B5 DVD update

Season one is out on DVD now. Check DVD Price Search for the best prices. Here are the product details from Amazon.com:

• The Gathering / In the Beginning
• Season One: Signs and Portents
• Season Two: The Coming of Shadows
• Season Three: Point of No Return (August 12, 2003)
• Season Four: No Surrender, No Retreat (not announced yet)
• Season Five: The Wheel of Fire (not announced yet)

jms speaks

JMS posted the following to rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated on June 9, 2002:

From: jmsatb5@aol.com (Jms at B5)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated
Subject: Re: Need early B5 scripts for Captioning

> The jollies I'm getting right now is that it looks like DVD is for real....

Yeah, it's real...I was holding off saying anything until WB or someone else could announce it, but since it's come up here via the captioning institute...yeah, as noted, it's real.

Season One will be out in a boxed set this Fall, and they're going to be including at minimum two commentaries from me, probably on Signs and Portents and Chrysalis (it's a matter of how much time and energy I can give to it given that there's no fees involved and I'm in the midst of Jeremiah), and if possible, Babylon Squared, maybe Sky Full of Stars. They'd also like to film an on-camera intro by me (but I guess folks will buy it anyway, even with that particular horror included).

They're pulling together a lot of stuff on this release so that there are plenty of extras this time around, now that the value of the DVDs has been shown by the first release.

jms

(jmsatb5@aol.com)
(all message content (c) 2002 by synthetic worlds, ltd.,
permission to reprint specifically denied to SFX Magazine
and don't send me story ideas)

From: jmsatb5@aol.com (Jms at B5)
Subject: Re: Need early B5 scripts for Captioning

> Have they decided on aspect ratio? >

Widescreen.

jms

JMS posted the following to rec.arts.sf.tv.babylon5.moderated on June 25, 2002:

On the DVDs, last I heard they'll be out around mid-November, with the whole first season at about a hundred bucks. I did the commentaries on Signs and Portents and Chrysalis, and an on-camera intro and interview. They've also done new interviews with Rick Biggs, Claudia, John Iacovelli, John Copeland, Stephen Furst, Jerry Doyle and others. So it should be a pretty big deal overall, much better than the movie dvd.

And shortly thereafter:

One error. Apparently Claudia had agreed to do the interview, then canceled at the last minute.

jms

Why no Michael O'Hare in the DVD extras? (July 5, 2002)

WB was frantic to find Michael. They had no direct contact information for him. They went through SAG which said they didn't have a current listing for either Michael or his agent. They asked me for help, and I gave them a number which I had a while ago but didn't work. So next we tried Sandy Bruckner, who had another number for him, which I gave to WB, and they said they left messages at that number but never heard a reply. This was all at very short notice, and there was only a week to try and track him down. B5-DVD maven Scott Devine at WB can directly confirm that they were looking for him everywhere, but the clock finally ran out.

More from JMS on August 13, 2002:

The disk has an on-camera introduction by me (despite my warnings that this would undoubtedly drive down sales), a letter of introduction each by me and Doug Netter, and the half-hour piece features new interviews with Rick Biggs, Stephen Furst, me, Doug, efx maven Mitch Suskin, makeup whiz John Vulich, and others.

They're tentatively targeting next April for season 2, and the following November for season 3.

Last update: May 26, 2003