Alias 01/26/03 - Phase One (1 Viewer)

[Richard Moore]

Anyone know if this episode will be rebroadcast ? In the DC Area ? I lost the last 15 minutes even though I added an extra 30 minutes (just in case).

 

[Robert Ringwald]

No wonder I never actually heard of it. It sounds like a pretty crappy game.

I'll just have to hope that ALIAS turns out okay.

 

[Chris Beveridge]

Thanks heavens for Tivo, as I just now finally found the time to sit down and watch this past weekends episode with my wife. Spoilers ahoy, after all, we're at 120+ msgs now.

As others have said, this episode definitely served well as a piece of closure for one of the things the series started out with. There's a huge amount of material left, from the artifacts they were all hunting to the new Phase Two that's starting up plus all the new relationship stuff that was let free here.

Prior to seeing the episode, a couple of die-hards I know told me to watch it soon, since the show jumped the shark. Suffice to say I was fearful.

While it's gotten near unanimous praise here, I'm inclined to agree with them for a couple of reasons.

Once a show removes the tension of a relationship wanting to happen, the dynamics often change so dramatically that it's not what it once was. Cheers is often pointed to as the show that highlights this the best. While it was indeed good to see Sydney and Vaughn finally come clean and go for the big long kiss at the end, it felt terribly out of place there as well as highly unprofessional, coming from two very professional people. But yeah, masks off at last, freedom from sd-6, yay, party. ok, I'll give on that part, but the main part is their relationship change will affect the dynamic of the show, historically shown for the worse.

Francie & Will's relationship change, being secondary characters, is good for the show. But with the change to Francie, I have zero interest in seeing how badly this will play out for Will. I'd hoped that his magazine job would actually take him out of California so he could get away without being hurt yet again. He's been through enough hell for two seasons, I have no further interest in seeing the character abused like this.

The planned shift to more episodic storylines. This one needs a bit more explaining. From the start of Alias, my wife and I were really hooked on it due to the really fast pace of the show overall, the way it moved around and the nod and wink most weeks of a cliffhanger that you know would get resolved in the first few minutes of the show, or in a flashback form later on in the next show. Every week we watched for a season and a half wondering when that energy would drop, when the show would falter somewhere in our eyes that it would finally feel like we were off of the rollercoaster.

We love the rollercoaster.

But this episode has served as it pulling into the stop. In an effort to get more new viewers, they closed up the first main storyline (which I agree, was getting thin) and have set things up for another run. But as long as I was on that rollercoaster that was going, I wasn't going to get off. But now that it's stopped to let on all the new people, I'm jumping out of the car and going looking for another ride.

It's rare that a series actually ends when it should. It's even rarer when a series provides an excellent end-point during the middle of a season. I've been burned by so many shows this year, that it's gotten pre-emptive on my part that I have to look at this as the best place to get off and keep good strong fond memories of the show. It was just set so perfectly that it allows me that. I'll still pick up the DVD sets and may watch new episodes from there, but Alias has been one hell of a ride. I just don't want to run it into the ground and I can see another round being detrimental.

(disclaimer: I spend far too many hours per week doing DVD reviews, so my broadcast TV time is very limited. Alias was the last hour-long drama that I've been watching.)

 

[Michael Martin]

Prior to seeing the episode, a couple of die-hards I know told me to watch it soon, since the show jumped the shark

I couldn't disgree more. Most shows (X-Files, with Mulder's sister, for instance) will stretch an arc far beyond its usefulness. Alias has the guts to say it knows that Syd and Jack could never have operated the way they do for long without being discovered, and wove that "reality" into the plot. Syd's goal for so long was to take down SD-6. So now we get to watch Syd discover "life" for the first time in a long while: her goals have all been met - and when your goals have been repression of love and revenge, it can be a surprise to live with the aftermaths of actually getting what you want.

Add into that Sloane's plans for Phase 2, the Prophecy, Irina's mystery agenda, Sark, and more, there is plenty of things for the show to explore.

 

[Patrick Sun]

It's just getting good!

But then again, perhaps those jumping off will pick up the season sets later, but I'm confident that those faithful to the show will be rewarded on a weekly basis.

 

[Micheal]

It was all a dream! Next episode we'll find Sydney tossing and turning in bed, she'll sit up suddenly and gasp! "What a nightmare!" And she'll never look at Francie the same way again.

Just kidding. I loved the show and can't wait to see what lies ahead for Sydney and company. Hardly a "jumping the shark" episode IMHO. There is just too much to look forward to.

 

[TheLongshot]

So now we get to watch Syd discover "life" for the first time in a long while: her goals have all been met

Not quite. Sloane is still out there, and she still has a beef with him, moreso now that Francie is dead. That's the beautiful thing about that episode.

I understand Chris's concerns, but somehow I don't think that they are going to make it that easy for Vaughn and Syd. I'm looking forward to seeing how this is going to play out. Until then, I can't judge anything.

Jason

 

[DaveF]

Outstanding episode! I've been watching since the beginning, and this was one of the best episodes of Alias' season and a half.

I will miss Francie -- I think she served as important character exposition, allowing us to see the tension in Sydney from straddling her two worlds. But I'm glad the actress will remain with the show for a while.

I'm anxious to see if/how Dixon and Marshall remain in the show. Dixon's anger at Syd, being led out handcuffed, was distressing (and perfectly done).

Oh, and what about Syd's graduate work? Will she ever finish that Masters Degree?

 

[Robert Ringwald]

I read that in an upcoming episode Syd does in fact complete grad school