s1e16: A Voice in the Wilderness, part 1
It's not just a background visual
We’re watching the pioneering 90s TV show Babylon 5. If you want to join us, hit subscribe then go to your account and turn on the Let’s Watch notifications.
Due to watching B5 many times before, albeit not for a long time, it’s difficult to rewatch this with a fresh mind. I already knew that Epsilon 3 was more than an empty planet, but it must have been a real surprise when this episode came round for the first time.
There’s a great idea at the core of ‘A Voice in the Wilderness’, which is taking a pretty backdrop — the planet that sits behind Babylon 5 in most of the space shots — and turning it into a major plot point. Epsilon 3 has been there the entire time, but we’ve ignored it1, and have never considered that it might be important. It’s immensely fun for the focus to suddenly shift to the huge yellow planet that’s been there the entire time. Establishing shots are useful to set context for the scene, but they’re rarely the scene itself.
We also get our first two-parter, which is an interesting notion in a tightly-plotted serial. In Star Trek of the time, a two-parter was a big deal, because it was pretty much the only time there would be major continuity between episodes, rather than a reset with each end credits. In season 1 of B5 we’ve had episodes like ‘Eyes’, which directly reference earlier episodes. That makes the notion of a two-parter less novel and exciting, and it risks feeling more like an over-long episode.
There are scenes in ‘A Voice in the Wilderness’ that would likely have been cut from a normal episode, such as Garibaldi being a weirdo in a lift. Some of the investigation of Epsilon 3 is rather drawn-out, especially the survey team going doing twice, with dull staging of them trying to escape out of the atmosphere. In fact, the ‘mystery’ of what’s happening on Epsilon 3 is probably the least interesting part of the episode.
Where the episode really takes off, for me, is the Mars stuff. I love the slow realisation that something bad is happening on Mars, with the news reports being sporadic. That even with all the fancy communications tech, the outbreak of a major conflict will cause disruption regardless. Ivanova and Sinclair’s sense of despair over breakfast, wishing they could do something but feeling utterly powerless. Later, Garibaldi’s desperation to get in touch with Lise. The building stress, especially alongside the Epsilon 3 threat, is nicely handled.
There’s several excellent scenes with Londo, especially the trade discussion with Sinclair and Delenn. It’s a slice of normality, and a glimpse of a more reasonable Londo.
While it’s all the other stuff that grabbed my attention, the ending down on the planet is compelling stuff. The descent towards the planet and the chasm is well done, with some really ace VFX work. While the reveal of the great machine is somewhat lessened due to the show’s age, the sense of wonder is intact. Much like Sakai' encountering the unknowable alien spaceship in ‘Mind War’, B5 does a good job when it is pushing at the unknown.
I’m travelling next week, so I’ll be having a week off from the Babylon 5 rewatch. We’ll be back for part 2 of ‘A Voice in the Wilderness’ in two weeks.
‼️ SPOILER STUFF ‼️
All sorts of stuff! The Great Machine! Draal! Babylon 4! Time travel! Valen! Mars!
It’s hard to know where to begin. This episode introduces a ton of things that will play major roles in the future seasons, although we don’t yet know it. Even after part 2, we still won’t realise how critical the Great Machine is.
Perhaps the most painful stuff in here is with Londo. We get to see a happier Londo, and the Londo that likes to help people by delivering joy. He’s a reasonable, grown-up negotiator with Delenn, and desires to help Garibaldi. As we find out in part 2, he has a chance here to become something greater and be the hero, and he relishes it. He wants to make a difference with his life, and this season (and next) we see a few opportunities for him to take a virtuous path. Instead he chooses Morden’s offering, and damns himself.
We can take a closer look at the ramifications next time after part 2.
Other than noting that the texture in the visual effects is distractingly low resolution.
Spoiler Stuff...
We'll come back to that next newsletter and do the entire story.
Non-spoiler Stuff...
This is a two parter because the studio asked for a two parter to sell to certain markets as a movie. Not uncommon in the 60's-90's.
It does lead to odd pacing issues - especially as, at that point, JMS had mostly done half-hour and hour shows, except the B5 pilot, which was a full two-hour movie. Designing a two-parter is a different game.
So, a few things drag out a bit, while the cliffhanger basically comes out of nowhere and stops abruptly in a frustrating manner. I think we'd have had a stronger cliffhanger with Sinclair and Ivanova returning to base. Just a pan of the shuttle and Starfuries with B5 in the BG. We've just picked up the mysterious alien pulled from the mysterious machine, and that's enough hook to hold us for a week. "Something coming through the jumpgate - something big..." "What the hell?" That's just dropping in something else confusing at the last second. End on the shuttle returning to base and have the jumpgate open 15 seconds into the next teaser, having that interrupt Sinclair reporting to C&C.
It's what it is because of the "repackage as movie" pacing. As a film the reveal of what is coming through would immediately follow without interruption.
So... Other glitches... Garibaldi being creepy and stalking Talia doesn't play well with Garibaldi turning and stressing over Lise, does it?
Why does the alien appear to Londo of all people?
Yet Londo gets all the best bits of the episode, with the story of one of his wives to Garibaldi (while scamming a free drink), and being frustrated by the Holey-Pokey...
The head of the survey team doesn't quite hit his lines. His comments about cards and "It scares the hell out of me, but what better death....?" hint at a charming man with a good sense of humor, but he's a bit flat.
There is some EXCELLENT VFX work in this episode. There's a new Starfury launch where Delta six drops from the Cobra bays and immediately his RCS thrusters to "tight turn" we've not seen before, some amazing design on Epsilon 3 (the Forbidden Planet homage isn't intended, but, there it is), and... A good chunk of the shuttle is virtual set. Certainly the nose of the shuttle in the over-shoulder shots, but also some of the side of the cabin, with only a little fringe on Sinclair's hair in one shot giving the composite away. Still, the CG set extensions really match the practical set. Oh, the Psi Corp lady Talia talks to has some green fringe which the "low fi transmission" effects don't quite cover.
So... I have a friend who worked for EFX, the audio house for B5. He was the maintenence engineer who kept the gear running. One day, he gave me a building tour and I met the audio editors for B5. I asked them why they started using the sound effect of an alien from the 1978 video game "Space Invaders" for Starfury weapons (very notable in this episode). The editors shared a look and didn't answer the question.
But, in season 2 the sound FX for Starfury weapons gets remixed and the Space Invaders element gets tweaked.
And that's MY contribution to the evolution of Babylon 5.