s3e3: A Day in the Strife

We never really talked, Londo

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.

A melancholy lies upon this episode, turning every scene to tragedy and regret. A sparkling script keeps things light regardless, but this is really about living with decisions that have already been made and which cannot now be reversed.

I remembered the alien probe with the trick questions, but almost everything else about this episode has slipped from my mind. Which I suppose says something about my teenage brain. This time round, the alien probe was clearly the ‘filler’ part of the episode, and it’s everything else that makes the episode special.

And it is quite special: it’s a highly successful melding of a standalone and arc stories. It feels like a self-contained piece, despite being full of long-term plot and character details. ‘A Day in the Strife’ is strong evidence that Straczynski was onto something with the Babylon 5 concept: it’s an episode that couldn’t exist without the multi-year structure, but it remembers to be individually satisfying as a singular episode. In that combination, it’s more successful than a lot of more modern shows, which are so obsessed with the long-term plot that they forget about the episodic parts.

The arrival of the new liaison is unexpected and immediately awful. Stephen Macht plays Na’Far with perfect poise, never tipping over into being a Baddie: yo completely understand his point of view and his efforts. Na’Far is a contradiction, being simultaneously someone who cares deeply about his people and a traitor to those same people. Does he believe he’s doing the right thing, or is he trying to convince himself as much as the other Narn?

G’Kar, of course, is in a similarly compromised position. If he stays, he risks families back on homeworld. If he leaves, he risks the entire resistance movement. There is no right or wrong response, although he’s ultimately driven by his commitment to life and those around him: G’Kar would always sacrifice himself rather than others. It’s only when the other Narn on the station make the alternate decision for him that he concedes.

Meanwhile, every scene with Londo is a picture of tragedy and regret. His treatment of Na’Far is shocking, and despite all the things he’s done to date this is perhaps the first time I’ve thought of Londo as a bad man. All his other decisions had elements of ignorance, or naivete, or he didn’t realise the consequences…none of which excuses what he’s done, but they are factors in how those decisions were made. None of that is present in the scene with Na’Far: here, Londo is nasty, and a bully, for no other reason than he can. He wields power in a grim fashion.

Immediately afterwards, he decides to ship Vir off to Minbar. It seems that Londo finds it easier to send Vir away than have him hold a mirror up to his behaviour. Even then, he can’t escape Delenn’s judgement, and her scathing, total dismissal of his suggestion that they had once had a friendship.

Oh, and there’s also a sub-plot of station logistics, which feels like a shoutout to ‘By Any Means Necessary’. We get to see Sheridan being bold, determined, and that attitude filters through to his decision about the probe. This is the Sheridan that has a chance against the looming war(s).

Wait — there’s also Franklin struggling with his stim usage, and lying to Garibaldi. Their scenes are well played, it feels like two old friends dancing around an awkward subject, neither of them good at discussing it. It continues the feeling of sadness that permeates the episode: of futures and hopes slipping away.

I nearly forgot that Ta’Lon is back, now with a proper name. Marshall Teague is fantastic in the role, and it’s fun to have a little connection back to that season 2 episode.

There’s so much in this episode and it all hangs together very neatly. The dialogue is sparkly, the performances are brilliant, and there’s room for all the best characters. It’s an examination of stress, and how each of those characters handle it.

I didn’t expect this to be one of my favourite episodes, as I never paid much attention to it back in the day or on previous rewatches. This time round, it surprised me.

Next up is ‘Passing Through Gethsemane’.

‼️ SPOILER STUFF ‼️

Although he’s been on the journey for at least the last season, I think this is the moment G’Kar becomes who he was born to be. The last vestiges of Gangster G’Kar from season 1 are gone. We also get Garibaldi’s friendship with G’Kar showing up again, which has happened mostly off screen. There’s a mutual respect there, I suspect because Garibaldi knows what it’s like to be backed into a corner.

Franklin’s use of stims has been nicely played, introduced slowly in season 2 and even mentioned in season 1 in relation to other characters. We’ve seen Franklin come under increasing stress — and, let’s face it, he NEARLY saved an entire race, only to be too late — and he’s finally hit his unravelling. A long way down from here for him, unfortunately. Richard Biggs is so good in this one.

Vir is off, with Londo getting him out of the way. Of course, this will lead to Vir taking the initiative, which in turn starts moving him towards being Emperor.

Londo is, I think, realising that he’s forfeited his own life. He’s trying to cling on to his old self, the one that sang opera and staged sumptuous banquet feasts, but there’s no going back.

Ta’Lon will be a recurring character, ultimately taking on a larger role at the end of the show.

The alien probe looks an awful lot like Vorlon tech. Perhaps there’s a story to tell there.