Discussion Post - 1x02 "Soul Hunter"

[bluefall]

It's Friday night afternoon, it must be time for a discussion post! This week's offering:

1x02: Soul Hunter

A badly damaged ship is brought into the station, and the strange alien inside is identified as a Soul Hunter - an immortal race who can sense death and supposedly steal someone's soul.

Vital Stats
Production number: 102
Written by J. Michael Straczynski
Directed by Jim Johnston

Original air date: February 2, 1994

Arc Notes / Story Points of Interest
- The big unsubtle info this time around is, of course, Delenn's political status, and the major question it provokes: what is a member of the Grey Council doing playing ambassador on Babylon 5?
- The more subtle hints are mostly derivations of that larger plot point; the Soul Hunter's incredulous "you would do such a thing?" (referring, one assumes, to Delenn's Chrysalis plot), the death of Dukat, and Delenn's comment to Sheridan Sinclair that "they" were right about him.

Trivia
- It was JMS' intention that the question of who's right - the Soul Hunters, Franklin, or the Minbari - be left ambiguous. I think he forgot what genre he's in.

- This ep was produced only a couple years after Issac Asimov's death; JMS named the Asimov (on which Franklin arrives) in tribute both to Asimov himself and to Harlan Ellison, a creative consultant on B5 and one of Asimov's close friends.


This one's fairly thinky, guys. So what did you think? Did JMS pull off the ambiguity he was shooting for? Did he make you stop and ponder? Who impressed you, what bored you, and do the Soul Hunters count as rubber forehead aliens or not?

A reminder: not everyone playing along has seen the series before, so please be considerate about major spoilers. Vagueness, warnings and/or spoiler tags are appreciated.

Comments

[julian]

First of all, hi. I occasionally read Bluefall's LJ because of her Scans Daily posts, so then I saw this and went, "Perk!" Babylon 5's just about my favorite show ever, and I saw it while it was first coming out, and etcetc, so! Here I am.

Unfortunately, this is really really not my favorite episode. JMS was extremely, um, fervent that this was GIVING US QUESTIONS OMG and it just... didn't succeed in that. Well, OK, it may have succeeded in leading to questions about the Soul Hunter vs Minbari perspective, which is reasonable in and of itelf, but not to anything questioning the actual existence of such a soul-type-thing. (I eventually learned not to read the newsgroup for a week or so after the episode, because JMS was really fervent about just about anything regarding the show, and really doctrinaire. And he /really liked this episode/. A lot.)

It doesn't help that I also hated the way W. Morgan Sheppard played the main Soul Hunter guy. Made my teeth itch. (Wow, his actor has quite the resume.)

I did appreciate the Delenn hints, and they even make sense in later context. Yes, even the "you would do such a thing?!"

Ivanova was fun. Not enough Garibaldi, though I did like his interactions with Sinclair.

(I find I like Sinclair more in opposition to Sheridan, so at the moment I'm still going, "Wooooden," but he gets less irritating later.)

Favorite quote:
"Doesn't matter. If we lived two hundred years, we'd still be human. We'd still make the same mistakes."
"You're a pessimist."
"I'm Russian, Doctor. We understand these things."

(Stolen from some guy named Albert's incredibly useful quotes page.)

[aulayan]

Sinclair! She made the comment to Sinclair! ;)

First to answer your question. JMS didn't pull off the ambiguity. At least not completely. Everytime I watch the episode, it seems as if Franklin's argument doesn't hold water. The other two could be right, but with the "Soul stealing" machine, it seems there might be a soul. (Given that once it takes the soul, the body drops lifeless). However I will add, science fiction can employ souls. It doesn't have to just be fantasy. You just have to be careful with its handling. JMS was not so careful. (Given he's an atheist, he somes to have a thing for souls)

This episode was very clunky. No subplot, just the A-Plot with various questions (and not many of those). The acting was a bit thuddy, and the set design left a lot to be desired. I'm now wondering how much of this show was being viewed through rose coloured glasses back then, or how much improved in later seasons. (I'm sure the writing improves). I was really disappointed re-watching this. And am waiting impatiently for Born to the Purple, Parliament of Dreams and Mind War.

The large bits of info and mysteries around Delenn do work for me. Including her showing herself becoming uncharacteristically enraged (Not the last time it happens, but I cannot think of any other time where it was used so effectively).

I had forgotten how hard Ivanova could be. Almost wooden, but many shows take some time to find their legs. Actors too in a roll.

And, hm. Favorite Quote. I'll add:
"I hate it when you get heroic. It cuts into my business. A man's gotta earn a living, you know?"

I've always loved Garibaldi.

I sure am glad that I know who's behind chrysalis before I know what it is.

[01d55]

The last shot kills Franklin's case, and that could have been avoided by saving some money on special effects (the blue stuff coming out of the broken orbs & accompanying wind chimes). Everything before that, you could handwave as tech, though the rebellious floating spheres are a bit of a stretch.

Of course, Franklin didn't witness that, so he can't be blamed.

Also: Suddenly, there are two individuals of African descent! And one of them has a name!

[julian]

Yeah, I'd've liked it way better if /either/ the spheres didn't have Xtra Powers /or/ Delenn didn't have her Blue Gas Orgasmic Moment at the end. I think if there'd been enough plausible deniablity in the spheres' actions against the Hunter ("it was really just Sinclair throwing them!"), it would've been better, if JMS wanted actual questions.