Just after the airing of 'Paragon of Animals' and instigated by G'kar's use of the word 'One' to signify the galaxy's unity, I posted a small message in TNT's board focusing on the fact that the title 'The One' was given to people who had managed to unite former enemies. So in that way Sinclair/Valen had united the warring Minbari castes, Delenn had united Humans and Minbari, not to mention reuniting the Minbari castes in 'Moments of Transition', and Sheridan had achieved the greatest of them all by managing to unite all of the galaxy's species in the Interstellar Alliance. It also explained the use of tense in the titles since Sinclair/Valen would unite the Minbari in the distant past, Delenn was being a symbol for unity between Humans and Minbari at the time it was said, and Sheridan would unite the galaxy in the future.
In my opinion, it was a nice small analysis... as far as it went. Unfortunately it didn't go nearly as far as it should, in that it did not explain how they managed to accomplish so much. Moreover since Sheridan united more people than Delenn, who in turn united more people than Sinclair, it gave the impression that Sheridan was more important than Delenn who was more important than Sinclair.
I disagree with that. Quite strongly, frankly. Also my idea of the inseparability of the three Ones as well as my idea of the symmetry of B5's universe rebelled against it (I'm being over-dramatic here... I like it!) There was another ability except the ability to unite, that I noticed in the last few weeks: The ability to break away. Moreover while I was writing the last analysis (concerning Sheridan and the way he is a symbol of humanity) I understood the importance of nonconformity and how it was a recurring theme in the series. Finally, JMS himself has said many times that choices and responsibility is one of the most important themes in B5.
I placed the above characteristics in a line, and it became obvious that all three members of The One shared them. That, as a matter of fact, it was the reason they had that distinction over the remaining good and competent characters. To explain: The One is the title given to those individuals who standing against conformity led the young races to break away from the 1000-year war cycle and taking responsibility for their previous actions managed to unite the galaxy into the Interstellar Alliance.
Let's talk about each of these attributes, and explain in the process.
This is one of the most paramount virtues in the B5 universe (and IMO in ours, too). This ability is again and again praised, and seems to be one of the reasons the human are considered to be the 'key' to the future. 'They do not seek conformity, they do not surrender. Out of their differences comes symmetry, their unique ability to fight against impossible odds... Hurt them, they only come back stronger... They are the future and we have much to learn from them'. Non-conformity seems the chief characteristic that leads the humans to their destiny. But the reason Delenn praises it so much, is that Minbari as a whole do not possess it. Their chief characteristic is *conformity*, an element that does unite them, so that they do not have the history of bloodshed humans do (one had not killed another for a thousand years) but has also led them to stagnancy. Examples given: 'Understanding is not required. Only obedience.' (Parliament of Dreams, elsewhere). 'In the Minbari, you only get informed on what you need to know.' (something like that in Divided Loyalties) and of course 'No. Be a nice Minbari. Conform. Stay silent. Admit you are inadequate.' (Comes the Inquisitor).
Delenn alone of all Minbari seen, does not conform. Had she done so in the Inquisitor's examination and elsewhere, she would be unworthy for the role destined for her. In an analysis I read in John's and Delenn's Forum (www.johndelenn.com) it is supported that this ability of Delenn's comes from her human ancestry (through Valen). An interesting thing, especially since that analysis was written before 'Atonement' aired! Delenn shows non-conformity in various crucial places through the series. Though she honours the traditions of her people, as seen in many episodes, she is also quite willing to break with these traditions when it is necessary. She refuses to lead the Council and thus leave Babylon 5, she enters the chrysalis despite the objections of the others, she breaks the council itself at a most crucial time, she goes forward with her relationship with Sheridan.
In Sheridan's character, non-conformity is a lot more obvious. It is seen through his eccentricity, as when he refuses to pay for his room, (A Race Through Dark Places), but in a lot of other scenes too he always seems to take the most unorthodox course of action available: His willingness to take risky, somewhat weird, but ultimately right decisions, (his order not to fire in 'Points of Departure', the plan that saved the Cortez in 'A Distant Star', the destruction of the Markab jumpgate in 'Matters of Honour', his decision not to transmit the message to the Probe of 'A Day in the Strife', others) a *twisted* sense of humor (What kind of man would ever space such a cute teddy-bear anyway? 'There All The Honour Lies'), a little showing off (All Alone in the Night) etc....
Sinclair I consider to be a symbol of the Minbari, so his non-conformity is not so obvious, especially since we see him for only one season. It is there however, especially in his paraphrasing orders to mean what he wants them to mean (By Any Means Necessary), as well as his refusal to share command with another officer (A Voice in the Wilderness). Garibaldi in 'Eyes' says as much: That though Sinclair is a by-the-book kind of guy, they have made rewritten the book a few times to make B5 work.
The refusal to conform leads the members of the One to the ability to break away.
Non-conformity would be insignificant if it didn't lead to direct actions. In the B5 story the most important 'breaking away' is of course the breaking away from the 1000-year war cycle of the Vorlon-Shadow conflict. But each of the members of the One has to break away from (or let go of) something personally important too.
Sheridan has to (and manages to) let go of a couple of important things. First (and most obvious) is his breaking away from Earthforce, an institution he deeply believes in, both in 'Severed Dreams' and 'Rising Star', something foreshadowed as far back as 'There All The Honour Lies' when he removes his command pin. Second, he has to let go of Anna, and his grief for her death, something which is first seen in 'Revelations', revisited in 'In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum', and is of paramount importance in 'Z'ha'dum'. Third, he has to let go of life itself. His deathwish ironically makes this the easiest of his decisions. This is seen by his words in both 'In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum' and in 'Interludes and Examinations', something fulfilled in 'Z'ha'dum'. His surrendering to death is more difficult however, as is always the case with taking responsibility, for one's actions.
It is again noteworthy, how each time, his letting go of something leads him to something even greater and more important. His breaking away from Earthforce leads him to become a) the leader of the alliance that defeated the Shadows and Vorlons, and b) the president of the Interstellar Alliance itself. His letting go of Anna, allows him to propose to Delenn; and, who knows, perhaps become the father of a whole people (it depends on what David's significance will be). Finally, his letting go of life, allows him to go on with a second life of even greater galactic importance as the bringer of the Third Age of Mankind.
Delenn, also has to break away. Break away from tradition, as already stated, firstmost. Let go of her hesitations and fears in 'Comes the Inquisitor'. But most importantly, she has to let go of a part of her identity and her race, through her transformation into a Human-Minbari hybrid. In 'All Alone in the Night' she says 'Trying to help I have sacrificed all that I was, and all that I am'. She has to be ostracized from her race and expelled from the Grey Council to fulfill her destiny.
But even greater than her sacrifice is the sacrifice of Sinclair. Sinclair has to let go of *everything*. Not only he has to leave B5, a place which is of great importance to him (as said in 'And the Sky Full of Stars'), not only he has to let go of his early (before Babylon 5) hatred for the Minbari (something noted in dialogue in 'And the Sky Full of Stars': 'For years after the war, every time I saw Minbari I had to fight the temptation to strangle them with my bare hands!'), he has to leave his own time, in the process letting go of all of his family, friends and loved ones. He also has to transform himself to a Minbari, and thus break away *completely* from his own race. At the end, he has to let go even of his name: Something essential plotwise, but symbolic as well, perhaps.
I don't have a lot to say on this one, since it is most obviously referred to in the series, than anything else. Just a small summary of actions, as Delenn has to take responsibility for her transformation and accept the consequences, she has to take responsibility for her breaking the Council and take steps that it is reconstructed, Sheridan has to take the responsibility for his rebellion as for his going to Z'ha'dum and 'dying'. Sinclair's taking responsibility is again unfortunately less obvious, since we see him for only one year; but again it's there, as in 'Eyes' somewhat.
Through this responsibility the unity of the Galaxy emerges.
After the Shadows and the Vorlons departed, the races were left in the aftermath of the war. They could quite possibly fall into a vicious galaxy-wide and millenia-long war that would destroy all and fulfill the Shadows' dreams of chaos at best, or destroy all at worst. It could possibly be ruled by a dictator that imposing his control, would destroy all creativity, improvisation and freedom and lead the galaxy into a stagnant order a hundred times worse than the Minbari's (and Vorlons') conformistic system.
Those fears did not come to pass because of The One. After the Vorlon-Shadow War, Delenn and Sheridan respectively end the two main sources of post-Shadow conflict: Delenn reuniting the warring castes into a more fair and flexible system (Moments of Transition), and Sheridan defeating Clarke's fascistic order (Endgame).
After that, continuing the job Delenn began by uniting Humans and Minbari, they would unite the whole galaxy by creating the Alliance, while Sheridan would become its first president. Defensive backbone and symbol of the Interstellar Alliance would be the Anla'shok, created one thousand years ago by the third member of The One, Sinclair/Valen, to unite the battling Minbari castes.
And with this ability to unite others, to unite diverse populations, we've come full circle since this is the second special ability of Humanity in the B5 universe, in 'And Now For a Word' and 'Rising Star' praised again by Delenn, student of humanity and exterior observer of it, who often has the role of Star Trek's Data in holding a mirror against it...
What is also interesting is that the rest of the command staff seems to possess a flaw in their personalities, that would stop them from ever possessing the role of the One. In the following paragraphs, I don't discuss Marcus, Zack, the ambassadorial aids, and various other characters like G'Kar and Londo. It's not that I consider them to be inferior in importance; I just think that they play a different role.
Talia's (and Lyta's - I believe Lyta took over a lot of Talia's arc) flaw is conformity. She seems generally unable to make her own decision and always needs a father figure to help her along and tell her what to do. This role was first held by the Corps. In 'A Race Through Dark Places' the rogue telepaths not only have to kidnap her and very, very clearly explain to her that the Corps is *bad*, they also have to tell her exactly how to defeat Bester, for her to `make a stand. Lyta's father figure is the Corps firstmost, and she then switches to Kosh. Though I've not seen S4 and S5, she then seems to switch to Sheridan and finally Byron. She would never be able to understand the *evil* of the Vorlon-Shadow conflict on her own, and be willing to stand up against them both.
Ivanova's problem is perhaps the inability to break away. From the beginning of S1 we learn that she is not able to get over her mother's death and forgive the corps. We also learn (War Prayer) that she generally can't forget a past relationship ('I cried myself to sleep for a while'). The former makes her have a major identity problem, as she refuses to acknowledge her latent telepathy. The former along with the latter (that she was hurt by that Homeguard guy) makes her very slow to warm up to Talia; and when she's hurt again, she never manages to recover so as to have a relationship with Marcus. It's very unfortunate that with Claudia's departure, we'll never see her actually face her latent telepathy, and possibly get over the past. Anyway, she would most possibly fail to make on her own the leap required to break away from the 'circle of history' itself. Not as long as she doesn't know who she is.
Then comes Franklin. His problem is obvious: He never takes responsibility for his actions. This is a flaw focused upon in 'Shadow Dancing' so I won't speak a lot of it. Except the matters referred to in Shadow Dancing, this irresponsibility may perhaps be also seen in the way he seems to fall in and out of love extremely quickly, unlike the other characters of the series: The doctor's daughter in Quality of Mercy, the woman of Long Dark, Cailyn in Walkabout. But even if Franklin had the command abilities needed to defeat the Vorlons and Shadows (he does not) he would most possibly fail to understand that there were more that had to be done; and that he would have to unite the galaxy.
Finally we have Garibaldi. Strangely enough, he is the closest to being the One than all the others. He is eccentric and non-conformist, he has gotten over both betrayal (Chrysalis) and his alcoholism problem (Day in the Strife), and he has learned of responsibility as he keeps the Rangers a secret (Coming of Shadows), advises Franklin (Day in the Strife), and knows he can't do anything he wants in his own office (In the Shadow of Z'ha'dum). Moreover going on with the relationships' parallel, he's a lot more responsible as he tries to find a woman he left 2 years ago (Lise), he refuses easy sex for fear of ruining his growing relationship with another (GROPOS), and finally gets back together to Lise. But his paranoia and distrust of anyone he doesn't know, would stop him from ever uniting others. The best he ever did is appeal to someone he knows, G'Kar, and let him do the job. (Walkabout) So he would most possibly manage to break away from earth, be willing to stand against the Vorlons and Shadows, and be willing to take responsibility from then on; but he would fail miserably if he tried to unite the races of the galaxy. He won't trust anyone and he's not diplomatic: So nobody will trust him.
1st Version: March 1998
Email me at: katsaris@gmail.com
Last updated: 09 Apr 2002
