A mediocre episode with the potential for more, but ruined by grievous A Plot overacting and some Larry DiTillio writing that never quite rises above it. Sinclair’s various impolitic moves over the course of the season come home to roost as various factions back on Earth send an internal investigator to check out B5.
Unfortunately, almost anything interesting, dramatic, or even conspiratorial about this is defused by Gregory Martin’s scenery-chewing as Col. Ari Ben Zayn. The actions — and acting — around the lead antagonist are so over-the-top that any suspense or even question of whether Sinclair might be unduly influenced by the Minbari or acting incorrectly or against Earth’s best interest never gets taken seriously. Indeed, not only is he an antagonist because of the (understandable) politics of the situation, but he (secretly) has a personal score to settle with Sinclair. (All you need to know about the character can be summed up right here: http://i.onionstatic.com/avclub/4108/78/original/640.jpg .)
Jeffrey Combs as Psi Corps investigator Harriman Gray is better at continuing to show that Psi talents, or even the Psi Corps, are a unilaterally black hat group, but he’s so relentlessly likable and wanting to be liked and sympathetic that he almost suffers from the same problem as Ben Zayn, only reversed — Ivanova’s allergy to the Psi Corps comes across almost as churlish, not emotionally principled.
The three command team members all work closely together and individually this episode, which is nice to see. Sinclair’s under the microscope, Garibaldi is being forced to work as Ben Zayn’s flunky, but it’s Ivanova and her paranoid reluctance to be mind scanned that are a centerpiece here, as she interacts with telepath Gray who clearly is crushing on her and instead just threatens him. Her aversion to mind scanning here not only hampers the command team’s opposition to Ben Zayn, but paints her as irrational; there are reasons for it (hinted at in a nice little nightmare sequence), but it just doesn’t come out clearly enough.
The B Plot here is about Garibaldi’s motorbike building hobby (sadly never mentioned again), and the “help” that Lennier provides. It’s a nice set of moments for the two of them, especally for Lennier, who’s been sadly underused this season, but will be increasingly concerned with his “sexual prowess and rebellion” in the future.
Most Dramatic Moment: Ivanova turns in her resignation to Sinclair, rather than be mind scanned.
Most Amusing Moment: Lennier researching human motorcycle culture (which appears to be American motorcycle culture, but never mind). (The video below, cued to that moment, includes the full B Plot, so, “Spoilers, sweetie.”)
Most Arc-ish Moment: The whole thing is driven by arc, but the unveiling that (off screen) Bester is at least in part behind the scenes in the attempt to take down Sinclair not only sets him up as a recurring opponent (which the show is sorely lacking to this point), but says even more about the Psi Corps’ involvement in Earth politics.
Overall Rating: 2.5 / 5 — Lots of nice fodder and continuity, but too much bad acting.
Lurker’s Guide: http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/us/guide/016.html
Babylon Project: http://babylon5.wikia.com/wiki/Eyes_(episode)
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0517650/
AV Club: (along with “Legacies”): http://www.avclub.com/review/babylon-5-eyeslegacies-83171
Making Light: http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/012892.html