EpDis: Chrysalis

[GKarsEye]

That's not quite true. JMS admitted that he came up with Sheridan becuase he realised that he couldn't lay everything on Sinclair, which means Sinclair originally was supposed to defeat the Shadows in the "present" and also go back in time and become Valen.

The Shadows being awake is a very small point. If, for the sake of argument, Sakai would have had the Anna Sheridan plot line if Sinclair stayed, then the Shadows could have been "awake" by someone else. No problem.

Also, I thnk some people take this "waking up the Shadows" bit too literally, as if the Shadows were all completely inactive until the Icarus visited. The Icarus landed on Z'ha D'um after the Earth-Minbari War, yet before the war the Vorlons were already starting to forge alliances and make plans (as shown in In the Beginning).

 

[vacantlook]

Also, the Icarus was sent to Z'ha'dum only after Earth had snuck a tracking device onto the Shadow ship found buried on Mars and tracked the ship back to Z'ha'dum. And that ship on Mars was cut out and revitalized by another Shadow ship, so Shadows had to be moving to some degree well prior to the Icarus landing on Z'ha'dum.

 

[B5_Obsessed]

The fact that both of Sinclair's girlfriends, Carolyn Sykes and Catherine Sakai, were set up as interplanetary prospectors is too great a coincidence to ignore. We had already seen (in Parliament of Dreams?) that Sakai could be reckless and not heed G'Kar's warning. If things had not changed, G'Kar probably would've ended up commenting on that. Also, Sinclair was set to get married at the end of Season 1, then *poof* no Sakai ever again (on TV anyway), but on the second episode of Season 2, JMS quickly plots out the "death" of Sheridan's wife. If Sinclair had stayed, Sakai could have disappeared in early Season 2 on a mission, one that IPX would deny any knowledge of, and returned a year later. I think it would have been a much better payoff than the ultimate usage of Sheridan's wife (just like Takashima shooting Garibaldi in the back after a full season on the show would've blown our friggin' minds).

 

[GKarsEye]

Yes, I was going to make that point. The "return" of Anna Sheridan is a nice moment but imagine if it had been a return of Shadow-robot Sakai!

 

[Ranger1]

someone may have to explain this to me (i haven't read the books so may not be privvy to some vital bit of information) when sinclair is watching clark get sworn in, kosh "glides" up behind him and says "so it begins" suggesting he knows exactly what sort of man clark is and the trouble he will cause... How does he know this?

 

[Galahad]

My quick answer is that Kosh had been inside Valen's mind and therefore had shared the memories of Sinclair in his personal past. This also explains how he knew he was going to die... and why it was necessary for hm to do so.

 

[Ranger1]

My quick answer is that Kosh had been inside Valen's mind and therefore had shared the memories of Sinclair in his personal past. This also explains how he knew he was going to die... and why it was necessary for hm to do so.

obviously i missed that (from one of the books right? the only B5 literature i have read so far is a copy of space, time and the incurable romantic.).

 

[Galahad]

Well I was going more on the idea that Kosh said he had touched one person's mind before, in the same way he had touched Sheridan's... and that would have been Valen. I think this is hinted at in the extended version of the Gathering where Kosh greets Sinclair with an "Ent'hil Zha Valen", though I haven't seen it.

 

[BYEVJZTS]

Gave this one an A, excellent episode. I was going to mention what Kosh had said "And so it begins" until ranger1 mentioned it a few posts up. However I never thought about the timing of kosh's statement just after Clark's sworn in. The quote below has helped clear a question i always pondered about...how could Kosh know that Sheridan was so important? It was obvious why he respected Sinclair but until now, Sheridan.

My quick answer is that Kosh had been inside Valen's mind and therefore had shared the memories of Sinclair in his personal past. This also explains how he knew he was going to die... and why it was necessary for hm to do so.

PS. When i was first started to watch B5 around 3 years ago now, i was umming and arring about B5, season 1 did not grip me until this very episode. It was the Shadow vessels in battle (well slaughter really) and at the very end, seeing the Shadow's themselves. After that...I bought season after season, i was hooked. I'm still trying to get missus to watch it (she loves Stargate) and she's watched a few but she's having none of it.

Got to keep trying.

 

[Cell]

http://worldsoforos.com/secondviews/2008/09/19/review-babylon-5-122/

 

[maneth]

I just wonder if Carolyn Sykes and Catherine Sakai weren't meant to be the same person originally... Both being explorers and both having the initials CS makes me wonder...

It would have been rather interesting if the show had ended with Sinclair going back to the past... Although I don't think Michael O'Hare would have been the actor to carry that off. Although a Sinclair-Delenn relationship might have been interesting, given that she's Valen's descendant about 30 generations removed.

 

[Cell]

Figured this was as good of a place as any,

Season 1: Signs And Portents (1994)
http://worldsoforos.com/secondviews/2008/09/23/review-babylon-5-season-1-1994/

 

[Elipsis]

It would have been rather interesting if the show had ended with Sinclair going back to the past... Although I don't think Michael O'Hare would have been the actor to carry that off. Although a Sinclair-Delenn relationship might have been interesting, given that she's Valen's descendant about 30 generations removed.

I'm glad that didn't happen... it would have been pretty awkward. I think it was much better than the relationship between Sinclair and Delenn was a much different thing than the relationship between Sheridan and Delenn. (And of course their child would be descended from both Sheridan and Sinclair, making him by definition epic.)

 

[Cell]

Having just finished rereading The Passing Of The Techno-Mages: Book I: Casting Shadows, I was taken aback by how it factored into this episode. I completely forgot whom the novel placed in the first Shadow Battle-Crab we see attacking the Narn forces at Quadrant 37. That revelation just serves to make this episode all the better in my mind and adds a little bit more of that insider feeling, where we know the fact that such a big character is present even though no one else does.

 

[G'Kar]

Definitely an A. My favorite season finale after Z'ha'dum.

 

[Estelyn]

This is a fantastic episode! It manages to pack so much information into a tight schedule and creates an enormous amount of suspense, while simultaneously breaking through the usual clichés. In any other show, Garibaldi would have been able to warn EF 1 on time, and a reasonably happy end would have ensued. His struggle to rescue both himself and the President is a truly moving scene.

I always find it scariest when someone trusted by the characters turns out to be a traitor - there's no way to defend yourself in such a case.

But the episode begins with happy stuff - Sinclair's proposal is delightfully awkward for someone who has to speak diplomatically in his position! And on New Year's Eve it looks like things are heading toward a happy end for him. Cutting back and forth between the celebrating and the struggle behind the scenes is great.

*Now* we find out what was hinted at in a previous episode by the word "chrysalis". The cliff hanger ending leaves us in the dark as to Delenn's transformation - what will she be? - and Garibaldi's fate - will his aide manage to finish him off? And what will become the major element of future seasons, the development of Shadow interference, especially in relationship to the Centauri and Narn, begins - how will it continue? The foreboding is certainly warranted...

 

[Lennier's Tears]

I find I have surprisingly little to say about Chrysalis. It's a great season ender! This is Babylon 5 at its Babylon 5-iest. There's so much stuff going on, it's all very exciting. Imagine having to wait to see what happens next! (maybe you don't have to imagine if you can remember watching this on TV when it first aired )

I have a hard time remembering how things looked to me upon first viewing, but I seem to remember expecting the assassination plot to fail. It's still a bit shocking to me now, seeing Earth Force I explode.

Upon first viewing, I also didn't know this was the last we would ever see of Commander Sinclair. It still makes me kind of sad when I watch it now. I really do like his character.

"Nothing's the same anymore", indeed.

(Oh, and it's the episode my userpic is from!)

 

[Jan]

(Oh, and it's the episode my userpic is from!)

I'd wondered, thanks.

Jan

 

[Lennier's Tears]

It's this scene of him sitting there, while you can hear some whimpering sounds coming from the direction of the chrysalis, in between Sinclair giving instructions to Garibaldi's second in Medlab, and G'Kar and Na'Toth talking to Ivanova on the train thing.

I THINK this is the only time in the whole series Lennier is shown crying (a single tear ) so I HAD to get my userpic from that one

 

[Moonface]

I finally finished my recaps (well... the gathering is still missing, but I think I'll only take some snippets from it, to show Lyta and her interaction with Kosh and maybe GKar and Lyta. remember, my primary goal is not to make a "proper" recap, but a short reference to all the major plotpoints to get my pals back on track fast...ish.

Anyways: I saw JMS commentary on this episode and he mentioned, that for Clarks inauguration they used a picture of Jonson's inauguration as a reference. I didn't get why (as a European, I've know glue about US presidents). So I skimmed over the Wikipedia articles of JFK and Jonson, and I do get why Santiago stands for JFK, as JFK was very peace oriented, but I fail how Clark is a reference to Jonson, as he did continue JFKs path, if I didn't miss anything.

Any insights from US citizens on this?