Written by J. Michael Straczynski
Directed by Kevin G. Cremin

On the surface, Exogenesis seems to be one of the few stand-alone episodes of the series, albeit with a common science fiction theme: some type of alien parasite infiltrates citizens of Babylon 5, changing their personalities. It would seem that it’s up to Dr. Franklin (Richard Biggs) and Marcus Cole (Jason Carter) to stop the parasites from spreading to the entire population and beyond.

Under the surface, though, there are a few more key things happening. David Corwin (Josh Coxx), who has been a familiar face on the bridge, but is not part of the main cast, receives a promotion. This prompts Commander Ivanova (Claudia Christian) and Captain Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) to consider bringing him into their inner circle. When she invites Corwin to come to her cabin for a talk, he gets the wrong idea. However, the discussion that follows indicates to Ivanova that he would not go against Earth, and they can’t trust him.

Meanwhile, Marcus is being shut out by the inner circle. When he suspects something nefarious is going on in Down Below, he first goes to Security Chief Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle) about it. Garibaldi dismisses his concerns. This is the start of Garibaldi seeming not to respond effectively to situations that crop up on the station.

The alien parasites are interesting. It is reminiscent of a Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, The Inner Light. By infecting humans, they allow those infected to see what they know. They are an ancient species that has seen much throughout the eons. The people they infected were infected voluntarily, as Marcus learns from his friend, Duncan (Aubrey Morris). They see themselves as the keepers of the past, present, and future. Duncan sacrifices the effect of the parasite to convince Marcus and Dr. Franklin that they don’t intend to infect anyone who isn’t willing.

There’s a bit of a missed opportunity here to tie the ancient parasites into the war with the Shadows. If they are so ancient and all-knowing, would being infected by them allow someone to learn about the ancient races such as the Vorlons and the Shadows? They tell Marcus and Dr. Franklin that they have seen so much and give that knowledge to their hosts. Why doesn’t Marcus question them more about it? Or is this maybe a bit of a nod to the fact that he’s out of the loop? Delenn is absent for this episode. She is the one who usually advocates for Marcus with the rest of the circle. If she were present, would they have investigated it further?

There is also the side story of the romantic tension between Marcus and Ivanova. While he and Dr. Franklin are being held by the humans infected by the parasites, Marcus picks the doctor’s brain about Ivanova. Later on, when Dr. Franklin is sitting with the command staff, he encourages Ivanova to give Marcus another chance. This leads Ivanova to believe Marcus was behind the flowers that Corwin brought to her quarters.

Exogenesis is not a great episode of the series. The theme is something that nearly every science fiction show has done at one point. The way the show could have capitalized on it for the ongoing story is missed out on. It ends up being one of the weakest episodes of the series. It’s character driven and the main cast handles their roles well, as usual. There are a few things to take note of for the ongoing story, but nothing major is missed if you skip it. The supporting cast here, with the exception of Aubrey Morris as Duncan isn’t all that impressive. Most of them just stand around looking menacing and they really don’t pull off the bring possessed by an alien thing convincingly.

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