"The Geometry of Shadows" Discussion

[aris-tgd.livejournal.com]

This is the discussion post for the episodes 2X03, "The Geometry of Shadows". Spoilers for the whole of the series, including the spin-offs and tie-ins, are allowed here so newbies beware.

Summary:
Babylon 5 is visited by the Techno-Mages, a mysterious group of people with strange powers and unknown ambitions. Ivanova is given a promotion and has to deal with a thorny diplomatic problem.

Extra reading:

The article for "The Geometry of Shadows" at Lurker's Guide.

Comments

[4thofeleven.livejournal.com]

As an episode, I feel this largely works entirely because of Michael Ansara’s performance as Elric. I do not find the Technomages particularly interesting - I was very surprised that they were brought back for Crusade, or got their own trilogy of novels… When you get right down to it, using ‘technology to simulate magic’ is what *stage magicians* do, and the mages come across as rather annoyingly pretentious to me, considering the ‘magic’ they demonstrate doesn’t actually seem any more advanced than the standard technology of the B5 setting.

But somehow Ansara manages to bring enough presence to the role that it actually works, that Elric comes across as a genuinely powerful and imposing individual possessing secret knowledge, not just some idiot with a few high-tech sleigh of hand techniques.

Londo - Is it just me, or do the decorations in Londo’s quarters seem more ornate now? That, and having his hair done in a less ragged style than it was for most of season one are nice little visual cues that Londo has a little more self-respect and pride now that he sees the possibility for the Centauri Republic to regain its power.

Interesting that Londo claims an audience with the Technomages would be a powerful symbol back home, but Vir doesn’t seem to have even heard of the mages before. There’s a couple of other scenes in the series where Vir seems completely ignorant of Centauri traditions, which is either a cheap justification for Londo to provide an explanation to the audience or, more charitably, a sign that Londo’s really not that in touch with the Centauri mainstream – that the traditions and history he obsesses over are all but forgotten outside the aristocracy.

Garibaldi – There’s some interesting stuff here. Garibaldi starts off saying he’s not sure if he’s qualified to go back to work, but in the end his knowledge helps save the day and convinces him that he brings something useful to the job. But he also starts off saying he’s not sure if he trusts Sheridan, and by the end of the episode, he’s still saying he doesn’t trust anyone. And it’s nice that that never gets wrapped up nicely – even before s4, Garibaldi and Sheridan never have the easy trust he had with Sinclair, and it does make it more believable in s4 that Bester just increased his natural paranoia, rather than completely altering his personality…

[marphilly.livejournal.com]

I agree with you about Elric making this ep work. He was a potent presence.

[selenak.livejournal.com]

I see we agree on technomages in general versus Elric in particular.

Decorations in Londo's quater: no, they really are more ornate.

Ah yes, the exposition question. Your charitable explanation works for me, though I can think of one notable exception: in The Very Long Night Of Londo Mollari, it's Vir who knows about the legend of the soul trying to escape an unworthy body, and Londo who has to look it up.

But he also starts off saying he’s not sure if he trusts Sheridan, and by the end of the episode, he’s still saying he doesn’t trust anyone. And it’s nice that that never gets wrapped up nicely – even before s4, Garibaldi and Sheridan never have the easy trust he had with Sinclair, and it does make it more believable in s4 that Bester just increased his natural paranoia, rather than completely altering his personality…

Absolutely. Which is why it gets me mad if people confuse what happened with Talia with what happened to Garibaldi. Talia and Control were two different personalities. With Garibaldi, Bester just pushed some already existing tendencies to the fore and surpressed others. I think Garibaldi and Sheridan were most comfortable with each other in the last third of season 3, but even then, it's not the same type of friendship he had with Sinclair. I think he saw Sheridan as a superior he respected and to a degree trusted, but not unconditionally.And the fact nobody but G'Kar bothered to look for him in early s4 can't have helped Garibaldi's trust issues, either, even aside from Psi Corps indoctrination.

[vjs2259.livejournal.com]

"if people confuse what happened with Talia with what happened to Garibaldi"

I have never understood this. The sad thing about Garibaldi is that the seeds of his destruction were always there, inside him. Of course, the seeds of his redemption were there as well.
Someone mentioned the PsiCorp sign Jack made at Garibaldi...I've always wondered if Bester marked Garibaldi as a good prospect for possible future 'intervention', and deliberately needled him every chance he got. He got in his head on his first visit to the station; who knows what he saw?