Babylon 5: The Complete Second Season

In the year 2259, space station Babylon 5, crewed by humans and positioned in neutral territory, serves as a peaceful hub for four alien races--the Narn, Centauri, Vorlon, and Minbari--who fight for control of the surrounding galaxy. Creator J. Michael Straczynski's visionary five-year story arc made the series (1994-1998) tough to join midstream during its broadcast life, but it's what makes the show perfect for DVD, allowing viewers to ingest a season's worth of story in a matter of hours. If Year One was the intro to the five-year tale, the 22 episodes chronicling Year Two set in motion the sci-fi political soap opera, with a new man taking the captain's chair, the appearance of a mysterious alien race, and an increasingly complicated diplomatic shuffle among warring peoples. No matter; neophytes will get up to speed fairly quickly along with the station's freshman commander, played by Bruce Boxleitner, and this Emmy- and Hugo-award-winning series boasts guest stars with tons of geek appeal--Dwight Schultz, Adrienne Barbeau, Walter Koenig--as well as regular Bill Mumy (who starred in Lost in Space as a kid). Plus the DVD extras are catnip for fans: new digital widescreen transfers, a soundtrack remastered in Dolby Digital 5.1, introductions and commentaries by Straczynski and cast members Boxleitner, Claudia Christian, and Jerry Doyle, two featurettes, a gag reel, and more. Recommended. (M. Johanson)