How Will B5 LOTR Avoid being cancelled?

Hi there,

Just wondered what JMS will do to avoid the problems he had with Crusade.I think that series should have kept going and realise TNT had a lot to do with its failure.

I hope this series is given a better chance at surviving.

Steve

I think Sci-Fi like JMS, the seem very keyed into the B5 franchise. So I hope B5LR has a better chance. Also we can help by getting as many people to watch it as possible.


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<font size="-2" color="silver">"The Babylon Project was our last, best, hope for peace.
A self-contained world five miles long, located in neutral
territory. A place of commerce and diplomacy for a quarter
of a million humans and aliens. A shining beacon in space,
all alone in the night. It was the dawn of the third age of
mankind, the year the great war came upon us all. This is
the story of the last of the Babylon stations. The year is
2259: the name of the place is Babylon 5."

If I recall correctly, JMS initially tried to sell Crusade to Sci-Fi back when all the hullaballoo was occuring with TNT.

They were VERY interested, but at the time didn't have the budget to take on another high-cost science fiction series.

That Babylon 5 and now Crusade have been taken under Sci-Fi Channel's wing was the initial step in the right direction.

That they've gotten to the point of announcing a new movie exclusive to Sci-Fi in the Babylon 5 universe, I'd say that's pretty much a done deal.

As for it going series? well, let's get everyone and their third cousins to tune in when the movie premiers, and that should encourage the Sci-Fi powers that be.

In this case, the Future litterally IS what we make of it.

Flok'Sha!!


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Todd (Scots)
Creator,
Scotsman's BabblingFarce
http://www.treebeard.net/scotsman/babindx.htm

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Steve Brickman:
Hi there,

Just wondered what JMS will do to avoid the problems he had with Crusade.I think that series should have kept going and realise TNT had a lot to do with its failure.

I hope this series is given a better chance at surviving.

Steve<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Gee I can see we will need to be careful with our abbreviations. LOTR is "Lord of the Rings" What shall we do to avoid confusion?


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The avalance has already started. It is too late for the pebbles to vote.

its good to know i wasnt the only who noticed that!

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"And so it begins..." - Kosh

[This message has been edited by Kosh (edited April 13, 2001).]

Well, JMS didn't have complete control over the direction of Crusade, right? With the new movie (even the series) I have a feeling he will have more control. That would give the Legend of the Rangers a better chance of surviving.

As for the confusion with Lord of the Rings, maybe JMS will realize the confusion and rename it. *L* Legend could be just a working-title.

Hey, this is a bit off, but it ties in with Scifi...does anyone know if Scifi has any plans of showing the B5 Sciography? The show was cancelled after two eps, and the B5 one was never shown. It is my understand that the ep was just shelved.



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Ivanova is always right. I will listen to Ivanova. I will not ignore Ivanova's recommendations. Ivanova is God. And if this ever happens again, Ivanova will personally rip your lungs out.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ivanova:
As for the confusion with Lord of the Rings, maybe JMS will realize the confusion and rename it. *L* Legend could be just a working-title.


<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


maybe, but jms had done a LOT of references to the lord of the rings in the past with b5 and crusade. perhaps this yet another one!


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"And so it begins..." - Kosh

Has he? Like what? This would make a perfect discussion (as well as a wonderful term paper)...the Mythos of B5, and by the great maker, there are A LOT Of them.

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Ivanova is always right. I will listen to Ivanova. I will not ignore Ivanova's recommendations. Ivanova is God. And if this ever happens again, Ivanova will personally rip your lungs out.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by terrytvgal:
Gee I can see we will need to be careful with our abbreviations. LOTR is "Lord of the Rings" What shall we do to avoid confusion?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well B5LR has been adopted by a lot of people. As that's my domain name, I'm of course going to say use that one.


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<font size="-2" color="silver">"The Babylon Project was our last, best, hope for peace.
A self-contained world five miles long, located in neutral
territory. A place of commerce and diplomacy for a quarter
of a million humans and aliens. A shining beacon in space,
all alone in the night. It was the dawn of the third age of
mankind, the year the great war came upon us all. This is
the story of the last of the Babylon stations. The year is
2259: the name of the place is Babylon 5."

Simple, the problems with TNT were due to a group of idiots in Atlanta who had no conception of what SF TV is. JMS wanted something in the vein of B5, TNT wanted Wrestlemania meets Baywatch in space.

On the other hand, the people at SFC know SF. Bonnie Hammer is not only a fan of the genre, but someone who is willing to take risks and understands the audience. SFC has a much better grasp of SF, and has always had an interest in all things B5. If there's one network I'd trust to see that B5:LOTR is made everything it can, SFC is it.

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---
WombatControl
http://www.flarn.com/wombatcontrol/
"Who let the spoo out? Sigh sigh sigh sigh sigh..."

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Ivanova:
Hey, this is a bit off, but it ties in with Scifi...does anyone know if Scifi has any plans of showing the B5 Sciography? The show was cancelled after two eps, and the B5 one was never shown. It is my understand that the ep was just shelved.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I seem to recall reading something on the b5 newsgroups that said they will still air it, but they want to expand it with more material. Something about Jerry Doyle not getting enough screentime in it or something.



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Joe Siegler
Webmaster - 3D Realms

I think it helps that it will be on a network that actually WANTS the show as it is.

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Crusade was 'aborted', which means that they stopped production before the series ever hit the air.
As far as I know the main problem was that TNT didn't wan't to do SF programming, so that shouldn't be a problem at all on the scifi channel.
(we hope...)


<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Steve Brickman:
Hi there,

Just wondered what JMS will do to avoid the problems he had with Crusade.I think that series should have kept going and realise TNT had a lot to do with its failure.

I hope this series is given a better chance at surviving.

Steve<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

To all of you who are worried about any potential interference by SFC in the development of "B5:LOTR," or its cancellation, here is a little point that I brought up in another discussion forum about this very subject:

<Begin Post>
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>>...Let's face it, though: A new series is really a foregone conclusion here (assuming that a big rock doesn't hit the planet), with JMS basically saying that the filming of a "pilot" is simply a formality. Sci-Fi WANT a new "Babylon 5" series pretty badly, and a series green-light is really only contingent if JMS is possessed by evil leprechaun-pixies and does the worst work anyone has ever seen on the planet in all of recorded history...which I don't think is gonna happen, frankly.

It's gonna go. And, he certainly has the wherewithal to show-run two series at once, as several other producers have already demonstrated. I would like to see him bring in some writers who have never written for he or "Babylon 5" before, including several Big Name prose writers who are fans...let them loose to run free in the B5 universe and see what they can do there. (Just look at what Neil Gaiman, f'rinstance, did.)<<

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<End Post>

So, in essence, the economics of it all are simply too overwhelming for Sci-Fi NOT to want a new "Babylon 5" series, especially given tbe massive ratings it, in repeats, has stacked up during the last year against other FIRST-RUN series.

It's gonna happen.


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[This message has been edited by Leto II (edited April 15, 2001).]

Joe Siegler,

Great, thanks for the update.

Leto II,

Heheheehe...*bounces with happy joy*

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Ivanova is always right. I will listen to Ivanova. I will not ignore Ivanova's recommendations. Ivanova is God. And if this ever happens again, Ivanova will personally rip your lungs out.

SFC is extremely JMS freindly. As long as USA and it's suits don't mess with him, we should be seeing a good run of B5 related materials.

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Those who can see the invisible, can do the impossible...

I was reading all about it... and basically TNT wanted something from Crusade that it wasn't.. more sex and shooting, basically. Sounds like Voyager. Of course JMS wasn't having any of that crap, and TNT sulked and said they didn't want it.

Sci-Fi seem to be very open to JMS and B5, and have publically spoken well about it.

------------------
<font size="-2" color="silver">"The Babylon Project was our last, best, hope for peace.
A self-contained world five miles long, located in neutral
territory. A place of commerce and diplomacy for a quarter
of a million humans and aliens. A shining beacon in space,
all alone in the night. It was the dawn of the third age of
mankind, the year the great war came upon us all. This is
the story of the last of the Babylon stations. The year is
2259: the name of the place is Babylon 5."

I certainly hope that JMS doesn't get a repeat of his Crusade experience. He was burned-out after it ended, & that was from 5 years of B5, & also from the battles with TNT.

Tammy

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HEY gkarfan!!! good seeing you!!!

How can they get it from being cancelled...thats easy...LOTS of PEOPLE have TO WATCH THE SHOW

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From what I've heard, it seems like the new series would have a really good shot at staying on the air. It seems like a really good concept, and having a fan favorite (G'kar) should probably help it survive. I think it will do well, especially if it airs on the sci-fi channel, where B5 is continuing in syndication.

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You name it, sooner or later, everyone comes to Babylon 5.
-Commander Jeffrey David Sinclair, The Gathering