Most popularscience fictionTV shows take their small-screen success into the feature film market. The first twoStar Trekshows inspired a total of ten movies, many of which went on to become classics of the genre.Babylon 5matchedThe Original Serieswith six films, though they all dropped directly onto TV. The franchise’s timeline takes several strange rises and falls between seasons and films, leavingThirdspacenear the dead center of the timeline.
J. Michael Straczynski has one of the most interesting careers in Hollywood. His comic book efforts for Marvel and DC remain impressive. His work with the Wachowskis resulted in several bizarre, boundary-pushing projects. He wroteepisodes ofHe-Man, The Twilight Zone, The Real Ghostbusters, Murder, She Wrote,andWalker, Texas Ranger.Babylon 5is his baby and his best-known series, but the man shows up in countless unique places.
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TNT
The best resource for anyBabylon 5information isSteven Grimm’s Lurker’s Guide toBabylon 5. Grimm painstakingly records the lore implications for every outing in the franchise, includingThirdspace.Thirdspaceis the secondBabylon 5TV movie, or the third ifThe Gatheringcounts. Grimm’s analysis placesThirdspacein the timeline between episodes eight and nine of season four.Straczynski crafted the projectto exist as a standalone entry. Newcomers should be able to leap intoThirdspaceand enjoy it without watching the rest of the series. The film aired between episodes 17 and 18 of season five. The latter outing briefly references the film’s events. Unlike many otherBabylon 5projects,Thirdspacefocuses heavily on sci-fi horror elements.
Some hundreds of thousands of years ago, a race of advanced aliens called the Vorlons created a Jumpgate in a misguided attempt to make contact with god. They discovered Thirdspace, analternate reality populated entirelyby aliens with immense psychic powers and a superiority complex. The psychics took control of several Vorlons, forming an army and starting an impromptu civil war. This led to a stalemate, eventually culminating in the Vorlons turning off the gate and their brainwashed brethren hurling it into hyperspace for safekeeping. In 2261, explorers find the gate and drag it to Babylon 5 for inspection.
The latent influence of the psychic aliens infects all those who interact with the artifact. Desmond “Deuce” Musychenko becomes one of the first and loudest thralls under its command. He and his fellow victims insist that the excavation team work faster, exhibiting increased aggression toward anyone in their way. Dr. Elizabeth Trent, a coordinatorfor Interplanetary Expeditions, works out a deal with Captain John Sheridan, trading resources for access to the gate. Trent kills her co-worker and turns on the gate without asking Sheridan. As the crew learns the true purpose of the Vorlon’s mistake from Lyta, Trent and the other brainwashed souls threaten to unleash a horror from beyond time and space.
How does Babylon 5: Thirdspace end?
Along with the history lesson, Lyta tells Sheridan how to deactivate the gate. Sheridan and his crew arrive just in time to see the psychic aliens' ships emergingfrom the alternate dimension. They pilot small fighters armored with deflector shields and armed with incredibly advanced weapons. Simultaneously, the brainwashed thralls cause chaos within Babylon 5 to weaken their defenses and allow for easy conquest. Sheridan acted quickly, tossing a handheld thermonuclear warhead into the gate and setting it off. This refreshingly practical solution works immediately, collapsing the structure before the warships can escape.The psychic influence fades, allowing Dr. Trent to regret her actions and take a leave of absence. The Babylon 5 crew agrees to hide the details of the gate, while Lyta sadly acknowledges that the Vorlons made many other mistakes.
Babylon 5: Thirdspace’s Rotten Tomatoes score
Babylon 5: Thirdspacedoesn’t have an official critics’score from Rotten Tomatoes. The site does, however, track audience reactions to the film.Thirdspacehas a 71% positive score from more than 1,000 audience reviews. The average rating is 3.7 out of 5 stars. Most listed reviews mention connections to the original series, suggesting a strong fan presence in the sample. While the film will make sense to newcomers, they rarely seem to make their feelings known through official channels.
Babylon 5: Thirdspaceis a perfectly serviceable science fiction film. As an extension ofBabylon 5, it adds newfound depth to Zack and Lyta’s relationship while also finding new dimensions to the Vorlon race. The film’s premise works on its own, exploring thehorror of an alien racewith full control over the human mind.Thirdspaceis available to rent from YouTube or the Google Play Store. Fans and newcomers can learn about the new terror taking up space.
