A Late Delivery from Avalon
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| "A Late Delivery from Avalon" | |
|---|---|
| Babylon 5 episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 13 |
| Directed by | Michael Vejar |
| Written by | J. Michael Straczynski |
| Production code | 312 |
| Original air date | 22 April 1996 |
| Guest actors | |
|
Michael York (Arthur) |
|
A Late Delivery from Avalon is an episode from the third season of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5.
Synopsis
A man arrives at the station, claiming to be King Arthur. Given that Jack the Ripper actually did show up on the station last year, the possibility that he is telling the truth cannot be dismissed out of hand.
He helps out an old woman who had been robbed of everything, including her husband's picture. He finds the thieves beating up another man, confronts them and beats them all with skillful sword and fist combat. Then more of the gang turns up, but G'Kar, who has been observing the fight with admiration, jumps in and helps "Arthur" give the new malefactors a thorough beating. Then the pair drink together, and "Arthur" impresses G'Kar with talk of the round table and fight against injustice, then knights him as "Sir G'Kar, the Red Knight".
Meanwhile, Dr Franklin finds out that "Arthur" is David McIntyre, the gunnery sergeant who was a crewmember on the ship that had fired the first fateful shots of the Earth-Minbari War. (When David's CO gave the order to open fire on the Minbari ships, David was the one who actually carried out the order.) Despite serving with valor on the Battle of the Line, David was deeply troubled. So his mind took on the new persona of Arthur, and replaced the misunderstanding of the Minbari's open gun ports with a knight who drew his sword to kill an adder, likewise misunderstood as an aggressive move.
The only way to heal his trouble is for "Arthur" to return Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake, a role Delenn willingly accepts. After "Arthur" recovered, he takes off with some Narns, and G'Kar promised Dr Franklin that he would have a position of authority with the resistance, who needed men of his caliber and ideas. In effect, "Arthur" will be forming a new "roundtable" of sorts in the resistance.
Arc significance
- The Babylon Treaty is formed
- We learn more about the Humans' first encounter with the Minbari and how the war started
- The last line regarding the person who represents Morgan le Fay of the episode alludes to the last episode of the season
