Synopsis:
Dock workers go on strike to protest the unfavourable working conditions.
G'kar hunts down for anybody who owns the G'quon'Eth flower as the time
for the most important ceremony for the followers of G'quon draws near,
only to find to his dismay, only Londo owns one of them. Commander Sinclair
strives to solve both problems, especially with the arrival of an EarthGov
trade negotiator that carries the threat of the evocation of the Rush Act.
Review:
This could have been just your average filler episode, but for two things:
increasingly gloomy news about the state of Earth and Londo's reasoning
for annoying G'kar so.
For what it's worth, the ISN reporter with the instant noodle curls was
back, for a while, thankfully. And got sent off (Yay!) with a threat
to be sent to the brig.
Also, it was, in a sense, one of my favourites, just for the sheer pleasure of seeing Sinclair outwit the (very prissy) trade negotiator, and solving G'kar's religious quandary. The man's a genius! Too bad he couldn't get enough sleep <g>. Too bad too, that just because of his 'memory loss' in the Battle of The Line, he never got promoted beyond Commander, because he really deserves to be Captain at least. But then, his greater destiny lies elsewhere, so I suppose all worked out in the end, huh?
It was also, a rather unconventional episode from your typical sci-fi show
point of view. Rarely, a show would concern itself with the 'normal people',
the proletariat (man, I just can't stop using that word since reading '1984')
in this manner. Usually, it's assumed everything's going all peachy, and
nobody has any significant complaint. Usually too, in a show like this,
the station would be 
state-of-the-art,
built with the best materials available, and not lacking in any way. In
other words, if the show was about Babylon 4, and not 5 (cue mild laughter
here, please), and hasn't disappeared into God-knows-where (now, I know
where it went, but trying to engage some late spoiler damage control here).
And who knew, human nature still haven't changed over the years ::unsurprised gasp::, what with all the trade squabbles and the high still occasionally forgetting the low until they got nipped in the butt. And oh yes, politicians are still as smarmy as ever, although we're beginning to see some fascist tendencies too. Worrying trend. But like Sinclair says, "What else is new?"
And finally the row between G'kar and Londo. Now they're always fun to watch. And Londo's reason wasn't purely in jest; it was a small bitter revenge for Ragesh 3. Reminds you sharply that he isn't always the jester. And G'kar isn't always the clumsy villain; the (brief) discussion between him and Na'toth on the matter of faith was illuminating, we could see the faint traces for the noble character he will develop and eventually be. And how smart of Sinclair to remember physics, just in time to prevent another intergalactic row. Bet they would have to rewrite the religious books on this small matter....
And despite the crises were averted, as in usual Babylon 5 tradition, Sinclair
gets a warning about his actions. He gambled this time and won, but the
accumulated effects of all the ill will will catch up to him. *sigh* Things
were never easy on Babylon 5.
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