Written, created, and produced by J. Michael Straczynski and premiering on February 22nd, 1993, with the pilot movie The Gathering, Babylon 5 would go on to be not only one of the most beloved sci-fi series of the 1990s but also one of the most influential. Its cast quickly became sci-fi TV royalty; led in its debut season by Commander Jeffrey Sinclair (Michael O’Hare), the show really hit its stride in the second season as Captain John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) joined the cast alongside Lt. Commander Susan Ivanova (Claudia Christian), security chief Michael Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), Ambassador Delenn (Mira Furlan), Narn ambassador to Babylon 5 G’Kar (Andreas Katsulas), Centauri ambassador Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik), Doctor Stephen Franklin (Richard Biggs), Psi-Corps telepaths Talia Winters (Andrea Thompson), and Lyta Alexander (Patricia Tallman), Centauri diplomatic aide Vir Cotto (Stephen Furst), Minbari diplomatic aide Lennier (Bill Mumy), Ranger Marcus Cole (Jason Carter), B5 security force sergeant Zack Allan (Jeff Conaway), and in Season 5, Babylon 5’s station commander Captain Elizabeth Lochley (Tracy Scoggins).
With all five seasons now on cult channel LEGEND in the UK, screening an episode every weekday night plus the five TV movies (In The Beginning, Thirdspace, The River Of Souls, A Call To Arms, The Legend Of The Rangers, and The Lost Tales) over 22 weeks, STARBURST had the opportunity to catch up with star Claudia Christian to discuss the show, her character Susan Ivanova, fandom, and the return of a series that shaped sci-fi TV in the ‘90s and built a legacy that still stands today. Speaking from her home in Los Angeles, Christian continues to hold the series in the highest regard, both as a show and as a seminal part of her life.
“If I had to pick a body part, Babylon 5 would be my heart because it means so much to me on so many different levels,” says Christian. “First and foremost, the experience of shooting in an isolated environment with a group of unbelievably talented, kind, funny cast and crew was unique and interesting. It was like Gilligan’s Island; we were literally alone out in the middle of Sun Valley in an old hot tub factory.” She laughs. “It was not Hollywood at all. When I used to shoot at Universal, you’d go to the commissary and see all these different productions with actors and crews, but on Babylon 5, it was just us. We worked and lived together.”
With television in the ‘90s changing and shows like Star Trek: The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, The X-Files, Xena: Warrior Princess and others amassing huge followings, the connection between Babylon 5 and its viewers became a key part of the experience, in ways both professional and personal. “The fandom allowed me the grace to come out as having a problem with an alcohol use disorder, and they supported me entirely in making my documentary. That was the film that the fans built. The fundraisers that we did to raise money for One Little Pill was fan based, and that film has literally saved lives. People note it as the changing point in their own relationship to alcohol, so not only did they buy my book about my challenges, but they supported my film, they supported my non-profit organisation, Options Save Lives. Fans have been one million percent behind me on this journey, and because of their love and support and lack of judgment, millions of people have found the Sinclair Method.” The power of fandom, brought into the real world. “Between shooting the show and suffering from alcohol use disorder, and then my advocacy, that’s half my life, and it’s all tied to Babylon 5.”
While it’s well known that Babylon 5 led the charge in moving away from the monster of the week, standalone episodes the original Star Trek and other ‘60s and ‘70s shows delivered, instead focusing on ongoing narratives, themes and plot threads, there was still the matter of a television process that became infamous in the early 1970’s – syndication, and as Christian explains, Babylon 5 wasn’t necessarily built for such a system.
“Many people don’t realise that the whole desire of any television producer was to get to syndication, and the magic number was five years. You make a hundred episodes, you sell it, you get residuals, and you’re set for life.” A pivotal target for B5 and any show, but there were obstacles in the way. “You can’t randomly show Babylon 5 Season 3 Episode 12, because people are gonna go ‘what the hell is going on?’, but as everybody knows, Joe is a stubborn man, and he clung to the belief that his story was going to be told the way he saw it. It’s admirable that any artist has the conviction to say no, I’m not going to chop it into something it’s not, this is what I want to give to the world.” The tenacity of JMS made sure that his beloved space opera was seen through to the end. “It was a different time, where you had to be more creative because you had less of a budget, but what held it together was the story. If you don’t have great writing, you don’t have a great project, period, so when you have that faith in yourself and your ability to tell a story, it works. He fought and fought, he got it made, and he did it his way.”
The most famous sci-fi TV showrunner since Gene Roddenberry, Straczynski not only wrote 92 of the 110 episodes (almost unheard of in US television) but also observed his principal actors closely, as Christian remembers. “I had been in the industry since 1983, I’d been a series regular, but I had never seen a creator so immersed in the world of his actors. He was asking questions, talking to us, watching our interactions, observing the interplay between our personalities, and that was unique. There were no pigeonholes or shoeboxes to fit into, it was flexible.” That attentiveness paid dividends as actor and role began to edge closer and closer. “I saw him start to employ our characteristics into the characters. I thought okay, this is immersive, this is a living, breathing entity, and he’s allowing it to grow and be born as it’s happening. For instance, he had outs for every character in case somebody got another job or got fired. He was interpreting our real selves, so when I requested a change to something that didn’t feel right for the character, he listened. Not only did he listen, he adopted it. That’s unheard of.” However, there was a limit to his collaborative spirit. “Mind you, when it came to the dialogue, we didn’t change a thing because Joe’s a great writer, so you would ask permission if you wanted to try something. For example, when it looked like the show was going to be successful and keep running, I wanted Ivanova to be funnier. Ivanova was black and white, and I wanted colour. I wanted her to be herself. Ultimately, we respected the words.”
BABYLON 5 is showing on LEGEND weekdays with an omnibus on Sundays. Watch on Sky channel 148, Virgin channel 149, Freeview channel 41, Freesat channel 137, Freely channel 38, and on free streaming service Watch Free UK.
