Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

Was reading further down the page at https://b5books.com/ and noticed there are Bundle Offers for the three Other books on Crusade. IF one purchases one of the Bundles, one gets that same version of the Crusade Encyclopedia at no extra charge. This new Encyclopedia appears to be a reprint of the Crusade entries published in the original B5 Encyclopedia, but as it's just the Crusade entries, isn't as Hefty as the Paperback version or the collector's $$ Signature Edition.

And the Biggest News is that B5Books is going to be offering EBOOKS on -- certain -- future releases, along with hardcover options as well.

=====================================

BONUS Big Announcement
THE CRUSADE ENCYCLOPEDIA

What is the Crusade Encyclopedia?
It's all the entries from the print edition of the Babylon 5 Encyclopedia that relate to the Crusade universe. This is a total of 438 entries. The 8.5x11 hardcover is 132 pages. The ebooks range from a low of ~24MB to a high of 137MB

We created the Crusade Encyclopedia for two reasons:
1) At 132 pages it's much easier to reference an entry than using the 838 page paperback and/or the 2-volume color Signature Edition.
2) We wanted something to re-immerse fans in the Crusade universe. So we created this sit-down-and-readable volume.

The Crusade encyclopedia is not for sale. You can only get it free as part of the hardcover and ebook bundle. We pay all shipping and all US sales tax for your free copy.

FOR exhaustive detail on these three titles go here
https://b5books.com/babylon-5-crusade-books/
=====================================

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

I didn't receive an email either, and I did receive the previous one originally saying they wouldn't continue the What the Hell Happened books, so I wouldn't have seen this if you hadn't posted, so thanks!

Hmm, going to have to dig my books out of storage and see how many of those Crusade books I already have. The offer of the hardback encyclopaedia with the bundles is a very generous one.

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

(In Homer Simpson Voice: Hardcover Encyclopedia :drool:)
Regarding the mailing list: Heard from :) Captain Jaclyn :) that the Official Announcement should be going out via email tomorrow. In "A View From the Gallery" Delenn said that Time is Circular, so if one is always Arriving Late, could conceivably loop around and actually get there Early. Especially if Sector 14 is nearby.

Purchased the Ebook Bundle yesterday to have a look at the Crusade Encyclopedia since the Ebook versions are available "now". It's about 132-ish pages, and while it's the same material originally published in the B5 Encyclopedia, having only the Crusade entries allows for a fresh look at the series. Interesting Coincidence that Mr. Kitty and Mueller, Rolf are on the same page, as Mr. Mueller made the unwise decision of ordering the catnapping of Mr. Kitty... and while he didn't get all the money he was asking for, he did get a Shiny New Necklace from Max.

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

Received the mail just 10 minutes ago.

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

Yeah I got mine. Guess it is time to start saving some moola. :lol:

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

Minor Update-ish
There was another newsletter on August 9th that provides links for purchasing both the hardcover encyclopedia :drool:($49.99 + shipping/tax) and/or the ebook-download version ($18.99, no US tax). So if you had already purchased those three Crusade books in the original paperback release, do not have to re-purchase items to get the physical encyclopedia. Although why not get "all four" ebooks, as they don't take up extra space on the shelf!!

However, the web site doesn't have this info (yet?), and while I could paste the links here, do not want to push my luck. Am guessing it should be updated shortly, but if not, can always send a message to help@b5books.com .

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

Worst spin-off series ever. Boring premise (5 years searching for a cure to a virus? Really?). Uninteresting characters with none of the charm of the original cast (it desperately needed one or two as regulars). Needed to focus on the important unfinished stories from original series (on screen not in books which for me are separate): Telepath War, Earthgov after Clark, the Narn and Centauri storylines, Lyta and her attempts to establish a telepath homeworld. Some were hinted at but should have been the whole focus of the show.

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

What makes you think that they were going to spend 5 years searching for the cure? If they'd been able to even finish the first season, that would have been abundently clear (and there were lots of hints in what we did see) Lyta was supposed to be the telepath in 'The Path of Sorrows' but they couldn't come to an agreement with Tallman. It had a regular from the original show. Bester would have been in the next episode to be shot if the show hadn't been shut down.

Contrary to you, I liked all of the cast except I thought that the doctor needed more fleshing out.

You didn't like it, and that's fine. But your post seemt to indicate that you think JMS got stupid in between shows which really didn't happen.

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

I completely agree with Jan. :thumbsup:

Re: "Crusade: What the Hell Happened?"
 

I wouldn't call it the worst ever, but I agree that it wasn't the best. To an extent I think that can be understood given how TNT messed around with it, it's a miracle they were able to produce a coherent show at all. But personally I did find some of the stories lacked impact, and I wasn't sold on some of the writing. Given that everyone on Earth was now on a countdown, there was a surprising lack of urgency to the storylines. Characters (and cast) were fine but I think some of them lacked energy. Galen was cool and a good addition to the B5 universe, but he spoke soooo ponderously sometimes. Matheson and the doctor were neither here nor there, but they could have developed as the show went on. I didn't like the actress playing Dureena, but at least she did have some energy on screen. The music was terrible and robbed the show of some dramatic impact. The effects weren't great and relied too much on unconvincing green screen, But there was some good stuff in there too. Eilerson was fun and a standout, Gary Cole was excellent as always. It was good to see Lochley fleshed out a bit more and to see Franklin again. If you compare it to the first 13 episodes of B5, I think they are mostly comparable in quality, and look how B5 turned out! Left to its own devices, I think Crusade could have gotten much better than what we saw.

It wasn't going to be 5 years searching for the cure, the cure was going to be found in season 2, the main storyline would be about the Shadow tech that Earth is using, as exemplified by the vessel that destroyed Gideon's ship. So I think it would have delved into Earth after Clark, and no doubt more B5 characters would have returned.

I think though what you describe as wanting is a direct sequel to B5, which I sympathise with, but I think that's a little bit unfair on Crusade as it was never about being that. When JMS first spoke of a sequel series, I think there were plans for it to be about the Rangers, 'Empire building' (I don't quite like the phrase, but developing the Alliance is what it means), and would have featured Sheridan and Garibaldi. I'd have liked to have seen more of the Rangers and empire building in season 5 to be honest, rather than Byron.