Rating: 
Summary: Watch Star Trek instead...
Review: ...if you can't deal with not having plotlines neatly tied up at the end of each episode!This overlying continuity is what hooked me to the B5 series - story arcs that weren't resolved on a per-episode basis! A bit different from the typical (at the time) sci-fi format of "end of episode, everything's tidy again, all back to normal!" Personally, I liked the idea of wanting to watch the next week because I wanted to see how the *story* (as opposed to just the characters and the universe in general) continued to be told. Bottom line here is that I wouldn't recommend anyone spend hundreds of dollars on a DVD set of ANY series they're not already somewhat familiar with - be it B5, Star Trek, or whatever.
Rating:
Summary: The very best, all in one neat package
Review: All the wonderful writing, all the beautifully realized effects, all the real-world physics, and all the satisfyingly three-dimensional characters can now be had in one easy to purchase box set. Lucky you! Those of us who count ourselves B5 fans waited breathlessly for each year to come out, hoping that WB would see fit to bring them all out (like the series itself, there were often such questions). We sent off our $70-$90 for each year, and hoped the product would be worth the hard-earned bucks. They were. I don't know from 16:9 this or anisotropic that, I only know that these fill the screen with beautiful, vibrant color, and exceptional sound quality. And to top it all off, the boxes for each year are quite attractive in their own right. And now, you can get the entire treasure trove for a one time price that's less than I paid for all five over the years, and you get the joy of getting them all at once! If I didn't have them already, I'd be feverishly poking in credit card digits right now. You should, too. This is a wonderful opportunity to see TV done right; this may well be the best show ever, of any type, period. Buy now, and avoid the rush. You'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: The very best, all in one neat package
Review: All the wonderful writing, all the beautifully realized effects, all the real-world physics, and all the satisfyingly three-dimensional characters can now be had in one easy to purchase box set. Lucky you! Those of us who count ourselves B5 fans waited breathlessly for each year to come out, hoping that WB would see fit to bring them all out (like the series itself, there were often such questions). We sent off our $70-$90 for each year, and hoped the product would be worth the hard-earned bucks. They were. I don't know from 16:9 this or anisotropic that, I only know that these fill the screen with beautiful, vibrant color, and exceptional sound quality. And to top it all off, the boxes for each year are quite attractive in their own right. And now, you can get the entire treasure trove for a one time price that's less than I paid for all five over the years, and you get the joy of getting them all at once! If I didn't have them already, I'd be feverishly poking in credit card digits right now. You should, too. This is a wonderful opportunity to see TV done right; this may well be the best show ever, of any type, period. Buy now, and avoid the rush. You'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Great saga! 5-Pack isn't complete for correct viewing order
Review: As a lover of sci-fi series, it's great to see such a saga sold as a set. The reality for the B5 connoisseur is that this isn't the Full Monty. You should also purchase "Babylon 5 - The Movie Collection" and the B5 spin-off "Crusade - The Complete Series". The reasons are indicated below in my recommended viewing order.
1. Watch the B5 movie "The Gathering"
The Babylon 5 pilot movie The Gathering was originally broadcast in 1993 a full year ahead of the regular show.
2. Season 1
3. Season 2
4. Season 3
5. Watch Season 4 up to episode "The illusion of truth"
6. Watch the B5 movie "Thirdspace"
7. Season 4: continue with episodes 9-22
8. Watch Season 5 up to episode "Objects at Rest"
9. Watch the B5 movie "River of Souls"
10. Watch the B5 movie "In the Beginning"
This is a prelude set 10 years before Babylon 5. Against the logic of the title, I would strongly recommend seeing it at this stage. Should one see it before Season 1, much of the suspense in the main series would be ruined.
11. Watch the B5 movie "A Call to Arms"
This movie lays the groundwork for the spin-off TV series "Crusade".
12. Season 5: watch final episode "Sleeping in light"
13. Watch Crusade Series
The question which is debated in several other reviews is: Despite the release dates of the material produced, in what order should it be seen? In particular, if the viewer is a total new comer to the series. The above is an attempt to give some structure to great content so it is more enjoyable as a complete work.
PS - It is astounding that the Warner marketing dept. gives no official recommendation on how these products should be best enjoyed.
Rating: 
Summary: Watch STAR TREK instead...
Review: B5 had an interesting yet unoriginal premise for a show. The acting was nothing spectacular and the plots needlessly elaborate. The makeup and sets were decent. However, the extreme use of action sequences (which were brilliant no doubt) took away from the story. Better to watch Star Trek (Original, Next Generation or DS9) where the characters and plot tell the story. Or the X-Files for Earth-based sci-fi, or Hercules or Xena for fantasy.
Rating:
Summary: The Entire Series on DVD
Review: Babylon 5 is a five mile long space station. Located deep in neutral territory, it is designed to prevent intergalactic war by providing a place where peace can be worked out between the races. Run by Earth, it was built with help from the Minbari after our war with them when we were almost wiped out. Since it is also a trade station, it attracts aliens of all kinds on a daily basis. Unfortunately, it also attracts trouble. There are raiders in the area, the Narn and Centauri have at best a fragile peace, and someone is always trying to smuggle something on board. Even worse, an ancient enemy is rebuilding forces, and the effects of this will reach all the way back to Earth. Babylon 5 is still unique in television. It set out to tell a single story that had been mapped out beforehand over five years. Now you can own the entire story on DVD, minus a few movies and the spin off series. Season 1 is the most uneven and hardest to get into, but the beginnings of the story are there, and it lays the background on the races and cultures we will be dealing with over the course of the show. Season 2 brings a new captain and a storyline that is gaining speed, season 3 brings surprises and increasing tension, and season 4 is full steam ahead as most of the plot lines are resolved. Season 5 was a last minute reprieve, so it starts slow since it has little previous story to immediately resolve like the previous years have. By the half way point, however, you are once again hooked. If you stick with season 1, you will get hooked and need to watch all five seasons to find out how the story ends. I certainly did, and I continue to watch. It's one of my favorite TV shows of all time. Of course, if you are looking at this page, odds are you are already a fan and looking for information on the sets. The picture, presented in widescreen, is hit and miss, with some dust popping up occasionally. It is clear and sharp most of the time, however. Sound is presented in full surround and has never sounded better. Each set contains two audio commentaries by series creator J. Michael Straczynski and a season intro by cast and crew. They also have some behind the scenes documentaries and encyclopedia entries introducing you to the world of Babylon 5. All the sets but season 1 have one audio commentary each by various cast members and great blooper reels hidden in the data files area as Easter eggs. Whether you buy the seasons bundled like this or individually, don't miss your chance to own this fantastic TV series. Bought here, all you'll be missing are the original pilot ("The Gathering"), the later made for TV movies, and the spin off series Crusade.
Rating:
Summary: The greatest series ever
Review: Babylon 5 is, by far, the best television series made. The main reason is that JMS envisioned his story in a five-year story arc, and it was completed despite problems. As much as I'd love to see more of the Babylon 5 universe, the spin-off wasn't so great, and I would hate to see the 5 year story arc be ruined by attempts to lengthen the story anymore. For anyone who enjoys science fiction, a great story with continuity, and dark humor, this is a good series for you.
Rating:
Summary: B5 was a great show
Review: Babylon 5 was one of the best television series ever in the medium. Taken for all in all, it was the best SF/F show ever on television. This was because it didn't dodge the big questions: Who are we?
What do we want?
Where are we going? It made the big questions the central focus of the series. It didn't always provide clear and succinct answers to them either. It also made things very much like they are in the real world. Impure or evil motives might lead to actions with overall good outcomes, and good intentions may well pave the road to hell. J. Michael Straczynski is the reason is stayed focus on the large themes. JMS created the series and wrote all the episodes of the session, as well as all the 4th session episodes. He was specifically looked to create myths that addressed the big questions in life. You can't address the big issues without acknowledging the reasons that most people stop thinking about them: the minutia of life often makes us focus on little things that often don't bear on the larger issues. JMS wrote the series in a way that the big questions came into line with the little issues of life. His focus also allowed for characters to grow and change over the course of the series. For example, Vir, a character that starts off as a basic comic-relief player, yet ends up as one of those who can speak with great wisdom. The third session was when this change in him became evident. Also, the characters are not all perfect examples of morality and heroism: they each have their strengths and faults. This makes things much more believable. Especially since much of the underlying stories of good vs. evil is rather fanciful. In order to make it all believable is requires that there are underlying things that make sense, so that the home viewer can grab a handle on the program in order to anchor the rest of the story. The normal human issues of alcoholism, drug addition, religion, family problems, bad marriages, etc. all get explored in the course of the show. Which adds to the believability aspects of the program. Many other shows with similar takes on the world of character development have been "St. Elsewhere", "Six Feet Under" and "Buffy: The Vampire Slayer". The acting in the show is normally good, with especially good performances by Andreas Katsulas as G'Kar and Peter Jurasik as Londo Mollari. The first season is very rough, with about half the shows from it being almost bad at times. The second season things got a lot better. The third session of Babylon 5 is probably the best of the five sessions the program was on the air. But the fourth session was very close in quality to the third. The fifth was weird... very well made, and at times very well written, but in the end the 5th season was about the same in quality as the second. Which would have been fine if it had come before season three and four. One of the minor overall problems with the show is that, although clean and succinct answers are not always provided, they are sometimes forced in when they shouldn't have been. I am sure that this was not the intention all the time of the shows creative force: JMS. It is just that it is expected in TV land that they be provided. Basically, I am sure they were sometimes added because TV executives probably insisted on them. Especially when the message sometimes is that "there is no clear message". Which, at times makes the show feel a little clunky. I know that my criticism of this sounds almost like I am contradicting myself. And that may be the problem with it in the show... maybe the show is contradicting itself in some ways.
Rating: 
Summary: Price confusion?
Review: Do you realize that each season sells for 74.99 on amazon x 5 seasons that gives you $374.95 ...
The combo of 5 seasons should be less then the separate items as is the norm yet it's 25$ more.
The one star is because of that you're better off buying the separate seasons there isn't anything more in this for the price difference.
bye bye
Rating:
Summary: Best bang for your buck...
Review: First, let me say that I think Babylon 5 is probably one of the greatest sci-fi series there has ever been. EVER. That should give you a glimpse where my review is going. I don't plan on trying to change anyone's opinion, but I do hope to explain why this series has been a favorite of mine ever since I first saw it.
For one thing, it has an epic storyline. When I say storyline, I mean how it was planned as a 5 season journey. The series main attraction to me was that it was connected throughout all its seasons, weaving a tale reminiscent of the old space operas.
I've been tired of the generic sci-fi at that time (Star Trek, I'm looking at you) that while good, it never really made me want to watch every single episode. I mean, did it matter that I missed one episode of ST:TNG? Not really, unless it was a two parter, becasue most episodes were self contained and had nothing to do with each other. Babylon 5 changed that.
It was like a book, made into a TV show. For anyone who has read a long book series, such as The Wheel of Time, Lord of the Rings, and even Harry Potter, you will understand why one has to keep reading the next book, and the next, and so on. It's the story, the wanting to know what happens to the characters that drives one to keep on reading. That's the feeling Babylon 5 gave to me.
Some people might complain that Babylon 5 was a lot of dialogue and not enough explosions. To me, that was the best part, the interaction between the characters, their motivations, their fears, and their failures.
To me, Babylon 5 is almost like a love story. Literally, and figuratively. For one thing, it was a labor of love from its creator and producers that the series was able to complete its five year run. The actors certainly loved working on that show as well. It was a matter of love to the series that kept the fans watching, and it was the love in the Babylon 5 story itself that makes it magic. It was the love of Earth that forces the actions of our main characters, it was the love of each other that brings them together, and it was the love of peace that drives them to fight.
So much one can say about this series......but now, I'm going to put in my two cents about this Amazon.com deal. I believe it's actually quite a smart move for you to buy it this way. I made the mistake of buying my copies retail and at different places; some places charge up to $100 dollars for each season, while the lowest retail I've seen is around $79. There also comes the problem of finding them all at the same time. Most stores don't carry all seasons, so to find them all, you'll need to go store to store. By using the Amazon.com way (which I wish I could have done myself) you get all the seasons at once, and the price is quite low.
Of course, the price is still steep, but consider this - you are looking at about 22 episodes per season, clocking about 45+ minutes each. That means you are looking at about 1000+ minutes per season, times 5, that's roughly about 5000+ minutes of great TV watching. Now, think about the price of one movie (most of which are around 98 minutes, on average) and then think to yourself how many times you've kicked yourself for wasting 20 bucks on a movie you didn't like? In the end, if you do a numbers game, your are getting more out of one season, than you would out of 4 movies (1 1/2 hours each, 20 bucks each, about 6 hours and $80 dollars) while Babylon 5 (1 season is about 1000+ which is around 15 hours of so, for only $74 at amazon.com).
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