Cyberspatialniche

The Legend of the Rangers is an all-new story from the universe of Babylon 5, with all of the benefits and problems there-in. While I love Babylon 5 for its epic scope and timeless message, I loathe Babylon 5 for its sometimes cheesy dialogue and over-the-top acting. The Legend of the Rangers succeeds and fails in all of these aspects. There are moments where my heart pounds with excitement, and there are moments where my mouth drops in disbelief – did he ACTUALLY just SAY that horrible line???!?!

But for all this, I must forgive JMS (the writer/creator of B5). His influences include the greats of sci-fi/fantasy (Tolkein, Asimov, Clarke, Herbert) along with the greats of literature (Tolstoy, Dickens, Dostoevsky), so its not surprising to find elements in his writing that remind or even reference their works (for better or worse). An in the genre television industry, literary allusions can be a pleasant rarity, indeed!

Specifically about this movie, I loved the return of Christopher Franke’s music (they tried out a VERY different composer in short-lived Crusade series), the much-improved CG (computer graphics that rival anything else on TV budgets), and the good blend of action, political plotting, and character-driven moments. From what I’ve seen thus far, this collection of characters and situations warrants repeated viewings and a regular t.v. show (which Sci-Fi plans to go ahead with if the movie does well). The same cannot be said of most of the shows on TV today.

Tags: Review

Categories: Public

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