Product Description

Times change. Dangers remain. 10 years after he became President of the Interstellar Alliance Sheridan prepares for a fateful Babylon 5 reunion that could prevent Earth's impending doom...if he will also compromise his core principles. Meanwhile commander Lochley confronts an unexpected interloper on the way station - a being whose presence makes the B5 freeport the crossroads between heaven and hell. In Voices in the Dark Series creator J. Michael Straczynski reunites with stars Bruce Boxleitner and Tracy Scoggins in two richly imagined stories set after the events of the original series. Richly imagined too is Straczynski's vision of the 23rd century (including a dazzling New York City) - a vision made more spectacular via filmmaking technology unavailable during the original series.Running Time: 72 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS UPC: 085391129844 Manufacturer No: 112984

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2486 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2007-07-31
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
• Formats: Subtitled, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: 1.00 pounds
• Running time: 75 minutes

Amazon.com
It'd be hard for any Babylon 5 fan not to feel a surge of emotion when President Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) returns to the space station that was the setting of one of the monumental series in television history. The Lost Tales is a new direct-to-DVD series in an anthology format, the first installment of which, subtitled "Voices in the Dark," includes two stories centering on the return of Sheridan. The first involves Colonel Lochley (Tracy Scoggins) and a crewman (Bruce Ramsay) who appears to be possessed by a demon, to the bewilderment of the priest attempting an exorcism (Alan Scarfe). The second involves Sheridan himself, who upon returning to B5 is asked to pick up a delegate from the Centauri, prince Regent Vintari (Keegan MacIntosh), who's attending the 10th anniversary celebration of the Interstellar Alliance in the place of old Centauri friend Londo Molari. What Sheridan doesn't expect is a psychic visit by techno-mage Galen (Peter Woodward) urging him to kill the boy before he becomes a dictator.

It's a treat to see Sheridan, Lochley, and Galen return from the original series (Woodward was also in the spin-off, Crusade), but The Lost Tales focuses on character-driven stories, and as such there's not a lot of action. The CGI effects are good, but sets are very limited and there are hardly any other cast members. (Sheridan even spends most of his time away from B5.) Creator-writer J. Michael Straczynski has said that if The Lost Tales succeeds, future stories might focus on Delenn or Garbibaldi. While that would be welcome, it might be even better to get a feature film (a la Serenity) that would presumably be on more of the epic scale that Babylon 5 deserves. Bonus features are 17 minutes of off-the-cuff interviews held on the set with Boxleitner and Straczynski, Scoggins and the crew, and Straczynski with Woodward; memorials to late cast members Andreas Katsulas and Richard Biggs; and Straczynski's diaries and fireside chats, in which he recounts the show's production and answers fan questions. --David Horiuchi

DVD features

• Interviews with J. Michael Straczynski, Bruce Boxleitner, Tracy Scoggins, and Peter Woodward
• Memorials: Andreas Katsulas and Richard Biggs
• The Straczynski Diaries: a multi-part series of vignettes as filmed by J. Michael Straczynski as he documents every phase of pre-production, production and post
• Fireside Chats: profiling the people of the B5 universe

Customer Reviews

One of the best shows EVER on television
Stories of developing characters were theaded and interwoven as the seasons progressed. This series was simply one of the best written shows ever aired on broadcast television. Of course it had to be cancelled. Wise, smart, funny, passionate, complex; it was just too good for the [...]-tube. The sci-fi format created safe space to explore contemporary moral and ethical issues without arousing an instant political backlash.

A Worthy Addition
Most Babylon 5 fans probably come into this movie expecting far too much. There is no new story to be written (yet at least), the original arc was completed in the 5 season series. These stories are just meant to be gravy for B5 fans; some 'Lost Tales' to fill in the gap between Season 5 and the Series finale 'Sleeping in Light'.

The 2 stories themselves are well written and contain some trademark JMS dialogue. The first story has not been well received due to the fact that it is very wordy and a bit slow paced. But, the underlying message of the tale is pure B5 and revisits some of the themes of 'ancient' evil that arose in the B5 universe. The second story is more action packed and opens a new door in the story line for future volumes.

I can understand why some fans might be disappointed in this release, but people really need to be more realistic. These stories aren't meant to create a new B5 universe but to add to one that millions have grown to adore. Finally, and most importantly, B5 fans need to support this release so we might see future volumes which sport bigger budgets. Don't forget, it was the fans who through their support brought the 5 seasons of B5 to DVD in the first place.

A Mixed Bag of Entertainment
Somewhat uneven not only from clip to clip but within each of the three vignettes. Probably only recommended for real fans of the series who want to see more. The good parts are really very good and stand up against any other body of sci-fi. The less good parts are just that, less than good.

It mad us want to watch the whole series again.