Hunter, Prey
Reviewed by Lady Keela Shanri
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This episode was rather boring. There were, I suppose, two plots going on, although they SEEMED to all be part of the same thing, more or less. I guess I'll start with the "main" plot first.
This OBNOXIOUS Earth official named Cranston, part of President Clark's staff, shows up on the station and tells the B5 command staff that a man named Dr. Everett Jacobs, a traitor to EarthGov, is suspected of hiding on Babylon 5. Jacobs has stolen dangerous information that could rip the entire Earth Alliance apart. He MUST be found.
Now, right away I knew this episode wasn't going to be any good, because of who was playing Cranston--Bernie Casey, who has got to be one of the WORST actors I have EVER seen! He was also on DS9, I hated him THERE, too! If you ever thought that Sinclair was wooden, this guy makes him look like a DYNAMO! He not only is incapable of showing ANY emotion in his voice, but he says all his lines in this stiff, halting way as if he never even learned how to READ OUT LOUD properly, let alone ACT! It was painful watching him.
Back to the plot--turns out that Cranston did not give them the ENTIRE story. One of Cranston's people, a TINY woman named Sarah, arranges a secret meeting with Sheridan. She then procedes to tell him that this guy, Jacobs, is NOT a traitor. EarthGov wants him shut down because he's one of the few who knows, or at least suspects, that Clark was behind Santiago's death! Dr. Jacobs examined then Vice President Clark on the day that the "accident" with EarthForce One took place, and he discovered that Clark was NOT sick that day, which is what prevented him from being on EarthForce One. He was perfectly fine! He has all the medical examinations of Clark during the time in question right on a data crystal, which Cranston's men are desperate to find and destroy. SHE wants the crystal so that they can have evidence to use against Clark. It's not enough by itself, but they need as much evidence as they can get and it's a significant start.
Sheridan is understandably a bit miffed, because since she came to him so late, the search is now already underway. To get to the guy in time, they will now have to get around the station's OWN security force! But he figures out something--he sends Garibaldi on an undercover mission. Garibaldi then decides to take Franklin along, because Franklin knew the guy and would be best able to talk him into going along with them. This results in probably the best parts of the episode, including a wonderful bit of continuity back to the EARLY first season. I also loved Garibaldi's "disguise" (consisting of funky old clothes and a brown fedora, enhancing his "film-noir-hard-boiled-cop" image even more) and the way he gets Franklin to meet him in secret--by putting CARTOON ballons with the message in them in-between frames of a seemingly pointless "birthday" message! (It's not Franklin's birthday). But of course the BEST part of the whole episode was Garibaldi's "bad mood" speech.
They eventually find Jacobs, about to be killed by some thugs in Down Below, and rescue him. Meanwhile, Cranston has just figured out that the station's own internal sensors can be re-set to find him, and it will only take HOURS instead of the weeks or months it would have taken otherwise! Now our heroes have only a couple of hours to figure out where they can hide somebody where even an enhanced scan won't find him.
And now, on to the sub-plot, which concerns Kosh's mysterious ship, and Sheridan's resolve to one way or another, by golly, LEARN something about the Vorlons. This results in a whole lot of those ominous, cryptic sayings that Kosh is so famous for, and some great forboding. Such as when Kosh tells Sheridan "You are not ready" to see what he really looks like, or the bit about "fighting legends", or his admitting that yes, he DID reach out to Sheridan and touch his mind for that bizarre dream in "All Alone in the Night." "I listened to the song. Your mind became the song." That echoes what he said to Talia when she asked for understanding in "Deathwalker", does it not? "Listen to the music, not the song".
But the most significant part of this subplot came when Kosh summons Sheridan to his quarters and then will not come out and say, clearly, WHY he has done so. Sheridan, irritated beyond belief, finally yells, "WHAT DO YOU WANT?!!"
Kosh's response? "NEVER ask that question!"
Hmmmn...if you recall, Mr. Morden kept asking all the different Ambassadors "What do you want?" Since then, Mr. Morden has DEFINITELY shown himself (to us, but not to any of the actual characters) to be working for the Shadows.
Could it be that the Vorlons not only know about the Shadows' existence, a piece of information that VERY few people still alive have, but have ALSO had actual DEALINGS with them in the past...?
Then the two plots come together, as Kosh allows Sheridan and the others to hide Dr. Jacobs in his ship, which can resist any scan. He then sends the ship through the jumpgate. Angry that he has not been informed of any departures, Cranston DEMANDS that they scan the ship before they allow it to jump. They do--and discover only one life form. One ALIEN life form.
This finally convinces Cranston that Jacobs must not be on the station (since he already did that fancy modified sensor-sweep thingie), and, thank the gods, he leaves. YAY!!
Kosh's ship comes back, and unceremoniously DUMPS Dr. Jacobs onto the floor of the docking bay. It turns out that the Vorlons use organic technology. So, the alien life form that the sensors picked up on the ship--
WAS the ship itself!
And then we see Sheridan, at the very end, finally giving the precious data crystal to the woman. She says that they just scored a big victory for "the good guys". But can she be trusted? Is she trying to get as much evidence as possible to PROVE the case against President Clark...or to get it all in one place so it can be DESTROYED more easily? Whatever the case, I kept saying to Sheridan as I watched this scene, "You did at least make a COPY of this thing, didn't you?"
Was she telling the truth or not? I suspect we'll find out in later episodes...
Be seeing you!
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