Rating: 
Summary: BEST SHOW EVER. Awesome 4th season:"No Surrender;No Retreat"
Review: "I think of my beautiful city in flames..."
Yes, Babylon 5 is the best sci-fi show ever produced, and season 3 and 4 are the best of the best. After a rather boring first season, J.Michael Straczynski (series creator) took the reins and wrote 100% of season 4. AND IT SHOWS. In a mere 22 episodes the following events happen: End of the Shadow War. Minbari Civil War. Earth Civil War. Mars Independence. And the Birth of the Interstellar Alliance (like Trek's Federation-a galactic government). Season 4 in my opinion is the best season...of any show...ever. (NOTE:IF YOU'RE NEW TO BABYLON 5 I recommend you start with season 2... which is where the show truly starts to shine.)
Rating:
Summary: Yet Another Great Season of Babylon 5
Review: "No Surrender, No Retreat", the fourth season of Babylon 5, is a fascinating study in contrasts between the most memorable and worst aspects of this series. It is among the most memorable since it chronicles vividly the Shadow War and Sheridan's epic struggle against President Clark's totalitarian EarthGov regime. And yet, I regret that J. Michael Straczynski wrapped up two compelling story arcs too neatly, though in fairness to him, he was under pressure from Warner Brothers, worried that his five season novel for television would not see a fifth season. The first half of the season features Sheridan's (Bruce Boxleitner) return from the dead world of Z'Ha'Dum, accompanied by the enigmatic First One Lorien (Wayne Alexander)- who has rescued Sheridan temporarily from death - and the struggle against the Shadows that concludes in the episode "The Long Night". Sheridan will force a momentuous confrontation between the Shadows and Vorlons. We will also see who was responsible for Garibaldi's mysterious disappearance at the end of Season Three (No, not the Shadows exactly). And we shall watch Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik) regain some of his humanity in his struggle to overthrow mad Centauri emperor Cartagia (Wortham Krimmer), promising G'Kar (Andreas Katsulas) freedom for the enslaved Narn homeworld. Vir Cotto (Stephen Furst), Londo's befuddled aide, comes to play a crucial part in Londo's conspiracy. And Delenn (Mira Furlan) must come to grips with her past history as the one who initiated the Minbari invasion of Earth Alliance terrority during the infamous Earth-Minbari war. The second half shows Sheridan gaining some unlikely allies, most notably, Psi Cop Alfred Bester (Walter Koenig) - in the episode Epiphanies - as he leads the fight against President Clark's totalitarian regime. Meanwhile Garibaldi will head to Mars as an unwitting pawn of the Psi Corps, become reacquainted with his long-lost love, and work for her husband William Edgars(Efrem Zimbalist, Jr.), one of Earth's richest men. In space Sheridan and Ivanova (Claudia Christian) will lead a fleet comprised of the Rangers' White Stars, League of Non-Aligned World warships and rebel Earth Force forces against Clark's loyal Earth Force fleet in some of the most memorable space battles ever shown on television or cinema, most notably during the episodes "No Surrender, No Retreat" and "Endgame". This splendid CD collection also includes commentary from members of the cast and J. Michael Straczynski of several key episodes, an overview of some of the important supporting characters, and the Babylon 5 universe. These extra features are an improvement over those for previous Babylon 5 seasons, though they lack the impressive array of material found, for example, in Peter Jackson's "Lord of the Rings" film trilogy. And yet fans of Babylon 5 as well as those unfamiliar with this television series will not be disappointed with this fine CD collection. It offers excellent visual proof why Babylon 5 is regarded by many as the finest science fiction television series of all time.
Rating: 
Summary: Great Series! But Warner Bros. should be ashamed ...
Review: ... for not improving on the quality of the telecine transfers. There are probably more dust specks and garbage on the few episodes I've watched than in all three previous sets combined. And the DVD compression hasn't improved any -- artifacts all over the place, with some live action scenes practically shimmering on my high-end home theater system. (The sound, while not perfect, is acceptable). Can I say that I love this show so much I'll buy the damn things anyway? Warner Bros. knows this is true for millions of fans. Too bad they're producing these sets as cheaply as possible, with no additional funding for cleaning up the transfers. Recently I witnessed the processing of transferring a network hourlong drama onto DVD, and it was amazing to see the operator clean up video artifacts on the fly -- erasing them just like Photoshop. Sure, it adds to the bottom line, but I think Warner Bros. can handle it. Reportedly they're making so much money off these boxed sets they're gonna OK a new B5 project in 2004, simply because it'll turn a profit off the subsequent DVD sales alone. Warner Bros., you've got us in the palm of your hand. We're fans of the show and we want more of it. Now that you've got all our dollars, howzabout treating us with a little respect?
Rating:
Summary: Audio and video problems.
Review: After reading reviews of all the box sets and some of the problems some people have had,I just wanted to add my experiences.
I too had a few occasions where the picture would break up and even freeze as someone else has mentioned.
I removed the dvd from the player and cleaned it useing a cd/dvd spray cleaner.When I reinserted the dvd and played it again I had no further problems.
I have encountered this on one or two other brand new dvds of other shows and in each instance a good cleaning solved the problem.
The discs never look dirty or scratched and are always played fresh out of the case which leads me to believe it may be a coating of something that cant be seen by the naked eye but is detectable by the players laser.
It may not solve everyones problem but its worth trying before returning the discs for an exchange and then encountering the same problem.
I hope this helps as the series itself is great and nothing is more frustrating then having a problem in the middle of watching it.
Rating: 
Summary: Poor DVD Quality
Review: Babylon 5 is my favorite Sci. Fi. series, and Season 4 stands equal to Season 3 as THE best in the series. I am extremely frustrated, however, with the poor quality of the Season 4 DVD collection, and would dissuade people from purchasing (rent if you're able!). I've had both sound and video issues with Season 4, and despite my love of this series, I'll probably not purchase Season 5 ... it's just too maddening to tolerate the poor/intermittent sound quality and annoying video problems. Extremely irritating that a company would do such a substandard job in a DVD release.
Rating: 
Summary: Superb series, but poor quality DVD
Review: Babylon 5 is my favorite Sci. Fi. series, and Season 4 stands equal to Season 3 as THE best in the series. I am extremely frustrated, however, with the poor quality of the Season 4 DVD collection, and would dissuade people from purchasing (rent if you're able!). I've had both sound and video issues with Season 4, and despite my love of this series, I'll probably not purchase Season 5 ... it's just too maddening to tolerate the poor/intermittent sound quality and annoying video problems. Extremely irritating that a company would do such a substandard job in a DVD release.
Rating:
Summary: The Best American Scifi ever!
Review: Babylon 5 is unusual for american television and television in general because it is great science fiction. You are presented with characters you can like, characters you can hate, and characters that will disappoint you. The characters are not one dimensional, and the show keeps you rivetted all the way through.Most shows have a kind of villian of the week mentality, and what happened the week before has little relevance to what happens this week. Babylon 5 doesn't, and in fact there are things characters do in season one that don't make sense till season 3 and beyond. At the start of the season after the "cliffhanger"(Oh, I know this is a terrible pun) ending of season 3 we watch as the characters have try to figure out what to do next. Sheridan is most likely dead on Z'ha'dum, and Garabaldi has disappeared. The Shadows have paused as they try to recover from the large hole the whitestar made in there homeworld as it made its final attack with two powerful nuclear devices. Londo is on Centauri Prime and has one of his nightmares confirmed as the Emperor gives the shadows a small island to use as a base. G'kar has decided to go looking for Garabaldi. From here everything starts getting worse as the Shadows and Vorlons begin using massive planet killers to destroy anyone supporting the other. The Alliance Sheridan struggled to put together is falling apart, G'kar is captured by the Centauri, and when they find Garabaldi he is not the same. Then when all seems darkest Sheridan returns with one of the best lines ever. (Drazi Ambassador) "Captain...we thought you were dead." (Capt. Sheridan)"I was. I'm better now." Sheridan revitalizes the alliance and gathers together the largest fleet the younger races have ever put together, and prepares to launch a last desperate battle against the Vorlons and Shadows. Meanwhile Londo strikes a deal with G'kar that if he helps Londo get rid of the Emperor, Londo with free the Narn. The stage is set for one of the most climatic two episodes of the entire series, and of television as the fate of the galaxy rests in the hands of Londo/G'kar and John Sheridan.
And like all great heroes they accomplish their victories, but at a terrible price. John's attack on Z'ha'dum has left him with only twenty years left to live, and G'kar has lost an eye. This is only the begin of this great season which by then end will give up a Minbari civil war, and a human civil war. We will learn what has happened to Garabaldi, and find new reasons to hate Alfred Bester. Then in the final episode of the season we are treated to with the exception of Joss Whedon's dream episode in season four of Buffy, the most original episode of any American Scifi show. An episode that gives us a look at the future of humanity, and how our characters actions will live through time. This is the best season of Babylon 5 as all the characters are stretched, and must pay a price for each victory they achieve. Heroes are boring if they win without some sacrifice and not just a physical one. Emotionally this is the most powerful of the five seasons.
Rating:
Summary: Quoting my seaon 3 review - still the best TV ever
Review: Combining plot elements reminiscent of Tolkien and the Arthurian legends, writing that's rarely been equalled, characters you actually care about, an epic story spanning ages and generations, and still with more believability per frame than most non-SF dramas, B5 is in a class of its own. Like some others here, I'm replacing my tapes with DVD's as they are released. The ability to quickly visit any scene from any show easily justifies the extra cost. Season three is where most B5 fans got hooked - I know I did. I watched season one on and off. With season two, I found myself watching more. By the time the story arc began to unfold in season two, I was watching every week. By season three, watching every week's episode had taken on the nature of an almost spiritual imperative. Unlike some here, I don't necessarily consider season four a close second, but pretty much equal to season three. B5 broke so much new ground, it's hard to list it all. It certainly was one of the first to show bad things happening to good characters. It took the bold step of letting you believe for years that certain characters were good (or bad), when they might turn out to be much more complex in the end. The characters become so real to us that I've seen grown men choke back their emotions when a character you only saw in a robotic suit incapable of expressing emotion get killed. B5 was a pioneer in admitting to and exploring issues of faith even though its creator and writer is an avowed atheist. Even in its portrayal of relationships, romantic and otherwise, it was unique. Everywhere else on TV, characters were introduced in act 1 and in bed by act 3. As in real life, this also happened on B5, but you also got a chance to savor the growth of relationships you could never hope to see on episodic TV. B5 had its share of great love stories but they were never formulaic. Two were cut short by tragedy, but one of those was never consummated while the other grew from a one-night stand with political motives. You even saw people who were close and had some obvious attraction, but chose for various good reasons not to act on those feelings. Based on perhaps limited experience, these people seem more real and interesting to me than most I see on TV. At a time when most entertainment teaches few positive values, B5 celebrates commitment to a greater cause. It balances this with cautionary tales that suggest we be constantly vigilant that our cause is really just. It teaches self-sacrifice. Simply watching most episodes of B5 is like a workout for your conscience. It makes you think. The characters themselves think. It taught that victories aren't always won by violence and that the only persistent peace is achieved through conscience, commitment, and determination.
Rating:
Summary: Pure-Exellence!
Review: Despite not being released yet..i have seen all of Season 4 so this review is only on the grounds of the episodes and story writing. This is one superb season. You witness the latter end of the Shadow war which comes to a fantastic conclusion and the rebellion against the new regime now based on earth under the control of President Clark unfolds into an all out war. This season has spectacular battles all throughout and will tug at nearly ALL of your emotions from great anger to sandess and despair. I recommend buying this DVD once its released! 5 out of 5 stars!
Rating:
Summary: Season 4 Has a Lot to Offer
Review: Don't believe any of the negative reviews written about the 4th season of Babylon 5. I think this is the 2nd greatest season of the series. Lots of plot twists, action and resolution to many of the series' storylines. Earth vs. Babylon 5, Vorlons vs. the Shadows, the fate of Mr. Mordon, the ascendence of Sheridan and Delenn, and the departures of some very endearing characters. Babylon 5, Season 4 has it all. Buy this DVD set!
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