Customer Reviews

Babylon 5: Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendant

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

this is the 2nd part of the trilogy and while it's very good I dissaprove and disagree with the authors decision regarding the full extent of virtual omnipotence granted telepaths.

this is an opinion and personally I'd have gone a different way, I'd like to see anti telepathy tech introduced for citizens, I'd prefer that telepaths not be godlike in their ability but again these are opinion and differing only in choices.

good book though and a worthy 2nd chapter in the story.

This book, based on an outline from Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski (so you know it's official), covers the period in B5's history detailing the early life of Psi Cop Alfred Bester, from his first years being raised by Psi Corps right up to before his first visit to the Babylon 5 station.

There were revelations abound in this book, including details of Bester's first love, Lyta Alexander's internship with the Psi Cops, and just how Bester's hand became crippled. Let's just say, it's a big surprise.

The book also gives a greater look into the Bester character and after reading it you start to understand his motives for the things that he does both here and during the B5 series. Highly recommended.

After reading this book, now I have a better insight "why Bester is who he is". The book explained the motives of BEster, give me a better understanding of the great series of Babylon 5.

I used to hated Bester almost as much as Ivanova, but after reading this book, I feel pity for Bester, and I can understand his point of views

This book offers some background information on Bester.

This book travels over 60 years telling of the rise of bester. It starts gradually by telling bester's story as a student at the psi corps and then it ties up the events that happened in the previous novel and the tv series, where it ends. fun and keeps you guessing about what is to come next. quite enjoyable

This was my favorite book of the three. This is a great book even on its own, the author has courtiously included all pertinent information to allow the reader to feel the anger and the pain. Bester, the main character of this story, is so excellently written here. At times I hate him, at times I can see he's teetering on the brink of being a wholesome human being, but ultimately he obey's his nature and I'm impressed by how much I care. Great Book!

Deadly Relations opens as Bester is 6 years old, growing up in the Psi Corps center in Switzerland. The book follows his life as he struggles with his ambition and his desire to be loved. Interestingly for fans of the Babylon 5 TV show, Lyta and Byron have cameos and this book ends with Bester about to leave for his first trip to the station.

Fans of the series will enjoy this book. J. Gregory Keyes has done a good job of capturing Bester and making him sympathetic. Bester truly becomes a well-rounded character whose motives we can understand, even if we don't agree with them. This is something I enjoyed about the show itself, and I'm glad to see it continued here.

However, this book suffers from the same problem as the first in the trilogy - no real plot. It follows Bester for 68 years, and as such reads more like a biography. There is no real climax; it just ends. The other characters just serve the purpose of helping us understand Bester and are not super interesting on their own.

Any fan of Babylon 5 will enjoy this novel because of the information on Bester. New comers to the series will be more interested once they've viewed the show.

This second, and best book of a wonderfull trilogy that deals with the aspects of the Psi-Corps, and telepaths in usual is centered around the intriquing character of bester. We see his life story from a five year old child to the days just before his first appearance on the show. And many of the aspects of this novel are explored further in the last book of the trilogy. If you haven't read it already do so. And dont forget the other books of this truly intriquing trilogy.

Spin-offs from television series usually leave a lot to be desired. But Babylon 5 was no ordinary series. And while the five year series was complete unto itself, questions were left unanswered and fascinating side trips were unexplored. This isn't a complaint, it's part of what made the series so unique and special.

The Psi Corp trilogy (made up of: 1) Dark Genesis: The Birth of the Psi Corp; 2) Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendant; and 3) Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester) provides critical background B5 fans will relish and entertaining insight into what made Al Bester one of Babylon 5's most fascinating characters. The fact that they're based on an outline by J. Michael Straczynski makes all three books "authorized" B5 history.

The first book, Dark Genesis, is the weakest of the three. While the topic will be of interest to Babylon 5 fans (and of little interest to anyone else), it can't help but come off as anything more than a travelogue populated by cardboard characters. Too much needs to be explained to allow much focus on plot or character development. Instead, the book often comes off less like a novel and more like a "script bible" for the television series, painting the back story for episodes featuring the Psi Corp.

In the final two books of the trilogy, however, Keyes does a fine job of capturing Bester, one of the series most intriguing characters. He not only relates his life, but he even makes him likeable - at times. Deadly Relations takes place before most of the events covered by the television series; while the majority of Final Reckoning occurs subsequent to the series' timeline. And, as is a prerequisite in books of this genre, he weaves in events and characters from the series. But Keyes does it very well without the cameos seeming out of place at all.

I'm purposefully not addressing the story line. If you're a B5 fan reading all three books is almost mandatory. It adds greatly to the saga. If you're not a fan of Babylon 5, you can definitely skip Dark Genesis. However, you may find Deadly Relations and Final Reckoning worthwhile. This isn't Nebula material, but it's fun.

As Alfred Bester once said, "not everything is about Babylon 5". Deadly Relations tracks the life of Bester from the time he is a young child who was raised from infancy by Psi Corps, to just before Mind War, and Psi Corps is not necessarily depicted as I expected it would be. Babylon 5 first told it's viewers that Bester was the "bad" guy, because he opposed Sinclair, then they told us that he was a "multidimetional bad guy", because there is a point to what he was doing. Deadly Relations shows us that Bester is a man who does what he feels is necessary and makes HARD choices for the good of his "family", the Corps. I really enjoyed this trilogy and hope for more Psi Corps related book.