"Stellar Occasion" Summary (long)
Tom Krajna
No real spoilers here. But if you're the type who wouldn't attend an SF
convention for fear of having B5 spoiled by something said by one of the
principals, then this is not for you. Also, this is kind of long, and
rather B5-positive. Opinions and subjective comments are my own. You
know the drill.
OVERVIEW
Both J. Michael Straczynski and Claudia Christian attended the "Stellar
Occasion" convention in Dallas this past weekend. Seeing and listening
to the two of them in numerous question-and-answer sessions certainly
didn't do anything to temper my enthusiasm for B5.
Attendance seemed "reasonable," but what the hell do I know: this was my
first SF convention. For what it's worth, the capacity of the main room
was listed as 85. I got the feeling that we violated the fire code a
couple of times, however (please don't tell anyone). It was mostly a
Trek-neutral crowd: anti-TNG comments met with little resistance, but an
early anti-DS9 jab by an audience member did seem to rankle the crowd a
bit.
JMS had said on the net that he'd be showing "Chrysalis" and "some other
material." I believe the appropriate literary term for this is
"understatement," as this other material was:
The famed "Danger Zone" video
A B5 blooper reel
The second-season scene where Ivanova injures her foot
"Points of Departure"
"Revelations"
He also wanted to show a second blooper reel but that didn't quite work
out. Needless to say, I was overwhelmed. I'm still in shock from the
triple WHAMmy of seeing "Chrysalis," "Points" and "Revelations" within a
24-hour period. With proper rest and medication, I should recover.
JMS
The man is sharp, quick and funny. Perhaps he would fall after Bruce
Boxleitner in a list of likely GQ-cover candidates (though I loved his B5
jacket), but he'd certainly be on the short list for the cover of WIRED.
He's no shrinking violet (a misimpression I got from his "cameras hate me"
comments on the net), and could more than hold his own in a TV interview
(so go out and do some already!) On the other hand, Joe was *extremely*
humble when assessing his writing abilities, commenting on how happy it
would make him if some day he'd be one-tenth the writer that Rod Serling
was.
He answered questions in several formal sessions as well as before and
after episode showings. He also gave a two-hour scriptwriting seminar
that gave a very good sense of the practical elements involved (for
starters, move to LA if you're serious).
In his general Q-and-A sessions, the audience loved it anytime someone
asked a question which elicited a "I can't say anything about that"
response. Still, he gave away a couple of clues, and it'll be fun to have
a small tidbit of information as the net speculates away. On the other
hand, he reiterated that he lies every once in a while, so the tidbit may
be shaded red for all I know. (And no, I'm not telling...attend a damn
convention yourself!)
Someone asked "The O'Hare Question" early on, and Joe handled it gracefully.
Not surprisingly, he didn't say anything new on this topic. It'll be nice
to see Sinclair reappear on the series if for no other reason than to stop
the questions. Of course, it would be nice to know what the character's
been up to, as well, since he's rather integral to at least one-fifth of
the episodes.
A lot of the questions led to answers which sounded *very* familiar,
because we've had the same dialogues here on the net. For example, we
heard about how B5 parallels our society a bit ("we're looking at our
feet") as well as someone's reaction to a ten-page summary of the overall
arc ("you're out of your fucking mind.") This is as good a time as any
to mention that R-rated language (or is that PG-13 nowadays?) is not
totally out of character for JMS, and folks who are graphically flamed
by him on the net shouldn't feel *all* that special.
Joe mentioned that "The Gathering" had run about 25 minutes too long.
He said that in order to get a "long" show to fit, first you cut humor,
then characterization, then action, and finally plot. He also said that
those who had seen the deleted footage from the pilot seemed to like the
episode much better.
Joe also reiterated that we would see a Vorlon "in full view" this season,
outside its encounter suit. I sensed no deception (to borrow a Betazoid
expression), so it'll take some good wriggling on his part to get out of
this one.
There were endless questions about the B5 comic, the CD-ROM, the audio CD,
his other series, and merchandising. Nothing we don't already know, if we
read this newsgroup regularly. The audio CD label decision still seemed
up in the air, for all you Franke-philes.
Someone asked about the possibility of a B5 movie at some point, and Joe
replied to the effect of "I sure hope not." Much to his amusement, the
roomful of B5 fanatics actually *applauded* this. It was a very strange
moment. I liked it a lot.
Joe asked how many people in the crowd are also on the net. He seemed
rather surprised (as was I) when about two-thirds of the folks reached
for the ceiling. He then said he wanted to know who invented the feature
in newsreaders where you can quote a huge message and then at the bottom
simply add, "I agree." He didn't particularly care for that feature.
Joe also said that "Doom" (the popular shareware game) had started
appearing on a lot of computers at work. It got so bad that he had to
have it removed from all the machines there. All except his, he said with
a grin. This is sad news indeed, as there's no way Joe will have time to
write any more scripts for season two now. I know, I've played Doom.
CLAUDIA CHRISTIAN
The woman is sharp, quick and funny. She reads a lot (about four books
a week), naming Dostoevsky among her favorites. She has a natural talent
for comedy and is energetic beyond all reason. She demonstrated some of
the exaggerated voices she had done for a cartoon series ("Itsy Bitsy
Spider"?), including an Indian, a husky Kathleen Turner style voice, and
"Herve Villecheize (sp.?) on helium."
It was amusing to realize that the often-funny Ivanova character is a
serious toning-down of Ms. Christian's exuberant personality. She
revealed that had B5 not been renewed for a second season, she was
considering trying out for "Saturday Night Live." They could use the
help; this is one funny lady (and that's one unfunny show).
The last time I had seen a "star" in person was in the early 1980s, when
Catherine Bach was at the peak of her "Dukes of Hazzard" fame. The finals
of the U.S. Open Frisbee Championships were held at the Rose Bowl, and she
stood next to me for a moment on the sidelines before she ran out to wave
at the crowd. I was struck by how plain she looked, compared to her
onscreen persona. The opposite effect occurred for me with Ms. Christian.
She looked *far* better in person than as a bunch of phosphors. It's
clear that makeup and lighting did not do her justice in season one. Joe
indicated that a slightly softer look would be in the cards for Ivanova in
season two. With Bruce Boxleitner now part of the cast as well, esthetes
of Terran pulchritude should be amply satisfied.
Claudia professed a serious lack of technical ability, saying that she
had just recently learned how to turn off her PowerBook. She did
triumphantly (tongue-in-cheek) announce that she owns a FAX machine.
When asked which character she'd like to become involved with, she said
(jokingly, I think) G'Kar, but that Joe would never let that happen.
Later, Joe referred to her comment with something along the lines of,
"The woman keeps wanting to have sex with aliens. She needs help."
Regarding practical jokes on the set, she said she hadn't played any on
Billy Mumy. She offered (not an exact quote) that, "He's so nice, so
kind, so innocent.....hey, *there's* an idea!"
Claudia said one of the most gratifying aspects of playing Ivanova is that
the character is a positive role model for young girls in the audience.
"Girls say, 'If she can become a commander, I can become.....a general.'"
JMS AND CLAUDIA CHRISTIAN
The last major event of the convention was a question-and-answer session
with both Joe and Claudia. I decided to stop lurking and sat in the front
row for a change. One *very* nice thing about B5 not being a 25-year-old
franchise is being able to wander in 15 minutes before such an appearance
and sit no more than ten feet from the principals.
As for the event itself, it was hilarious. If you ever get a chance to
see the two of them together, steal a car, sell your children into slavery,
do whatever is necessary to get there. With a little polishing, they could
take this thing on the road. My description certainly won't do the event
justice, but suffice to say that there was a *lot* of nonverbal
communication between the two of them, often taking the form of incredulous
stares shot back and forth. One such exchange occurred when Joe said that
he had no real plans for anything B5-related beyond his five-year story,
except for the rather slight possibility of a second, related series.
Claudia jumped on this and said that *she* would be writing a follow-up
series in which *she* would be the star, once B5 was done. The exchange
of looks which followed was absolutely priceless. Two thumbs up.
"DANGER ZONE" VIDEO
This featured action highlights from the first season of B5, set to the
song "Danger Zone." I dare anyone who has not seen an episode of B5 to
watch this video and then not *want* to see an episode of the show. It's
damn good. And I don't even like the song, but that's Tom Cruise's fault,
not Kenny Loggins'. If there was a market for video singles, this baby
would be on the charts for a *long* time (perhaps below the unedited
version of Duran Duran's "Girls on Film," but I digress). One impassioned
fan immediately jumped up and said, "When, if ever, will that be broadcast
on TV?!?"
BLOOPER REEL PART I
Very funny. A review of this from the summary of another convention
covered most of the funniest scenes. My favorite was the alien who got
so upset that he slammed his fist down and shouted, "This is bullshit!"
Garibaldi and G'Kar's panty scene was also hilarious, as was Garibaldi
and Londo having differing ideas on how to pronounce "Centauri."
JMS is such a cool guy (grovel, grovel), maybe he'll make the blooper
reels, the "Danger Zone" video, and the "making of" video available on
tape for us some day. Please?
"CHRYSALIS"
This gave me a headache. Those poor UKers, having to wait at least three
months for some answers. I had to wait three hours. I must disagree
with JMS on the airing date controversy: it was *much* better not having
to wait. This time, at least, Warner's cluelessness was a good thing,
for it will save much gnashing of Canadian and American teeth.
I guess I should slip *something* negative in here, since anyone reading
this far is probably in insulin shock by now. So here goes: there was a
small chunk of bad acting in Chrysalis, an effect I didn't like, and a
plot point that bothered me. But I'll go pick on that stuff using one of
the "Chrysalis" threads. Overall, an *excellent* episode.
"POINTS OF DEPARTURE"
We signed a verbal nondisclosure agreement on this one. JMS said we could
say it was good if we wanted to. So, it was good.
I think I can also say that Bruce Boxleitner is good, that the sets look a
bit better, that the writing seems solid, and that the effects are hot.
I like the new intro sequence quite a bit; the technique used to showcase
the actors individually is rather sexy, in the technical sense of the word.
There's another thing that's very cool about the new intro, but that'll
have to wait a few more days.
By the way, JMS said this would be a "light" episode. Relative to
"Chrysalis" and "Revelations," yes. In the absolute sense, absolutely
not! Studio musicians who mix their own music sometimes have the bass
level channel turned up as much as ten times louder than it should be,
because they lose some of their sound-mixing objectivity. I think JMS
has the "wham" turned up fairly loud and I'm not sure he realizes it.
Should be a hell of a season.
"REVELATIONS"
Yes, another verbal NDA for this episode. It was good (what else can I
say?) There will be *plenty* for the net to talk about here. I believe
some old discussions will be back with a vengeance.
It was *very* exciting to see this episode two weeks before uplink, since
our little "hick" town of Huntsville, Alabama sees B5 a *week* after the
uplink, at the idiotic hours of 11:30 PM and 1:00 AM. Gee, we're building
the *space station* here, you'd think our PTEN affiliate would try to work
the ready-made target audience of a few thousand engineers. Grumble.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The convention was quite an experience in and of itself. Too bad I look
horrid in black; I think I was the only one not wearing that color. Hey,
the Babylon 5 station is blue, right? How about a nice *blue* B5 t-shirt?
It was a thrill to meet JMS and Claudia. If the rest of the gang is
anywhere as fun as these two, it must be a blast to work on the set.
After seeing these three new episodes, I got the disturbing image of the
B5 series as a rollercoaster ride. The first 21 episodes is the
machine-assisted uphill chug to the apex of the ride, with "Signs and
Portents" and "Babylon Squared" as occasional pauses and hitches, a couple
of false summits, on the long haul to the top. "Chrysalis" is that
sickening sensation just before you start to roll downhill, teetering on
the edge, gravity gently seducing you. "Points" and "Revelations" are
definitely on the way downhill, picking up speed the whole time, rushing
towards a dark and uncertain fate.
I think we're going to look back on season one as a very calm time indeed.
--Tom K.