“It was the dawn of the third age of mankind, ten years after the Earth/Minbari war. The Babylon Project was a dream given form. Its goal, to prevent another war by creating a place where humans and aliens could work out their differences peacefully. It's a port of call - home away from home for diplomats, hustlers, entrepreneurs, and wanderers. Humans and aliens wrapped in two million, five hundred thousand tons of spinning metal, all alone in the night. It can be a dangerous place, but it's our last best hope for peace. This is the story of the last of the Babylon stations. The year is 2258. The name of the place is Babylon 5.”

These words, spoken by Michael O’Hare as Commander Jeffrey Sinclair, started one of the most ground-breaking science fiction television series in history. The first show to be based on a multi-year story arc, Babylon 5 ran from 1994 to 1998, with a total of 110 episodes. A new commander, Captain John Sheridan (played by Bruce Boxleitner) came aboard in Season 2 and stayed through the series finale.

Only three “official” model kits were released through Revell Monogram: the Babylon 5 Space Station, the Starfury Mk. I, and a Starfury Mk. I Special Edition. A host of kits has been produced by garage kit manufacturers over the years.

The 1:18750 scale Babylon 5 station is molded in light gray styrene and features raised detailing on parts such as the solar panels and the main station sections. The parts are free from flash and sink marks. A full decal sheet in provided and features multi-part decals to simulate the station’s hull plating. From what I remember about building the kit years ago, there are some sections that have been left blank, but aftermarket decals help take care of this.

A full-length stand is included, allowing the station to be displayed on a desktop. The stand features the series’ logo of the word “Babylon” with the number “5” in a circle underneath.

The completed station measures just under 17 inches in overall length. Using a scale conversion program, I backed into a scale of 1:18750 based on a length of 5 miles down to 16.89 inches. It’s probably a little off, but at this scale, I don’t think it’s going to make much of a difference.

Review by: Rich “Lonewolf” Dula

Entry created: March 23, 2014