I am mid way though second season of Babylon 5, are the books worth reading?
09-04-03, 01:04 AM
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I am mid way though second season of Babylon 5, are the books worth reading?
From a quality standpoint and also a spoiler standpoint. Should I wait till I am finished with the TV series?
09-04-03, 01:21 AM
#2
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In most cases, yes.
There were eighteen published Babylon 5 novels with original content (ie, not adaptions of the telefilms.)
Of these eighteen, you need only concern yourself with eleven of them. These eleven novels all "fill in the gaps" of the overall Babylon 5 storyline, and can actually be viewed as missing episodes.
It was JMS' original intent that the Babylon 5 novels -- unlike the spin-off novels for Stars Trek and Wars -- would consist of actual canonical material.
That was the plan, anyway.
Del Rey published nine novels, seven of which are considered non-canonical, and with only two that "actually happened."
Not coincidentally, those are the only two that are still in print.
They are: "The Shadow Within" by Jeanne Cavellos and "To Dream in the City of Sorrows" by Kathryn Drennan (who also happens to be JMS' wife). Neither of these novels should be read until you have finished the third season of Babylon 5, as they contain storyline specific elements that pertain to the third season. Big spoilers.
You could track down the other seven novels, but there's really nothing important in them. And more than a few were written by folks who were not overly familiar with the Babylon 5 universe and contain plot-holes and contradictions with the television canon.
After those nine books came out, the license passed to Dell Books, and three trilogies were released, and all books should be considered canonical.
They are:
The Psi-Corps Trilogy by J. Gregory Keyes
1. Dark Genesis: The Birth of the Psi-Corps
2. Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendent
3. Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester
Legions of Fire by Peter David
1. The Long Night of Centauri Prime
2. Armies of Light and Dark
3. Out of the Darkness
The Passing of the TechnoMages by Jeanne Cavellos
1. Casting Shadows
2. Summoning Light
3. Invoking Darkness
The three trilogies should not be read until one has finished the fifth season of Babylon 5, as many of the novels either take place concurrently during the season, or take place after the series, so there will be many spoilers for future events.
There were eighteen published Babylon 5 novels with original content (ie, not adaptions of the telefilms.)
Of these eighteen, you need only concern yourself with eleven of them. These eleven novels all "fill in the gaps" of the overall Babylon 5 storyline, and can actually be viewed as missing episodes.
It was JMS' original intent that the Babylon 5 novels -- unlike the spin-off novels for Stars Trek and Wars -- would consist of actual canonical material.
That was the plan, anyway.
Del Rey published nine novels, seven of which are considered non-canonical, and with only two that "actually happened."
Not coincidentally, those are the only two that are still in print.
They are: "The Shadow Within" by Jeanne Cavellos and "To Dream in the City of Sorrows" by Kathryn Drennan (who also happens to be JMS' wife). Neither of these novels should be read until you have finished the third season of Babylon 5, as they contain storyline specific elements that pertain to the third season. Big spoilers.
You could track down the other seven novels, but there's really nothing important in them. And more than a few were written by folks who were not overly familiar with the Babylon 5 universe and contain plot-holes and contradictions with the television canon.
After those nine books came out, the license passed to Dell Books, and three trilogies were released, and all books should be considered canonical.
They are:
The Psi-Corps Trilogy by J. Gregory Keyes
1. Dark Genesis: The Birth of the Psi-Corps
2. Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendent
3. Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester
Legions of Fire by Peter David
1. The Long Night of Centauri Prime
2. Armies of Light and Dark
3. Out of the Darkness
The Passing of the TechnoMages by Jeanne Cavellos
1. Casting Shadows
2. Summoning Light
3. Invoking Darkness
The three trilogies should not be read until one has finished the fifth season of Babylon 5, as many of the novels either take place concurrently during the season, or take place after the series, so there will be many spoilers for future events.
09-04-03, 05:27 AM
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hmmm.... so i'm still confused on exactly which books are recommended to read and in what order... all 11 of them or just the 2 - 'Shadow Within' and 'To Dream in the City of Sorrows'?
thanks
thanks
09-04-03, 11:03 PM
#4
DVD Talk Hero
All eleven of the ones I mentioned are the ones that I -- and most other B5ers -- recommend.
The reading order is as follows.
After you've watched the third season of Babylon 5, read "Shadow Within" and "To Dream in the City of Sorrows."
Then, after you've completed the fifth season, read the three trilogies: PsiCorps Trilogy, Legions of Fire, and Passing of the Technomages.
The books in their respective trilogies should be read in order (just think of each trilogy as one long book), but otherwise the actual reading order doesn't really matter much, as the plotlines don't crossover between "books." But to avoid spoiling the series, certain books should not be read before certain points in the series.
"Shadow Within" covers events that occur just prior to the events in "The Gathering." Should be read only after having seen all of season three.
"To Dream in the City of Sorrows" runs concurrent with the second and third seasons of the series. Again, this should only be read after viewing all of season three.
"The PsiCorps Trilogy" covers a lot of ground, but mostly runs concurrent with the events in the series, but it should not be read until one has watched the entire series.
"Legions of Fire" takes place between the last and next-to-last episodes of Babylon 5, and picks up several plot-threads that were left open from the series. As such, it should only be read after having viewed the entire series.
"Passing of the Technomages" takes place, IIRC, pretty much concurrent with the series, but also sets up some things for the short-lived Babylon 5 spin-off "Crusade." This should also not be read until one has watched all of the Babylon 5 series, and probably the thirteen produced episodes of "Crusade" as well. But since "Crusade" was aborted, there really isn't a whole lot to spoil there.
The reading order is as follows.
After you've watched the third season of Babylon 5, read "Shadow Within" and "To Dream in the City of Sorrows."
Then, after you've completed the fifth season, read the three trilogies: PsiCorps Trilogy, Legions of Fire, and Passing of the Technomages.
The books in their respective trilogies should be read in order (just think of each trilogy as one long book), but otherwise the actual reading order doesn't really matter much, as the plotlines don't crossover between "books." But to avoid spoiling the series, certain books should not be read before certain points in the series.
"Shadow Within" covers events that occur just prior to the events in "The Gathering." Should be read only after having seen all of season three.
"To Dream in the City of Sorrows" runs concurrent with the second and third seasons of the series. Again, this should only be read after viewing all of season three.
"The PsiCorps Trilogy" covers a lot of ground, but mostly runs concurrent with the events in the series, but it should not be read until one has watched the entire series.
"Legions of Fire" takes place between the last and next-to-last episodes of Babylon 5, and picks up several plot-threads that were left open from the series. As such, it should only be read after having viewed the entire series.
"Passing of the Technomages" takes place, IIRC, pretty much concurrent with the series, but also sets up some things for the short-lived Babylon 5 spin-off "Crusade." This should also not be read until one has watched all of the Babylon 5 series, and probably the thirteen produced episodes of "Crusade" as well. But since "Crusade" was aborted, there really isn't a whole lot to spoil there.
