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5.0 out of 5 stars
Ones good, ones not, April 14, 2009
This review is from: Babylon 5: Signs & Portents & Tko [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Signs and Portents is forty-three minutes and thirty seconds long and originally aired on May 18, 1994. We start off with raiders attacking a fighter guarding a cargo ship and the fighter being destroyed. In the next scene we see a lone man walking in the cargo bay and going through Babylon 5 customs. We would later find out in future episodes it is the infamous Mr. Morden. Mr. Morden has come to Babylon 5 to ask each of the ambassadors a question; "What do you want?" In later episodes we would understand why he asked that question. We now switch over to Ambassador Mollari closing some business with some gentlemen. These gentlemen have found The Eye of Centauri. I most prized treasure back on Centauri Prime. Ambassador Mollari is to hand over The Eye to Lord Kiro and Lady Ladira. They are to go back to Centauri and hand it over to the Centauri Emperor. Unknown to Mollari, Lord Kiro has made a deal with the raiders to capture him and take him back to Centauri as the new Emperor. Commander Sinclair let Raider #1 and Lord Kiro go. Unknown to the both of them he has set up a trap outside to capture the raider. Outside in space a jump gate opens and giant spaceship is scene. Big enough to make it own jump gate. Raider ships are launch from the ship and a battle ensues. The Raiders are defeated, but the mother ship escapes. The huge spacecraft is destroyed by a Shadow vessel and The Eye is retrieved and is bought back to Londo. Before the show ends Lady Ladira shares a vision with Commander Sinclair. She shows him Babylon 5 being destroyed and says this is only a possible future. In Signs and Portents we are introduce to Mr. Morden for the first as an agent of the Shadows. Also Lieutenant David Corwin is seen for the first time, though his name and rank are not mention. I am giving Signs and Portents an AAA+++.
TKO is forty-three minutes and thirty seconds long and originally aired on May 25, 1994. Mainly this episode deals with two unrelated stories. The first deals with Walker Smith coming to Babylon 5 to fight in Mutai. The Mutai is boxing match without rules and almost a fight to the death. Walker wants to fight because he was unfairly framed and kicked out of the fighting federation because he would not take a fall. Walker Smith is an old friend of Michael Garibaldi. Michael tries to talk Walker out of it, but his mind is made up. The next day they head to find the Muta-do (leader of the Mutai fights). The Muta-do will not let Walker fight in the Mutai and when Walker persists; the Muta-do knocks him on the ground. Later that day, Caliban comes to Walker tells him how he can fight in the Mutai and that it must be done with honor. Michael and Walker are attending the final match of the Mutai. When Deor wins the last event, Muta-do declares him the winner and asks is there anybody in the ring brave enough to fight Deor. Walker responds that he is. Deor accepts the challenge and three cycles later the event takes place. Deor and Walker fight ends in a tie. Deor empress with Walker fighting abilities let Walker be the champ. In the finding scene Muta-do tells Walker that humans are now allowed to fight in the Mutai. In another story not related to this one, a friend of Susan's family Rabbi Koslov has come to visit her. He is here so Susan Ivanova can seek shiva. At first Susan refuses shiva because her father was unable to give her any love. Later when Rabbi Koslov is about to leave for Earth, Susan sees a flashback of her father asking for forgiveness. Susan in tears ask Rabbi Koslov to stay. Rabbi Koslov makes the preparations for shiva. A mourning prayer is read in English so her good friend Jeffrey Sinclair share in this moment. In the end Susan is in tears over her father lost. Since this episode deals with two unrelated stories and they share no common link I find TKO to be somewhat of a disappointment. TKO only gets a B+ from me.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Not the best, though still important Season 1 B5 episodes, August 30, 2001
This review is from: Babylon 5: Signs & Portents & Tko [VHS] (VHS Tape)
"Signs and Portents" is the title for Babylon 5's first season and it is an apt title for the first episode in this compilation. Here we see further signs of unrest and turmoil within the Centauri royal court as Londo Mollari obtains an important symbol of Centauri power that was lost for a century. He hears a dire prophecy from the Centauri noble Ladira about Babylon 5's future. And she forecasts the imminent arrival of Shadows, whom we see eventually in this episode. The mysterious Mr. Morden (Eric Wasser) arrives on Babylon 5, posing innocent questions to the ambassadors of the four major alien powers. Only Kosh and Delenn (Mira Furlan) recognize the dangerous enemy Mr. Morden represents. "TKO" is one of the weakest Season 1 episodes. A boxer - and old friend of Michael Garibaldi's (Jerry Doyle) - arrives on Babylon 5, interested in fighting aliens in the ritual combat known as "Mutai". Meanwhile Ivanova (Claudia Christian) is surprised by the unexpected visit of one of her late father's dearest friends, a rabbi portrayed by Theodore Bikel, on a personal mission to help Ivanova overcome her grief.
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3.0 out of 5 stars
Not the best, but still fun to watch., February 1, 2001
This review is from: Babylon 5: Signs & Portents & Tko [VHS] (VHS Tape)
The first episode of this tape is excellent. Ambassador Mollari recovers a long lost Centauri artifact of power, while a plot is set to overthrow the Emperor. This plot involves the Raiders, while a Centaurian psychic, Lady Ladira foretells the destruction of B5 and sees Shadows that move. And among the turmoil, a dark man appears, moving like a shadow, asking each ambassador the same thing: "What do you want?" A fascinating episode that gives out hints of the return of an Ancient Enemy. The second part, TKO, is one of the weakest episodes of the first season. It involves a human fighter who comes to B5 to fight in an alien tournament, while Ivanova has to deal with her father's death. If you are a fan of Mortal Combat, you may like this episode. I didn't. I did enjoy one thing, though: As the episode starts, we see Ivanova reading a book. Guess who's the author? Harlan Ellison, the series conceptual consultant.
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