Posted by Jonathan Klotz | Published
It would be hard to pick a favorite character from him Babylon 5. A good case can be made for everyone, but there's no denying that the Centaurian Ambassador, Londo Mollari, is one of the best. A proud Centauri, Londo represents the best of his species…when he feels like it. He tends to overdo everything, whether it's drinking or women, and his pride goes before his downfall, but it's that complex mix of traits that makes him so memorable. In Season 1's “The War Prayer,” Londo steps up and helps a young couple defy the tradition of marriage in the name of love. For all his faults, Londo knows what love is like, and what Centauri marriage entails, after all he has been through it three times.
Londo And The Centauri's Vision Of Love
“War Prayer” splits its time between Sinclair and Ivanova dealing with aliens attacking the Homeguard, while Londo (Peter Jurasik) navigates a complicated political situation involving Vir's cousin (Stephen Furst), Kiron (Rodney Eastman), and the love of his life Aria (A Year of Wonders star Danica McKellar). Arranged marriages are a tradition among the Centauri, as Londo says, a society with no need for love. That's funny when you consider how willing he was to go for outside dancer Adira Tyree.
Londo explains to the young couple about his previous marriages, calling his ex-wives Famine, Pestilence, and Death, all from Season 2's “Soul Mates,” and strangely, Londo seems to be the last to appreciate Timov (Jane Carr) who makes no attempt to show him love or affection just after his arranged marriage is finalized. Londo's problem is that deep down, he longs for the kind of love he briefly experienced with Adira, which is why he finds a way for lovers to remain single, until they are old enough to choose a partner for themselves.
The solution, which sends them to live with his well-connected and very important cousin, doesn't technically violate Centauri culture. Londo won't break Centauri rules, but he will bend them. Always.
Babylon 5's Worldbuilding is Second to None
No one is the same at the end Babylon 5 as they were at the beginning, especially Londo was not given his final fate, but in all the major changes in his position, it is a proof of J's writing. Michael Straczynski that even the smallest details of Londo's life and vision become relevant later. Would Londo do the same to another couple of Centauri who were not directly related to his assistant? Not at all.
“War Prayer” shows how foreign culture is not far removed from human culture, no matter what the Home Guard might want to believe. From G'Kar and Delenn's response to the alien invasion, to Londo carefully navigating culture and tradition, it's all further proof that world-building Babylon 5 it is second to none. When Londo delivers the line, “My shoes are too tight, and I've forgotten how to dance” we see another glimpse of the flawed male fans they'll fall in love with over the next four seasons. He had seen too much, done too much, compromised too much, and the worst was yet to come.
