Sheridan is Once Again Unstuck in Time…and Space
Despite all the mysteries I read, my favorite TV show of all time is Babylon 5. (Okay, so mysteries are a huge part of the show.) I have watched the show numerous times since I was introduced to it during season 4 of its original run, and each time, I’m reminded why I love it so much. So, when I learned that we were going to get an all-new animated movie, Babylon 5: The Road Home, to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of the show’s original release, I was excited.
If you’ve missed the show (and given how long it’s been since it aired and the small but loyal fan base even then, it’s not a surprise), Babylon 5 is a space station deep in neutral territory. Its mission is to help bring peace among the various alien races. However, when an ancient enemy returns, it might serve as our last best hope for victory.
The show itself was designed as a five-year story with a beginning, middle, and end. And, while the realities of the TV business caused a few hiccups to the story over the years, it works remarkably well. And on rewatches, you can appreciate the foreshadowing and set up we get, sometimes years before we get the payoff.
All of this was the vision of creator J. Michael Straczynski, or JMS as he became known to us fans. The first thing you need to know about this film is that JMS is back as the writer. If he hadn’t been involved, I know I wouldn’t have been that excited. Also back are the surviving cast members to voice their characters. As fans know, we have lost too many of the cast along the way, but those characters involved in the story are brought to life by new voice actors who do a good job of bringing them back to life. And we get a nice tribute to the actors who have passed (whether their character was in this movie or not) at the end.
The story itself starts at the end of season 5 as Interstellar Alliance President John Sheridan (still voices by Bruce Boxleitner) and his wife, Minbari Ambassador Delenn (voiced here by Rebecca Riedy taking over for the late Mira Furlan) are leaving Babylon 5 to go to the alliance’s new headquarters on the planet of Minbar. They’ve had a couple of weeks to settle in when Sheridan is asked to speak at the opening of a new power facility. However, when they start it up, Sheridan is upset to learn that this new plant is powered by tachyon power. This is the same thing that caused issues when he tried some time travel in the original series, and it comes back to haunt him as he starts jumping through time and even into alternative timelines. Can he figure out a way to get home?
I worried going into this how I would react to seeing characters I know and love animated instead of live action. The trailer did nothing to help that. I will say that I struggled at times. This is stylized animation. My mind kept telling me it wasn’t quite right. This isn’t true for the backgrounds and ships, which are wonderfully animated and are immediately recognizable by any fan of the series.
The new actors stepping into the familiar characters were good. Some were better than others, which isn’t a surprise. I can’t fault them for their performances, especially since a couple of the returning cast didn’t sound quite right to me either. And this is not to knock anyone in the cast. I’m being a hypercritical fanboy here, and I know it. They breathe life into these characters and make the script come alive.
And, taking a step back from hypercritical fanboy mode, this is the only way we could have ever gotten this story. It’s been almost 30 years since we last saw these characters on a regular basis. Even if everyone in the cast were still alive, there’s no way they would look like they did when the series ended. Then factor in that so many characters had to be revoiced and it makes sense that the only way we’d get this story would be animation. It doesn’t take away my issues, but it does help excuse them. I would definitely rather have this story in animation form than to not get it at all.
The idea of a multiverse seems to be everywhere these days, but I was interested to see what would happen in a universe I know so well. I wasn’t disappointed. No, we don’t spend too long at any one stop, but it was enough to get a feel for what could have gone very wrong. It also gives us a great chance to see characters we know again as Sheridan is always popping up next to friends. And yes, some stops, especially at the beginning, are in our timeline.
The best part is, all of these stops make us feel something. Yes, we get some big action and space battles, but we also get the heart the show always had. And the philosophy.
And the humor. I laughed multiple times at things that were either a call back to the show or new moments that were just perfect. The cast is wonderful at bringing the humor with just their voice, leaving it for the animators to work out the rest, which they do admirably.
Obviously, this movie was created first for the fans. As a fan, I truly do appreciate that. But, as a fan, I don’t know how accessible it would be for someone who hasn’t watched the show before. I think the story stands up well enough on its own, but you wouldn’t fully understand the implication of everything going on here. But that’s what the series is for, and I highly recommend you check it out.
A word to other die-hard fans like me. Yes, you heard my fanboy objections earlier. However, overall, I really did enjoy it. It was fantastic to be back in this universe seeing these characters again. And if you need any more enticement – Zathras is in it.
The ending set things up for more adventures, and I’d be curious to see what would happen after the ending we saw. And how that story could be told in any future animated movies. (JMS has said if this sells well enough, that might be a possibility.) I’d certainly be back to see where things go, but I’m just trying to imagine how the complex, rich story we already know could be adjusted to a multiple movie format. Not that I’d expect an exact duplicate of the story.
In the way of extras, we get a featurette on the process that went into making this movie, including interviews with the voice cast and behind the scenes crew, including JMS. There’s also a commentary with him, Bruce Boxleitner, and supervising producer Rick Morales. You can tell how much love everyone involved put into this.
If you are a fan of Babylon 5, you owe it to yourself to watch The Road Home. It was nice to revisit the characters again in a story that feels like it is part of that universe. If you haven’t seen the show before, or only seen parts, this might just convince you it’s time to go back and watch the fabulous original show.
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