Editing Babylon 5 (section)

===Influence and legacy===
Generally viewed as having "launched the new era of television CGI visual effects",<ref>{{cite web |title=NewTek Honors Visual Effects Artists at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |author=Donetta Colboch |date=October 24, 2011 |url=http://www.cgw.com/Press-Center/News/2011/NewTek-Honors-Visual-Effects-Artists-at-the-Acad.aspx |publisher=CG World (from press release) |access-date=December 22, 2011 |archive-date=September 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919150442/https://www.cgw.com/Press-Center/News/2011/NewTek-Honors-Visual-Effects-Artists-at-the-Acad.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref> ''Babylon 5'' received multiple awards during its initial run, including two consecutive Hugo Awards for [[Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation|best dramatic presentation]],<ref name="Hugo1">{{cite web |title=List of Hugo Award Winners (1996) |url=http://www.nesfa.org/data/LL/Hugos/hugos1996.html |publisher=[[New England Science Fiction Association]] |access-date=June 9, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102104246/http://www.nesfa.org/data/LL/Hugos/hugos1996.html|archive-date=January 2, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Hugo2">{{cite web |title=List of Hugo Award Winners (1997) |url=http://www.nesfa.org/data/LL/Hugos/hugos1997.html |publisher=[[New England Science Fiction Association]] |access-date=June 9, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102104619/http://www.nesfa.org/data/LL/Hugos/hugos1997.html|archive-date=January 2, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> and continues to regularly feature prominently in various polls and listings highlighting top-rated science fiction series.<ref>{{cite magazine |title=The World's Best Space Sci-Fi Ever: Your verdict |date=October 26, 2005 |url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8211 |magazine=New Scientist |access-date=December 22, 2011 |archive-date=October 20, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020031017/http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8211 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows-40239/ |title=TV Guide Names the Top Cult Shows Ever |date=June 29, 2007 |magazine=TV Guide |access-date=February 24, 2019 |archive-date=May 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190507142236/https://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows-40239/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=The Top Science Fiction TV Series |date=May 7, 2010 |url=http://www.themarknews.com/articles/1460-the-top-science-fiction-tv-series |publisher=Doug Mann, Professor of Media Studies and Sociology, University of Western Ontario and King's College |access-date=December 22, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111207153425/http://www.themarknews.com/articles/1460-the-top-science-fiction-tv-series |archive-date=December 7, 2011}}</ref>

''Babylon 5'' has been praised for its depth and complexity against a backdrop of contemporary shows which largely lacked long-term consequences, with plots typically being resolved in the course of a single episode, occasionally two.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/an-oral-history-of-babylon-5-the-beloved-tv-novel-that-showed-a-different-way-to-tell-sci |title=An oral history of Babylon 5: The beloved TV novel that showed a different way to tell sci-fi |last=Granshaw |first=Lisa |date=June 27, 2018 |website=SYFY WIRE |access-date=February 22, 2019 |quote=It had serialized plots and adventures to follow from episode to episode and season to season with characters that didn't just reset every week but evolved over time. |archive-date=December 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219224411/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/an-oral-history-of-babylon-5-the-beloved-tv-novel-that-showed-a-different-way-to-tell-sci |url-status=live }}</ref> Straczynski was deeply involved in scriptwriting, writing 92 of 110 teleplays, a greater proportion than some of his contemporaries.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.tor.com/2012/10/08/all-alone-in-the-night-when-babylon-5-invented-21st-century-fandom/ |title=All Alone in the Night: When Babylon 5 Invented 21st Century Fandom |last=Britt |first=Ryan |date=October 8, 2012 |website=Tor.com |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222152349/https://www.tor.com/2012/10/08/all-alone-in-the-night-when-babylon-5-invented-21st-century-fandom/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Reviewers rated the quality of writing on a widely varying scale, identifying both eloquent [[soliloquy|soliloquies]] and dialogue that felt "stilted and theatrical."<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |url=https://www.geek.com/television/remembering-babylon-5-one-of-the-smartest-sci-fi-series-ever-25-years-after-its-debut-1770010/ |title=Remembering 'Babylon 5,' One of the Smartest Sci-Fi Series Ever, 25 Years After Its Debut |date=January 16, 2019 |website=Geek.com |access-date=February 22, 2019 |quote=The show was one of the first to use extensive CGI instead of models for space scenes, which allowed them the freedom to shoot multiple angles. That said, the CGI looks incredibly primitive today and is upscaled for modern TVs badly. |archive-date=June 18, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618022643/https://www.geek.com/television/remembering-babylon-5-one-of-the-smartest-sci-fi-series-ever-25-years-after-its-debut-1770010/ |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |url=https://mattllavin.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/b5/ |title=Why Babylon 5 is the Worst Best Thing in Televised Science Fiction – Ever |last=mattllavin |date=September 1, 2012 |website=Big Hot Future! |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=January 29, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210129105430/https://mattllavin.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/b5/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Straczynski has claimed that the multi-year story arc, now a feature of most mainstream televised drama, is the lasting legacy of the series.<ref name="syfy oral"/> He stated that both [[Ronald D. Moore]] and [[Damon Lindelof]] used the 5-year narrative structure of ''Babylon 5'' as blueprints for their respective shows, ''[[Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)|Battlestar Galactica]]'' and ''[[Lost (2004 TV series)|Lost]]''.<ref name="newsarama 2019"/> He also claims ''Babylon 5'' was the first series to be shot in the [[16:9 aspect ratio]], and to use 5.1 channel sound mixes.<ref name="syfy oral">{{Cite web |url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/an-oral-history-of-babylon-5-the-beloved-tv-novel-that-showed-a-different-way-to-tell-sci |title=An oral history of Babylon 5: The beloved TV novel that showed a different way to tell sci-fi |last=Granshaw |first=Lisa |date=June 27, 2018 |website=SYFY WIRE |access-date=February 22, 2019 |quote=The biggest legacy in many ways has been the five-year arc. In the years since B5, starting with Lost and Battlestar [Galactica], which took that concept to its next level, nearly every dramatic series now has a multi-year arc. What started out the aberration has become the rule. That one singular development changed the television landscape forever in ways that we are still discovering. |archive-date=December 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219224411/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/an-oral-history-of-babylon-5-the-beloved-tv-novel-that-showed-a-different-way-to-tell-sci |url-status=live }}</ref> It was an early example of widespread use of CGI rather than models for space scenes, which allowed for more freedom and larger scale in creating said scenes. While praised at the time, due to budgetary and mastering issues these sequences are considered to have aged poorly.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://domnardireviews.wordpress.com/2015/03/02/babylon-5-retrospective-legacy/ |title="Babylon 5" Retrospective (Legacy) |last=Dom |date=March 2, 2015 |website=NardiViews |access-date=February 22, 2019 |quote=Unfortunately, the production values date the show. As TV screens get bigger and audiences become accustomed to HD, I worry that most modern viewers will be put off by the dated effects and low visual quality. |archive-date=October 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201021205209/https://domnardireviews.wordpress.com/2015/03/02/babylon-5-retrospective-legacy/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

A recurring theme among reviewers is that the series was more than the sum of its parts: while variously criticizing the writing, directing, acting and effects, particularly by comparison to current television productions, reviewers praised the consistency of plotting over the series' run, transcending the quality of its individual elements. Many retrospectives, while criticizing virtually every individual aspect of the production, have praised the series as a whole for its narrative cohesion and contribution to serialized television.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://ordinary-times.com/2014/05/15/why-babylon-5-is-the-best-and-worst-television-science-fiction-show-ever-made/ |title=Why Babylon 5 is the Best - and Worst - Television Science Fiction Show Ever Made |last=Kelly |first=Tod |date=May 15, 2014 |website=Ordinary Times |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=November 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129112922/https://ordinary-times.com/2014/05/15/why-babylon-5-is-the-best-and-worst-television-science-fiction-show-ever-made/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://eugenia.queru.com/2011/02/03/a-second-look-at-babylon-5/ |title=A second look at Babylon 5 |date=February 4, 2011 |website=Eugenia's Rants and Thoughts |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=December 3, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201203234625/http://eugenia.queru.com/2011/02/03/a-second-look-at-babylon-5/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dvewlsh.com/news/if-you-go-to-zhadum-you-will-die-or-rewatching-babylon-5-remembering-harlan-ellison/ |title=If You Go to Z'Ha'Dum, You Will Die; or, Rewatching Babylon 5, Remembering Harlan Ellison |last=Walsh |first=Dave |date=August 2, 2018 |website=Dave Walsh, writer, Dude |access-date=February 22, 2019 |archive-date=January 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123204120/https://www.dvewlsh.com/news/if-you-go-to-zhadum-you-will-die-or-rewatching-babylon-5-remembering-harlan-ellison/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Giesbrecht |first1=Jennifer |title=Babylon 5 Is the Greatest, Most Terrible SF Series |url=https://www.tor.com/2019/06/13/babylon-5-is-the-greatest-most-terrible-sf-series/ |access-date=June 15, 2019 |work=[[Tor.com]] |date=June 13, 2019 |archive-date=November 29, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129114628/https://www.tor.com/2019/06/13/babylon-5-is-the-greatest-most-terrible-sf-series/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Producer John Copeland said: "You're not really tuning in to watch the visual effects," instead, people are watching a two-decades-old show because "the storytelling does hold up" and "you wanna spend more time with the characters."<ref name="Cooper" />

[[DC Comics|DC]] began publishing [[Babylon 5 novels, short stories and comic books#Comic books|''Babylon 5'' comics]] in 1994, with stories (initially written by Straczynski) that closely tied in with events depicted in the show, with events in the comics eventually being referenced onscreen in the actual television series.<ref>{{cite web |title=Guide to DC's Babylon 5 comic |url=http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/comic/index.html |publisher=The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5 |access-date=December 23, 2011 |archive-date=February 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221155018/http://www.midwinter.com/lurk/comic/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Media franchise#Development to other forms|franchise]] continued to expand into short stories, RPGs, and novels, with the [[Technomage (Babylon 5)|Technomage trilogy]] of books being the last to be published in 2001, shortly after the spin-off television series, ''[[Crusade (TV series)|Crusade]]'', was canceled. Excepting movie rights, which are retained by Straczynski, all production rights for the franchise are owned by Warner Bros.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a855453/babylon-5-revival-wont-ever-happen-j-michael-straczynski/ |title=Babylon 5 creator says revival won't EVER happen |last=Joe Anderton |date=April 23, 2018 |website=Digital Spy |access-date=February 7, 2019 |archive-date=February 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209232059/https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/ustv/a855453/babylon-5-revival-wont-ever-happen-j-michael-straczynski/ |url-status=live }}</ref>