11/28/01, 8:34 p.m. - There are times in a collector's life when he or she hears rumors of something equivalent to the Holy Grail of their particular field. It is something that may or may not even exist, but will be so very rare and difficult to find that they will almost certainly never find it.

In Crusade, there are two "Holy Grails" and both are on paper. The first is the Bible. No, really, it is. The Writer's Bible for the series was available for a short time from the official fan club and sold out quickly. There were 100 copies made, signed, and numbered by JMS, and made available to fans.

The Writer's Bible brings people up to speed with what's going on in Crusade. It provides details into the characters and situations that would not be shown on-screen for years, if ever. It brings a whole new level to the episodes, making what they face that much more urgent.

Finding a copy now is next-to impossible. They are all in the hands of fans of the series, who relish it as much as I do. I've seen them go for over $200, and it's been quite a while since I've seen even that. No amount of money could make me give up my copy, and I've heard the same from others who were lucky enough to be in the hundred.

There are three instances where Babylon 5 characters were supposed to appear in Crusade. Lochley's appearances are not counted, as she is in the Crusade cast.

The first actually happened. In the fifth episode filmed, "Each Night I Dream of Home" Richard Biggs reprised his role as Dr. Stephen Franklin. It was not a minor part. His character was integral to the story, and could not have been done with a new character in the part.

The others, unfortunately, either didn't make it to the filming stage, or just didn't happen.

Walter Koenig was set to reprise his character of Bester in "Value Judgements" by Fiona Avery. Bester, on the run from his former friends in the Psi Corps, runs into the Crusade cast. The final moments would have featured Michael Garibaldi, briefly, searching for Bester.

At conventions and in interviews, Walter said it was the best script he'd ever been offered, and would have had fans talking for years. He is correct.

The last appearances is more ... ambiguous. It is also the ultimate Holy Grail for Crusade fans. On August 31, 1998, JMS wrote "Path of Sorrows" ... It was the seventh script written for the series.

In "Path," three of the Crusade characters meet an alien who offers them forgiveness. The alien delves into the mind of the person before it, finds a very tragic/terrible memory which has not been forgiven, and does so. Galen, for example, was there when his love Isabelle died. He has never forgiven himself for living, when she died.

As originally written, the ship's telepath, Matheson, met Lyta Alexander. Lyta was Babylon 5's telepath. She went off with G'Kar, searching for adventures, at the end of the series.

Lyta would have been shown for only a little while, perhaps five minutes of screen-time. She convinced Matheson to turn on his masters in the Psi Corps and embrace freedom, joining the resistance.

At the end, eyes glowing (she had been ... enhanced ... by the Vorlons), she would have set off a bomb that destroyed the main Corps facility, Lennier at her side.

Several things combined to ensure that Lyta was not in this episode. Scheduling conflicts, money, etc. It was rewritten with some other resistance leader as the woman who turns Matheson, and the appearance is lost.

The only way to "see" what happened is to read the original script. Crusade scripts themselves are rare and extremely hard to find. If you're looking for a random Crusade episode, you may have a chance. If you're looking for one from a specific episode, good luck. You'll need it. They are THAT hard to find. To narrow it down to a specific script ... You're not looking for a needle in a haystack. You're looking for a needle in the whole damn field!

And that is a reason I'm so lucky to be friends with so many varied people. One of these friends worked on Crusade, and on Saturday I received a package from him. I didn't even think to open it until yesterday.

Upon doing so, five scripts popped out. They were the first and final drafts of both "The Memory of War" and "Each Night I Dream of Home" (and it's cool looking at everything that changed!) ... and the ORIGINAL version of "Path of Sorrows"!!! The Crusade Holy Grail, just because a friend thought I'd like it!

Thanks to the author, Fiona Avery, I also have "Value Judgements" and I already had three other Crusade scripts. This brings the total up to nine, so far. I may actually get one from each of the 13 episodes some day!

Now that I have "Path" it's all downhill from here! Good day.

Journal Home ------ Next Entry