Product Details

• Actors: Bruce Boxleitner, Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Mira Furlan, Richard Biggs
• Directors: Adam Nimoy, Bruce Seth Green, David J. Eagle, Janet Greek, Jesús Salvador Treviño
• Format: Anamorphic, Box set, DVD, NTSC
• Language: French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono), English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Subtitles: English, Spanish, French
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
• Number of discs: 24
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Warner Home Video
• DVD Release Date: January 6, 2004
• Run Time: 3850 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00015Y0EG
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #122,904 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

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  Movies & TV > Television > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Babylon 5

• For more information about "Babylon 5 - The Complete First Four Seasons" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The epic sci-fi series Babylon 5 was a unique experiment in the history of television. It was effectively a novel for television in five seasons, consisting of 110 episodes with a clear beginning, middle, and end. The first season introduces the main characters, headed this year by Commander Jeffery Sinclair (Michael O'Hare) and Security Chief Michael Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), and familiarizes the audience with the unique environment of a five-mile-long space station in the year 2257. The first episode, "Midnight on the Firing Line," plays at a breathless pace, introducing Commander Susan Ivanova (Claudia Christian) and establishing the conflict between the Narn and Centauri races as represented by their ambassadors, G'Kar (Andreas Katsulas) and Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik). B5 hits warp speed with a run of exceptional episodes building to the season finale. The two-part "Voice in the Wilderness" has Mars breaking into open revolt against Earth and the discovery of a "Great Machine" on the dead world Epsilon 3. Referencing 1950s sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet, the story leads to the superb time-travel-based "Babylon Squared." Season finale "Chrysalis" proves more than just the usual television cliffhanger, placing Minbari ambassador Delenn in conflict with her ruling Grey Council and forcing on her a decision that laid the groundwork for Babylon 5's eventually becoming a great love story.

Delenn's future love interest, Captain John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) arrived on Babylon 5 in the first episode of season 2, "Points of Departure." The show marked the handing over of command of B5 to Sheridan from Commander Jeffery Sinclair, actor Michael O'Hare becoming a victim of studio politicians who wanted a bigger star in the leading role. "Revelations" explains that Sheridan's wife, Anna, died during an archaeological survey of the world Z'ha'dum, the name being just one of many references to Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings (the bridge at Khazad-Dum). "The Coming of Shadows" proved to be Babylon 5's finest hour to date, and in "In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum," Sheridan learns that Morden was on the ship on which Anna died. Three exceptional shows conclude the season. The Narn-Centauri war escalates in "The Long, Twilight Struggle," Sheridan faces a most unusual ordeal in "Comes the Inquisitor," and in "The Fall of Night" all hope of peace is shattered as a nerve-racking assassination attempt reveals a startling secret about Ambassador Kosh.

"Matters of Honor" launched Babylon 5's third season with the introduction of the White Star, a spacecraft added to enable more of the action to take place away from the station. Also introduced was Marcus Cole (Jason Carter)--in another nod to The Lord of the Rings, a Ranger not so far removed from Tolkien's Strider. A third of the way through the season "Messages from Earth," "Point of No Return," and "Severed Dreams" prove pivotal, changing the nature of the story in a way previously unimaginable on network TV. Earth slides into dictatorship, the fascistic Nightwatch takes control of off-world security, and Sheridan take decisive action by declaring Babylon 5 independent. "Interludes and Examinations" presented the death of a major supporting character, while the two-part "War Without End" reached apocalyptic dimensions in a complex tale resolving the destiny of Sinclair and the fate of Babylon 4, resolving a 1,000-year-old paradox and presenting a vision of a very dark future for Sheridan and Delenn. All this was trumped by the monumental "Z'ha'dum." In the preceding "Shadow Dancing" Anna Sheridan (Melissa Gilbert, Bruce Boxleitner's real-life wife) returned from the dead, no longer entirely human. In the mythologically resonant climax Anna invited Sheridan back to the Shadow homeworld with no hope of survival. Just as in The Lord of the Rings Gandalf fell into the abyss at Khazad-Dum, so Sheridan took a comparable leap into the unknown on an alien world.

Season 4 began on a high point with the Centauri Prime in the grip of the insane Emperor Cartagia (Wortham Krimmer) and a run of six shows leading to the climax of the war against the Shadows in "Into the Fire." If this colossal narrative was resolved a little too easily and the ultimate aim of the Shadows turned out to be a tad disappointing, it still proved to be the most powerful slice of space opera to ever grace the small screen. In the aftermath the sheer scale dropped back a little but the pace never slowed as the rest of the season played out in one relentless cycle of conspiracy, betrayal and conflict, Babylon 5 siding with the rebel Mars colony against the totalitarian Earth. On an unstoppable wave fuelled by roller-coaster plot twists and spectacular action shows from "No Surrender, No Retreat"--when Sheridan avows to overthrow EarthGov--to "Rising Star"--when the aim is realized--Babylon 5 achieved a consistent excellence rare in television. --Gary S. Dalkin

Product Description

In the year 2258 it is ten years after the Earth-Minbari War. Commander Sinclair takes command of a giant five-mile-long cylindrical space station orbiting a planet in neutral space. At a crossroads of interstellar commerce and diplomacy Cmdr Sinclair (2d season Captain Sheridan) must try to establish peace and prosperity between various interstellar empires all the while fighting forces from within the Earth Alliance. It is a precarious command particularly given that sabotage led to the destruction of Babylon stations 1 2 and 3 and 4 vanished without trace.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY Rating: NR UPC: 085393342821

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do not purchase this series this way, March 11, 2004

By	"jforbes44" (Salt Lake City, Utah United States) - See all my reviews

Why pay $360.83 for this four year series when you can purchase each year separatly for a total of $314.93

Season 1: $79.98
Season 2: $79.98
Season 3: $79.98
Season 4: $74.99

Total: $314.93

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Television Series, January 15, 2004

By	Mark Baker (Santa Clarita, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Babylon 5 is a five mile long space station. Located deep in neutral territory, it is designed to prevent intergalactic war by providing a place where peace can be worked out between the races. Run by Earth, it was built with help from the Minbari after our war with them when we were almost wiped out. Since it is also a trade station, it attracts allies of all kinds on a daily basis.

Unfortunately, it also attracts trouble. There are raiders in the area, the Narn and Centauri have at best a fragile peace, and someone is always trying to smuggle something on board. Even worse, an ancient enemy is rebuilding forces, and the effects of this will reach all the way back to Earth.

Babylon 5 is still unique in television. It set out to tell a single story that had been mapped out beforehand. As a result, it sucks you in and doesn't let you go until you've reached the end. Season 1 is the most uneven, but the beginnings of the story are there, and it lays the background on the races and cultures we will be dealing with over the course of the show. Season 2 brings a new captain and a storyline that is gaining speed, season 3 brings surprises and increasing tension, and season 4 is full steam ahead as most of the plot lines are resolved (since season 5 was a last minute reprieve).

Of course, if you are looking at this page, odds are you are already a fan and looking for information on the sets. The picture, presented in widescreen, is hit and miss, with some dust popping up occasionally. It is clear and sharp most of the time, however. Sound is presented in full surround and has never sounded better. Each set contains two audio commentaries by series creator J. Michael Straczynski and a season intro by cast and crew. They also have some behind the scenes documentaries and encyclopedia entries introducing you to the world of Babylon 5. All the sets but season 1 have one audio commentary each by various cast members. And season 4 has a great blooper reel.

Whether you buy the seasons bundled like this or individually, don't miss your chance to own this fantastic TV series.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Russian Novel of TV Space Opera, January 26, 2004

By A Customer

I only saw one or two episodes of B5 when it was on TV half a decade ago and at that point my friend, who was obsessed with it, said that it would be just as well to wait until they release it on dvd so that I can see them in order.

Those few that I saw in isolation were ok tv shows, nothing special really. But as a series it's awesome. They do a great job of setting up mysteries and slowly trickling out the details as the series continues for maximum dramatic effect.

The dvd's themselves are of excellent quality. Good menus that are easy to navigate. Very attractive packaging and nice little booklets with sumaries for finding your place. None of those new annoying adds that you cant skip though in the begining. The special features are ok, nothing great, but interesting and honest comentaries. Don't use any of the special features unless you are through with the series or they will spoil some of the suspense though.

By the way. In the begining the acting/directing is spotty and the special effects and sets are 'son of roger corman' low budget specials. But both got progressivly better as the series continued. It was an interesting historical series for television in this regard as well. And the story caries you through the rough parts until they hit their stride with the production values. Eventually both are consistently very good. They are some great space ships by Year 3.

I'm looking forward to year 5.