"What kind of head of security would I be if I let people like me know things that I'm not supposed to know? I know what I know because I have to know it, and if I don't have to know it, I don't tell me and I don't let anyone else tell me either."

name: Michael Alfredo Garibaldi

is: Security Chief on B5; later the Head of Covert Intelligence

wants: to protect like a good security chief; to get his life together

birthday: February 23, 2221 (c'mon, he can't be a Pisces!)

hometown: Um...someplace on Mars? He is from Mars, right?

family: His parents are deceased, but he was close to his father; his friends on Babylon 5, even Londo, become his family. Eventually, he reconciles with and marries Lise, and they have a daughter, Mary.

religion: atheist (was raised Catholic)

strong point: is compulsively paranoid, which makes him a good security cheif :)

weak point: alcohol; Bester (he hates that man!); paranoia (it can be a weakness, too...)

role: He's a character who's had problems and isn't exactly trusted by the bureaucracy, but he manages to come through for everyone in the end. He's a loyal friend and an efficient security chief. Over the course of the series, he gets over the problems his alcoholism has caused him (although he regresses for a while, under pressure), and eventually, things end happily for him.

catch phrase: "Damn, I love being right!"

how others view him:

"There's nothing more annoying that Mr. Garibaldi when he's right."--Ivanova

"I just never thought I'd meet a second man as strong willed, stubborn, and annoying as I am. My cup runneth over."--Lochley

"Did you know that Garibaldi has been here longer than anyone else in the command structure? Yeah, he came on board with Sinclair. And despite a history of alcohol abuse, despite being shot, stabbed, beaten up, he has survived five years in this place."--Sheridan

"So, you support a system that will leave everyone blind and toothless?"--Delenn

shilpa's comments: I added that last quote because it was the first impression that Garibaldi made on me--during the first episode I saw, I decided that I didn't like his value system, although he's a funny guy and all...and really, my problems with Garibaldi never went away. That doesn't mean I don't find him funny at times or pity him at times. I care about his character, but of the main characters, he's one of my least favorites. He's just too vindictive! And it seems different from a vindictiveness born from immense tragedies such as G'Kar's, for instance. It's unfair to say that he hasn't been through pain, but Garibaldi's value system seems a more intrinsic part of his nature. It sickened me when he was going on and on to the security man who shot him about how he'd die such a hideous death because of what he did. He has a very black-and-white view of justice, and that seriously bothers me.

Of course, my inclination to be irritated by Garibaldi had its effect on me. I got really irritated with his actions in the fourth season after Sheridan came back even though I KNEW he'd been brainwashed, I KNEW that JMS was setting us up, I KNEW better--and that cliffhanger was awful; I suddenly cared terribly about what would become of Garibaldi...

priya's comments: Oh, man, I just hated Garibaldi when he was bad. But then, when he was good again, I felt so bad for him. True, he's not my favorite character, but he's pretty cool sometimes.