Joseph DeMartino
Moderator
Re: Newbie just starting S3 - Non-Spoilers ONLY!
JMS has said that he had originally planned Kosh's death later than "Interludes and Examinations". Andrew concluded that he must have originally planned the other Vorlon death as we saw to be Kosh's.
I disagree. I think JMS intended for Kosh to accompany Sheridan to Z'ha'dum, perhaps hidden aboard the White Star, and to die there trying to buy Sheridan enough time to escape to Lorien. Perhaps he would have flown the ship into the Shadow city. Perhaps he would have flown down, shattering the transparent dome - either in order to engage the Shadows or in a failed effort to save Sheridan. (Which would have been a nice counterpoint to the events of "The Fall of Night", which in someways foreshadows "Z'ha'dum" even as it was filmed.)
So I think that JMS always planned for a Kosh II (already seen in "War Without End") and always planned for a piece of the original Kosh to play a role in his (its) demise (along with Lorien and Sheridan.) Only the timing of Kosh's death changed slightly. Sheridan still had to be left alone to meet his fate on Z'ha'dum, and the death of Kosh (and his replacement early in S4) would have upped the ante considerably, and reinforced the possibility that Sheridan, too, was really dead.
Regards,
Joe
JMS has said that he had originally planned Kosh's death later than "Interludes and Examinations". Andrew concluded that he must have originally planned the other Vorlon death as we saw to be Kosh's.
I disagree. I think JMS intended for Kosh to accompany Sheridan to Z'ha'dum, perhaps hidden aboard the White Star, and to die there trying to buy Sheridan enough time to escape to Lorien. Perhaps he would have flown the ship into the Shadow city. Perhaps he would have flown down, shattering the transparent dome - either in order to engage the Shadows or in a failed effort to save Sheridan. (Which would have been a nice counterpoint to the events of "The Fall of Night", which in someways foreshadows "Z'ha'dum" even as it was filmed.)
So I think that JMS always planned for a Kosh II (already seen in "War Without End") and always planned for a piece of the original Kosh to play a role in his (its) demise (along with Lorien and Sheridan.) Only the timing of Kosh's death changed slightly. Sheridan still had to be left alone to meet his fate on Z'ha'dum, and the death of Kosh (and his replacement early in S4) would have upped the ante considerably, and reinforced the possibility that Sheridan, too, was really dead.
Regards,
Joe
I was hoping for a spin-off, myself. I figured Cartagia would escape, and move in up with Kosh II, who, it would turn out, hadn't actually been killed by Lorien et. al., but merely been drastically reduced in power. 
