Babylon 5

Babylon 5 promises to be a welcome addition to the ever-expanding sci-fi universe. [24 Jan 1994, p.31]

Although Babylon 5 is less than cutting-edge sci-fi, it does display a certain kind of pluck, a sense of humor, some neat special effects and an assemblage of aliens every bit the equals of their human counterparts. [25 Jan 1994]

Unlike the pilot movie, which came across as stilted or even phony in spots, tonight's show is crafted with a smooth blend of action, character development and convincing special effects. [26 Jan 1994, p.3C]

To paraphrase poet Robert Frost, there's miles to go before this show will put you to sleep.

If the acting can get to a level above a robotic stiffness that recalls old Saturday-matinee movie serials, Babylon 5 could prove fun to have around.

It doesn't help the show to have such a wooden presence al the helm. As Commander Sinclair, lead actor Michael O'Hare is like Lorne Greene under hypnosis. In fact, this colorful but cheesy satellite opera aspires to nothing greater than being a '90s Battiestar Galactica.

Trekkies will strain to like it because of the concept, though the first episode bows in with too much hardware and only hints of personal interrelationships. But there are intriguing potentials. [30 Jan 1994]

It's escapist sci- fi hooey that is simultaneously slick and tacky. In other words, a breath of fresh air compared to the average tabloid newsmagzine. [26 Jan 1994, p.6D]

If this becomes a series, the aliens, ship and plotting can stay. As for the humans, remember Lost in Space? [22 Feb 1993, p.3D]

The acting is pretty much non-existent, casting is weak, and the special effects are unimpressive. But there's some terrific makeup work on some of the non-human creatures around, and somebody went to the trouble of deciding that a space station for many different species would have to be equipped with many different environments to accommodate them...Nice touch. [22 Feb 1993, p.5D]

Babylon 5 is basically the barroom segment of the first Star Wars movie expanded to a weekly hour, with scene after scene of nuttily costumed actors portraying extraterrestrial members of clans such as the Minbaris, the Narns, and the Vorlons. ... There's relatively little action. That might be ascribed to the fact that scenes involving the requisite futuristic special-effects would be expensive, but I actually think it's more by design that Babylon is a talky bore.