The influence of Babylon 5 on Fallout Equestria pt 1

Throughout the days of Summer, I had spent sometime with an old friend. Yes, I had spent it watching all of Babylon 5. It was amazing sitting through all of those episodes, seeing all of the events of my childhood playing out, and revisiting all of the characters that I had loved. Babylon 5, with all of its themes and story telling, is one of the best sci-fi shows on the planet. Although having a small fanbase, I can guarantee you that if you ask a fan, they will tell you all about why they love this show.

However, when I started watching this show I was watching with not just the mindset of “OH my god this show is awesome!” I was also watching with the intent to compare it to my favorite fanfic of all time-Fallout Equestria. See, I remember how in interviews Kkat said that she was inspired by B5 in the creation of FOE. So, I decided to find out and do some small comparisons. And, after four months, many tears, and my heart giving out from the sweetness, I think I have finally got the most comprehensive comparison I could make.

Now, let me preface this comparison with this-just because I am saying that FOE has taken inspiration from B5 in the following ways, that is not to call her a rip-off. Unlike certain sites, I know that you can take inspiration from something and not be called a rip-off. There is a difference between a homage and a rip off. this is Homage

This is a rip-off

Know the difference!!!

(Yes, I just did that joke. Go ahead and hit me.

Besides, if I were to say that FOE is a rip off of B5, then I would have to complain about the following for being rip offs:

Mass Effect: Rip off of Babylon 5

Sailor Moon: Rip off of Sentai

Fist of the North Star: Rip off of the Mad Max franchise

Digimon: Rip off of Pokemon

Batman: Rip off of Shadow, Zorro, and the Scarlet Pumpernel

Babylon 5: Rip off of Lord of the bloody Rings

Again, just because a piece takes inspiration from a work, then it is a homage. However, if it steals verbatim, then we are talking rip off (For more on this, I suggest SF Debris excellent video on the subject...when he gets it back online)

But for now, the comparison. I’ve broken it up into two categories: Themes and characters, to help ease the process of reading it.

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On the subject of themes, one of the bigger ones that B5 reveled in is the subject of grey morality and the idea that we are not all just good people. Now, while Fallout has similar themes, it is far too easy to change from being a character like Red Eye to a hero like Little Pip with the experience of one quest. There is a comic that illustrates this fact perfectly

In a sense, you can either become a messiah or the devil in an afternoon. Babylon 5 does not do this to its characters, as in various moments of the series we see that each character has something dark to them. That each has done something dark that will forever haunt them and their lives as characters for a long time. These deeply affect the characters and helps to change them as they grow through the series.

FOE is much in the same path, as we constantly hit scenarios with no clear right or wrong answers. We hit scenarios where the characters are faced with moral grey areas, and, unlike Fallout proper, the situations deeply affect them throughout the story. The most popular of these, and the one that may be played through your head the moment I mentioned grey morality, is Arbu. The entire scenario, though based on a game scenario, plays out in a way that would not be too far off from a Babylon 5 scenario. Yes, they were cannibals, but one can’t forget that they had families as well, CHILDREN. Children who didn’t know a thing about their parents sins, the horrors their parents committed, or anything else. They are children, who just saw a monster killed. Another scene that compares well to Babylon 5 is the moment when Little Pip takes out the goddess. In true Babylon fashion, when our heroine blows up the goddess there is some grey in it.

I think the villain who best represents this grey area, is Red Eye. He may be a stallion who uses slaves, puts ponies in danger when he needs to, and is auser; however, one cannot forget the had a genuine plan for ponies. He had schools and was willing to provide for others. In his own way, he actually is trying to help others. Despite his plans would result in the deaths of thousands of pegasi, it can’t be denied that his plan would still help ponies in a fashion.

Another theme that I found in both, and one that is way too easily remedied in Fallout, is the one of addiction. In B5, addiction is presented in both power (in the form of Lyta and Londo) and drug (Girabaldi and Steven), demonstrating the various ways that it can affect you. The show provides ways how addiction will change you, convince you that you need it, and how it harms those around you. It shows how addiction is a hard thing to overcome, and it can consume you if you let it. It can destroy you and your life if you cannot control it.

As you probably know, addiction is a theme in FOE as well. So much so that one of the things that I will always remember when I think of this story, is a story that someone once said,

“Seeing Little Pip conquer her addiction to Mint-als helped me with my own problems”

and Little Pip’s addiction problems are a major arc for the story, much like how Girabaldi’s and Stephen’s are a major part of their stories. As a matter of fact, I feel like Stephen’s addiction to Stims (a drug that helps amp you up and keeps you awake) and Little Pip’s addiction to Mint-als are very very similar. Both are convinced that they need their drug to be better, to do better, and to be able to be something for everyone. This is very similar to what a stimulant will do to both your mind and body. And like Stephen, Little Pip does manage to conquer it while having a little help from both her friends and magic (its a world with magical horses, you got to take what you get); however, in one of my favorite scenes, we see that she is still not completely over it. Heck, she almost makes an excuse to keep that last tin. Its only through the love of Homage and her own will power that she puts that last tin away.

Identity and desire are two strong themes that FOE and Babylon 5 also take a long time to look at it, both in a chaotic fashion and a harmonious fashion. And interestingly enough, the protagonist and antagonist of one, represents the polar opposite of the other.

This is a Vorlon, and represents order/identity. Interestingly enough, their desire for a n ordered, systematic, and harmonious universe runs more in line with the ideals of Red Eye. This is interesting because when we look into the character's portion of this comparison, we see that I see Little Pip in closer in tone to Sheridan who is one the side of the Vorlons. I find it interesting, because the theme of desire is best represented in the series antagonist

The shadows, or in this case, chaos. Little Pip’s greatest esire in this fic is to be useful, to be important, and to bring light back into the hopeless Wasteland. By doing this, she is willing to destroy a possible source of harmony (Red Eye) and let her own light be a shining light to the Wasteland. This is despite the fact that this decision is chaotic in the long run. Little Pip is already assured in her identity, while Red Eye removed his. So assured of her identity, that Little Pip is almost afraid of losing hers when her cutie mark is blazed off.

The theme of identity vs desire, merges with chaos vs harmony in both so well that it also affects how the characters act. Calamity sheds his identity and becomes a better person, G’kar gains a new identity to become a better person. Delenn changes her identity and becomes a hero to absolve her greatest sin, Homage hides her identity to become a better mare. Some characters transition from this, going from identity to want and changing from heroic persona to villainous and vice versa. For Instance, Gawd goes from want (villain) to identity (hero). Once again, its interesting to take this in account when you see that the characters who embody want and identity are on two opposite sides of the coin as opposed to their show counterparts.

Choice is another major theme that pervades both works (and best of all, they matter!). Its a simple choice of one person to attack that sets off the whole Minbari/Earth conflict, and it is the choice of Luna to separate the elements that ends up damning all of Equestria to a living hell. Both use the power of choice to show one simple choice will affect you fro your life and sometimes can affect the entire world. It is choice that will affect your identity and your wants after all. It is quite ingenious of Kkat that the final moments of Little Pip’s journey is not a showdown with a monster or some god...but

Here, where a final choice could be made. Reminding us that in the end, it is not guns that end up changing the world, but the choices that mortals make. This is the same for Babylon 5, as the final fight in the shadow war is not a shootout, but a declaration of ideals, of desire, and of staying fast to your own self-determination. Even Ivanova’s last lines in the show proper remind us of how we must make our own destiny and that means choices. Little Pip’s end goal, gives the ponies of Equestria a light in order to make their own choice. Right or wrong, they have the ability.

This leads me into beliefs, and how it means the world that you hold onto them no matter what. I think this properly exemplifies what I mean

Can’t you see Little Pip standing back and saying something like that? Hell, she is this speech incarnate. She may not be the one who will think that she is a hero,or even a good pony, but she fervently believes that she can save the Wasteland. She may make mistakes, but she knows that she can save everypony in Equestria. Heck, even Velvet goes this route by being a stern believer in her pacifism and heart. Both subjects draw from the well of finding something to believe in (hope, love, and friends) and holding onto it despite that the whole world will tell you no. That you should never give in and allow the darkness to consume you. There is a way to win...even if you don’t see it. Even if you have to make your own victory, aka a third option.

The last theme that I saw that was between these two productions was the theme of sacrifice. After all, it is Little Pip’s virtue. Through it all, Babylon 5 has some great images of sacrifice, from the small (having to give up time with the one that you love), to the major (Sacrifice a few people to have the upper hand on your opponent). It never considered a good thing in either scenario, but the characters involved realize that there is no choice. The same can be said of FOE, as sacrifice plays out heavily in the story.

Stayed tuned for Part two later...because I didn't want you to read the whole thing in one sitting.