B5:TLT - Show Discussion Thread (Spoilers)

[Mutai Sho-Rin]

Never again....Watched the 2 stories last night and was very disappointed. I was actually ashamed to let my wife see it after the all the hype. We both watch and love all five seasons, the made for tv movies and most of the books.
I will not spend $20.00 on future DVDs unless I get them in the dollar bin.
I am done with future B5 if this is all we get.
Please don't reply I will not answer.
Sorry.

As we used to say at TrekBBS, "Door, A$$, Bye." Rather uncompassionate, but...

 

[KoshN]

As we used to say at TrekBBS, "Door, A$$, Bye." Rather uncompassionate, but...

Well, that's a little harsh.

 

[Jade Jaguar]

Well, that's a little harsh.

We could rephrase your first quote, to reflect Mutai's attitude too, as 'Well, that's one end of the rectum.'

 

[raw_bean]

Well, that's a little harsh.

Actually I don't think so. By finishing a post with asking people not to reply as you're not going to read any responses, that comes across as fairly rude, to me. It's basically saying "here's my opinion, but I don't care for yours." Forums should be for discussion, not proclamations.

 

[AnlaShokGrey]

Right, they could just have easily have posted their opinion, left the board, and simply not replied to any subsequent posts addressing their comments. Passive, and still accomplishes what (s)he wants -- to not have any more conversation on the subject. But by actively telling people that you aren't going to reply to any followups...well, that's going out of your way to let people know that their opinions are worthless, and that your time is worth more than theirs. As Londo might say, "Fah!"

 

[darth_librarian]

Yeah. Leave the grief at home if you don't want to discuss on a discussion board, then what is the point...

I'm not quite sure what some folk actually expected from two 35 minute long episodes with a total cast of about six and a mini budget, all directed and written by JMS and shot in a very short space of time. This is not Star Wars guys, its B5 !! Heaven forbid I should have my CGI spoiled by 'talking'....

Given all that, I loved it.

 

[KoshN]

Maybe it's that I'm not so quick to toss aside someone who has said "We both watch and love all five seasons, the made for tv movies and most of the books."

"...was very disappointed. I was actually ashamed to let my [friends] see it after the all the hype. We [all] watch and love all five seasons, the made for tv movies and most of the books." is exactly how I felt/feel about the Rangers pilot.

 

[Sindatur]

Maybe it's that I'm not so quick to toss aside someone who has said "We both watch and love all five seasons, the made for tv movies and most of the books."

When someone isn't willing to even discuss why they didn't like it, and specifically says "Don't bother replying..." it comes off as someone who is going from site to site "spamming" I hated it posts just to rile the fandom.

I see this tactic with the ABC LOST board quite often, and when you click on the poster's history (if they have one) you often find they post on grey's Anatomy or Desperate Housewives, or other shows, or it appears sought out a site, and registered just to slam the show.

Since this poster has a history of 25 posts, it seems it may be a legitimate post, but, still, the tone of the post makes it very tough to respect the opinion.

 

[KoshN]

When someone isn't willing to even discuss why they didn't like it, and specifically says "Don't bother replying..." it comes off as someone who is going from site to site "spamming" I hated it posts just to rile the fandom.

I see this tactic with the ABC LOST board quite often, and when you click on the poster's history (if they have one) you often find they post on grey's Anatomy or Desperate Housewives, or other shows, or it appears sought out a site, and registered just to slam the show.

Since this poster has a history of 25 posts, it seems it may be a legitimate post, but, still, the tone of the post makes it very tough to respect the opinion.

I just noticed the posting level, but 25 posts in 6 YEARS? He's not going to be on her much, anyway, and given the "Sisko" name, you're probably right about the "someone who is going from site to site "spamming" I hated it posts just to rile the fandom." I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of the negative reviews that B5-TLT is getting on IMDb are DS9 fans & B5 haters & newbies to the board, who are trying to look like B5 fans who genuinely and vehemently dislike B5-TLT.

 

[crazyhorse]

I would say that before guessing about the lads motives look at his previous posts.He was obviously looking forward to the new material.

From what I'm reading here I believe it to be good but not spectactular and after so long that is what quite a few of us wanted.

I can't believe how much the religious angle has cropped up though

Hey if I don't believe he doesn't have an agenda there then he doesn't

I mean you do want to attract new fans as well eh,to make up for them falling behind the wayside

 

[vacantlook]

...spectactular and after so long that is what quite a few of us wanted.

Sounds like the problem is with people's expectations then. TLT never was going to be like "The Long, Twilight Struggle", "Severed Dreams", or "Z'ha'dum". It's much more like "Comes The Inquisitor", "Passing Through Gethsemane", and "The Very Long Night Of Londo Mollari".

 

[crazyhorse]

Nope but that's what people remembered and wanted.

They have to get a few more discs out to finance the sets again before they can give us something big

I also noticed critisism for the lack of extras.I've just watched Lochley making her apperance on B5,only one scene which was busy.Landing bay was empty of personel and of course walking through restricted areas.Nothing new here apart from they didn't decide to go to the gardens on the way to their digs

 

[Dangerousapple]

Sounds like the problem is with people's expectations then. TLT never was going to be like "The Long, Twilight Struggle", "Severed Dreams", or "Z'ha'dum". It's much more like "Comes The Inquisitor", "Passing Through Gethsemane", and "The Very Long Night Of Londo Mollari".

And yet, in my opinion, TLT doesn't hold a candle to those great episodes . The 'problem' with TLT isn't that it's mostly talk - the problem is that B5 already did that better. Still, I'd love to see more. In any case TLT is just a taste of what new B5 could be like. The more I think about it, the more I think JMS is on to something here. This is not 'Star Trek: the New Ship' - a formula JMS himself followed with Crusade and Rangers.

TLT offers so many possibilities. JMS can write any story, set in any time in any backdrop. He can go ANYWHERE. Some of the contents that just spring to mind...

• the Hand
• the Drakh war
• the Telepath war
• Valens fight against the Shadows
• Mollaris keeper
• Davids keeper
• Lenniers redemption / eventual demise
• Vorlons
• ...

It goes on and on. The coolest thing would be if a TV-station such as Sci-fi picks up TLT for series (is this even a possibility?).

To have those kinds of stories on a weekly bases (with smaller ones in between of course). Makes me drool. Imagine a 22 episode season with a couple of Excalibur stories strewn throughout, a couple of Telepath war stories... well you get my point. This could go on for at least 3 seasons. Each season finale could bring a major story to conclusion, after the built up by the preceding episodes in that thread.

JMS said he wanted TLT to be smaller stories. But I can't imagine him sticking to that after he actually gets offered a sizable budget for future content. Of course, we might never get ANY new B5. This is nerve-wrecking.

 

[vacantlook]

TLT offers so many possibilities. JMS can write any story, set in any time in any backdrop. He can go ANYWHERE. Some of the contents that just spring to mind...

* the Hand

I actually just got done posting over on jmsnews.com's forums a comment about a thought I had several days ago. Crossposting:

I've actually wondered if maybe Asmodeus was one of The Hand. We never saw any of them, just those that worked for them, and Kafta referred to them as "The Hand of God". Even though I think he was totally playing Father Cassidy, Asmodeus did speak very eloquently about his being the means through which God caused others to worship him, maybe there was an element of him truly believing some of the stuff he was saying to Father Cassidy.

 

[Jan]

JMS said he wanted TLT to be smaller stories. But I can't imagine him sticking to that after he actually gets offered a sizable budget for future content. Of course, we might never get ANY new B5. This is nerve-wrecking.

Remember, though, that JMS has wanted an anthology show for much longer than he's wanted new B5. He never had any trouble sticking to shorter (though not necessarily small) stories in the 90's revival of the Twilight Zone.

Jan

 

[n_stock]

Hey everyone, especially those who have a problem with TLT, I would recommend you listen to Bruce on the latest Babylon Podcast #76. I will warn anyone who hasn't seen it and care about not having the story spoiled they do talk about the plot.

 

[AnlaShokGrey]

JMS said he wanted TLT to be smaller stories. But I can't imagine him sticking to that after he actually gets offered a sizable budget for future content.

If his schedule is completely filled with writing scripts for feature films, and he's enjoying doing that, he might not have much time or inclination for a 22-episode/season, arc-based series.

Amy

 

[KoshN]

The coolest thing would be if a TV-station such as Sci-fi picks up TLT for series (is this even a possibility?).

The Sci-Fi Channel (NBC/Universal)? Probably not, because of Warner Brothers & NBC/Universal ownership issues.

TNT? OMG, I hope not!

The CW? Probably not, even with Warner Brothers being part of that, because of demographics.

Warner Brothers is lacking a sci-fi venue where ownership issues aren't a problem, the network isn't sci-fi hostile, and the core audience isn't pre-teens, teens and early twenties.

JMS said he wanted TLT to be smaller stories.

Probably because he didn't want to scare WB away by asking for a bigger budget. I guess the plan is ask for something small, show demand and then ask for a bigger budget.

But I can't imagine him sticking to that after he actually gets offered a sizable budget for future content.

Neither can I if he gets money for a series, at least as much as he had for B5 & Crusade, plus inflation.

 

[Dangerousapple]

Remember, though, that JMS has wanted an anthology show for much longer than he's wanted new B5. He never had any trouble sticking to shorter (though not necessarily small) stories in the 90's revival of the Twilight Zone.

Jms wrote for Twilight Zone? I´m embarrassed to say I did not know that.

Warner Brothers is lacking a sci-fi venue where ownership issues isn't a problem, the network isn't sci-fi hostile, and the core audience isn't pre-teens, teens and early twenties.

I wasn´t familliar with the business side of things, but already guessed this was a very slim possibility. It sucks, since I can only imagine a couple of TLT dvd´s, if it even gets to that. Still, if we get stories in the threads I mentioned earlier (with some resolution for the remaining cliffhangers!) I´ll be very happy.

 

[hypatia]

JMS wrote episodes of the old "Murder, She Wrote" series, too. Many of us had seen his work without even knowing it when B5 came out.

Help me out those of you who follow JMS's net conversations closely: didn't JMS said WB was interested in talking, and that he himself just wasn't ready for a large commitment (for several reasons, I am sure, but partly it was just too soon after two of the key actors in the original B5 died).

And yea, I was thinking the same thing about why he might not be ready to show-run another complete series. Remember, even on these smaller stories, he wants other writers.

I do recall he said years ago that B5 was great, wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime kind of an experience, but it also aged him rapidly and might have killed him, in time. So he's pretty much said he'll never quite do anything like that again. Pretty understandable of him.

What he did was I think virtually unheard of for a major U.S. show. Although I confess, I'm guessing here. So forgive me if there are dozens of examples.