This is a must see movie for all those who call themselves a fan of Babylon 5. This is how it all starts. The reason of the Human-Minbari war, and why the Babylon stations were built. There are a lot of questions that is not answered in the B5 series, but you get a lot of answers by watching this spectacular movie. One of the best Sci-Fi movies for TV ever made.

Before watching In the Beginning I had only ever heard of Babylon 5 in passing. I knew it was well respected amongst its fans and had earned critical acclaim. After watching this film I became an avid fan of the series. In the Beginning tells the tale of the Earth/Minbari war, Earth was on the rise as an interstellar power and filled with confidence after defeating the Dilgar. Many races were courting Earth's favour, in particular the Centauri, a former power in the cosmos now in the twilight of its Empire. The tale is told in retrospect by Londo Mollari (Peter Jurasik), then just a lowly liason to the Earth government, but now an aging and sad Emperor. Through his narration you get a sense of the importance of the events surrounding the war and the consequences for all life in the universe as a result of it.The special effects are of good quality, on par with the series but not of the same quality you'd find in a cinema release. Some of the scenes have been recycled from the first season of Babylon 5 (particularly those shots involving the Battle of the Line and Michael O'Hare) but coupled with Peter Jurasik's voice over they prove to be very effective in portraying the relentlessness of the Minbari and the courage of the humans in the face of destruction.Despite the conspicuous absence of Micheal Garibaldi (Jerry Doyle), all of the series regulars make an appearance. It was interesting to see a young looking John Sheridan (Bruce Boxleitner) in his much talked about battles with the Minbari and the events surrounding Delenn's (Mira Furlan) proclamation of war against the humans after the death of the Minbari leader Dukhat. However, it must be said that the star of the film is Londo Mollari. Anyone familiar with the regular series will appreciate Peter Jurasik's performance and his subtle references to the mistakes he made in the past.In the Beginning can be watched by anyone. I came to it with no knowledge of the regular series and enjoyed myself immensely. It tells a stirring story of heroism, courage in the face of overwhelming odds and hope for the future. Those fans of the series that haven't seen it yet will no doubt come away with a greater appreciation for Babylon 5. It fills in a lot of the history surrounding the Earth/Minbari war and has a great ending that links in directly to the double episode War Without End from the third season of B5 (it my confuse those not familiar with the series though). That said, those interested in good sci-fi would do well to see this telemovie as it shows what can be done with good writing, wonderful acting and good special effects. The best of the Babylon 5 telemovies.

This is one of the best movies I have ever seen! I wish I could have seen this on a large screen. The story is more or less the true beginning of the Babylon 5 saga, and we get to see the events that started it all. The Earth/Minbari War, the battle of the Line, and the death of Minbari's greatest leader Dukhat. A must see for the Babylon 5 fan. And anyone that hasn't seen Babylon 5 should see this for their lack of vision.

Having only recently become interested in Babylon 5, I eagerly picked this movie up after watching a few snippets of it on TNT. Although unfamiliar with the characters and storyline of the series, the format of the movie(as a story told by Londo Mollari) helped make it more understandable.Furthermore, I also found the characters and story here to be very engaging and enjoyable. Sheridan(Bruce Boxeleitner) and Delenn(Mira Furlan) were especially well written and acted. Being a hard-core Star Trek fan, I didn't expect to find a science fiction series that could equal(or in some aspects, surpass) it, so I was pleasantly surprised discovering Babylon 5. This movie has encouraged me to take more notice of the series and learn more about the storyline mapped out in this movie.Kudos to the writers and directors. It's a shame that the series is over with. I hope that they eventually release the entire series(especially the third season!) on VHS and/or DVD.