G’kar gets an unwanted promotion, Stephen is put into a difficult position and Garibaldi royally screws up. Welcome my friends. This is the story of the last of the Babylon stations. The year is 2262. The place: Babylon 5.
Spoilers ahead.
1. Lesson One: Wit is Wise
It’s been a while since I’ve really had an episode that I have little to complain about. It’s not like there are any in season 5 so far that have been duds, at least compared to the rockiness of season 1, but it’s certainly more uneven than seasons 3 & 4. This is one of the highs. “The Ragged Edge” manages to be tense, funny, gripping, thoughtful and emotionally propelling as it takes the time to set-up, further AND pay-off character arcs and plot beats, all on different timescales without rushing or overstuffing the episode.
I particularly love how on-point the banter between Londo and G’Kar was. G’Kar was particularly acerbic this week and Londo held his own. It was reminiscent of a screwball comedy, only with a slower back-and-forth. You can feel the years between them in every exchange. It’s a testament to Jurasik & Katsulas’ acting abilities and their chemistry in addition to the writing, although without such great dialog and character-based comedy, not even the best chemistry in the world would be able to save them.
JMS is a good writer y’all. Who knew?
2. Lesson 2: Impatience is a Universal Trait
Can you believe the entire council voted to boycott the meetings until the mysterious supply line attacks have been solved? No, but only because I can’t believe they actually agreed on something quickly AGAIN. Them acting on their fears, and JMS probably writing it so they don’t have to have everyone in make-up for a short scene, doesn’t shock me in the least. Thankfully for Sheridan and Delenn, there’s a survivor of an attack so all they have to do is get them to safety. Easy, right?
This has been brewing in the foreground and the background for weeks now, though with the added wrinkle of those supply lines also being used by government-sanctioned smugglers. Unofficially, of course. We, the audience, have a pretty good idea of who’s attacking the supply lines but no one else knows either who is doing it, how, or why.
By forcing the issue, Babylon 5 is moving into its next phase, putting the telepath war on the backburner for a bit, and doubling down on the promise of things getting worse, much worse, before they can maybe get better. It creates a wonderful sense of dramatic irony and allows for an absolutely masterful scene that confirms the Centauri’s role in the chaos, specifically the role of the Regent and his royal guard.
I didn’t even blink when Londo arrived late and it wasn’t until he pointed out the button that I noticed Straczynski’s hand holding him back in order to make that scene, and the next, work. Londo needed to be missing for the rest of the crew to decide to cut him out of the knowledge train and for G’kar to give his speech about defending Londo by keeping him out of the loop. At first you think it’s because he doesn’t trust Londo. Then you realize it’s not trust that’s the issue, it’s that Londo, despite all his many failings, will fight tooth and nail to right things he sees as wrong.
And that will get him killed.
Having G’Kar make this argument is a true testament to their changing relationship and a powerful scene in and of itself. However, that’s not all he gets to do this week.
3. Lesson 3: Leaders Who Don’t Want to Lead, Are Forced Into Teaching
I just had in my notes “G’kar: Prophet, Teacher, Hunk??” and I’m not sure where that last part came from. It’s pretty apt seeing as how the B-plot this week is him coming to terms with becoming a religious icon. It was somewhat inevitable that this would happen, though it happening while he was still alive is quite unexpected, and all because of Ta’Lon, who hasn’t been seen since season 3, sending it off to a first printing of a debut novel most authors could only dream of: 5-6 HUNDRED THOUSAND copies.
Continued belowThe line that got me was how G’Kar is now bigger than G’Quan. I died at that one. Also when he got an extra zealous student to put his face in a book and slammed it shut on him.
It’s not all laughs at his, or his student’s, expense though. There’s a pretty meaty meditation on what it means to wield influence, whether you want it or not. G’Kar has always been a good leader; it’s just that he’s seen it as a necessity born of circumstances rather than a calling. He fights because he feels he has to not because he likes to.
He’s uncomfortable with all this newfound attention and doesn’t want it. He’s a private person and has to now be very, very public. He cannot be that anymore because, as we see with the zealous student, staying silent is a choice and a choice that has consequences. By embracing his role, he can better shape his message and use his influence positively, rather than abdicating his responsibility.
He can also put his talent for telling engaging, witty stories to great use, especially if he can surreptitiously dunk on Londo.
4. Lesson 4: Your Problems are Not Yours Alone
Oh boy, where to begin with Garibaldi this week? After having succumbed to his addiction at the end of “Phoenix Rising” after years of sobriety, “The Ragged Edge” explores the consequences of his choice. It’s not pretty, to say the least.
After pushing Franklin away so he can be alone on his trip, and also to not let him close enough to notice the signs, he lets his old friend get killed by the Drazi – to prevent the smuggler from making unofficial rumors confirmed – and then lets said smuggler get killed by a mysterious group. By falling asleep after draining a bottle with Ta’Fiq, his friend. It’s a huge screw-up and he knows it but instead of owning up to why, he chooses to hide it again.
It’s so hard to watch him slip this hard and this fast. I don’t really have a lot to say about it other than it’s a real tragedy. He’s going to start actually alienating Franklin, he’s going to use this failure as a reason to spiral farther, and seeing as how this was in-part to parallel Doyle’s own drinking issues, the complications from which ultimately killed him, it seems we’re only at the start.
5. Lesson 5: Do What is Right for You, Even if it is Hard
I’m pretty shocked. Dr. Stephen Franklin is leaving the station, for real this time. I know it won’t happen until after the show ends, as he mentions he won’t be taking over until “the new year,” but it’s still a surprise. This is “The Ragged Edge’s” C-plot and it’s a quiet one. Just a couple scenes of set-up, a central conversation between him and Sheridan, and the stinger with Garibaldi missing his message.
It’s a nice counterbalance to all the big action of “Phoenix Rising” and “A Tragedy of Telepaths” as well as to the A-plot. Franklin’s choice to take over for Dr. Kyle on Earth, whom I have never seen on the show as I missed the pilot episode “The Gathering,” is station-shattering. The way JMS chooses to seed it and then develop it, however, is understated and quick. For such a big move, it’s odd yet fitting. Sometimes life simply throws things at you fast and you have to make choices.
It’s also an odd choice to hold back this relevant information from the audience for most of the episode. If this were a CW show, we’d have three speeches, twelve 30-second scenes, and a lot of loud agonizing over the decision. By not doing that, Straczynski is able to support the mood of the plot and simulate the actual feelings of both Franklin and then Sheridan. I, too, am angry at the suddenness. I, too, am devastated that he will be leaving.
And I, too, know that it is the right choice for Franklin, made with consideration and thought.
Continued belowIt wasn’t a big scene. It wasn’t a loud scene. It wasn’t, in the scheme of things, even a big scene. But I will never forget it.
I will never forget how pitch perfect Richard Biggs was. Though this isn’t his last episode, it is an ending of sorts, one he conveys with gravitas and beauty. I will never forget the maturity and humanity captured in that conversation, just as I will never forget Franklin’s conflicted excitement or the silent acknowledgment between him and Sheridan that, whether they like it or not, an era is ending and that this is simply one more sign.
That about does it for now. Join me again in a week for the return of Telepath antics, Bester doing his thing, and a murder most foul on the station where it’s time to get off their encounter suited butts and do something.
This is Elias. Signing out.
Best Line of the Night:
Londo: “In the past it was a great relief to leave Babylon 5…and a great joy to return home. Now it is a relief to leave Centauri Prime and be anywhere else. I don’t know what to call home anymore.”
G’Kar: “Have you considered the possibility that you’re simply not meant to be happy no matter where you are?”
