Even though my recaps are only dropping now in late October, it is time for Babylon 5’s Christmas episode!  It is really the only one that counts, and I count it as such because Christmas is mentioned and someone gets a gift. As per usual in the back half of season 2, it is all about the deepening crisis with Earth, and the acceleration of the Shadow’s mysterious plans. The episode balances it a little with a glimmer of hope for the characters.

We get started with two Starfury’s attacking one another with what looks like paint rounds.  The other ships appear and it turns out to be a training exercise for Zeta Squadron.  Sheridan cautions all the pilots about how aliens handle g-forces better, and he singles out the Centauri as being able to set their ships to automatic in case they black out.  The party gets interrupted when Ivanova indicates that there is a message for Sheridan.

Before we get to the message, we get a cute scene of Lennier and Vir complaining about their respective ambassadors and political situations.  It is nice to think they have each other as supports.

Sheridan gets pulled into a meeting with the Drazi and Pak’ma’ra ambassadors.  Both governments are there to plead with Earth for assistance as the Centauri have invaded both of their territories.  Sheridan summons Londo to a meeting and tears into him.  Londo acts affronted, and claims that the Centauri are just creating a buffer zone to lessen tensions.  Sheridan pleads with him to recognize the situation for what it is, and Londo leaves in a huff.

Later Sheridan discusses it with Garibaldi, and Garibaldi points out that Londo is too scared to do anything else, comparing Londo to a man stuck on a wild horse.  Unusually perceptive for the normally blunt security chief.  Sheridan hopes that Earth will have to get involved now that the Centauri have broadened their war.  As if in answer he gets notified that someone from the Ministry of Peace has arrived to investigate the situation.  He also has brought along the head of the Nightwatch, a Mr. Welles.  

Lt.Keffer(remember him?) gets another clue on his quest to find a Shadow ship, and he goes to question the other pilot.  The other pilot admits that he has seen a ship, but he  cautions Keffer against looking for it.  

Ivanova has a conversation with Mr. Lantze and they discuss some things about Earth, and Lantze talks about his mission to give his children and grandchildren a better world, a world without war.  He seizes upon Ivanova’s history to talk about how things need to be better.  Ivanova has a much creepier conversation later with Mr. Welles from the Nightwatch.  He pretty brazenly tries to get Ivanova on his side, and does not seem worried in the least when she turns him down flat.  It tools some doing but Babylon 5 manages to find a character that is slimier than Mr. Morden. 

A complication arrives for Sheridan, in the form of a battered Narn heavy cruiser that jumps in to a place that only the station can see.  War Leader Na’Kal begs for sanctuary with Babylon 5.  Sheridan shares the information with a delighted G’Kar. G’Kar also gets the news that Earth sent a representative to investigate the Centauri issue, and he runs off to prepare to meet with Lantze. 

Welles sleazes his way to a mass Nightwatch meeting, where he criticizes Zack for not making enough reports.  He coerces Zack into not doing his own report, but merely confirming the reports that others have made, slowly easing him into it, and then praising him for his ability to learn and change.  

Keffer meanwhile meets up with the other pilot and he shares sensor data that will let Keffer track one of the ships.  He once again cautions Keffer against looking for it.  

We get our first sign of trouble, when Lantze ducks having a meeting with G’kar and scurries off with Ivanova in tow.  Lantze then proceeds to yell at Sheridan for holding exercises using Centauri combat models.  He indicates that one of Sheridan’s staff informed on him, to the Nightwatch.  Lantze then drops the bomb that he was sent to Babylon 5 to pursue a non-aggression pact with the Centauri Republic, even quoting Neville Chamberlin about having peace in our time.  As Welles leaves that meeting the rat from C&C scurries after him, to inform him about the Narn cruiser as well.

Sheridan and Ivanova have a venting session about how disgusted they are with Earth’s decision.  Ivanova decides to take the opportunity to give him a Christmas/Chanukah present: a shard of the Black Star the ship he destroyed during the war.  Ivanova means it as a reminder that sometimes the impossible is possible.  The nice moment is interrupted by an irate Londo, who has found out about the Narn ship and demands that it be handed over to his government.  The two run to C&C expecting a Centauri ship to arrive at any moment.  They warn Na”kal and tell him he needs to get moving. 

A Centauri ship arrives and makes some threats, and Sheridan springs into action, launching fighters and preparing the station for battle.  Lantze shows up to yell at him some more before being removed, from C&C.  Sheridan clearly is hoping to bluff this cruiser the same way he bluffed one back in “And Now for a Word” but in a sign of how belligerent the Centauri have become, they open fire anyway.  The station with its upgrades from “GROPOS” makes short work of the Centauri ship, but not before suffering some damage.  The Narn ship manages to slip away in the chaos. One thing I think that comes across well in this is that Ivanova and Sheridan do not appear happy about the victory.

Lantze and Welles confront Sheridan in his office.  Sheridan manages to lawyer his way out of direct consequences despite Lantze’s anger.  Welles slips in to let Sheridan know that he is being ordered to give a formal apology to the Centauri.  The let the threat of a Nightwatch takeover of the station coerce him into actually giving the apology.  

Keffer and Zeta squadron are escorting the Narn ship through hyperspace, when his system chimes in to let him know that it has detected a possible Shadow ship, and he takes off after it. The Shadow ship notices him and obligingly destroys his fighter, but not before he ejects his records onto a homing beacon. 

Sheridan practices an aggressive apology in the mirror, before heading off to the meeting in the zen garden.  Some suspicious looking Centauri follow him onto the core shuttle.  After they and everyone else leave it is revealed that they planted a bomb.  Sheridan has moments to act and he jumps out of the exploding shuttle.  We get a quick lesson in physics from Ivanova where she points out that he is weightless right now, but that the ground is moving at 60 mph and he will be killed when he touches the side of the station.  Station rescue will take too long to reach him, and Delenn implores Kosh to intervene.  He finally comes out of his encounter suit to reveal that he appears as a different angelic being to everyone that looks at him.  Angelic beings can fly, or at least Vorlons can, and Kosh brings Sheridan gently down to the ground before disappearing back into his suit before anyone else can make the connection.  

Later Sheridan and Delenn discuss what happened. Sheridan quickly points out that the angelic being thing is a case of manipulation, programming races to look upon Vorlons favorably.  Their talk moves to how the Shadows and other races will react, and they mention that the Vorlons as a whole are not ready to fight the Shadows.  We see the Drazi ambassador and a Narn discuss what they saw, and they both see it as a sign that the station has been blessed.  When Londo is questioned he claims to have seen nothing.  

We close out with a voice over from Ivanova, showing the Centauri on the rampage, and a shopkeeper being arrested and charged with sedition by Nightwatch.  The final shot is an ISN report about finding Keffer’s log, which could potentially out the Shadows to the whole galaxy. 

That is it for Season 2! It started on shaky ground, having to replace the lead and push him into a bunch of plot points, but it ended incredibly strong.  Next episode will be Season 3, Episode 1 “Matters of Honor”.  Season 1, was “Signs and Portents”, Season 2 was “The Coming of Shadows” and Season 3 is “Point of No Return” so you know it will be all kinds of laughs.

As always the show is available to watch for free on Tubi with ads. 

Where do I know them from?

• Roy Datrice who plays Mr. Lantze had a long career, but for my nerdy self he was the pyromancer in Game of Thrones, as well as the elf king in Hellboy II.  He also played Leopold Mozart in Amadeus
• Robin Sachs is back as Na’Kal, having previously portrayed a Grey Council member.  He also was recurring antagonist Ethan Rayne from Buffy, and he was Sarris in Galaxy Quest.
• Also returning from a previous episode is John Vickery who played Neroon in Season 1 and 2 and here plays Mr. Welles.. He played a friend of Damar’s in Deep Space Nine, and was in the terrible Dr. Giggles which I watched with other Avocadans.

The Good

• The episode has excellent pacing as it races to the finish of the season.  
• Kosh finally does something, and we get to check a mystery off of the list.  It is nice that JMS had already written down answers for every mystery he introduced. 
• The action scenes are very excellent in this episode, a strength of the shows’ that will continue to build into next season. 

The Bad

• To be honest this is another one where I think everything works pretty well.  If you were a Keffer fan it would hit a little hard though.

Arc Points (Spoilers Ahead)

• The Shadows have been discovered, this will be dealt with pretty quickly.
• Earth has aligned itself with the Centauri leaving no major power to oppose them.
• Keffer is gone.  Apparently he was brought in on the insistence of the network and JMS killed him off at the first opportunity. 
• We get some more hints that the Vorlons are not necessarily the “good” guys, and I like that Sheridan sees through them pretty quickly. 
• A character mentions the new starfury fighters that we will get to see midway through next season.  
• This episode is also the first to show that the Nightwatch is more than just goofballs like Zack taking free money, and that they will be a genuine menace to both the main characters and to everyone else.