The Greatest Space Series of All Time Is Mixed and Spoiled by Broken, Low-Quality Broadcasts
Posted by Jennifer Asencio | Published
In today’s streaming environment, companies are paying for content that was free on other streaming and commercial sites. The latest victim of this tactic is the much-loved sci-fi space opera Babylon 5.
The game that was once free on Tubi, Amazon Prime, and other services is now locked behind the YouTube/Google Play paywall. The series can only be purchased on YouTube and is not available for subscription streaming.
If this wasn’t bad enough, long-known technical issues with the old system undermine the integrity of YouTube’s launch. It was originally shot in a 4:3 aspect ratio when it aired in the 1990s. Aspect ratio arose from that early era of recording and broadcasting technology and its inherent limitations.
YouTube and Google haven’t kept up with this as much as they could have. Many fans of the series have commented on the inconsistent picture quality. Whether that was due to using the original 4:3 format alongside remastered scenes or using scenes from other recording services, fans complained of distorted visuals and cut-out frames.
There is also the worrisome issue of program components being deleted. Season 1, episode 20, “Babylon Squared,” has scenes not in the versions available on YouTube and Google Play. This well-known technical problem was solved by the streaming services HBO Max, iTunes, and Tubi, which broadcast before Google acquired the series.
Practices like these raise big questions about the content these streaming services are silencing. More content that was once widely available is hidden behind Internet paywalls or programs are in the works. The NFL scheduled its Christmas Day games, which are a staple for many families Netflix, a subscription service. After 2029, the Oscars will only be given to YouTube subscribers.
As the number of streaming services grows almost daily, the reasons for cutting the cord in previous decades are being replaced by the prohibitive costs of maintaining so many services. People moved to broadcast because cable was limited to what was broadcast at the time, and broadcast was in high demand.
Now, consumers must not only have cable but also a streaming service to access content that is decades old or once on broadcast television. What once served as the main source of news, entertainment, and culture is now hidden on the Internet, accessible only to those willing to follow Balkanization. Now all of them the movie is rented, and to access the media, one must have the right combination of expensive subscriptions. It’s like paying for each cable channel instead of getting a package.
Broadcasters have even been known to remove movies and shows from their libraries, preventing them from reaching the people who actually pay them, such as the Adult Swim cartoon. Last Space in 2022. Warner Bros, which owns HBO and Discovery, famously does this by blacklisting its less popular properties for tax purposes, regardless of who spent the money to acquire the content. They couldn’t do that with physical media, but it’s something all broadcasters can do and even do quietly.
Many broadcasters also do not carry old movies. A recent reading of the Paramount Plus “all movies” menu showed classics like Catching a Thiefbut they were few and far between among the modern fare from the studio, like the Smile movies. Paramount has a long history of producing some of Hollywood’s classics, but they can’t be accessed on their streaming service.
These are all effects of locking away entertainment and restricting you from streaming apps and computer screens. It not only harms the integrity of the games as it has done to them Babylon 5but it also dictates what parts of the culture people are allowed to access. In the old world, anyone could see Babylon 5 in all its glory on sale or get the series on DVD. Now, we all have to add another subscription to see it, and we don’t get everything we paid for.
