Matthew Gideon
| Matthew Gideon | |
|---|---|
| Babylon 5 character | |
| First appearance | War Zone |
| Last appearance | Each Night I Dream of Home |
| Portrayed by | Gary Cole |
| Information | |
| Species | Human |
| Home planet | Earth |
| Affiliated with | Earth Alliance |
Captain Matthew Gideon is a character in the fictional universe of the television series Babylon 5, played by Gary Cole. Gideon was the lead character in the B5 spin-off show Crusade, which ran for 13 episodes in 1999.
Due to the unintended short run of Crusade, little information came to light regarding Gideon's history. The earliest event shown occurs 10 years prior to the first episode of the series when Gideon, then an Ensign serving aboard the Omega class destroyer EAS Cerberus. During an attack by a shadow vessel of previously unseen design, Gideon was despatched outside to conduct repairs to the hull. While outside, the Cerberus attempted to escape into hyperspace but was destroyed by the intruder, leaving Gideon adrift in deep space. Seemingly by chance, a fleet of small ships passed him, and he was saved by one of them, piloted by a technomage named Galen. During his debriefing by EarthForce, Gideon reiterated his claim that the Cerberus was destroyed by another ship - however, the official version released was that the ship was lost due to a malfunction with its jump engines.
Some years after the loss of the Cerberus, Gideon obtained possession of an alien artifact in a poker game. The item, known as an "Apocalypse Box", is capable of providing answers to questions, but which are not always truthful.
Between obtaining the Apocalypse Box and the release of the Drakh virus on Earth, Gideon is appointed as the captain of an Explorer class starship.
Following the events of A Call to Arms, in which the Drakh infect Earth with a bio-genetic plague, Gideon's ship is recalled to Earth. There, he is appointed as the captain of the brand new starship IAS Excalibur on the recommendation of President John Sheridan of the Interstellar Alliance, with a mission scour the galaxy to find a cure for the virus before it wipes out all life on the planet.
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