JMS CIS Digest: 01-Jul-99 20:15 through 02-Jul-99 22:39 (10 msgs)
John D. Hardin
jhardin at wolfenet.com
Sat Jul 3 09:30:16 EDT 1999
RFC 1153 Digest of messages from
J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
01-Jul-99 20:15 through 02-Jul-99 22:39 (10 messages)
WARNING: This digest may contain information about shows
you haven't seen yet ("spoilers"). Proceed with caution.
Subjects in digest:
<Path of Sorrows>
Administrivia:
South Park fans may wish to visit:
http://www.infinicorp.com/babylonpark/
The administrivia for this digest may be read at
http://www.wolfenet.com/~jhardin/JMS-Digest-Administrivia.txt
It was last updated Sat Feb 13 10:21:30 1999
Replies to this digest go to John Hardin.
obSpoiler-space...
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Date: 01 Jul 1999 22:39:02 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: (blocked)
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67912 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67887 at compuserve.com>
Thanks, this one is a favorite of mine as well. It was one of
the scripts written while we were still shooting the first 5, before
TNT got into the process. When that happened, they made it clear that
they *hated* this story, felt that nobody would be interested in all
this backstory...and asked for it all to be taken out, let them run
into this alien and make him an evil character, an emotional vampire
who drives them insane.
This was one of the first scripts where I dug in my heels
bigtime and refused to do what they asked. I knew it would be
powerful; they thought it would be utterly uninteresting. They were
wrong.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 07:26:12 -0700
From: Dan T. Davis <71121.1254 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67925 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67912 at compuserve.com>
JMS,
And here I was going to criticize minor plot points. Sheesh! When I
consider what TNT might have made you make this episode into, I change
my opinion to: great episode, compared to what it might have been!
Everyone would have been running around, with their hands held against
their heads, screaming. Each character would have attacked one of the
other characters. Finally, in a move of desperation, Galen would have
cracked the globe with his technomage powers and destroyed the evil
creature. GAAAAK!
Now that I know how you held out, let me also praise the inclusion of
the non-sequiter Apocalypse Box - why should every "emotion revealed"
by the forgiveness being "only" emphasize and reflect on plot points we
are aware of? Why NOT come up with something brand new and different!
That was cool.
On the other hand, I felt that Matheson's "defection" to the
resistance seemed a little contrived. He moved "over" too easily. He
was so against killing that he helped the resistance, but then the
resistance blew up the base, killing psi corps personnel. A few more
lines like "Here I helped you so less of the resistance would die, and
you just kill more of our people" or something hokey like that might
have helped (at least helped me buy into it).
But, overall, this was a great episode. The best so far, in my
opinion. Take THAT, TNT!
Take care, Dan ----------------------
Thanks, this one is a favorite of mine as well. It was one of
the scripts written while we were still shooting the first 5, before
TNT got into the process. When that happened, they made it clear that
they *hated* this story, felt that nobody would be interested in all
this backstory...and asked for it all to be taken out, let them run
into this alien and make him an evil character, an emotional vampire
who drives them insane.
This was one of the first scripts where I dug in my heels
bigtime and refused to do what they asked. I knew it would be
powerful; they thought it would be utterly uninteresting. They were
wrong.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 22:39:03 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Dan T. Davis <71121.1254 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67977 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67925 at compuserve.com>
Re: the Matheson scene...that one was cut back by about 40%
because the episode ran long. (That sometimes happens on dialogue-
intensive episodes.) The original version had it go over a longer
period of time, and showed him coming over gradually. It is a bit
abrupt as it is now, though I still think it plays.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 22:39:03 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: (blocked)
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67978 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67927 at compuserve.com>
Thanks...and yeah, Daniel is just terrific.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 16:06:11 -0700
From: (blocked)
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67951 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67912 at compuserve.com>
Hi Joe
> That remains to be revealed.
It's great to see The Old Joe back again! (g)
> This was one of the first scripts where I dug in my heels bigtime and
> refused to do what they asked. I knew it would be powerful; they
> thought it would be utterly uninteresting.
Bozos. I keep reminding myself that they did, after all, facilitate
the fifth season of B5 and I owe them thanks for that but ...
fffppppppttttt.
For me at least, some depth of backstory is required to hold my
attention through five years; call me an arc-junky. I'm not
fanatically opposed to women in Spandex, if they fit into the story
line, but thinking "Path of Sorrows" would be uninteresting quite
misses the point of good SF.
Substituting yet another "emotional vampire story" would have been
boring. Instead I'm actually *thinking* about it afterwards - the
line about living on forgiveness. Deriving sustenance from *giving*
forgiveness? From experiencing others receiving forgiveness? From
experiencing others forgiving themselves? Perhaps it was a lie and
some other agenda was playing ...
I loved Matheson's guilty secret (or heroic act). Were you implying
that he simply didn't have time to warn the big shots, or didn't have
time if he wanted a seat on the Last Flight Out, or that he shared the
captive's distaste for PC veeps and wanted them to burn? I'm assuming
the ambiguity was deliberate until you say otherwise.
If you're in a mood for answering multiple questions, why cut the
transponder out of her skin if she only had to send a thought to
activate it? To convince Matheson that he had better flee?
Was that explosion the whole telepath war in ten seconds, or is more
to come? I know, I know: "That remains to be revealed." I'm a happy
camper.
It was "way cool".
By the way - I had not even made a shred of connection to the idea of
"confession" until a friend called the episode "The Confessional".
There is certainly a structural similarity: recall what makes you feel
guilty, repent, receive forgiveness. And yet, your story seemed about
emotion and "confession" seems more about abstract guilt or
transgression against an external code.
Do you have a strong feeling either way about regarding the critter as
analogous to Catholic confession?
RMES Minister of the Cathode Ray
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 22:39:04 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: (blocked)
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67979 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67951 at compuserve.com>
A device that small would run out of power if it were on all the
time, and might be detected. My feeling was that it was switched off
and had to be removed to power it up, then the telepathic signal would
activate the beacon and bring in the troops. You'd have a two-stage
process to a) avoid detection, and b) ensure that if it *were* found it
couldn't be used by anyone else to stage a trap.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 01 Jul 1999 19:52:13 -0700
From: Peter Kazmir <112055.402 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67903 at compuserve.com>
Hi,
That had to be one of the best eps I've seen in a long time! I hope
lots of folks got to see it, because if Crusade stays this
good....bing! we've got a winner!
(I felt so sad for Galen...but I'm sure we'll hear more about that in
the future...)
So here's my question of the week :)
What's up with that Shadow vessel? Was it a Shadow vessel? Or was it
an experimental EarthForce ship (considering the intensity of the
interr....errr....debriefing)?
-Peter
Faith Manages.
------------------------------
Date: 01 Jul 1999 20:15:10 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Peter Kazmir <112055.402 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67905 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67903 at compuserve.com>
That remains to be revealed.
jms
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 12:24:02 -0700
From: Craig M. Bobchin <102354.3246 at compuserve.com>
To: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67948 at compuserve.com>
Hi Joe,
I just watched PoS and remembered hearing that in one Ep. Lyta was
supposed to appear. Was this that ep? If so what happened that
prevented using Lyta in this role?
For the curious of us out here was the new ship we saw a Shadow ship?
It sure had some of the same characteristics we've become familiar
with. The beam weapon, skin, pointed appendages etc...
Also this was the best ep of Crusade to date.
Craig
------------------------------
Date: 02 Jul 1999 22:39:04 -0700
From: J. Michael Straczynski <71016.1644 at compuserve.com>
To: Craig M. Bobchin <102354.3246 at compuserve.com>
Subject: Path of Sorrows
Message-ID: <forum.babylon5.67980 at compuserve.com>
References: <forum.babylon5.67948 at compuserve.com>
Yeah, Lyta would've been in that ep but Pat was on a movie at
the time.
jms
------------------------------
End of JMS CIS Digest 01-Jul-99 20:15 through 02-Jul-99 22:39
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