Babylon 5 Magazine Issue 22 Review

First Published: 05/30/00

Issue 22 of The Official Babylon 5 Magazine focuses on the Rangers and features a cover photograph of Jason Carter as Marcus Cole. This issue also includes a new Babylon 5 short story by J. Michael Straczynski.

Features

Jason Carter is interviewed about is work on Babylon 5 in an article titled "A Frozen Asset". Carter also discusses his current projects. "In Valen's Name" looks at the history and role of the Rangers. "Mything in Action!" concludes the Ranger theme by analyzing the use of myth in Babylon 5. This is appropriate since the Rangers contribute significantly to the mythology of the show. This third article includes extensive quotations from J. Gregory Keyes, author of the Psi Corps trilogy.

"The Making of Babylon 5", which began in Issue 21, continues with an insightful look at Season Three. The analysis of the season is peppered with quotes from the cast and crew.

"Corps (In)Humane" presents a profile of Psi Cop Alfred Bester. It draws from the episodes and the novels to paint a portrait of this complex and tragic villain.

Part five of the massive Babylon 5 Official Chronology spans the time period from February 2258 to December 2259. This encompasses all of Season One and Season Two. In addition to being well researched, the timeline has an attractive graphic design and lavish illustrations. The timeline began in Issue 18.

Episode Examination

This month's "Station Log" covers "Ship of Tears". This feature provides a synopsis and background information on the episode. Sidebars include interviews with director Mike Vejar, Mira Furlan, and Andreas Katsulas.

Regular Columns

The Babylon 5 Magazine includes several regular columns. "ISN News" contains short news articles about Babylon 5, Crusade, and their casts and crews. This month's articles include an interview with several of the key players in the Babylon 5 novel business: Steve Saffel, J. Gregory Keyes, Jeanne Cavelos, and Fiona Avery.

Fiona Avery's "Illuminations" column focuses on Scripts from the Lot, a listing service for authors to sell their own work.

"The Great Machine" is a forum in which Fiona Avery answers questions about the Babylon 5 universe. "Lines of Communication" prints letters from readers.

The issue is concluded by J. Michael Straczynski's "The Last Word". This month he provides exclusive information about several projects he is currently working on. His new novel, Tribulations, has been mentioned before, but now it is given a name. The Joe's Comics imprint from Top Cow has also been mentioned before. However, there are some new items. Straczynski will be writing a 13-episode radio drama anthology series for the Sci-Fi Channel's online Seeing Ear Theatre. He will also be creating and developing a virtual online world for a major Internet company.

Read the review of Straczynski's short story, "Hidden Agendas".