# Crusade (1999)

> A military starship crew hunts for a cure to an alien nanovirus plague that threatens all life on Earth within five years.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/2009

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 13
- Episode runtime: 43 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: science fiction, drama, adventure
- Created by: J. Michael Straczynski
- Network: TNT
- Cast: Gary Cole, Daniel Dae Kim, Tracy Scoggins, David Allen Brooks, Carrie Dobro, Marjean Holden, Peter Woodward, Tim Thomerson
- TMDB rating: 6.7/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0149437/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: moderate
- Complexity: layered
- Violence: moderate
- Tone: earnest, brooding, tense, adventurous

## What critics say

Critics found the single season uneven, and its short run was cut after thirteen episodes, though its space opera scale and Gary Cole's lead were noted.

## Synopsis

Crusade (1999) is an American space opera spin-off created by J. Michael Straczynski for TNT, extending his earlier Babylon 5 saga. Set in the year 2267, five years after the events of its predecessor, the series follows the crew of the Victory class destroyer Excalibur, led by Captain Matthew Gideon (Gary Cole) and his second in command John Matheson (Daniel Dae Kim). Their engine is a race against time: the Drakh have released a nanovirus plague that will destroy all life on Earth within five years unless a cure is found, so the Excalibur roams the dark between worlds searching for anything that could help. Each episode carries the crew into new encounters, political double-dealing and telepathic intrigue, while the ticking clock pushes the mission forward. The single season of thirteen episodes has a brooding, earnest tone, with its emphasis on duty, loyalty and the question of who to trust. Fans of Babylon 5, Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek: The Next Generation will find resonance in its blend of military camaraderie and far-future space adventure, set against a sweeping, ambitious backdrop of a dying Earth.

## Shows like Crusade

- [Dark Matter (2015)](https://ember.film/tv/55496)
- [seaQuest DSV (1993)](https://ember.film/tv/2170)
- [The Last Ship (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/54247)
- [Babylon 5 (1994)](https://ember.film/tv/2981)
- [Defying Gravity (2009)](https://ember.film/tv/7979)
- [Helix (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/52613)
- [Threshold (2005)](https://ember.film/tv/1357)
- [Earth 2 (1994)](https://ember.film/tv/1389)
- [Ascension (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/54194)
- [Space: Above and Beyond (1995)](https://ember.film/tv/3360)

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