Earlier this week, the Babylon 5 franchise found a new home on The CW. Original series creator J. Michael Straczynski is on board to completely reboot the show, which ran for five seasons from 1994-1998. However, The CW’s reputation for soapy teenage dramas has left some B5 fans skeptical about the revival. Straczynski anticipated that response when he explained why he went with The CW.
Via SYFY Wire, Straczynski wrote a lengthy message on his Twitter account that shed some light on the revival. He also addressed why the new series will be a reboot. One of the reasons is that many of the original cast members have passed away in the two decades since the show ended.
“Over half our cast are still stubbornly on the other side of the Rim,” wrote Straczynski. “How do you [tell the] continuing story of our original Londo without the original Vir? Or G’Kar? How do you tell Sheridan’s story without Delenn? Or the story of B5 without Franklin? Garibaldi? Zack?”
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Additionally, Straczynski is excited about the prospect of returning to his world with a fresh perspective.
“In the years since B5, I’ve done a ton of other TV shows and movies, adding an equal number of tools to my toolbox, all of which I can bring to bear on one singular question: If I were creating Babylon 5 today, for the first time, knowing what I now know as a writer, what would it look like? How would it use all the storytelling tools and technological resources available in 2021 that were not on hand then? How can it be used to reflect the world in which we live, and the questions we are asking and confronting every day?”
“So we will not be retelling the same story in the same way,” added Straczynski. “There would be no fun and no surprises. Better to go the way of Westworld or Battlestar Galactica where you take the original elements that are evergreens and put them in a blender with a ton of new, challenging ideas, to create something fresh yet familiar.”
Straczynski also noted that he is currently writing the pilot episode.
How do you feel about the new Babylon 5 returning as a reboot? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Babylon 5 All My Words Volume 1: The Gathering through Signs and Portents
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