Crusade

This series was absolutely doomed from the beginning. Not only was it following on the coattails of Babylon 5 (appearing AFTER the original had run its course), but TNT moved this follow-up series so many times, most of its small audience was lost and assumed the show had been canceled (which it soon was).

The show had a bizarre premise. An alien atavistic race wanted to destroy the earth once and for all and sent a plague into our atmosphere. All life was doomed to die within a few years and there appeared to be no hope--except for a few ships that were off world and were madly searching for ANYONE or ANYTHING that could help us cure this plague.

Excellent acting and writing really mean nothing if there's no commitment from the TV execs, so this series quickly tanked. In fact, J. Michael Straczynski, the brains behind the series and writer of most of the episodes, left in disgust because of how Turner Networks handled this. It is available on DVD but don't expect the quality of the original series--it had some excellent moments and a lot of promise but quickly withered due to neglect.

To those of you who only saw it when broadcast on TNT, the broadcast "opener" was not in fact the true opening episode. The series is now being rebroadcast in the order in which it was intended by Sci-Fi Channel, and after only a week it remains far more satisfying than it was two years ago. The story detailed on all the chatrooms at the time. Basically, B5 was bought for TNT by the people who bought re-broadcast rights, but supervision for Crusade was taken over by people who supervised original series and evidently didn't like it -- they were into westerns. They wanted a new character added, a female who 'explored' other species sexually. They were responsible for the change in uniforms, and they demanded a new opener, one which gave away too much. JMS went as far as he could, then told them to stuff it. They took 13 episodes, no more, and at the time the Sci Fi channel had committed its financial future to Farscape. I liked Farscape -- now I love it -- but I LOVE Crusade. Watch the series as it is broadcast here, and write Sci-Fi asking if they can't get new episodes. Marjean Holden may be trapped in Beastmaster, but I suspect the other actors would jump at the chance to play such complex characters.

After some slow and rather uneventful episodes, this show later showed some promise and developed into an interesting Science Fiction series.

Of course, it is lacking the sophisticated story arc of Babylon 5, but many episodes are fun! It is nice to watch them and you want to know what happens next. In my eyes, it is Star trek Voyager done better.

The characters are of different quality: The Captain with his mysterious Boom Tube as an advisor gets better every episode, and Technomage Galen is simply wonderful. Archeologist Eilerson does not fail to convince as an arrogant scientist. The other characters are far less interesting.

Even so, I am rather sad that TNT decided to cancel the show without ever waiting for spectators approval. Some of the 13 episodes were excellent, and I do sincerely hope that they will be able to continue someday in the future.

To compare Crusade and/or Babylon 5 to shows like "Space, Above And Beyond" or "Lost in Space" is absurd! Babylon 5 was far above any other sci-fi series ever made. The special effects were state of the art and spectacular. The characters were superb, the stories ingenious and suspense was masterfully done.

The break from the usual "resolve everything in 40 minutes" mindset was refreshingly absent in B5. You never knew when a regular was going to buy the farm, which made it much more interesting. There was a darker tone to the show at times, which may have put off devotees of the aforementioned "formula" shows. The classic battle of good and evil, coupled with an extremely adept job of portraying the slimy world of politics and corruption of governments was a delight.

I'm just sorry it is no longer being made.

Alright, ready for this? I've watched B5 since before it was a series, watching the movie every time it came on th'tube. I hooked everyone I could who likes sci-fi on it and in it. When I caught a whiff of the coming of Crusade I was beside myself with joy. The Rangers concept excites me. :) Didn't hurt that I had an emotional attachment to the Rangers I had already encountered in the B5 universe. I didn't know quite what to think about the Technomage thing, having had limited and unpleasant exposure to them on B5. Lordy, was I in for a pleasant surprise on that note! Then came the news that TNT were being pig-head and flighty again. This always tends to bite them in the backside, otherwise their network would be on my tv constantly (sporting events aside; I find those just irksome, especially when they disturb my weekly viewing pleasures - that's hearlded the death of many good shows on th'tube). So we were only going to get teased with a single season of this show. Major Bummer! It's been wonderful to have a show so in depth and versitile NOT set in the blasted Star Trek universe. (Don't take that wrong, I'm a trekkie, too - but to me, B5 and Crusade hold a spot closer to my heart; Star Trek has never made me cry.) Despite the continued depressing news (no future home for a second season <or more> for Cursade) I, along with countless others, tuned in to the show. Someone else in these comments compared it to Space: Above and Beyond. To me, that's like comparing it to Earth2. It just doesn't. You could only compare it to ST & B5... and maybe Starship Troopers. Though it had a rough start (ala B5 finding it's footing), it quickly captured diehards like myself - and newbies. Yeah, I got some MORE people hooked on it. :) I would say the most popular characters in my lil'world would be Galen, Dureena and Gideon. Previously, Technomages seems to be just pompous evil lil'men with dreams of grandeur. Now I know some of them have souls, and hearts. Dureena didn't interest me at all at first, but I've come to trust and even admire th'lil'thief. :) She's uber-kewL, as the saying goes. Then there's Gideon. I've never really watched Gary Cole do anything before, at least I've not paid attention to him in particular. I will from here on out. He's the really quirky one in the cast, in my opinion. But I believe that's why his character is singled out for this mission. His unconventional manner tends to save his own hide, why not the rest of humanity along with it?! When your options are few, why not consider the seemingly impossible. The chemistry between the three of the characters and actors makes the show. I would personally like to shoot Eilerson off into space myself, though. Lt. Matheson has a lotta potential, too, being a telepath on such an unconventional crew. Possibilies are/were endless, truely, once you actually sit and consider the show. So much space in the universe, so little time. Well, now the show is over. No big fanfare saying "last chance to catch the magic that is..." ...no warning... I knew it was coming, but it was such a crushing disappointment (exclusively in TNT). If, by some chance, you get the opportunity to see taped episodes (or some network DOES pick it up, tho don't hold your breath), see if I'm not right in the things that I've said. It is a MISTAKE and crime against the sci-fi/fantasy community to kill off such a wonderful creation.