Part of the Vorpatril Alliance...

...and a traitor!

Yeah, I couldn't think of a better title. I fail. Epically. I got Captain Vorpatril's Alliance for Christmas, read it that night. Now I'm writing about it. I really enjoyed it. I think people have been requesting an Ivan book since Memory, and Bujold doens't disappoint. The novel is fun, interesting, and Ivan finally meets a woman who combines charming and lazy in equal measures, just like himself. As a couple, I can actually see them working better than many of Bujold's pairings, for the simple fact that neither one of them makes much any real demands on the other. Instead, they just enjoy the other's company.

But as much as I enjoyed Vorpatril's Alliance while I was reading it, upon reflection the book comes off as something of a disappointment. I know, I know, I'm far too negative. The book was good...but it could have been great. It's so frustrating sometimes, to see a work's potential and then realize how far it fell short.

One of the reasons for my discontent was the simple fact that Ivan doesn't save his lady love. The Barrayaran Empire does, shielding her from attack. Maybe Ivan is brave to involve himself in the affair in the first place, but basically anyone willing to make a false oath of marriage for the Vor Green Card could have done almost as much. It's not Ivan's courage or wit that ultimately helps him prevail, it's his connections. Not the most satisfying of victories, in my opinion.

My other problem is a pattern I've noticed with Bujold's later works. Her bad guys kind of suck. I mean, they didn't use to. But these days, the antagonists of the heroic Vor scions of Barrayar tend to be very desperate amateurs, only made dangerous by their inexperience and blind luck. The desperate Ba of Diplomatic Immunity, the bumbling conspirators of Cryoburn both kind of sucked. You'd think a ruthless Jacksonian House would be a little more deadly, but you hardly see them at all. They manage to send a few fifth rate thugs after their prey, but those guys can't even aspire to incompetence. You'd figure that Jackson's Whole would have some first class assassins available for hire, even if Bujold doesn't want to show the figures of the House itself.

Bujold's heroes deserve better villains.

The Name of the Place...Is Babylon Five!

Babylon Five was a great science fiction show. It has a few problems, of course, but it remains my favorite TV show that happens to take place aboard a space station. As a writer, I admire the way the show's creator foreshadows events and creates relatively painless outs for his characters, should the actor stop playing them. And it even tricks you: some of the people who you think are sympathetic turn out not to be, and vice versa.

But getting into the show was difficult. When I was younger, my older brother heard about how great the show was and checked out a few discs from the library. I watched it with him. Neither of us had much interest in getting the next set of discs. Later, in college, I borrowed the DVDs from a friend and got a few episodes in before giving up again. But still, everyone talked about how good the show was...was everyone wrong but me? I mean, it wouldn't be the first time. The occurrence seems to be getting more and more common, actually, as I get crazier.

But finally, I said "Fuck It" and forced myself to watch the entire season one. The end of season one made me want to watch season two, the season where Babylon Five actually starts becoming really good. The introduction of a new character helps that, but it's also the point in time where things finally start happening. The entire first season was foreshadowing and build-up. I'm amazed the show stayed on the air to reach that point though.

My friend had also heard about how good Babylon Five was, largely from me, but from a few other sources. I lent him the DVDs I have, but he could never really get into it, and to be honest, I don't think he'd have the patience to get past the first season. Not with things like Game of Thrones competing for his attention.

And the first season is interesting to watch the second time, to spot all the foreshadowing, it's a major impediment to the show. So I've created a list of the Must Watch episodes of Babylon Five, to get my friend into Season Two with minimal pain. Here are the episodes.

Episode One, Midnight on the Firing Line: The first episode. Provides a decent introduction to the Narn-Centauri conflict, as well as most major characters.

Episode Six, Mind War: The first real introduction of the evil PsiCorps. Also the first introduction of Bester, my favorite villain of the series.

Episode Eight, And the Sky Full of Stars: This is the questionable inclusion. I've tried to make certain that whatever episodes I picked were both entertaining and useful to the viewer of Season Two. This one isn't that entertaining, but the information it provides merits its inclusion, specifically the Mimbari War and Sinclair's role in its end.

Episode Thirteen, Signs and Portents: Also the name of the first season. The single most important and entertaining episode of Season One, IMNSHO. Centauri intrigues, and the first glimpse of the major antagonists of the series.

Episode Twenty, Babylon Squared: I love the second part to this episode, so it merits inclusion just for that purpose. Not strictly necessary, but determining the fate of Babylon Four is kind of important.

Episode Twenty Two, Chrysalis: The last episode. The point where the shit starts to hit the fan.

An important two part episode might be Voice in the Wilderness, but it's long, boring, and not much happens. Basically, I can summarize it for my friend by saying "The planet near Babylon Five has a superweapon, and they might be able to control it "when the time is right."

I Have Returned

Like a certain four legged robot psionic space monster with legendary path-finding. More posts to follow in the new year.