 PM) *POSSIBLE SPOILERS* 1/3
Brent Barrett
brent.barrett at 24stex.com
Wed Apr 10 18:51:18 EDT 1996
(Sorry, I goofed and put Apr 10 on the Apr 09 postings... :-)
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 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.
[ Summary: Heard a rumor that Babylon 5 has been cancelled. ]
#: 484471 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:14:00
Sb: #484300-#B5 Cancelled Rumor
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Nope. Not true.
jms
#: 484320 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 06:51:52
Sb: #J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: BILL HIRST
Joe, you've been on just about every net, every night, for years. It has take a
huge amount of your time.
Yeah, like you don't have a day job. <g>
My question is why. Is it just that you genuinely enjoy chatting about your
show enough to take the negative comments along with the praise? Secondly, do
you think this kind of instant feedback has had an effect on your writing.
---
BTW, how are the wrists doing?
-Bill
#: 484472 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:14:02
Sb: #484320-#J. Michael Straczynski
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Why? Why not?
I was on CIS and GEnie long before B5 got going. I figured, why change
my habits just because now I was supposedly a vip? (And I'm not always
comfortable with that designation.)
Beyond that, my job as a writer is to know as much as I can about my
characters and universe. In answering all these questions, I learn more about
those areas, which helps me.
Finally, it's a matter of being accessible and *accountable* to fans, as
I'd wished producers had been when I was primarily a viewer. SF fans are
generally the most exploited sorts of fans...you're told to line up, watch the
show, buy the merchandise, and shut up. I didn't like it then, and I don't
like it any better now that I'm on the other side of the lens.
jms
#: 484324 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 07:24:43
Sb: #<SD: Boarding Party>
Fm: STEVE RAMAGE
Tons of praise for 'Severed Dreams!' As soon as the episode finished, we
rewound the vcr so we could watch the last 20 minutes again. A couple of
thoughts:
One of my favorite themes in B5 is how these are ordinary people in an
extraordinary situation, something especially true of Ivanova and Garibaldi.
Ivanova gets distracted by the horrifying spectacle of two EarthForce ships
colliding and she gets knocked out of the sky. Garibaldi sets his men up to
stop the boarding party, only to realize they're in the wrong spot. (some
perfectly timed hilarity, by the way.) These people are getting through by the
skin of their teeth, and not without some scrapes and bruises-- how refreshing!
I do have a question. Of all the devices used to convey the enormity of the B5
crew's mutiny, nothing brought it home like the sight of the Earth troops
pouring through the hole in the bulkhead looking so very much like
contermporary American soldiers. We're heavily conditioned to think of people
in those outfits as "the good guys" -- and here were "the good guys" rushing to
fight our 'good guys.' What was the decision making process behind the
costuming of the EarthForce boarding party? Given the attention to detail shown
everywhere else, I'm curious if this was a happy accident, or a deliberate
decision.
"if someone fires a gun..." How does that go again, and who said it? It was
hard to watch the hand-to-hand combat scenes without thinking of 'GROPOS' and
the poignancy of the two groups fighting.
A final thought: Interesting Narn combat style: everybody running right into
the line of fire, getting shot down in droves until some of them get through.
Somehow, it's so characteristically Narn...
Steve Ramage
Seattle
#: 484473 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:14:04
Sb: #484324-<SD: Boarding Party>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Exactly. These aren't perfect or superior people...they're just like
us, faced with the same problems we're faced with. What's inspiring is seeing
that people just like us *can* overcome these things...at great price, yes,
with great difficulty, yes, but if we decide to act, we can succeed.
And yes, instead of going for a sinister EA look, I wanted the uniforms
to be something we're used to, "our side," as you say. There aren't many
blacks-and-whites on this show. It's all greys...and sometimes olive drab.
jms
[ Summary: The poster tells the story of how he moved into an area with
bad reception, so he got DSS, but couldn't "get UPN on any chanel [sic]
(over 500 to choose from and no UPN)." Asks if anyone knows how he can
catch up on the episodes he missed. ]
#: 484474 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:14:06
Sb: #484356-#This season so far
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
We're not on UPN, by the way, though some UPN stations carry us.
Try the Lurker's Guide, http://hyperion.com, which has synopses of all
B5 episodes.
jms
[ Summary: A poster, who came into the Star Trek forum bashing B5 and asking
people which show they preferred, is responding to another user and saying
that he is "only joking, although [he is] trying to get some good results
for [his] poll." ]
#: 484500 S2/Star Trek: General
09-Apr-96 12:42:13
Sb: #ST v Babylon 5
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
How sad. Here we have Majel Barrett Roddenberry, widow of the late Gene
Roddenberry, who has been supporting the show, saying it's the only other
intelligent SF on the air today, even coming to guest star on an episode of
Babylon 5 to help try and end this silly schism...and here you are,
perpetuating it against the hopes of Majel and the concept of IDIC, the message
of tolerance.
Yet another example of the child in no way resembling the parents.
jms
[ Summary: The same poster is now giggling with another user in the Star
Trek forum as he observes, "A lot of people seem to be quite angry for
some reason. Is it something I said? :) :)" ]
#: 484501 S2/Star Trek: General
09-Apr-96 12:42:15
Sb: #484361-#ST v Babylon 5
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
"I am only joking" when you take a cheap shot at the effects. So you go
around throwing around insults and smears "as a joke" to get a reaction. Are
you really that lonely, that in need of confirmation of your existence?
Sad. Very, very sad.
jms
#: 484502 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:42:18
Sb: #484430-#B5 v Star Trek
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Let me tell you about a certain kind of sickness.
The sickness manifests itself in pathetic individuals who, in a
non-electronic forum, would be lighting cats on fire to watch them howl, or
throwing rocks through somebody's window to see them all run out.
A few very sad, very pathetic individuals who want to feel alive come
into a forum and leave a message written in insulting terms because they like
to watch everybody get all wired up. They sit back and giggle and laugh and
wonder gee, whatever was it I said? when they know exactly what they said. It
was done deliberately, to manipulate people and get them upset.
You have no interest in a "survey." You're a sick, sad and pathetic
individual with nothing more in his life than the need to tweak people who
follow a show that for whatever disturbed reason you feel should be attacked in
the name of Star Trek, even though that means violating every principle of
tolerance ever advanced in ST.
Some here will probably tell you to get a life. I would suggest that
you have a life...unfortunately, it consists of the kind of life where one
spends one's time pulling the wings off flies because you like to see them
squirm around on the table.
And most pathetically, you've probably never even watched the show, to
bolster your opinion. Maybe a minute or two here and there. But getting the
facts doesn't matter. Getting people's opinions doesn't matter to you, really.
Just causing a flurry of angry messages and upsetting people is all that really
matters to you.
jms
#: 484497 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:39:44
Sb: #First Contact
Fm: MORRIS L. GAVANT, M.D.
Great Maker,
Will B5 ever address in its universe why the alien races waited so long before
making first contact with Earth? I've always wondered why we haven't been
officially or openly contacted if there are other superior races floating about
this side of the galaxy. Did EA have to pass some technology test to get
contacted by the Centauri? Or, did they just come across us accidently and try
to exploit us for their own political purposes?
Dr. G
With air rights to the first Graceland shop on B5
#: 484656 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 17:58:04
Sb: #484497-First Contact
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yeah, I'll probably try to get to it, but the basic reality is that
nobody really either knew or cared much that we were here...we were kind of off
the beaten track.
jms
[ Summary: The poster who wanted to run the Trek vs. B5 poll responds,
"Please do not send me the same message 6 times again." ]
#: 484657 S2/Star Trek: General
09-Apr-96 17:58:06
Sb: #484508-#ST v Babylon 5
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Sorry, but you said many foolish things. I had to work hard to keep up
with the breathtaking sweep of it all.
jms
(P.S. I sent, perhaps, three messages...you say six. I assume we can
now add deficient math skills to the list.)
[ Summary: The same poster now takes a very apologetic stance and claims
that he "honestly did not intend to offend." ]
#: 484658 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 17:58:08
Sb: #484510-#B5 v Star Trek
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
"I tried to give people a motive to send their vote to me."
You could have accomplished exactly the same thing by just asking. And
I'm sorry, when someone calls a show a "cheap knockoff," and derides those who
might actually watch it, it makes your statement that you "did not intend to
offend" rather...unbelievable, at best.
jms
#: 484517 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 12:59:21
Sb: #484265-#B5 FAN CLUB INFO!
Fm: NIGEL NIXON
Just a minor-ish point but:
>> $19.95 for Foreign memberships. Orders must be in U.S. funds. Send check or
money order (DO NOT send cash) <<
That means getting an International Money Order.
An IMO at my bank will cost about $18:00, so the total cost will be about
$38:00.
Is there any chance that the fan club will start accepting credit cards?
Nigel and George->` (The Ferocious Attack Pixel)
Dictator of France, Duck of Normandy, Minister of Bad Puns.
Chancellor of the Ex-Keffer. Attractive dude! Official!
#: 484659 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 17:58:09
Sb: #484517-#B5 FAN CLUB INFO!
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Unfortunately, we're a small operation, and not yet set up for credit
cards. With luck, we'll eventually be set up that way. (Once the web site is
up and running, it's our hope to have it credit card ready, so you could
perhaps wait for that if it's a burden for now. It should be up within about a
month.)
jms
#: 484578 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 15:07:47
Sb: #484265-#B5 FAN CLUB INFO!
Fm: ANNE L. WARNER
Hey, Joe...
I mailed off a check today!
Is the fan club going to have its own e-mail address?
Many thanks.
Anne
#: 484661 S5/Babylon 5: General
09-Apr-96 17:58:16
Sb: #484578-B5 FAN CLUB INFO!
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Eventually we'll have our own web site, probably within the coming
month, which will provide some rather nifty services....
jms
[ Summary: Wants to know if the final battle sequence in "Severed Dreams"
beat the record for the number of ships/objects on screen at once held
by "Return of the Jedi." ]
#: 484662 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
09-Apr-96 17:58:17
Sb: #484603-#Effects record question
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
I don't know...I wouldn't *think* we beat the record...but it's possible
that we did.
jms
[ Summary: Wonders if B5 will now have a standard day/time since PTEN
ist kaput. ]
#: 484663 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
09-Apr-96 17:58:20
Sb: #484604-B5 Cancellation RUMOR
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
No, scheduling still remains at the whim of the station.
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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