B5 Rewatch: "A Late Delivery from Avalon" and "Ship of Tears"

[icepixie]

Oh, these episodes. Not gonna lie, for me it's a bit of a slog from these to, oh, "And the Rock Cried Out," though I remember liking "Walkabout" and at least some of "Interludes and Examinations." (Unpopular fandom opinion time: Why yes, this slog I refer to does include "War Without End." Yes, yes it does. I hate those episodes, though I reserve the right to change my mind when I hit them in the rewatch. Commence boggling now.)

I mean, as a group, these seven aren't in a league with, say, S1 or the worst of S5, but they're a definite letdown from the awesome that comes before and after. (And not just in the sense that they aren't as adrenaline-filled, because I love "Ceremonies" and "Sic Transit Vir." Still good TV, but not as mindbendingly excellent, somehow.)

A Late Delivery from Avalon
Eh. Rewatching it doesn't change much from my original opinion, namely that the first incarnation of Cupid did this concept better, but some of the details were fun. Namely, Marcus and G'Kar are fun. You know Marcus has wanted to kneel in front of Arthur forever, and this is like the biggest dream come true he's ever had. I'm guessing he's meant to be a big Dickens fan as well, since this is his second reference, and I love that he quotes Pushkin at Franklin and Franklin is like yeah, I know it too, punk, and you aren't going to convince me with it.

Who wants to bet that Marcus [re]read Pushkin after he became infatuated with Susan? Heh. Also, I have this five things idea bugging me--Five Poems Marcus Cole Knows by Heart--so possibly I need to read him. One of poems I want to use is a section of the Rubiyat; I haven't decided on the others. Marcus seems very into the nineteenth century, sadly, which I'm totally not. Well, I like Coleridge and Wordsworth and Keats, none of which seem as thematically apt (I guess one could commune with nature in the hedge maze, but it doesn't seem quite the same), though perhaps I could use one of Keats's odes. "Nightingale" would work nicely for a pre-"Ceremonies" exploration of his guilt over his brother's death, while "Grecian Urn" might be good for a more lighthearted inquiry into Marcus and art/literature. Auden's "Musee des Beaux Arts" strikes me as Marcus-ish, particularly the ending, and there's a little-known Pound poem, "A Girl," that's both actually comprehensible and very Marcus--though possibly I'm drawn to these only because I am an inveterate Modernist. (There's a reason I am not allowing myself to use a Yeats poem, because then this fic would quickly become Five Yeats Poems Marcus Cole Knows by Heart. Same thing with Millay.) I'm pretty sure John Donne ought to be in that list somewhere as well, probably either "Song" or "The Sun Rising." Or, since Marcus can be very creepy where Susan is concerned, "To His Mistress Going to Bed." I feel like he'd be into Browning's monologues as well, though again, I'm pretty much not (uuuuugh, I'm totally with the Modernists in throwing off those boring Victorians). Perhaps something by Bishop too, but that may be more my like for her than anything else creeping in.

ANYWAY, so I was talking about the episode, not the reading habits of one Marcus Cole though if anyone wants to speculate with me, I welcome comments. Right. So, G'Kar getting drunk and palling around with Arthur was hilarious. Hee, thumping.

I feel like this episode might have worked better in S1, as a way of reinforcing the hell that was the Earth/Minbar war by giving us a direct/flashbacky POV on it from someone besides Sinclair. Him giving the sword to Delenn might have worked better as a way to begin working through the recriminations at that point, too. (I don't know my Arthuriana well enough to know if Delenn needed to be part-human for the analogy of her to the Lady of the Lake to work. To be honest, I'm still not sure where that comes from. But damn, it's sure ironic given "Atonement." Although pretty much everything Delenn does from S1 through that episode is ironic given "Atonement"...)

I still enjoy the sleeveless robes Sheridan and Ivanova get to wear over their uniforms. The intersection of the vertical stripe and the gold stat bars still makes it look like they're wearing crosses, like modern-day Crusaders.

Lastly, I have to look askance at the bit plot with Michael basically forcing the postmaster to bribe him. It doesn't seem very Garibaldi-ish.

Ship of Tears
Okay, I like this one pretty well too. Bester is never a bad addition to an episode. One thing that amused me was that in the notes I took as I was watching, I kept writing "Cylon" instead of "Shadow." 'Cause Carolyn was a little hybridy, with the building a nest from computer parts and then screaming and speaking less-than-intelligibly. No prophecy, though. Probably a good thing. (But oh, the thesis I could write on similarities between those shows...)

One good thing about Bester: You always know where you stand with him, i.e., you're screwed. One bad thing about Bester: You're never entirely sure how you've been screwed. At least Susan gets it right--no matter how helpful he's going to be right now, he's going to screw them over before too long. (Oh, Michael. How am I going to get through season four?) He's also refreshingly open about his views on telepaths, mundanes, and his general plans for the future.

In the B plot, we have Katsulas and Furlan rocking every line they have as Delenn tells G'Kar that they kinda sorta sacrificed his planet to the Shadows, sorry about that. Oh, G'Kar.

We also have the pretty new war room. Oooh. (Although I have to admit that I still go "SERIOUSLY?" when I see that round table, in light of the previous episode. Oh, JMS. Some day you should write that fantasy novel you're obviously itching to do.)

Comments

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

Eeeee, aren't they fabulous? ♥

I'd forgotten entirely about "Desert Places" - such a lovely poem! I get a bit "meh" on Frost a lot of the time, but then whenever I reread one of his poems that isn't constantly out in the public eye (I'm looking at you, "Road Less Traveled," though I cannot properly remember if that's your actual title) I remember that he's really quite interesting.

Doooooo eeeeeeet. ♥ The world needs more well-written Marcus & Susan. And Marcus is so fun to write for!

[icepixie]

I was a semi-fan of Frost--I liked the stuff in the public eye well enough, but didn't feel the need to read more--until I had to read him a bit more deeply for my orals. Then I got to liking some of the lesser-known poems. There's definitely more too him than the relative cheerfulness of "The Road Not Taken," and I was very surprised at how bleak and almost fatalist he is.

Marcus is ridiculously fun to write for. &hearts

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

A professor I was very fond of made a compelling argument that "The Road Not Taken" was meant to be read in a facetious and/or fatalistic manner. I haven't read it in a long time, but I could easily buy that, when the rest of his stuff is taken into account.

[icepixie]

oh, I like that!

[rivendellrose.livejournal.com]

I seem to remember it really working, too! I'd have to go through again, but... I don't know, I've always liked that take on it. Makes so much more sense in the context of the rest of his work... and it makes it hilarious when you see Hallmark cards and shit with the poem on it. ;)