Babylon 5: S05E20: Objects in Motion

This was a GREAT episode, but ultimately too depressing.

The show opens with the sight of an old friend. The lovely Number one is on Babylon 5! Unfortunately she’s stuck in customs.  Earth Gov. are still messing Mars around and Number One has a new Mars passport which Earth Gov. wont recognise. Zack is a little embarrassed by all this, but you know what he’s like for keeping to the rules. Her ol’ bed-buddy Franklin spots and vouches for her.  The two are clearly pleased to see each other.

In Garibaldi’s quarters, our pal is barfing his guts up while Lise does some cleaning. Apparently it takes a while for detox to get all the alcohol out of his system. They are visited by Franklin and Number One (whose actually called Theresa Halloran – or Tessa to Sadgeezers). Tessa has information that someone is going to try and kill Lise and Garibaldi in the next couple of days.

Tessa is not just a pretty face (and figure), she is now the chief cook and bottle-washer thingy (President or something) on Mars. She has been collecting intelligence on some of the corrupt corporations and now has a reliable network of undercover people, especially in Edgar Industries. Garibaldi suggests that some of the senior people at Edgar are worried that Lise and Garibaldi may find out about some of the covert black projects like the Psi Corps virus etc. Tessa doesn’t know who the assassin is, just that the attempt will be made in the next few days.

G’Kar visits the beautiful rogue telepath Lyta. The two talk about G’Kar’s offer to take Lyta away with him to explore the wild black yonder. Lyta thinks the idea is a good one, but is sceptical of G’Kar’s motives. G’Kar, as elegant in his prose as usual tells her that the trip will help her sort of find herself but Lyta thinks that he just wants to keep an eye on his investment! G’Kar is slightly upset by this and mutters, “Then my decision was even more correct than I had imagined. I’ll see to it that your belongings are transferred to my ship when we are ready to leave.”

Zack and Franklin have briefed Sheridan on the threatened Garibaldi assassination. Garibaldi listens to Zack’s plan, he’s is impressed. The subject then changes to Garibaldi’s possible marriage to Lise. Our Baldi tells his friend that he and Lise have known each other for 15 years on and off, and it was now time for him to get married.

Meanwhile a security officer enters Red Sector and is killed by what we assume to be the assassin. He places a fake hand communicator on the back of the dead bloke’s hand and steals the real one. This assassin geezer is cool and ruthless; you couldn’t help feel sorry for the security guard. That bloke had probably been on Babylon 5 for years, he’d seen the Shadow/Vorlon War, all the action and with the twerp teep Byron mob and all the other battles and wars. Then the poor sod is killed for his telephone! Some people are just born unlucky!

The assassin geezer takes the little communicator to bits. He’s trying to work out the security codes so that he can track the whereabouts of Garibaldi and Lise. He eventually succeeds, I suppose we all knew he would.

Sheridan has cornered the lovely Tessa and discusses her problems on Mars. She is finding things very difficult. Sometimes she has to negotiate with people she would have shot on sight a few months earlier and while fighting in the resistance, internal disagreements were put on the ‘back burner’, now we find that they need to be dealt with. She isn’t really moaning, more like explaining the difficulties that Babylon 5 will have in it’s dealings with Mars. Sheridan offers to help. He suggests that she set up a diplomatic office on Minbar and the Alliance could help her establish a financial account outside Earth’s jurisdiction. He notices that Tessa is pleased with this suggestion but asks her to hold off returning to Mars for the present, he has another idea.

G’Kar watches the preparations for his leaving party. This modest Narn does not like the fuss and bother. He is accosted by a persistent Narn who simply wants some of G’Kar’s charisma to rub off on him. G’Kar learns that it was this Narn who manufactured the G’Kar statues and G’Kar gets angry! The statue is the epitome of everything that G’Kar hates about his situation and the stifling atmosphere he is forced to live in. He grabs the statue from the Narn and breaks it in-two. The devout Narn is most upset, but G’Kar leaves with the words, “Go home”. I can’t help feeling that we would have been a little more explicit. The devout Narn, half-angry and half-dismayed, looks on and shouts, “Don’t. Don’t tell me to go home. Don’t turn your back on me, G’Kar. G’Kar!”

Franklin notices that the dead security bloke’s hand communicator is false and he informs Zack. The assassin geezer meanwhile, now has a hidden earpiece tuned into the Babylon 5 security channels. With his tool in his ear, he sets out to do some killing!

Later, at G’Kar’s leaving ceremony, Sheridan, G’Kar, Garibaldi and Lise emerge take the stage and Sheridan begins his speech, praising both Garibaldi and G’Kar for their years of service. Zack  is ready to trap the assassin geezer. He orders that a high pitch interference be broadcast on the stolen link. The security officers zero in on the assassin and he is arrested before he can fire. That was just too easy! But just as sighs of relief are being breathed all round, the weird devout Narn pulls out his weapon, erm… a gun, and aims at G’Kar. He shouts, “G’Kar! You are not worthy of us!” and we are just about to see G’Kar’s guts spread over the platform, when Zack pushed G’Kar out of the way and another security person apprehends the gunman. As he does so a shot s fired and Lise is hit in the arm.

In MedLab, Garibaldi is justifiably throwing a minor wobbler!  He wants a couple of minutes with the assassin geezer to find out who is behind the attempt on Lise’s life.  He tells Zack, who doesn’t exactly give his permission, but probably feels that there is nothing he can do to stop his friend and ex-boss. Garibaldi head straight for Lyta’s cell.   He persuades her to scan the assassin. She does so and tells Garibaldi that he was hired by the entire Edgar Industries Board of Directors!

In a touching moment between two old adversaries and friends, Sheridan says his goodbye to G’Kar. He tells him that over the years they have had many disagreements, yet he now has the greatest respect. As Sheridan Leaves, G’Kar makes a recording on his Babcom unit (presumably for Delenn who is still absent).

In MedLab, Garibaldi has been sleeping with Lise’s hand in his. He’s hunched over the bed. It always bugs me when I see that! Would you be able to sleep like that – I certainly bloody well couldn’t! I’d probably be snoring and dribbling and have a sore back from my repeated falling off the chair! Lise wakes up to find Garibaldi (seemingly able to do no wrong!) He chances his luck while Lise is filled full of painkillers and asks her (rather nicely) to marry him. She accepts and Garibaldi is justifiably overjoyed.

G’Kar and Lyta wait to leave. Their ship arrives and they are alone at the docking bay. G’Kar has said his goodbye’s to everyone and is ready. Unfortunately, Lyta has been banged up in a cell for the last few days and has not said bye to ANYONE. Nobody is there to see her off. She looks back as they leave. This was really sad. Ok, ok, so she’s been a bit of a baddy for a few episodes, and she did have an affair with that twit Byron; But good grief! Not a single person came to wish her well – miserable buggers! As they walk up the gangway, we see Zack behind some crates. He quietly watches them leave and looks a little sad.

On Mars, the Edgar Industries Board of Directors receive a call from Garibaldi. This is Garibaldi’s crowning glory. He’d been a real twit for most of the season and today we were going to see him do something pretty cool for a change. A Vice President called Peretti, expresses concern for Lise. Garibaldi recognises the falseness of the comment and mentions that it’s strange after it was they who tried to kill him and Lise in the first place. Peretti comes straight back with a comment that their Head of Security who (conveniently) hung himself the previous evening planned the whole operation.

Garibaldi is about to have some fun.  He ignores Peretti’s statement and asks how his daughter is doing, his illegitimate one! Peretti looks very uncomfortable indeed (Becky’s review on her excellent Spoiler Junkies page, says that ‘Peretti looks like he swallowed a bug (more like an entire insect species’).

Garibaldi then goes round the table dishing dirt on each respective Board Member. Then he drops a bombshell, not a bombshell, but THE bombshell. He introduces the lovely Tessa Halloran as the new Head of Intelligence for the Alliance.  Tessa greets them all and smugly tells them that she also has information about their covert activities on Mars. Peretti protests saying that Garibaldi is not powerful enough to blackmail them.

Garibaldi has clearly had enough of the Edgar’s Board and quickly mentions a 500,000 credit account for any assassin willing to kill each of the Board should anything happen to he and Lise. He then fires the whole Board of Directors.

In the Zoccolo, Franklin and Tessa have dinner. They discuss stuff, like the irony that she is arriving on Babylon 5 just as he is preparing to leave for Earth etc. And yet, he does have an hour or so that he can spare to erm… catch up on old times…. Tessa veritably jumps at the chance and they leave for a goodbye bonk! (We didn’t see if Tessa wore a pink basque or black stockings or anything).

Later, Sheridan meets Delenn in the Customs area, Garibaldi and Lise are about to leave for Mars. She briefly reports on the progress of the construction of the Alliance facilities on Minbar and they talk about how they are going to miss the Station. Sheridan mentions how, G’Kar, Franklin, Londo and now Garibaldi are all leaving and how they have been the closest thing he has known to a family. Lise walks on leaving Garibaldi time to say goodbye to Sheridan and Delenn.

Sheridan and Delenn will be the next to leave and she points out that she has never walked the length of the Station before (5 miles). They both set off to do so, one last time, hand in hand.

We all breathed a sigh. This is a long and soppy end to the saga. I reckon JMS wants to extract as many tears form his devoted fans as possible – and he’s doing a good job!

Nevertheless, a terrific episode that’s godda be a 37,756 out of 10.
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