Recap and discussion: 1 x 01 - Midnight on the Firing Line

[alexcat.livejournal.com]

Season 1, Episode 1: Midnight on the Firing Line

This, the first actual episode, is action packed! So many things are going on that it must be confusing to a first time watcher. I had forgotten how busy it is.

We meet 3 new characters:
Susan Ivanova takes over for Lauren Takashima. Susan is all business and tough as nails.
Talia Winters is the new Telepath assigned to the station. I have to admit I found her beyond creepy. Always.
Vir Cotto is Londo’s new diplomatic aide and he’s really kind of a mess, a lovable mess.

The main plot points are:
1. The attack on Ragesh 3(or III), a Centauri agricultural colony by persons unknown. They become known soon enough though.
2. The raiders who rob cargo ships and kill the crews. There is an unexpected connection to the first plot point as well.

Minor plot points are the Earth elections and the fact that Earth wants to stay out of any interstellar conflicts. Also we find out that Ivanova has a deep dislike for Telepaths and the Psicorp and why. Then there is Garibaldi’s second favorite thing… his first, well, that is anyone’s guess.

We see just how ruthless the Narn are in their attack on a small agricultural colony with no defenses. We see how devious Londo is and we get a peek at how passionate he is about his people and his family. We see how Garibaldi has his finger on the pulse of everything that goes on on Babylon 5 and his dedication to his duty. Then there is Sinclair, who seems to stubbornly find ways to do what he thinks is right even if it means being a little tricky sometimes and taking advantage of any loophole he finds.

Here are some important things to remember as well:
The Centauri see their own deaths. Londo has seen his at the hands of G’kar.
Things and people on Babylon 5 are never what they seem. Never!


There are couple of quotes I love in this one:
Londo: “… Only one thing matters: blood calls out for blood.”

G’kar: “…What happened, run out of small children to butcher?”

Then there is this wonderful exchange, which, in the end, really says it all:
Kosh: “They are alone. They are a dying people. We should let them pass.”
Cmdr Jeffrey Sinclair: “Who, the Narn or the Centauri?”
Kosh: “Yes.”

Questions to ponder:
1. Did you wonder if perhaps Ragesh 3 was not strictly an agricultural colony? Why or why not?
2. What was your impression of Psi Corp from what Talia and Susan said?
3. Who did you like the best in this episode?
4. Are there unanswered questions you’d like to discuss?
5. Which seems more villainous: the Narn or the Centauri?
6. Favorite quote? Scene?

Sources:
http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/guide/001.html
http://babylon5.wikia.com/wiki/Midnight_on_the_Firing_Line
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midnight_on_the_Firing_Line
http://www.kayshapero.net/b5review/Midnight.htm
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0517669/


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Comments

[krisserci5.livejournal.com]

I remember looking back to this episode thinking that the Narn were horrid and the Centuari had potential and it turned out the opposite. Thanks for revisiting.

[alexcat.livejournal.com]

Every time I watch I am amazed by that as well.

[mosinging1986.livejournal.com]

Londo, when Vir comes to tell him about the emergency meeting:

The Council can go to hell! The emergency session can go to hell! And you? You can go to hell too. I wouldn't want you to feel left out!

Oh, Londo! You had such a way with words.

One of the things I loved about this show was how they gave the different races such distinct and interesting cultures/skills/qualities. It made them feel like real *people*, despite the fact that they had such odd physical features. It would've been so easy for this to fall into parody, with a bunch of funny looking aliens in weird costumes. But you really got to the point - and quite quickly - where you didn't even see the non-human differences much anymore. You just thought of them as the individual characters they were.

On this note, one thing really hit me this time around was how intriguing it was to have the Centauri people be able to see the circumstances of their own death. (I would never want such an ability!) Maybe such an idea had been presented on other shows or in books, but it was new to me. I found it fascinating, especially watching it play out. If you did have this knowledge, it would affect every aspect of your life - whether you were consciously thinking about it or not. It just goes, again, to how these different cultures were presented and how true to life they were. Human beings don't have that ability, but we do have things about us that affect all that we do, and how we interact with the world.

I also loved the way that wars here were always complicated. Sometimes that is portrayed so superficially in shows/movies. But here, you could feel with Londo why he was so angry. And you could feel with G'Kar, why he was so angry at the past wrongs done to them.

Yet, at the same time, it wasn't morally ambiguous. There was often a clear right or wrong, but you could also understand why people made the choices they did, even if you also had to acknowledge that what they were doing was morally wrong.

I'm not explaining it well. I'll blame it on this never ending head cold!

[alexcat.livejournal.com]

Babylon 5 was, most of all, a character driven show and the characters were all complex and full of faults as well as the ability for great goodness.

Except Morden. He was an ass. :)