Star Trek Nearly Destroyed Another Fan-Favorite Sci-Fi Series
Star Trek and Babylon 5 are both beloved franchises, and the world is better off having both of them. But there was a time when the former almost prevented the latter from happening. Let’s dive into how this dark timeline almost happened.
Studios Limited Sci-Fi On TV
First, it’s important to have the context that epic space sci-fi TV shows like The Next Generation and Babylon 5 weren’t really the norm in the late 80s and 90s. While the shows had plenty of fans, they were the exception to the rule, and many upstart sci-fi would be canceled before they really had a chance to get rolling. Of course, Star Trek was already massively popular at this point, and the studios had plenty of confidence in it.
Babylon 5 Almost Never Happened Because Of Star Trek
But would these studios have the same levels of Star Trek confidence in a new series like Babylon 5? J. Michael Straczynski thought so when he pitched the idea for the series to studios. Straczynski involved producers Douglas Netter and John Copeland in his idea for “Casablanca in space,” which he believed could be a sci-fi hit that follows humans and aliens on a neutral diplomatic space station in the wake of several intergalactic wars.
Deep Space Nine Beat Babylon 5 To Air
The pitch was convincing enough, but studios and executives already felt that there didn’t need to be multiple sci-fi epics on TV at the same time. In other words, Star Trek was enough, and there wasn’t room for Babylon 5. This sentiment only worsened when 1993’s Deep Space Nine dropped its premiere before Babylon 5 dropped its first TV episode, “Midnight on the Firing Line.”
Babylon 5 Will Forever Be Compared To Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine takes place on a space station administered by the United Federation of Planets focused on keeping peace and facilitating diplomacy. Sound familiar? While the show’s release timeline makes it seem like Babylon 5 cribbed from Deep Space Nine, the truth may be the other way around.
Did Deep Space Nine Steal From Babylon 5?
While Star Trek: Deep Space Nine came out in 1993, before Babylon 5’s 1994 TV release, the latter series was pitched way back in 1987. While the jury is out on Deep Space Nine stealing from Babylon 5, some weird coincidences exist. Primarily, the fact that B5 was pitched before Warner Bros acquired Paramount, meaning that the producers of Deep Space Nine, Rick Berman and Michael Pillar, may have been given some ideas to borrow from B5’s plot without being explicitly told that those ideas were stolen.
Both Series Are Among The Best Sci-Fi Of All Time
Straczynski himself had some suspicions, saying, “Were Pillar and Berman aware of B5 at any time? No. Of that, I am also confident,” adding, “The only question in my mind is to what degree did the development people steer them?”
Of course, there will likely never be official confirmation that Star Trek: Deep Space Nine stole from Babylon 5. Still, fans of both series will inevitably look at the evidence and make these assumptions. They’re both pretty great sci-fi shows, so why not just watch them both and thank our lucky stars that B5 didn’t get the kibosh?
