The second season finale is a steadily rising bundle of tension, escalating horror, and plain all-out action and excitement. For those who were excited by the space battles of "The Long, Twilight Struggle" and the arc-y, intense, personal drama of "Comes the Inquisitor" … this ep tries to match both, and largely succeeds. While the "The Long Twilight Struggle" could have served as the season finale, this episode gives notice that the Narn-Centauri War was just a sidelight — that there are more important things going on in the universe to bedevil Our Heroes and their station.
The plotlines here are so intertangled I can't call out lettered plots, so I'll run through things in a bit more tangled fashion.
The Centauri, having whomped the Narn, are now beginning to expand into other surrounding star nations — ostensibly to create buffer zones to reduce tensions, ha ha ha. Londo is blustery and belligerent when braced by Sheridan about all of this, but Garibaldi rightly notes later how scared Londo is of how fast everything is moving ("Half the time I want to strangle the guy, the other half I kind of feel sorry for him.")
Fortunately, Sheridan's missives back to the Earth Alliance have produced a result — Roy Dotrice (http://goo.gl/Xwx42W) (well, "Frederick Lantze") from the Ministry of Peace arrives on the station to examine the Centauri problem. Everyone's all smiles about this until he decides (after interviewing Londo, the League ambassadors, but refusing to see G'kar (http://goo.gl/WtcNNr)) that it's a great idea for Earth to enter into a non-belligerency pact with the Centauri, thus ensuring for Earth (insert heavy-handed historical precedent here) "peace in our time."
Which leads Sheridan to be disgusted about the whole affair and even about his career ("I remember the first time I put on this uniform. I felt 10 feet tall, like I could take on the whole galaxy before breakfast. Now I look at it — it's just cloth."). Hold onto that thought for now.
Meanwhile, another MiniPax rep is also on-board, a high muckity-muck for the Night Watch, everyone's favorite McCarthyist informant organization. After attempting to bribe Ivanova onto his side by promising an early opportunity for starship command if she funnels intel to him (she puts him in his place in a remarkably diplomatic fashion), he meets with the other NW members on the station, including security guy Zack Allan — who has the decency to feel really uncomfortable when asked to narc on folks who have said innocuious but negative things about EA policy or leadership … but he still does. (http://youtu.be/qXjCb3vb830)
Meanwhile, a lone surviving Narn cruiser has snuck into the B5 system, seeking sanctuary, which Sheridan provides, as well as help getting the thing repaired. Alas, one of the bridge crew is a member of the Night Watch, and lets the MiniPax visitors know. Roy Dotrice is apalled that Sheridan is blowing his great treaty deal with the Centauri. Worse, Londo's let in on it, and calls in a Centauri cruiser to take custody of the Narn. Sheridan plays chicken, and the Centauri cruiser decides to attack (http://goo.gl/M1bFWa, http://goo.gl/24ZSrd) both the station and the Narn — and gets blown out the sky for its trouble by both Starfuries and B5's upgraded defense grid (http://goo.gl/RrXU29, http://goo.gl/24ZSrd). The Narn ship escapes (http://goo.gl/BRbsHt), escorted by said Starfuries. (http://youtu.be/fDhF9sxDm7E)
Now Roy Dotrice is really furious, but Sheridan plays rules lawyer and notes that (a) the Centauri shot first, and (b) general orders require him to help any non-hostile ship that asks for it. That gets him off the hook a bit — but the Night Watch MiniPax goon informs Sheridan that he's been ordered by the Joint Chiefs and the President to apologize to the Centauri.
At the appointed hour, after rehearsing (in a cathartic fashion) said apology (http://youtu.be/S8vA0ANTUM0), he takes the core shuttle to get to where the ambassadors are all gathered — and spots at the last moment a bomb placed on the car by some Centauri bravos (http://goo.gl/b8FTaz). He jumps before it blows up (http://goo.gl/B2iwqM, http://goo.gl/HGvHiw, http://goo.gl/W1CmDM), and slowly drifts toward the rapidly rotating ground below. Delenn turns to Kosh (http://goo.gl/24ZSrd), who apparently agrees that Sheridan is too important to be allowed to die — and exits his encounter suit (http://goo.gl/ZuwGO9, http://goo.gl/6LGI2E) …
So, yeah, Kosh looks like an angel. To Sheridan. To Delenn and Lennier, he looks like a Minbari divine figure. In fact, each of the ambassadors sees Kosh as a legendary holy figure of light (GIFfy: http://goo.gl/rNT1nh; http://goo.gl/VYker3, http://goo.gl/4tUw1D, http://goo.gl/lh7bW3, http://goo.gl/Jc0HEX, http://goo.gl/ALZ6Dk, http://goo.gl/JYtwxO, http://goo.gl/SbZXJf). Except poor Londo, who "saw nothing." (Full sequence: http://youtu.be/HVSlKqOXf2k)
Sheridan is rescued (http://goo.gl/WZqPqM), but, as Delenn notes later, the danger level has just been ramped up, as the Shadows will learn of Kosh's "outing" and assume that the Vorlons are ready to confront them — which they are not. As long as the Shadows themselves are not revealed, though, they will probably not escalate the conflict. From what we see in other conversations, the other races know something mystically spiffy happened, but don't actually associate it with Kosh. Sheridan's grateful for the rescue, but, having heard of how the Vorlons have visited worlds across the galaxy for a million years, wonders if the angelic form ("Who will recognize him?" "Everyone.") is something intrinsic to the Vorlons, or a convenient reaction they've programmed into all the races.
Speaking of the Shadows, Keffer (who has been absent most of the season, but still wants to find out more about those mysterious hyperspace-dwellers he saw, the Shadows) gets some further information on them from some other Starfury pilots who have spotted them. Ignoring the warnings to steer clear, and while escorting the Narn ship into hyperspace, he uses that intel to track down a Shadow spider ship (http://goo.gl/TRPD4l). He records pictures of it, jettisons the record in a capsule, and dies a grisly high-energy death (http://goo.gl/fdPO2J) for his presumption (and for the presumption of the network suits who insisted that Joe cast a "young, handsome, Han Solo type" on the show).
Which brings us to the end of the episode, and the end of the year 2259 — as Ivanova gives a voice-over monologue (that will get modified into to the S.3 main titles) while lighting her Hannukah candles (http://goo.gl/6tPrlY).
"It was the end of the Earth year 2259 and the war was upon us. As anticipated a few days after the Earth-Centauri treaty was announced, the Centauri widened their war to include many of the non-aligned worlds [http://goo.gl/bQZVy1]. And there was another war brewing closer to home, a personal one whose cost would be higher than any of us could imagine [http://goo.gl/nxfRAD]. We came to this place because Babylon 5 was our last best hope for peace by the end of 2259 we knew that it had failed. But in so doing it became something greater as the war expanded, it became our last best hope for victory. Because sometimes 'peace' is another word for 'surrender,' and because secrets have a way of getting out." (Partial video: http://youtu.be/I1q77pF6Eok)
And we close with an ISN broadcast about a recording that was picked up from a capsule in hyperspace, showing a strange, heretofore unknown spider-like ship (http://goo.gl/zSnUMi, http://goo.gl/2Bms0K) …
GAH!
The episode is rushed in places, given all that happens, which weakens a lot of the individual events even as it lets more baseball bats to the head take place. The cast is firing on all cylinders (except for Franklin, who doesn't appear), the guest stars are all solid enough, and every time the viewer figures things have reached their climax … they escalate into something more awful.
Sheridan steps beyond school boyish charm and platitudes to the sudden realization that he's faced with a long-term crisis of a moral nature — what Earth is doing, and what he needs to do about it. Ivanova (with her hair back most of the ep, as I prefer it) is now fitting smoothly into her role as his second, dealing with crises both diplomatic and military and offering him unforced advice; she also shuts down Mr Welles' attempt to suborn her in a way that's less over the top but just as intense as any of her earlier Ivanovisms. Keffer finally gets a partial focus, and Robert Rusler still can't make him a compelling character, even though he serves a critical plot point (and gets a few good lines http://goo.gl/6f1WOZ). Garibaldi has only a brief appearance, but as the guy closest to Londo, he's got the best insight into the Centauri ambassador, and may be their only emotional leverage over him. Zack — who becomes a regular next season — does a solid job on the everyman who's less interested in cosmic events and more in the worries of his day-to-day job.
Londo himself is on an escalating level of bluster and anger — and, as Garibaldi points out, fear and apprehension, which he plows right back into those other emotions — getting all shouty at Sheridan, up to the level of threat ("Do not start getting delusions of grandeur. You will not survive them."), and eventually (in the montage at the end under Ivanova's season-wrapping narration) going all Hitler-giving-a-speech to the League); he seems completely lost to the "Good Guys" side, which will make next season all the more interesting.
With all that, there's not a lot of room for the other major players. Vir and Lennier have a brief, highly staged, but very funny scene (http://goo.gl/vfmmbs). G'kar is around only briefly as well, peripheral to the Narn ship arriving (http://goo.gl/5x0uZX), in a futile attempt to engage with Roy Dotrice, and then to try and defend Sheridan's actions; how he feels about everything else going on remains to be seen. Even Delenn's presence is limited — she intervenes with Kosh to save Sheridan, and offers dire portents to the Captain later about what that will mean, but doesn't get much beyond exposition.
Kosh … just looks uncomfortable dealing with everyone outside of his suit.
The guest stars are an interesting mixed bag. Roy Dotrice, so proud of his negotation of a peace with the Centauri, appears to be utterly and passionately sincere, doing wrong things for the right reason (http://goo.gl/PXdGHj). His compatriot, Welles (http://goo.gl/6PUmxk, played by John Vickery, who also plays the Minbari warrior caste leader, Neroon — B5's heavy make-up allowed a lot of reuse of fine supporting actors), is the smarmiest bad guy to hit the station since Morden — oh-so-reasonable in invoking Earth's security and defense against dissent and sedition, and placing Zack in an untenable position as a member of the Night Watch. It feels a bit heavy-handed, but Welles, though the kind of guy you'd cross the street to avoid, also speaks in such a seductively reasonable way that you can understand when Zack kinda shrugs and gives in to him (http://goo.gl/eQNUi1).
It's a huge game-changing plot-cliff-hanging season finale, and should have given all the fanboys months to speculate about what it all meant. It did … over in the UK. In the US, PTEN decided to up the tension (?) by having the final four S.2 episodes air in October (after a break since May), immediately followed by S.3. It was crazy-frustrating, and served no particularly useful purpose except to delay some great episodes and blow some momentum. Dolts.
Still, everyone in the US had at least a full week to argue like mad over all that had been revealed — the new Earth-Centauri alliance, Sheridan's increased disaffection, Centauri expansionism, Earth's authoritariansm, Kosh and the Vorlons, the Shadows …
With everything that gets thrown at the wall, it's one hell of a season closer (nominated for a Hugo, but rejected so that the vote wasn't split with "The Coming of Shadows"), and wild Drazi couldn't have kept me away from the next episode. My daughter, for her part, was on the edge of her seat as Thing After Thing happened, though she found some of the "stupid" actions some of the characters took (Keffer, the faceless Centauri commander) infuriating, but, as I noted back to her, most of the folks taking actions, for good or ill, were doing so thinking it was the right thing to do in pursuit of "what do they want" — and how that can lead to disaster is a big part of the B5 saga.
Overaching episode montage: http://youtu.be/Ozp0N8CySRg
Most Dramatic Moment: After learning of the new Centauri-Earth alliance, Sheridan tells Ivanova that he can remember how amazing it was to first put on an EA uniform — and how tawdry it seems now.
Most Amusing Moment: Vir and Lennier have their (apparently) regular afternoon meeting, to muse about how abused they are as sidekicks / attaches. Comedy gold. (GIFfy http://goo.gl/rKzfDh; http://goo.gl/2oC1QD)
Most Arc-ish Moment: Kosh is revealed, and the different forms he takes for each race. (http://youtu.be/HVSlKqOXf2k)
Overall Rating: 4.8 / 5 — An insanely high-tension episode, with big plot twists coming from all directions — hampered only by the number of them squeezing out some more quiet character nuance.
– Lurker’s Guide: http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/countries/us/guide/044.html
– Babylon Project: http://babylon5.wikia.com/wiki/The_Fall_of_Night
– IMDb: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0517703/
– AV Club: http://www.avclub.com/tvclub/babylon-5-comes-the-inquisitorthe-fall-of-night-98076 (includes next epside)
– Kay Shapero: http://www.kayshapero.net/b5review/Fall%20of%20Night.htm
– TV Tropes: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Recap/BabylonFiveS02E22TheFallOfNight
Next episode: Season 3 begins with "Matters of Honor," a new main title sequence, and a season called "Point of No Return." Yeah, that's not ominous.
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