Babylon 5: In the Beginning

Synopsis: The Earth military encounters an alien race called the Minbari. Through a series of accidents and misunderstandings, a war breaks out that nearly results in the death of every human on Earth. The war and its aftermath provide the background for the TV series "Babylon 5," especially its first season.
Director(s): Michael Vejar
Production: Babylonian Productions
 
IMDB:
7.7
UNRATED
Year:
1998
94 min
1,103 Views


It is said that in every age,

there is one singular event...

...that forever changes the world

around us.

A nexus, if you will.

It is said that the future

is always born in pain.

The history of war is the history of pain.

If we are wise, what is born of that pain...

...matures into the promise

of a better world...

...because we learn

that we can no longer afford...

...the mistakes of the past.

But in the pain of that war,

the future was born.

A future that would one day...

...have a name whispered

on a hundred worlds.

A final refuge for dreams...

...and our last best hope for peace:

Babylon 5.

[Children laughing and squealing]

LUC:
Can't catch me.

Boo!

CENTAURI WOMAN:

Luc? Lyssa? Where are you?

No.

You shouldn't be here. You can't play here.

Luc, Lyssa.

LUC:
What happened to the buildings?

They fell down.

Some bad people made them fall down.

That's why all the windows in the palace

are covered so you can't see.

If they find out you've been looking...

Then why is the window here

if you're not supposed to look?

CENTAURI WOMAN:

This is the Emperor's window, Luc.

He's the only one who can look

out of the palace.

That's why we can't stay.

We have to go before...

LONDO:
No, it's all right.

It's been a long time since I heard

the sound of laughter in this room.

A very long time.

Let me see them.

LONDO:
And what are your names?

Luco Deradi. And this is my sister, Lyssa.

LONDO:
She doesn't talk much, does she?

No, she's always quiet.

We think maybe

there's something wrong with her.

Yes. Or something very right.

The quiet ones are the ones

that change the universe, Luc Deradi.

The loud ones only take the credit.

[Coughing]

Are you really the Emperor?

I sometimes ask myself the same thing.

Yes, I am the Emperor.

Here, you see...

This is the seal of the Centauri Republic.

Only the Emperor can wear it.

So, either I am the Emperor,

or I am in a great deal of trouble.

Or both.

Come here, you.

For the next five minutes...

...you are the Emperor of what was once

the vast Centauri Republic.

You may give one order.

Any order you desire.

Make it a good one.

What do you want?

- Tell me a story.

- Luc...

LONDO:
No, no. It's all right.

He did far better with that question

than I did.

What kind of story would you like to hear?

I want a story about great battles and wars

and bravery and heroes and villains!

I see.

And what does your sister want?

Nothing.

She says she wants to hear a true story.

LONDO:
Very well.

Then I will give you both what you want.

A story about great deeds...

...about armies of light

and soldiers of darkness.

About the places

where they lived and fought...

...and loved and died.

About great empires, terrible mistakes.

A true story.

You see,

I was there at the dawn of the Third Age.

It began with the Humans.

They are the quiet ones

I mentioned before.

They changed the universe...

...but in doing so paid a terrible price.

It began 35 of their years ago.

Their homeworld is a place called Earth...

...located in a fairly uninteresting part

of the galaxy.

We had never bothered much

with that area before.

It had little military or strategic value.

But as a culture grows decadent...

...it becomes intrigued by art...

...by trinkets, by eccentricity.

And the Humans had art and trinkets...

...and eccentricity to spare.

But it was none of those traits...

...that would cause so much death

and pain.

They have an expression:

"Pride goeth before a fall."

And their pride was their undoing.

I know.

I was there.

Mollari, good.

I'd like you to meet General Lefcourt.

Londo Mollari,

liaison to the Centauri delegation.

- Pleasure to meet you, sir.

- Likewise.

Please, sit.

- How is your president? Well, I hope.

- Much better.

I just saw her in the red room.

She's starting to get some of the color

back in her cheeks.

LEFCOURT:
This damn flu's got

half of my staff down sick.

I suggest you give her a little of this

before she eats.

I brought it from Centauri Prime

when I heard she was ill.

It will completely eliminate her symptoms

in two, three hours at most.

Thank you. I'm sure she'll appreciate it.

LONDO:
My pleasure.

Now, gentlemen, perhaps you will tell me

why you have arranged for this meeting.

AIDE:
Of course.

General?

Following our victory against the Dilgar,

we've taken advantage of the good will...

...of other worlds to expand our sphere

of influence.

We've made trade deals

and mutual defense treaties...

...with the League of Non-Aligned Worlds.

Most of the races have been very receptive

to our advances.

Others, downright hostile.

And a few are still a mystery to us.

What do you know

about a race called Minbari?

We have had some dealings with them

in the past...

...but nothing in recent years. Why?

We'll send an expedition to their border...

...to see if they threaten our program

to expand our sphere of influence.

LEFCOURT:
We understand that a third

of their population is dedicated to warfare.

They have a warrior caste.

Not exactly the same thing?

Semantics.

We need to know all we can about them.

Then send one ship. One ship only.

Anything more could be perceived

as a threat.

And if that were to happen...

...I assure you

they would never return home.

My people can handle themselves.

We took care of the Dilgar,

we can take care of the Minbari.

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J. Michael Straczynski

Joseph Michael Straczynski (; born July 17, 1954), known professionally as J. Michael Straczynski and informally as Joe Straczynski, is an American television and film screenwriter, producer and director, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Studio JMS, and is best known as the creator of the science fiction television series Babylon 5 (1993–1998) and its spinoff Crusade (1999), as well as the series Jeremiah (2002–2004), and Sense8 (2015–2018).Straczynski wrote the psychological drama film Changeling (2008) and was co-writer on the martial arts thriller Ninja Assassin (2009), horror film Underworld: Awakening (2012), and apocalyptic horror film World War Z (2013). From 2001 to 2007, Straczynski wrote Marvel Comics' The Amazing Spider-Man, followed by runs on Thor and Fantastic Four. He is also the author of the Superman: Earth One trilogy of graphic novels, and has written Superman, Wonder Woman, and Before Watchmen for DC Comics. Straczynski is the creator and writer of several original comic book series such as Rising Stars, Midnight Nation, Dream Police, and Ten Grand through Joe's Comics. A prolific writer across a variety of media and former journalist, Straczynski is the author of the novels Blood Night (1988), Othersyde (1990), and Tribulations (2000), the short fiction collection Straczynski Unplugged (2004), and the nonfiction book The Complete Book of Scriptwriting (1982). Straczynski is a long-time participant in Usenet and other early computer networks, interacting with fans through various online forums (including GEnie, CompuServe, and America Online) since 1984. He is credited as being the first TV producer to directly engage with fans on the Internet, and allow their viewpoints to influence the look and feel of his show. (See Babylon 5' s use of the Internet.) Two prominent areas where he had a presence were GEnie and the newsgroup rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated. more…

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