Surprisingly, the fifth and final season of Babylon 5 was also its weakest. The reasons are many, ranging from amazingly bad cast-ing to lackluster storylines. The ultimate cause might be that Stra-zynski, thinking he had to wrap up all his storylines in the previous season(when the series seemingly faced imminent cancellation), might have simply run out of creative gas. While JMS continues to put forth that he has always planned everything out from day one, the fact that B5 was in danger of not coming back for a fifth season obviously disrupted the manner in which he was going to tell his story, and perhaps this disruption was responsible for pushing further scripts into production that just weren't as well thought out as he believed. This is all conjecture, of course, but the fact remains: the last chapter of the "novel for television" wound down slowly and petered out. At least, until we finally got to the absolute best episode of the series...

     No Compromises gets the season off to a fairly promising start, with a disgruntled former prison commandant(Anthony Crivello) who served under President Clark blaming Sheridan for his own downfall, and seeking payback by preparing to assassinate the former captain even as he's sworn into office as president of the new Interstellar Alliance. This intriguing storyline is offset by the introduction of a group of peaceful rogue telepaths to the station, led by one Byron(Robin Atkin Downes). Byron entreaties newly installed B5 C.O. Captain Elizabeth Lochley(the gorgeous Tracy Scoggins) to allow his people to establish a colony in Down Below.

     The central problem with the Byron storyline(aside from Downes' unintentionally creepy visage and piss-poor acting) is that the entire storyline arc falls flat, from beginning to end. Ever since the beginn-ing of the series, JMS placed hints--both subtle and blatant--that trouble was brewing between normal humans(otherwise called "mundanes") and telepaths, all of which would eventually lead to a war between the two sides of humanity. The Byron storyline was meant to establish firmly that trouble had pretty much arrived, but it is only the first of many stories this season that sets things up, but doesn't fully deliver on the promise. The telepath war would eventually be referenced in the B5 novels, but its full effects would never be shown, and for this primary reason, the Byron story is an absolute snoozer.

     On the plus side: The fifth season opening theme by series composer Christopher Franke is magnificent. It is the most heroic of all the themes thus far, as our central characters have finally come into their own and have begun the process of building an empire that will last in peace and prosperity for generations to come.

     The Very Long Night of Londo Mollari is our second episode, and deals with Londo having a heart attack and facing the prospect of either coming to terms with the sins he's committed against G'kar and others, or dying. As always, the acting of Peter Jurasik as Londo is nothing short of brilliant, but the dream sequences where he is faced with avatars of the people he knows(Sheridan, Delenn, etc.) are only mildly interesting, and quite a few of them are just a bit overwrought with dramatic and symbolic overkill. There is also an amusing gaffe during a dream sequence with Vir, where the boom mike can be clearly seen at the right side of the frame.

     The Paragon of Animals is a stronger episode, primarily focusing on Sheridan's attempts to get the bickering members of the newly formed Alliance to sign the Declaration of Principles(written by G'kar). Problems crop up when one member race is discovered invading the territory of a helpless species, which leads to several very powerful scenes including the death of a Ranger and his entry into the afterlife. Also, Byron proves the worth of his people by delivering some very sensitive information to Sheridan's people.

     A View From the Gallery is a big misstep for the series. It tells the tale of B5 as seen through the eyes of two blue collar maintenance workers. While the story overall is a decent idea, the casting of the workers--Raymond O'Connor(Halloween 4, Saving Grace) as Mack and Lawrence LeJohn(Alias, CSI: Miami) as Bo--is nothing short of horrible. JMS and his casting people were definitely asleep at the wheel on this one, as both actors are completely unbelievable, and couldn't deliver their lines properly if their lives depended on it. While there is an interesting tossaway line about why Commander Ivanova(Claudia Christian) left the station--a covert reference to Christian's salary dispute during the last season, which is the actual reason why she left--the costume design of a group of raiders hitting the station is bordering on Ed Wood type of bad.

     Learning Curve is our next episode, and follows the trial of a new Ranger(Brendan Ford) who is savagely beaten by a crimelord (Trevor Goddard) and his men on the station, and must face and conquer his fear by confronting the gangster in singular combat. Aside from Goddard's barely passable acting, the episode is fairly solid. Also, the revelation comes out that Captain Lochley served on the side of Earth during the civil war last year. Strange Relations sheds more light on Lochley, as we find out she was Sheridan's first wife, years ago. Bester(Walter Koenig) returns to B5, intent on bringing Byron and his telepaths back to Psi Corp for "recondition-ing". Secrets of the Soul is another fall down episode, dealing with a race keeping its genetic history a secret from Doctor Franklin(the late Richard Biggs), and Lyta(Patricia Tallman) accidentally spills the beans to Byron on how telepaths actually came to exist...a truth which drives him to the breaking point.

     Day of the Dead is actually a superior episode(written by famed scribe Neil Gaiman--the only episode in the entire season not writ-ten by JMS), wherein a Brakiri ritual allows the recently dead to come back for one night to visit their loved ones. It is an especially mean-ingful time for Londo, who gets to have one last night of happiness before his life essentially jumps right into the crapper. In The  Kingdom of the Blind is a superior episode, its story split between Byron and his people blackmailing the members of the Alliance in order to receive a home world for telepaths, and Londo returning to Centauri Prime with G'kar as his bodyguard. While there, Londo faces an assassination attempt, but finds a Drakh in waiting for the first time. It is also the first--and only--evidence we are shown in the series of the Drakh possessing telekinetic powers. Once again, Straczynski chooses to leave this to his novels rather than delivering the goods on the show, where they more rightfully belonged. Also, there is the unfortunate introduction of Victor Love(7th Heaven, Our Father) to the cast as a telepath who will eventually break ranks with Byron and use violence to solve certain issues. Love's acting is lackluster at best, comically bad at worse. Another casting misstep.

     A Tragedy of Telepaths is a very good episode, dealing with a splinter group of telepaths who choose to take hostages in order to rescue Byron, who has secluded himself and most of his people in Down Below. There is a payoff to a hostage scene with Garibaldi, shown briefly in an episode last season. Bester returns with his Blood Hound unit after his last failed attempt to recapture Byron. The best part of the episode however, deals with Londo and G'kar's attempt to rescue Na'Toth(fan favorite Julie Caitlin Brown) from a Centauri dungeon. Actually, the best part of the episode--for some of us--might be the scenes where Tracy Scoggins is in a tank top...but that's another matter, entirely.

     Phoenix Rising reveals the secret origin of Byron, and thankfully brings his storyline to a close. It also sets up Lyta as the heir to his mission, and delivers a true shocker in the Garibaldi-Bester dynamic...a shock that leads to poor Michael's(Jerry Doyle) rapid descent back into alcoholism. The Ragged Edge continues the new arc of Garibaldi's spiral into self destruction, a problem which ends up getting an old friend killed. Also, to G'kar's surprise, he becomes revered as a religious figure when the book he's been writing over the last two years is published on his home world without his permis-sion. There is also another unintentionally funny moment when, during a fight on a balcony, Garibaldi throws someone off it, and the balcony shakes, breaking the reality of the scene.

     The Corps is Mother, the Corps is Father is a superior episode, told entirely from the point of view of Psi Cop Bester, complete with an opening credit Psi Corps logo instead of the standard B5 one(a trick which Star Trek: Enterprise would "borrow" years later by redo-ing their own credits during their two part mirror universe episode). A very clever decision on the part of Straczynski and composer Franke is that the music for this episode is never sinister when focusing on Bester and his two proteges. Rather, Bester has heroic music accompanying his moves, as this is a Psi Corps oriented story. Also of interest is the fact that when viewing this episode, you can look at it as either a stand alone B5 tale flipped on its ear, or as a propa-ganda tool of the Corps.

     Meditations on the Abyss focuses on Lennier(Billy Mumy) as he continues to undergo training as a Ranger, along with the investiga-tion into which race is making surprise attacks on Alliance shipping lanes. Also, Garibaldi's alcohol problems continue. Darkness Ascending features the return of hottie Denise Gentile(Pacific Blue, Dead At 21) as Garibaldi's lady love Lise Hampton-Edgars, who discovers that Michael's been drinking again. Meanwhile, Lennier finally uncovers irrefutable proof that Centauri ships have been attacking the vessels of Alliance worlds. And All My Dreams, Torn Asunder brings the impending war between Centauri Prime and the Alliance closer to the brink. Also, Zack(Jeff Conaway) confronts Garibaldi about his drinking...and it is that drinking which causes a true tragedy to occur.

     Movements of Fire and Shadow is a schizo episode, in that it brings several things to a promising head, but also has a solid let-down within it. The transition of Lyta into "Dark Lyta" begins, and the Drazi and Narn unleash a full scale attack on Centauri Prime. The big letdown which comes in the discovery by Franklin and Lyta of organic Shadow tech on the Drazi home world, is barely referenced again in the series. A plus though is that on the DVD commentary for this episode(by Patricia Tallman, Bruce Boxleitner, Tracy Scoggins and Peter Jurasik) reveals a hidden meaning in a scene where Vir is talking with Franklin and Lyta.

     The Fall of Centauri Prime is one of the most powerful episodes of the season. It brings the Drakh out of hiding from Londo's view on Centauri Prime, as well as bringing his tragic life full circle. As this occurs, Delenn and Lennier's White Star is critically damaged, and facing death, he finally reveals his love to her. The Wheel of Fire brings both pain and joy: Garibaldi is suspended as head of Alliance intelligence by Sheridan when his alcoholism is made public, the tranformation of "Dark Lyta" is complete, G'kar's unwilling influence over his people grows, and Delenn finds out she's pregnant. Straczynski's writing comes back into fine shape with this great episode, which has a very powerful and emotional scene between Sheridan and Garibaldi, along with the revelations that Lochley was once an alcoholic, and that Lyta is far more powerful than anyone ever suspected.

     Objects in Motion begins the unofficial "Goodbye Trilogy" as members of B5's command crew finally begin leaving to start their new lives and careers. Tessa(Marjorie Monaghan) of the former Mars Resistance returns to inform Garibaldi and Lise that an assass-in is coming to the station to kill them(technically, the World's Oldest Assassin, played by James Hornbeck). G'kar also finds himself tar-geted by one of his own people(it's the big assassination episode!), and there are several endings within beginnings, both ambiguous and happy. Objects at Rest is the second half of the "trilogy", and finds Sheridan and Delenn departing for Minbar to take up residence in the Alliance's permanent headquarters. Once again however, Straczynski sets up several plot threads and does not bring them to a satisfying conclusion.

     Finally, we have Sleeping in Light, which could stand as the best episode of Babylon 5 ever written, and which does stand as one of the best hours ever shown on television. Technically, this shouldn't count as a series finale, since it was shot at the end of season four. Yet it is what it is...and what it is, without argument, is simply brilliant on every level. Twenty years into the B5 universe's future, Sheri-dan's time has finally come; he's dying, and decides to have one last get-together with those old friends who've survived. The acting from the central cast is solid throughout, and this episode is a true tearjerker by every definition of the world. Although the majority of the fifth season was not entirely up to the usual par, ultimately Sleeping in Light is a full redemption, and if you haven't seen this episode, I won't say anything to spoil it for you. What I will tell you is that this episode, above all others, is worth the price of the box set.

     I know it seems I've been particularly hard on this last season of Babylon 5, but with valid reason. After four seasons of greatness, it was a surprise that J. Michael Straczynski would begin leaving so many plot threads introduced yet dangling at the end. While some of these threads--the fall and salvation of Centauri Prime, Garibaldi's final reckoning with Bester--were eventually addressed in several of the B5 novels, it was obviously a marketing ploy to some degree, in order to test how successful the series of novels would be(JMS has stated on a couple of occasions that delving further into the B5 universe in book form would depend on how successful the initial set of canonical books were). In my opinion, it is simply unfair to attempt to force readers to buy books in able to find out what ultimately happens to characters they've come to care about over the course of five years...readers who have been loyal fans in good times for the show, as well as bad. The end result was that the books were only marginally successful, and no new ones have been published in seven years. The fifth and final season of B5 could have been great, perhaps even better than what had come before, if Straczynski had followed along the dual lines of allowing Byron's storyline to lead directly into the telepath war, while also delving more fully into the Drakh's insidious invasion of Centauri Prime and the Alliance's movement to free that enslaved world.

     But all of this is hindsight armchair quaterbacking. By the excep-tional convergence of providence, force of will and sheer good luck, Joe Michael Straczynski managed to give us one of the best science fiction series--hell, one of the best television series, period --that has ever been broadcast. Babylon 5 is and always will be a testament to the ideal that one doesn't have to sacrifice intelligence in storytell-ing, to bring your ideas and ideals to the people. If you don't talk down to your audience, that audience will appreciate you more...and in the end, if you haven't seen Babylon 5, you truly don't know what you're missing. As JMS himself has often said, "faith manages".