For someone who can come up with the concept of B5, and write most of the episodes, JMS sure can't write a movie to save his life. At a time when the B5 franchise needed a masterpiece, JMS gave us bad rip-offs of his own work. Take "Thirdspace," add some ancient shadow-like enemy and throw in a dash of young James T. Kirk and you basically got this pilot. I'm not sure why JMS threw out such tripe like "The Hand" when he knew that every B5 fan in america would call him out on it, but he did it anyway. All of the reviews, except for those that live only to praise JMS, have said that this "pilot" "telemovie" or what have you, sucks. They are right. Due to the ignorant mismanagement on the part of the Sci-Fi channel, it aired opposite an NFL playoff game. Due to hackneyed writing, however, it virtually sealed the deal of no series.
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To Live and Die in CGI...
EchoMaRinE9 May 2009
Warning: Spoilers
An interesting story, not so good acting, good CGI and a bunch of clichés. The dialogs are sometimes boring. I especially found the fight between space ships pathetic. What is wrong with good old laser? Someone throwing balls of fire with body movements
These are the so to say "not good" parts. Actually, over all, it is not bad. With better directing and slightly better acting, the movie could have been much better. The connection between the old crew of the ship could have been done better. Anyway, there are some interesting ideas as well. Especially the final is pretty good. If you are into science fiction, you will not regret the time you spend on it.
Not as bad as I'd heard, but still left wanting for me...
TheLittleSongbird19 August 2012
I do like Babylon 5, and was anticipating yet also was dubious of The Legend of the Rangers. Seeing it for myself, it was left wanting and had a lot of problems for me. However, it was not as bad as I'd heard and feared. Technically it was not bad at all, in fact quite good. The scenery is lit well and are intriguing, the special effects are decent(if not really great) and the photography is not too haphazard. The music is beautiful as well, while the character of G'Kar was fun in a hammy sort of way even if his main role in the movie was to tie the movie with the series. On the other hand, the script is of really banal quality and feels very hackneyed. The story has some great ideas, but never develops them all that well, and a vast majority of the storytelling felt thin and uneven in pace. The characters are not compelling in personality and felt cardboard in how they were written. The Hand especially were not handled very well at all. The acting felt bland, with the exception of that of G'Kar. On the whole, not terrible but it could have been much better. 5/10 Bethany Cox
Not very good, but not very bad
SqueakyG21 July 2003
Warning: Spoilers
MILD-ISH SPOILERS throughout.
We live for the one, we die for the one. And so this needless attempt at another Babylon 5 spinoff series begins, with Ranger David Martel (Dylan Neal) breaking the Anla'shok code of honour and fleeing from battle rather than needlessly dying. His superiors punish him with the command of an old starship that lost its previous crew in battle. This previous crew still haunts the ship. Martel gathers a small crew, and their first adventure involves a lot of nancying around, chewing scenery and saying "We live for the one, we die for the one" every few minutes.
The thing that made Babylon 5 so great was its five-year plot arc. All non-arc stories are remembered with distaste, in particular the dire TV movies like "Thirdspace" and "River of Souls". When B5 isn't doing its five-year arc, B5 just isn't working. So I don't think a "starship adventures" series would have worked, and this pilot doesn't do anything to disprove my theory. (We live for the one, we die for the one.)
It's easiest to list the things that didn't work:
G'Kar's appearance is the most welcome thing, but it feels pointlessly tacked on. He's the "bridge" between shows, rather like Picard's appearance in the ST:DS9 pilot, or Quark's appearance in the ST:Voyager pilot. He waltzes into private Ranger disciplinary hearings. He just conveniently happens to be one of the ambassadors picked up later in the episode. We live for the one, we die for the one... or did I say that already?
Rather than introducing the new characters subtley throughout the episode, there is one big cheesy scene where the new crew gathers around a table to state their names and specialities. Imagine if a new Star Trek series started with a scene like: "Hi. I'm Will Riker. I'm a First Officer. Yay me!" "Hi. I'm Data. I'm a robot guy. I don't have emotions." "Hi, I'm Tasha Yar. I'm kinda butch and I'm going to die soon."
The Rangers are nothing like their previous portrayal in B5. We remember Marcus Cole as the perfect blueprint of a Ranger, and none of the characters here compare. There is so little spirituality or nobility. The Rangers here are wise-crackin' gung-ho heroes. It's just not right. Oh by the way: we live for the one, we die for the one.
The weapons thing. Oh dear. The first time the weapons chick (Cantrell) jumped into her virtual reality chamber and started punching and kicking fireballs to control the space battle, I thought it was pretty unique. It's good to make weapon control more interesting than simply pushing buttons. But then there was ANOTHER of these scenes, then another, and another. The last one was full on CHEESE, with Cantrell having what can only be described as a laughable spaz-attack. And can I just add: we live for the one, we die for the one.
The "haunted ship" concept is very interesting, but it didn't work well here. There just wasn't room in the plot to squeeze it in. If the pilot went into a series I'd have loved to see more stories about the ghosts. But at the end of the episode the characters basically say: "Well, it looks like we've satisfied those ghosts and we won't be seeing them anymore." Damn!
BIGGER SPOILERS NOW. This pilot introduces what could have possibly been the main nemesis for the series, known as "The Hand". These aliens are said to be about a billion years more ancient than the Shadows, and they have finally got back to our dimension. This just sucks. It undermines the Shadows totally. The TV movie "Thirdspace" did something similar with an ancient deadly enemy breaking out of another dimension, and it was annoying that time too. But anyway... we live for the one, we die for the one.
So those are the bad things about Babylon 5: Legend of the Rangers. But it's not a total loss. There were moments of J. Michael Straczynski goodness. One thing you can say about his writing is that he's not afraid of full-on balls-out cheese. The usual charm and groan-worthy humour can be found here in small doses. And for all its faults, it's still better than an average episode of Enterprise. And aren't ALL pilots rubbish in comparison to the show that blooms from them? Wasn't B5's pilot quite rubbish and cheesy too? I'd have liked to test out Legend of the Rangers for a full 22 episodes before giving up on it.
We live for the one, we die for the one. Or we just watch fairly average TV pilots for the one.
We live for the one, we die for the one. And so this needless attempt at another Babylon 5 spinoff series begins, with Ranger David Martel (Dylan Neal) breaking the Anla'shok code of honour and fleeing from battle rather than needlessly dying. His superiors punish him with the command of an old starship that lost its previous crew in battle. This previous crew still haunts the ship. Martel gathers a small crew, and their first adventure involves a lot of nancying around, chewing scenery and saying "We live for the one, we die for the one" every few minutes.
The thing that made Babylon 5 so great was its five-year plot arc. All non-arc stories are remembered with distaste, in particular the dire TV movies like "Thirdspace" and "River of Souls". When B5 isn't doing its five-year arc, B5 just isn't working. So I don't think a "starship adventures" series would have worked, and this pilot doesn't do anything to disprove my theory. (We live for the one, we die for the one.)
It's easiest to list the things that didn't work:
G'Kar's appearance is the most welcome thing, but it feels pointlessly tacked on. He's the "bridge" between shows, rather like Picard's appearance in the ST:DS9 pilot, or Quark's appearance in the ST:Voyager pilot. He waltzes into private Ranger disciplinary hearings. He just conveniently happens to be one of the ambassadors picked up later in the episode. We live for the one, we die for the one... or did I say that already?
Rather than introducing the new characters subtley throughout the episode, there is one big cheesy scene where the new crew gathers around a table to state their names and specialities. Imagine if a new Star Trek series started with a scene like: "Hi. I'm Will Riker. I'm a First Officer. Yay me!" "Hi. I'm Data. I'm a robot guy. I don't have emotions." "Hi, I'm Tasha Yar. I'm kinda butch and I'm going to die soon."
The Rangers are nothing like their previous portrayal in B5. We remember Marcus Cole as the perfect blueprint of a Ranger, and none of the characters here compare. There is so little spirituality or nobility. The Rangers here are wise-crackin' gung-ho heroes. It's just not right. Oh by the way: we live for the one, we die for the one.
The weapons thing. Oh dear. The first time the weapons chick (Cantrell) jumped into her virtual reality chamber and started punching and kicking fireballs to control the space battle, I thought it was pretty unique. It's good to make weapon control more interesting than simply pushing buttons. But then there was ANOTHER of these scenes, then another, and another. The last one was full on CHEESE, with Cantrell having what can only be described as a laughable spaz-attack. And can I just add: we live for the one, we die for the one.
The "haunted ship" concept is very interesting, but it didn't work well here. There just wasn't room in the plot to squeeze it in. If the pilot went into a series I'd have loved to see more stories about the ghosts. But at the end of the episode the characters basically say: "Well, it looks like we've satisfied those ghosts and we won't be seeing them anymore." Damn!
BIGGER SPOILERS NOW. This pilot introduces what could have possibly been the main nemesis for the series, known as "The Hand". These aliens are said to be about a billion years more ancient than the Shadows, and they have finally got back to our dimension. This just sucks. It undermines the Shadows totally. The TV movie "Thirdspace" did something similar with an ancient deadly enemy breaking out of another dimension, and it was annoying that time too. But anyway... we live for the one, we die for the one.
So those are the bad things about Babylon 5: Legend of the Rangers. But it's not a total loss. There were moments of J. Michael Straczynski goodness. One thing you can say about his writing is that he's not afraid of full-on balls-out cheese. The usual charm and groan-worthy humour can be found here in small doses. And for all its faults, it's still better than an average episode of Enterprise. And aren't ALL pilots rubbish in comparison to the show that blooms from them? Wasn't B5's pilot quite rubbish and cheesy too? I'd have liked to test out Legend of the Rangers for a full 22 episodes before giving up on it.
We live for the one, we die for the one. Or we just watch fairly average TV pilots for the one.
Nice action flick set in the Babylon 5 universe
siderite10 July 2005
I have seen B5 and enjoyed it immensely, this movie has almost no connection to it. It is set in the same universe, but the only recognizable link is G'Kar, played well, as usual, by Andreas Katsulas.
The plot looks a lot like the premiere of a spin-off. You have the charismatic captain, the loyal specialized crew, the promise of a dark enemy, all the ingredients that start a sci-fi series. The movie is not bad, but it is certainly not exceptional.
I have read a review here that compared this to the original Babylon 5 series which was so much better, brilliant and all that. Come on! Babylon 5 was a good idea, but the lack of funds and experience did provide, along with good scripts and depth in characters, really stupid scenes and dumb fill-the-season episodes. So in comparison, the "Legend of the Rangers", is not so different. Same low budget effects, same geeky humanoid aliens and the stark contrast between "dark" and "light" that annoyed me in Babylon 5 (after such a gray beginning).
In conclusion, it is worth a watch for any sci-fi fan, even a Babylon 5 zealot. Oh, I almost forgot: casting the sidekick of Chuck Norris in a movie about rangers? Puh-lease! Some casting people should be shot.
The plot looks a lot like the premiere of a spin-off. You have the charismatic captain, the loyal specialized crew, the promise of a dark enemy, all the ingredients that start a sci-fi series. The movie is not bad, but it is certainly not exceptional.
I have read a review here that compared this to the original Babylon 5 series which was so much better, brilliant and all that. Come on! Babylon 5 was a good idea, but the lack of funds and experience did provide, along with good scripts and depth in characters, really stupid scenes and dumb fill-the-season episodes. So in comparison, the "Legend of the Rangers", is not so different. Same low budget effects, same geeky humanoid aliens and the stark contrast between "dark" and "light" that annoyed me in Babylon 5 (after such a gray beginning).
In conclusion, it is worth a watch for any sci-fi fan, even a Babylon 5 zealot. Oh, I almost forgot: casting the sidekick of Chuck Norris in a movie about rangers? Puh-lease! Some casting people should be shot.
J. Michael... what happened???
mukor7 February 2002
I admit it. I am a Babylon 5 junkie. No, better stated... Babylon 5, the series, is a spiritual journey for me, one which largely outlines my own belief structure quite succinctly. This does not make me a Babylon 5 fan(as in fanatic) however. I do not attend conventions. I do not collect memorabilia. I do not keep a cherish autographed picture of Bruce Boxleitner in my closet. No, the show is enough for me.
So now I have to ask myself. What was J. Michael Straczinski thinking when he wrote Babylon 5: Legend of the Rangers? I eagerly anticipated this premiere, largely because I felt if left to his own devices (which was clearly not the case on Crusade), he might create something that measured up to the genius of the series. Not so. In fact, the premiere of LotR (not to be confused with LotR of the big screen!) was a tragedy. Hackneyed, confused, and sometimes laughably bad, this will not earn him more fans.
There are a few bright spots. An early scene between Martel and Dulann hints of Straczinski's ability to humanize his relationships. And Andreas Katsulas is always a pleasure to watch; his imposing presence as G'Kar always made Babylon 5 a joy and his presence in this film is much the same.
Tragically, we see too little of both of these things in LotR. Instead we are treated to some truly bad acting in the form of Myriam Sirois as Ranger Cantrell. This character is as superfluous as she is poorly conceived. As weapons officer, she has little more to do than to make laughably ludicrous punching and kicking motions in the virtually reality weapons chamber. This outlines a big problem in and of itself; the need to include gratuitous special effects, even if there is no logical reason for their existence. The virtually reality weapons are the perfect example of this. They make no sense, they look absolutely ridiculous, and they appear *far* too often.
Contrast this to the original series, whose special effects were notoriously "fake" looking, quite obviously conceived on a limited CGI budget. But that was part of the charm of the show; our attention could be drawn temporarily to the eye candy of the effects while our concentration remained squarely on the relationships.
If the show actually goes to series after this premiere, I will give it a shot. After all, if I had based my opinion of Babylon 5 solely on the basis of the premiere (Babylon 5: The Gathering), I'm not sure I would have watched the show either. But Mr. Straczinski, really. I know you can do better than this.
So now I have to ask myself. What was J. Michael Straczinski thinking when he wrote Babylon 5: Legend of the Rangers? I eagerly anticipated this premiere, largely because I felt if left to his own devices (which was clearly not the case on Crusade), he might create something that measured up to the genius of the series. Not so. In fact, the premiere of LotR (not to be confused with LotR of the big screen!) was a tragedy. Hackneyed, confused, and sometimes laughably bad, this will not earn him more fans.
There are a few bright spots. An early scene between Martel and Dulann hints of Straczinski's ability to humanize his relationships. And Andreas Katsulas is always a pleasure to watch; his imposing presence as G'Kar always made Babylon 5 a joy and his presence in this film is much the same.
Tragically, we see too little of both of these things in LotR. Instead we are treated to some truly bad acting in the form of Myriam Sirois as Ranger Cantrell. This character is as superfluous as she is poorly conceived. As weapons officer, she has little more to do than to make laughably ludicrous punching and kicking motions in the virtually reality weapons chamber. This outlines a big problem in and of itself; the need to include gratuitous special effects, even if there is no logical reason for their existence. The virtually reality weapons are the perfect example of this. They make no sense, they look absolutely ridiculous, and they appear *far* too often.
Contrast this to the original series, whose special effects were notoriously "fake" looking, quite obviously conceived on a limited CGI budget. But that was part of the charm of the show; our attention could be drawn temporarily to the eye candy of the effects while our concentration remained squarely on the relationships.
If the show actually goes to series after this premiere, I will give it a shot. After all, if I had based my opinion of Babylon 5 solely on the basis of the premiere (Babylon 5: The Gathering), I'm not sure I would have watched the show either. But Mr. Straczinski, really. I know you can do better than this.
Rounds out the entire B5 story, but B5 knowledge not necessary
bpeck137 October 2008
Warning: Spoilers
In the overall Babylon 5 (B5) saga, this movie is optional. Does not add nor detract from the B5 series. Having a minimal background knowledge of the B5 series helps some, but not necessary. I do believe this was supposed to be the pilot movie for another spin-off series from B5, but that didn't work out. I bought this DVD as I wanted to see the entire set of B5 movies.
This is the ultimate against-all-odds movie. The two ships are escorting some dignitaries to a conference. One ship is top-of-the-line, hot off the press. The Liandra is so decrepit, it is barely hanging together. They are attacked by an unknown enemy who is massively superior. The top-of-the-line ship is destroyed by the enemy. The Liandra not only survives the attack, but due to cunning strategy and refuse-to-give-up attitude, the rag-tag crew and ship end up winning the battle. The classic good-always-triumphs-over-evil story.
The story is a bit slow at times, but overall, it is a good movie and worth seeing.
This is the ultimate against-all-odds movie. The two ships are escorting some dignitaries to a conference. One ship is top-of-the-line, hot off the press. The Liandra is so decrepit, it is barely hanging together. They are attacked by an unknown enemy who is massively superior. The top-of-the-line ship is destroyed by the enemy. The Liandra not only survives the attack, but due to cunning strategy and refuse-to-give-up attitude, the rag-tag crew and ship end up winning the battle. The classic good-always-triumphs-over-evil story.
The story is a bit slow at times, but overall, it is a good movie and worth seeing.
What a disappointment!
evanpelt20 January 2002
Rangers !? These people are cowboys. Gone is the intelligent, cool, skilled ranger. In the original series Rangers were a highly trained group of multi-talented people, kind of like a special forces unit. They were trained in Minbari ways, had a lot of personal control and subtlety was an important part of the way they worked. This group of rangers seems to have practically no knowledge of Mimbari ways, little self control, and no subtlety.
The ship is ridiculous. The Whitestar ships were beautiful and elegant. This one is poorly lit and silly. Some of the control stations are in hallways -- that's where you want crucial system controls -- in the hallway so the operators can block people rushing from one station to another. That way they can get blocked when something hits the ship and all the actors have to do the old "Star Trek" "something hit the ship boogie" (yes, they do resort to that in this movie). The ship is constantly losing weapons systems. It seems like their ships should be better equipped than that, but then again, if they didn't keep losing weapons there would be no other way to make the "plot" work. With properly working weapons it would be a half hour movie !
I am an avid fan of Babylon 5. I love the series and all the other movies. This movie is nowhere close to the same quality. The acting is stilted, the characters are shallow and the special effects are lame (the lady "punching" the projectiles is really funny).
This movie has been promoted for months, yet it has the feel of a movie that they didn't have enough time or money to do properly.
Oh Marcus, we miss you!
The ship is ridiculous. The Whitestar ships were beautiful and elegant. This one is poorly lit and silly. Some of the control stations are in hallways -- that's where you want crucial system controls -- in the hallway so the operators can block people rushing from one station to another. That way they can get blocked when something hits the ship and all the actors have to do the old "Star Trek" "something hit the ship boogie" (yes, they do resort to that in this movie). The ship is constantly losing weapons systems. It seems like their ships should be better equipped than that, but then again, if they didn't keep losing weapons there would be no other way to make the "plot" work. With properly working weapons it would be a half hour movie !
I am an avid fan of Babylon 5. I love the series and all the other movies. This movie is nowhere close to the same quality. The acting is stilted, the characters are shallow and the special effects are lame (the lady "punching" the projectiles is really funny).
This movie has been promoted for months, yet it has the feel of a movie that they didn't have enough time or money to do properly.
Oh Marcus, we miss you!
Better than I expected
Tronic228 January 2002
Babylon 5 never worked fine in movies - there are The Gathering, In The Beginning, etc, but none of those really worked without watching the series. This led me to believe that this would be just another boring B5-movie, but fortunately I was wrong. While it has flaws, it is certainly a lot better than other B5-movies and pretty good as a movie overall. If JMS can write a movie this good, I just can't wait for the series...
Special effects, especially jumpgates, were worse than in B5. Well, maybe they'll learn. I don't know which software was used for CG in this movie, but I have seen AMATEURS creating VERY high quality CG with LightWave 3D (the software used for CG of original B5), so I must assume that professionals, with that software (current versions of it, with today's fast computers), could create real miracles.
Special effects, especially jumpgates, were worse than in B5. Well, maybe they'll learn. I don't know which software was used for CG in this movie, but I have seen AMATEURS creating VERY high quality CG with LightWave 3D (the software used for CG of original B5), so I must assume that professionals, with that software (current versions of it, with today's fast computers), could create real miracles.
Unfairly Harsh
ezran745 August 2022
I think people were unfairly harsh with legend of the rangers. It was effectively a pilot and had many kinks to work out but several of the characters were worth exploring further. Some of the actors were quite talented and have had strong performances in the years since, particularly Dean Marshall who many may recognize from the Stargate franchise. Yes it would have needed more refinement to be a full fledged series but it was a decent starting point, for something that will never get to be.
Please, Mr. S.- let B5 rest in peace!
Orcini10 December 2004
Let me start off by saying I love Babylon 5- the first four seasons anyway.
What appealed to me was its long-story format, the epic taking years to unfold, full of lore, myth, and detailed characters that evolved and changed over time.
I would suggest to J.M. Straczynski that he create some new sort of epic. Babylon 5 was a great story. But one of the things that make stories great is that they have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It ended. Let it be. Perhaps the book trilogies that continue the Babylon 5 canon would make good miniseries- such as "Legions of Fire" or the Psy-Cop trilogy. What is NOT needed is another "adventure of the week" series in the B5 universe. It obviously did not work with "Crusade." Why should it work here? The format is so similar to Crusade (a ship of people zipping around the galaxy having adventures) that one wonders if they were simply planning on using unaired "Crusade" scripts to cut writing costs.
The tele-movie's biggest flaw is that it has no plot whatsoever. A ship full of very young Rangers is sent on a mission to protect some diplomats. For some reason, bad guys attack them. Our heroes spend the movie outwitting the baddies. However, these bad guys are merely working for THE bad guys- who are described as bigger and badder and older than the Shadows.
No imagination there.
The next flaw is the concept itself. The Rangers on B5 were spiritual, dedicated, fighters, sort of like Jedi Knights. A few were sent here and there to protect the peace, to run covert operations and gather intelligence, to be a revered force working mostly behind the scenes. Keep in mind that Sinclair created them based on the Rangers of Tolkien lore. Instead, these Rangers- who seem as if they came out of your typical "space-marine" movie- now serve on crews of their own ships, going out on adventures of the week- I mean assignments.
The characters are dull cardboard cutouts. We have a captain that looks like he just finished playing high-school football, a hot-but-tough weapons officer, a cheeky second in command (who sees the ghosts that the ship is- for some reason- haunted with.) One crew member is so dimwitted that one can't possibly imagine him being a Ranger (One of his twelve lines is, "I lift big things.") G'Kar is in this movie as the guest star to link us to B5. He really serves no purpose to the story. Sadly, he is the only interesting person in the entire show.
Last, but not least, are the virtual space fights. This is so terrible. How could anyone seriously have gone along with this concept? The weapons officer enters the VR fighting unit, where she is blue-screened against a star field. When the bad ships come, she literally kung-fu fights them. Fireballs shoot from her virtual hands and feet, which is actually the ship firing at it's enemies. Were there any viewers who were not on the floor, curled in a ball, laughing hysterically? I really don't think this was the creators' intention.
Again. I love B5, and the B5 Universe. But it's over. Please let it rest in peace, Mr. Straczynski, and concentrate your efforts elsewhere. Please.
What appealed to me was its long-story format, the epic taking years to unfold, full of lore, myth, and detailed characters that evolved and changed over time.
I would suggest to J.M. Straczynski that he create some new sort of epic. Babylon 5 was a great story. But one of the things that make stories great is that they have a beginning, a middle, and an end. It ended. Let it be. Perhaps the book trilogies that continue the Babylon 5 canon would make good miniseries- such as "Legions of Fire" or the Psy-Cop trilogy. What is NOT needed is another "adventure of the week" series in the B5 universe. It obviously did not work with "Crusade." Why should it work here? The format is so similar to Crusade (a ship of people zipping around the galaxy having adventures) that one wonders if they were simply planning on using unaired "Crusade" scripts to cut writing costs.
The tele-movie's biggest flaw is that it has no plot whatsoever. A ship full of very young Rangers is sent on a mission to protect some diplomats. For some reason, bad guys attack them. Our heroes spend the movie outwitting the baddies. However, these bad guys are merely working for THE bad guys- who are described as bigger and badder and older than the Shadows.
No imagination there.
The next flaw is the concept itself. The Rangers on B5 were spiritual, dedicated, fighters, sort of like Jedi Knights. A few were sent here and there to protect the peace, to run covert operations and gather intelligence, to be a revered force working mostly behind the scenes. Keep in mind that Sinclair created them based on the Rangers of Tolkien lore. Instead, these Rangers- who seem as if they came out of your typical "space-marine" movie- now serve on crews of their own ships, going out on adventures of the week- I mean assignments.
The characters are dull cardboard cutouts. We have a captain that looks like he just finished playing high-school football, a hot-but-tough weapons officer, a cheeky second in command (who sees the ghosts that the ship is- for some reason- haunted with.) One crew member is so dimwitted that one can't possibly imagine him being a Ranger (One of his twelve lines is, "I lift big things.") G'Kar is in this movie as the guest star to link us to B5. He really serves no purpose to the story. Sadly, he is the only interesting person in the entire show.
Last, but not least, are the virtual space fights. This is so terrible. How could anyone seriously have gone along with this concept? The weapons officer enters the VR fighting unit, where she is blue-screened against a star field. When the bad ships come, she literally kung-fu fights them. Fireballs shoot from her virtual hands and feet, which is actually the ship firing at it's enemies. Were there any viewers who were not on the floor, curled in a ball, laughing hysterically? I really don't think this was the creators' intention.
Again. I love B5, and the B5 Universe. But it's over. Please let it rest in peace, Mr. Straczynski, and concentrate your efforts elsewhere. Please.
Better than average for a (potential) series pilot
demthariette23 January 2002
Although Legend of the Rangers will never rank as a classic in the Babylon 5 universe, this movie (series pilot?) hints at all the traits that made the Babylon 5 series so addictive - exotic alien races and technologies, chemistry between ship crews/main characters, subtle humor, space battles, and G'Kar ('nuff said). LotR is a bit lacking as a stand-alone movie, but the potential for a series is amazing.
A mixed bag
rolf_ernst21 January 2002
I liked it - with reservations.
The show is not quite true to the original Babylon 5 universe. Some details are outright ridiculous such as the operations of weapons/tactical (The weapons officer is floating around in some sort of holographic representation of the space surrounding the ship and boxes/throws charges towards the attackers - It took me a while to get over this nonsense). A more down-to-earth approach (pun intended) would have done just fine.
Another thing that rubbed me the wrong way was at least one not-so-subtle sexual innuendo that would have never made it into a B5 script.
The visuals were often impressive although the blue-screening seemed to be a shoddy job. I guess the budget was a little tight although other areas seemed rather lavish. Not sure what was going on there.
The crew is younger and the captain a definite pretty boy - A poor choice if you ask me. A Sinclair type would have done better and raising the average age would have lent more credibility to the characters.
The martial arts side-plot was ok but slightly overdone. Mimbari are more the Buddhist type and B5 ain't no Western. They are not as easily antagonized as we were led to believe.
Nevertheless, there was a certain spin to the show that was definitely reminiscent of B5 which was clearly enhanced by the presence of the (only surviving) G'Kar character. The plot had the air of the mystical, something I had always enjoyed on B5 and that was never achieved by the successor.
The dynamics between the characters worked, the Mimbari seemed true to life, Tannier made a good follow-up character and Gus Lynch's character was a great idea. Funny and warm.
The special quality of the spaceship that is destined to be (at least originally) the focus of the story also added to the makeup that set B5 apart from other space epics. And an epic this can clearly become if, and that remains to be seen, the writers will have as much of the original vision as necessary in order to *not* turn this into a series of independent episodes without evolving storyline.
I think the pilot holds more promise than the misguided Crusade. Replace Dylan Neal, possibly Myriam Sirois, and go with it, I'd say.
The show is not quite true to the original Babylon 5 universe. Some details are outright ridiculous such as the operations of weapons/tactical (The weapons officer is floating around in some sort of holographic representation of the space surrounding the ship and boxes/throws charges towards the attackers - It took me a while to get over this nonsense). A more down-to-earth approach (pun intended) would have done just fine.
Another thing that rubbed me the wrong way was at least one not-so-subtle sexual innuendo that would have never made it into a B5 script.
The visuals were often impressive although the blue-screening seemed to be a shoddy job. I guess the budget was a little tight although other areas seemed rather lavish. Not sure what was going on there.
The crew is younger and the captain a definite pretty boy - A poor choice if you ask me. A Sinclair type would have done better and raising the average age would have lent more credibility to the characters.
The martial arts side-plot was ok but slightly overdone. Mimbari are more the Buddhist type and B5 ain't no Western. They are not as easily antagonized as we were led to believe.
Nevertheless, there was a certain spin to the show that was definitely reminiscent of B5 which was clearly enhanced by the presence of the (only surviving) G'Kar character. The plot had the air of the mystical, something I had always enjoyed on B5 and that was never achieved by the successor.
The dynamics between the characters worked, the Mimbari seemed true to life, Tannier made a good follow-up character and Gus Lynch's character was a great idea. Funny and warm.
The special quality of the spaceship that is destined to be (at least originally) the focus of the story also added to the makeup that set B5 apart from other space epics. And an epic this can clearly become if, and that remains to be seen, the writers will have as much of the original vision as necessary in order to *not* turn this into a series of independent episodes without evolving storyline.
I think the pilot holds more promise than the misguided Crusade. Replace Dylan Neal, possibly Myriam Sirois, and go with it, I'd say.
Wow--what a bad script!
planktonrules25 January 2008
I love Babylon 5. I have seen every episode of the series and the movies as well--so it's obvious that I really care about this show. Heck, I even saw the spin-off series, CRUSADE--that's how much I love the show!! And, in light of this love, it really hurt to watch such a seriously flawed and inferior product as THE LEGEND OF THE RANGERS. I guess that after having written so much that the series creator, writer and executive producer J. Michael Straczynski finally was due for a fall as this is easily the worst of the Babylon pantheon.
So why was it so bad? Well, the fundamental idea of a new spin-off series wasn't the problem--this movie could have led to a decent series. However, the characters and writing just weren't up to snuff. Particular problems were a very, very predictable plot through at least the first half in which time and again I found myself guessing exactly what would happen next. In fact, my wife and I were both very accurately telling what would happen next because it all seemed so unoriginal and clichéd. Fortunately, it did improve later and I did like the escape pod sequences. In addition, the weapons officer and her gimmicky way of fighting was just embarrassingly bad and silly. She was completely one-dimensional and the fighting sequences made me cringe--they were THAT bad.
So what you have left wasn't without some merit and I guess it is a passable 90 minutes of entertainment--but just barely. My advice is that if you are a Babylon 5 geek (like me), then by all means watch it. Otherwise--skip it and watch the series.
By the way--take a look at all the ratings for this film. Like many popular sci-fi TV shows or movies (such as Star Trek or Star Wars), there are a small number of mindless zombies who declare that EVERY episode and EVERY movie is an artistic masterpiece--giving ALL OF THEM 10s!!! Now if you liked this movie, I have no argument with you. But, to take an obviously flawed movie that is clearly inferior to the previous series and films and STILL give it a 10 is just ludicrous. These zombies, I assume, are like cult members who CANNOT objectively rate anything from the series and think by giving EVERYTHING a 10 that they are somehow "helping" the show or being loyal. I am sure my harsh words will draw many "not helpful" ratings, but I don't care--the casual viewer needs to know that some reviews can't be trusted.
So why was it so bad? Well, the fundamental idea of a new spin-off series wasn't the problem--this movie could have led to a decent series. However, the characters and writing just weren't up to snuff. Particular problems were a very, very predictable plot through at least the first half in which time and again I found myself guessing exactly what would happen next. In fact, my wife and I were both very accurately telling what would happen next because it all seemed so unoriginal and clichéd. Fortunately, it did improve later and I did like the escape pod sequences. In addition, the weapons officer and her gimmicky way of fighting was just embarrassingly bad and silly. She was completely one-dimensional and the fighting sequences made me cringe--they were THAT bad.
So what you have left wasn't without some merit and I guess it is a passable 90 minutes of entertainment--but just barely. My advice is that if you are a Babylon 5 geek (like me), then by all means watch it. Otherwise--skip it and watch the series.
By the way--take a look at all the ratings for this film. Like many popular sci-fi TV shows or movies (such as Star Trek or Star Wars), there are a small number of mindless zombies who declare that EVERY episode and EVERY movie is an artistic masterpiece--giving ALL OF THEM 10s!!! Now if you liked this movie, I have no argument with you. But, to take an obviously flawed movie that is clearly inferior to the previous series and films and STILL give it a 10 is just ludicrous. These zombies, I assume, are like cult members who CANNOT objectively rate anything from the series and think by giving EVERYTHING a 10 that they are somehow "helping" the show or being loyal. I am sure my harsh words will draw many "not helpful" ratings, but I don't care--the casual viewer needs to know that some reviews can't be trusted.
Searching for a worthy B5 successor? Better keep looking...
darth_random29 April 2003
Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers is the second ill-fated attempt to launch a spin-off to the critically acclaimed space saga Babylon 5. However, not only does this telemovie, intended to launch the series, fall short of the precedent set by the epic Babylon 5, it comes off looking worse than Crusade, the original attempt at a B5 spin-off, widely criticised by fans for the network's handling of the show's artistic and storytelling side. Here, it seems that the makers of Legend of the Rangers have managed to screw up all on their own, and the result is a movie that is lacklustre at best and dreadfully appalling at worst.
Legend of the Rangers is set some time after the conclusion of Babylon 5. It deals with a group of Rangers: scouts and warriors drawn from the ranks of member worlds of the broad-reaching Interstellar Alliance. Originally an institution exclusively handled by the Minbari race, it has also been accepting humans (occurring in the Babylon 5 series) and more recently others. The main character is David Martel, a young Ranger struck from ship captain candidacy and facing disciplinary action for breaking one of the Ranger's guiding rules: never break from combat. The fact that he fled only because his ship no longer had weapons capabilities, his captain was dead and he had no chance of winning does not phase his Minbari disciplinarians. He is demoted and a rival Minbari Ranger assumes the post he was to take aboard the newly commissioned Valen, the most advanced ship in the Ranger arsenal. Backed up by his crew and Citizen G'Kar (an oddly un-engaging Andreas Katsulas), he is given command of an old, supposedly haunted patrol boat and sent off as an escort to the Valen on a secret security mission transporting diplomats to a conference.
And that's when things go crazily wrong. The Valen is destroyed by a mysterious new alien race, the diplomats are forced aboard the tiny patrol ship and Martel and his crew have to fight the aliens, find a traitor in their midst and deal with the troubled ghosts of the last crew. Martel solves many of these problems quite simply: all the solutions involve sticking heaps of explosives inside an escape pod and blowing the enemy up when they go to retrieve it. This happens twice in the course of the movie. So much for superior alien intelligence.
Nothing comes off quite right in Legend of the Rangers. The best elements seem mediocre and the worst are laughable. The acting is average, with only Martel and his Minbari 2IC Dulann coming off as likeable characters. The rest come across as narrow stereotypes: quiet Minbari healer, stupid Drazi loader, feisty Narn engineer and, who could forget, the aggressive red-headed weapons officer. In fact, its her role that creates one of the stupidest sequences in the whole movie: her in the 'weapons pod' which suspends her in a holographic representation of her surroundings in which she randomly spins in mid air firing the ships guns by punching and kicking the air causing plasma bursts to erupt from her clenched fists. This is only made more ridiculous by remembering that Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski always prided himself on having realistic technology. Is this the worst idea in a highly billed sci-fi show to date? In short: if it isn't, I deeply fear anything worse than it.
The enemies, an ancient alien order known as `The Hand' don't come off at all either. We are told they are billions of years old, and only their servants show themselves in this movie. Despite their superiority though, their technologically superior ships (which tear the Valen to pieces in seconds) have a really hard time taking out a damaged patrol vessel and its escape pod slinging captain. Their leader, glimpsed in transmissions is hardly menacing: he simply wears a horned hood and speaks in a vaguely legalistic sense. On the whole, these aliens feel like a mix of the Shadows and the Thirdspace aliens from Babylon 5, both of which relied on the exact same premise of ancient evil. The difference: the originals were better.
Even the presence of the charismatic Andreas Katsulas cant save this movie, and for the most part, he looks like he doesn't want to try. No explanation is offered for G'Kar's presence, and he feels like he's only there to bridge the original series and the spin-off and make them feel like a cohesive whole.
In the end, only the visual effects stand out as above-average, and even then we feel uneasy with them. Depictions of Minbar in this movie differ wildly from any place on the planet ever seen before, and while the space scenes are impressive, they're not above anything seen in the B5 telemovies or Crusade.
In the end, Legend of the Rangers comes off as a barely credible mess that lacks the intelligence and characterisation of its predecessor. Its not that character motives are unclear, its that they're too clear, each person so wrapped up in a traditional stereotype they are unlikely to break it. Those B5 fans still looking for a successor after the demise of Crusade will have to keep looking: they wont find it here.
Legend of the Rangers is set some time after the conclusion of Babylon 5. It deals with a group of Rangers: scouts and warriors drawn from the ranks of member worlds of the broad-reaching Interstellar Alliance. Originally an institution exclusively handled by the Minbari race, it has also been accepting humans (occurring in the Babylon 5 series) and more recently others. The main character is David Martel, a young Ranger struck from ship captain candidacy and facing disciplinary action for breaking one of the Ranger's guiding rules: never break from combat. The fact that he fled only because his ship no longer had weapons capabilities, his captain was dead and he had no chance of winning does not phase his Minbari disciplinarians. He is demoted and a rival Minbari Ranger assumes the post he was to take aboard the newly commissioned Valen, the most advanced ship in the Ranger arsenal. Backed up by his crew and Citizen G'Kar (an oddly un-engaging Andreas Katsulas), he is given command of an old, supposedly haunted patrol boat and sent off as an escort to the Valen on a secret security mission transporting diplomats to a conference.
And that's when things go crazily wrong. The Valen is destroyed by a mysterious new alien race, the diplomats are forced aboard the tiny patrol ship and Martel and his crew have to fight the aliens, find a traitor in their midst and deal with the troubled ghosts of the last crew. Martel solves many of these problems quite simply: all the solutions involve sticking heaps of explosives inside an escape pod and blowing the enemy up when they go to retrieve it. This happens twice in the course of the movie. So much for superior alien intelligence.
Nothing comes off quite right in Legend of the Rangers. The best elements seem mediocre and the worst are laughable. The acting is average, with only Martel and his Minbari 2IC Dulann coming off as likeable characters. The rest come across as narrow stereotypes: quiet Minbari healer, stupid Drazi loader, feisty Narn engineer and, who could forget, the aggressive red-headed weapons officer. In fact, its her role that creates one of the stupidest sequences in the whole movie: her in the 'weapons pod' which suspends her in a holographic representation of her surroundings in which she randomly spins in mid air firing the ships guns by punching and kicking the air causing plasma bursts to erupt from her clenched fists. This is only made more ridiculous by remembering that Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski always prided himself on having realistic technology. Is this the worst idea in a highly billed sci-fi show to date? In short: if it isn't, I deeply fear anything worse than it.
The enemies, an ancient alien order known as `The Hand' don't come off at all either. We are told they are billions of years old, and only their servants show themselves in this movie. Despite their superiority though, their technologically superior ships (which tear the Valen to pieces in seconds) have a really hard time taking out a damaged patrol vessel and its escape pod slinging captain. Their leader, glimpsed in transmissions is hardly menacing: he simply wears a horned hood and speaks in a vaguely legalistic sense. On the whole, these aliens feel like a mix of the Shadows and the Thirdspace aliens from Babylon 5, both of which relied on the exact same premise of ancient evil. The difference: the originals were better.
Even the presence of the charismatic Andreas Katsulas cant save this movie, and for the most part, he looks like he doesn't want to try. No explanation is offered for G'Kar's presence, and he feels like he's only there to bridge the original series and the spin-off and make them feel like a cohesive whole.
In the end, only the visual effects stand out as above-average, and even then we feel uneasy with them. Depictions of Minbar in this movie differ wildly from any place on the planet ever seen before, and while the space scenes are impressive, they're not above anything seen in the B5 telemovies or Crusade.
In the end, Legend of the Rangers comes off as a barely credible mess that lacks the intelligence and characterisation of its predecessor. Its not that character motives are unclear, its that they're too clear, each person so wrapped up in a traditional stereotype they are unlikely to break it. Those B5 fans still looking for a successor after the demise of Crusade will have to keep looking: they wont find it here.
Strange
rogue900020 January 2005
OK this film was created as a pilot but that does not give it an excuse!!! OK as a bit of sci-fi it was not that bad if you pay no attention to the B5 series. The major problem i had with this was the ships,anyone who has seen the series would know that the WHITESTAR's were the ultimate ship so why did the rangers not have them? They were created for the alliance and the rangers were the special ops of the alliance! It was nice to see G'Kar back at his best. I think the film would have a better reception if they had gone ahead with the show and people would look back with a better understanding but thats TV for you.
Now for a bit of intelligent thought! If you want to make a new B5 series or film you have the perfect opening in the first shadow war,even if you want to be lame stick in a time warp (whoops they did that) and have some B5 regular turn up (maybe delenn as that would be cool with sinclair). But all in all this film was a bit of an insult to the B5 name that for once showed the American TV exec's that people will watch a programme with a story arc and do not need the throw away things such as (ready for the grinding of teeth) star trek next generation (DS9 was better).
Now for a bit of intelligent thought! If you want to make a new B5 series or film you have the perfect opening in the first shadow war,even if you want to be lame stick in a time warp (whoops they did that) and have some B5 regular turn up (maybe delenn as that would be cool with sinclair). But all in all this film was a bit of an insult to the B5 name that for once showed the American TV exec's that people will watch a programme with a story arc and do not need the throw away things such as (ready for the grinding of teeth) star trek next generation (DS9 was better).
Definitely the worst of the Babylon 5 films
pornace1 April 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I watched this film after finishing the whole five seasons, all 13 episodes of Crusade and the other five films. I had already got the general idea from Babylon 5 forums that this film was not going to be good. But since I am a forgiving and merciful person and a big fan of Babylon 5, I thought I'd go soft on it.
However... the disappointments prevailed.
To start with- the Rangers. Every other comment touches the same problem: the Rangers here are nothing what they ought to be. These guys are impulsive (especially Ne'Feel and Sarah) and irrational and one of them (Tirk) is just plain stupid. How could such people command a Ranger ship (and a strange one indeed)? How could they even BECOME Rangers? And since when does the Grey Council judge them?
To continue with- the Hand. You may remember Delenn telling the B5 crew about the First Ones, Shadows being the eldest. You may remember Lorien, the eldest of all. And here we have a race, billions of years old, powerful beyond imagination, sensing their chance to conquer and destroy (or just destroy), whose ships fall to simple explosives in a life-pod...
To further continue with- the VR shooting and other minor points. It seemed quite interesting when Sarah first jumped inside, but the sheer impracticability of it and the ridiculous scenes that followed killed the idea off. After the ambassadors get on board, they complain and after that, they somehow disappear from the scene. And G'Kar is simply abused and flattened here.
To end with- I could dismiss the darkness and mist around the base on Minbar with thinking "it was at night, probably in industrial quarter". I could judge it as a pilot knowing that JMS has some tricks up his sleeve he would show later. I could appreciate the CGI. I could do all that and I still cannot find enough compassion for this film.
I am truly sorry it had to end like this.
However... the disappointments prevailed.
To start with- the Rangers. Every other comment touches the same problem: the Rangers here are nothing what they ought to be. These guys are impulsive (especially Ne'Feel and Sarah) and irrational and one of them (Tirk) is just plain stupid. How could such people command a Ranger ship (and a strange one indeed)? How could they even BECOME Rangers? And since when does the Grey Council judge them?
To continue with- the Hand. You may remember Delenn telling the B5 crew about the First Ones, Shadows being the eldest. You may remember Lorien, the eldest of all. And here we have a race, billions of years old, powerful beyond imagination, sensing their chance to conquer and destroy (or just destroy), whose ships fall to simple explosives in a life-pod...
To further continue with- the VR shooting and other minor points. It seemed quite interesting when Sarah first jumped inside, but the sheer impracticability of it and the ridiculous scenes that followed killed the idea off. After the ambassadors get on board, they complain and after that, they somehow disappear from the scene. And G'Kar is simply abused and flattened here.
To end with- I could dismiss the darkness and mist around the base on Minbar with thinking "it was at night, probably in industrial quarter". I could judge it as a pilot knowing that JMS has some tricks up his sleeve he would show later. I could appreciate the CGI. I could do all that and I still cannot find enough compassion for this film.
I am truly sorry it had to end like this.
People. Please.
mr_cazorp3 June 2006
We all know Thirdspace is by far the worst of the B5 films. LotR was not exactly mind- blowingly great - but neither was it entirely without its charms.
Legend of the Rangers a fairly decent story told in the B5 universe. The problem for me is that afterwards, I just didn't give a crap. Not about the story, or the characters. It almost had the feeling of fan fiction.
As a potential series, I don't see much here that would compel me to keep viewing. Crusade had the benefit of the amazing Gary Cole - no such presence here. It also had the benefit of following directly and clearly from the events of B5 and revealing more of that story than we thought we knew. LotR, through The Hand, seems to subvert much of what we knew.
But hey. This was only a pilot. It was the "who." The what, where, why and how were yet to come. It's impossible to judge without knowing the context. I wasn't overly fond of The Gathering (or indeed, most of the first season of Babylon 5 itself) until I could watch it knowing what was yet to come.
We don't know what JMS had in mind for Legend of the Rangers. But I think it's safe to say that he probably was going to take this story someplace interesting. Nothing in B5 is exactly what it appears to be. And I doubt this would be a story about a bunch of space cowboys fighting freaky aliens week after week.
I will concede that the "virtual space fighting thing" was incredibly stupid. I bet it looked great on paper.
-Cazorp
Legend of the Rangers a fairly decent story told in the B5 universe. The problem for me is that afterwards, I just didn't give a crap. Not about the story, or the characters. It almost had the feeling of fan fiction.
As a potential series, I don't see much here that would compel me to keep viewing. Crusade had the benefit of the amazing Gary Cole - no such presence here. It also had the benefit of following directly and clearly from the events of B5 and revealing more of that story than we thought we knew. LotR, through The Hand, seems to subvert much of what we knew.
But hey. This was only a pilot. It was the "who." The what, where, why and how were yet to come. It's impossible to judge without knowing the context. I wasn't overly fond of The Gathering (or indeed, most of the first season of Babylon 5 itself) until I could watch it knowing what was yet to come.
We don't know what JMS had in mind for Legend of the Rangers. But I think it's safe to say that he probably was going to take this story someplace interesting. Nothing in B5 is exactly what it appears to be. And I doubt this would be a story about a bunch of space cowboys fighting freaky aliens week after week.
I will concede that the "virtual space fighting thing" was incredibly stupid. I bet it looked great on paper.
-Cazorp
Not up to par for Babylon 5
guest15066919 January 2002
This movie is not terrible, but it is most definitely not what I, as a Babylon 5 fan, had hoped for. If you have not seen Babylon 5, then you might enjoy it as a bit of a sci-fi action flick. And, on the other extreme, if you are a rabid, noncritical, fan of Babylon 5 that drools at anything new because you miss B5 so much, then you might even love it (like 16 of the 22 people who voted so far and gave it a 10. A 10! Please!). Don't get me wrong, I am a pretty big fan, and perhaps because of that, I was really looking forward to this, and hence really disappointed. It was absolutely *not* up to snuff with the complex and genius writing that MJS did for the series.
The humor was heavy-handed, and often plot-wise inappropriately placed. The new characters were OK. Andreas Katsulas returns as G'Kar, a welcome return. Yet even his character doesn't display the depth and wisdom and brilliance that was developed in the series. At a low point of the movie, he leaves a scene with a Hollywood stereotypical "kiss kiss", presumably for the audience's amusement.
The plot is more like the kick off premiere feature length episode to a new series than a premiere feature length Babylon 5 film. And please, don't get me started on the ridiculous space-fight scenes. A crewman performing karate moves in zero-g is not the futuristic fight environment that the producers think it is. Good Googly, she didn't even have the same point of view as the craft she was shooting from.
I have to recommend that people not waste their time on this feature. If you must see it, wait until it fits your schedule, do not fit your schedule around seeing this, or you will be as disappointed as I.
I'd like to leave you with one example of the poor execution of this feature. When you are facing a mine field, what do you do? Shoot the mines in your path, you say? No! Shoot all the mines behind you that you have already eluded! Then when you are done flying through the mine field, you get to show a shot of all the mines blowing up behind you. Who was the supermind behind that?
Again, as a big Babylon 5 fan, this feature was a bust. But if you have 2 hours of your life to waste, and you don't expect too much, then go ahead. Watch this film. Man, I hate being so negative.
The humor was heavy-handed, and often plot-wise inappropriately placed. The new characters were OK. Andreas Katsulas returns as G'Kar, a welcome return. Yet even his character doesn't display the depth and wisdom and brilliance that was developed in the series. At a low point of the movie, he leaves a scene with a Hollywood stereotypical "kiss kiss", presumably for the audience's amusement.
The plot is more like the kick off premiere feature length episode to a new series than a premiere feature length Babylon 5 film. And please, don't get me started on the ridiculous space-fight scenes. A crewman performing karate moves in zero-g is not the futuristic fight environment that the producers think it is. Good Googly, she didn't even have the same point of view as the craft she was shooting from.
I have to recommend that people not waste their time on this feature. If you must see it, wait until it fits your schedule, do not fit your schedule around seeing this, or you will be as disappointed as I.
I'd like to leave you with one example of the poor execution of this feature. When you are facing a mine field, what do you do? Shoot the mines in your path, you say? No! Shoot all the mines behind you that you have already eluded! Then when you are done flying through the mine field, you get to show a shot of all the mines blowing up behind you. Who was the supermind behind that?
Again, as a big Babylon 5 fan, this feature was a bust. But if you have 2 hours of your life to waste, and you don't expect too much, then go ahead. Watch this film. Man, I hate being so negative.
A pilot to a series that looks to need some serious direction.
lordkosh21 January 2002
As a pilot movie goes, it was pretty good. The dialogue was good, and extremely funny in parts, decent effects, and good acting. However, the premise for this show is not nearly has good as Crusade's, and the fact that JMS had to bring in a "bigger, badder" alien race makes me wonder if this should have been made at all. Andreas Katsulas was great as G'Kar as usual, but too many of his lines were re-hashes of some of his best stuff from the original series and seemed liked forced references to remind us that this is a Babylon 5 series. Overall not bad, but needs something more than a new mysterious powerful race to make this show half as good as Crusade, and 1/4 good as Babylon 5.
This is by far the worst thing ever produced in the Babylon 5 universe.
KoshNaranek26 May 2002
The whole premise of the movie/pilot, the Rangers never retreating, for ANY reason, is absolutely ridiculous. The holographic weapons interface scenes are so bad that they're painful to watch. Myriam Sirois' acting isn't even up to Tracy Scoggins'/Marjean Holden's level (not good), and a lot of the dialogue is horrible. Sirois drags down every scene she's in, like a lead weight. The captain is a pretty boy, a Keffer/Trace type, except that Keffer and Trace were more interesting. The captain's best scene is an early one with Dulann, where they're discussing who got command of the Valen. That shows a brief glimpse of the kind of writing that JMS can do, but it was almost all downhill from there. Most of the captains good scenes are with Dulann. Coincidence? No. Dulann elevates those scenes. The Captain mostly delivers exposition. (connecting the dots for slow-witted viewers?) and 90% of this movie/pilot is just plain bad.
I rate Babylon 5, the TV series 10 out of 10 stars overall, Crusade 9 out of 10 stars, Babylon 5: The Lost Tales "Voices in the Dark" barely 6 out of 10 stars (3 stars for the first story and 8 stars for the second), and Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers 2 out of 10 stars. At least the Lost Tales DVD, as insubstantial as it is, is better than this. The redeeming factors of the Legend of the Rangers pilot movie were Andreas Katsulas (sadly, in his last appearance as G'Kar), Alex Zahara as Dulann, Jennie Rebecca Hogan as Na'Feel and Enid-Raye Adams as Firell, but it's not enough. Andreas, you're greatly missed, and I wish your send off had been better. For the most part, these are no Rangers. Marcus would be doing a few thousand RPM in his cryo-tube.
I rate Babylon 5, the TV series 10 out of 10 stars overall, Crusade 9 out of 10 stars, Babylon 5: The Lost Tales "Voices in the Dark" barely 6 out of 10 stars (3 stars for the first story and 8 stars for the second), and Babylon 5: The Legend of the Rangers 2 out of 10 stars. At least the Lost Tales DVD, as insubstantial as it is, is better than this. The redeeming factors of the Legend of the Rangers pilot movie were Andreas Katsulas (sadly, in his last appearance as G'Kar), Alex Zahara as Dulann, Jennie Rebecca Hogan as Na'Feel and Enid-Raye Adams as Firell, but it's not enough. Andreas, you're greatly missed, and I wish your send off had been better. For the most part, these are no Rangers. Marcus would be doing a few thousand RPM in his cryo-tube.
A Good Pilot With Promise
jrgreenmd22 January 2002
The show has promise. JMS provides the setting for a new slice of the Babylon 5 universe that fits into the existing B5 arc. G'Kar, a main stay in the original series, provides a good tie in and Andreas delivers another great job of acting. One can only wonder what characters and actors will return.
The depth of background JMS gives the characters early on is refreshing. Unlike other pilots, one is not left waiting for future episodes to flesh out characters. This makes the crew real and the humor less contrived.
The computer generated imagery (CGI) is prominent and more detailed than a typical episode. New aspects will create questions for the die hard fan. A bonus is the chance to see the Ranger base on Minbar for the first time. If you like the released promotional pictures and wallpaper, you will love these scenes.
The pilot is good entertainment for the novice and a "must see" for the devotee.
jim
The depth of background JMS gives the characters early on is refreshing. Unlike other pilots, one is not left waiting for future episodes to flesh out characters. This makes the crew real and the humor less contrived.
The computer generated imagery (CGI) is prominent and more detailed than a typical episode. New aspects will create questions for the die hard fan. A bonus is the chance to see the Ranger base on Minbar for the first time. If you like the released promotional pictures and wallpaper, you will love these scenes.
The pilot is good entertainment for the novice and a "must see" for the devotee.
jim
Awful.
JoakimH22 January 2002
What a waste.
Babylon 5 lives on its story, B5 was intruiging because it didn't give away anything immediately. It took its time, as it did with the shadows, to tell a darn good story.
Now what is the Legend of the Rangers? It's a star trek show. You have the captain and your crew, and they have an intro which is basically like star trek's "to boldly go where noone has gone before".
Sigh.
This could have been really good, yet it turns out to be... well, this:
The enemy falls for stupid tricks, the weapons expert go into combat mode and use karate kicks and punches to fire the ship's weapons, there are ghosts in the ship and the acting is terrible. It's not even up to par with a regular soap opera.
Now, the beginning of Babylon 5 was slow, and it didn't catch my interest until the war with the shadows began, so the story may develop into something good in the Legend of the Rangers, but that combat mode and using kicks and punches to fire weapons was too much (not to mention the ghosts). There is no way I'm going to continue watching it.
1/10.
Babylon 5 lives on its story, B5 was intruiging because it didn't give away anything immediately. It took its time, as it did with the shadows, to tell a darn good story.
Now what is the Legend of the Rangers? It's a star trek show. You have the captain and your crew, and they have an intro which is basically like star trek's "to boldly go where noone has gone before".
Sigh.
This could have been really good, yet it turns out to be... well, this:
The enemy falls for stupid tricks, the weapons expert go into combat mode and use karate kicks and punches to fire the ship's weapons, there are ghosts in the ship and the acting is terrible. It's not even up to par with a regular soap opera.
Now, the beginning of Babylon 5 was slow, and it didn't catch my interest until the war with the shadows began, so the story may develop into something good in the Legend of the Rangers, but that combat mode and using kicks and punches to fire weapons was too much (not to mention the ghosts). There is no way I'm going to continue watching it.
1/10.
They should know when to stop
Auryn-45 February 2002
The best thing about B5 was that it was all planned from the beginning : all five seasons. That made it good. That made log story--archs possible. That created wonderful intrigues that could never be concieved in the regular kind of show (read: Star Trek) where the plot is always the same: "bust the alien-of-the-week for the mystery-of-the-week, or defeat the microbe-of-the-week with a stream-of-technobabble".
Rangers seems to be dangerously near falling into this trap. The crew was more Star-Trek-all-american-hotshots than the seasoned, competent people of a B5 crew.
The battle interface was an outright stupid idea. Let's just leave it at that.
The dialog was bad. Good lines were overused, like "we live for the one, we die for the one".
And for the love of all that's good and true... the Rangers are NOT kamikaze pilots! The original rangers were never some suicidal freaks ready to die pointless deaths just to save face. They fought in their own ways, but they were intelligent enough to realise when there was a need for retreat, to return to fight another day.
Marcus was a true ranger. He was a gentleman and a warrior of honor, dedicated to a great philosophy. This new bunch seemed more his opposits than his equals.
They were not rangers. This was not worthy of the great label B5. This is a story that might as well have been stolen from the Star Trek files.
The only thing that I really, really liked was a single line (reference to Lord of the Rings): "We stand on the bridge none may pass".
/Auryn
Rangers seems to be dangerously near falling into this trap. The crew was more Star-Trek-all-american-hotshots than the seasoned, competent people of a B5 crew.
The battle interface was an outright stupid idea. Let's just leave it at that.
The dialog was bad. Good lines were overused, like "we live for the one, we die for the one".
And for the love of all that's good and true... the Rangers are NOT kamikaze pilots! The original rangers were never some suicidal freaks ready to die pointless deaths just to save face. They fought in their own ways, but they were intelligent enough to realise when there was a need for retreat, to return to fight another day.
Marcus was a true ranger. He was a gentleman and a warrior of honor, dedicated to a great philosophy. This new bunch seemed more his opposits than his equals.
They were not rangers. This was not worthy of the great label B5. This is a story that might as well have been stolen from the Star Trek files.
The only thing that I really, really liked was a single line (reference to Lord of the Rings): "We stand on the bridge none may pass".
/Auryn
Oh Joe, Joe, where did your brain go?
Lady Cole26 October 2002
This movie was HORRIBLE! I went into it with mixed expectations, mainly stemming from my feelings that without the character of Marcus Cole, a movie about the Rangers wouldn't be too much worth watching. However, seeing as how wonderful Babylon 5 was, I gave JMS the benefit of the doubt.....and paid this price with this two-hour mishmash!
I'll start with the good stuff first-Andreas Katsulas could read the directions off the back of a shampoo bottle and we could still be mesmerized, the man is brilliant. He had all the best lines in the movie, and as always was superb.
As for the rest of the movie, nay, nay, again I say NAY! The plot was dumb, the cast wasn't exactly very good, and even the CGI was a disappointment. Given that the show was about Rangers, you'd think they would've been shown flying the White Stars. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the capital ship of the Ranger fleet? And what is with that stupid weapons system aboard the Liandra?
I think a better premise for this movie would've have come from the book "To Dream In the City of Sorrows", in which Sinclair first becomes the head of the Rangers. Then we at least would've been familiar with the characters.
I was disappointed with almost every aspect of this movie. Joe had been a fantastic writer during the 5-year run of B5, but I've read fanfiction that shows better plot and coherence than this mess.
I give this one a 3/10, the 3 only coming from Andreas appearing in it.
I'll start with the good stuff first-Andreas Katsulas could read the directions off the back of a shampoo bottle and we could still be mesmerized, the man is brilliant. He had all the best lines in the movie, and as always was superb.
As for the rest of the movie, nay, nay, again I say NAY! The plot was dumb, the cast wasn't exactly very good, and even the CGI was a disappointment. Given that the show was about Rangers, you'd think they would've been shown flying the White Stars. Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the capital ship of the Ranger fleet? And what is with that stupid weapons system aboard the Liandra?
I think a better premise for this movie would've have come from the book "To Dream In the City of Sorrows", in which Sinclair first becomes the head of the Rangers. Then we at least would've been familiar with the characters.
I was disappointed with almost every aspect of this movie. Joe had been a fantastic writer during the 5-year run of B5, but I've read fanfiction that shows better plot and coherence than this mess.
I give this one a 3/10, the 3 only coming from Andreas appearing in it.
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