Babylon 5 (TV Series) By Any Means Necessary (1994) User Reviews

Good, but still it's a "filler episode"

[planktonrules · 6/10 · 3 January 2007]

For much of the first season of Babylon 5, the series still hadn't established any sort of over-arching plot to connect the episodes like it would have in seasons 2 through 5. In some ways, it was as if the genius behind the series, Michael Staczynski was still trying to feel for a sense of direction. Because of this, so many of the season one episodes are self-contained in that they don't connect well with previous or later episodes. This is pretty much the way of sci-fi shows like Star Trek, but for B-5, this makes these earlier episodes less satisfying.

This is a well-written episode and did hold my interest. However, once again like so many season 1 episodes, it didn't really do much to address the themes seen in later shows. In many ways, this episode seemed like it was addressing contemporary labor issues and placing it in the year 2258. In particular, the landing bay workers on B-5 are upset that the incoming traffic is far greater than what they'd been promised and as a result, working conditions were becoming dangerous and the workers were feeling burned out and angry. Earth Gov's response was, "you agreed to the contract so fulfill it or else!"--refusing to acknowledge in any way that the workers had some reason to feel used. And, overall, it was engaging and the final resolution of the problems with work hours, wages and conditions was pretty clever.

By Any Means Necessary

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 12 June 2012]

The docking bay workers on Babylon 5 are overworked, underpaid, and work with faulty, aged equipment in need of a major overhaul. Repairs and the pay that was told to them they would receive are demanded but the Senate on Earth won't give them what they ask for. So an illegal strike might just occur and this will have the government on Earth prepared to invoke the Rush Act which tells Commander Sinclair to use the force of his security to arrest those who participate instead of working as contracted on Babylon 5 station. Earth sends their high-powered "negotiator", Orin Zento (John Snyder), with political clout and much influence back home, to straighten out the strike, more than willing to invoke the Rush Act (in fact, he waves around as a tool to cause fear to the workers), while Labour Guild Leader, Neeoma Connally (Katy Boyer), will stand loud and proud behind her workers. A tension and anger is stewing and Sinclair fears that the Rush Act will result and incite violence and possibly bloodshed. Meanwhile Sinclair will have to somehow negotiate a rare flower used by the Narn during a sacred ceremony, held hostage by rival Centauri Ambassador Londo Mollari, G'Kar demanding it be turned over to him as earlier agreed through a hefty sum of cash…to get even, G'Kar has Na'Toth steal a Centauri god statue from Mollari. Closer to modern day Earth than Star Trek, Babylon 5 has always been more relatable in terms of how we currently live. Currency, religious worship, war, and the mistreatment of those who work hard (…having to deal with equipment and overtime that causes danger and dissension) are all commonplace on the show. Because of the constant traffic and transportation in and out of the station, the workers are working double/triple shifts, equipment malfunctions are ever-present, and fatigue/stress is setting in. It was only a matter of time before an accident would happen, a Narn ship entering the dock wildly killing a docker because of substandard chips used in the controls. Yet, no surprise here, the senate fails to live up to their end of a bargain that would see the workers get a raise and extra funds to make the repairs needed to keep the Babylon station running properly and extra labour so that those working too much overtime can get the rest that is deserved. Because it doesn't really build any future plots besides a disgruntled Zento, embarrassed by Sinclair when the Rush Act is used against him and for the workers, perhaps planning to use his power to eventually get even, I imagine this episode will be looked at by B5 diehards as an unimportant, insignificant episode, but I think it really establishes just how well Sinclair can manage a station and subvert potential disaster; a riot nearly explodes only for Sinclair to use the very act normally meant to substitute striking workers with less-experienced replacements to his advantage to see that an escalating situation ceases before it gets really bad. Definitely a pro-union story, no doubt.

Drennan vs. Limbaugh

[rbr-41299 · 7/10 · 30 May 2016]

This well-written episode by Kathryn Drennan, wife of JMS at the time, presents a biased viewpoint of trade unionism and indirectly takes a poke at Rush Limbaugh (the Rush Act), although many viewers may not really understand how naming a law after Limbaugh either lampoons or impugns him. The implied assumption is that Limbaugh is anti-union. Of course Limbaugh idolizes Ronald Reagan who broke the strike by air traffic controllers in 1981, but it's generally forgotten that the public supported the tough actions by the government against those went on strike and endangered the airline industry and the nation's commerce. Rush is not anti-union. He has criticized big unions for spending union dues on political campaigns without the permission of the union members. In reality Rush enjoys strong support from rank and file union members.

There is a lot left out of Drennan's story. The basic issue of contractual obligation is totally ignored. Under the law if you sign a contract you are both responsible and accountable to fulfill the terms of the contract. (JMS has talked at length about some of the contract issues with certain B5 actors.) And, yet, we're supposed to accept that these workers can violate their contract without penalty. We're also never told the salary of the B5 dock workers. You can bet that under terms of their contract pay for overtime would be the same percentage of base pay or better than today. Judging by today's standards they would be rich. I remember back in the 1990's when dock workers in Los Angeles went on strike because they wanted guaranteed benefits. (These were the guys that operate huge cranes to unload ships.) There was some public sympathy until it became common knowledge that their salary was $100,000 per year. Then sympathy dropped like a rock and media attention diminished.

If the B5 dock workers were working too much overtime or double shifts, then it would probably be their own fault, since they voted for it. All the work rules are contained in the union contract with the employer. Of course, someone might claim that B5 couldn't attract sufficient workers, which is implied by Sinclair's promise to hire more workers. Who would want to work in a tin can in outer space? But, the salary would be inordinately high to attract workers. And, if B5 is paying out mega-bucks in time-and-a-half and double time, then they have the money to hire additional workers. And, I believe in the real world there would be a waiting list to get such high paying jobs, even in outer space.

Drennan was successful in painting a picture of the dock-workers as victims. Zento is a stereotype fall guy everyone loves to hate and in no way resembles professional government conciliators. Sinclair is presented as wrestling with a moral dilemma, equitable treatment of employees and maintaining B5 as an available port for inter- galactic trade. The audience naturally loves it when the Commander is decisive and manipulates a built-in ambiguity in the Rush Act to his advantage, thereby sticking it to Zento. However, by shifting money in his budget Sinclair sent a signal to the Senate that he didn't really need as much money that had been allocated against those line items. His action was legal, but not politic, and it will come back later to cause problems for him in the episode "Eyes."

What Drennan also didn't consider is that Sinclair could have fired the human troublemakers and hired alien replacements, just like Sheridan later did for security. But, I doubt her ideology would permit her to employ a solution involving scabs. So, screw contractual obligations, screw the other needs of B5 that would be cut to satisfy these over-paid workers, and screw next year's budget. This is an example of a TV show presenting a simplistic solution to a challenging problem.

Even though Drennan used this episode to present her viewpoint on unionism she did provide a nice counterpoint with the conflict between G'Kar and Londo. It may have been a bit tongue in cheek to create a plant with both pleasure and religious significance to different cultures. In this situation we see Sinclair as a clever mediator, able to craft a solution that appeased both G'Kar and Londo. Too bad he couldn't have achieved something comparable for his operating budget.

Another Great One

[VenVes · 22 July 2018]

Another great episode in the Babylon 5 series, adding some much necessary insight into the goings-on of the docks on the ship. It helps build the world and make it feel lived in. Now you'll have an actual picture in mind when the word "docks" comes into play in the future. You'll also find added depth within G'Kar's character.

Babylon 5 is hit by an illegal dock strike

[Tweekums · 6/10 · 23 June 2018]

As this episode opens there is an accident as a Narn transport ship comes into dock which leads to the death of one of the dockers. It quickly becomes apparent that the accident was caused by the use of cheap, substandard parts... it isn't long before the overworked dockers are talking of strike. Their contracts ban strikes so a 'negotiator' is sent from Earth to end the strike... by force if necessary. In a secondary plot it emerges that the Narn transport was carrying a plant that Ambassador G'Kar needs for an important religious ceremony; there is no time to get another one sent to Babylon 5 and only one person on board possesses one; Londo Mollari. Londo is not about to hand it over and enjoys G'Kar's discomfort.

To be honest this episode was a bit of a disappointment; the idea of dealing with an industrial dispute felt rather mundane for a science fiction series. It was also handled in a rather obvious way; there was little doubt we were meant to sympathise with the dockers rather than the 'penny-pinching' government. The secondary story featuring G'Kar was more fun thanks to the fact that it is always fun seeing him sparring with Londo. The cast do a fairly solid job; notably Andreas Katsulas and Peter Jurasik as K'Kar and Londo and guest stars Katy Boyer and John Snyder were pretty good as union leader Neeoma Connally and obnoxious negotiator Orin Zento. The dockers, as a group, weren't particularly believable; there wasn't the feeling of righteous anger one might expect and their meetings seemed to be people taking turns to shout their slogans rather than a real angry crowd. The conclusion to the main plot story was decent enough although it underscored the politics of the episode. Overall a weaker than usual episode... but even weak Babylon 5 is worth watching.