Babylon 5

Babylon 5 is an epic American science fiction television series created, produced, and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on the Babylon 5 space station, a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and wars. The series is noted for its heavy reliance on pre-planned story arcs over its five-year run, sometimes described as a "novel for television".

The pilot movie, The Gathering, aired on February 22, 1993, and the regular series initially aired from January 26, 1994 through November 25, 1998, first in syndication on the short-lived Prime Time Entertainment Network, then on cable network TNT. Because the show was aired every week in the United Kingdom on Channel 4 without a break, the last four or five episodes of the early seasons were shown in the UK before the U.S.

The series won many awards, including two Hugos for Best Dramatic Presentation and an Emmy for Best visual effects.

J. Michael Straczynski was determined to produce a science fiction series for adults that would be done properly — consistent technology, "no kids or cute robots." He started out with ideas for two different shows, one a vastly-ambitious epic covering massive battles and other universe-changing events, and the other set aboard a single space station, before realizing both could be done in a single series. It was not a utopian future — there is greed and homelessness. It was not a place where everything was the same at the end of the day — main characters grow, develop, live, and die. Straczynski wanted the show to be a mirror to the real world and to covertly teach (an idea mentioned by Mark Twain).

Unlike most television shows, this series was conceived as a novel, with a defined beginning, middle, and end. In addition, even tie-in novels, comic books, and short stories play a significant canonical part in the overall story. The show uses an arc-driven storytelling style now prevalent in both televised science fiction and in mainstream drama. In the DVD feature The Making of Babylon 5, Walter Koenig said, "It's an exciting uniquely different series that could forever change the way you look at science-fiction television," and referred to "groundbreaking special effects and new breathtaking achievements in makeup, sets and costumes."

Straczynski anticipated the rise of digital television, shooting the series in 16:9 format, rather than the normal 4:3 — six years before ER and many other dramas began doing the same thing. Babylon 5 also revolutionized the use of computer technology (using Amiga-based Video Toasters at first, and later Pentium and DEC Alpha-based systems)[3] in creating visual effects at a time when using models and miniatures was the norm. It was also the first SF series to respect Newtonian physics in its space-battle sequences, with particular emphasis placed on the effects of inertia. More recent series such as Joss Whedon's Firefly and the Sci-Fi Channel version of Battlestar Galactica have also made similar efforts to simulate realistic physics.

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Babylon 5 Episodes

Babylon 5 Pilot

P- 1 22 Feb 93 The Gathering

Babylon 5 Season 1

1. 1- 2 103 26 Jan 94 Midnight on the Firing Line
2. 1- 3 102 2 Feb 94 Soul Hunter
3. 1- 4 104 9 Feb 94 Born to the Purple
4. 1- 5 101 16 Feb 94 Infection
5. 1- 6 108 23 Feb 94 The Parliament of Dreams
6. 1- 7 110 2 Mar 94 Mind War
7. 1- 8 107 9 Mar 94 The War Prayer
8. 1- 9 106 16 Mar 94 And the Sky Full of Stars
9. 1-10 113 20 Apr 94 Deathwalker
10. 1-11 105 27 Apr 94 Believers
11. 1-12 111 4 May 94 Survivors
12. 1-13 114 11 May 94 By Any Means Necessary
13. 1-14 116 18 May 94 Signs and Portents
14. 1-15 119 25 May 94 TKO
15. 1-16 109 6 Jul 94 Grail
16. 1-17 122 13 Jul 94 Eyes
17. 1-18 115 20 Jul 94 Legacies
18. 1-19 120 27 Jul 94 A Voice in the Wilderness (1)
19. 1-20 121 3 Aug 94 A Voice in the Wilderness (2)
20. 1-21 118 10 Aug 94 Babylon Squared
21. 1-22 117 17 Aug 94 The Quality of Mercy
22. 1-23 112 26 Oct 94 Chrysalis

Babylon 5 Season 2

23. 2- 1 201 2 Nov 94 Points of Departure
24. 2- 2 202 9 Nov 94 Revelations
25. 2- 3 203 16 Nov 94 The Geometry of Shadows
26. 2- 4 204 23 Nov 94 A Distant Star
27. 2- 5 205 30 Nov 94 The Long Dark
28. 2- 6 206 7 Dec 94 Spider in the Web
29. 2- 7 208 14 Dec 94 Soul Mates
30. 2- 8 207 26 Jan 95 A Race Through Dark Places
31. 2- 9 209 2 Feb 95 The Coming of Shadows
32. 2-10 210 9 Feb 95 GROPOS
33. 2-11 211 16 Feb 95 All Alone in the Night
34. 2-12 212 23 Feb 95 Acts of Sacrifice
35. 2-13 213 2 Mar 95 Hunter, Prey
36. 2-14 215 27 Apr 95 There All the Honor Lies
37. 2-15 214 4 May 95 And Now for a Word
38. 2-16 217 11 May 95 In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum
39. 2-17 216 18 May 95 Knives
40. 2-18 218 25 May 95 Confessions and Lamentations
41. 2-19 220 12 Oct 95 Divided Loyalties
42. 2-20 219 19 Oct 95 The Long, Twilight Struggle
43. 2-21 221 26 Oct 95 Comes the Inquisitor
44. 2-22 222 2 Nov 95 The Fall of Night

Babylon 5 Season 3

45. 3- 1 301 9 Nov 95 Matters of Honor
46. 3- 2 302 16 Nov 95 Convictions
47. 3- 3 303 23 Nov 95 A Day in the Strife
48. 3- 4 305 30 Nov 95 Passing Through Gethsemane
49. 3- 5 304 1 Feb 96 Voices of Authority
50. 3- 6 306 8 Feb 96 Dust to Dust
51. 3- 7 307 15 Feb 96 Exogenesis
52. 3- 8 308 22 Feb 96 Messages from Earth (1)
53. 3- 9 309 29 Feb 96 Point of No Return (2)
54. 3-10 310 4 Apr 96 Severed Dreams (3)
55. 3-11 311 11 Apr 96 Ceremonies of Light and Dark
56. 3-12 313 18 Apr 96 Sic Transit Vir
57. 3-13 312 25 Apr 96 A Late Delivery from Avalon
58. 3-14 314 2 May 96 Ship of Tears
59. 3-15 315 9 May 96 Interludes and Examinations
60. 3-16 316 16 May 96 War Without End (1)
61. 3-17 317 23 May 96 War Without End (2)
62. 3-18 318 3 Oct 96 Walkabout
63. 3-19 319 10 Oct 96 Grey 17 Is Missing
64. 3-20 320 17 Oct 96 And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place
65. 3-21 321 24 Oct 96 Shadow Dancing
66. 3-22 322 31 Oct 96 Z'ha'dum

Babylon 5 Season 4

67. 4- 1 401 7 Nov 96 The Hour of the Wolf
68. 4- 2 402 14 Nov 96 What Ever Happened to Mr. Garibaldi?
69. 4- 3 403 21 Nov 96 The Summoning
70. 4- 4 404 28 Nov 96 Falling Towards Apotheosis
71. 4- 5 405 30 Jan 97 The Long Night
72. 4- 6 406 6 Feb 97 Into the Fire
73. 4- 7 407 13 Feb 97 Epiphanies
74. 4- 8 408 20 Feb 97 The Illusion of Truth
75. 4- 9 409 27 Feb 97 Atonement
76. 4-10 410 24 Apr 97 Racing Mars
77. 4-11 411 1 May 97 Lines of Communication
78. 4-12 412 8 May 97 Conflicts of Interest
79. 4-13 413 15 May 97 Rumors, Bargains and Lies
80. 4-14 414 22 May 97 Moments of Transition
81. 4-15 415 29 May 97 No Surrender, No Retreat
82. 4-16 416 5 Jun 97 Exercise of Vital Powers
83. 4-17 417 12 Jun 97 The Face of the Enemy
84. 4-18 418 19 Jun 97 Intersections in Real Time
85. 4-19 419 9 Oct 97 Between the Darkness and the Light
86. 4-20 420 16 Oct 97 Endgame
87. 4-21 421 23 Oct 97 Rising Star
88. 4-22 501 30 Nov 97 The Deconstruction of Falling Stars

Babylon 5 Season 5

89. 5- 1 502 21 Jan 98 No Compromises
90. 5- 2 503 28 Jan 98 The Very Long Night of Londo Mollari
91. 5- 3 504 4 Feb 98 The Paragon of Animals
92. 5- 4 505 11 Feb 98 A View from the Gallery
93. 5- 5 506 18 Feb 98 Learning Curve
94. 5- 6 507 25 Feb 98 Strange Relations
95. 5- 7 508 4 Mar 98 Secrets of the Soul
96. 5- 8 511 11 Mar 98 Day of the Dead
97. 5- 9 509 18 Mar 98 In the Kingdom of the Blind
98. 5-10 510 25 Mar 98 A Tragedy of Telepaths
99. 5-11 512 1 Apr 98 Phoenix Rising
100. 5-12 513 8 Apr 98 The Ragged Edge
101. 5-13 514 15 Apr 98 The Corps is Mother, the Corps is Father
102. 5-14 515 27 May 98 Meditations on the Abyss
103. 5-15 516 3 Jun 98 Darkness Ascending
104. 5-16 517 10 Jun 98 And All My Dreams, Torn Asunder
105. 5-17 518 17 Jun 98 Movements of Fire and Shadow (1)
106. 5-18 519 28 Oct 98 The Fall of Centauri Prime (2)
107. 5-19 520 4 Nov 98 The Wheel of Fire
108. 5-20 521 11 Nov 98 Objects in Motion
109. 5-21 522 18 Nov 98 Objects at Rest
110. 5-22 523 25 Nov 98 Sleeping in Light

Babylon 5 Season 5

110. T- 1 TNTCF2 4 Jan 98 In The Beginning
110. T- 2 TNTCF1 19 Jul 98 Thirdspace
110. T- 3 TNTCF3 8 Nov 98 River of Souls
110. T- 4 TNTCF4 3 Jan 99 A Call to Arms

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