This is another more procedural episode, nothing too earth shattering from a story arc perspective, but it does rely on previous episodes which I like.  Also it deals with essentially an officer involved shooting and it deals with it more intelligently then most cop shows, accurately showcasing the stresses that a situation like this may place on the relations between communities.  The show also gets some digs in on their contemporary scifi shows in amusing ways.

The show starts out with Ivanova and Sheridan being outraged that the station is going to stoop to merchandising to create a new source of revenue for their budget.  I like how this functions as both a meta commentary on the pressure for shows and creators to do so, without being out of character for both of them to be against it as well.  Babylon 5 famously had very little merch compared to say Star Trek, and the whole little story arc has fun with that.  Sheridan decides to put Ivanova in charge of the whole mess, as he feels that since she is against it she can most responsibly implement it. 

Sheridan is on his way to meet with Kosh, who has started teaching him lessons, when he bumps into a thief who steals his link.  Sheridan gives chase, and then bumps into a hostile Minbari warrior who attacks him.  He finds a PPG on the floor and uses it to defend himself, killing the Minbari.  Another Minbari sees the whole thing but flees before Sheridan can even speak to him. 

Back from the credits and Delenn is confronting Garibaldi and Sheridan about the killing of Lavell a member of a highly respected Minbari family.  Garibaldi gives the cop excuse of it being better to shoot first, but Delenn is mad that the Minbari was unarmed when shot.  Delenn also indicates that her government is still deciding whether or not to demand that Sheridan be charged with murder.  

Garibaldi begins his investigation, and the Minbari he is talking with comes across as a huge dick, which to be fair Minbari usually come across as. Garibaldi is also frustrated that Lennier seems to be hovering around his investigation, and he is not sure that Lennier is being honest.  He and Sheridan also puzzle over the fact that the thief stole his link in the first place, positing that the thief may have set up the situation.  Franklin delivers bad news from the autopsy with no evidence that Sheridan was under attack. 

The very C-plot brings Vir back into the mix, and I always love Vir!  He receives a message from Centauri Prime for Londo, and then promptly goes on a bender(of two drinks).  He even bumps into a concerned Talia Winters(remember her?).  Turns out that Vir was sent to Babylon 5 as a joke, by his family that dont care for him, and now that Londo is becoming more important the government wants to send him a more prestigious aide.  Londo does Vir a solid and demands that Vir stay, and even chews out Vir’s family about how they treat him.  Londo was sent to B5 as a joke himself, and he warns Vir to never let others make him into a joke.  It is a nice plot and it softens Londo a bit, since we have been getting hit with story after story that focus more on his shitty colonizer side. 

Meanwhile Lennier has found Ashann the Minbari who witnessed the situation with Sheridan.  He and Delenn decide to interview him first, and Ashann shows off more of that Minbari dickishness by referring to Delenn as a freak, which in this day and age seems very trans coded. Lennier is outraged, but Ashann agrees to talk with Lennier since they are part of the same clan.  Ashann claims that Lavell was attacked by Sheridan, offered to surrender then was murdered by Sheridan.  Sheridan is enraged by this story, and calls Ashann a liar.  Delenn and Lennier caution him that making such an accusation to a Minbari would mean that the Minbari in question would have no choice but to fight him to the death as Minbari do not lie(an often repeated saying on Babylon 5 and in the shows universe). 

Ivanova meanwhile gets treated to the Babylon 5 gift shop and leaves in disgust when she finds alien and human masks for sale.  Though it feels a little like a chance for the alien actors to get to show their normal faces. 

Sheridan begins his interview with Ashann and immediately gets called “starkiller” which is something that has not been brought up since the first episode of the season.  Apparently Ashann feels very strongly about Sheridan’s past in the war.  They get interrupted by Sheridan’s unasked for lawyer Guinevere Corey(played by Na’Toth herself Caitlin Brown).  She quickly takes over and stops the interrogation, then drops the bombshell on Sheridan that guilty or not, if the case goes to a trial he will be gone as commander of Babylon 5.  On any other show this would be an empty threat, but we are only 15(14) episodes in for Sheridan as a character and fans watching at the time could not be so sure. 

Sheridan has some doubts that he shares with Ivanova, before he gets whisked away by Kosh for his “lesson”.   Sheridan tries to get out of it, but Kosh does not let him.  They got to a crappy part of the station and Sheridan is treated to some nice Gregorian chanting.  The lesson apparently is “beauty in the dark”, which makes about as much sense as anything else that Kosh does. 

Zack Allan gets to show up for a bit to spy on Ashann before getting beaten up by Lennier.  Ashann was meeting with thief that set up Sheridan.  The two Minbari argue and it only makes Lennier more certain that Ashann is lying. 

Londo hilariously bumbles into both the A and the B plot on his way out of the C plot when he finds out that the doll of him being sold in the gift shop is not anatomically correct, which I guess Centauri dolls are.  While he is demanding that the dolls be removed for “symbolically cast-ing him in a bad light” as Ivanova puts it, he reveals to Sheridan that the Minbari can lie.  Under pressure from the captain he mentions that sometimes Minbari can lie to help another save face. 

Sheridan has a heart to heart with Delenn when he finds out that Ashann is being recalled to Minbar making a trial impossible.  The lack of a trial will destroy his standing, and he confronts her with a story about feeling helpless when his fighter was disabled in the war.  Delenn talks about Minbari being willing to sacrifice much for their clan.  This motivates Delenn and Lennier into manipulating Ashann into confessing.  Lavell had been so horrified about Sheridan that he set up the situation to get Sheridan removed.  All of it goes back to the war and Sheridan prevailing over the Minbari in one battle.  Sheridan shows off his diplomatic bonafides by finding a compromise that preserves the honor of Lennier’s clan and keeps him in his position at Babylon 5. 

Ivanova finally seems to come around on the gift shop now that the kinks have been worked out, but Sheridan angrily demands it all be gone when he finds out that there are cute teddy bears being sold with his initials on them.  He orders everything gone, and then throws the teddy bear out the airlock where it is encountered by Keffer on patrol.

Next week we are doing another out of broadcast order episode with “Knives”. Part trippy alien story, and part tragic Centauri story, I have always had a soft spot for it, mostly because it portrays more of the Vir kind of Centauri. 

As always, a reminder that you can watch the episodes on Tubi with ads.  

Where do I know them from?

• Sean Gregory Sullivan who plays Ashann, is also Phil in Wayne’s World.  Caitlin Brown of course is one of our Na’Toths. 

The Good

• I like that the themes of honor and saving of face interweave in all of the plots, and that they are all brought together by Londo being mad about dickless dolls. 
• I am also a fan of Sheridan getting to be a diplomat and getting closer with the Minbari by doing so. 
• I do love the cheesy maximum 90’s gift shop. 

The Bad

• Thankfully this is the last “Minbari are super racist” episode, as it is a trait of theirs that wears thin.  Eventually the show will decide that it is mostly a warrior caste thing and be better for it. 
• The Minbari martial arts that Ashann and Lennier threaten each other with are very silly looking. 

Arc Points (Spoilers Ahead)

• Minbari honor is fleshed out pretty well and things will mostly stick to it. 
• Londo’s devotion to Vir comes up again and again, and I like that he also tends to have an undercurrent of jealousy of how Vir is managing success in his own way.
• I wish we had been shown more of Kosh’s lessons, with Sheridan, as it is we rely on people saying that the two are close rather then being shown it.
• The teddy bear was apparently a gag gift from Peter David to JMS, who does not like cutesy things.  The bear being thrown out was revenge, as to get the shot of the bear floating in space they had to remove the stuffing and stick a broom handle up its ass in front of a green screen.