Babylon 5- The Lost Tales *SPOILERS*

[Jan]

JMS reconfirms:

No, it's closer to one-half-hour per story, so figure about 75-90
minutes per DVD, plus additional material adding up to a two-hour DVD.

jms

Jan

[SLerman]

For anyone that wants to see what other science fiction fans (both true fans of science fiction stories and "B5's CGI sucks and the actors can't act" types) are saying, http://slashdot.org/articles/06/07/26/134228.shtml

[tlsmith1963]

Ivanova (after all, no bridge is ever so badly burned that it cannot be rebuilt)
Londo & Vir or Vir & Morden
Kosh & Lyta

This list based 100% on my wishes and nothing else.

I would love to see Peter J. as Londo again, but I really, really miss Andreas. G'Kar was my favorite B5 character. So while I am excited about this latest news, it is tempered somewhat by the fact that Andreas is gone.

Tammy

[Susitcha]

I would love to see Peter J. as Londo again, but I really, really miss Andreas. G'Kar was my favorite B5 character. So while I am excited about this latest news, it is tempered somewhat by the fact that Andreas is gone.

Tammy

I feel that way too, but I like to think That Andreas' energy, or spirit (whichever you prefer) is now bounding around the universe thumping certian nameless suits on their head hard and impacting a positive vibe towards JMS and B5.

[Jan]

I feel that way too, but I like to think That Andreas' energy, or spirit (whichever you prefer) is now bouding around the universe thumping certian nameless suits on their head hard and impacting a positive vibe towards JMS and B5.

Could be. At the con, JMS told of attending the party for AOL debuting their In2TV and how G'Kar's costume was there when JMS had been withing Andreas were there to see it. Then when he got to SDCC, wished again that Andreas could be there for the announcement of Lost Tales, JMS found that there were people all over the con using fans of G'Kar's face (advertising the same thing). Another of the B5 synchronicities, perhaps.

Jan

[SmileOfTheShadow]

Sigh...none of my friends seem to be excited about this project. They have a "I'll believe it when I see it" mentality, citing that they've "been down this road before" and nothing's happened. Also citing that most the actors are well moved on to other things, and that there's no sets anymore and new CG has to be made and it seems like too much and WB wouldn't really go for it. On the other hand, I'm as excited about it as I was when I was a kid and there were new episodes coming out. How do I break my friends' funk from TMoS and assure them that this is more of a real deal?

[ljg702]

Whilst this is all great news, part of me is angry with WB for not going for something like this years ago. Although in their defence straight to DVD projects have probably only been seen to be successfull relatively recently. (I believe the straight to dvd family guy movie grossed over $60 million dollars). Does anyone know if the current deal is for only one DVD (and I presume more if it does well) or if a deal has already been made for a series of DVDs? JMS' postings suggest a series of DVDs, however it's not clear if 2nd and subsequent DVDs depend on how well the first one does.

kind regards.

[SmileOfTheShadow]

JMS talked about a series of such but has been really focused on the first one...so I'd assume it's contingent of them making money.

[Jan]

How do I break my friends' funk from TMoS and assure them that this is more of a real deal?

We have a budget, we're greenlit, we're going.

and

I held off saying anything until I was cleared by WB to announce it as
a go project.

As G'Kar might say, what part of that progression escapes them?

Seriously, you simply can't equate TMoS with this. There was one reason why TMoS failed, and only one-the party or parties who'd commissioned the script and optioned the rights couldn't put the financial package together because they had no studio backing it. At a guess, I'd say that they'd rather counted on WB but WB was only interested in big blockbuster films with name stars (remember the letter-writing campaign?). This might have changed since then, since it seems that they offered a feature to JMS recently but that was the case then.

For Lost Tales, WB *is* behind it and gave JMS permission to announce it as an official project.

Now if they want to persist in pessimism, all they have to do is decide not to buy these DVDs until there are several and thereby sabotage the whole thing because what's sure to kill it is if sales are bad.

Jan

[Joseph DeMartino]

Now if they want to persist in pessimism, all they have to do is decide not to buy these DVDs until there are several and thereby sabotage the whole thing because what's sure to kill it is if sales are bad.

Which is very nearly what happened with the series DVDs. When the first double-feature disc of The Gathering and In the Beginning was released it was widely recognized (because WB had said as much on The Home Theater Fourm) as a test of the show's popularity and the last chance for fans to vote with their checkbooks to get the series released. Even so, there were fans who said the quality wasn't good enough or they didn't really like TG and why should they be forced to buy it, and where were the extras, etc., refused to buy the disc and urged others to do likewise. Then when the first season came out many of these same fans said that having been "burned" by WB on the VHS and laserdisc releases that they wouldn't buy the DVDs until all 5 seasons were released. (Failing to spot the rather obvious point that the reason they had been "burned" on the earlier releases is that people stopped buying them and that the surest way to ensure that WB dropped the DVDs before finishing the release was not to buy them as they came out.)

There is a certain kind of self-fulfilling prophecy that is particularly perverse because it is entirely in the power of the person making it to see that it doesn't come true. But somehow complaining and being "vindicated" by failure is more satisfying to these people. I really think there's a part of them that is disappointed when things don't go badly.

Regards,

Joe

[SmileOfTheShadow]

Well, I sent out some positive reinforcement. But that's an interesting story regarding the dvds...fortunately, so many people bought them that we get The Lost Tales I guess

[Night Marshal]

In all realism one person is one vote as for as DVD's go(you can buy more than one if you want but doesn't seem reasonable). If one person doesn't want to buy something thats there right. If you want to buy something at full price when it comes out just to support a something like B5 but any show for that matter thats your right as well.

When a show like B5 can't get its feet it common to want to blame someone, and it the case the other fans seem to be the fall guys. but we can only control ourself. you can speak here and other place where B5 still lives we will show all those who think B5 is died we will show them they are wrong, but in the end we can only control ourselves and be happy.

[Garibaldi's Hair]

Absolutely, but ... the very nature of these anthology DVDs is that WB can do as many or as few of them as they want. There isn't a strict "season" structure to follow, nor a set number of episodes.

If they do one and it doesn't sell well, they won't do another - end of story.

And, frankly, if that happens I think we can finally kiss goodbye to any further opportunities in the B5 universe.

Being a Brit, buying in my home market probably won't even be factored into the equation, but I'll be there on day one (ish) because I want to see more B5 and anything I can do to help that along I will do.

[ljg702]

Whilst we speculate wildly, I wonder if this will be the first B5 filmed with a later Hi Definition release in mind? I would imagine it would make a lot of sense, but obviously adds to the production costs.

[Jan]

Interesting point. It would seem that he tries to incorporate the latest trends, as he did when B5 was shot in widescreen before almost anybody else. On the other hand, he's already said that there will be a lot of CGI to this. Does anybody know how much more intensive rendering would be needed to make CGI suitable for high-def?

Jan