JMS on CompuServe (Nov 11, 1996) *POSSIBLE SPOILERS*
Brent Barrett
bbarrett at speedlink.com
Mon Nov 11 15:53:52 EST 1996
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[ Summary of subjects in this section: ]
Sb: #608660-#<Whither Ivanova--Wolf>
Sb: #608701-#captain's bar in "wolf"
Sb: #608711-#<Wolf general comments>
Sb: #608764-Dark Night?
Sb: #608737-#<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Sb: #608793-<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Sb: #608782-Season Four
Sb: #608750-#<HotW>: Who's in charge?
#: 608660 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
10-Nov-96 20:12:49
Sb: #<Whither Ivanova--Wolf>
Fm: TIMOTHY C SCHELL
Joe,
First, I'd like to add my voice to the chorus of praise for the last batch of
Season Three episodes and "Hour of the Wolf." They were all excellent and
"Z'ha'dum" was outstanding. You and the rest of the B5 crew are making good
television look easy, which I'm sure it isn't. The show has never been better.
Sometime when this is all over, I'd like to know if you toyed with the idea of
killing off Sheridan at the end of "Z'ha'dum."
I think I'm seeing two trends, however, that are making me wonder. Maybe these
developments are intentional, maybe not, but they are a little difficult for
me.
You have configured the ensemble cast in many differnet ways over the first
three seasons as appropriate for each moment in the storyline. It seems to me
that we are seeing fewer stories where the command staff's interact extensively
with each other in the plots. I'm not saying that this kind of interaction has
vanished...Ivanova and Franklin in "Grey 17" and Sheridan and Garibaldi in
"Z'ha'dum" testify to that. I just feel that there is less of it and although
this development may be necessary to take the story where it is going (which is
really good), I feel a little loss.
Ivanova has also gone through some striking changes. She seems less confident
and less focused. The character seems to be weary and going through the
motions. I've felt this even before "Hour of the Wolf." Now, having viewed
"Hour" it strikes me that this may be deliberate on your part...that you are
dropping Ivanova down a hole of her own just as Sheridan and Franklin before
her. "Voices of Authority" and "Shadow Dancing" were two prime episodes for
Ivanova, but I feel the character is being showcased less than in the past.
Every character in the show comes across as something "special" sooner or later
and Ivanova hasn't seemed as "special" in Season Three. Ivanova strkes me as
pretty flat at this point and I hope this is intentional.
These are just my own observations, so take them for whatever value they might
have. I am *very* impressed with Babylon 5 overall. Thank you very much for
this last excellent run of episodes!
Tim
#: 608734 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
10-Nov-96 22:38:33
Sb: #608660-#<Whither Ivanova--Wolf>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yeah, it's deliberate...take 'em apart, separate 'em, see how they react,
and make everything as dark as possible in anticipation of some kind of dawn,
though getting there will be a struggle.
jms
#: 608701 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
10-Nov-96 21:00:56
Sb: #captain's bar in "wolf"
Fm: JIM BUSKIRK
i have been avoiding this since i know you must get TONS of stuff like this,
but i can no longer resist. i'll try to keep it short. i have been watching the
show since
"the gathering" and have not missed an episode! i finally wanted to comment on
how great i thought the show is. your attention to detail is INCREDIBLE.
very "tolkien-like", as many seemingly unimportant events shape the future
in ways we can't usually imagine. i started watching the show alone. i have
successfully converted ALL of my close friends, as "Zhadum" and "Wolf"
sucked in the last two diehards. now most of us get together and watch every
friday night. the story is really coming together now, and i find myself
thinking about it very often, much like when i read a good book and can't wait
to get home from work to start reading again. it's unlike any tv i have seen
before.
great writing, great acting, and a great story. what more could you ask for?
now for my question! (and this might be a reach).
"hour of the wolf"
will you confirm for the record that the captain's bar that fell to the ground
fell from Sheridan's chest? or could it have been dropped from the
"one moment of perfect beauty" 'creature' in "Matters Of Honor"?
thanks for your efforts!
#: 608806 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:38:08
Sb: #608701-#captain's bar in "wolf"
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
It's not a captain's bar it's a stat bar (gold for command, gold and
silver for command/administrative liaison, red for medical, green for
security), and it's Sheridan's.
jms
[ Summary: Enjoyed "Hour of the Wolf," and wonders if all the off-screen
build-up of Cartagia being a "fool" was done to really surprise us when
we saw that he was actually a madman. In addition, the poster is a bit
disappointed that we got to see Sheridan at the end of the episode; He
wanted the suspense to continue for a while. ]
#: 608807 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:38:09
Sb: #608711-#<Wolf general comments>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Thanks. Yes, by building up Cartagia offscreen, it helped pave the way
for what we do finally see.
And the only reason to not hold back Sheridan for one more ep was my
feeling that if I held him *and* Garibaldi back, it'd be a bit much.
jms
[ Summary: "will the show and/or the characters be going through something
like that, where the tensions of the shadow war (both inside and out)
come to a dramatic confrontation, emerging into the realization of
hope??" ]
#: 608809 S5/Babylon 5: General
11-Nov-96 02:45:18
Sb: #608764-Dark Night?
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
I'd say that's about right.
jms
#: 608737 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
10-Nov-96 23:01:38
Sb: #608135-#<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Fm: KEVIN P. KENNEY
"Er...there was *zero* CGI in that scene."
So the light beams streaming from Lyta to Kosh 2 as 'he' leaves were done with
cel animation then? Actually, I assume you mean Lyta's head wasn't animated by
any means, and the transition I noted was between two takes, edited together
with a messy flash. If it was one take, then I'd vote for the final flash
being unneeded, unless it is to be explained somewhere. It just looked like a
doodle, instead of anything specific. Kudos for the extra something leaving
Lyta's face at the end of the streams - I would've liked to see it for another
frame or two...
KpK
#: 608810 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:45:19
Sb: #608737-#<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
No, the streams were done on a flint, and there were not two takes edited
together, there was just the one continuous take.
jms
#: 608793 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 00:50:13
Sb: #608135-#<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Fm: BURHAAN AHMAD
>> Er...there was *zero* CGI in that scene. <<
You mean aside from the three "Kosh streams"?
#: 608811 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:45:21
Sb: #608793-<The Hour Of The Wolf>
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Yes...the CGI ref was to a fake Lyta head...and there wasn't one. The
streams aren't technically considered CGI as we use it. That's roto work.
jms
#: 608782 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 00:49:49
Sb: #608147-#Season Four
Fm: BURHAAN AHMAD
>> I'm going to be getting the soundtrack in about 10 days from Chris, so I can
listen and approve or give notes. That's the last stage; <<
As much as I liked the first one, I did have one major gripe about it. There
were too many little bits and pieces of music strung together in medlies
(sometimes with jarring "sound FX" transitions), and not enough whole pieces of
music. Just my humble opinion, of course.
Have you ever listened to "Passion - Music from The Last Temptation of Christ"?
That remains to this day my favorite soundtrack. It's amazing.
One more question: Roughly what is the last ep from which music was put on the
CD? I loved the stuff is "Z'ha'dum" and would love to have it on CD.
#: 608812 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:45:23
Sb: #608782-Season Four
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Dunno, I'll find out when I hear it.
jms
#: 608750 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 00:00:20
Sb: #<HotW>: Who's in charge?
Fm: MICHAEL GRABOIS
What's the chain of command aboard B5?
Sheridan is gone, so Ivanova is in charge. Who's next after her -- who was in
command when Ivanova was off at Z'ha'dum?
mg
#: 608813 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
11-Nov-96 02:45:25
Sb: #608750-#<HotW>: Who's in charge?
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
That would be Major Atumbe, who's been referred to a few times, but not
actually seen much. And Corwin would also step in if needed.
jms
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