History Series / BabylonFive

The entire series has been released on DVD, and is also available for streaming on various internet platforms. Unfortunately the DVD picture quality suffered from significant transfer errors as part of the special effects conversion to Widescreen format (See the Trivia tab for details.) The series received a HD remaster in 2020 which restored the 4:3 aspect ratio of the original airing, and is available on [=iTunes=], Amazon Prime, and Tubi.

On May 3rd, 2023, [[https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/babylon-5-animated-movie-on-the-way/ JMS announced that an animated movie from]] Creator/WarnerBrosAnimation was coming, using what remained of the original cast, and was 100% finished. JMS also revealed he had been given total creative freedom on this project -- ''[[WesternAnimation/BabylonFiveTheRoadHome Babylon 5: The Road Home]]'' was released on August 15, 2023 on Blu-Ray
and Google Play, Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video.

B5's influence on English-language television and wider fiction is arguably [[MainstreamObscurity often-overlooked]], since it only reached niche success in its lifetime. It's one of the first genre shows to feature a Myth Arc, although it was overshadowed by the simultaneous airings of ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' and ''Series/TheXFiles'', the latter of which especially had a Myth Arc captured much more mainstream attention (but which also fell victim to [[TheChrisCarterEffect a total lack of any planned arc developments or conclusion]], which was definitely ''not'' the case with B5.) B5 was also one of the first shows to use CGI renders for all its special effects instead of practical models -- which unfortunately, given the limits of 90s CGI, tends to make it look extremely dated to modern viewers. Finally, ot was also, along with ''The X-Files'', one of the first series to have an internet fandom. B5 and its [[DuelingWorks competitor]], ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', were perhaps harbingers of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Age_of_Television_(2000s%E2%80%93present) Second Golden Age of Television]]" ''i.e.'' big-budget serialized dramas (''Series/TheSopranos'', ''Series/MadMen'' and ''Series/BreakingBad'' being the crown jewel of the age).

On May 3rd, 2023, [[https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/babylon-5-animated-movie-on-the-way/ JMS announced that an animated movie from]] Creator/WarnerBrosAnimation was coming, using what remained of the original cast, and was 100% finished. JMS also revealed he had been given total creative freedom on this project -- ''[[WesternAnimation/BabylonFiveTheRoadHome Babylon 5: The Road Home]]'' is set for release on Blu-Ray in the near-future.

B5's influence on English-language television and wider fiction is [[MainstreamObscurity often-overlooked]], since it only reached niche success in its lifetime. It's one of the first genre shows to feature a Myth Arc (the other stand-out being ''Series/TheXFiles''), one of the first to use CGI renders for all its special effects instead of practical models, and one of the first to have an internet fandom. B5 and its [[DuelingWorks competitor]], ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', were harbingers of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Age_of_Television_(2000s%E2%80%93present) Second Golden Age of Television]]" ''i.e.'' big-budget serialized dramas (''Series/TheSopranos'' being the crown jewel of the age).

B5 trailblazed primetime serialization: more than half of the episodes fit into a series-long MythArc involving the "Shadows" and their [[GalacticConqueror machinations on Earth and other planets.]] JMS plotted out much of the series before filming began, with plenty of {{Rewatch Bonus}}es, and occasionally referred to it as a five-year long MiniSeries or "one story told over five years" (He is in the Guinness Book of World Records for having written every episode of Seasons 3 and 4 single-handedly). Time and budget constraints relegated some of the story [[TheResolutionWillNotBeTelevised to tie-in novels and comic books]], namely [[BewareTheSuperman a war fought between Telepaths and "Mundanes".]]

On May 3rd, 2023, [[https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/babylon-5-animated-movie-on-the-way/ JMS announced that an animated movie from]] Creator/WarnerBrosAnimation was coming, using what remained of the original cast, and was 100% finished. JMS also revealed he had been given total creative freedom on this project -- ''Babylon 5: The Road Home'' is set for release on Blu-Ray in the near-future.

On May 3rd, 2023, [[https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/babylon-5-animated-movie-on-the-way/ JMS announced that an animated movie from Warner Home Entertainment was coming]], using what remained of the original cast, and was 100% finished. JMS also revealed he had been given total creative freedom on this project.

[[index]]

* ''[[Film/BabylonFiveTheLostTalesAVoiceInTheDark The Lost Tales: Voices in the Dark]]'' -- 2007 direct-to-DVD {{interquel}} which was intended to be the first of a series of side-stories. Despite some degree of commercial success, this was the only volume.

* ''[[Film/BabylonFiveTheLostTales The Lost Tales: Voices in the Dark]]'' -- 2007 direct-to-DVD {{interquel}} which was intended to be the first of a series of side-stories. Despite some degree of commercial success, this was the only volume.

* ''[[Film/Babylon 5TheLegendOfTheRangersToLiveAndDieInStarlight The Legend of the Rangers: To Live and Die in Starlight]]'' -- 2002 MadeForTVMovie focusing on a crew of "Rangers", a patchwork of human and Minbari [[SpacePolice space cops]]. It was actually intended to lead into a third series, but it was thwarted due to airing at the same time as the [=NFL=] Divisional Championship.

* ''[[Film/BabylonFiveLegendOfTheRangers The Legend of the Rangers: To Live and Die in Starlight]]'' -- 2002 MadeForTVMovie focusing on a crew of "Rangers", a patchwork of human and Minbari [[SpacePolice space cops]]. It was actually intended to lead into a third series, but it was thwarted due to airing at the same time as the [=NFL=] Divisional Championship.

* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm01InTheBeginning In the Beginning]]'' -- 1998, a {{prequel}} to the series proper.
* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm02Thirdspace Thirdspace]]'' -- 1998, taking place during Season 4.
* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm03TheRiverOfSouls The River of Souls]]'' -- 1998, takes place shortly after the end of series (excluding its DistantFinale). Features Creator/MartinSheen.
* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm04ACallToArms A Call to Arms]]'' -- 1999, takes place about five years after the end of the series (excluding ithe DistantFinale). It serves as a lead-in to ''Crusade''.
* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm05LegendOfTheRangers The Legend of the Rangers: To Live and Die in Starlight]]'' -- 2002 MadeForTVMovie focusing on a crew of "Rangers", a patchwork of human and Minbari [[SpacePolice space cops]]. It was actually intended to lead into a third series, but it was thwarted due to airing at the same time as the [=NFL=] Divisional Championship.
* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveTheLostTales01 The Lost Tales: Voices in the Dark]]'' -- 2007 direct-to-DVD {{interquel}} which was intended to be the first of a series of side-stories. Despite some degree of commercial success, this was the only volume.

''Babylon 5'' is a [[TheNineties Nineties]] SpaceOpera created by Creator/JMichaelStraczynski, running from 1994-1998. (A two-hour {{pilot movie}}, "The Gathering", first aired in '93). It was syndicated as a part of the Creator/{{PTEN}} network package for its first four seasons, and was [[{{Uncanceled}} hastily picked-up]] by Creator/{{TNT}} for its fifth.

The story takes place on Babylon 5, [[RingWorldPlanet a giant cylindrical space station]] and sort of [[TheFederation United Nations in space]]. It's not all roses, however, as Earth's military is woefully outmatched by those of the other delegates, resulting in what can be generously described as a [[WonTheWarLostThePeace tentative peace]]. It's up to the crew to throw cold water on old rivalries and keep these various factions from devouring one another; a task made difficult by an [[DayOfTheJackboot increasingly-reactionary and despotic]] Earth command.

B5 trailblazed primetime serialization: more than half of the episodes fit into a series-long MythArc involving the "Shadows" and their [[GalacticConqueror machinations on Earth and other planets.]] JMS plotted out much of the series before filming began, with plenty of {{Rewatch Bonus}}es, and occasionally referred to it as a five-year long MiniSeries or "one story told over five years". (He is in the Guinness Book of World Records for having written every episode of Seasons 3 and 4 single-handedly.) Time and budget constraints relegated some of the story [[TheResolutionWillNotBeTelevised to tie-in novels and comic books]], namely [[BewareTheSuperman a war fought between Telepaths and "Mundanes".]]

B5's influence on English-language television and wider fiction is [[MainstreamObscurity often-overlooked]], since it only reached niche success in its lifetime. It's one of the first genre shows to feature a Myth Arc (the other stand-out being ''Series/TheXFiles''), one of the first to use CGI renders for all its special effects instead of practical models ([[Zeerust and it shows]]), and one of the first to have an internet fandom. B5 and its [[DuelingWorks competitor]], ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', were harbingers of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Age_of_Television_(2000s%E2%80%93present) Second Golden Age of Television]]" ''i.e.'' big-budget serialized dramas (''Series/TheSopranos'' being the crown jewel of the age).

The entire series has been released on DVD, and is also available for streaming on various internet platforms. Unfortunately the DVD picture quality suffered from significant transfer errors as part of the special effects conversion to Widescreen format (See the Trivia tab for details.) The series received a HD remaster in 2020 which restored the 4:3 aspect ratio of the original airing, and is available on [=iTunes=], Amazon Prime, and HBO Max.

* ''Series/{{Crusade}}'', which ran for an [[CutShort abbreviated]] 13 episodes in 1999, shifts focus to the starship ''Excalibur'' and the search for a counteragent to a slow-acting bio-weapon which was set loose on Earth. Superficial resemblance to the plot of ''Anime/StarBlazers'' was cited, and JMS raged against the flurry of network notes. (Said notes were attacked more than once in the scripts themselves.) Opinions on the quality of the show is divided: To some, the series showed promise before its premature death; to others, markedly less.

* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveS01E00TheGathering The Gathering]]'' -- 1993 PilotMovie, which differs from the series proper. After the series was picked up by TNT for season five, ''The Gathering'' was re-edited and re-aired as a "SpecialEdition" to introduce the new audience to the series.

* ''[[Recap/BabylonFiveFilm03TheRiverOfSouls The River of Souls]]'' -- 1998, takes place shortly after the end of series (again, excluding its DistantFinale). Features Creator/MartinSheen.

On September 27, 2021, Straczynski and Creator/TheCW announced that [[https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/babylon-5-reboot-the-cw-j-michael-straczynski-1235075236/ they would produce]] a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of ''Babylon 5'' with JMS as executive producer, who described it as an "evolution" of the setup and characters rather than actually doing a straight remake of his original five-year plan. Originally intended to be launched in 2022, the launch date was later pushed back to late 2023, but Straczynski [[https://comicbook.com/tv-shows/news/babylon-5-creator-offers-first-reboot-update-of-2023/ has said the new series is still in active development]] (as many people have speculated following the chaos of the Warner Bros. Discovery merger and the sale of The CW's majority interest to Nexstar the project was dead).

B5's influence on English-language television and wider fiction is [[MainstreamObscurity often-overlooked]], since it only reached niche success in its lifetime. It's one of the first genre shows to feature a Myth Arc (the other stand-out being ''Series/TheXFiles''), one of the first to use CGI renders for all its special effects instead of practical models ([[OurGraphicsWillSuckInTheFuture and it shows]]), and one of the first to have an internet fandom. B5 and its [[DuelingWorks competitor]], ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', were harbingers of the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Age_of_Television_(2000s%E2%80%93present) Second Golden Age of Television]]" ''i.e.'' big-budget serialized dramas (''Series/TheSopranos'' being the crown jewel of the age).

On September 27, 2021, Straczynski and Creator/TheCW announced that [[https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/babylon-5-reboot-the-cw-j-michael-straczynski-1235075236/ they would produce]] a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of ''Babylon 5'' with JMS as executive producer, who described it as an "evolution" of the setup and characters rather than actually doing a straight remake of his original five-year plan. Originally intended to be launched in 2022, the launch date was later pushed back to late 2023, but Straczynski said the new series is still in active development.

As a setting, B5 is a fairly standard SpaceOpera, with CasualInterstellarTravel and empires among the stars, and the story mainly revolving around politics and war, although the themes presented in the show are a lot more mature than in your average space opera. The majority of the non-human cast consist of RubberForeheadAliens with [[FantasyCounterpartCulture Fantasy Counterpart Cultures]]. The show also gained fame as being relatively hard sci-fi by TV standards due to its fairly accurate portrayal of spaceflight physics (outside of [[SubspaceOrHyperspace hyperspace travel]]). At the same time, B5 made heavy use of fantasy tropes, such as prophecies, [[ChosenOne Chosen Ones]], religious and mythological themes, and [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien powers verging on magic]]. Although it leans toward the {{cyberpunk}} end of the genre, particularly its [[UrbanSegregation rejection of a post-scarcity future]], it has some shining moments of idealism, as well: the overarching message seems to be, "[[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve Faith manages.]]" Most of the crew learn a hard lesson about reducing conflict by forming relationships and exchanging information with those who are different than you; not only was the Earth-Minbari War started [[PoorCommunicationKills over a misunderstanding]], but it only ended when the Minbari learned more about humans. Conversely, the Shadows are always seen plotting from the...[[EvilIsNotWellLit well, shadows]], manipulating events through bribery, threats, or mind-control--[[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness always from a safe distance]]. Mind-readers, detective work, and old-fashioned talking solved many of the show's issues.

As a setting, B5 is a fairly standard SpaceOpera, with CasualInterstellarTravel and empires among the stars, and the story mainly revolving around politics and war, although the themes presented in the show are a lot more mature than in your average space opera. The majority of the non-human cast consist of RubberForeheadAliens with [[FantasyCounterpartCulture Fantasy Counterpart Cultures]]. The show also gained fame as being relatively hard sci-fi by TV standards due to its fairly accurate portrayal of spaceflight physics. At the same time, B5 made heavy use of fantasy tropes, such as prophecies, [[ChosenOne Chosen Ones]], religious and mythological themes, and [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien powers verging on magic]]. Although it leans toward the {{cyberpunk}} end of the genre, particularly its [[UrbanSegregation rejection of a post-scarcity future]], it has some shining moments of idealism, as well: the overarching message seems to be, "[[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve Faith manages.]]" Most of the crew learn a hard lesson about reducing conflict by forming relationships and exchanging information with those who are different than you; not only was the Earth-Minbari War started [[PoorCommunicationKills over a misunderstanding]], but it only ended when the Minbari learned more about humans. Conversely, the Shadows are always seen plotting from the...[[EvilIsNotWellLit well, shadows]], manipulating events through bribery, threats, or mind-control--[[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness always from a safe distance]]. Mind-readers, detective work, and old-fashioned talking solved many of the show's issues.

A majority of the non-human cast consist of RubberForeheadAliens with [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien powers verging on magic]], and humans with {{telepathy}} who live openly (albeit [[MutantDraftBoard rigorously-policed]]) among the public. Still, by TV standards, it's fairly-hard sci-fi. Although it leans toward the {{cyberpunk}} end of the genre, particularly its [[UrbanSegregation rejection of a post-scarcity future]], it has some shining moments of idealism, as well: the overarching message seems to be, "[[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve Faith manages.]]" Most of the crew learn a hard lesson about reducing conflict by forming relationships and exchanging information with those who are different than you; not only was the Earth-Minbari War started [[PoorCommunicationKills over a misunderstanding]], but it only ended when the Minbari learned more about humans. Conversely, the Shadows are always seen plotting from the...[[EvilIsNotWellLit well, shadows]], manipulating events through bribery, threats, or mind-control--[[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness always from a safe distance]]. Mind-readers, detective work, and old-fashioned talking solved many of the show's issues.

The entire series has been released on DVD, and is also available for streaming on various internet platforms. Unfortunately the DVD picture quality suffered from significant transfer errors as part of the special effects conversion to Widescreen format (See the Trivia tab for details.) The series received a HD remaster in 2020 which restored the 4:3 aspect ration of the original airing, and is available on [=iTunes=], Amazon Prime, and HBO Max.

On September 27, 2021, Straczynski and Creator/TheCW announced that [[https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/babylon-5-reboot-the-cw-j-michael-straczynski-1235075236/ they would produce]] a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of ''Babylon 5'' with JMS as executive producer, who described it as an "evolution" of the setup and characters rather than actually doing a straight remake of his original five-year plan.

[[quoteright:333:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/babylon_5-show_2707.jpg]]

A majority of the non-human cast consist of RubberForeheadAliens with [[SufficientlyAdvancedAlien powers verging on magic]], and humans with {{telepathy}} who live openly (albeit [[MutantDraftBoard rigorously-policed]]) among the public. Still, by TV standards, it's [[MohsScaleOfScienceFictionHardness fairly-hard sci-fi]]. Although it leans toward the {{cyberpunk}} end of the genre, particularly its [[UrbanSegregation rejection of a post-scarcity future]], it has some shining moments of idealism, as well: the overarching message seems to be, "[[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve Faith manages.]]" Most of the crew learn a hard lesson about reducing conflict by forming relationships and exchanging information with those who are different than you; not only was the Earth-Minbari War started [[PoorCommunicationKills over a misunderstanding]], but it only ended when the Minbari learned more about humans. Conversely, the Shadows are always seen plotting from the...[[EvilIsNotWellLit well, shadows]], manipulating events through bribery, threats, or mind-control--[[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness always from a safe distance]]. Mind-readers, detective work, and old-fashioned talking solved many of the show's issues.

On September 27, 2021, Straczynski and Creator/TheCW announced that [[https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/babylon-5-reboot-the-cw-j-michael-straczynski-1235075236/ they would produce]] a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of ''Babylon 5'' with JMS as executive producer, who described it as an "evolution" of the setup and characters rather than actually doing a straight remake of his original five-year plan. The real question will be how audiences receive the story of ''Babylon 5'' now that it's no longer ahead of its time.

In 2021, Straczynski made a surprise announcement that after years of wanting to do more with the franchise but being stymied by studio red tape, he would finally be doing a remake on the CW, again writing many of the episodes himself. He described it as an "evolution" of the setup and characters rather than actually doing a straight remake of his original five year plan.

On September 27, 2021, Creator/TheCW announced that [[https://variety.com/2021/tv/news/babylon-5-reboot-the-cw-j-michael-straczynski-1235075236/ they would produce]] a "from-the-ground-up reboot" of ''Babylon 5'' with JMS as executive producer. No other news has been announced, though given the decades since the show's debut (and the untimely passing of a number of cast members), re-casting seems inevitable. The real question will be how audiences receive the story of ''Babylon 5'' now that it's no longer ahead of its time.

''Series/{{Crusade}}'', which ran for an [[CutShort abbreviated]] 13 episodes in 1999, shifts focus to the starship ''Excalibur'' and the search for a counteragent to a slow-acting bio-weapon which was set loose on Earth. Superficial resemblance to the plot of ''Anime/StarBlazers'' was cited, and JMS raged against the flurry of network notes. (Said notes were attacked more than once in the scripts themselves.) Opinions on the quality of the show is divided: To some, the series showed promise before its premature death; to others, markedly less.

There were several associated B5 MadeForTVMovie''''''s: