Plot
In 2278, the planet Centauri Prime is in flames. Londo Mollari, the emperor of the Centauri Republic, tells two children, Luc and Lyssa, the story of the Earth-Minbari War, which took place 35 years ago while he was a diplomatic liaison to Earth.
In 2243, the human race, emboldened by recent victories, is rapidly expanding into space. Word reaches them of the mysterious Minbari. Though they are warned by Londo to leave this race alone, they send an expedition to study the Minbari, led by the starship Prometheus. The Minbari leadership—the Grey Council, led by Dukhat—are voyaging to investigate concerns that an ancient enemy, the Shadows, may be returning. The Prometheus expedition encounters the Grey Council's convoy by chance. As the Minbari ships approach the Earth ships, they open their gun ports—a sign of respect in their culture. The captain of Prometheus, interpreting this as a signal of intent to attack, opens fire. The Minbari ships are severely damaged and Dukhat is killed. In retaliation, the Grey Council declares a holy war against humanity, with Dukhat's protégée Delenn casting the deciding vote.
The war continues for several months and human forces are overwhelmed by superior Minbari technology. Lieutenant Commander John Sheridan, first officer of the Lexington, is part of a battlegroup engaging the Minbari. After Sheridan's commanding officer is killed, Sheridan assumes command of the damaged ship and lays a trap for the enemy, seeding the local asteroids with nuclear mines. The Minbari flagship Black Star closes in to finish off the Lexington but is destroyed by the mines—Earth's only real victory during the war.
The Minbari faction that feels the war has caused enough senseless bloodshed—led by Delenn, who has learned that Dukhat believed an alliance with humans would be necessary to defeat the Shadows—uses this as an opportunity to engage in peace talks with Earth. The Centauri discover that the humans are having a secret meeting that is being brokered by the Narn, rivals of the Centauri. Not understanding the purpose of the meeting, the Centauri bomb the peace conference, with neither the humans nor Minbari suspecting their intervention. All hope for peace is lost, and humanity's losses at the hands of the Minbari continue for two more years.
In a last, desperate effort, the President of Earth orders all available ships to form a "line" around the planet in an attempt to delay the Minbari to give some humans time to flee the planet. During the battle, a human pilot, Jeffrey Sinclair, is captured for interrogation. The Grey Council is startled to discover that he possesses the soul of the revered Minbari religious leader Valen. Delenn infers that the reincarnation of Valen as a human is a signal that the humans must not be destroyed, and so the Minbari surrender to the defenseless Earth forces. Because of the damage this revelation could do to their society, they keep the reason for the surrender a secret. In the wake of the war, Earth plans to create a space station that will serve as a venue for peaceful collaboration to prevent future wars; these plans will ultimately result in the creation of Babylon 5.
After the children leave him, Londo views Delenn and Sheridan being held captive in the Centauri palace. Toasting them as his friends, he begins drinking heavily and orders the prisoners to be brought to him in one hour.
Babylon 5 is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski, under the Babylonian Productions label, in association with Straczynski's Synthetic Worlds Ltd. and Warner Bros. Domestic Television. After the successful airing of a test pilot movie on February 22, 1993, Babylon 5: The Gathering, Warner Bros. commissioned the series for production in May 1993 as part of its Prime Time Entertainment Network (PTEN). The show premiered in the US on January 26, 1994, and ran for five 22-episode seasons.
Michael Garibaldi is a lead fictional character in the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Jerry Doyle.
"Midnight on the Firing Line" is the first episode of the first season of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5, following the pilot movie, "The Gathering". It first aired on January 26, 1994. It was notable for being the first regular television episode which used computer-generated imagery rather than physical models for its special visual effects. The episode also marked the beginning of the first science fiction television series where the entire series had an overarching storyline, which the writer J. Michael Straczynski described as "a novel for television".
"Soul Hunter" is the second episode of the first season of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5. It first aired on 2 February 1994.
"The War Prayer" is the seventh episode of the first season of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5. It first aired on 9 March 1994.
"And the Sky Full of Stars" is the eighth episode of the first season of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5. It first aired on 16 March 1994.
"The Coming of Shadows" is a key episode from the second season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. It won the 1996 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.
"Severed Dreams" is an episode from the third season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. It won the 1997 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.
John J. Sheridan is the lead character in the fictional universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Bruce Boxleitner. For most of the series, he is the commander of the Babylon 5 station; during the series' final season he is the President of the Interstellar Alliance.
Londo Mollari is a fictional character in the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Peter Jurasik.
G'Kar is a fictional character in Babylon 5 played by Andreas Katsulas. He is a Narn and initially appears as a villainous diplomat opposite Londo Mollari, being constantly engaged in insidious, if petty and often comical schemes, usually driven by his hostility to his people's historical enemies the Centauri, whom Londo represents. Over the course of the series, he is transformed into a Messianic figure and the foremost spiritual leader of his people.
Delenn is a fictional lead character in the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. She is originally Minbari, but from season 2 onwards, becomes a Minbari/human hybrid. She was played by Mira Furlan.
Jeffrey Sinclair is a character in the fictional universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by actor Michael O'Hare. He was a regular in the first season of the show, as Commander of the Babylon 5 station, and made a number of guest appearances afterwards.
Babylon 5: The Gathering is the test pilot movie of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, aired on February 22, 1993. It is also the first of six feature-length films in the Babylon 5 media franchise.
Babylon 5: Thirdspace is a 1998 American made-for-television film that is part of the Babylon 5 science fiction universe. It was written by J. Michael Straczynski and directed by Jesús Salvador Treviño.
Babylon 5: A Call to Arms is a 1999 American made-for-television film and the fourth film set in the Babylon 5 universe. It was written by J. Michael Straczynski, directed by Mike Vejar, and originally aired on TNT on January 3, 1999, as one of two films shown over the 1998–1999 season to fill in the gap between the fifth season of Babylon 5 and the spin-off series Crusade.
Babylon 5: The Lost Tales was intended to be an anthology show set in the Babylon 5 universe. It was announced by J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5, at the San Diego Comic Con in July 2006. Straczynski has described the stories as ideas he had for the Babylon 5 television series but never had the time to produce. Only one installment, titled Voices in the Dark, was produced before the project was shelved.
Babylon 5: A Call to Arms (ACtA) is a tabletop miniatures boardgame released in September 2004 by Mongoose Publishing, designed initially as an expansion to their Babylon 5: The Roleplaying Game, it is a complete game in its own right. Babylon 5: A Call to Arms is based upon the sci-fi television series Babylon 5 and draws heavily on material from the television show and the boardgame Babylon 5 Wars. The game's popularity exceeded Mongoose Publishing's initial expectations and has expanded to include new rules supplements and new miniatures; a second edition of the game was released in August 2007. Mongoose Publishing announced on their website in February 2008 that all production of miniatures for the line would cease as of March 2008. Mongoose have indicated they will continue to support the game however through supplements and articles in their in-house magazine Signs and Portents.
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