Babylon 5: The Gathering

Not gonna lie, this pilot movie isn't very good - the writing is uneven, some of the acting is pretty brutal, and the whole thing looks really cheap - but the seeds of what the show would eventually become are evident. Not sure I'd call it essential, though.

I love Babylon 5, but this isn't a great pilot unless you get the rather hard-to-find director's cut DVD. There are small hints of the greatness to come, but it's bogged down in the awkwardness of a show that will take a good season or so to find its feet.

They went all out for this pilot as rumors have it that producer Robert Latham Brown (who had previously produced Howard the Duck) went so far as to ask his grandmother for an extra $37 in order to get this made. It looks so cheap for a tv-movie/pilot and honestly, I think it works to this genre's benefit. There is no doubt in my mind now that the series delivers intelligent scripts with nuanced characters because it would HAVE TO based on the reputation and these cheap sets. If I had the time..

As a standalone piece of cinema, lousy. As a groundwork for themes and ideas that would pay off 4 or 5 years into the series it does its job.

Cheesy and stinted dialog complete with ham-fisted character backstory that has the subtle delivery of a sledge-hammer I'd be lying if I said Babylon 5 wasn't off to a rocky start. However the pilot does showcase the potential of the TV series due to the depth of the fictional universe. You'd probably have to be a die hard fan not to groan at least a handful of times during this, though.

Gets better on each return to the series.

Top badass moment? Londo’s drunken speech about the Centauri Republic; thought he was talking about the British Empire. Also, Laurel Takashima telling the Vorlons to “get stuffed”, something I’ve never personally dared to do. This is a very mediocre film but awesome because of what it is. It has guns like industrial cable detectors, aliens made out of searchlights and breathers that look bulky enough to keep out even the most enthusiastic coronavirus. No cats, chainsaws or decapitations.

This was the intro to a great long-lasting sci-fi tv series. It is a little rough around the edges, but it does a great job in setting up the story and introducing the characters that progress throughout the series.

This was a decent pilot to an awesome show. The make up on a bunch of the regulars was bizarre sometimes, and a few felt a little out of character compared to how they'd act even just once the season started, but overall it was an entertaining story.

Still hammering together some things here in the Pilot, but would ultimately open the door for one of the greatest Sci Fi series ever made.