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Whatever Happened to Brother Theo?

KoshFan

KoshFan

Regular
After Louis Turenne couldn't come back for "The Long Twilight Struggle" JMS created the role of Brother Theo for him and -- as I recall -- promised it would be a much better role. After three appearances Brother Theo drops off the map. Of course, so did Draal... but JMS's difficulties with having the ultimate plot device are well-recorded, and so we know why Draal disappeared.

But what happened to Brother Theo? Why did he disappear? Was he simply too remote from all the critical plot lines of Season 4? If the arc hadn't had to speed up in S4 would he have returned then? Why didn't JMS play around with him in Season 5 when he was so desperate for filler? His story would have been interesting, I think.
 
JMS chose Brother Theo's level of involvement.
Starting in early Season 4 most of the station limped along in complete depression. Ivanova had all the viewers with shotguns in our mouths as she suffered through the hour of the wolf. I believe it would be neither out of place nor out of character for Brother Theo to attempt to raise morale around the station. On the other hand, there were a lot more plot lines in motion at the time, and they were probably more important.
Furthermore, Lyta entering Ivanova's quarters with a bold, desperate plan to find Sheridan is certainly more exciting than the rudimentary, realistic scene of Brother Theo telling Ivanova about the power of hope. (Now that I think about it, the two different scenes would work well if blended; Brother Theo gives his inspiring spiel about faith managing. Ivanova voices her disbelief, but just as she finishes her link signals, and it's Lyta with her plan.)

Shortly thereafter, Sheridan returns "from the dead." This kind of setup - a member of the clergy and a "resurrected man" - has not occurred since . . . Peter and Jesus. The rumors of Sheridan's return would have Brother Theo undeniably be curious, and that curiosity would lead him to Sheridan's doorstep.
Now suppose if Brother Theo managed to catch Sheridan with Lorien there. The discussion among the three of them would probably have little to do with the Great War, but it could have been one of the finest exchanges of the Series. Imagine.

An appearance would have been possible in "The Illusion of Truth" with Dan Randall portraying Brother Theo has the stereotypical religious fanatic, despite the kind, honest words he would have about Babylon 5. Hmm . . . maybe it is a good he didn't show up in this episode.
After this point on the Babylon 5 timeline, the fast, furious road to Earth begins. An appearance could have been made in any of the episodes in the second half of the 4th season, but that doesn't mean an appearance is warranted.

With the start of Season 5, JMS does not have an excuse for utilizing Brother Theo. The idea of a Brother Theo episode sounds phenomenal, especially at the beginning of the Season when he could have been used so effectively. The title "Secrets of the Soul" unfortunately belongs to a lame episode about the Hyach, but it could have been a stellar outing concerning our man Theo. Any viewer that trades an outing like, say, "Learning Curve" for the potential success an episode about Brother Theo brings is joking--no argument.

It's possible that Louis Turenne's health played a part in his lack of exposure, but the three strong appearances he made in Season 3 cemented the character of Brother Theo as a part of the family. As I said, JMS chose the character's level of involvement, and JMS chose wrong. It is one of the greatest shames of the series that we have to ask whatever happened to Brother Theo.
 
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That's one opinion. My own is that I generally couldn't care less for the character. The best thing about that whole story strand was Passing Through Gethsemane, and that was more because of Brad Dourif and his character.
 
I LOVED Brother Theo! I look forward to seeing him the show! He was a kind and gentle spirit of a man... :D with just enough "kick" or attitude to see that things were done right!

And while I agree that Brad Dourif was wonderful in Passing Through Gethsemane, I also think Louis Turenne's contribution to that episode was remarkable.
 
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I agree with Boxie. I've liked Douriff a lot, ever since I saw him play Billy, in One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, but Brother Theo is a great character, played well. As I said in my first post here, I wish they had included him, even if only to call his superiors on Earth, to send out an exorcist, all the time offering his sage and sardonic advice. I guess the best reason I can see for not including him, is that he is sharper than Lockley in many ways, and realistically, would have been more likely than she to figure out what was really up.
 
Oh yea, Dourif's character was written to steal the show. And he did an exceptional job with his performance. I distinctly remember thinking (as I'd seen him before only in the movie Dune) "wow, this guy really can act!"

So he's definitely my favorite part about the story. Other than the story itself, especially how it ended.

But I had to adore Brother Theo. He reminds me of an old, fussy math professor teaching in college/university. :LOL: He wants the job defined for him, then for you to leave him alone to work on it. I loved when he hushed up (someone, was it Ivanova?) But in the end, he and his monks did unbelieveably fantastic work, and in relatively short order.

I also guess I really appreciate seeing a future where the monks are jumping at people exiting from their ships to ask "would you like to talk with us about god?" :rolleyes: No, he and his monks simply engaged in employment to pay for their keep, and they wish to spread their knowledge of the religions of other species.

If there have to be monks in that era, let them be cool ones, like this. :)
 
No, I thought he said "shhhh" when she went on talking after the monks were told their task. Surely I didn't misimagine it, did I? :confused:
 
In the episode "Convictions". When they were out to find who was doing the bombing, and the monks said that was the perfect kind of task for them.
 
It's been a while since I last watched "Convictions", and it's not one that really sticks in my memory, but I think I remember it now.
 
Well .. to address the concerns in regard to Louis Turenne's health both here and in another thread .. it seems like he has been dead for half a year.

Thread

:(
 
That is unfortunate...

This thread makes me think of something else though...where did the monks go once B5 was destroyed? I believe Brother Theo said their task would take 40 or 50 years, meaning that completing their task probably was not finished prior to the destruction of the station (unless they finished everything much sooner than anticipated)
 
Do we know if the monks were on the station for more than a few years even? I wouldn't be surprised if when Earth got hit by the Drakh virus the monks up and took it upon themselves to go out into the galaxy hunting for a cure too, or some other easily imaginative reason to take them from B5 to elsewhere.

Of course, I also think it's fun to think the monks in "The Deconstruction of Falling Stars" are in some way decendents, associatively, of Brother Theo's group. :)
 
hypatia said:
Oh yea, Dourif's character was written to steal the show. And he did an exceptional job with his performance. I distinctly remember thinking (as I'd seen him before only in the movie Dune) "wow, this guy really can act!"
Click to expand...

Not to take anything away from the actor per say....but Brad Dourif plays the EXACT SAME CHARACTER in everything he does. He is always that guy who you take one look at him and you know he is a bit psycho and twisted. I can't think of one role where he played a normal person. Even in B5 he was a killer underneath everything, and had that killer-type look going on...
 
Oh come on, seriously. The guy always has that same feel and portrayal. Yes the characters are different at a high level, but there are also MANY similarities. Wormtongue was just the latest role that the guy was in...there are sooooooo many more. Hell he played a psycho-off-balance kind of guy in a ST:TNG episode too I think.
 
Recoil said:
Hell he played a psycho-off-balance kind of guy in a ST:TNG episode too I think.
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On Voyager .. in two episodes. And in Myst III - even in computer games.

He definitely has been the victim of typecasting though. Which doesn't have to say anything about his acting skills, but more the roles he is given. (because the roles he is given, he playes damned well - also if they keep being very similar)

The one role that might break the system - though I don't know, never having seen the show: Doc Cochran on Deadwood. The character description on wikipedia does not resemble Dourif's usual role much.
 
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Yea, typecasting doesn't necessarily mean no talent. Bert Lahr complained after the "Wizard of Oz" movie that "oh yea, they ["Hollywood"] call me right up whenever they want a cowardly lion for the part".
 
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