Alias 4.09 and 4.10
Mar. 16th, 2005 04:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakJ.J. Abrams continues to make me happy. Which is good, because I'm still trying to get beyond the "boo, hiss!" stage about the latest Carnivale episode, which I probably won't review until I saw the next one. Perhaps by then... well. Back to Alias and joyful reviews.
Now I'm not a Sark fan, but they used him really well in A Man of his Word. Did he love Lauren? The only reason why I'm not 100% sure is that it's Sark, who did strike me as an emotional cripple before. (Meaning that any number of villlains are just as capable of love as your avarage good guy, sometimes more so, but Sark until this season wasn't someone I'd have put into this category.) This being said, those scenes between him and Vaughn and dead Lauren rocked. (As I said in my last review, now she's dead Lauren is used far more consistently and to greater effect on this show.) And I applaud the fact Sark showed the three bullet wounds for many reasons - people, especially villains, usually die James Bond kind of deaths on this show. Unless they're Danny in the pilot and a plot point. The real ugliness gets glossed over. That scene in the morgue, and Lauren's dead body with the wounds, go a great deal to making me forgive the stupid death scene and its ooc aftermath in 3.22. Similarly, Vaughn looking at Sydney disguised as Lauren (though the hair was all wrong).
Sark ditching Anna Espinosa made complete sense - far too dangerous an ally, and it was a nice payback to Sydney for the lime-flavoured kiss.*g* (Sarkney fans, that was the scene for you.)
But Sark and Anna Espinosa notwithstanding, the meat of the episode to me lay with the two First Generation Spies and the sisterly bond between Syd and Nadia. Loved their scene at the end, the affection and Sydney's continued, half-denying awareness that the Rambaldi thing could still come true. This was also the first episode since... hm... I have to go to the first season and the ep where Emily is in the hospital, I think... that we see Sydney being not hostile or faking cordiality for the sake of spying in her interaction with Sloane. Caring for the same woman in danger seems to bring that out in her. Even when she asks him "after all this time, you still believe" she doesn't do it in an angry way. Sloane's answer is an illustration why Ron Rifkin is so good for this show. Another actor might have made that line sound trite. With Rifkin, you get depth complete with the memory of what Sloane's belief in Rambaldism made him do to Nadia instead.
The confrontation between Sloane and Jack at the end, complete with allusion to their mysterious pact, was great, too. Made me wonder whether Jack threatening Nadia's life (as opposed to Jack gambling with it, which is what both Jack and Sloane are perfectly capable of doing with the lives of people they care about) would be the one thing that makes Sloane turn against his old friend. Liked the understatetness, too.
The Index: and this is where my squeeing doubled and trippled. Dixon in a crucial role! Dixon and Sydney working together again! And oh, the twists and turns of the ties that bind the SpyFamily together.
There is so much to love in this episode. Let's start with Nadia (not that I don't love her in other episodes as well, of course). What fanfic I saw concentrates on her physical similarities with Irina. Or her youth. But in her reaction to finding Sydney was something which I saw as her paternal heritage coming out. She realized at once what Sydney was doing, that Sydney had used her in order to be able to do it, and still both covered up for Sydney and helped her afterwards.... but not without delivering a truly stinging emotional bitchslap in her birthday speech, all the more effective and elegant because nobody but Sydney understood what Nadia was truly saying. "The kind of people they really are", indeed. (And "they" are both Sydney and Sloane, imo.) Which reminds me of how Sloane reacted when Jack nearly killed him on Katya's orders back last season in Switzerland. That little speech he delivered when Jack showed up, after Katya's demonstration. And it's not just the slapping part, it's the continued affection and ability to forgive despite betrayal. He might be a ruthless, evil criminal, but, see Emily revealing the listening device, see the fact that he knew about Jack's and Sydney's doublecrossing at least by season 2, he has that rare ability to love unreservedly. And so, it seems, does Nadia. (Who forgave him the Rambaldi juice and Sydney her birthday ploy.)
Nadia saving Jack rocked, and tickled me for the subtextual implications; still, I thought the little aftermath with her and Sydney, as well as their conversation earlier in the car, was even more interesting. Because I'm pretty sure Nadia's "I like to think that one day, you'll do the same for me" will be foreshadowing. (Bring on the Sydney saves Sloane scene.*veg*) And I do believe Sydney in the earlier scene when she says that this time, she wanted Sloane to be innocent. "It has always been black and white with your father for me. I'm not used to seeing the grey." Now who'd have thought we'd hear her say that about Uncle Arvin?
Speaking of whom. They really had me guessing here. I thought Dixon being right was as possible (we're mid-season now and due for a twist, plus it would have tied with the earlier confrontation between Sloane and Dixon which brought up what is still a raw wound for Dixon – that Sloane managed to deceive him for 11 years. Otoh, I found it unlikely Sloane would hook up with known old Alliance confederates (as opposed to new partners in crime), both because that’s an relatively easy thing forthe CIA to spot, and because it would be very risky, given that the Alliance fell in part because of him, and he can’t know whether the survivors know that.
When they only showed us the coat and shoes of the man walking in, I knew it wasn’t Sloane, but the fact that the whole thing had been a ploy of Jack’s and Sloane’s together was a delicious surprise. I’m all for making their mysterious plan the main plot instead of the sub plot,
you know. Any Jack and Arvin interaction, no matter whether they’re sparring, double crossing each other or working together, makes me happy.
Additional observations:
- Weiss continues to be cute; though the scenes with him and Sloane reminded me of a cat playing with a mouse, in a very amusing way – Arvin Sloane must be the one man who makes the prospect of Jack Bristow as a father-in-law look like the easier choice
- Also, don’t call him Arvin, Eric; man, that silence was deadening (and I giggled, I admit)
- DirectorChase is back! Here’s hoping she’ll be again; also, were there sparks between her and Dixon?
- Please, don’t let this be the last Sydney and Dixon cooperation of the season, I so love seeing them work together again.
- The thing with Vaughn Senior? Abrams is worse than Joss with dates, is all I'm saying.
Now I'm not a Sark fan, but they used him really well in A Man of his Word. Did he love Lauren? The only reason why I'm not 100% sure is that it's Sark, who did strike me as an emotional cripple before. (Meaning that any number of villlains are just as capable of love as your avarage good guy, sometimes more so, but Sark until this season wasn't someone I'd have put into this category.) This being said, those scenes between him and Vaughn and dead Lauren rocked. (As I said in my last review, now she's dead Lauren is used far more consistently and to greater effect on this show.) And I applaud the fact Sark showed the three bullet wounds for many reasons - people, especially villains, usually die James Bond kind of deaths on this show. Unless they're Danny in the pilot and a plot point. The real ugliness gets glossed over. That scene in the morgue, and Lauren's dead body with the wounds, go a great deal to making me forgive the stupid death scene and its ooc aftermath in 3.22. Similarly, Vaughn looking at Sydney disguised as Lauren (though the hair was all wrong).
Sark ditching Anna Espinosa made complete sense - far too dangerous an ally, and it was a nice payback to Sydney for the lime-flavoured kiss.*g* (Sarkney fans, that was the scene for you.)
But Sark and Anna Espinosa notwithstanding, the meat of the episode to me lay with the two First Generation Spies and the sisterly bond between Syd and Nadia. Loved their scene at the end, the affection and Sydney's continued, half-denying awareness that the Rambaldi thing could still come true. This was also the first episode since... hm... I have to go to the first season and the ep where Emily is in the hospital, I think... that we see Sydney being not hostile or faking cordiality for the sake of spying in her interaction with Sloane. Caring for the same woman in danger seems to bring that out in her. Even when she asks him "after all this time, you still believe" she doesn't do it in an angry way. Sloane's answer is an illustration why Ron Rifkin is so good for this show. Another actor might have made that line sound trite. With Rifkin, you get depth complete with the memory of what Sloane's belief in Rambaldism made him do to Nadia instead.
The confrontation between Sloane and Jack at the end, complete with allusion to their mysterious pact, was great, too. Made me wonder whether Jack threatening Nadia's life (as opposed to Jack gambling with it, which is what both Jack and Sloane are perfectly capable of doing with the lives of people they care about) would be the one thing that makes Sloane turn against his old friend. Liked the understatetness, too.
The Index: and this is where my squeeing doubled and trippled. Dixon in a crucial role! Dixon and Sydney working together again! And oh, the twists and turns of the ties that bind the SpyFamily together.
There is so much to love in this episode. Let's start with Nadia (not that I don't love her in other episodes as well, of course). What fanfic I saw concentrates on her physical similarities with Irina. Or her youth. But in her reaction to finding Sydney was something which I saw as her paternal heritage coming out. She realized at once what Sydney was doing, that Sydney had used her in order to be able to do it, and still both covered up for Sydney and helped her afterwards.... but not without delivering a truly stinging emotional bitchslap in her birthday speech, all the more effective and elegant because nobody but Sydney understood what Nadia was truly saying. "The kind of people they really are", indeed. (And "they" are both Sydney and Sloane, imo.) Which reminds me of how Sloane reacted when Jack nearly killed him on Katya's orders back last season in Switzerland. That little speech he delivered when Jack showed up, after Katya's demonstration. And it's not just the slapping part, it's the continued affection and ability to forgive despite betrayal. He might be a ruthless, evil criminal, but, see Emily revealing the listening device, see the fact that he knew about Jack's and Sydney's doublecrossing at least by season 2, he has that rare ability to love unreservedly. And so, it seems, does Nadia. (Who forgave him the Rambaldi juice and Sydney her birthday ploy.)
Nadia saving Jack rocked, and tickled me for the subtextual implications; still, I thought the little aftermath with her and Sydney, as well as their conversation earlier in the car, was even more interesting. Because I'm pretty sure Nadia's "I like to think that one day, you'll do the same for me" will be foreshadowing. (Bring on the Sydney saves Sloane scene.*veg*) And I do believe Sydney in the earlier scene when she says that this time, she wanted Sloane to be innocent. "It has always been black and white with your father for me. I'm not used to seeing the grey." Now who'd have thought we'd hear her say that about Uncle Arvin?
Speaking of whom. They really had me guessing here. I thought Dixon being right was as possible (we're mid-season now and due for a twist, plus it would have tied with the earlier confrontation between Sloane and Dixon which brought up what is still a raw wound for Dixon – that Sloane managed to deceive him for 11 years. Otoh, I found it unlikely Sloane would hook up with known old Alliance confederates (as opposed to new partners in crime), both because that’s an relatively easy thing forthe CIA to spot, and because it would be very risky, given that the Alliance fell in part because of him, and he can’t know whether the survivors know that.
When they only showed us the coat and shoes of the man walking in, I knew it wasn’t Sloane, but the fact that the whole thing had been a ploy of Jack’s and Sloane’s together was a delicious surprise. I’m all for making their mysterious plan the main plot instead of the sub plot,
you know. Any Jack and Arvin interaction, no matter whether they’re sparring, double crossing each other or working together, makes me happy.
Additional observations:
- Weiss continues to be cute; though the scenes with him and Sloane reminded me of a cat playing with a mouse, in a very amusing way – Arvin Sloane must be the one man who makes the prospect of Jack Bristow as a father-in-law look like the easier choice
- Also, don’t call him Arvin, Eric; man, that silence was deadening (and I giggled, I admit)
- DirectorChase is back! Here’s hoping she’ll be again; also, were there sparks between her and Dixon?
- Please, don’t let this be the last Sydney and Dixon cooperation of the season, I so love seeing them work together again.
- The thing with Vaughn Senior? Abrams is worse than Joss with dates, is all I'm saying.
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no subject
Date: 2005-03-16 03:48 pm (UTC)The thing with Vaughn Senior? Abrams is worse than Joss with dates, is all I'm saying.
I know! That's my #1 worry with the episode. I'm hoping against hope that this new twist will help resolve some of the Vaughn backstory issues from late S3 rather than create new ones. I don't know how much faith I have that it will, though.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-16 08:38 pm (UTC)*stiffles rant*
My one tiny bit of optimism is that so far, they've been dealing well with Vaughn in this season. It only took me four years, but now I actually like him and how they're writing him.
You know what this also reminds me of: "Ten Winters Ago..." in Xena.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-16 11:21 pm (UTC)LOL! Yes! Which they cleverly updated to Thirty Five Winters Ago after she and Gabrielle were frozen in ice for 25 years. It was amazing what a packed year that was in Xena's life. ;)
no subject
Date: 2005-03-21 09:54 am (UTC)productor non calculat, i tells ya. *sigh*
loved the review, adored your nadia and sloane insights, and hate my tendinitis that prevents me from responding properly.
no subject
Date: 2005-03-21 10:16 am (UTC)Do you want me to send you something to read during your recovery? (Not fanfic.)
no subject
Date: 2005-03-21 11:50 am (UTC)and yes! *g* back to the real thing: browsing through the descriptions, i'm intrigued by die löwin and mondlaub; feel free to send me what you consider most fitting for me, though!
& :-)
no subject
Date: 2005-03-21 12:39 pm (UTC)