Stephen Franklin
Encyclopedia
Stephen Franklin is a lead character in the fictional universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

, played by the late Richard Biggs
Richard Biggs
Richard T. "Dick" Biggs was an American television and stage actor, best known for his roles on the television series Days of our Lives and Babylon 5.-Life:...

. He serves as the chief medical officer on the Babylon 5 space station.

Personality

Dr. Franklin is a strong-willed, kind person and idealistic leader on Babylon 5; he is also a workaholic. He is not afraid to take risks to save a patient's life; this habit can occasionally get him into trouble. He has strong moral and ethical values, but he can also be self-righteous and a perfectionist at times. He apparently has a good relationship with his mother and siblings, although his long absences from Earth often lead them to complain that they rarely see him. His father - a famous general in EarthForce- has a domineering personality, and that has led Stephen to have a strained relationship with him. When they are together they frequently argue and they have conflicting views on a number of subjects. For example, Stephen's father is suspicious of aliens and believes that humans should "take care of their own", while Stephen believes that humanity should be more open to relations with alien races and civilizations. However, in many ways Stephen and his father are more alike than they will admit, and in the series second season they meet and begin to ease their differences. In terms of love and romance throughout the course of the series he has a number of love affairs with various women. His most prominent and long-lasting affair is with "Number One", the attractive and tough-minded leader of the Mars Resistance.

While the character was explicitly described as black in the script of the episode Soul Hunter, his first appearance on the show, J. Michael Straczynski was adamant throughout the run of the series that Franklin be a true individual who could have been played by an actor of any race. Richard Biggs later expressed his gratitude at being able to play a role purely as an actor, not a black actor.

Career

Following in the footsteps of his father, General Richard Franklin, Franklin joined EarthForce in 2232 to become a physician. Shortly after graduating from medical school, he left EarthForce and spent the next three years "hitchhiking" aboard starships, trading his services as doctor for free passage to their destinations. In the course of his work, Franklin took detailed notes on the biology, physiology, and culture of many alien species. In his travels, he encountered a group of Minbari
Minbari
The Minbari are a fictional alien race featured in the television show Babylon 5. The Minbari characters of Delenn and Lennier figure prominently throughout the series; Neroon, Draal, and Dukhat are less prominent Minbari characters....

 whose transport ship had crashed at Beta Durani. The Minbari
Minbari
The Minbari are a fictional alien race featured in the television show Babylon 5. The Minbari characters of Delenn and Lennier figure prominently throughout the series; Neroon, Draal, and Dukhat are less prominent Minbari characters....

 were severely injured in the accident, and due to Franklin's lack of knowledge of Minbari biology, they all died. Franklin performed an autopsy on one of the Minbari, and gathered notes on their biology and genetics.

When the Earth-Minbari War
Earth-Minbari War
The Earth–Minbari War is a fictional war that formed a major part of the back story of the science fiction television series, Babylon 5. The war was fought between the Earth Alliance and the Minbari, an older alien race that overwhelmingly outmatched Earth in terms of technology and weapons...

 started in 2243, Franklin rejoined EarthForce and was assigned to manage an advanced military hospital on Earth. During the war, all EarthForce doctors were ordered to turn over any notes they had on Minbari biology for use in the production of biological weapons
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...

. When EarthForce discovered that Dr. Franklin had detailed notes on Minbari anatomy and physiology, he was ordered to give his notes to EarthForce researchers. Franklin, believing that it was unethical for a doctor to aid in research to create weapons of mass destruction, refused, and he was arrested by EarthForce.

Franklin was released from prison shortly afterward to accompany Lieutenant Commander John Sheridan
John Sheridan (Babylon 5)
John J. Sheridan is a lead character in the fictional universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Bruce Boxleitner. For most of the series, he is the commander of the Babylon 5 station; during the series' final season he is the President of the Interstellar...

 on a mission to the Epsilon solar system as part of an advance team to negotiate peace with the Minbari. They were ferried to the Epsilon system by a Narn warcruiser. The meeting with the Minbari was tragically cut short, however, by a sneak attack by the Centauri. They thought the meeting was for a weapons-shipment deal between the humans and the Narns. The Minbari delegate to the meeting was killed in the Centauri attack. Both Franklin and Sheridan (along with the Narn G'Kar), were captured by the Minbari. However, the Minbari surprisingly released them when Sheridan uttered a Minbari phrase that the Minbari delegate had told him before he died. After his release, Franklin returned to Earth; his activities for the remainder of the Earth-Minbari War are unknown.

Between this event and 2258, he met Jeffrey Sinclair
Jeffrey Sinclair
Jeffrey Sinclair is a character in the fictional universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by actor Michael O'Hare. He was a regular in the first season of the show, as Commander of the Babylon 5 station, and made a number of guest appearances afterward.-Early life and...

, the future Commander of the Babylon 5 station. It was largely on Sinclair's recommendation that Franklin was named the chief medical officer on Babylon 5.

Babylon 5

In 2258, he was assigned to the Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

 station as chief surgeon after the recall of Dr. Benjamin Kyle
Benjamin Kyle
Doctor Benjamin Kyle is a fictional character from the universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, portrayed by Johnny Sekka. His only appearance was in the Babylon 5 pilot movie The Gathering.-Character background:...

 to Earth. He stayed there for four years.

Franklin had strong moral convictions, and this was evident numerous times during his tenure at Babylon 5. Sometimes, his convictions conflicted with his duties as an EarthForce officer. These transgressions included the illegal operation of a free health clinic in Down Below, a part of the station where the poorest members of many alien races lived. He also insisted on performing a life-saving operation on an alien child against the parents' wishes; under the alien's religion any surgery was a violation of their religious beliefs. Franklin was devastated when the parents, acting according to their religion, killed their own child after the successful surgery. Dr. Franklin was also a leading participant in an "underground railroad" that helped rogue telepaths who had refused to join PsiCorps make their way to freedom; the telepaths were trying to escape from the ruthless Psi Cops. He was also a Foundationist, a new religion on Earth which incorporated the basic beliefs of many older human religions into a single faith. Foundationism (not to be confused with the school of philosophy called foundationalism
Foundationalism
Foundationalism is any theory in epistemology that holds that beliefs are justified based on what are called basic beliefs . This position is intended to resolve the infinite regress problem in epistemology...

), is a fictional religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...

 invented by J. Michael Straczynski
J. Michael Straczynski
Joseph Michael Straczynski , known professionally as J. Michael Straczynski and informally as Joe Straczynski or JMS, is an American writer and television producer. He works in films, television series, novels, short stories, comic books, and radio dramas. He is a playwright, a former journalist,...

 for his science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 television show, Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

. Foundationism appeared on Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...

 around the year 2157 in response to contact with other intelligent species in the universe. Dr. Franklin explains that "the idea behind the Foundation is that to get back to the roots of all the Earth religions, get past the doctrines to the core of each belief system to find out what they have in common. And they've got a lot more in common than you think. It's just when politics and money
Money
Money is any object or record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts in a given country or socio-economic context. The main functions of money are distinguished as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; a store of value; and, occasionally in the past,...

 and nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...

 get in the way that things get a little messed up." He also explains that Foundationists believe that "The closer you get to defining God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

, the further away it gets."

As with many characters on Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

, Franklin's personality contained the seeds of his own weaknesses. In his case, Franklin's passionate interest in saving lives and meeting a very high personal standard led to his use of stimulants ("stims") as shown starting in the third season episode, A Day in the Strife
A Day in the Strife
A Day in the Strife is an episode from the third season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5.-Synopsis:An alien probe approaches the station with a series of questions that have to be answered correctly within 24 hours, because otherwise Babylon 5 would be destroyed. G'Kar struggles...

. Stims were a powerful but dangerous drug, and Franklin admitted his addiction
Substance dependence
The section about substance dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not use the word addiction at all. It explains:...

 obliquely to Delenn in Ceremonies of Light and Dark
Ceremonies of Light and Dark
"Ceremonies of Light and Dark" is an episode from the third season of the science fiction television series Babylon 5.-Synopsis:Undercover members of the Nightwatch target Delenn....

, and finally was forced by Garibaldi
Michael Garibaldi
Michael Garibaldi is a lead fictional character in the universe of the science fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Jerry Doyle.-Overview:...

 to confront this addiction in Interludes and Examinations
Interludes and Examinations
Interludes and Examinations is an episode from the third season of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5.-Synopsis:Dr. Franklin confronts his addiction to stims....

. After he admitted his addiction, Franklin resigned as Babylon 5's medical chief and embarked on a walkabout
Walkabout
The walkabout is a purported Australian aboriginal ritual of manhood.Walkabout may also refer to:- Art :*Walkabout , a 1959 book written by James Vance Marshall, set in the Australian outback...

 of the space station (in the episode
Walkabout (Babylon 5)
Walkabout is an episode from the third season of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5.- Synopsis :Dr. Franklin continues his walkabout, and becomes involved with a singer in Downbelow. The new Vorlon ambassador arrives at Babylon 5....

 of the same name). The term "walkabout" comes from the aborigines
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....

 in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

; Franklin had learned of the practice from his Foundationist religious beliefs..

In a later episode Franklin finally realized that he had run away from problems his entire life, and that he was doing so again. He finally confronted his problem, and although while on his "walkabout" he was nearly killed, he returned to medlab a stronger and wiser person for the experience.

Although he spent most of the series in medlab saving lives, Franklin also saw his share of action and adventure during the series. He was an active participant in the Earth Alliance Civil War, where he aided the Mars Resistance in its fight to free the Mars colony from Earth control. During the war between the Centauri Republic and the Interstellar Alliance he also worked with the telepath Lyta Alexander
Lyta Alexander
Lyta Alexander is a character from the fictional universe of the science-fiction television series Babylon 5, played by Patricia Tallman.Lyta was introduced in the pilot episode "The Gathering" as a telepath assigned to the Babylon 5 space station by the Psi Corps, a fictional organization...

 in investigating reports of Drazi atrocities against the Centauri on the Drazi homeworld; both Franklin and Lyta were nearly killed during the investigation.

In 2262, during the series fifth and final season, Franklin resigned from his post at Babylon 5 to accept the position of Head of Xenobiological Research on Earth upon the retirement of Dr. Benjamin Kyle. At the beginning of 2263, he selected Dr. Lillian Hobbes as his replacement on Babylon 5. Franklin later conducted research in the attempt to fight the plague the Drakh
Drakh
The Drakh are a fictional alien race in the Babylon 5 universe. The Drakh were dark servants for the race of First Ones known as the Shadows. They appeared in the fourth and fifth seasons of Babylon 5 as well as the television movie, A Call to Arms...

 inflicted on Earth. He is seen in the Crusade
Crusade (TV series)
Crusade is a spin-off TV show from J. Michael Straczynski's Babylon 5. Its plot is set in AD 2267, five years after the events of Babylon 5, and just after the movie A Call to Arms. A race called the Drakh have released a nanovirus plague on Earth, which will destroy all life on Earth within five...

 episode "Each Night I Dream of Home".

Current status

At the end of the series, Franklin was still the head of Xenobiological research on Earth. When Sheridan learned he was dying, Franklin went to Minbar for one last party. From there, Franklin traveled to Babylon 5, where he witnessed the station's decommissioning and destruction. J. Michael Straczynski
J. Michael Straczynski
Joseph Michael Straczynski , known professionally as J. Michael Straczynski and informally as Joe Straczynski or JMS, is an American writer and television producer. He works in films, television series, novels, short stories, comic books, and radio dramas. He is a playwright, a former journalist,...

 has said that Franklin eventually dies while exploring an unknown planet, but has not revealed the details of exactly how or when he dies.

As Richard Biggs
Richard Biggs
Richard T. "Dick" Biggs was an American television and stage actor, best known for his roles on the television series Days of our Lives and Babylon 5.-Life:...

 had died in 2004, the Franklin character will not make any further appearances on any future Babylon 5 movies or television series. When Biggs died, Straczynski had been working on a Babylon 5 script titled The Memory of Shadows. Straczynski decided not to recast the Franklin character, and rewrote the script to remove the character from the story. In the Babylon 5: The Lost Tales
Babylon 5: The Lost Tales
Babylon 5: The Lost Tales is an anthology show set in the Babylon 5 universe. It was announced by J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5, at the San Diego Comic Con in July 2006...

anthology, it is explained that both Franklin and G'Kar - played by the also late Andreas Katsulas
Andreas Katsulas
Andrew "Andreas" Katsulas was a Greek-American actor known for his roles as Ambassador G'Kar in the science fiction television series Babylon 5, as the one-armed villain Sykes in the film The Fugitive , and as the Romulan Commander Tomalak on Star Trek: The Next Generation...

- had left to explore space beyond the galactic rim.
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