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Welcome to Show #203!
Since the Draco Vista Studios are still undergoing moving and renovations, Summer’s recording this episode from her secret lair. Gary from Jacksonville also joins in the fun, starting off by recounting his currently unsuccessful search for his own copy of the book “Parliament of Dreams: Conferring on Babylon 5”.
Deep Geeking: Tim was inspired by our discussion on “River of Souls”, which leads to tonight’s topic. Tim, Summer and Gary discuss religion, faith and spirituality as portrayed in Babylon 5.
From the premise and purpose of the Soul Hunters, to the clashes between science and faith, to the waning old faiths contrasted with the rise of new ones, there are no simple answers, which is why we keep debating the questions.
Listener Feedback: Gary comments on Gary; Gary comments on Gary and Edmund; John in Atlanta has been a very good minion despite the fact that Summer frightened him, and John in Oregon submits a theory that the main reason why Lochley would be implicitly trusted by Sheridan by having them have been married was a story-telling gimmick to create a relationship “shortcut”
Lurker’s Guide 2.0: Summer is starting a push to get Lurker’s Guide 2.0 completed and finished, including missing collectibles, photos of magazine covers and toys, and all sorts of other B5 goodies that didn’t get included in the original guide during the years after Crusade. Let her know if you want to lend a hand.
More Parody/Filk Songs Wanted: If you know of any more B5-related fan songs out there, definitely let us know, so we can let other B5 fans know where to buy them! And if those CDs are out of print, let’s brainstorm on ways to get those songs back out there for fans!
Babylon Podcast Social Communities:
Twitter: @babylonpodcast
Babylon 5 Information Gathering: If you know of a dead or abandoned B5 related website that may be in need of a new home, let Summer know! Maybe we can mirror it here or house it on a sister site.
If you can, Please Donate to the show!
Well, I’ve already attempted to leave two voicemails, but they were so long, I’m not sure if they got through. Tim, let me know, and if there’s an issue, I can record at home and send them via E-mail.
Oh, and as far as the Day of the Dead debate goes, I believe it all comes back to Gary breaking the space-time continuum in this episode.
Go ahead and record it then email it to the Gmail account
Edmund does that all the time… how else to be able to get your voicemail in when Gary’s on the line so often? 😉
1) Gary, print out the following webpage
http://www.worldcat.org/title/parliament-of-dreams-conferring-on-babylon-5/oclc/40499781
and take it to the Interlibrary Loan desk of whatever public or academic library you happen to be a member of. If any of the institutions on that list lets their copy out on loan, they can get it for you. (Paul takes off his librarian hat again)
2) As soon as I saw the subject I immediately thought of the panel Lee Shamblin moderated at Marcon last month, on themes of death and rebirth in Babylon 5. I myself mentioned the conflicting worldviews of the Minbari and Soul Hunters, and how it showed one of my favorite things about B5, that neither side was shown as clearly right or clearly wrong, but there were no easy answers.
3) I always thought it would be cool if the Minbari had three major religions, just as they have three of everything else, but I don’t think it was ever said to be so. I have a vague recollection of it, but it’s probably my brain misremembering Delenn talking about how the Minbari have three major _languages_.
4) If I recall correctly, the fact that G’Kar and Na’Toth’s names began with different prefixes was said at one point to denote that they belonged to different faiths.
@Paul, that sounds like it was an interesting panel. Know if anyone recorded it? 😉
Yes, but, what is Truth, and what is God? 😉
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylAsZQyOBMk
Rats, couldn’t find a “Here endeth the lesson” clip. 😀
I don’t think so, but I’ll check with Lee to make sure.
On the “Believers” episode, I always thought that it was an allusion to the Christian Science movement, where such issues between its adherents and authorities frequently occur. I was always disappointed that no one ever pointed out to Franklin that there was precedence in Earth history and law to support the parents’ position.
Tim, I understood that the Minbari cast system had already existed and there was deep rooted animosity between the religious and warier casts, with the workers always caught in the middle. Valin’s setting up the Gray Counsel was an attempt to get the three casts to work it out without violence.
Rick:
Of course, the interesting thing is that Valen did set it up for the stability, but he also had to know that it was eventually going to fall apart. So it was never meant to last.
Thanks for the info Paul