Babylon 5... reboot?

[Staffan]

Now that's a good question. I'm probably most excited over the prospect of there being a strong writers room this go round. Instead of JMS taking on the Herculean task of writing most of the episodes. As much as I admire that feat, I really feel it weakened the show.

Judging by JMS's Twitter, he doesn't seem to be much for writer's rooms. His preference would seem to be assigning things episode by episode rather than any sort of collaborative structure.

 

[Umbran]

Judging by JMS's Twitter, he doesn't seem to be much for writer's rooms. His preference would seem to be assigning things episode by episode rather than any sort of collaborative structure.

Oh, he'll need some collaborative structure. He may not use the typical writer's room form, with half a dozen people writing each script. But he may have half a dozen people each writing one scrpit, and they will NEED to collaborate for them to come out with a consistent story - Episode 3 is going to need to know what happens in Episode 1, and may need to ask for things to be put into Episode 1 for foreshadowing, and so on.

 

[Staffan]

Oh, he'll need some collaborative structure. He may not use the typical writer's room form, with half a dozen people writing each script. But he may have half a dozen people each writing one scrpit, and they will NEED to collaborate for them to come out with a consistent story - Episode 3 is going to need to know what happens in Episode 1, and may need to ask for things to be put into Episode 1 for foreshadowing, and so on.

My understanding is that the way this was handled in the original, for the first two seasons, was that JMS planned out the basic plot of each episode and what elements of the overarching story needed to go where, and then let other writers write those episodes he didn't do himself without too much interference.

 

[Umbran]

My understanding is that the way this was handled in the original, for the first two seasons, was that JMS planned out the basic plot of each episode and what elements of the overarching story needed to go where, and then let other writers write those episodes he didn't do himself without too much interference.

JMS wrote 92 of the 110 episodes in the original series. So, what few episodes others wrote were effectively only interacting with JMS' writing. If he's not taking on the Herculean effort again, outline or not, that minimal coordination won't cut it.

 

[Staffan]

JMS wrote 92 of the 110 episodes in the original series. So, what few episodes others wrote were effectively only interacting with JMS' writing. If he's not taking on the Herculean effort again, outline or not, that minimal coordination won't cut it.

We'll see. JMS does not strike me as someone who plays all that well with others, particularly not on Babylon 5 which is his baby. He has on occasion expressed dismissal of the whole concept of writer's rooms.

It should also be noted that the first two seasons had a story editor, Lawrence G. DiTillio, whose job it was to keep other writers in tune with the overall arc.

 

[cmad1977]

Ron Moore is .... oh boy ... working on the Extended Disney Theme Park Ride TV Universe for Dinsey+.


So, there's that.

Not sure who the guy is but working with Disney Imagineering is a no joke gig for a creative.

 

[Snarf Zagyg]

Not sure who the guy is but working with Disney Imagineering is a no joke gig for a creative.

Eh, don't think you understand. It's not Imagineering.

Ron Moore (Ronald D. Moore) is a noted TV writer and showrunner. Previous notable credits in TV include:

Star Trek (TNG, DS9).
BSG (reboot). <- This is probably what he's most famous for.
Outlander.
For All Mankind.

Anyway, he was lured from his position from For All Mankind to be the Kevin Feige of a Disney+ initiative to have a shared, TV universe of shows based on their theme park rides.

 

[nevin]

The problem for me is Im done with reboots. Especially for shows I liked the first time. Im not watching any more reboots. I would love to see new stories, even a continouation of crusade.

 

[cmad1977]

Eh, don't think you understand. It's not Imagineering.

Ron Moore (Ronald D. Moore) is a noted TV writer and showrunner. Previous notable credits in TV include:

Star Trek (TNG, DS9).
BSG (reboot). Outlander.
For All Mankind.

Anyway, he was lured from his position from For All Mankind to be the Kevin Feige of a Disney+ initiative to have a shared, TV universe of shows based on their theme park rides.

Which sounds goofy(haha)… but it’s not a small job.

 

[cmad1977]

If the casting makes people say things like
“But why is Sinclair a GURL??” I’ll watch for sure. Those people always have bad taste.