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Alias: The Indicator

"You took away my choices in life. You programmed me to be a spy. I will never forgive you for this."

Sydney learned a couple of very interesting facts here: that she had been subjected to spy kid testing – by Jack – and that Mom's original mission was to spy on Jack because of his involvement in that very project, called Project Christmas. (Which of course gave Jack another excellent reason to set up Irina.)

Vaughn figured out that Jack framed Irina, and confronted Jack about it, which took some major cojones. Not too many people would have that kind of nerve, but Vaughn seems capable of doing just about anything when Sydney is involved.

Sydney has now lost all the trust and faith in her father; she's pretty much an emotional time bomb right now. I'm wondering if all of this emotional yo-yo-ing is going to push her right into bed with Vaughn. He's the only person she can trust now, and she certainly seems to turn naturally to him when she's in turmoil. If she made the first move, would he be able to resist her?

Moving on to the Emily subplot, Sloane actually confided in Jack about killing Emily. (I can't imagine anyone choosing Jack as a confidant, but Sloane probably doesn't have a lot of choices out there.) We now know exactly what Sloane did to Emily... and how Emily might have evaded it with a drug called VTX. Is Emily alive? Or is an Alliance competitor faking this haunting? Hey, maybe Jack is doing it. Jack is Machiavellian. I wouldn't put it past him.



On the home front, Francie's restaurant opened successfully, thanks to Will inviting a number of his AA friends. Will still seems to be doing fine. I think I'd be in analysis if I'd been through what happened to him.

Bits and pieces:

— Irina wasn't in this episode at all. Understandable; this was a Sydney/Jack episode. She did, however, leave her earrings in her cell, probably for Sydney to find.

— Is Jack in serious shit now? Or is he too valuable as a double agent to punish for what he did?

This week's...

... itinerary: Vienna, Budapest, Buenos Aires.

... impressive language skill: Hungarian!

... fun gadget: Marshall's lip gloss/flying camera.

... cool look: short blond do with glasses.



This was a dramatic, powerful episode, moody and somewhat sad. Three out of four spies,

Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.

9 comments:

  1. Naked Sloane! Naked Sloane! Naked Sloane!

    Also, fascinating plot developments. Whoever is messing with Sloane is doing a great job. It's interesting that he's being so open about someone pranking him: trying to feel people out by telling them, perhaps? Or just discomfited that his karma birds have come home to roost?

    I hope Sydney can find some way to forgive Jack, although I support her decision not to. I hope he had a good reason for what he did. Otherwise, I'll have a hard time forgiving him, too.

    The theory that we're all always the person we were in 6th grade is either horrifying or completely correct. And, yes, you can infer from that statement whatever you want. My 6th-grade self is big on the weighty implication.

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  2. As I'm reading your comments, Josie, I'm trying to figure out much you actually remember about the series. Your comments often read like you've never seen it before, and don't know where it is going, but I know you have seen the show before. It is certainly a plot heavy show (I was often surprised while re-watching by how much happened in a given episode), so I can see how you wouldn't remember everything. But sometimes your comments read like you don't remember Major Plot Development X or Y coming down the line. Do you really not remember, or are you just trying to keep your comments spoiler free? I'm honestly curious. If the former, no wonder you are really enjoying the re-watch! It's like getting to enjoy the whole box of chocolates all over again!

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  3. Hi Jess,

    Yes, I remember almost everything. But with a show this dense, I saw the choice as either staying in the moment and pretending I have no idea what's coming, or spoiling everything in my comments.

    I'm actually surprised at how much I do remember. Not the plot (forgetting that would be weird), but particular shots, or fun outfits, or neat sets.

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  4. Rant time! I complained before about the music, but wow did they make a mistake in this episode. The final scene on the DVDs is to Joni Mitchell's River which is perfect. Every time I hear the song, I think of the final scene of this episode. God knows what song this abomination was, but it didn't work nearly as well.

    OK, that's off my chest. This is the episode when I well and truly fell in love with Vaughn myself. He stands up to Jack, looking him dead in the eye the whole time. Then, when Sydney needs him, he just hugs her. He doesn't try to talk to her; he doesn't try to get her to stop crying. He just holds her and lets her cry. Sigh...

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  5. I think of this episode every time I hear that song too. :)

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  6. I'm starting to see the chemistry between Sydney and Vaughn, especially after she rescued him in the season 2 opener, but I'm still a Will girl all the way :)

    also, thanks for keeping these mostly spoiler-free - it's nice to have a review to go to after each episode! I'm trying to do the same with mine - I think my Voyager ones are a bit spoilery sometimes, but I carefully removed some comments from a West Wing review so as no to give the game away!

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  7. This clinches the relationship between Sydney and Vaughn. She could have cried on Will's shoulder, but instead she went to Vaughn. And, she doesn't even have to tell him why. I loved that scene. They have moved beyond admiration and friendship and I believe that there is true love blossoming, which is sad considering they are both too smart to pursue a relationship.

    I don't know what to think about Project Christmas. I find it sad, but I am hoping that at some point we will discover that Jack's actions were about protecting Sydney, as they usually are.

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  8. Late to the party here - I'm on a rewatch and reading each episode review as I go (great reviews by the way, thanks!). Just wanted to add to the comments about the soundtrack. The opera playing in the Naked Sloane scene is Verdi's Otello. It's the song Desdemona sings while she basically waits for Otello to come and kill her. So very appropriate for wife-murdering Sloane.

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  9. Anonymous, thanks for letting us know. You're right -- good match for Sloane.

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