Written by J. Michael Straczynski and Larry DiTillio
Directed by Janet Greek

The final episode of the second season of Babylon 5 begins the payoff of what has been set up in the first and second seasons until now. There’s intrigue, drama, betrayal, consequences and a space battle to be had.

Lt. Keffer (Robert Rusler) and Captain Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) are out training with Starfuries when Sheridan is called back to Babylon 5 by Lt. Commander Ivanova (Claudia Christian). Apparently, the Centauri have invaded the space of the Drazi and the Pak’ma’ra. Centauri Ambassador Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik) argues they are creating a buffer zone around the Centauri empire. Londo is uncomfortable when Sheridan states that everything is falling apart and the Centauri are at the center of it. However, he fires back with the accusation that Captain Sheridan is having delusions of grandeur.

Mr. Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle) meets with Sheridan and says Londo isn’t the same as he used to be. Garibaldi says that Londo is afraid and he’s trapped in the middle of events he has no control over.

Minbari Ambassador Aide Lennier (Bill Mumy) and Centauri Ambassador Aide Vir (Stephen Furst) are commiserating over what it’s like to be an aide to the Ambassadors. This is an ongoing thing for them.

Keffer hears from another pilot about a “ghost” in hyperspace. He tracks down Mitch Harvey (Rick Hamilton), who apparently saw one and they compare notes on what they’ve seen. Keffer’s sensors were offline when he encountered the “ghost” but Mitch is able to give him sensor readouts from his own encounter.

The head of the Ministry of Peace, Frederick Lantz (Roy Dotrice), arrives at Babylon 5, ostensibly for negotiations with the warring races. His assistant, Mr. Wells (John Vickery), wants to meet with the local leaders of the Night Watch. Mr. Wells meets with Ivanova to try to get a feel for where she stands. He is trying to bribe her to spy on the goings on at Babylon 5. She turns him down flat, stating her perceptions and worries about what the Night Watch is doing are correct.

A Narn heavy cruiser arrives at Babylon 5 asking for sanctuary. Sheridan meets with G’Kar (Andreas Katsulas) and says he will give the ship sanctuary. G’Kar is hopeful that his, along with the visit from the Ministry of Peace, means Earth will take sides in the war. When he attempts to have a conversation with Lantz, he is rebuffed.

Mr. Wells meets with Zak (Jeff Conaway) about his lack of reports. Zak isn’t sure he’s comfortable with what they are asking for. When Mr. Wells presses him for information about a store owner who has said disparaging things about the President, Zak confirms what he already knows.

Lantz confronts Sheridan about his use of Centauri combat models in training exercises. Lantz orders him to stop and states he is there to sign a non-aggression treaty with the Centauri. Sheridan is having misgivings about the situation, including what he is being told by Earth’s government.

Sheridan and Ivanova are interrupted by Londo, who has learned about the Narn cruiser he is sheltering. Before they can do anything, a Centauri cruiser arrives. Sheridan won’t break a promise and orders Starfuries to launch and protect the Narn cruiser. Mr. Lantz arrives and says they will destroy everything he’s working on. Sheridan will not break a promise. He tells Londo that while the Narn cruiser is in Babylon 5 space, he will protect them, with deadly force if necessary.

The Centauri fire upon the station. The Centauri cruiser is destroyed and the Narn ship escapes. Lantz blames Sheridan and tells him he must apologize. He’s threatened with being replaced if he doesn’t do as he’s being ordered.

While escorting the Narn cruise through hyperspace, Keffer picks up readings similar to the ones Mitch gave him. He breaks off escorting the cruiser to investigate. He encounters a Shadow vessel, although he doesn’t know what it is, and begins recording it as he follows. When the ship turns on him, he sends his readings back to Babylon 5 before it attacks.

Sheridan is on his way to a meeting of the ambassadors when a bomb is placed on board the shuttle he’s riding. He jumps out of the shuttle just before it explodes. Delenn turns to Ambassador Kosh and asks him to do something as they are watching Sheridan fall. Kosh appears as different things to the different races gathered below as he rescues Sheridan. Only Londo appears to not have seen anything.

Ivanova is celebrating Hannukah as she narrates what the end of the year means for Babylon 5. Once the non-aggression treaty is signed, the Centauri begin to attack other non-aligned worlds. The shopkeeper who criticized the President has his store closed down and he is arrested for sedition. A clip of Keffer’s last recording is leaked to ISN, showing a Shadow vessel to the masses for the first time, although they claim not to know who this new race is.

There is so much to unpack in one episode, yet to the credit of the writers, director, and editor, it doesn’t feel rushed. The Centauri are looking to expand beyond their borders and take on other races beside the Narn. What at first seems to be retribution after the Narn pushed the Centauri off of their world now is turning into something much more. With The Shadows behind them, the Centauri are feeling pretty invincible at this moment. The way Londo talks to Sheridan is indicative of this.

The Ministry of Peace was already presented with 1984-doublespeak overtones with the creation of the Nightwatch in an earlier episode. While at the same time cultivating a culture of betrayal on Babylon 5, they are negotiating with the Centauri to keep them out of Earth’s backyard, much the same way the Soviet Union negotiated with the Nazis just prior to the outbreak of World War II. To many viewers, it seems like it will backfire the same way, but there are some things we don’t know just yet.

The attempt on Sheridan’s life is rather dramatic. Delenn persuades Ambassador Kosh to save him because he is important to the prophecy of events they are both aware of. Kosh’s appearance outside of his encounter suit shows that the Vorlons, as one of the ancient races, have been visiting many different races over the eons. Only Londo says he did not see anything, but there’s a great deal of debate over what he means. On one hand, there’s a theory that since he has been “touched by The Shadows” the Vorlons won’t reveal themselves to him. Then there’s a possibility that what he did see was so disturbing to him that he won’t talk about it.

The underused Keffer makes his last appearance here as he is intent on getting evidence of what he knows is lurking in hyperspace, and it costs him his life. It’s rather anti-climatic since although he was on the opening credits, he didn’t really appear all that much throughout the series until now. Garibaldi is on the money about Londo. He’s always been sympathetic to him, and he sees that Londo made the choices he did to elevate himself from a buffoon whom the Centauri government wanted someplace far away. However, he sees the Narn being hunted like prey by the Centauri no matter where they turn and can’t stomach that, even while he’s sympathetic to Londo.

The actors all do a tremendous job in this episode. I’ve heard complaints from new viewers to the series now that it’s on Amazon Prime that the acting is wooden. You have to keep in mind that this was in the 1990s when green screens were first starting to be used with some regularity, especially when it came to computerized special effects, especially on television. The acting became much better as the series wore on and in this episode, we see some of the best. Roy Dotrice is a name I recognized from several audiobooks I’ve listened to, so seeing him act was a nice surprise. John Vickery is a veteran character actor and plays the heavy very well. It’s the regular cast who get some real moments to shine, though. Sheridan gets to show both his abilities as a commander and his misgivings as a citizen about what’s happening around him. Jeff Conaway gets to give Zack a little more depth as the “easy fifty credits” he thought he was getting himself into seem to come with a higher price than he was willing to pay.

The Fall of Night is an excellent end to the second season of Babylon 5. It’s not really a cliffhanger, but it leaves some serious events in motion that will take a while to payoff. It has a feeling that there is an all-out war about to happen, yet no one is really sure exactly why. Either Straczynski was prescient, or we humans are doomed to repeat our actions over and over without learning a thing.

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