Babylon 5: Point of No Return

Babylon 5: Point of No Return PDF

Author: Jane Killick

Publisher: Random House Worlds

Published: 1998-07-21

Total Pages: 204

ISBN-13: 9780345424495

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A comprehensive episode-by-episode guide to the third exciting season of Babylon 5! Babylon 5: Point of No Return begins with a fascinating look at another innovation for the already groundbreaking series—its pioneering use of computer generated special effects. Jane Killick's behind-the-scenes chronicle reveals how effects master Ron Thornton and his Foundation Imaging team made B5 the first TV show to create all of its breathtaking special effects exclusively through computer graphics, from spaceships and planets to galactic battles. In addition, Babylon 5's third season guide presents a thrilling summation of the series major turning point: the chain of events that would culminate in the devastating Shadow War. And of course, episode-by-episode summaries—with Killick's comprehensive analysis—cover all of the third season's twenty-two shows, including “Matters of Honor,” “Point of No Return,” “Ship of Tears,” and the stunning finale, “Z'ha'dum.” Veteran viewers or first-time fans, relive the adventure—or find out what you've been missing—with the complete companions to Babylon 5!

Babylon 5: Signs and Portents

Babylon 5: Signs and Portents PDF

Author: Jane Killick

Publisher: Random House Worlds

Published: 1998-03-03

Total Pages: 204

ISBN-13: 9780345424471

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A comprehensive episode-by-episode guide to the first thrilling season of Babylon 5! Babylon 5: Signs and Portents, kicks off with a foreword by actor Michael O'Hare, better known to viewers as Commander Sinclair, and features a fascinating look at how series creator J. Michael Straczynski brought his ambitious vision to the screen. Then launch into a comprehensive overview of the groundbreaking premiere season, including in-depth, episode-by-episode summaries of all of the first twenty-two shows—from the pilot, “The Gathering,” through the climactic season finale, “Chrysalis”—with analysis by author and B5 expert Jane Killick. Veteran viewers or first-time fans, relive the adventure—or find out what you've been missing—with the complete companions to Babylon 5!

Babylon 5: The Coming of Shadows

Babylon 5: The Coming of Shadows PDF

Author: Jane Killick

Publisher: Random House Worlds

Published: 1998-04-14

Total Pages: 202

ISBN-13: 9780345424488

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A comprehensive episode-by-episode guide to the second exciting season of Babylon 5! Babylon 5: The Coming of Shadows, opens with “By Any Means Necessary: Making Babylon 5 on a Budget,” a behind-the-scenes account of how series creator J. Michael Straczynski and his production team bucked the system to create the extraordinary twenty-first century world that would change the face of sci-fi TV. Then, in a thrilling second season overview, experience the arrival of Bruce Boxleitner as John J. Sheridan, new captain of the Babylon 5 station, and the looming threat of the sinister Shadows. In-depth, episode-by-episode summaries—with detailed analysis by author and B5 expert Jane Killick—cover all of the second season's twenty-two shows, including “Points of Departure,” “Spider in the Web,” “Comes the Inquisitor,” and the dramatic season finale, “The Fall of Night.” Veteran viewers or first-time fans, relive the adventure—or find out what you've been missing—with the complete companions to Babylon 5!

The Triumph of Babylon 5

The Triumph of Babylon 5 PDF

Author: Baz Greenland

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2024-01-12

Total Pages: 251

ISBN-13: 1476651442

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Babylon 5 revolutionized genre television. First aired in 1993, the space opera series is highly respected for everything it was trying to achieve on television at a time when Star Trek was king. Its use of story arcs and long-form storytelling in science fiction can be felt in everything from Battlestar Galactica to Lost and The Expanse. Much of its legacy has been about its struggle to survive. From the rivalry with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, to the collapse of the Prime Time Entertainment Network, the cancellation of spin-off series, and the failed big screen attempts--the behind-the-scenes details on Babylon 5 are as fascinating as anything we have on screen. This work explores the complex history of Babylon 5, the career of showrunner J. Michael Straczynski, and the behind-the-scenes drama to stay on the air, with many attempts to continue the franchise. Featuring interviews with cast members from the podcast A Dream Given Form, a lengthy two-part interview with Peter Jurasik (Londo) and a chat with Patricia Tallman (Lyta) and others, this book gives insights into what it was like to be part of Babylon 5, chronicling the show's highs and lows and examining the legacy it left behind in genre television.

From Starship Captains to Galactic Rebels

From Starship Captains to Galactic Rebels PDF

Author: Kimberly Yost

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2013-12-12

Total Pages: 253

ISBN-13: 1442229861

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Real-world leaders hold the fates of companies, armies, and nations in their hands, but the leaders portrayed in science fiction play for larger stakes. Their decisions determine the survival of species, planets, or reality itself. They tend, therefore, to be larger-than-life characters like Doc Savage, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Captain James T. Kirk. In From Starship Captains to Galactic Rebels, Kimberley Yost brings the principles of leadership studies to bear on characters from a quarter-century of classic science fiction television series, examining how their adventures can illuminate the challenges of real-world leadership. These in-depth case studies cover a full range of science-fictional leaders—from conventional heroes such as Jonathan Archer of Star Trek: Enterprise to William Adama and Laura Roslin, the dark, conflicted protagonists of Battlestar Galactica. Charismatic rebels like Malcolm Reynolds of Firefly and the ragtag fugitives of Farscape stand alongside pillars of the establishment like John Sheridan of Babylon 5. In her analysis, Yost considers emerging, flawed, and failed leaders as well as successful ones; women as well as men; and aliens as well as humans. An insightful examination of how leadership is represented on the small screen, From Starship Captains to Galactic Rebels will appeal not only to fans of televised science fiction but also to those grappling with the problems of leadership, regardless of their species.

American Science Fiction Television and Space

American Science Fiction Television and Space PDF

Author: Joel Hawkes

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2023-03-05

Total Pages: 312

ISBN-13: 3031105281

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This collection reads the science fiction genre and television medium as examples of heterotopia (and television as science fiction technology), in which forms, processes, and productions of space and time collide – a multiplicity of spaces produced and (re)configured. The book looks to be a heterotopic production, with different chapters and “spaces” (of genre, production, mediums, technologies, homes, bodies, etc), reflecting, refracting, and colliding to offer insight into spatial relationships and the implications of these spaces for a society that increasingly inhabits the world through the space of the screen. A focus on American science fiction offers further spatial focus for this study – a question of geographical and cultural borders and influence not only in terms of American science fiction but American television and streaming services. The (contested) hegemonic nature of American science fiction television will be discussed alongside a nation that has significantly been understood, even produced, through the television screen. Essays will examine the various (re)configurations, or productions, of space as they collapse into the science fiction heterotopia of television since 1987, the year Star Trek: Next Generation began airing.

The Meaning and Value of Spaceflight

The Meaning and Value of Spaceflight PDF

Author: William Sims Bainbridge

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2014-08-12

Total Pages: 229

ISBN-13: 331907878X

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This book presents the most serious and comprehensive study, by far, of American public perceptions about the meaning of space exploration, analyzing vast troves of questionnaire data collected by many researchers and polling firms over a span of six decades and anchored in influential social science theories. It doesn't simply report the percentages who held various opinions, but employs sophisticated statistical techniques to answer profound questions and achieve fresh discoveries. Both the Bush and the Obama administrations have cut back severely on fundamental research in space science and engineering. Understanding better what space exploration means for citizens can contribute to charting a feasible but progressive course. Since the end of the Space Race between the US and the USSR, social scientists have almost completely ignored space exploration as a topic for serious analysis and this book seeks to revive that kind of contribution. The author communicates the insights in a lucid style, not only intelligible but interesting to readers from a variety of backgrounds.

Invoking Darkness

Invoking Darkness PDF

Author: Jeanne Cavelos

Publisher: Random House Digital, Inc.

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 371

ISBN-13: 0345438337

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As the Shadows gather for their ultimate victory over the galaxy, Galen, the possessor of the unstoppable Spell of Destruction, leaves the stronghold of the techno-mages to lend his assistance in the final, apocalyptic battle against the evil of the Shadows.

Time-Travel Television

Time-Travel Television PDF

Author: Sherry Ginn

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2015-10-08

Total Pages: 300

ISBN-13: 1442255773

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Stories of time travel have been part of science fiction since H. G. Wells sent his nameless hero hurtling into Earth’s distant future in The Time Machine. Time travel enables the storyteller to depict alternate realities, bring fictional characters face to face with historical figures, and depict moral and ethical dilemmas in which millions of lives (or the world as we know it) are at stake. From Doctor Who and Quantum Leap to the multiple incarnations of Star Trek, time travel has been a staple of science fiction television for more than fifty years. Time-Travel Television: The Past from the Present, the Future from the Pastsurveys the whole range of time travel stories on the small screen. The essays in this collection explore time travel series both familiar (Babylon 5, Stargate SG-1) and forgotten (The Time Tunnel, Voyagers!), as well as time-travel themed episodes and arcs in series where it is not central, such as Red Dwarf, Lost, and Heroes. Contributors to this volume consider some of the classic themes of time-travel stories: the promise (and peril) of “fixing” the past, the chance to experience (and choose) possible futures, and the potential for small changes to have great effects. Exploring time travel as a teaching tool, as a vehicle for moral lessons, and as a background for high adventure, this book offers new perspectives on many familiar programs and the first serious study of several unjustly neglected ones. Time-Travel Television is essential reading for science fiction scholars and fans, and for anyone interested in the many ways that television brings the fantastic into viewers’ living rooms.

Point of No Return

Point of No Return PDF

Author: Jane Killick

Publisher:

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 182

ISBN-13: 9780752223186

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A guide to the third season of the television science-fiction saga, Babylon 5, with detailed plot summaries, accounts of the making of each episode, and discussion of how the series is produced within the confines of a television budget. Interviews with leading members of the cast are included.