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Unlike the intros to previous seasons (narrated by Sinclair, Sheridan, and Ivanova respectively), the intro to the fourth season of Babylon 5 is no longer an opening monologue but a selection of lines from various different characters:

It was the year of fire… the year of destruction… the year we took back what was ours. It was the year of rebirth… the year of great sadness… the year of pain… and the year of joy. It was a new age. It was the end of history. It was the year everything changed. The year is 2261. The place: Babylon 5.

So far (I'm about a third of the way through this season), I've managed to identify a few of them by their voices alone:

  • "the year we took back what was ours" - G'Kar (also known as all-time winner of Most Emotion Conveyed through Heaviest Prosthetics prize)
  • "the year of pain" - Marcus (who taught me what a "British accent" sounds like, by contrasting with the American speakers who surround him)
  • "and the year of joy" - Delenn (pretty sure I know her accent by now)
  • "It was a new age" - Londo (another unmistakable accent)
  • "It was the end of history" - Franklin? (I'm less sure about this one, but I think it's him)

Is there a complete list of who says what?

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The names are as follows. Some of the events referred to are pretty easy to place ("taking back what was ours" seems to be a direct allusion to Narn, "rebirth" presumably refers to Sheridan's miraculous recovery from being dead, etc) whereas others are more generically referring to the Shadow War and its aftermath.

Lennier: It was the year of fire,
Zack Allen: the year of destruction,
G'Kar: the year we took back what was ours.
Lyta Alexander: It was the year of rebirth,
Vir Cotto: the year of great sadness,
Marcus Cole: the year of pain,
Delenn: and the year of joy.
Londo: It was a new age.
Dr. Franklin: It was the end of history.
Susan Ivanova: It was the year everything changed.
Michael Garibaldi: The year is 2261.
John Sheridan: The place: Babylon 5.

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  • I always thought "taking back what was ours" was a direct allusion to Earth (taking it back from the claws of President Clarke's totalitarian government). Never would have guessed G'Kar says that line.
    – O. R. Mapper
    Jan 14, 2018 at 14:56
  • @O.R.Mapper - It's a theme that runs through the episode. It also applies to the Alliance taking back the galaxy.
    – Valorum
    Jan 14, 2018 at 15:04
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    Thanks! Do you have a source that lists these, or did you identify them just from listening to the clip?
    – Rand al'Thor ♦
    Jan 14, 2018 at 23:40
  • @Randal'Thor - I've seen this list on several websites including the (unofficial) midwinter site. It's likely it would have been subject to correction if it was wrong. I've also listened to it a thousand times and recognise every voice.
    – Valorum
    Jan 14, 2018 at 23:41
  • Cheers :-) I suspect I'd have been able to identify them all myself before the end of the season, but this is worth having on the site as something that people probably Google for a lot.
    – Rand al'Thor ♦
    Jan 14, 2018 at 23:44

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