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Babylon 5 - The Complete Television Series (5-Pack)
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Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Warner Brothers
EAN: 9780790793931
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
ISBN: 0790793938
Item Dimensions: 100
Label: Warner Home Video
Languages: English (Original Language),
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
MPN: D34815D
Number Of Items: 30
Publisher: Warner Home Video
Region Code: 1
Release Date: April 13, 2004
Running Time: 4818 minutes
Studio: Warner Home Video
Theatrical Release Date: January 26, 1994
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Editorial Review:
Own all five seasons of the award-winning series about the space station that's the tumultuous center of the 23rd century's bid for peace among humans and aliens.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY UPC: 085393481520
The epic sci-fi series Babylon 5 was a unique experiment in the history of television. It was effectively a novel for television in five seasons, consisting of 110 episodes with a clear beginning, middle, and end. The first season introduces the main characters, headed this year by Commander Jeffery Sinclair (Michael O'Hare) and Security Chief Michael Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), and familiarizes the audience with the unique environment of a five-mile-long space station in the year 2257. The first episode, "Midnight on the Firing Line," plays at a breathless pace, introducing Commander Susan Ivanova (Claudia Christian) and establishing the conflict between the Narn and Centauri races as represented by their ambassadors, G'Kar (Andreas Katsulas) and Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik). B5 hits warp speed with a run of exceptional episodes building to the season finale. The two-part "Voice in the Wilderness" has Mars breaking into open revolt against Earth and the discovery of a "Great Machine" on the dead world Epsilon 3. Referencing 1950s sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet, the story leads to the superb time-travel-based "Babylon Squared." Season finale "Chrysalis" proves more than just the usual television cliffhanger, placing Minbari ambassador Delenn in conflict with her ruling Grey Council and forcing on her a decision that laid the groundwork for Babylon 5's eventually becoming a great love story.
Delenn's future love interest, Captain John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) arrived on Babylon 5 in the first episode of season 2, "Points of Departure." The show marked the handing over of command of B5 to Sheridan from Commander Jeffery Sinclair, actor Michael O'Hare becoming a victim of studio politicians who wanted a bigger star in the leading role. "Revelations" explains that Sheridan's wife, Anna, died during an archaeological survey of the world Z'ha'dum, the name being just one of many references to Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (the bridge at Khazad-Dum). "The Coming of Shadows" proved to be Babylon 5's finest hour to date, and in "In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum," Sheridan learns that Morden was on the ship on which Anna died. Three exceptional shows conclude the season. The Narn-Centauri war escalates in "The Long, Twilight Struggle," Sheridan faces a most unusual ordeal in "Comes the Inquisitor," and in "The Fall of Night" all hope of peace is shattered as a nerve-racking assassination attempt reveals a startling secret about Ambassador Kosh.
"Matters of Honor" launched Babylon 5's third season with the introduction of the White Star, a spacecraft added to enable more of the action to take place away from the station. Also introduced was Marcus Cole (Jason Carter)--in another nod to The Lord of the Rings, a Ranger not so far removed from Tolkien's Strider. A third of the way through the season "Messages from Earth," "Point of No Return," and "Severed Dreams" prove pivotal, changing the nature of the story in a way previously unimaginable on network TV. Earth slides into dictatorship, the fascistic Nightwatch takes control of off-world security, and Sheridan take decisive action by declaring Babylon 5 independent. "Interludes and Examinations" presented the death of a major supporting character, while the two-part "War Without End" reached apocalyptic dimensions in a complex tale resolving the destiny of Sinclair and the fate of Babylon 4, resolving a 1,000-year-old paradox and presenting a vision of a very dark future for Sheridan and Delenn. All this was trumped by the monumental "Z'ha'dum." In the preceding "Shadow Dancing" Anna Sheridan (Melissa Gilbert, Bruce Boxleitner's real-life wife) returned from the dead, no longer entirely human. In the mythologically resonant climax Anna invited Sheridan back to the Shadow homeworld with no hope of survival. Just as in The Lord of the Rings Gandalf fell into the abyss at Khazad-Dum, so Sheridan took a comparable leap into the unknown on an alien world.
Season 4 began on a high point with the Centauri Prime in the grip of the insane Emperor Cartagia (Wortham Krimmer) and a run of six shows leading to the climax of the war against the Shadows in "Into the Fire." If this colossal narrative was resolved a little too easily and the ultimate aim of the Shadows turned out to be a tad disappointing, it still proved to be the most powerful slice of space opera to ever grace the small screen. In the aftermath the sheer scale dropped back a little but the pace never slowed as the rest of the season played out in one relentless cycle of conspiracy, betrayal and conflict, Babylon 5 siding with the rebel Mars colony against the totalitarian Earth. On an unstoppable wave fuelled by roller-coaster plot twists and spectacular action shows from "No Surrender, No Retreat"--when Sheridan avows to overthrow EarthGov--to "Rising Star"--when the aim is realized--Babylon 5 achieved a consistent excellence rare in television.
The final season found Claudia Christian departed and Ivanova replaced by Captain Elizabeth Lochley (Tracy Scoggins), who in a soap-opera twist turned out to be Sheridan's first wife. Sheridan was promoted to President of the Interstellar Alliance and the action moved to a group of telepaths seeking sanctuary from the PSI-Corp on B5. Meanwhile the aftermath of the Shadow War was explored, and as usual the season picked up toward the end, with a string of fine political episodes. The final episode, "Sleeping in Light," was directed by J. Michael Straczynski and made an epilogue to the series. Set 20 years later, after all the sound and fury this quiet, elegiac tale is the apotheosis of the love story that proved the balance to the tragedy of the preceding darkness. A personal story resolved against a background of the epic, at once transcendent, deeply human, and profoundly optimistic, "Sleeping in Light" is as moving as any hour in the history of television drama and a thoroughly satisfying conclusion to one of the greatest series ever made. --Gary S. Dalkin
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - 480i Babylon 5 The Complete Television Series
It is nice to have all of the episodes in chronological order and no commericial interuptions.
The image resolution changes depending on the scene. Long shots tend to be a bit blurry. Medium to close ups appear to be sharp enough. It's a pity this series was not shot in later years or that Warner Bros chose not to do a high resolution (Blu-Ray or HD) version
Rating:  - Babylon 5 TV series on DVD
We have followed Babylon 5 from start to finish, and with few exceptions, this recorded series is very complete. Although we would have preferred not to have credits shown at the begninng and end of each episode, at least the disruptive series of boring commercials were deleted. Audio and visual quality of this reproduction was exceptional, and a great price for the entire series.
Rating:  - 4 out of 5 seasons aint bad
I love Babylon 5 and watched it all the time on TV.. I will says that the transfer over to DVD was good but i have seen better.. Still with that said i don't think any B5 lover will be disappointed...
as far as seasons go i do have to say that I am disappointed in the fifth and final season.. The story line is lacking and spacial effects that B% was known for was sub-par.. Honestly i would have ended the series with the forth season, but i think because of fan response it was extended ... Read More
Rating: - Flawed, but Fantastic
Had I watched the pilot movie "The Gathering" before starting the series, I would never have started the series. Had I not been assured by a friend that the first few episodes were not on a par with the rest of the series, I wouldn't have made it past those first episodes. The opening of Babylong 5, I must say, is terrible. Everything from the writing to the acting to the music is truly second rate.
HOWEVER:
It plants the seeds of a story that was so well planned that throughout ... Read More
Rating: - Hi 5 to B5!!!
I first bought this show a few years back after watching the last 4 seasons on TV. For some reason, I had a momentary lapse of reason and sold them all!!! Few months back... could not resist, especially when I saw that they were starting to come out with movies like "The Lost Tales". Rebought the whole 5 seasons and the movie sets! Started rewatching with one of my daughters.. man, I'm like a kid with a new toy!!!
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