"The War Prayer" is an episode from the first season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5

Babylon 5

Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

. The title of the episode comes from the Mark Twain

Mark Twain

Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...

 story of the same name

The War Prayer

"The War Prayer," a short story or prose poem by Mark Twain, is a scathing indictment of war, and particularly of blind patriotic and religious fervor as motivations for war....

.

Synopsis

A young Centauri

Centauri (Babylon 5)

The Centauri are a humanoid species in the fictional universe of the Babylon 5 television series. They were the first alien species to make open contact with the human race. Their homeworld is Centauri Prime, a small Earth-like planet consisting of two large continents and several smaller islands...

 couple seek to defy the marriage customs of their families, while the Homeguard—a "pro-Earth" terrorist group—are responsible for several attacks against aliens, including Shaal Mayan, a prominent Minbari

Minbari

The Minbari are a fictional alien race featured in the television show Babylon 5. The Minbari characters of Delenn and Lennier figure prominently throughout the series; Neroon, Draal, and Dukhat are less prominent Minbari characters....

 poet.

Arc significance

• The Homeguard, a radical pro-Earth group, make their first appearance.
• Kosh is seen studying images from Earth, prompting discussion of the enigma he and the Vorlon
  Vorlon
  A Vorlon is a member of a fictional alien species in the Babylon 5 television series and fictional universe. The Vorlon species is a member of the First Ones, a group made up of the earliest species to gain sentience in the galaxy...
  
  s represent. The removal of telepath Lyta Alexander
  Lyta Alexander
  Lyta Alexander is a character from the fictional universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Patricia Tallman.Lyta was introduced in the pilot episode "The Gathering" as a telepath assigned to the Babylon 5 space station by the Psi Corps, a fictional organization...
  
   and Medical Officer Benjamin Kyle
  Benjamin Kyle
  Doctor Benjamin Kyle is a fictional character from the universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, portrayed by Johnny Sekka. His only appearance was in the Babylon 5 pilot movie The Gathering.-Character background:...
  
   back to Earth (characters from the pilot who did not carry over to the first season) is attributed to being the only humans to have had direct contact with a Vorlon.
• Marriages are usually arranged in Centauri society. The custom is also a major plot element in episodes "Soul Mates
  Soul Mates
  "Soul Mates" is a second season episode of the science fiction television series Babylon 5.-Synopsis:Londo Mollari brings his three wives, all of whom barely tolerate him, to the station for the purpose of divorcing two of them as part of a special boon granted by the Centauri Emperor...
  
  " and "Sic Transit Vir
  Sic Transit Vir
  Sic Transit Vir is an episode from the third season of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5. It is a Latin phrase which translates as "thus passes Vir," but since the Latin word [vir] literally means "man," it might be read as "so goes man."...
  
  ".
• Londo refers to his three wives as "Famine, Pestilence, and Death," three of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
  Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
  The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are described in the last book of the New Testament of the Bible, called the Book of Revelation of Jesus Christ to Saint John the Evangelist at 6:1-8. The chapter tells of a "'book'/'scroll' in God's right hand that is sealed with seven seals"...
  
  . This foreshadows that the fourth horseman -- War -- would be Londo himself, when his involvement with the Shadows would lead to renewed war with the Narn Regime beginning with "The Coming of Shadows
  The Coming of Shadows
  "The Coming of Shadows" is a key episode from the second season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5. It won the 1996 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.-Synopsis:...
  
  ."

Influences of The War Prayer

The reference for passionate love

Love

Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...

 as "to dance

Dance

Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....

" from Londo Mollari's lament for a life devoid of love, "My shoes are too tight and I have forgotten how to dance", were later taken on by the British series Doctor Who

Doctor Who

Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...

, where "to dance" became a long-running metaphor for "to have sex"; first used in episode The Doctor Dances.

External links

• The War Prayer at The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5
  The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5
  The Lurker's Guide to Babylon 5 is a fan-run website that includes detailed episode guides and analyses, production history notes, background materials, references, and other information related to the science fiction epic, Babylon 5...