odd choice for a meme to compare. you know how that movie ends tho...
the smaller bullet won that battle.
this post was submitted on 27 Aug 2026
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I dunno. Some aspects, maybe. But others aspects are quite jarring.
Not even close
Babylon five felt cheaper in every way for me. DS9 ftw.
I think B5 generally had the better story. DS9 had much better production values. Not to say DS9 didn't have some great stories, but B5's was just better thought through and more cohesive. The story arc was clearly planned from the beginning with B5 with all the details that get seeded in early seasons and pay off in later seasons. DS9 is much more episodic (except for the whole Dominion war thing) with not nearly as much development.
I’ve never seen Babylon 5.. am I missing out?
It will either change your world, or help you accept that you are really a simple person at heart.
People love it and all respect to them. I could never get into it. Back in the day, serialized storytelling on TV was often harder to break into because you didn’t just sit down and steam whole series in order. You had to watch whatever was on the air and whenever Babylon 5 came on I’d check it out, be totally lost on what was happening, get sick of all the talking, and change the channel.
Definitely. It was a groundbreaking show with some of the best character development and plot arcs on television, including everything that has come after. Incredible performances, deep lore, and fantastic writing.
You’ll have to get past the dated effects and synth soundtrack, but that’s easy after a few episodes. If you like sci-fi, you’ll love Babylon 5.
But I love dated effects and synth soundtracks!
Have I got good news for you…
don't threaten me with a good time!
B5 also had the best space combat with speed vectors or whatever is closer to real physics instead of shops and shuttles flying like boats and airplanes.
Babylon 5 also seemed to write better space combat with the larger ships. Spacedock has a good video about the Battle of Proxima 3 where it goes through how the show wrote a believable naval civil war battle including understanding the geography of the area, the tactics of the different forces, and the politics behind the battle.
With the quirk that only most ships fly like that. Ships with gravimetric drives (ships made by the Vorlons, Minbari, and Centauri) fly like boats and aircraft. Which then gets really cool when you notice both types of ship behaving correctly in the same shot.
I was thinking of the human fighters and forgot that the alien ships did move in a more alien way!
If you like sci-fi political drama mixed with action and intrigue, yes.
Otherwise, yes.
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It's good and an easy watch, only 5 seasons. SURE you can watch all the movies too and maybe the spin off series but in all honestly you can probably skip the spin off.
The first season can be a struggle to get through for many people but you kinda have to watch it as everything ties together. and there's a major plot point you won't understand or appreciate in the last couple seasons unless you watch season 1. But once the Shadow War kicks off man that show hits its stride, starts running, and just doesn't stop until the very last episode.
The space combat is probably the absolute best. The best part in that series is seeing jump gates open at JUST the right time and wondering whose coming out of them.
I recently did an in-universe chronological rewatch of b5 and daaaaaaamn did it sing
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Yes.
It’s the first TV show with actual character arcs - planned out from the start
Offhand remarks from S1 will realise into actual actions in S4
The CGI is of course dated at this point, especially the space battle stuff. Characters are largely practical though, so they look fine still.
Otherwise IMO the first season starts a little slow and there's a ton exposition heavy stuff early to introduce the world. It does pick up soon though and it avoids the returning to status quo after episode quite well. Pretty much every episode moves some of the bigger background plots forward
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Me watching the first episode: Wow, the budget for these episodes is someone’s lunch money.
Me watching the last episode: 🫡😭
You need the 4:3 4k rescan version, it’s so unbelievably crispy and correct.
Which is honestly too bad because the show was originally filmed for 16:9 with the expectation that 16:9 TVs would become common in the near future, which they did. The 4k version is only 4:3 because the effects were done on the cheap and mastered for 4:3 standard definition and nobody that could afford it wants to redo all the effects work.
No. You get harsher contrasts in quality whenever a digital effect is used.
And, starting with Mind War, there is an increasing appearance of green tint on everything until it dominates.
Get the DVDs while you still can.
I got the entire ezy dvd boxed set complete with a b5 backpack back in the 00's.
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The space station show where an alien religious cast helps the station commander fight a large scale political and physical war against an insidious enemy not detectable to the human eye, even though a genocidal race aiding them may be sacrificed?
....wait, which one am I talking about?
spoiler
The one that's pro-union, has large character arcs, and a conspiracy that plays out back home.
Wait, which one?
spoiler
The one where ancient text profecy it all.
spoiler
The one where the Station Commander actually belonged to that part of space after all. You know, he wasn't really like other humans.
...i give up.
They both match these descriptions... But interestingly enough B5 often ends up feeling like it's telling the bigger story! Sometimes it feels like DS9 is just trying to keep up with it (albeit with much higher production values).
...and the B5 aliens are somehow, more alien. It's got a lot going for it, and is an underdog that punches above its weight class.
B5 from the getgo had the whole mythic arc written out. Ds9 had to play the trek serialisation until B&B were distracted enough for ISB to go ham
They're my two favorite Sci-fi shows, and I have room in my heart for both!
Same here, but B5 will always be my number one.
It's both 10% sillier and 10% darker at the same time 🙂
FUKOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOV
Ah TIL.
I thought that was a porn parody like that:
https://www.imdb.com/de/title/tt1977920/
nah. but if you're a fan of trek and B5, it's fucking hilarious.
There's just so much love going into it. You can't savage something so badly without a certain adoration.
Its so wonderfully stupid and clever at the same time
I heard about the story about how Paramount turned down the Babylon 5 pitch, then turned around and made Deep Space 9. Of course the two shows went in different directions, and are each great in different ways. But there are eyebrow-raising surface similarities. Both shows are named after a numbered space station, feature a commander who is a prophesized savior, have long story arcs, explore moral complexity.
Yesterday I watched the movie pilot, The Gathering. There is another similarity I hadn't realized before: both commanders are romantically involved with a freighter caption whose name starts with "Ca"!
it's interesting the ways they got more similar as they went on, too. there's one particular plot point that B5 does later on, after realizing they had accidentally been foreshadowing it, that comes from the pilot of DS9. i'm not saying they copied it but they couldn't exactly unwatch it either. the suits at Paramount definitely fucked over JMS when they stole the basic premise, but once both shows were on the air i think they both benefitted from the unintentional dialogue between them
and fun fact: Lyta's actress was also an extra and stunt double on DS9. reportedly she got a lot of complements on B5 in very hushed tones on the Paramount lot
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