Sheridan is in his office when Ivanova comes in. He's worried about their resources with the embargo from Earth. He thinks they have about two or three months until they start running out of things. There's always the black market, but even that's iffy as the penalties for breaking the embargo may make it non-profitable for it to operate. Ivanova assures him she'll take care of it, and then relieves him of command. Sheridan is not amused but this isn't a joke. She thinks he needs some time off since the last time he did was way back before they broke away from Earth. Sheridan gives some weak protests but a determined Ivanova is an immovable object and Sheridan meekly leaves his office to her.
He does ask about Stephen and Marcus, to which Ivanova says they should be making contact soon, then shoos him out. The pair in question are aboard a starliner...in the cargo hold, playing a rousing game of "I Spy". Between Marcus' methods of passing time, and being cooped up for days, Stephen is on the verge of homicide, and then Marcus vanishes. He reappears moments later with a bearded man in a trench coat in a headlock.
- Marcus: It appears we have a spy on our hands.
The two begin questioning the man, who says he's the brother of the ship's pilot, and lets him stowaway every now and then. He manages to convince them that he's not a threat at least and Marcus lets him go. He introduces himself as John Demeter, or as he's more commonly known, Captain Jack (no not that Captain Jack). Jack says he was just going to offer some food, but they have some of their own. Meal bars, but Jack has instantly-heating meal packs that at least smell much more appetizing. Stephen is all for it, but Marcus isn't willing to accept treats from a stranger and shoos him away.
Back on station, Sheridan is channel surfing...or he would be if they weren't all blocked by the comm jamming. Well, ISN is still coming through. Currently on is a rebroadcast of Garibaldi's interview with Dan Randall, where he tells how Sheridan seems to be under some kind of god complex. Sheridan runs off to find him. He asks Michael why he's doing this, where all this anger is coming from, and tries to understand, but keeps getting the brush-off until Sheridan finally loses it, and begins chewing him out, right in the middle of the Zocalo. Sheridan demands that if Garibaldi has a complaint to make it, but any personal attacks stop right here. Garibaldi accuses him of having a messianic complex, and starting to believe his own hype, but Sheridan's not buying it and again demands that if Garibaldi wants to come after him be upfront about it, then storms off.
As the liner approaches Mars, Stephen is griping about the meal bars, while Marcus insists they wait until they have met their contact and verified the pass phrase, which Jack provides. Annoyed, the pair go over to talk to Jack. He wanted to check them out before identifying himself and provides them with decent food and new identicards. The Resistance doesn't usually have pairs come through, so they had to get creative, and set Stephen and Marcus up as a young married couple off on their honeymoon. As the call to disembark comes, Marcus takes Stephen's arm. "Shall we go, darling?" Stephen just rolls his eyes.
On Babylon 5, Garibaldi is approached by a man named Wade about a proposition. He tries to get Garibaldi to work with them against Sheridan, but that's a line he refuses to cross, despite Wade'e assertion that Sheridan has become a threat to his own cause. Garibaldi just walks off.
On Mars Jack is talking as they ride the tram to the Mars dome. There have been crazy rumors about Babylon 5 for months, but the people on Mars are starting to think they and the rest of the Earth colonies have just been written off. Marcus protests that they'd never do that, but they haven't had a chance to do anything with the war going on. Jack hasn't heard anything about that. Marcus is incredulous, thinking they must have heard something, but they haven't gotten anything more than spacer tales.
- Jack: Who won?
Stephen: We did!
Jack: Alright. Good for us, then.
Marcus: Just my luck. For the first time in my life I'm a war hero and nobody knows about it! And worst of all I'm married to you!
Stephen: Well, that's not my idea.
Marcus: Ooh, you say now, tell that to your mother! She'd never stop calling about it. "So when's the big day? I've got to pick out patterns. Your father isn't going to live forever" and on, and on, and on, and on...
Stephen: I hate this. I really hate this.
Jack laughs and joins Marcus in ribbing Stephen.
On Babylon 5, Ivanova meets with a bunch of smugglers to try and arrange some supply lines. They're reluctant since the penalties are way higher than they used to be. Ivanova proposes a deal including fighter escort from at least four jumps away, maintenance on their ships, and fuel. And if they keep B5 supplied, they'll have a base to run out of. And she'll be willing to overlook certain infractions from the past. They only transport what Babylon 5 directs, and they have everything they need to operate.
- Ivanova: What more could you ask for?
Smuggler: You seeing anybody, Ivanova?
Captain Jack leads the dynamic duo through the Martian tunnels to the resistance hideout, until they are confronted by an armed group. Stephen thought they would be expected, but the Resistance is not willing to let them in without a search. they find Marcus' Den'bok, which the guy in charge, Number Two, recognizes as Minbari.
- Marcus: I'm a Ranger.
Number Two: That so? Well, you're a long way from Texas, son. And that ain't the right accent.
He orders the pair brought along. Apparently there's a hit squad out for their leader, Number One, so they're rather paranoid right now. After their real identicards have been verified, Stephen and Marcus will be allowed to meet with Number One.
Delenn finds Sheridan brooding in the garden, and he tells her about his confrontation with Garibaldi. He keeps thinking he can bring Michael around, but Delenn says it's possible that his path simply no longer the same as theirs. Sheridan understands, but doesn't like it, but asks what Delenn was looking for him for. She begins to talk about when Minbari become close...which means she's about to introduce another ritual, one of up to possibly fifty, in their courtship. Sheridan is exasperated, until she explains that this one, the Shan'fal, involves discovering each other's centers of pleasure. Suddenly Sheridan's all ears. It's done respectfully, of course, with prayer and meditation. Delenn gets up saying she will see him in her quarters later.
- Delenn: Unless, of course, you can find something of equal value sitting here and staring at plants and feeling guilty about things you cannot change. (walks off)
Sheridan: (glances around at the plants) Nope.
On Mars Stephen is complaining about the heat in the tunnels, and wondering why Jack keeps his big coat on. He and Stephen being talking a bit, Jack showing a picture of his daughter, which has some contact information on the back. The conversation is cut short when Number Two charges in demanding to know who they are and what they did with their contacts. Apparently the IDs didn't check out, and he gives them thirty seconds to explain who they are. A woman comes in and says two minutes. This apparently is Number One, and she wanted to see them for herself. Jack suddenly begins acting strangely, which Stephen and Marcus notice. They quickly take down their guards as Jack pulls a gun and fires. Marcus returns fire with a guard's weapon and hits Jack in the shoulder causing some tentacled creature to fall off. They go over to look at it, then realize Jack's disappeared.
A short time later Stephen is examining the remains of the creature, while Number Two comes in saying he found their real IDs. Number One doesn't understand why he would betray them, but Stephen tells her that the creature seems to have the ability to take control of a host. It didn't have complete control however, and Jack kept trying to give hints that something was wrong without it noticing, keeping his coat on despite the heat and giving Stephen his daughter's address in case he didn't survive. One of the resistance comes in with news that Jack's gotten into a transport tube with a thermal grenade. They call him and try to get him to come back. He isn't willing to return, since the thing isn't really dead. Even as he speaks it starts to grow back. Before it can reassert control he arms the grenade and blows himself up.
Garibaldi has just finished with a client, when Sheridan comes up to try and apologize, but gets derailed when a Brakiri woman sees him and and begins asking for a blessing. Garibaldi loses it and starts yelling at her that he's not the Pope or a messiah and grabs the woman away. Sheridan protests that he's hurting her and tries to pull him away, and Garibaldi rounds on him with a sock to the jaw. Sheridan lets him have that one, but promises to take his head off after the next one then leaves. With his jaw still aching, he makes his way to Delenn's quarters, but stops short just inside when he sees Lennier and several others there. She explains that they are there for the ritual. While she and him are inside, they will wait outside to pray, meditate and ensure things do not go too far. Sheridan is reluctant but finds himself utterly unable to say "no" to her and lets himself be dragged into the bedroom.
The next morning, Sheridan leaves and gets in a tube to find Lennier there.
- Lennier: Woo-hoo?
Awkward.
On Mars, Number One finds Stephen and Marcus with word from the rest of the Resistance leaders. They're coming but it'll take a couple of days. In the meantime, she's put them up the Red Planet Hotel, where she has some contacts, and notes that for some reason they were given the honeymoon suite.
Back on the station, Wade meets with Garibaldi, who is starting to think Sheridan's lost it. He won't hurt Sheridan, but Wade assures him he won't have to.
- Wade: Are you with us?
Garibaldi: I'm with you.
This episode contains examples of:
- Abhorrent Admirer: After the smuggler asks if she's seeing anyone, Ivanova has a momentary "what have I gotten myself into" look on her face.
- Brick Joke: The Resistance gets Franklin and Marcus fake identicards portraying them as a young married couple. Not much is made of it for a while, then at the end Number One mentions the hotel gave them the honeymoon suite.
- Determinator:Sheridan: There's no chance of me winning this argument, is there?
Ivanova: None whatsoever, I never give up when I'm right. - Doctor's Orders: Ivanova relieves Sheridan of command on the grounds that he's long overdue for taking a break. While she isn't a doctor, she does point out that Sheridan can't do the station any good if he's too strung out from being overworked, and Sheridan reluctantly agrees.
- Dude, Where's My Respect?: Marcus is rather dismayed that no one knows he's a war hero...or even that there was a war.
- Driven to Suicide: Captain Jack knows that the Keeper will grow back, and gets into a transport tube so he can end it without hurting anyone else.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": The leader of the Resistance is known only as Number One.
- Good Old Fisticuffs: Garibaldi knocks Sheridan to the floor with one punch. Sheridan calls off security before they can do anything, saying he'll let Garibaldi have that one because of everything they've been through.
- Great Offscreen War: Ironically all the events of the series are this from the point-of-view of the Mars insurgents, who are focussed on their own troubles, and only get rumours and the distorted news of Earth's Propaganda Machine about what happens on Babylon Five.
- Headlock of Dominance: Captain Jack first appears in one, courtesy of Marcus.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: A more lighthearted example. When Ivanova summarily relieves Sheridan of command to give him a couple days' vacation - and bullies him into surrender - he asks her who taught her to negotiate like that. She sweetly replies that "You did."
- I Die Free: Captain Jack kills himself rather than let the keeper reassert control.
- Interspecies Romance: Sheridan and Delenn take another step in their relationship... one that Sheridan evidently enjoys. While members of her caste observe in the other room and pray for a good night. The next morning in the elevator with Sheridan and Lennier.
Lennier aside glance: "Woo-hoo"? - La Résistance: This episode reintroduces the Mars Resistance fighting against President Clark and EarthGov. Various resistance factions on Mars factored in first and second season episode plots, but this is the first time they begin to take center stage.
- Layman's Terms: Examining the remains of a Drakh keeper Dr. Franklin launches into a technical explanation of his findings before a member of the Martian resistance asks him to provide a simplified explanation.
- Legally Dead: Played for Laughs. Ivanova points out that Sheridan has been declared dead at least once, as further justification that he should take a vacation (and incidentally let her be in charge for a while).
- A Man Is Always Eager: Sheridan goes straight from depressed over Garibaldi and exasperated at yet another Minbari courtship ritual (out of up to fifty, depending on how long the engagement lasts, which types and amounts of offerings are made at temple, and which clan is in dominance at the time) to excited eagerness when Delenn tells him this one involves them "discovering each other's centers of pleasure."
- More Expendable Than You: Ivanova offers to deal with the smugglers for Sheridan since his status as station commander means his good reputation is more important to the station's function.
- My Own Private "I Do": Discussed. Sheridan asks Delenn if, given the sheer number of rituals involved in Minbari courtship, anyone ever just elopes. She tells him that it has been known to happen but is a great disgrace.
- Nom de Guerre: Number One, head of the Mars Resistance.
- Noodle Incident: When Ivanova is making her deal with the smugglers, one of them brings up "that business" with a bottle of... something, which she agrees to overlook. Whatever happened, it was apparently the reason Garibaldi is now bald.
- Out-of-Character Alert: Many of Captain Jack's weird actions, easy to miss for the audience and even the main characters, given that he's new to them. One of the Resistance members who knows him does point out that he's eating constantly, despite being on a diet. Out of context, it just sounds like a fat joke, but by the end of the episode...
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Given how alert Garibaldi usually is, the fact he's willing to accept the help of Sheridan's very suspicious opponents shows that something has really pushed him over the edge.
- Plausible Deniability: Ivanova points out that she can give Sheridan a layer of separation from the black market.
- Properly Paranoid: The Resistance are pretty jumpy. Turns out there's word of a hit on their leader.
- The Pope: ...is apparently female in 2261 and, Garibaldi is quick to point out, looks nothing like Sheridan. JMS has stated this one offhand line identifying the Pope as a woman drew more complaints than anything else in the show.
- Puppeteer Parasite: Capt. Jack is found to have a keeper. They shoot off part of it, but it's only a matter of time before it grows back. Jack kills himself before it can.
- Rhetorical Question Blunder: After explaining her proposal to the smugglers, she asks, "What more could you ask for?" One of them asks if shes seeing anyone.
- Running the Blockade: Ivanova arranges for some smugglers to bring supplies through the Earthforce blockade.
- Shout-Out:
- This episode begins a long tradition of shoutouts to Mars-centric fiction whenever the show focuses on Mars. When Captain Jack is in the transport tube, you can see an advertisement for the Red Planet Hotel (as well as a recruiting poster for Earthforce).
- Jack eating constantly may refer to another incident where someone was famished because he was the host of an alien parasite.
- Spanner in the Works: Sheridan might have been able to repair some bridges with Michael if that Brakiri hadn't started asking for a blessing.
- Spot the Thread: Captain Jack tries desperately to give subtle hints (as anything overt would be blocked by his Keeper) to tell his friends and Franklin something is very wrong with him. He keeps his coat on despite being sweaty and uncomfortable with it. He claims one place has nothing good in it despite it being one of the hottest trade spots. Lastly, he gives Franklin his daughter's photo and address on the back just in case he doesn't make it.
- Something That Begins with "Boring": When the only things to see are stars, boxes, more boxes, and even more boxes.Franklin: And that's when I shot him, Your Honor.
- Spy Speak: How Franklin and Marcus have to identify their resistance contact.Capt. Jack: Lyta had a little Vorlon, her skin was pale as snow. And everywhere that Lyta went, her Vorlon was sure to go.
- Stealth Hi/Bye: Marcus pulls one on Franklin, who gets quite annoyed about it.Franklin: And I really hate it when you do that!
- Tastes Like Feet: Franklin threatens to tell Marcus what their rations taste like in medical terminology.
- Third-Person Person: Capt. Jack. Marcus doesn't trust these types.
- Trust Password: "Lyta had a little Vorlon, her skin was pale as snow. And everywhere that Lyta went, her Vorlon was sure to go." Captain Jack waits quite a while to actually give the pass phrase. He claims it's because he had to make sure they seemed legit first, but it seems possible that he did so because it was funny.
- Unwanted False Faith: A Brakiri woman asks Sheridan for a blessing because he went to Z'ha'dum and returned to life. Sheridan would have let her down gently; unfortunately, Garibaldi sees it as confirmation of his paranoid belief that Sheridan is forming a Cult of Personality around himself and gets incensed.
