a5c7b9f00b The opening of a crucial space station is put in jeopardy when the commanding officer is accused of the attempted murder of a diplomat. This TV movie is the pilot for the "Babylon 5" TV series. Set on a space station in the late 23rd Century, Babylon 5 is a centre of diplomacy and trade, in neutral space located between many rival space empires. The project's success, already shaky, is put further in doubt when incoming Commander Jeffrey Sinclair is the key suspect in the attempted assassination of Kosh, a mysterious alien ambassador. The opening of a crucial space station is put in jeopardy when the commanding officer is accused of the attempted murder of a diplomat (Jeffrey Willerth).<br/><br/>There was a strange point in history, known as 1996, where voters on IMDb rated this film one of the Top 100 movies ever made. Not Top 100 of the decade, but of all time. A made-for-TV movie for a second-rate science fiction series. Oh, voters of 1996, you were a strange people.<br/><br/>The movie is not bad for what it is. And, since it was basically a pilot, I can understand how this led to a series. It is nothing compared to the Star Trek shows of the era, but could arguably be said to be better than "Voyager". I just watched BABYLON 5:THE GATHERING DVD again, mostly because I haven't watched it in a while…..I can see why. I haven't seen such cold and wooden acting from a movie in quite a while. Some of the actors did migrate to the series that were good in their assigned roles(Garabaldi, Delenn, G'Kar, Londo). Unfortunatedly, The really bad actor, Michael O'hare came along as well.<br/><br/>As compared to his "supposed" TV counterpart, Cmdr. Sisko from DS9, this guy is extremely weak and the actor seemed to force out the words and didn't really have a strong presence on the movie or the series that followed. I was relieved that he was replaced by the FAR better actor, Bruce Boxleitner.<br/><br/>Tamilyn Tomita is a marvelous and very attractive woman and actress. I, however didn't think she fit in this role. As compared to her TV counterpart, Major Kira from DEEP SPACE NINE, she was very boring and seemed to try TOO much to be forceful when she really wasn't. The support actor, especially in the C and C area, were even worse than the main characters( except the late Mr. Katsulas. he was great, as usual).<br/><br/>To make this short, and not to reveal too much here. BABYLON FIVE: THE GATHERING was not a great movie, but it did open the door to a great series, so you can't completely dismiss it, even if you really should.
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