One of spin-off entries like Babylon 5: The Long Road Home), Babylon 5 was centered around the titular space station, which served as a diplomatic meeting space for the various alien races of the galaxy.
Eschewing the typical episodic approach to television of the era, B's overarching plotlines eventually carrier their characters from standard military positions to freedom fighters in a galactic-spanning conflict between ancient alien races. While the show was full of compelling figures, one of the best was also among the show's most grounded characters. Despite the sci-fi trappings of Babylon 5, this character brought a vital human element (for better and for worse) to the epic show and remains an underrated character in the sci-fi canon.
Michael Garibaldi's Role On Babylon 5, Explained
Nothing Happens On Babylon 5 Without Garibaldi's Knowledge
Michael Garibaldi is one of the best elements of Babylon 5, and one of the most underrated characters in sci-fi history. Played by Jerry Doyle, Garibaldi was the Chief of Security for the titular space station. Generally, a charming and laid-back man while off duty, his commitment to his allies and his work made him an invaluable asset to the efforts to extend peace throughout the galaxy. The character faced several challenges during his tenure, including a brutal betrayal in season 1 that left him on the verge of death.
Eventually freed from this corruption, Garibaldi transitioned into a freedom fighter and eventually returned to Babylon 5 in the final season to lay the groundwork for the Interstellar Alliance.
Eventually growing to trust the new station commander John Sheridan after his friend Sinclair departed the station while he was in a coma, Garibaldi remained a consistent presence in the main cast until season 4, when his role in the show shifted. As part of an overarching conspiracy by the nefarious Psi-Corps, the villainous Alfred Bester used his abilities to turn Garibaldi into an unwilling sleeper agent to upend Sheridan's plans. Eventually freed from this corruption, Garibaldi transitioned into a freedom fighter and eventually returned to Babylon 5 in the final season to lay the groundwork for the Interstellar Alliance.
Why Babylon 5 Needed Someone Like Michael Garibaldi
Garibaldi Brought An Undeniably Human Aspect To Babylon 5
What makes Michael Garibaldi uniquely special within Babylon 5 is the way that, despite all the sci-fi trappings and aspects present in his story, he's also a painfully human character too. While the other human characters are sympathetic and emotionally grounded in their own ways, their stories are also more inherently thematic. In contrast, Garibaldi is almost painfully relatable. He struggles with addiction issues related to alcohol and frequently relapses. He loves Italian food and Daffy Duck cartoons, using them as ways to open up to people. He's suspicious of everyone, and yet too trusting of his friends.
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Michael Garibaldi is a very human character in a world of larger-than-life figures, who frequently has to play detective to sniff out threats before they explode into full-on crisis-level events. In this sense, Garibaldi is an ideal audience POV character in the sci-fi setting. He's intelligent enough to figure out problems, but not flawless enough to keep himself from making them. He's important to the overarching story, but doesn't have a galactic destiny or star-crossed romance like other major characters. Garibaldi is just a guy, going to work and doing his best.
Garibaldi's Traitor Arc Is Fascinating
Garibaldi Being Transformed Into A Sleeper Agent Was More Complex Than It Seems
That inherent reliability partly makes Garibaldi's traitor arc in season 4 so compelling. On the surface, the idea of psychics using their abilities to tweak his perspective and turn the character into a sleeper agent is a painfully sci-fi concept. However, Bester makes an important point when he reveals the truth to Garibaldi and the audience: he doesn't do much. It was just slight pushes in certain directions that set off the paranoia that almost brought down Sheridan and damned Garibaldi forever. Bester was able to use the character's already-established personality to do the heavy lifting.
Alfred Bester was a recurring threat for much of Babylon 5 and was played by Walter Koenig, one of the stars of the original Star Trek.
It's an interesting way of highlighting how people can turn on one another through mistaken assumptions and frustrated arguments. Garibaldi wasn't so much psychically corrupted as he was convinced that his friends were making drastic mistakes. This makes his steady redemption arc and role in the season 5 psychic rebellion storyline all the more compelling, as it's not someone just trying to make up for being a pawn. Garibaldi genuinely made those decisions that hurt his friends, and has to work to not only to fix them, but grow as a person and become better for it.
Garibaldi's Best Moment Comes Centuries After His Death
Holo-Garibaldi In "The Deconstruction of Falling Stars" Is A Series Highlight For The Character
A perfect indicator of what makes Garibaldi such a compelling character can be found in the Babylon 5 season 4 finale, "The Deconstruction of Falling Stars." Set across the course of various future time periods as they reflect on the legacy of the Babylon 5 crew and their actions, the various vignettes are set in different centuries. One of them sees a totalitarian government on Earth creating hologram recreations of notable Babylon 5 figures, hoping to create false evidence of their "atrocities" to justify their own actions.
However, the Garibaldi hologram quickly uses his wits to trick the attending scientist into lowering his guard. While the other holograms are manipulated and tweaked into horrible new forms, the hologram Garibaldi is able to hack into the systems and ensure that the resistance forces are aware of this plan. Garibaldi remains snarky and suspicious throughout, all until the moment he gleefully reveals he's set the stage for the totalitarian government's collapse. It's an impressive highlight of the character's sneaky strengths, all grounded with Garibaldi's quiet contentment at ensuring his friends' legacies remain intact and that they can "rest easy."
Babylon 5 Doesn't Work Without Michael Garibaldi
Sci-Fi Can Go Big, But It Always Needs To Keep Some Human
Michael Garibaldi is an important kind of character, even beyond his role in the show as a tactician and investigator. Garibaldi highlights the heroic, fragile, and ultimately enduring humanity that needs to underscore every good sci-fi setting. It's a concept that can be found in plenty of other franchises, from the labor-minded Chief Tyrol in Battlestar Galactica to the ensigns of Star Trek: Lower Decks. It ensures a human core remains at the very core of the sci-fi. Babylon 5 benefited from strong writing and solid characterization across the board, with even the aliens feeling painfully human.
However, the larger themes and massive scope of the show could have made Babylon 5 too unwieldy to be relatable. Characters like Michael Garibaldi ensured that Babylon 5 remained grounded in multiple ways. Garibaldi's grounded emotional beats influenced the plot, making mysteries feel personal and ensuring galactic conflicts still had human stakes. It's an approach other sci-fi like the quasi-spiritual Battlestar Galactica or the time-hopping Interstellar have used to great effect. Babylon 5's Garibaldi might secretly be the best example of how that character archetype can ensure even the highest-minded sci-fi stays human.
Babylon 5
- Release Date
- 1993 - 1998-00-00
- Showrunner
- J. Michael Straczynski
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