"Babylon 5: The Gathering" airs 1993

The television movie, Babylon 5: The Gathering, the episode that started it all, aired February 22, 1993. The series would start the following year in 1994, with some changes.  Written by J. Michael Straczynski, it starred Michael O'Hare (Commander Jeffrey Sinclair), Jerry Doyle (Michael Garibaldi), Mira Furlan (Delenn), Peter Jurasik (Londo Mollari), Andreas Katsulas (G'Kar), and Patricia Tallman (Lyta Alexander). Tamlyn Tomita appeared as Lt. Cmdr. Laurel Takashima, but was replaced by Claudia Christian (Lt. Commander Ivanova) in the series.  Andrea Thompson was a character added in the series as PsiCorps telepath Talia Winters.

It was a great look into a non-Roddenberry vision of space exploration and space travel.  The series lasted 5 seasons, and spawned a few spin-offs and television movies.

Babylon 5 episode "Babylon Squared" airs 1994

One of my favorite episodes of Babylon 5, Babylon Squared, first aired August 10, 1994.  Babylon 5's predecessor station, Babylon 4, reappears after it vanished mysteriously four years prior.  I've only seen it once, so I need to go back and re-watch it. I do remember that Babylon 4 and its disappearance figured prominently throughout the series.  

It was the twentieth episode of the first season of Babylon 5, so Michael O'Hare was still on cast as Commander Jeffrey Sinclair, and Andrea Thompson as Talia Winters, although she did not appear in this episode.  J. Michael Straczynski wrote the episode.

Babylon 5 episode "A Voice in the Wilderness" airs 1994

One of my favorite episodes of Babylon 5, A Voice in the Wilderness (Part 1) aired July 27, 1994.  The planet around which Babylon 5 is orbiting, has long been thought to be a lifeless rock.  All of a sudden, it comes alive and something under the surface awakens. 

Draal, an old friend of Delenn's, arrives on the station.  And a revolt on Mars breaks out, which has an effect on the crew.  Garibaldi asks Talia if she can find out about an old flame on Mars via her Psi-Corps connections.

The second part aired August 3.

I really miss that show!

Happy birthday, Claudia Christian!

Gorgeous and multi-talented Claudia Christian, born August 10, 1965, is best loved for her role as Commander Susan Ivanova on television series Babylon 5.  She has been twice nominated for Best Genre TV Actress by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, USA.  In addition to being a stellar actress, she is a musician, singer, director and has a series of children's books titled "The Misadventures of Miss Emma Bradford".

It's easy to see why she has been nominated for acting in this clip from Babylon 5:

Michael O'Hare born 1952

Actor Michael O'Hare, born May 6, 1952, is probably best known for his role as Commander Jeffrey Sinclair on Babylon 5 with Claudia Christian, Jerry Doyle, Andrea Thompson, Bill Mumy, Richard Biggs and Mira Furlan.  He had to leave the show after the first season due to his battle with illness.  He passed away September 28, 2012 from a heart attack.

"Babylon 5" premieres 1994

Another of my favorite television shows, Babylon 5, premiered January 26, 1994.  I found it to be an interesting, non-Roddenberry look at space exploration.  Babylon 5 won a Primetime Emmy in 1994 for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Makeup for a Series.

I particularly liked the Psi Corps, even though they were mainly portrayed as the bad guys.  Talia Winters was my favorite character and I was bummed when they got rid of her.  I still haven't seen that episode.  I've used the Psi Corps as inspiration for my own Psionic Corps novels featuring Corey Shaw and others.