The reason that I liked Babylon
5 so much was that every once in a while it would pull out an episode
that simply knocked you out. I have fond memories of staying up until
midnight each Saturday to watch B5, and thinking that maybe I was the
only one to realize just how good it was. Now, this episode of Crusade
gives me the same feeling.
Everything about this episode was
very atmospheric. It really didn't contribute much to the story, but
instead let us see into the minds and hearts of the characters in a
new way. In one episode, I feel that I've come to know Gideon, Galen,
and Matheson. This was an episode that may not work for everyone, but
for me, it was a complete and utter knockout.
Not only was it an emotionally intense
episode, but some of the CGI was quite stunning, especially the destruction
of the EAS Cerberus by a strange looking Shadow-like ship. Evan
Chen's score was also quite a bit improved, more in line with what I
thought he would sound like. (Not as much dischordant as very Eastern
sounding.)
I'm going to go out on a limb and
say that this episode is one of the best things I've ever seen on TV.
Better than some of Babylon 5 in fact. Like "Well", this episode
requires brains and heart. There's not a lot of action, no fist-flights
or real space battles, but soul. In a world where violence is commonplace
and all we see is crap like wrestling and cookie-cutter cop shows, soul
is exactly what we need.