|
Published on Wednesday, July 16, 2008 - 12:29pm |
|
No More BABYLON 5...Ever ??
|
Taz from the UK sent in a heads up about the status of future BABYLON 5 projects.
In short: BABYLON 5 overgod J. Michael Straczynski (JMS) recently posted a lengthy message at JMSnews.
In the message, he indicated that he & Warners had been discussing further BABYLON 5 projects (probably in the same vein as BABYLON 5: THE LOST TALES, which was released straight-to-DVD last Summer). Warners won't cough up the kind of money JMS feels is necessary to generate good product. JMS has now dismissed the notion of any B5 project other than a feature film. Given the the improbability of a B5 feature film, this pretty much kills BABYLON 5.
See JMS' entire post...
This information has been online for three days and has gotten little-to-no play, which I find rather astonishing. Perhaps this is an indicator that fans's attentions have shifted elsewhere for the moment & that the franchise needs a breather to freshen itself up. Or, perhaps this suggests with finality that B5's time has, simply, come and gone. I don't know.
Personally, I really, really, really want to see more BABYLON 5 - I love it and am convinced there are still great stories to be found in that universe. However, JMS is correct that later B5 endeavors (THE LOST TALES and THE LEGEND OF THE RANGERS) were tragically underfinanced and underproduced - even for a series which was always generated on a dramatically limited budget. They were cheap...in a way that was hard to look past in the era of shows like STAR TREK and HEROES and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA.
More importantly: while I think the breadth of JMS' vision remained healthy, his ability to weave stories in the universe began to feel increasingly challenged. There was a sense that he'd become less and less comfortable on his own playground, and never plugged into the effortless storytelling which permeated much of the earlier series. Maybe the posse of storytellers should've been broadened a bit? Maybe JMS should've done what many creators do & remain a guiding force for the franchise, while sending others out to do the writing & other dirty work he ultimately chose to do himself?
Clint Eastwood's new film CHANGELING, written by JMS, is getting remarkable reviews and word of mouth. Recently, JMS also scripted an adaptation of the WORLD WAR Z. For a while he was plugged into the (apparently defunct) SILVER SURFER movie, and there's indication he may be soon be toiling on a LENSMAN adaptation. It wouldn't be fair to say "he's moved on", but having so much happening in his career undoubtedly makes drawing a hardline about B5 a helluva lot easier. And, his not wanting to short sell B5...and spend so much time and effort just to end up creatively unsatisfied...is quite understandable when there's so much else to fall back on, and so much else at stake.
Still, I hope that B5 is somehow, someday revived - and shown the regard it deserves by Warners & Company. It's a great place to visit, even if our journey there has been troubled and imperfect.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reader Talkback
First!!! To say . . . by kevinwillis.net | Jul 16th, 2008 12:30:30 PM | Noooooooooooooo by gboybama | Jul 16th, 2008 12:31:50 PM | Go the Star Trek Route from
the Early 70s by kevinwillis.net | Jul 16th, 2008 12:32:58 PM | I really liked B5... by Etrigan_ | Jul 16th, 2008 12:37:17 PM | Also news: by fat lenny | Jul 16th, 2008 12:38:08 PM | The story has been told
simply... by Praetor | Jul 16th, 2008 12:40:55 PM | JMS is right by Praetor | Jul 16th, 2008 12:43:51 PM | Maybe it's more to do with the
fact... by Sledge Hammer | Jul 16th, 2008 12:46:24 PM | Simply go the Buffy route... by MCVamp | Jul 16th, 2008 12:50:30 PM | I loved B5, even the last
season without by Grammaton Cleric Binks | Jul 16th, 2008 12:52:50 PM | JMS is right on target by snowpuff | Jul 16th, 2008 12:57:44 PM | Give us a decent DVD set! by frankenstone | Jul 16th, 2008 01:14:00 PM | Praetor by wash | Jul 16th, 2008 01:14:30 PM | No More BABYLON 5...Ever ?? by Hervoyel | Jul 16th, 2008 01:23:43 PM | B5: Our last best hope, by palewook | Jul 16th, 2008 01:34:07 PM | Silver Surfer: Requiem (2007) by palewook | Jul 16th, 2008 01:38:31 PM | As the lights dim on the
station one last time by FatRat | Jul 16th, 2008 01:39:15 PM | B5 has had its day... by RasThavas | Jul 16th, 2008 01:40:29 PM | JMS' Silver Surfer would be a
brilliant film with a decent
direc by SpyGuy | Jul 16th, 2008 01:50:46 PM | I never got B5... by kdoc13 | Jul 16th, 2008 02:08:25 PM | B5 was great in its day by r_number6 | Jul 16th, 2008 02:43:33 PM | A movie is still possible,
though by TheSecondQuest | Jul 16th, 2008 02:56:35 PM | How to save the B5 universe by ArcadianDS | Jul 16th, 2008 04:30:13 PM | "Bilbo? Babylon 5 was a big
pile of shit!" by Brians Life | Jul 16th, 2008 04:30:44 PM | Well, if Warners want more B5,
they know what to do then.... by Paul T. Ryan | Jul 16th, 2008 04:34:00 PM | B5 is my favorite sci-fi
series ever, but it is time by Yamato | Jul 16th, 2008 05:28:02 PM | Let it rest B5 fans by ChicagoRonin | Jul 16th, 2008 05:44:21 PM | JMS said (once, a long time
ago) by V'Shael | Jul 16th, 2008 05:46:47 PM | Its Five Year Mission by Dreamfasting | Jul 16th, 2008 06:35:05 PM | Babylon 5, Season 3: greatest
single season of TV by Amy Chasing | Jul 16th, 2008 06:47:03 PM | Great Job, Stracz by Cobbio | Jul 16th, 2008 07:31:30 PM | Alas Babylon 5 I knew Thee
Well! by Real Deal | Jul 16th, 2008 07:32:42 PM | Gone....until it's
"re-imagined" in 20 years. by Drath | Jul 16th, 2008 07:52:56 PM | a show that went off the air
in 2000 has been cancelled. by Napoleon Park | Jul 16th, 2008 08:29:10 PM | No great loss... by gopher | Jul 16th, 2008 08:35:46 PM | That sucks. by JKrow21 | Jul 16th, 2008 10:39:10 PM | RE: drturing by kdoc13 | Jul 16th, 2008 10:45:43 PM | JMS writes: by Amy Chasing | Jul 16th, 2008 10:59:00 PM | Good riddence to bad
rubbish... by Billyeveryteen | Jul 16th, 2008 11:04:32 PM | oh, and JMS wrote that about
the B5 spin-offs, not the
series. by Amy Chasing | Jul 16th, 2008 11:05:27 PM | The production values may have
been poor... by BlueDjinn1 | Jul 16th, 2008 11:23:28 PM | Sledge Hammer is correct by There Are Twelve Models | Jul 16th, 2008 11:46:45 PM | Thank god. by Playkins | Jul 16th, 2008 11:48:34 PM | Tales Was Horrible, Save For
One Story!!! by Media Messiah | Jul 17th, 2008 12:21:19 AM | The Sock Puppet Issue by Calastir | Jul 17th, 2008 01:20:50 AM | Things Babylon 5 taught us by ArianeB | Jul 17th, 2008 03:14:00 AM | Good, let it die already by Conans Sword | Jul 17th, 2008 04:41:54 AM | Remasrered Blu-ray Please by Antz | Jul 17th, 2008 05:02:29 AM | So: Will JoeD, Jan & Amy Get A
Life Now... by RoseBuddy | Jul 17th, 2008 05:08:03 AM | As much as I loved it... by Turtle_Z | Jul 17th, 2008 06:17:57 AM | As much as I loved it... by Turtle_Z | Jul 17th, 2008 06:23:40 AM | R.I.P. B5 by ATARI | Jul 17th, 2008 07:26:29 AM | ArianeB by ATARI | Jul 17th, 2008 07:31:07 AM | Babylon 5 was one of the best
Sci Fi Shows ever by warp11 | Jul 17th, 2008 09:18:52 AM | Without B5 by The Alienist | Jul 17th, 2008 11:16:19 AM | Fucking Bull Shit!! I want
Garabaldi killing Bester by picardsucks | Jul 17th, 2008 02:54:50 PM | THIS IS TAZ FROM THE UK!!
THANK YOU AICN for your help
in gettin by tazzzer | Jul 17th, 2008 06:25:35 PM | I will pour out a little
liquor by _Maltheus_ | Jul 17th, 2008 06:39:49 PM | time to move on by kenmc71 | Jul 17th, 2008 10:02:43 PM | B5 great, but JMS far from
being one-trick pony... by DreamSeasonBobby | Jul 17th, 2008 10:02:50 PM | Jeremiah by _Maltheus_ | Jul 18th, 2008 02:45:38 PM | Jeremiah was messed with by TheSecondQuest | Jul 18th, 2008 05:16:52 PM | Re: Re-mastered DVD 5 season
Box-set with new FXs by Mace Tofu | Jul 18th, 2008 06:36:45 PM |
|
|