Ok now, I pretty much love everything about this episode. Considering how early the episode was (only the second ever broadcast), it's pretty amazing.

Among the myriad of races, there is a group known collectively as "Soul Hunters" ... Most of the aliens have stories of them, but the Humans have never heard of them. Until now.

A rogue Soul Hunter has been injured and is brought on board the station. In MedLab, the new doctor, Stephen Franklin, nurses him back to health, only to get really freaked out when he does get healthy again.

Soul Hunters are stuff of legends. Minbari children are taught to be good and say their prayers, for fear the Hunters will come and steal their souls during the night. Whether they actually do that or not, well, it's up to the viewer to decide. What we do know is this ... At the moment of death, the Soul Hunter takes something, whether it's the actual soul, or a copy of their brain, something, and stores it in their collection. They talk to these souls, who can be thousands of years old, and treat them as the Hunter's children.

Years ago, during the Earth-Minbari war, the Minbari leader Dukhat was killed. To prevent his soul from being taken, they built a wall of bodies around him. That was where it began to go bad for this particular gentleman. He has decided to stop waiting around for death. When he stumbles upon someone he deems worthy, he kills them, taking the soul in the process.

And that's when he finds Satai Delenn, currently "playing Ambassador" on the station.

The viewer finds out right then what that means ... Satai is a member of the Grey Council, the ruling body of the Minbari. What is one of these Satai doing on the station? What greater purpose - or nefarious plans? - will be coming?

A second Hunter shows up to help stop the first, and after a fashion, he does. Not before Sinclair starts investigating Delenn, however.

This will definitely be touched upon again.

Notes and comments ...

Doctor Kyle is name-dropped. He's working with the President back home now. I miss him already.

We are introduced to "Down Below" ... my, what clean walls they have. :P

When the scammer is caught ("Where she stops, nobody knows"), there is a brief, perhaps two-second shot, a close-up of the Hunter's eye opening and his pupil going all wonkey ... That shot is freaking gorgeous. The director was very skilled, I'll say that.

"Gone now. Gone. Gone. Goooone." ... oh it's heartbreaking. The Hunter is so sad with the death of this lurker. He's an unimportant nobody, but even so, the fact that he is gone is ripping the Hunter's heart right out, and there's nothing he can do to get to the soul and save him. He recovers quickly, or seems to, but you can see it in his eyes for the next several minutes, he's just crushed.

One quick production note here ... The stunt double looks nothing at all like Morgan Sheppard. It's like having some kid from The O.C. with a fake white beard doubling for J. R. Ewing. They don't even resemble each other in the least. I always find myself with a case of the giggles when the double is onscreen.