"For two years they did this. They never ran out of courage. But in the end, they ran out of time." So much awe, admiration, honor, and deep sorrow is carried in that line.
Made even worse by the fact that *he* was the reason for the war lasting two more years. He gave the order to attack the diplomatic meeting, believing it was instead an arms deal to sell Centauri weapons to the Humans. Had he not done that, a ceasefire would likely have come about.
I get onions in my eyes every. Single. Time. Tricia O'Neill has experience in this. She was Captain Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise-C in "Yesterday's Enterprise", doomed from the start and yet facing her destiny head on.
@Brasswatchman Get out of here with that BS. We are here to get away from your kind. Take your TDS elsewhere. Everyone with a brain knows that it's the democrats who align with the shadows and do all the things presidency Clark did.
It would of pissed off the Warrior Caste that Humanity view them as the Night. As Warriors of Darkness. But they were. They were Genociding one species for the death of one man.
@Voidlord Oh no, I'd just hate to offend the guys coming to wipe humanity from existence. Also, was there ever a time when the Warrior Caste wasn't pissed about something?
I always loved the sheer raw honesty of her speech. It wasn't some rousing, rallying, warrior's cry, some call to valour. It was a desperate plea, and an admission that they were doomed. And that the best that could be done, was for any willing to go out and die in a bid to preserve the lives of many, and the continuation of their species.
@@Blisterdude123 Not even a guarantee. A *hope* of continuation. Because the Minbari would continue hunting humans likely for the next few decades and any escaping transports would be vulnerable to anyone and anything that decided to take advantage of them as an armed escort would draw the focus of the Minbari. And as we know, they're more than willing to twist logic to an extreme so they would say that "they were escorting military officers out therefore it was a military ship we destroyed."
+James Stephens -- The President is asking the survivors of a battle that took place mere hours ago to join a "forlorn hope" that will cost the lives of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to buy time for _hundreds_ to escape. The human race would almost certainly be extinct in a couple generations anyway. But there _will_ be future generations. - - -Sign me up.
Such cowardice..... thousands could die. But thousands more would live. Even if only hundreds, with p[roper tech, genetics would be monitored and the race could survive elsewhere and strike back in time. But a coward can only celebrate defeat out of fear of a victory come with sacrifice.
Every time I hear the President's speech here I think of Lepanto and feel the need to "...call upon the kings of Christendom for swords about the cross..."
No, hundreds every 10 minutes. if they can last an hour, it could be thousands. But there shouldn't be a single woman among those on the line. Mankind can survive with only a handful of men, but every woman we lose brings us closer to extinction.
This was why Sinclair was supposed to be so revered, it's a bit of a pity when the show first come out that you didn't quite realise that he was 1 of 200 or so survivors of thousands upon thousands that threw themselves into the fire of an insurmountable enemy.
It's even better if you remember that when Mollari says that line he is merely hours away from his own death: sacrificing himself to free Delenn and Sheridan.
The version of Mollari's speech about humanity was even more epic in the novelization. The part that stuck with me was the line where Mollari described a squadron of Starfuries being gunned down until one pilot remained, and instead of retreating, that pilot would fly as if the souls of his brethren were still flying into battle with him.
@LaCroix Ukraine is in a very different position from Earth in this series. Russia doesn’t want to wipe out every last Ukrainian, they want to assimilate and rule over them. And Ukraine has support from essentially the whole of the Western world. Earth had support from no one save some Narn arms dealers. Finally, Ukraine was attacked without provocation, while Earth is the party that screwed up badly and started this war by having a jumpy, hung-ho captain kill Dukhat. The situations are not comparable.
Humanity is one of the slowest species on the planet. We don't really have a fight or flight response. We just have a fight response. This is why people always underestimate how hard it is to intimidate someone, or why people who plan wars always underestimate how long and how costly it will be to fight them. We just aren't good at running away, and so we fight instinctively even when it doesn't make much sense to do so.
To be honest, I teared up when I saw the first guy go and walk out of the frame to his ship and all those who went after she said they will buy time for civilians. Signing their own death warrants, and no chance of coming home.
One thing I really love about this scene is what we in the model-building community refer to as the 'weathering' evidenced in it. These pilots and mechanics probably haven't had a wink of sleep in 48+ hours--who knows how many battles they've been through in the last two years--and you can see it, all of it, left unspoken in the grime, the shared glances, the expressions on their faces, and finally, the war-weary but dedicated lack of hesitation to report for duty one final time, knowing it's likely their last action in life.
Something not often thought about…every single pilot in that barracks dies on the Line. Every single one of the ten thousand ship we see in the brief shot in orbit over Earth is destroyed. All but twenty of them. When you think about that, all I can imagine is G’kar in the elevator with Vir. “Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. How can you apologize to them?” It’s a bit easier to understand how Clark was able to pull off what he did when you remember that.
Very well said. The resentment against the Minbari, and distrust of aliens in general had embedded itself within Earth society. The negative reaction to Delenn wanting to "bring Humans and Minbari closer together" was also understandable in that regard. The war had only been a decade away.
What's even worse is that the Minbari were equally responsible for the bad first contact. The warrior casts arrogance to believe that showing up to a meeting with someone you've never met with a drawn blade WOULDN'T lead to a violent response is ludicrous. Then to have their whole race call for genocide? Yeah, I wouldn't have been a fan either
@@Abrxas01 Before Delenn voted, the Grey Council was tied 4:4 on declaring war. Even if all 3 Warrior caste wanted it that still means that at least 1 Worker or Religious had also already voted in favor of war before Delenn - Religious - cast the deciding vote. Also I feel it needs must be pointed out that the Minbari are an ancient race that have probably been through dozens and dozens of first contacts, and yet presumably never ran into this situation before. Just sayin'. It seems stupid to us humans, but there's a real possibility that it's completely normal or logical for Drazi, Narns, Abbai, Centauri, Dilgar, Markab, pak'ma'ra, Llort, Vree, etc.. We could be the weird ones. Further it wasn't just that gunports were open, it's that they were open, _and_ Minbari scanners were so powerful that they effectively blinded Earth due to Earth's technology being so primitive by comparison. So Jankowski could see that gunports were open (due to visual confirmation) but couldn't get a read as to whether or not weapons were actually charging and ready to fire.
@@RogueShadows I'm aware of the interference from minbari sensors and like I said, primitives. Humans were primitive in comparison. Even the Duhat was shocked at the warriors approaching with guns out. He understood how that could be misconstrued. And no, i don't think humans are strange for their reaction unless all the other races have no survival instincts. Let's frame this in a face to face meeting instead of ship to ship so as to simplify it. Image you are out scouting around in an attempt to make contact with an unknown group of people. You know generally where they are but not what they look like. Suddenly a small group of scary looking beings appear. You don't know if these are the people you are looking for but they immediately draw their weapons are start to approach. You call out to them but they don't appear to listen and don't respond, they just keep approaching. Are you telling me that everyone else would respond differently? They wouldn't have survived long enough to be space fareing.
@@Abrxas01 Except they obviously did, and yet we don't know of any other time that the Minbari warrior caste's greeting habits caused problems. Dukhat might have seen a potential for problems but Dukhat was a very unusual Minbari. Note that after the attack Delenn, despite hearing the same thing at the same time about the gunports being open, still says that Humanity attacked without provocation. Again, stupid though it may seem to humans, evidence suggests that _we're_ the weirdos for not understanding that open gunports =/= hostile intent. At the very least, you have to wonder why Jankowski didn't, say, order a warning shot fired - something clearly not intended to hit the Minbari but equally clearly meant to indicate that they were panicking us.
"We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."
@@lacroix1159 Just because they were trying to surrender doesn't mean they weren't going to roll over and die. A little late, true, but use your brain perhaps?
Which is ironic as Churchill like all the others stood by in the inter war years and did nothing about the evil thatxwas allowed to rampage across continents. In the movie we find out that human trespass on Minbari space and provoked an attack.
Churchill was out of government during the interwar period. Warning that the Nazis were a problem. Calling for Britian to rearm for war. Chamberlain was the fool thinking, he could make a deal with Hitler.
I cry like a kid who skinned his knee every time. I ain’t got nothing to prove. Really doesn’t help that it comes *immediately* on the heels of Londo’s speech on humanity’s courage. For a solid seven or eight minutes I just go to pieces.
No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people but I ask you now, to step forward one last time, one last battle to hold the line against the night. May God go with you all. One of the most powerful speeches ever in television history.
I really like that they had her say that hundreds will survive for every ten minutes. I feel like a lesser show would have pumped those numbers up to sth ridiculous like thousands per minute. But having it be this relatively low amount makes their sacrifice even nobler because it will likely take more than hundreds of dead from the fighting fleet to even get these 10 minutes.
The novelization has Londo note that, to her credit, the President doesn’t mention that the Minbari might not care about the idea of “neutral territory”. That even the civilians who escaped may be hunted down and exterminated to the last child.
@@RogueShadows That’s why I think they were fleeing into uncharted space. Not even Neutral space, just the deep black. Huh, I wonder what happened to those that were evacuated before the line. I get the feeling they deactivated comms to Earth to hide their positions as they fled. That would be a good idea for a fanfic. A few decades later the refugee humans return with a war fleet to get vengeance on the Minbari, only to their shock humanity has survived.
@@Gothic7876 Not sure what kind of war fleet a bunch of refugees could have put together that would actually let them challenge the Minbari, at least not without finding a StarForge or something. Also you'd think that even with them fleeing into uncharted space they'd still send scouts back on occasion to check up on what's going on, so they should learn about the end of the Earth-Minbari War pretty fast.
Tricia O'neal is one of the greatest actresses I've ever had the pleasure to watch. Both here and in "Yesterday's Enterprise" she shows the nobility possible in any of us... If we'll take a stand for good and refuse to stand down until we win... Or bleed out.
Also M'Ola the mother in Believers ... In Trek : Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise C Kurak the Klingon testing Metaphasic Shielding with Dr Crusher Korinas of the Obsidian Order You've seen her more often than you think ,,,
In Babylon 5, humanity is the ideal of the noble savage. A race younger and seemingly less than all the others, less advanced in technology and civilisation. But we show courage, honour and nobility in battle that any can respect. As it is sad so shall it be: "A soldier does not fight because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him." Humanity has and always will refuse to be snuffed out like a candle, whimpering and honourless.
@lacroix1159 I never said that we were stupid. Even when fighting each other, we don't seek annihilation. We see in the video, from fighters to cruisers to armed shuttles and light transports, all are piloted and crewed by men and women choosing to die fighting, to not go quietly into the night. We will always seek a way to survive, and if that means fighting then we will
"No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people but I ask you now". If my president would ask this of me I've no doubt that I'd answer the call, she's practically asking you to save your family.
Thanh Tran -- yes. Because it wasn't actually Trump that was asking. It would be my people, my species, begging for one last chance to live. Boneheaded partisan politics wouldn't even matter at that point.
I have watched this scene countless times, and always, always shed tears. Sad tears and proud tears, because it gives me hope that humanity is far better than we currently act.
this speech always gets to me, the way those men and women walk towards death..not flinching...amazing. and as great a character as she turns out to be..delenn had a lot to answer for..which she never apologised for..if i remember rightly
All he needed to hear was that for every ten minutes hundreds of civilians could escape, when the chips are down that`s all the incentive I would need too. I am no hero, just an US Navy man.
@@zulu2049 Anyone who's willing to sacrifice their lives in defense of their species/country/people is a hero in my book. it's the assholes telling them who to fight i detest.
@@pendraco2000 I don`t know if your comment is positive or negative so I will say : I hate to fall back on the old saying "I was just following orders", but that's all I got.
During my time in Iraq my Squad watched the entire Babylon 5 series. When we watched “In the Beginning” and the Presidents speech came on not one of our 12 hardened combat hardened Infantry Soldiers had a dry eye. Every time I see this clip I think of my Brothers in Arms.
@Tin Watchman everyone in my squad made it home alive. Some of us were broken and injured, but we didn’t lose a single member. Thanks for your comments.
and the war started because of a misunderstanding between the humans and minbari, the minbari showed respect to the humans with their guns and the humans opened fire thinking the aliens were about to attack....damn if only they were a bit patient to see what happens
the humans in this war were fighting for survival, you were fighting to destroy other people's homeland. you are not the same. Cry for the hundreds of thousands you helped kill, instead of a fictional speech, ffs.
People who call "Game of Thrones" the greatest tv series ever apparently never saw Babylon Five. This series has a depth and complexity GoT can't begin to touch.
Daniel Bradford I've seen both. Babylon 5 was arguably the best Sci fi program when it comes to characters, and drama, and the space battles were damn good for their time. But they're very different shows, with very different production values.
B5 is prob my favorite sci fi story of all time, but GOT story is complete mind fuck. Id def say i love both hard but GOT is better written, more intricate story.
Babylon 5 excels at many things, but one which stays far, far from any other show are the speeches. This one, many Sheridan ones, Londo's storytelling. Kudos to all who wrote those.
@ yeah, 2019..watching this again and i feel the same..as soon as she asks..they start walking towards the hangers...what always gets me too..is knowing it's because of delenn the war even started...i cant remember, if she told sheridan that fact or she kept it secret from everyone on B5
And now that the darkness is coming once again to engulf civilization, we seem to be unable or unwilling to confront it. We let the darkness burn our cities, destroy our monuments, and abuse our people with, at most, token opposition.
Mulari's narration of the war up to the Battle of the Line gets me all the time. More so then the Presidents plea to hold the Line against st the night.
The version of Mollari's speech about humanity was even more epic in the novelization. The part that stuck with me was the line where Mollari described a squadron of Starfuries being gunned down until one pilot remained, and instead of retreating, that pilot would fly as if the souls of his brethren were still flying into battle with him.
One of the incredible pieces of SciFi entertainment on film. I still get goosebumps listening to Londo. The President's plea is still emotionally emphatic. 25 years later, it hasn't lost it.
That may be one of my favourite TNG episodes. The only one that comes to mind that may be better is the one where Picard lives a whole life on another planet, The Inner Light.
"...and you will once again be fighting for our freedom… Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution… but from annihilation. We are fighting for our right to live. To exist."
Unfortunately, the last decade or so have seen the rise of Cancel Culture shenanigans as well as extremist political and social views. We are lucky to have works like this. Zathras saw this coming, he tried to warn us, but no one listens to Zathras.
Watching the TNT 'BABYLON 5' movie "IN THE BEGINNING" and thinking how much this 1995 TV series is an allegory to the world of 2020. This scene is penultimate to the loss and strength humans must feel when faced with a greater and deadlier force never before imagined. -Jared Nil
She's a good character actor. That quiver in her voice when she said it, knowing she's asking people to die to save who they can is quite the soul stirring performance. I still tear up when I watch this scene.
You can see the starfury pilots square their shoulders. They know that they will die, the fear has left them leaving a grim determination to save as many as they can, and kill as many of the enemy as possible before they themselves die.
"We have continued to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy.... and they have not responded". Probably the most terrifying line in all of Babylon 5.
Same thing in the miniseries in Galactica. "After Picon was nuked the President offered a complete unconditional surrender. The Cylons didn't even respond!"
JMS really doesn't do bad writing. B5 was full of dialogue that would make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. "Hold the line against the night"? Wow!
@@Karajorma JMS wrote an entire 5 season arc from the start. I am sure the smaller stories were added along the way, but the overarching plan was there from the start. I think that is one of the reasons it works so well, we aren't randomly creating new bad guys or taking strange left turns with characters to fit in with a new style or writer.
As not only the President of Earth who stood against the night. She was also Captain of the Enterprise the Captain who also fought against hopeless odds.
Delenn was a psycho bitch who in a fit of rage practically signed under human extermination. I guess any human except John Sheridan can give too shits about what she thinks.
Delenn was a very noble woman who, after the war, came to realize her tragic error at start of the war, and spent the rest of her life doing all she could to make up for it. There was nothing evil or psycho about her.
Delenn watched someone she cared about die in her arms after what was (they thought at the time) an unprovoked attack by the human race. _OBVIOUSLY_ she was pissed when she gave the order to go to war and kill them in retaliation. And of course, _obviously_ once she learned of her error, she tried her best to make amends. Nothing evil about that. I'm pretty sure nearly anybody else would do or say the same in her situation.
Delenn was a genocidal monster. She ordered the genocide of humanity. No justification can ever be counted for this. And nothing she did made up for it. Her decision makes what Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot did look anodyne in comparison. A pox on her and her race.
I dunno, I think playing an integral part in helping the Younger Races finally get out from under the abusive guardianship of the Vorlons and Shadows or the crass apathy of the other First Ones might be a decent start. Or helping to free Earth from a tyrannical dictator who, when faced with the possibility of defeat, decided to attempt to glass the planet.
The Battle of the Line, where humans made their last stand against certain death should had been enough for the Grey Council to figure out that Humans and Minbari are bound people. Just think about this line from the Rangers Creed: "We stand on the bridge, and no one may pass." This was exactly what humans did at The Line. They stood at "Earths Bridge" so no Minbari might pass. I'm also pretty sure that Sinclair/Valen choose this line from his own experience at the Battle of the Line.
There is no greater honor or glory than to die next to your fellow warrior in defense of those you love. For what could be a more glorious end than to die with a smile of your face, a song in your heart and your enemies blood on your blade.
Humans they fight each other like organised feral animals but give them an enemy to all and see them unite with the ferocity of the greatest beast, they might not win but they will fight side by side with once enemy's to drive back the darkness.
This is why I very much would like the discovery of extraterrestial civilization more advanced than ours. The sheer discovery would force humanity to think past themselves and their petty species-internal conflicts, in the best case uniting the whole world to work together in equal harmony.
Wasn't that ferocious, they got their ass kicked all the way to earth and was on the verge of being wiped out. In a way, while they were animals, the minbari were clever hunters taking them out with ease.
@@willt2810 I beg to differ, the humans were ineffective, but still ferocious. A Tiger protecting her cubs will be ferocious and may even sacrifice herself to try and protect them, but ultimately that wouldn't do much good against a Tank. The ineffectual nature of the attack or defence does not undermine it's ferocity.
The way this war started is ironic and very accurate human behavior. When you have an incompetent bully at the helm of a 1502mtr battleship and a mysterious ancient alien civilization you already have all the ingredients necessary for one big powder keg. This battle showed courage and nobility yes but humans always been destructive and apprehensive and this time they paid a heavy price.
1:18 he actually doesn't die too long after making that comment. At the end of this movie he is watching camera footage of an imprisoned Delenn and Sheridan, which was seen in the series in the flash-forward. It is just before he asks G'kar to kill him before his keeper takes over to try and prevent them from escaping when he releases them. At least that's how I remember it.
@shnooky0 Agreed. When I saw this first sequence it moved me to tears. Very few tv series has this kind of writing or emotional tweaking "...one last battle to hold the line against the night..."
Definitely, When it comes down to the survival of the Human Race, I'd like to think that even though I'd be scared shitless, I'd still be amongst those who would stand to defend our race.
I'd want a nuke loaded into my Starfury. Then I'd find the nearest Minbari warcruiser and take a thousand of those fucking bonehead mother fuckers with me into Valhalla, where'd we'd drink ale from curved horns. Fuck you, aliens! ;)
While I don't know if I will be able to do the same should I ever truly find myself in such a situation (easier to say that you will do something when not actually faced with the situation), but I truly hope that I would be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice so that others may live.
25 years later and I still get emotional when watching these scenes. The other one that makes me emotional is G'Kars speech about the need for freedom. The finest sci-fi show (hell, any genre) of all time.
To every man upon this earth, death cometh soon or late; And how can man die better than facing fearful odds, For the ashes of his fathers, and the temples of his Gods.”
As a former serviceman (ADF, 1994 - 2004) this is the kind of situation where your oath to defend your nation is tested with the ultimate sacrifice that others may live. The kind of cause that is worth fighting and dying for.
It is to this day, a speech coupled with the scenes, still brings tears to the eyes. At least to those who were brought up to protect and defend. Men and women of honor.
I Have one single tattoo on my wrist. I't says INF4EVER. That stands for Infantry for ever. I am a healtcare worker, and a soldier in the danish home defence. It might be an fictional story placed in the future, but I say it is a very old story that every living being knows. The fight for survival. When people ask me why I have my tattoo I point them to this very speech. I would be on that line. I am on that line every day in peoples lives. Where do you stand ? Would you be found on the line ?
I listen to this and I can not help but think of the Human Covenant War in the game series Halo, and how well this speech would work in describing that war.
"We were on the back foot from the beginning. The Harvest campaign showed us that, out numbered, out classed, and out gunned. We could win, and did in some instances, but the losses form those victories, let alone the defeats... we were Losing, no matter how you look at it. But I never heard a single complaint, from anyone, not the marines, who fought tooth and nail whenever they found the enemy, not the army, even as the worlds they called home were glassed, not the odst's, who went on suicide mission after suicide mission, just to buy us time. And not the navy, who fought every battle knowing it was likely their last. They say that the Spartans, that the master chief, saved humanity. I disagree. Make no mistake, he was a crucial element to our survival, no one can claim otherwise, but humanities survival wasn't ensured after a single battle or campaign, for three decades it was fought and paid for with the blood of billions of brave souls, who's fortitude and courage was the only thing standing in the way of our annihilation." -Unknown
And, notice, she says that ten minutes may buy time for HUNDREDS to escape. Not millions, not thousands, HUNDREDs. Things are that dire; this is, as far as they know, their only hope, yet they rise to the occasion. That final, "May God go with you all," makes me think of a chaplain in the final moments before a great battle, looking to the souls of the men and women who will soon die in that last breath before the storm.
"A large Japanese fleet has been contacted. They are fifteen miles away and headed in our direction. They are believed to have four battleships, eight cruisers, and a number of destroyers. This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can." - Captain Ernst Evans, USS Johnston.
I was so surprised to be emotionally moved by a television sci-fi program❤️you can be killed but you'll never be defeated because you're proud to be a human being
10 minutes for a few hundred people. In that universe, it's probably true that no greater sacrifice was ever asked of a people. Entirely appropriate to end with "May God be with you all." Possibly the best scene in an exceptional show, and it was the only scene she was ever in.
I agree. When there's no hope and no reassurance, it's very human to end the speech with the message that may at least divinity be on our side. In this case, divinity was in a way on Humanity's side, just not in the way anyone thought.
![ละลาย (LALALYE) - DAOU PITTAYA ต้าห์อู๋ พิทยา [OFFICIAL MV]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/wo6r9TgausI/mqdefault.jpg)
"For two years they did this. They never ran out of courage. But in the end, they ran out of time." So much awe, admiration, honor, and deep sorrow is carried in that line.
Made even worse by the fact that *he* was the reason for the war lasting two more years. He gave the order to attack the diplomatic meeting, believing it was instead an arms deal to sell Centauri weapons to the Humans. Had he not done that, a ceasefire would likely have come about.
Our entire History since we left the caves is carried in that line.
This actress has one scene, and she completely nails it. There are no small roles, folks.
I‘m not crying, you‘re crying.
@@Mindfuck502 You're not crying. I'm not crying. It's raining.
I get onions in my eyes every. Single. Time.
Tricia O'Neill has experience in this. She was Captain Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise-C in "Yesterday's Enterprise", doomed from the start and yet facing her destiny head on.
@@joaopaulocursino765 Damn, I never realized that. TIL.
@@joaopaulocursino765 holy cow as a trek nerd and a bsg nerd I never noticed that.
To this damn day, that speech makes me cry. One last time. One last time to hold the line against the night.
For we will not go quietly into the night!
middle east going into the night now
@@karimsonsafehold9233 So is America, maybe. One wonders just how much Trump would be willing to promise the Shadows right now.
@Brasswatchman Get out of here with that BS. We are here to get away from your kind. Take your TDS elsewhere. Everyone with a brain knows that it's the democrats who align with the shadows and do all the things presidency Clark did.
The president's speech never fails to move me.
"Hold the line against the night"
It would of pissed off the Warrior Caste that Humanity view them as the Night. As Warriors of Darkness.
But they were. They were Genociding one species for the death of one man.
@Voidlord
Oh no, I'd just hate to offend the guys coming to wipe humanity from existence. Also, was there ever a time when the Warrior Caste wasn't pissed about something?
2.22 "we are continuing to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy"
I always loved the sheer raw honesty of her speech. It wasn't some rousing, rallying, warrior's cry, some call to valour. It was a desperate plea, and an admission that they were doomed. And that the best that could be done, was for any willing to go out and die in a bid to preserve the lives of many, and the continuation of their species.
@@Blisterdude123 Not even a guarantee. A *hope* of continuation. Because the Minbari would continue hunting humans likely for the next few decades and any escaping transports would be vulnerable to anyone and anything that decided to take advantage of them as an armed escort would draw the focus of the Minbari. And as we know, they're more than willing to twist logic to an extreme so they would say that "they were escorting military officers out therefore it was a military ship we destroyed."
Every time I hear the President's speech here I feel like I should be strapping on a starfighter and flying off to join a fleet somewhere.
+James Stephens -- The President is asking the survivors of a battle that took place mere hours ago to join a "forlorn hope" that will cost the lives of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, to buy time for _hundreds_ to escape. The human race would almost certainly be extinct in a couple generations anyway.
But there _will_ be future generations.
- - -Sign me up.
Such cowardice..... thousands could die. But thousands more would live. Even if only hundreds, with p[roper tech, genetics would be monitored and the race could survive elsewhere and strike back in time. But a coward can only celebrate defeat out of fear of a victory come with sacrifice.
Every time I hear the President's speech here I think of Lepanto and feel the need to "...call upon the kings of Christendom for swords about the cross..."
No, hundreds every 10 minutes. if they can last an hour, it could be thousands. But there shouldn't be a single woman among those on the line. Mankind can survive with only a handful of men, but every woman we lose brings us closer to extinction.
There is that cynical part of me wondering if she will be among the first to be evacuated...
This was why Sinclair was supposed to be so revered, it's a bit of a pity when the show first come out that you didn't quite realise that he was 1 of 200 or so survivors of thousands upon thousands that threw themselves into the fire of an insurmountable enemy.
_"They never ran out of courage. But in the end, they ran out of time."_
Shades of the Spartans at Thermopylae
"I only hope that when it is my time, I may die with half as much dignity as I saw in their eyes at the end."
Damn...
It's even better if you remember that when Mollari says that line he is merely hours away from his own death: sacrificing himself to free Delenn and Sheridan.
The version of Mollari's speech about humanity was even more epic in the novelization. The part that stuck with me was the line where Mollari described a squadron of Starfuries being gunned down until one pilot remained, and instead of retreating, that pilot would fly as if the souls of his brethren were still flying into battle with him.
In the face of a hopeless battle, mankind resolves to die fighting. No fear or hesitation, just the courage to go out swinging to the very last man.
2.22 "we are continuing to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy"
@@lacroix1159 Alright troll, no need for such comments, not for a video like this.
@@timeforgottenprince8271 why so? Is there any ukranian?))
@LaCroix
Ukraine is in a very different position from Earth in this series. Russia doesn’t want to wipe out every last Ukrainian, they want to assimilate and rule over them. And Ukraine has support from essentially the whole of the Western world. Earth had support from no one save some Narn arms dealers.
Finally, Ukraine was attacked without provocation, while Earth is the party that screwed up badly and started this war by having a jumpy, hung-ho captain kill Dukhat.
The situations are not comparable.
Humanity is one of the slowest species on the planet. We don't really have a fight or flight response. We just have a fight response.
This is why people always underestimate how hard it is to intimidate someone, or why people who plan wars always underestimate how long and how costly it will be to fight them.
We just aren't good at running away, and so we fight instinctively even when it doesn't make much sense to do so.
To be honest, I teared up when I saw the first guy go and walk out of the frame to his ship and all those who went after she said they will buy time for civilians. Signing their own death warrants, and no chance of coming home.
One would be surprised at the courage of a people for others...
One thing I really love about this scene is what we in the model-building community refer to as the 'weathering' evidenced in it. These pilots and mechanics probably haven't had a wink of sleep in 48+ hours--who knows how many battles they've been through in the last two years--and you can see it, all of it, left unspoken in the grime, the shared glances, the expressions on their faces, and finally, the war-weary but dedicated lack of hesitation to report for duty one final time, knowing it's likely their last action in life.
I almost did too
100% did too. The exact scene
I tear up every single time I hear it. Every time. It's so heart-wrenching
Something not often thought about…every single pilot in that barracks dies on the Line. Every single one of the ten thousand ship we see in the brief shot in orbit over Earth is destroyed. All but twenty of them.
When you think about that, all I can imagine is G’kar in the elevator with Vir. “Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. Dead. How can you apologize to them?”
It’s a bit easier to understand how Clark was able to pull off what he did when you remember that.
Very well said. The resentment against the Minbari, and distrust of aliens in general had embedded itself within Earth society. The negative reaction to Delenn wanting to "bring Humans and Minbari closer together" was also understandable in that regard. The war had only been a decade away.
What's even worse is that the Minbari were equally responsible for the bad first contact. The warrior casts arrogance to believe that showing up to a meeting with someone you've never met with a drawn blade WOULDN'T lead to a violent response is ludicrous. Then to have their whole race call for genocide? Yeah, I wouldn't have been a fan either
@@Abrxas01 Before Delenn voted, the Grey Council was tied 4:4 on declaring war. Even if all 3 Warrior caste wanted it that still means that at least 1 Worker or Religious had also already voted in favor of war before Delenn - Religious - cast the deciding vote.
Also I feel it needs must be pointed out that the Minbari are an ancient race that have probably been through dozens and dozens of first contacts, and yet presumably never ran into this situation before.
Just sayin'. It seems stupid to us humans, but there's a real possibility that it's completely normal or logical for Drazi, Narns, Abbai, Centauri, Dilgar, Markab, pak'ma'ra, Llort, Vree, etc.. We could be the weird ones.
Further it wasn't just that gunports were open, it's that they were open, _and_ Minbari scanners were so powerful that they effectively blinded Earth due to Earth's technology being so primitive by comparison. So Jankowski could see that gunports were open (due to visual confirmation) but couldn't get a read as to whether or not weapons were actually charging and ready to fire.
@@RogueShadows I'm aware of the interference from minbari sensors and like I said, primitives. Humans were primitive in comparison. Even the Duhat was shocked at the warriors approaching with guns out. He understood how that could be misconstrued. And no, i don't think humans are strange for their reaction unless all the other races have no survival instincts. Let's frame this in a face to face meeting instead of ship to ship so as to simplify it. Image you are out scouting around in an attempt to make contact with an unknown group of people. You know generally where they are but not what they look like. Suddenly a small group of scary looking beings appear. You don't know if these are the people you are looking for but they immediately draw their weapons are start to approach. You call out to them but they don't appear to listen and don't respond, they just keep approaching. Are you telling me that everyone else would respond differently? They wouldn't have survived long enough to be space fareing.
@@Abrxas01 Except they obviously did, and yet we don't know of any other time that the Minbari warrior caste's greeting habits caused problems. Dukhat might have seen a potential for problems but Dukhat was a very unusual Minbari. Note that after the attack Delenn, despite hearing the same thing at the same time about the gunports being open, still says that Humanity attacked without provocation.
Again, stupid though it may seem to humans, evidence suggests that _we're_ the weirdos for not understanding that open gunports =/= hostile intent.
At the very least, you have to wonder why Jankowski didn't, say, order a warning shot fired - something clearly not intended to hit the Minbari but equally clearly meant to indicate that they were panicking us.
"We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender."
2.22 "we are continuing to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy"
@@lacroix1159 Just because they were trying to surrender doesn't mean they weren't going to roll over and die. A little late, true, but use your brain perhaps?
@@matthewcoster5535 Well, as even Coplann pointed out, the Minbari military did not see this as courage, but desperation.
Which is ironic as Churchill like all the others stood by in the inter war years and did nothing about the evil thatxwas allowed to rampage across continents.
In the movie we find out that human trespass on Minbari space and provoked an attack.
Churchill was out of government during the interwar period.
Warning that the Nazis were a problem. Calling for Britian to rearm for war.
Chamberlain was the fool thinking, he could make a deal with Hitler.
Why do I always get something in my eye during this speech?
'Cause you are a real brave one and you even will answer the call.
Geez, awful lot of dust in the air right now.
EVERY. DAMN. TIME.
Sorry I got dust in my eye
I cry like a kid who skinned his knee every time. I ain’t got nothing to prove.
Really doesn’t help that it comes *immediately* on the heels of Londo’s speech on humanity’s courage. For a solid seven or eight minutes I just go to pieces.
No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people but I ask you now, to step forward one last time, one last battle to hold the line against the night.
May God go with you all.
One of the most powerful speeches ever in television history.
I really like that they had her say that hundreds will survive for every ten minutes.
I feel like a lesser show would have pumped those numbers up to sth ridiculous like thousands per minute. But having it be this relatively low amount makes their sacrifice even nobler because it will likely take more than hundreds of dead from the fighting fleet to even get these 10 minutes.
That, and "We do not believe that survival is a possibility."
The novelization has Londo note that, to her credit, the President doesn’t mention that the Minbari might not care about the idea of “neutral territory”. That even the civilians who escaped may be hunted down and exterminated to the last child.
@@RogueShadowseven worse the "neutral territory" would turn them away or give them up to save their own skins.
@@RogueShadows That’s why I think they were fleeing into uncharted space. Not even Neutral space, just the deep black.
Huh, I wonder what happened to those that were evacuated before the line. I get the feeling they deactivated comms to Earth to hide their positions as they fled. That would be a good idea for a fanfic. A few decades later the refugee humans return with a war fleet to get vengeance on the Minbari, only to their shock humanity has survived.
@@Gothic7876 Not sure what kind of war fleet a bunch of refugees could have put together that would actually let them challenge the Minbari, at least not without finding a StarForge or something.
Also you'd think that even with them fleeing into uncharted space they'd still send scouts back on occasion to check up on what's going on, so they should learn about the end of the Earth-Minbari War pretty fast.
I'm not one to tear up over sad scenes but this one gets me every single time.
Tricia O'neal is one of the greatest actresses I've ever had the pleasure to watch. Both here and in "Yesterday's Enterprise" she shows the nobility possible in any of us...
If we'll take a stand for good and refuse to stand down until we win...
Or bleed out.
Also M'Ola the mother in Believers ...
In Trek :
Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise C
Kurak the Klingon testing Metaphasic Shielding with Dr Crusher
Korinas of the Obsidian Order
You've seen her more often than you think ,,,
@@davidioanhedges I mentioned Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise C. That was the episode "Yesterday's Enterprise".
A great actress.
Maybe the first time in living memory that a politician did not lie. "You ain't comin back."
You know President Clark would not have asked that question
In Babylon 5, humanity is the ideal of the noble savage. A race younger and seemingly less than all the others, less advanced in technology and civilisation. But we show courage, honour and nobility in battle that any can respect.
As it is sad so shall it be: "A soldier does not fight because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him."
Humanity has and always will refuse to be snuffed out like a candle, whimpering and honourless.
2.22 "we are continuing to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy"
@lacroix1159 I never said that we were stupid. Even when fighting each other, we don't seek annihilation. We see in the video, from fighters to cruisers to armed shuttles and light transports, all are piloted and crewed by men and women choosing to die fighting, to not go quietly into the night. We will always seek a way to survive, and if that means fighting then we will
"No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people but I ask you now". If my president would ask this of me I've no doubt that I'd answer the call, she's practically asking you to save your family.
Even if it was El Trumpo?
I would do it even if it was Hillary "Above the Law" Clinton.
Thanh Tran -- yes. Because it wasn't actually Trump that was asking. It would be my people, my species, begging for one last chance to live. Boneheaded partisan politics wouldn't even matter at that point.
@@hagamapama damn fucking straight.
I would gladly offer up my life for my King.
One last battle to hold the line against the night! Powerful!
"Rage, Rage against the dying of the light"
I have watched this scene countless times, and always, always shed tears.
Sad tears and proud tears, because it gives me hope that humanity is far better than we currently act.
I've seen this a lot over the years. Still gives me chills every single time.
this speech always gets to me, the way those men and women walk towards death..not flinching...amazing. and as great a character as she turns out to be..delenn had a lot to answer for..which she never apologised for..if i remember rightly
Truly Babylon 5 was a splendid Novel for Television; impressive beginning, intriguing middle, and wonderful ending.
That first guy who leaves before she’s even done...he’s the real hero
All he needed to hear was that for every ten minutes hundreds of civilians could escape, when the chips are down that`s all the incentive I would need too.
I am no hero, just an US Navy man.
@@zulu2049 Anyone who's willing to sacrifice their lives in defense of their species/country/people is a hero in my book.
it's the assholes telling them who to fight i detest.
@@pendraco2000 I don`t know if your comment is positive or negative so I will say :
I hate to fall back on the old saying "I was just following orders", but that's all I got.
@Michaelle Green That makes sense. Thank you for clearing that up.
@Michaelle Green I Salute! To great man, your grandpa.
During my time in Iraq my Squad watched the entire Babylon 5 series. When we watched “In the Beginning” and the Presidents speech came on not one of our 12 hardened combat hardened Infantry Soldiers had a dry eye. Every time I see this clip I think of my Brothers in Arms.
@Tin Watchman everyone in my squad made it home alive. Some of us were broken and injured, but we didn’t lose a single member. Thanks for your comments.
You were the Minbari in that situation...
and the war started because of a misunderstanding between the humans and minbari, the minbari showed respect to the humans with their guns and the humans opened fire thinking the aliens were about to attack....damn if only they were a bit patient to see what happens
And yet none of you managed to understand the irony of the situation.
the humans in this war were fighting for survival, you were fighting to destroy other people's homeland.
you are not the same.
Cry for the hundreds of thousands you helped kill, instead of a fictional speech, ffs.
One of the all-time best speeches that made Babylon 5 the greatest of all Science-Fiction series.
It's my 3rd favorite. I still miss it.
So emotionally moving. Great performance by Tricia O'Neil.
People who call "Game of Thrones" the greatest tv series ever apparently never saw Babylon Five. This series has a depth and complexity GoT can't begin to touch.
Daniel Bradford I've seen both. Babylon 5 was arguably the best Sci fi program when it comes to characters, and drama, and the space battles were damn good for their time. But they're very different shows, with very different production values.
Daniel Bradford GOT is mainly shock value compared to B5
B5 is prob my favorite sci fi story of all time, but GOT story is complete mind fuck. Id def say i love both hard but GOT is better written, more intricate story.
Doc Murray Agreed.(Kosh voice)
Legend Of The Galactic Heroes is a good anime that comes close to both or combines them both, Game Of Thrones and Babylon 5. .
Babylon 5 excels at many things, but one which stays far, far from any other show are the speeches. This one, many Sheridan ones, Londo's storytelling. Kudos to all who wrote those.
Don’t forget G’Kar, his speech of “we are one!
this brings you to tears the acting and the way this show went. WOW just WOW
watching this made me tear up for the 1st time in 20 years ...started my mid life crisis i think.....
@keski69 - How are you doing now?
this speech always gets me, makes me believe at times like this that we'd meet our end on our feet and ready to fight back against the coming darkness
@ yeah, 2019..watching this again and i feel the same..as soon as she asks..they start walking towards the hangers...what always gets me too..is knowing it's because of delenn the war even started...i cant remember, if she told sheridan that fact or she kept it secret from everyone on B5
And now that the darkness is coming once again to engulf civilization, we seem to be unable or unwilling to confront it. We let the darkness burn our cities, destroy our monuments, and abuse our people with, at most, token opposition.
@@Hiraghm And nearly let it take over your country on January 6th.
I remember seeing this episode when it was first broadcast in the 1990s. Very, very impactful...
Mulari's narration of the war up to the Battle of the Line gets me all the time. More so then the Presidents plea to hold the Line against st the night.
The version of Mollari's speech about humanity was even more epic in the novelization. The part that stuck with me was the line where Mollari described a squadron of Starfuries being gunned down until one pilot remained, and instead of retreating, that pilot would fly as if the souls of his brethren were still flying into battle with him.
One of the incredible pieces of SciFi entertainment on film.
I still get goosebumps listening to Londo. The President's plea is still emotionally emphatic.
25 years later, it hasn't lost it.
Never has humanity asked our kind to step up. It did. I fear the day this call will come.
There have been calls like this throughout humanity and humanity has stepped up.
This was - and still is - an incredibly moving scene.
This sequence brings me to tears everytime.....
Tricia O'Neil also played Captain Rachel Garrett of the Enterprise-C in the classic TNG episode "Yesterday's Enterprise".
mindcrime entertainment let's make sure, history never forgets the name.... Enterprise !!
holy sh*t i knew i recognized her from somewhere!
That may be one of my favourite TNG episodes. The only one that comes to mind that may be better is the one where Picard lives a whole life on another planet, The Inner Light.
Dammit! I knew she looked familiar!
Fracking...I knew I recognized her! God that is my favorite episode of ANY Star Trek series.
"...and you will once again be fighting for our freedom… Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution… but from annihilation. We are fighting for our right to live. To exist."
About the only line worth a damn in that entire movie.
@@hagamapama I dunno, I liked "Welcome to Earth" and "think they have any idea what's about to happen to them?" "not a chance in hell."
@@hagamapama "HELLO BOYS! I'M BACK~!"
2.22 and "we are continuing to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy"
"No greater sacrifice has ever been asked of a people, but I ask you now ..."
You had me at 'is this thing on?'.
brings a tear to my eye :(
Same. I have watched many emotional scenes that made many cry without shedding a tear, yet when it comes to moments like these I can't help but cry.
Wish we still had writers of this caliber. Hello from 2023. Imagine how much better The Mandalorian and other contemporary shows would have been.
Unfortunately, the last decade or so have seen the rise of Cancel Culture shenanigans as well as extremist political and social views. We are lucky to have works like this.
Zathras saw this coming, he tried to warn us, but no one listens to Zathras.
Are you watching Chris Chibnall??
Straczynski is still around. Even if everyone in Hollywood seems to have lost his number these days...
The scariest thing in existence is a human with too much to protect and a human with nothing to lose...
Absolutely outstanding writing.
Watching the TNT 'BABYLON 5' movie
"IN THE BEGINNING" and thinking how much this 1995 TV series is an allegory to the world of 2020.
This scene is penultimate to the loss and strength humans must feel when faced with a greater and deadlier force never before imagined.
-Jared Nil
If you fight you wont always win but if you dont fight you will always lose.
To step forward one last time, one last battle to hold the line against the night.
She's a good character actor.
That quiver in her voice when she said it, knowing she's asking people to die to save who they can is quite the soul stirring performance.
I still tear up when I watch this scene.
You can see the starfury pilots square their shoulders. They know that they will die, the fear has left them leaving a grim determination to save as many as they can, and kill as many of the enemy as possible before they themselves die.
To this day this remains the single greatest moment in TV history.
This and Sheridan's speech in "Endgame" is the reason that B5 will ALWAYS be the best, Period
"We have continued to broadcast our surrender and a plea for mercy.... and they have not responded".
Probably the most terrifying line in all of Babylon 5.
Same thing in the miniseries in Galactica.
"After Picon was nuked the President offered a complete unconditional surrender. The Cylons didn't even respond!"
JMS really doesn't do bad writing. B5 was full of dialogue that would make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. "Hold the line against the night"? Wow!
And then you realise that this battle has been called The Battle of the Line since the pilot episode made more than five years earlier.
@@Karajorma JMS wrote an entire 5 season arc from the start. I am sure the smaller stories were added along the way, but the overarching plan was there from the start. I think that is one of the reasons it works so well, we aren't randomly creating new bad guys or taking strange left turns with characters to fit in with a new style or writer.
@@aliciaborth3016 Yeah, I'm well aware of how much of B5 was planned ahead of time. And it's the main reason I'm not worried about the reboot.
As not only the President of Earth who stood against the night. She was also Captain of the Enterprise the Captain who also fought against hopeless odds.
I wonder what Delenn would have thought if she had listened to this Speech, especially how the President basically called the Minbari 'The Night'
Delenn was a psycho bitch who in a fit of rage practically signed under human extermination. I guess any human except John Sheridan can give too shits about what she thinks.
Delenn was a very noble woman who, after the war, came to realize her tragic error at start of the war, and spent the rest of her life doing all she could to make up for it. There was nothing evil or psycho about her.
Delenn watched someone she cared about die in her arms after what was (they thought at the time) an unprovoked attack by the human race. _OBVIOUSLY_ she was pissed when she gave the order to go to war and kill them in retaliation. And of course, _obviously_ once she learned of her error, she tried her best to make amends. Nothing evil about that. I'm pretty sure nearly anybody else would do or say the same in her situation.
Delenn was a genocidal monster. She ordered the genocide of humanity. No justification can ever be counted for this. And nothing she did made up for it. Her decision makes what Hitler, Stalin and Pol Pot did look anodyne in comparison. A pox on her and her race.
I dunno, I think playing an integral part in helping the Younger Races finally get out from under the abusive guardianship of the Vorlons and Shadows or the crass apathy of the other First Ones might be a decent start.
Or helping to free Earth from a tyrannical dictator who, when faced with the possibility of defeat, decided to attempt to glass the planet.
The Battle of the Line, where humans made their last stand against certain death should had been enough for the Grey Council to figure out that Humans and Minbari are bound people. Just think about this line from the Rangers Creed: "We stand on the bridge, and no one may pass." This was exactly what humans did at The Line. They stood at "Earths Bridge" so no Minbari might pass. I'm also pretty sure that Sinclair/Valen choose this line from his own experience at the Battle of the Line.
When JMS an company set forth to make Babylon 5 they worked with a manta: "First and foremost, make good television."
There is no greater honor or glory than to die next to your fellow warrior in defense of those you love. For what could be a more glorious end than to die with a smile of your face, a song in your heart and your enemies blood on your blade.
This was very well written. A great example of Courage.
Humans they fight each other like organised feral animals but give them an enemy to all and see them unite with the ferocity of the greatest beast, they might not win but they will fight side by side with once enemy's to drive back the darkness.
This is why I very much would like the discovery of extraterrestial civilization more advanced than ours. The sheer discovery would force humanity to think past themselves and their petty species-internal conflicts, in the best case uniting the whole world to work together in equal harmony.
;)
th-cam.com/video/Ag44dRO8LEA/w-d-xo.html
Wasn't that ferocious, they got their ass kicked all the way to earth and was on the verge of being wiped out. In a way, while they were animals, the minbari were clever hunters taking them out with ease.
@@willt2810
I beg to differ, the humans were ineffective, but still ferocious.
A Tiger protecting her cubs will be ferocious and may even sacrifice herself to try and protect them, but ultimately that wouldn't do much good against a Tank.
The ineffectual nature of the attack or defence does not undermine it's ferocity.
Notice that one of the big Sharlin class cruisers is seen as heavily damaged in the last second of this clip. We put up one hell of a fight.
The way this war started is ironic and very accurate human behavior. When you have an incompetent bully at the helm of a 1502mtr battleship and a mysterious ancient alien civilization you already have all the ingredients necessary for one big powder keg. This battle showed courage and nobility yes but humans always been destructive and apprehensive and this time they paid a heavy price.
To be honest, the Minbari made a huge mistake as well. One that even Dukhat belatedly realized.
@@bellgrand You mean Delenn. Dukhat died. That was the whole problem.
1:18 he actually doesn't die too long after making that comment. At the end of this movie he is watching camera footage of an imprisoned Delenn and Sheridan, which was seen in the series in the flash-forward. It is just before he asks G'kar to kill him before his keeper takes over to try and prevent them from escaping when he releases them.
At least that's how I remember it.
I'm pretty sure he knew he is about to die, he planned this and he was going to die with dignity
Your memory is correct.
@shnooky0 Agreed. When I saw this first sequence it moved me to tears. Very few tv series has this kind of writing or emotional tweaking "...one last battle to hold the line against the night..."
God damn chills when she finishes her speech and they just suit up for another mission
i would got in my fighter and flew. and i was infantry i'd find some way to be at station on a ship. god miss this show
Do not go quiet into that good night.
Rage, RAGE against the dying of the light.
Definitely,
When it comes down to the survival of the Human Race, I'd like to think that even though I'd be scared shitless, I'd still be amongst those who would stand to defend our race.
Yes Species
I'd want a nuke loaded into my Starfury. Then I'd find the nearest Minbari warcruiser and take a thousand of those fucking bonehead mother fuckers with me into Valhalla, where'd we'd drink ale from curved horns. Fuck you, aliens! ;)
I would too.
species.
While I don't know if I will be able to do the same should I ever truly find myself in such a situation (easier to say that you will do something when not actually faced with the situation), but I truly hope that I would be willing to make the ultimate sacrifice so that others may live.
And that is all of us, we hold this courage within ourselves.
25 years later and I still get emotional when watching these scenes. The other one that makes me emotional is G'Kars speech about the need for freedom. The finest sci-fi show (hell, any genre) of all time.
We believe anyone who joins this battle will never come home
I love how humanity went full on survival mode and fought like hell.
Dude at 3:22 knew exactly what he was going to do, he was probably the first one there at the Line.
To every man upon this earth,
death cometh soon or late;
And how can man die better than facing fearful odds,
For the ashes of his fathers,
and the temples of his Gods.”
I think this is one of the greatest tv series of all times, truly remarkable to say the least.
Certainty of death, small chance of success - what are we waiting for?
As a former serviceman (ADF, 1994 - 2004) this is the kind of situation where your oath to defend your nation is tested with the ultimate sacrifice that others may live. The kind of cause that is worth fighting and dying for.
Damn onions!
I get teary eyed...every.fricking.time.
‘Are we on? ...’ one of the most emotive speeches in Sci Fi. Ramirez speech in Prelude to Axanar is one of its few equals.
Christ I forgot just how good the writing and acting got in this show.
This is he best fiction war speech.
It is to this day, a speech coupled with the scenes, still brings tears to the eyes.
At least to those who were brought up to protect and defend. Men and women of honor.
This is a representation of mankind at its best, maybe a self-flattering one.
Few things give me goosegumps and this is one of those few things.
I have NO CLUE why, but every time watch this part, I get a tear in my eye! Fiction, not happening, but MAN, powerful!
I Have one single tattoo on my wrist. I't says INF4EVER. That stands for Infantry for ever. I am a healtcare worker, and a soldier in the danish home defence. It might be an fictional story placed in the future, but I say it is a very old story that every living being knows. The fight for survival. When people ask me why I have my tattoo I point them to this very speech. I would be on that line. I am on that line every day in peoples lives. Where do you stand ? Would you be found on the line ?
Agreed I couldn't say that any better
"Alright Lads, Lasses, who's got ten minutes to give?"
If a B5 MMO comes out I'll sign up 1st day no question because "we live for the one, we die for the one"
This scene and speech never fails to bring tears to my eyes or a lump to my throat. Such an amazing series with amazing performances.
I listen to this and I can not help but think of the Human Covenant War in the game series Halo, and how well this speech would work in describing that war.
I was hoping to find a video clip edited to overlay the audio of this with some halo cinematics.
HKgunner I went digging for one but haven't found any. Link me in if you find one?
Or most Humans vs Aliens Wars you find in Sci fi
"We were on the back foot from the beginning. The Harvest campaign showed us that, out numbered, out classed, and out gunned. We could win, and did in some instances, but the losses form those victories, let alone the defeats... we were Losing, no matter how you look at it. But I never heard a single complaint, from anyone, not the marines, who fought tooth and nail whenever they found the enemy, not the army, even as the worlds they called home were glassed, not the odst's, who went on suicide mission after suicide mission, just to buy us time. And not the navy, who fought every battle knowing it was likely their last.
They say that the Spartans, that the master chief, saved humanity. I disagree. Make no mistake, he was a crucial element to our survival, no one can claim otherwise, but humanities survival wasn't ensured after a single battle or campaign, for three decades it was fought and paid for with the blood of billions of brave souls, who's fortitude and courage was the only thing standing in the way of our annihilation." -Unknown
@HenrikFrejasFar heh. I'm a Combat Engineer and our Motto is "First in, Last out."
And, notice, she says that ten minutes may buy time for HUNDREDS to escape. Not millions, not thousands, HUNDREDs. Things are that dire; this is, as far as they know, their only hope, yet they rise to the occasion. That final, "May God go with you all," makes me think of a chaplain in the final moments before a great battle, looking to the souls of the men and women who will soon die in that last breath before the storm.
"A large Japanese fleet has been contacted. They are fifteen miles away and headed in our direction. They are believed to have four battleships, eight cruisers, and a number of destroyers. This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can."
- Captain Ernst Evans, USS Johnston.
@@jfarrar19 An excellent reference to the Tin Can Sailors. A remarkable story of heroism.
Still gives me goosebumps.
Both these speeches are magnificent and well done.
To this date I havent heard anything like it.
I was so surprised to be emotionally moved by a television sci-fi program❤️you can be killed but you'll never be defeated because you're proud to be a human being
this shows true heart an spirt of mankind. that in darkest of nights we will fight push back night to bring hope an light.
I cry every time
Ah Peter, you were so great in this role. Best sci fi ever.
This is a story in many games and films this is inspirational
10 minutes for a few hundred people. In that universe, it's probably true that no greater sacrifice was ever asked of a people. Entirely appropriate to end with "May God be with you all." Possibly the best scene in an exceptional show, and it was the only scene she was ever in.
I agree. When there's no hope and no reassurance, it's very human to end the speech with the message that may at least divinity be on our side. In this case, divinity was in a way on Humanity's side, just not in the way anyone thought.