{"id":7155,"date":"2019-01-18T13:00:53","date_gmt":"2019-01-18T21:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=7155"},"modified":"2019-01-01T10:53:30","modified_gmt":"2019-01-01T18:53:30","slug":"mark-watches-babylon-5-s04e10-racing-mars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2019\/01\/mark-watches-babylon-5-s04e10-racing-mars\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Babylon 5’: S04E10 – Racing Mars"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the tenth episode of the fourth season of Babylon 5<\/i>, multiple stories are set-up in this strange episode. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Babylon 5<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For discussion of consent<\/b><\/p>\n

I wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t dare go so far as to say that \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Racing Mars\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is filler because there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot<\/i> of important information here, much of which helps to support a number of ongoing plots on the show. But it also doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel like an episode with a contained story, either. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like a waystation; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a stop along a much larger trail or path. Which is fine! It just makes for a tonally jarring experience, since it jumps around its various stories so rapidly.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Logistics<\/b><\/p>\n

Still, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s stuff here I appreciate because many of the details involve things that I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t see very often. Case in point: Ivanova dealing with the financial logistics of the blockade. With less traffic and less fees, Babylon 5<\/i> is moving closer to a disaster. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s months away, sure, but they have<\/i> to start thinking about the long haul. What if this war with President Clark goes on longer than anyone thinks it will? Thus, we get a delightful scene in which Ivanova\u00e2\u20ac\u201dwho has relieved Sheridan of duty so he has plausible denial\u00e2\u20ac\u201dbasically manipulates a bunch of smugglers and thieves into working for the station. In exchange for business and care for their ships! So it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not all bad! Seriously, though, Ivanova is really in her element here, and I love that even when dealing with logistical shit, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s some humor mixed in, too.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Romance<\/b><\/p>\n

And the same goes with this adorable subplot, in which Sheridan gets a day off that is… not much of a day off? We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll get to that other stuff later in more detail, but I appreciate that we get these glimpses into the culture of mating and courtship for the Minbari. One thing that remains striking to me is just how open Sheridan is with all of this, even when it makes him uncomfortable or when he doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand it. It shows that he recognizes how important this stuff is to Delenn and that he wants to love her on her<\/i> terms just as much as his own. Which is so<\/i> important, too. They meet in the middle more often than not, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a healthy aspect of their growing relationship. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also awkward, too, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m glad that part is not ignored either! Learning a partner\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s culture and their standards isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t easy, but Sheridan welcomes this stuff with open arms. EVEN THAT LAST THING, which would terrify most people. So… woo-hoo indeed!<\/p>\n

Turncoat<\/b><\/p>\n

I am now grasping<\/i> at this theory that Garibaldi is still a Psi Corps agent because I cannot fathom any other explanation for what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m watching. Unless it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just the obvious, but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s… that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just so disheartening. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the case! So, my theory is supported by the fact that Garibaldi\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s rejection of Sheridan feels so illogical. Look, even if that person who kneels before Sheridan wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t<\/i> a plant, Sheridan still rejected them. And we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen so much proof of how humble and thoughtful he is a leader, and Garibaldi sees none of it. And even if he disagrees with Sheridan, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been programmed to see Sheridan as an antagonist. He was so irritable towards him after he was rescued, so I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m guessing this is a much more subtle manipulation than my original theory that Garibaldi was a spy.<\/p>\n

Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just so, so, so uncomfortable. Both of the confrontation scenes are unbearable to watch. How is that<\/i> Garibaldi??? I really hope I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m right, or else this has gone in a completely unexpected direction.<\/p>\n

Buddies<\/b><\/p>\n

I like some of what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in this plot, but the pacing is so odd<\/i>. Things don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even pick up until that thing<\/i> is revealed to be controlling Captain Jack. I kinda get it, though, and there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s some worldbuilding accomplished by the plot. The boredom that Marcus and Dr. Franklin experience gives us a great sense of just how long<\/i> their journey is. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re so used to space flight in Babylon 5<\/i> being something that happens off-screen, and even when it does, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re told that it takes relatively little time to travel long distances. But without access to the jump gates, these two have to take the long, LONG way around to Mars. So the pacing makes sense! It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a whole lot of nothing before it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a whole lot of everything!<\/p>\n

This is also bolstered by another shocking reveal: most of the people in the resistance on Mars HAVEN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T GOTTEN ANY RELIABLE NEWS. So the Shadow War is still just a distant rumor to them. Which blows my mind! It is perhaps the most important war ever fought in this whole galaxy and NOPE. MEANS NOTHING TO THEM. And it also explains the confusing reaction the resistance gives to Dr. Franklin and Marcus when they show up! Communication is extremely<\/i> limited because of what President Clark has done. So, I can excuse a lot of the pacing stuff because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s building to these reveals, and those reveals clearly matter. We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen how the blockade has affected Babylon 5<\/i>, but what about a community that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been under Clark\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s heel for way longer? I am really excited to see more of the resistance!<\/p>\n

Truly, though, aside from one VERY NOT SUBTLE thing, most of Dr. Franklin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s and Marcus\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s plot involves building the world very slowly and quietly. For example: it is presented as absolutely normal that two men would be married and on vacation together, which makes me assume that marriage equality had<\/i> to have been achieved, right? Those are official IDs, too! And while I would have preferred an actual couple on the screen, this sure was a whole lot more than most mainstream science fiction was willing to do at the time. And there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s never any sense that this is gross or wrong, either, and that stuff helps to build a framework for understanding how the culture works in this show.<\/p>\n

Also, I need to know: Was there one bed in their hotel room? TELL ME THERE WAS JUST ONE BED, IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S ALL I NEED.<\/p>\n

And finally: WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT PARASITE THING<\/i>. This is the third time we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen it, but the first time someone has talked about it being given<\/i> to them. Captain Jack manages to tell the others that someone was able to get to him, so I desperately need to know who this is. Are they<\/i> giving that creature orders? Does the parasite have its own mind? What was the point of using it here? WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON.\u00c2\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Racing Mars\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– The paperback edition of my debut, ANGER IS A GIFT, is now up for pre-order!<\/a> It comes out on May 7, 2019.\u00c2\u00a0<\/strong>If you’d like to stay up-to-date on all announcements regarding my books, sign up for my newsletter<\/a>! DO IT.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"