Star Trek veteran turns Babylon 5 into the show's best recurring character

as if Jonathan Klotz | Published

For better or worse, the Star Trek: The First Series After the series ended, they found their work associated with science fiction for decades. It worked well for Walter Koenig, the original Chekhov who had a late-career revival on . Babylon 5 As Albert Bester, the evil Psi-Cop who was a staple of the series' five-season run. Chekhov was supposed to appeal to younger fans, Bester was sly from the first scene to the last, and through it all, Kooning took whatever material he was given and knocked it right out of the park.

Albert Bester was the great villa of Babylon 5.

Walter Coyne Babylon 5 Like Albert Bester

It's about time Walter Coyne started Babylon 5 In "War of the Minds", the sixth episode of the show, he introduced the audience to the dark side of the Psi Corps from the very beginning. Albert Bester, an agent of the secretive Psi-Corps, lands on the space station to capture a renegade telepath. Bester doesn't get along with the station's commanders, first lying to Jeffrey Sinclair (Michael O'Hare) for many, often derailing the Psi-Cop's true mission if anyone gets hurt along the way. Koning's performance has been praised by fans since the release of Keel, and its 12 episodes are among the show's best to date.

More in common with Khan than Chekhov, Walter Koenig Babylon 5 Psi-Cop is driven by the desire to create a world where telepaths rule the world. He wasn't subtle about it either, and thankfully, none of the other characters held back when discussing their feelings for Bester, resulting in some great lines. Only a perfect match between actor and character can result in a line like this one delivered so seriously: “Piñata, huh? So, are you thinking of something bright and happy full of toys and candy for toddlers? Thank you! And that makes me feel good about our relationship,” he said.

There is no redemptive arc anywhere.

Enter Walter Koening. Babylon 5 Like Albert Bester

As the series continued and Walter Koenig became more comfortable playing Babylon 5 As the war of hatred heats up, Bester slowly transforms from an annoying adversary to an ally. That didn't last long, but it completely fell apart during Season 5 and the Telepath War. Sheridan's (Bruce Boxleitner) telepathic colony begins with the best of intentions to try and shelter the space station, but before Bester can get his hands dirty, he nearly destroys the fledgling alliance.

The strict rules and rigid discipline of the Psi Corps, exemplified by the motto "Corps is Mother, Corps is Father," were embraced wholeheartedly by Baker and his sense of superiority. The failure of the telepath war helped his faith even after the collapse of the corporation, and indeed, at first, the Season 5 storyline would not be the end of Psi Cop. Walter Koenig was slated to appear again in Babylon 5 turn on, CrusadeBut the show was canceled before it happened, which is a shame, given how much it fell at the end of the show, it had unlimited story potential from the ashes.

Like Walter Koenig's performance as Chekhov's In Star Trek: The First Series It is, no one says that he is truly great Sci-fi The role was Albert Bester. Babylon 5It will be difficult to argue. We had five terrifying sightings, sleight-of-hand mind control and dramatic comebacks, including a delightfully dry scene: “Anatomically impossible, Mr. Garibaldi. But you'll be glad you tried. In no episode was there an attempt to give Bester a redemption arc or to paint him as anything other than a narcissist willing to do whatever it takes to achieve his goals.




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