JMS on CompuServe (May 20, 1996) *POSSIBLE SPOILERS* 4/4
Brent Barrett
bbarrett at speedlink.com
Mon May 20 16:32:48 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.
[ Summary of subjects in this section: ]
Sb: #508907-ATTN JMS: How old is...
Sb: #508876-<Vorlon Thought, WWE,I>
Sb: #508827-#<<War w/o End, p1>>
Sb: #508808-<<<<WWE Pt 1>>>>
Sb: #508869-<WWE II>
Sb: #508802-<<War Without End,pt.2>>
Sb: #508818-WwE1 & Zathras
Sb: #508830-<War...I>
Sb: #508859-<< WWE, Pt.1 Spoilers >>
Sb: #508870-<War W/o End #2>
#: 508907 S5/Babylon 5: General
20-May-96 03:08:28
Sb: #508628-#ATTN JMS: How old is...
Fm: MARK D. SMITH
>> There was certainly some division among Minbari; Valen straightened a
lot of that out.<<
It still seems as if there's more than just a bit of divisivness among the
different castes still.
Mark
#: 508911 S5/Babylon 5: General
20-May-96 03:48:41
Sb: #508907-ATTN JMS: How old is...
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yes, that divisiveness has been growing lately, culminating in the
breakup of the Grey Council which Valen formed. There's bound to be some
fallout....
jms
#: 508876 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 01:42:46
Sb: #508289-#<Vorlon Thought, WWE,I>
Fm: MERYL YOURISH
On a similar topic, do you have a favorite character? You don't have to tell us
who. I'm just curious.
#: 508912 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:41
Sb: #508876-<Vorlon Thought, WWE,I>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
They're all favorites. If I had to pick one, it might well be Londo,
simply because of the scope of the character, and what he lets me write.
jms
#: 508827 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
19-May-96 23:58:18
Sb: #508292-#<<War w/o End, p1>>
Fm: JOE SALEMI [ZD NET]
>> Who said there was a mystery about Sheridan going to Z'ha'dum?
>> Kosh seems to treat it as a fait accompli; so does Sheridan. It seems
>> fated that he will go...the question is when, why, and under what
>> circumstances, with what results?
I've been thinking about this quite a bit after I&E, and it seems to me that we
may not have entirely realized what Kosh was saying (no surprise, eh? <g>).
When he first tells Sheridan about Z'ha'dum, he says, "If you go to Z'ha'dum,
you will die." It struck me after thinking about I&E that there's a
missing/implied "at this moment" in there. IOW, if Sheridan went right then,
he'd die.
I started thinking this way because of how Kosh phrased his reply in I&E; when
Sheridan said something to the effect that if he goes there, he'll die, Kosh
replied, "Yes, now." I (and many others, judging from the comments here) took
that to mean that Sheridan would die because Kosh wouldn't be there to help
him.
But now I'm thinking that Kosh was simply outright stating the implied "at this
moment" in I&E. Kosh was saying Sheridan still isn't ready to go RIGHT NOW,
and not really saying anything about later on. Kosh knows Sheridan has a bit
more to learn, and if he learns it he'll fare better when he does go to
Z'ha'dum.
On the right track? Or derailed?
#: 508913 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:44
Sb: #508827-#<<War w/o End, p1>>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Interesting speculations.
jms
[ Summary: Asks if Sinclair was right in keeping Garibaldi away. ]
#: 508914 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:46
Sb: #508808-<<<<WWE Pt 1>>>>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
There's a reason Garibaldi can't be there....
jms
[ SPOILERS ABOUT WAR WITHOUT PART II FOLLOW -- These are biggies. Continue
at your own risk....
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#: 508869 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 01:19:12
Sb: #508800-#<WWE II>
Fm: DANIEL M. UPTON
>> And the Soul Hunter meant they're using him to create their old Leader.<<
If you want to wait to answer this that's OK, but did the Minbari *know* that
Sinclare was going to become Valen when they backed his assignment to B5? Is
that what Delenn meant when she said she knew that they were not wrong about
him? And if that is the case why was Delenn told to kill Sinclare if he
remembered what happened to him at the Battle of the Line?
Dan^^^^
danupton at blueridge.net
#: 508915 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:49
Sb: #508869-<WWE II>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
No, they didn't know at the time; most of them were still trying to
figure the whole damned thing out; some refused to accept it, and if he was
indeed bogus, wanted him killed to avoid becoming a false prophet and undoing
Minbari society; some *did* believe it was him. This disagreement in a sense
became the first loose thread in unraveling parts of Minbari society.
jms
#: 508802 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
19-May-96 23:14:26
Sb: #<<War Without End,pt.2>>
Fm: DAVID CERRETA
Joe,
Didn't get home until late this afternoon and have only now seen the second
part, so this will be short and sweet.
In many ways, the second part was harder to pull off, wasn't it?--especially
for those of us who remember Babylon Squared (or chose to watch it the other
day off of tape<G>) No surprises, just things falling into place. And then the
end, an ending that was so satisfying even though I've suspected the truth
since the beginning of part 1. I'm so pleased you showed us the ending instead
of having Delenn tell it.
Having said that, I want you to understand that this was a superb two
parter--excellent set-up and execution. I like both parts equally and will
rewatch it many times.
I am left kind of wondering a few things. Obviously Delenn's vision was an
interesting tease. We'll leave it at that. But the other you'll get asked a
lot and so I'll ask it now: was this always Sinclair's path and if it was, was
it your intention (originally) to reveal it much later in the show, say season
5? If not, man, you're just scary, whipping up a new path and dovetailing it
into your main story. You is a spooky writer<G>.
In any case, congrats to all the crew and actors on a fabulous tour de force.
The third season essentially ends on a wonderful note. Now the long hot
summer. I wait with baited breath to hear good news about renewal.
Best, Dave
#: 508916 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:51
Sb: #508802-<<War Without End,pt.2>>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
To the latter question...I think I'll hold off on commenting on this for
a while.
Other than that...I'm happy you liked the episodes. It's a good point to
go out on for the break.
jms
#: 508818 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
19-May-96 23:39:58
Sb: #505703-#WwE1 & Zathras
Fm: MATTHEW D. WOUDSTRA
Where on earth did you get the inspiration for Zathras? Was the character a
product of your vision or what the actor brought to the role...? I know this
sounds like a silly question but I have had the funniest feeling that I have
seen a character very similar in speech and mannerisms (possible played by the
same actor) before. Either that or I'm simply going insane (always a
possibility)...
#: 508917 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:53
Sb: #508818-WwE1 & Zathras
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Well, Zathras appeared in Babylon Squared, so you might have seen him
there. Beyond that...no, the actor came to what was written on the page and
made it come to life, but didn't invent the character. I just sorta thunk him
up. It's what I do.
jms
#: 508830 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 00:13:10
Sb: #<War...I>
Fm: REBECCA ESCHLIMAN
Still digesting part 1...
Just a few random thoughts:
I noticed both on the Minbar Homeworld and on the White Star that the
Minbari have an affinity for stained glass. Another nice parallel to being
positioned between the candle and the star.
I loved the many ironic or pointed references to time (especially Zathras'
"symmetry" bit). It struck me that the shape of the White Star, being closer
to the fluidity of the Vorlons than the rather architectural grace of the
Minbari, also demonstrates a pattern of time-perception. The Vorlon seem to be
the least constrained by time in a uni-directional play of discrete units --
their ships are the most organic in appearance, as well as function (from what
you've indicated so far). The Minbari seem to at least have a clue about the
possible hidden powers of time -- their ships seem to be a blend of organic and
angular. All of the younger stellar nations don't seem to be aware of the
possibilities of time apart from the normal perceived experience -- their ships
are all fairly angular. It led me to wonder if perhaps one of the Vorlonic
contributions to the White Star was the more fluid shape that may be able to
better handle the weird stresses of travel in a temporal rift.
As Mollari and G'kar have crossing movements in how we perceive them, so
now do Sinclair and Sheridan. By Sinclair's admission, he has moved from
uncertainty to certainty. Sheridan started out from a position of certainty
(at least in what he knew his place in the world) and appears to be moving
towards uncertainty (some of it already apparent in the circumstances leading
to the secession of B5). There are probably other pairs like this, whose
storylines move like dolphins, crossing each others' paths as they leap and
dive...
One final, off-topic note: I was moved by your extempore wedding toast,
not just because of the words, but because you were gracious enough to do it.
I would imagine that the vast majority of professional writers would be fairly
shirty about being "professionals" and respond with a request for payment for
service. Your reply ranks as a genuine "random act of kindness," a grace note
in an all-too-often cacaphonous and raucous world.
- rje -
..but then there was a star danced, and under that was I born.
#: 508918 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:54
Sb: #508830-<War...I>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Re: G'Kar and Londo changing positions as Sinclair and Sheridan have
done, these two moving from certainty to uncertainty in either direction, that
ain't bad. That ain't bad at *all*. I like symmetry, and both journeys are
interesting explorations. What I've been doing in complex terms, you explained
in an astonishingly few words.
jms
[ Summary: A long analysis of "War Without End, Part 1" and hints and clues
dropped throughout the series. ]
#: 508919 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:48:56
Sb: #508859-<< WWE, Pt.1 Spoilers >>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
On the Grey Council and Sinclair, I just left a note on this, so you may
want to check that one rather than my repeating it here. But yes, you seem to
be close to it all...which is good. All the pieces have been there, certainly.
jms
[ Summary: A poster speculates that the woman's voice in the dream sequence
was that of Melissa Gilbert. ]
#: 508920 S6/Babylon 5: Upcoming
20-May-96 03:49:00
Sb: #508870-<War W/o End #2>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yeah, the Londo stuff is just incredibly powerful...very moving. As for
the voice...well, we'll just have to wait a bit, won't we?
jms
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