[Previous entry: "Up To The Arc"] [Main Index] [Next entry: "Without End..."]

2005-01-24 Entry: "The Big Three"

"Messages From Earth" sees Marcus smuggling a woman onto the station. And G'Kar seems to be enjoying his incarceration - although the other prisoners think he's being tortured when he starts singing.

The woman is an employee of IPX, and she has knowledge of a Shadow ship being unearthed on Mars. However, another ship has now been found on Ganymede, and Earth doesn't want to give this one back to the Shadows. They'd rather take it back to Earth for study... but Sheridan has decided to stop the ship.

The Night Watch has been given new orders to investigate everybody even on the basis of anonymous tip-offs. And Sheridan's mission is raising suspicions about his absence.

Sheridan has to cope with the Minbari beds, inclined at an angle as they are.

Unfortunately for the White Star, they get there just too late - seeing the Shadow ship awakened and insane. Fortunately, they manage to destroy it in Jupiter's gravity well. However, the Agamemnon shows up to stop them... and the Captain is obviously reluctant to fire on his old ship.

Zack's still having a major conflict between duties to the Night Watch, and friendship with Garibaldi. And the President declares martial law...

Londo continues to criticize Vir's reports about the Minbari, and he gets news that Lady Morella, the seeress is coming to the station. Of course, everything's going to hell back on Earth, but as we're in the series title episode "Point Of No Return" we'd pretty much expect some action.

The Night Watch are having a secret meeting, and G'Kar is still singing - but Garibaldi releases him as they need the personnel out maintaining security rather than guarding a non-threatening prisoner...

Sheridan gets a message from Earth, with new orders, including the Political Office turning over all Earth security to Night Watch... however, the message also tells the Captain to "respect the chain of command."

General Hague ends up in a firefight with other Earthforce ships. Sheridan has to declare martial law on the station, but the fighting has already broken out in the Zocalo.

The Captain comes up with a plan to put the Narn in charge of security, and leaks it to the Night Watch (through Zack) that a Narn ship will dock shortly - and all of Night Watch end up penned in... oh, and Zack ends up on the right side... finally. And the Narn do get to take up the slack in security.

Morella gives Londo his reading - there are still three opportunities to avoid the fire. Save the eye that does not see, not kill the one who is already dead, and surrender himself to his greatest fear, knowing it will destroy him... he's already wasted two opportunities... oh, and one more thing... Londo wil be Emperor... as will Vir...

G'Kar wants to be let in on the Council in return for his help with security. And Hague's little rebellion is not going all that well...

"Severed Dreams" sees the conflict come to B5 - the Alexander (Hague's ship) arrives seeking repairs. Unfortunately, Hague didn't make it. Earth starts bombing Mars. Delenn has to go and see the Grey Council, as the Shadows have started their attacks - and have coerced a number of the League worlds into a combined alliance.

Earthforce ships are on their way to take control of the station - they don't want B5 breaking away from Earth like some of the outer colonies have.

Delenn breaks the Grey Council, and the Worker and Religious Castes go their own way...

A major firefight breaks out around B5, and the Churchill is lost (but takes out the Roanoke in its last act). Unfortunately, just when they think its all over, more ships arrive. Fortunately, so do the Minbari. Of course, Delenn's entrance is completely over the top...

After taking a break from B5 to watch X2: X-Men United on TV... it's not completely terrible, but it still feels like a set-up for the Phoenix saga rather than an actual movie in itself.

And then, back to B5 with the cleanup episode "Ceremonies Of Light And Dark." Someone on the station wants to kill Sheridan, and Delenn wants to hold the Rebirth ceremony. Oh, and Lord Refa visits the station.

Londo poisons Refa to give him enough leverage to stop any further dealings with the Shadows. Garibaldi's attempts to secure the computer system accidentally turn the AI system back on. Delenn is taken prisoner by the Night Watch and used to get rid of the Minbari warships.

The ceremony does take place. Sheridan gives up his uniform, and admits how much he cares for Delenn. Marcus has to give up his clinging to what he lost. Garibaldi is afraid all the time of what he might do if he ever let go. Ivanova loved Talia. Franklin finally admits he has a problem with stims. Lennier admits to Marcus that he loves Delenn.

And once the command staff have given up their Earth Force uniforms, Delenn gives them new ones.

Oh, and I'll have to watch another really terrible Charmed episode. Utopia is here, and the next episode looks to be another comedy but then, that might just be the WB's normally terrible trailers.

Okay, back to B5 - and after Ivanova's dream of going to C&C naked, we cut to Centauri Prime, where Vir meets with the Prime Minister, who has a very poor Narn joke... But Vir is having lots of problems with the Narn this episode, and obviously he's getting all the focus today in "Sic Transit Vir."

Londo is having an insect infestation problem in his quarters. And Vir's future wife shows up - Lyndisty - and she's a little too bloodthirsty for Vir's tastes, although the fact that he appears to be slaughtering thousands of Narn seems to go down well. Well, okay they're just disappearing at the request of Abrahamo Lincolni, a suspicious name for a Centuari...

Sheridan cooks dinner for Delenn, although I'm not sure it's entirely edible when she's desperately shaking condiments over it...

One of the Narn has declared a blood oath over the missing Narns, and the truth about Vir's activities come out - he's been smuggling out injured women and children, and declaring them dead so that the Centauri homeworld don't investigate their disappearance.

Lyndisty meanwhile manages to capture a related Narn trying to carry on the blood oath, and then tells Vir about her father's activities "culling the herds" on the Narn homeworld to remove aggression. But you know, she's slightly crazy... saving the death of the Narn for Vir's hands... "after the first few, it gets easier..." She should know, she's done it hundreds of times!

Disc 4 starts with "A Late Delivery From Avalon" and Garibaldi is having a problem with the mail. Well, okay, really it's an excuse for Michael York to play King Arthur... running about the station with a sword, suffering from post traumatic stress due to being the gunner that started the Earth-Minbari war...

Yes, it's a pointless episode, no it doesn't pogress the arc anywhere, yes we get a little bit more about the war, but it's not as if we really care at this point - we've got Earth and the Shadows to worry about...

Okay, Marcus and G'Kar get some good scenes in this show, but otherwise, one you can skip.