Jumpgate #3 - Soul Hunter
Added 2022-04-05 13:00:07 +0000 UTCThe Babylon 5 rewatch continues friends, as Vera and I jump into Soul Hunters... and I try my hardest to not spoil the whole dang show for Vera!
Comments
Loving the additional context from the podcast as I watch the show. This was a really weak episode of the show imo, but a great podcast episode and I'm encouraged it's sowing seeds for things to come. The class stratification of capitalism extending to space clearly isn't something they're straying away from I burst out laughing when Sinclair went after the ship. Makes no sense to let the captain play claw machine with incoming threats. The way they've talked about his prior piloting experience sounded more like a fighter pilot than someone good at space salvaging, so didn't even make sense that he'd be well suited for it beyond "yeah he used to pilot ships" So souls exist in Babylon V. That's a bold concept to set up in the second normal episode. Whenever it came up in Star Trek I can't remember it ever being so unambiguous and universal to all species, and it was never a core part of the series. The voyager example given is exactly what I'm used to, a species that shows up on episode and is left behind. I'm fascinated where the show will go with soul hunters - is there a better explanation or is this the universe versions of the grim reaper? The part that falls flat for me is how one sided the presentation is. Souls exist, the question is what should happen to them after death. The idea being tested is preservation vs letting them "move on" in a cultural/religious way.
Blueberry Hill
2022-04-06 15:24:07 +0000 UTCRight, the Jewels should have at least glowed!!!!! But yeah, ohh, this show gets so good and the foreshadowing is palpable.
Jessie Earl
2022-04-06 06:14:44 +0000 UTCI love that Jessie is familiar with the show & can provide some guidance & fun little hints about what's coming up. Not all the episodes will be created equally so it's nice to have encouragement for upcoming content. I'm not a fan of explorations of religion in sci-fi so this one was a bit of a slog for me. As an atheist who was raised Catholic, I feel like I've covered all the angles that interest me personally in the last few decades & I don't usually find other ideas terribly compelling or much of an addition. It's kind of like the tediousness of listening to someone recount their dreams. I also feel uncomfortable with how sci-fi so often sneers about religion, which in this episode is represented by the doctor's conversation with Sinclair at the end. Their little smirks are kind of gross & condescending. On a lesser note - it really bothered me that those jewels or whatever they were in the soul hunters' foreheads never did anything! I really thought they were going to faintly glow at the very least lol. And the dust ruffle things around their heads were hilarious. Interesting design choices.
Adrenalynn
2022-04-05 21:32:43 +0000 UTC
