Line #75 YMMV/BabylonFive


1	* {{Adorkable}}:
2	** David Corwin. The scenes involving him trying to buy and give roses to Ivanova, and his ownership of a Love Bat, especially. He just has a big smile on his face as he is demonstrating the bat which gives short, saccharine statements to Lochley.
3	** Vir Cotto. His quiet, generally bumbling manner slips him into this territory.
4	* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: The Shadows and the Vorlons. It's stated by WordOfGod that their respective questions, "What do you want?" and "Who are you?" become [[ArmorPiercingQuestion armor-piercing]] when turned back on them, because the Shadows no longer know what they want and the Vorlons no longer know who they are. And yet, the way we see the Shadow War play out and finally end indicates that they ''do'' have answers to both those questions, though they are, as Sebastian might say, incorrect. What do the Shadows want? To beat the Vorlons. What do the Vorlons want? To beat the Shadows. Who are the Shadows? Agents of Chaos. Who are the Vorlons? Lords of Order. They could, in effect, represent the boiling down of these questions and their answers beyond the point of usefulness. The repetition of the questions that appears when the Vorlons and Shadows (or more usually, their agents) ask them is deliberate, to keep paring away answers to strip a person to the very core of who they are or what they want. In the end, the Vorlons and Shadows have gone ''beyond'' that, to a place where, while they have an answer to "Who are you?" and "What do you want?" those answers are shallow and, ultimately, meaningless. [[spoiler:And thus, this is why Lorien's question is of a much different cast: "Do you have anything worth living for?" requires a lot more introspection to answer in full.]]
5	* {{Anvilicious}}: Boy, howdy. JMS wanted to make an Important Show Full of Significant Messages, and he wanted to make sure you ''knew'' it. Almost every episode has a moral, usually delivered with a sledgehammer (like "Parliament of Dreams"). He gets more graceful after the first season, but subtlety is never his priority. By and large, though, most of them are pretty good aesops.
6	** The end of "And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place", where [[spoiler:Refa is killed]], interspersed with a gospel song about how bad people are going to get what's coming to them.
7	** "Infection" was one such episode where JMS admitted the moral had ''too'' heavy-handed a delivery. Given it was the first episode filmed after the pilot, he could perhaps be forgiven.
8	* ArcFatigue: The telepath colony in season 5. A hotel maid accidentally threw out JMS' notes for the season, and that was the only part he could clearly remember his plans for, resulting in it taking up far too much space.
9	* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: [[AwesomeMusic/BabylonFive Has its own page]].
10	* BaseBreakingCharacter: Marcus Cole caused huge trouble while the show was being broadcast, with all out war between the fans who thought he was a fun GentlemanSnarker and the ones who thought that he was an irritating Gary Stu who'd only been brought in as MrFanservice. Things got even worse when [[spoiler:he died (mostly) at the end of the fourth season, and his anti-fans celebrated while his fans launched a fervent campaign for his resurrection.]]
11	* BetterOnDVD: It's easier to follow the arc-based story structure. It also makes Season 5's [[ArcFatigue telepath arc]] better, since you can move along faster.
12	* BrokenBase: Whether Season One is worth watching all the way through, or only selected episodes that are key to later plots, and whether Season Five is worth watching at all apart from the previously-created finale.
13	* CatharsisFactor: Part of why the show has aged so well - after watching the bad guys' psychotic villainy built up over the course of so many episodes, watching them get their just deserts is ''immensely'' satisfying.
14	** [[spoiler:Lord Refa]] getting beaten to death by a vengeful mob of angry Narns. The black preacher leading a [[SoundtrackDissonance lively cover of a Christian hymnal]] about the wicked getting their punishment when Judgment Day arrives really drives it home.
15	** Londo finally getting one over Morden [[spoiler:by blowing up the island where the Shadows are stationed, then killing the two Shadows in the room, and finally ordering Morden's execution. After three seasons of them being [[EldritchAbomination unstoppable demons]], it's beyond satisfying to watch the Shadows and their servant truly, utterly ''lose'' completely.]]
16	* CompleteMonster:
17	** [[PresidentEvil President (William) Morgan Clark]] is the former Vice President and eventual dictator of Earth. Taking office after arranging his predecessor's assassination, Clark quickly establishes himself as a [[FantasticRacism xenophobic]] fascist who justifies his naked power grabs by claiming they're done to protect Earth from alien sabotage. He creates the [[SecretPolice Nightwatch]], turns news outlets into his {{propaganda machine}}s, and conducts torture on political enemies so they confess to crimes they're innocent of. Upon enacting MartialLaw, Mars refused to obey President Clark's decree. In retaliation, he bombed their civilian centers. When Babylon 5 secedes from Earth until President Clark is removed for his crimes, Clark wages war against Sheridan and the station. One of his most notable atrocities is slaughtering 10,000 refugees fleeing the war just to [[MakeAnExampleOfThem send a message]]. Clark also has no loyalty to his troops, trying to kill some in a FalseFlagOperation to turn public opinion against Babylon 5. When the war turns against him and his capture is imminent, President Clark opts to commit suicide, but not before enacting SCORCHED EARTH: With a final act of spite, Clark turned Earth's own defense grid against it to [[TakingYouWithMe destroy the entire planet]] rather than allow anyone else to rule it.
18	** Seasons 2 & 3: [[SmugSnake Lord Antono Refa]] is a Centauri [[AristocratsAreEvil nobleman]] and politician defined by his [[AmbitionIsEvil limitless ambition]] and utter willingness to murder millions of innocents for his own advancement. While he claims he wants to "return the Centauri to Glory", in reality [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist he only cares about himself]] and plans on claiming the Imperial Throne. Refa sabotages his own people's military and economy to undermine his Emperor, Turhan, and stages the assassination of Turhan's loyal prime minister to remove resistance for Refa's candidate for emperor, the psychopathic Cartagia. Refa consolidates his own power by framing and executing political opponents for treason, disgracing their families, and exploiting the law to steal their property, such as what he attempted to do to a war hero who asked too many questions. Personally overseeing the Centauri's war against the Narns, Refa uses illegal [[ColonyDrop mass drivers to bombard the Narn home world]], targeted civilian centers, created death camps and initiated genetic cleansing programs. Throwing his lot in with [[ScaryDogmaticAliens the Shadows]], Refa exploits the alliance by waging war against other alien worlds. Refa served as a [[EvilCounterpart dark shadow]] of Londo Mollari, showing what he would be if he [[TheUnfettered cast aside all scruples]] in the pursuit of power.
19	** Season 4: [[TheCaligula Emperor Cartagia]] is the psychopathic ruler of the Centauri Republic, a [[AxCrazy madman]] whose murderous and mercurial moods leave his courtiers living in perpetual terror. Those who disagree with, criticize or even annoy him with things as mundane as a constant cough, are decapitated, [[MummiesAtTheDinnerTable their heads kept in a secret room for Cartagia to converse with at his leisure]]. When a jester makes a joke at Cartagia's expense, he at first [[HopeSpot pretends to be unoffended]], only to then kill him. After G'Kar is captured, Cartagia becomes obsessed with breaking him by [[LovesTheSoundOfScreaming making him scream]], so he has him [[ColdBloodedTorture tortured for hours straight]] by his best torturer, then, when that fails to elicit a response, Cartagia [[TortureTechnician tortures him personally]]. He only refrains from cutting off G'Kar's hands because he passed out and it wouldn't be fun without a reaction. Later, he has one of G'Kar's [[EyeScream eyes plucked out]] because he didn't like the way G'Kar was looking at him. He then takes G'Kar to the Narn home world for a public trial and vivisection to crush the enslaved Narns' spirits. Cartagia's ultimate plan is to use his alliance with the Shadows to provoke their nemeses, the Vorlons, into [[OmnicidalManiac destroying Centauri Prime]]. While the Centauri believe their emperors become gods upon death, Cartagia wants to [[GodhoodSeeker become a god while alive]], planning to be off world while his home world dies. Cartagia sees no problem with the eradication of his species since he thinks their lives would be meaningless without him, and wants Centauri Prime to burn as an inauguration pyre to mark his ascension into godhood. How horrible is Cartagia? Meeting him convinces [[OOCIsSeriousBusiness Vir that Cartagia must die.]]
20	** "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS01E09Deathwalker Deathwalker]]": [[ANaziByAnyOtherName Jha'Dur]], known as [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Deathwalker]] is a Dilgar war criminal and the worst example her species had to offer. Known for [[PlayingWithSyringes performing gruesome experiments]] upon innocents, Jha'Dur finds herself upon Babylon 5, and when cornered, she unveils a grand scheme to offer immortality to the other planets' governments. Earth accepts her offer and Deathwalker reveals to Commander Jeffrey Sinclair that immortality would require cannibalism, forcing civilizations to fall upon and destroy each other. The [[ForTheEvulz sheer delight]] she took in watching others suffer was nearly unmatched in the series.
21	* CrackPairing: [[LoveAtFirstPunch Marcus/Neroon]] is ridiculously popular with the fandom.
22	* CrossesTheLineTwice: Cartagia walking up to Londo & Co. in his pure white suit, except for his entirely blood-red hands, and in a ''bored'' tone of voice, talks about how his torturers--"excuse me, pain technicians, they ''used'' to be called torturers but ever since they [[WeirdTradeUnion got organized]] it's been ''pain technicians''"--just couldn't manage to make G'Kar scream, and, well, he'd just had to do it himself... On its own, the scene would be horrifying, but between the way the scene is written and Wortham Kimmer's utterly bored delivery as Cartagia you can't help but laugh.
23	** Then he pours the bloody water he rinsed his hands in on some flowers in the garden, to help them grow.
24	** What really sells the comedic aspect of the scene is [[ChewingTheScenery Vir's facial contortions]] as he listens in growing horror to the Emperor.
25	** There's also Cartagia [[https://66.media.tumblr.com/c24036a2ffa30c9cf8f4fe76fecff6a1/tumblr_mvdbtaHafo1s3yy1io1_r4_400.gif casually throwing the towel]] he dried his hands on at the aide standing next to him but rather than catching it the towel sails right past his head and the aide could do nothing but smile while hiding his exasperation. It was a small moment but actually hilarious.
26	** The end of "And the Rock Cried Out, No Hiding Place." [[spoiler:Lord Refa being brutally murdered by a gang of Narn]] would be grim and kind of horrible, at best coldly satisfying. Intercut it with that song in particular and show people celebrating as they sing it, and the scene becomes [[RefugeInAudacity an exercise in such sheer audacity]] that it skips gaily back over the line. All to help kill any sympathy one might have for [[spoiler:Lord Refa]]. JMS, in describing the scene, refers to it as "counterpoint," and describes a similar scene in ''{{Film/Cabaret}}'' which inspired him.
27	* DracoInLeatherPants: Morden in the official spin-off novel ''The Shadow Within'', which most fans consider non-continuity as a result. Specifically, the novel's depiction of Morden joining the Shadows not for cowardice, gain, or because he agreed with their ideology, but because they {{Mercy Kill}}ed his family, who were [[AndIMustScream trapped in an eternal instant of agony]] by a jump accident.
28	* EnsembleDarkHorse: See [[EnsembleDarkHorse/BabylonFive here.]]
29	* FandomRivalry: During the original broadcast, it was practically compulsory in online fandom to hate on ''Star Trek'' in general, and in particular ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine''. This was worsened by Straczynski's claim that Paramount had plagiarized the concept of ''Deep Space 9'' from early ''Babylon 5'' pitch documents.[[note]]JMS considered suing Paramount, but Creator/WarnerBros told him that Paramount might countersue and ''both shows'' would not be made, so he backed off.[[/note]] Even at the time, however, a lot of fans quietly enjoyed both shows, and it's now perfectly acceptable to be a public fan of both.
30	** And it should be noted that the rivalry existed almost exclusively within the fandom. The cast and crew of both shows felt no hostility towards each other, and would often congratulate each other on well done episodes. This was most evident when Majel Barrett, Creator/GeneRoddenberry's widow and who had several recurring roles on ''Trek'' series, including as the computer, guest starred in an episode of B5, and often encouraged ''Trek'' fans to try the show out at conventions. Walter Koenig (Chekov on ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'') also had a recurring role as Bester. Though Straczynski has also said that he considered making an appearance on ''[[Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine [=DS9=]]]'' to reciprocate, but decided against it due to how seeing his face would likely cause many fans to instantly shut off the TV.
31	* FanonDiscontinuity: Some fans of the show prefer to view Londo and G'Kar's future in "War Without End" as an alternate potential future rather than the actual one and also would rather not pay acknowledge the Drakh episodes that make that future into a reality.
32	* GeniusBonus:
33	** In 1848, Giuseppe Garibaldi led the Italian revolutionaries known as Red Shirts. "RedShirt" is a fan nickname for the disposable security guards on the original ''Series/{{Star Trek\|The Original Series}}''. On B5, the head of station security is Michael Garibaldi.
34	** Londo's "Purple Folder" is an encrypted file containing all the secrets he's gathered about his rivals in the Centauri royalty (S3 E01 "Born To The Purple"). "Purple" was also the American name for the Japanese Foreign Office encryption cipher used from February 1939 through the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWar2.
35	* GenreTurningPoint: Arguably for the entire genre of dramatic television in America, not just in sci-fi, but American television ''period.'' Story arcs were already common in US TV, but ''B5'' pioneered the use of long-range {{Story Arc}}s that would take years to unfild, which executives previously did not expect American audiences to embrace. While ''B5'' was never a mainstream hit, it did prove that US audiences could be loyal viewers of a complex, multi-layered story that had a planned ending. Every subsequent prestige US dramatic TV show (''Series/{{Lost}}'', ''Series/BreakingBad'', ''Series/TheWalkingDead'', ''Series/GameOfThrones'', you name it, etc.) which has followed that path owes a debt to ''Babylon 5''. ''B5'' was not the first American TV show to have a MythArc (the term originated with ''Series/TheXFiles'', and the concept in US TV terms dates back to at least ''Series/TheFugitive''), but it was the first American series to work out a complex and complete MythArc in advance of shooting a single episode. Nowadays, a well-reasoned and planned MythArc for quality dramatic TV [[OnceOriginalNowCommon is the norm]], not the exception.
36	* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: A CultClassic in America, the show met with bigger audience across the pond. The conventions back home were modest in attendance, which left the actors ill-prepared for the Elvis-like reception they got in the UK.
37	* GrowingTheBeard: The beard-growing started in the middle of season one, when Morden first arrived and the arc started to kick in. The first season finale and Captain Sheridan's arrival at the start of season two kicks it up another notch. And the beard is indisputably fully grown by the end of "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS02E09TheComingOfShadows The Coming of Shadows]]". Sheridan doesn't ''literally'' grow a beard until he's taken prisoner near the end of season four.
38	* HarsherInHindsight: [[HarsherInHindsight/BabylonFive Has its own page]].
39	* HeartwarmingInHindsight: In "A Quality of Mercy" June Lockhart's character says she may have as much as 20 years left. Lockhart, already 69 at the time, did indeed live that much longer and, as of this writing, still counting.
40	* SugarWiki/HeReallyCanAct:
41	** Creator/WalterKoenig proved once and for all that he was so much more than cuddly Pavel Chekov, after his semi-recurring role as the intense, manipulative Psi Cop Alfred Bester.
42	** Andreas Katsulas was, to American audiences, mostly known as an actor who portrayed bit sci-fi parts (like Tomalak on ''Star Trek The Next Generation'') or vaguely European thugs (as he did as the One-Handed Man in ''Film/TheFugitive''). It was ''[=B5=]'' that proved to the world what his fellow Greeks had known for ages: Katsulas was a once-in-a-generation-level talent, and his performance as G'Kar stands as his magnum opus in English.
43	** Creator/ClaudiaChristian, who was at the time most famous for providing fanservice for directors on a budget, managed to give Susan Ivanova both strength and vulnerability, creating a very compelling character.
44	* HesJustHiding: A few somewhat nontraditional instances of the trope are applied not to specific individuals, but a [[DeathOfPersonality personality]] and two alien races, show up among some fans.
45	** While [[spoiler:Talia Winters is never seen again after becoming a ManchurianAgent erases her original personality, some fans think that a data crystal Kosh made of her has the potential to bring her old self back]].
46	** WordOfGod indicates that the few Markabs [[ButWhatAboutTheAstronauts left alive in isolated colonies after "Confessions and Lamentations"]] don't have a big enough population to save their species from going extinct, but some fans like to think otherwise.
47	** While Jha'dur is called the SoleSurvivor of her (admittedly sinister) race after the Dilgar homeworld went up in a supernova, many fans think their expansionist attitude could have made the Dilgar set up a hidden colony or two that missed their military defeat and exile back home. WordOfGod dismisses this by stating the Dilgar are "as dead as doornails".
48	* HoYay:
49	** Played with hilarious LampshadeHanging during Marcus and Franklin's trip to Mars due to a SmithicalMarriage in their stolen [=IDs=].
50	** Londo and G'Kar from late season 4 on. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] in a season 5 episode when two workers who encounter them ''for the first time'' comment on their relationship with: "How long have they been married?" The irony is, they technically have been married, at least according to ''Minbari'' tradition, since the middle of ''Season One!''
51	** There's a DVDCommentary in which Jerry Doyle jokingly refers to the scene in which Garibaldi confronts Franklin over Franklin's drug abuse as seeming as if Garibaldi might be about to make a love confession.
52	** JMS actually made a point to occasionally have pairs of background extras act like gay couples. His thinking was that homosexuality was more or less a completely accepted practice at the time thanks to contact with aliens making anything humans do seem more "normal."
53	* HomegrownHero: Practically all the human representatives, if their origins are explored, are from the US, the Russian Susan Ivanova being a notable exception.
54	** Sinclair is from Mars, though it's not mentioned as frequently as Ivanova's origin. Similarly, Marcus is from a distant colony which was destroyed by the Shadows.
55	* IdiotBall: In the season 4 arc, Garibaldi is hired by a man who is going up against the Psi Corps, who can program people and easily wipe human memory. Garibaldi disappeared from Babylon 5 for two weeks earlier that year, yet the client accepts the fact that Garibaldi doesn't remember what happened to him, verified by a telepathic scan by a member of the Psi Corps. To no one's surprise but the client's, Garibaldi had been programmed to get close to him and bring him down.
56	* IronWoobie: Vir becomes this as part of his CharacterDevelopment. Constantly put upon, he refuses to stoop to the level of people like Morden, and always stays true to his principles, come what may. Londo even comments on it [[spoiler: when Vir gets blind drunk after assassinating Emperor Cartagia]] in the 4th season. He states that he envies Vir for still being so idealistic [[spoiler: that he thinks he can't live with himself for killing an AxCrazy genocidal maniac]].
57	* JerkassWoobie: Londo. Even at his absolute worst in the second and third seasons, his original motivation is so sympathetic and his moral conflict so clear that you never really give up on him. And the consequences that happen to him later are absolutely horrible and heart-wrenching.
58	* LesYay: I mean, ''come on''. Talia and Susan? Is it not that obvious? [[spoiler: When they had their sleepover, the sexual tension could have been cut with a knife!]] WordOfGod says they actually did have sex the night Talia stayed over at Ivanova's place. [[spoiler: Later Ivanova says "I think I loved Talia."]] The genius of it is that it's played so magnificently subtly, it can be read almost any way the viewer wants. Even Ivanova's declaration of love could be taken as friendly love instead of romantic. One of the sharpest pieces of both writing and acting in show filled with sharp writing and acting. Even the fact that they were sharing a bed ''could'' be seen platonically (after all, it's not like Ivanova has a spare bedroom in her quarters).
59	** Some fans think that the implied depth of the relationship between Delenn and Susan after John's death might imply a sexual one, especially the description of Susan's tomb as created by Delenn in "Death, Time and the Incurable Romantic".
60	* LGBTFanbase: Talia and Susan have an implied relationship (confirmed by the creator), with Susan later saying she loved Talia, which has resulted in them being popular with queer women.
61	* MagnificentBastard:
62	** Londo Mollari, despite his buffoonish exterior, steadily grows into true magnificence. In one famous instance, Londo blackmails his rival, the monstrous Antono Refa into helping him using a complex gambit with a poison. Londo proceeds to create a plan to rescue the [[Characters/BabylonFiveCentauriRepublic Centauri]] from their mad Emperor Cartagia and later arranges a plan to lure Refa to his death at the hands of the [[Characters/BabylonFiveNarnRegime Narns]] when Londo believes Refa murdered the love of Londo's life. For this, Londo simply tells the truth about Refa's horrific crimes and vows to free Narn prisoners in exchange for the Narns murdering Refa. Londo later even manages to outwit [[Characters/BabylonFiveTheShadows the Shadows]] and their servant Morden, blowing up an entire island to wipe out the Shadow presence on Centauri, even ascending to the throne himself. Even when the Drakh think Londo defeated and broken, he works against them to ensure the freedom of Centauri, even at the end when it costs his own life with his once greatest enemy turned best friend G'kar of Narn.
63	** [[OldMaster Kosh Naranek]] is the Vorlon Ambassador to Babylon 5 and an enigmatic figure who [[{{Koan}} often speaks in riddles]] and resides in an encounter suit. With his long curiosity in the development of the younger races, Kosh has helped guide them to the Vorlon designs. Upon arrival of John Sheridan to Babylon 5, Kosh makes him into his pupil, even as he [[SternTeacher manipulates him and numerous others]] across the station. Training Sheridan to face "legends", Kosh likewise manipulates the Narn resistance leader G'kar to better enable him to lead his people in the aftermath of their darkest hour. [[HeroicSacrifice Sacrificing his life]] to push the Vorlons into war, Kosh ensures a piece of him remains in Sheridan to later save his life and to defeat his former comrade Ulkesh to allow humanity to stop both Vorlons and the Shadows.
64	** Alfred Bester is a charming [[Characters/BabylonFiveTelepaths psychic]] operative who combines ruthless scheming with an infuriating charisma that drives the heroes crazy even as they are forced to respect his skill. Bester can do this even when his telepathic powers have been removed, frequently arriving on Babylon 5 and twisting events to suit his purposes or the purpose of the Psi-Corps. In one such instance, Bester tricks a prisoner by claiming he can read his mind, even when Bester has been blocked from doing so, relying on bluffs and gambits to get the information he desires when he simply suspected the prisoner ''must'' must be lying. Bester frequently enacts daring schemes either for the benefit of the Corps or himself, only breaking from his self-serving nature when the woman he loves is threatened by the Shadows, stating that it has made Babylon 5's war his own.
65	* MemeticBadass / MemeticPsychopath: John "[[FanNickname Nuke 'Em]]" Sheridan. Known for the unbeatable strategy of dealing with any foe via:
66	->1. Attempt to reason with the enemy and resolve situation nonviolently
67	->2. [[NukeEm Nuke the enemy]]
68	->3. Verify enemy's destruction
69	->4. If enemy has been destroyed, declare victory. If not, [[WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer refer back to step 2.]]
70	** It should be noted, he never had to go back to step 2.
71	* MoralEventHorizon:
72	** [[TheCaligula Emperor Cartagia]] manages to cross it in the same episode he's introduced.
73	** President Clark ordering airstrikes against civilian targets on Mars.
74	* {{Narm}}:
75	** That immortal line from the Season 2 episode Spider in the Web. "I'm already dead, Mr. Security-Man!" Who didn't [[MemeticMutation ROFLcopter]] at that line?
76	** The otherwise-great intro ends on "The year is 22XX. The name of the place, is Babylon 5!" Comes off as very awkward. Thankfully changed in season 4, to just "The year is 22XX. The place: Babylon 5."
77	** In these days when long-form storytelling on TV is much more the norm, the amount of hand-holding the show does to make sure viewers are keeping up with its story can get pretty silly, especially in Season 4 where numerous episodes open with an onslaught of AsYouKnow.
78	** The holographic monster the techno-mages conjure to scare Vir in "The Geometry of Shadows" is pretty goofy, even setting aside the dodgy CGI.
79	* NarmCharm: The entirety of "A Late Delivery from Avalon". Creator/MichaelYork [[LargeHam hamming it up]] as a [[TheWoobie woobie]] [[TheAtoner atoner]] who thinks he's King Arthur? Pure unadulterated cheese of the best kind.
80	* OlderThanTheyThink: The show is praised as a trailblazer of serialized entertainment, but some people take that to mean it is the first serialized prime time series. While few of any shows ever had a full five year plan plotted out from the start, non-soap opera television had already produced some notable serialized works like ''Series/CrimeStory'', ''Series/HillStreetBlues'', ''Series/{{Wiseguy}}'', and certain ''Series/DoctorWho'' installments.
81	* OnceOriginalNowCommon:
82	** Particularly if you've already seen other, subsequent, MythArc SpaceOpera shows such as ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica\|2003}}''. Back in 1994 the idea of a syndicated TV show having a continuing, multi-seasonal arc was unheard of, now it's practically required. Although even these days, you don't really see any shows where the creator went so far as to plan out ''the entire story'' from day one. Also, Babylon 5 is still impressive by how well they pulled it off. It mostly rewards repeated viewings, while the "making it up as we go along" nature of shows like ''Series/{{Lost}}'' and ''Battlestar Galactica'' becomes more apparent on re-watch. The show has even been noted by [[Creator/BobChipman some]] as being ripe for a reboot, in these days when TV networks are far more open to serialized stories.
83	** The romance between Ivanova and Talia now comes off as quite tepid, but JMS did fully intend to take it further if Andrea Thompson hadn't left the show (he made sure early on that both actresses would be okay with physical romance scenes, to which they responded by passionately making out), to a level unheard of at a time that even predates [[Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Willow and Tara]]. His later work on ''Series/{{Sense8}}'' stands as proof that he's not shy ''at all'' about this kind of material.
84	* OneSceneWonder: President Levy's EmergencyPresidentialAddress in "In the Beginning" is her only scene, but the sheer [[TearJerker lump-in-the-throat-inducing power]] of her RousingSpeech makes it easily one of the most memorable scenes in the entire franchise.
85	* PopularityPolynomial: Despite its cult following, the series was not seen in reruns after it left the airwaves, but it has found a new audience on Amazon Prime Video and with airings on Sinclair Broadcasting's Comet digital subchannel. HBO Max adding it to their service is increasing its visibility, and it's getting new attention with the recent word of a reboot in the works.
86	* QuestionableCasting: Some of the guest appearances are hilarious misfires in retrospect. You’ve got Creator/MartinSheen! Except he’s barely recognizable under heavy alien makeup. So you cast Creator/IanMcShane to act with him! Except [=McShane=]’s character has lots of technobabble lines, which he hates, and he can barely keep a straight face looking at Sheen’s makeup. [=McShane=] has said ''The River of Souls'' was the most embarrassing experience of his career, and admitted he started improvising lines out of frustration at the script.
87	* ReplacementScrappy: Elizabeth Lochley - rather unavoidable as she was replacing the much-beloved Susan Ivanova. As a matter of fact, her character is already [[SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute so similar]], it's a lot easier if you just pretend they recast Ivanova.
88	* RetroactiveRecognition:
89	** Mira Furlan (Delenn) went on to play a [[WildHair wild-haired]] CrazySurvivalist on ''Series/{{Lost}}''.
90	** Ken Jenkins (Trevor Hall, captain of the Heracles) later played Dr. Kelso on ''Series/{{Scrubs}}''.
91	** Matthew Stoner [[Series/{{Angel}} only got creepier as he got older]]. Plus he ''really'' hates spiky-haired vampires.
92	** Creator/BryanCranston appears in "The Long Night" as a dedicated Ranger captain.
93	* TheScrappy: Introduced in the fifth season, which many fans consider to be [[AudienceAlienatingEra inferior to the other four]], Byron is a Fabio-haired rogue telepath [[spoiler:and former Psi-Cop]] who dreams of founding a colony of telepaths. He's broody, introspective, a devout pacifist to the point of looking Christ-like, and managed to rub the fans in entirely the wrong way. He and his telepaths are just plain creepy, the way they dress like Creator/AnneRice characters and never speak (one character {{lampshade\|Hanging}}s this by saying they look like a flock of crows). Most fans prefer to pretend that his brief character arc never occurred. Fortunately, [[spoiler:his messianic fiery death]] cheered up viewers immensely.
94	* SeasonalRot:
95	** The consensus is that the fifth and final season suffered this badly, particularly during the "Telepath Colony" arc, which suffered from being [[ArcFatigue overlong]] and centering around a new character widely considered to be [[TheScrappy dull and uncharismatic]]. The "overlong" part was mainly due to the show's potential cancellation at the end of the fourth season, which caused many plot arcs destined for the fifth season to be crammed in early, leaving relatively little for the last season to work with.
96	** To a lesser degree, Season 4 gets this as well, also due to the plot cramming, which caused weird pacing issues.
97	* {{Sequelitis}}: ''Crusade'' has its share of problems, but a failure to incite laughter isn't one of them. Fans still poke fun at ''Legend of the Rangers'' for the weapons officer and her CG 'gun turret.' ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is [[UnusualUserInterface the best interface]]. (The original concept was a weapons chair which would have been more like ''Film/TheLastStarfighter''.) The Hand is supposed to be older and even worse than the Shadows and yet their minions are defeated by [[WhatAPieceOfJunk an obsolete flying brick]] with a mediocre crew. ''Twice''. And what happened to casting character actors? Never mind, this fella's got a leading man's chin.
98	* SpecialEffectsFailure: The overall quality of the special effects (especially the [[TechnologyMarchesOn early 90s CGI]]) is the only thing about this show that has ''not'' stood the test of time.
99	** The version of the Drakh that appears in one scene in Season 4 is never seen again, and for good reason: it looks like someone got hold of Creator/RickMoranis' [[Film/{{Spaceballs}} Dark Helmet]] costume and spray-painted it to look like [[WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983 Skeletor]]. Even filming it through a deliberately blurred lens can't make it look like a living creature, and not a hunk of rubber or plastic.
100	** A couple of episodes of ''Series/{{Crusade}}'' introduce that kind of Drakh again with a better make-up design, with the implication that the Drakh have a FantasticCasteSystem with that type as a warrior and the one we saw on Centauri Prime as a leader caste. Also, WordOfGod eventually admitted that the blur effect was because they tried to get the actor to do weird alien movement and it just looked stupid.
101	** The series uses quite a bit of CGI, none of which looks remotely convincing even by the standards of the time -- let alone by today's standards. Although, this can produce a HeartwarmingInHindsight effect when you remember that it proves we'll forgive bad special effects if the story is good enough.
102	*** While the CGI can look pretty bad when it's mixed with (or replacing) live actors, the ships hold up pretty well (even if they do look a little "too slick.") But the CGI spaceships let them pull off some serious SugarWiki/VisualEffectsOfAwesome, such as Starfuries pivoting on their axis to shoot pursuing fighters, as well as having relatively realistic ranges in big space battles (and having big space battles to begin with on the show's shoestring budget.) A British computing magazine did an extensive article on the show and its use of Amiga/Video Toaster systems and Lightwave to generate the effects. The tagline for the article was "''Franchise/StarWars'' effects on a ''Series/DoctorWho'' budget" [[note]]The article in question pre-dates the ''Doctor Who'' reboot with its slick production values, at the time most people thought of ''Doctor Who'' as the show with the rubber aliens and cardboard sets.[[/note]]
103	*** There is at least a reasonable excuse as to the poor quality of [=CGI=] in interior shots, at least as far as the [=DVD=] versions are concerned. The original video masters were shot in what would today be considered high definition widescreen. At the time, the video was reduced to 4:3 standard and the [=CGI=] elements included later. Which was fine. The idea was that it was easier to downconvert from widescreen to standard than vice versa. Perfectly reasonable. But when time came to convert the video to [=DVD=] specifications, many of those masters and, more importantly, the [=CGI=] effect masters, were lost or simply not used. This resulted in the standard definition shots made for television being converted to widescreen, with more or less acceptable success, but the [=CGI=] could not be reinserted the same way without the masters as a reference without a great deal of effect recreation which the studio did not want to spend the money on, which meant that in scenes with computer special effects in them, the video would have to be stretched to accommodate the new shot. This meant that in every shot with a mix of both real and computer effects (primarily shots involving holograms, [=PPG=] shots, or exterior space views) that there would be an ''immense'' drop in video quality.
104	*** This is all (finally) fixed in the 2021 remaster. With modern technology (and the original broadcast negatives) the show's visual quality is finally restored to its original quality and then into HD. While the special effects are still 90's CGI its now a huge improvement on the horrific DVD version and the show is watchable on a modern television.
105	** The show's attempts to create "monsters" are generally not very good. The worst include the Nakaleen Feeder in "Grail", the show's first attempt at an all-CGI "character", which looks utterly artificial and devoid of interaction with the physical sets and actors, and the terrible physical costume for the Zarg in "Grey 17 is Missing".
106	** An attempt was made to simulate Sheridan's office having a view of the station's interior without having to render the interior in every shot; the result was an obvious painting that the characters occasionally claim is a window.
107	%%* StoicWoobie: Susan.
108	%%Why? Do not uncomment this example without expanding it.
109	* StrawmanHasAPoint: In season 4 after [[spoiler:Garibaldi]] is brainwashed, he develops an irrational hatred of Sheridan. While his accusation that Sheridan has started to buy into his own messianic hype is completely bogus, he has a point when he compares Babylon 5 to a military dictatorship. Technically, it's exactly a military dictatorship, albeit one that's trying to be benevolent while still keeping in mind its higher purpose.
110	** A number of StrawmanPolitical characters who visit the station browbeat Sheridan for not taking into account the political ramifications for Earth of his decisions. Considering that he is effectively Earth's ambassador on Babylon 5 in addition to being a military commander in a key region of space, he really ''should'' be considering the policies being pursued by his government and how his actions will impact them. He might be less inclined to do so [[spoiler: once he finds out President Clark had his predecessor assassinated.]]
111	** See also, Neroon in s03e19, "Grey 17 is Missing", as shown in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABOw9cNw5lU this clip]]
112	* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodCharacter: General Richard Franklin, Dr. Franklin's father, has a complicated relationship with his son and is an interesting combination of an OfficerAndAGentleman, a FourStarBadass, AFatherToHisMen, a HeroOfAnotherStory (he is conducting a vital campaign and has nicknames like "Old Firestorm," "The Liberator of the African Bloc," "Hero of the Canal Wars," and "Scourge of Janos VII") and a VillainOfAnotherStory (he has mild authoritarian tendencies, really hates aliens, and supports developing biological weapons). He appears in a grand total of one episode (plus a cameo in the novelization of ''Film/BabylonFiveInTheBeginning''), then is never seen or significantly mentioned again. It isn't even revealed which side of the Earth Alliance Civil War he fights on except through WordOfGod.
113	* TooCoolToLive: [[spoiler: Kosh. He even lampshades this, telling Sheridan that he ''knew'' it had to happen but was in denial and had become scared of the concept of death after living so long.]]
114	* TrappedByMountainLions: Several episodes have major, galaxy-wide ranging A-Plots with B-Plots, who while they might be of great consequence to a specific character, seem petty in comparison to the main plot. Most noticeable is Dr. Franklin's stim addiction problem and subsequent journey to find himself - while the Shadow War is raging. Franklin eventually gets a pretty major WhatTheHellHero speech for running off on his friends while the fate of the Galaxy was in question. [[spoiler: By himself, no less.]]
115	* UglyCute: The pak’ma’ra. It's those sleepy, bovine eyes and tentacle faces.
116	* UnfortunateCharacterDesign: The Brakiri's foreheads look like, well...big sets of testicles. Or butts.
117	* UnintentionalPeriodPiece:
118	** "Incoming message for you, Captain; it's Ambassador Mollari." "Londo? ''[snorts]'' Probably calling Collect." (Still funny, though.)
119	** Zathras proclaiming that he is "trained in crisis management." Buzzwords like that were common in the 90s workplace.
120	** The Zima ad in the background of ''T.K.O.'' was purposely put in there by as a gag. He said he would be amazed if Zima still existed in the 21st Century, let alone the 23rd. (It actually did--briefly.)
121	* UnpopularPopularCharacter: Despite being held in contempt by the characters, many fans find the pak'ma'ra to be rather adorable.
122	* ValuesDissonance:
123	** The show was made right at the tail end of the era where G'Kar using his artificial eye to spy on Sheridan and Delenn's wedding night could have possibly been seen as anything but creepy cyber-stalking, and when Babcom can be turned on by your superior offcer without your consent, even if you're in bed with someone (e.g. Garibaldi and Dodger).
124	** Garibaldi's treatment of Talia in the first season. At the time, Garibaldi's constantly being in the elevator Talia needs to use made him come across as a DoggedNiceGuy who was being too dogged for his own good. Today, it gives off a creepy stalker-vibe. Garibaldi's defenders claim that his behavior is ameliorated by being totally in-character for Garibald, that Talia could kill him with her mind if his advances were entirely unwelcome, and that him doing this saved her life at least once in the comics.
125	** Garibaldi's also gotten flack for his actions as Head of Security. In TheNineties being [[CowboyCop Harry Callahan on the streets]] and [[ByTheBookCop Jim Gordon when at the station]] was seen as acceptable. Not so much after TheNewTens.
126	** The protagonists actions in “[[Recap/BabylonFiveS04E20Endgame Endgame]]”. In the post 9/11 era no one would condone the use of telepaths as suicide bombers without risking comparisons to Al-qaeda, the Taliban, ISIS or any extremist group.
127	* ValuesResonance:
128	** In "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS02E05TheLongDark The Long Dark]]" Creator/DwightSchultz plays an [=EarthForce=] vet with cripplingly bad PTSD [[spoiler:exacerbated by a Shadow creature]]. Probably referred to [[UsefulNotes/TheVietnamWar Vietnam]] originally, but with UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror in the 2000s and hundreds of thousands of vets coming home barely functional...
129	** In the continuing wake of the 2016 American presidential election, the dangers of President Clark's brand of authoritarian ultranationalism and xenophobia seem more relevant than ever before.
130	* VillainHasAPoint[=/=]UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: Byron, who is supposed to be a sympathetic character, came across as very Jim Jones in wanting to make himself a martyr. The way he kept trying to take the fall for "his" people just screamed for attention and worship. Even moreso, he seemed to consistently prove Bester right with how he acted.
131	** There's a little hinting in one of the Psi Corps trilogy books that Byron was some kind of a [[GoodCounterpart conscience for Bester]]: Bester is pretty much scum who will use his own people as disposable tools if need be, Byron is (or was supposed to be) more concerned and responsible toward telepaths. If they'd have played this up more in the show it would have been a better dynamic. Instead Byron just looks like a batshit cult leader with an army of Vidal Sassoon terrorist hippies. We know the actor can do better, so put all the blame down to the hasty writing decisions.
132	** Bester can be this to the heroes, at least Sheridan and the human command crew. Especially in the [[ExpandedUniverse canon Psi Corps novels]] it's clear that telepaths ''have'' been brutally mistreated (with their reveal to humanity resulting in beatings, ostracizing, being locked up "for their own good" and mass murders) and we see even good guys treating telepaths like Lyta and Talia as more tools than people. Bester is not particularly nice, but as his anti-Shadow alliance demonstrates, he genuinely feels his people (telepaths) are a threatened minority at constant risk from mundanes for things like being sold to the Shadows as "weapons components." Never mind Edgars engineering a virus designed to make every human telepath part of a permanent slave class. He's ruthless and isn't any nicer to mundanes than they are to him, but it's hard say he's not ProperlyParanoid. If anything the only difference between him and Byron is Byron wants to run off to a world somewhere far away, while Bester thinks telepaths should eventually supplant mundanes as the dominant version of humans.

Context YMMV / BabylonFive