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Message: <blockquote data-quote="wingsandsword" data-source="post: 2841980" data-attributes="member: 14159">Franky, I don't give a damn whatever WB says is canon, they may have some legal right to say it, but they don't have any artistic right to.  J. Michael Straczinskis is B5 to the fans, what he says goes.  Him saying that a book isn't canonical, or as he put it "licensed fan fiction" is like a kiss of death, especially since the B5 fan base which would buy such a book is quite attentive to JMS's writings.Ever since Day 1 of Babylon 5, it's been crystal clear this is the personal creative project of J. Michael Stracinski, he's been the architect and leader, other writers might contribute but only within his parameters, and he still retains oversight.  He wrote every single episode of the 3rd season himself, and the bulk of the other seasons!  Nothing happens without his explicit approval, because it is a world planned out in advance, he's made it clear that he has the general direction of the entire setting for 1000 years in both directions sketched out, and far more detailed notes for 100 years in both directions, he knows what's supposed to happen and not happen in that world.  I don't know the terms of his deal with WB, but before this they haven't done any product he's disapproved of, and he's had to approve of everything.  In the 13 years since B5 came out, this is the first time I know he's specifically said a product coming out is totally non-canon, otherwise B5 has been very good about making all it's licensed products canonical and consistent, very largely through the efforts of JMS to make a consistent universe.JMS does come off as a pompous windbag at times, and maybe he is, but he's also a very good writer, who has invested a lot of his life into a project that is beloved by many fans, so I can certainly understand him being quite passionate about anything that involves it, especially somebody doing what in his eyes is violating it.  I don't know the full record of communications that lead up to this point, but I'm sad that it's involved a falling out between JMS and Mongoose, because I've really liked Mongooses B5 RPG (as my shelf full of B5 RPG books will attest) and fear for the future of it with this whole incident.I do find it vaguely reminsicent of when Gene Roddenberry before his death declared that Star Trek V was apocryphal (and he wasn't too pleased about the Starfleet conspiracy in Trek VI, believing that humans in his future would be above conspiracies), but Paramount Pictures refused to acknowledge this, of course, since Star Trek V was the most infamous stinker of the Trek movies, the fans (and even the writers of later productions) all ignored Trek V, and can pull out Roddenberry's belief it's apocryphcal to justify it.</blockquote>

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