For the Babylon 5 aficionados.

For the Babylon 5 aficionados.

Originally shared by Furr Bear

The B5 Books crew sent this out in an email recently:

Last week J. Michael Straczynski posted the following on social media. We wanted to make sure you didn't miss it.

I've often commented on the fact that the Babylon 5 characters still live in my head and talk to me. Sometimes they're big, huge, philosophical conversations, sometimes just little trivial stuff. It's like they live in the corners of my bedroom and come out to play when the lights go out.

Had that happen again around 5 am when I'm trying to sleep. Picking up on Delenn's problems with the dictionary -- you define one word by looking up another word (e.g., "sphere, see 'round'"), and that word is defined by another word you have to look up, it never ends -- I hear this.

Delenn: For Minbari, a word is its own unique thing; there is no other word that describes it. It is a thing unto itself, there is just one of it, and it needs no further clarification or explanation.

Sheridan: You can't just have one word for something. Look, if you're angry at someone, what's the word for anger?

Delenn: rak'ka

Sheridan: Okay, so let's say you're furious with someone, what's the word for that?

Delenn: rak'ka

Sheridan: No, not just angry, I mean red-faced, yelling, really just berserker-level rage.

Delenn: (sighs) rak'ka

Sheridan: I don't understand.

Delenn: This much is obvious.

Sheridan: Okay, let me go the other way. What if you're just a little bit angry? What we would call being just annoyed with someone. What's the word for that?

Delenn: rak'ka

Sheridan: Damn it, if the word is always the same, if there's just one word for it, then how the hell is someone supposed to know how angry you are at them?

Delenn: (leans in ominously) By how LOUDLY we SAY it. Do you have a problem with that...human?

Sheridan: None whatsoever.

(And I'm like: are we done? Can I go back to sleep now?)

Had the same thing happen with Londo and Sheridan a while back. It went like this:

Londo: Captain, there is something I do not understand. There is this human term, "bulls-eye." Now, I have looked this up. I have seen photographs. There is not a bull on it. There is not an eye on it. Can you explain this to me?

Sheridan: It's just a slang term for something that's flat and wooden and has a target in the middle.

Londo: Ah! Like you, then.