|
Cinescape Presents TV Mania
Fall 2002
Season 1 reviews
By Sarah Kuhn
1.1 Truth Be Told
Grade: A
ABC originally aired this sparkling premiere commercial-free. It handily
sets up the show's crackerjack premise in slick, snappy fashion. As if all
the revelations weren't enough, we're also treated to cringe-inducing scene
of Sydney being tortured and having her teeth forcibly removed from her
mouth.
1.2 So It Begins
Grade: B-
This episode is nowhere near as exciting as the premiere, but it does
manage to move things along at a reasonably fast-paced clip. The character
of Will, however, immediately annoys -- mostly because you can tell that
he's going to get himself in trouble at some point, and Sydney will
inevitably have to bail him out. Also, it is revealed that Jack
unsuccessfully tried to keep Danny safe from SD-6 assassins.
1.3 Parity
Grade: B+
Sydney finally meets her match in the slithery Anna -- even when they're
forced to cooperate, there's still a delicious tension between them. We
also get an introduction to Rambaldi, whose works will be important
throughout the season. Also, Will begins an investigation into Danny's
murder, Francie thinks boyfriend Charlie is cheating on her and Sydney
insists Vaughn remain assigned to her.
1.4 A Broken Heart
Grade: C+
The Anna/Sydney stuff is slickly executed and fun to watch, but then we
abruptly switch to another mission and plotline. This show's breakneck
speed is one of the things that makes it great, but it also makes it
difficult for certain stories to fully come to life.
1.5 Doppelganger
Grade: B
Though the engineer/vaccine plotline is somewhat garbled, it does allow a
brutal moment for Jack in which it becomes clear just how far he's willing
to go to protect Sydney's cover. The best thing, however, is the
jaw-dropping ending which has a horrified Sydney looking on as several CIA
agents meet their deaths in a fiery explosion.
1.6 Reckoning
Grade: B-
This episode ably juggles Alias' various continuing threads, but it doesn't
really pick up until the closing scenes in the asylum. Will still grates,
even as he makes an intriguing discovery in this episode: Kate Jones' real
name is Eloise Kurtz, and once Will starts questioning her, she disappears.
1.7 Color-Blind
Grade: B
The asylum sequences are packed with excellent action, and Shepard's
revelation is intriguing. After that, however, they basically just move the
other plotlines forward. At least there's a touching scene between Sydney
and Jack in which he attempts to ease her suspicions.
1.8 Time Will Tell
Grade: C
Sydney's run-ins with Anna are always fun, but the Rambaldi stuff is fairly
forgettable (just remember: it will be important later), and the Will
storyline doesn't really add anything to the proceedings. This outing also
has Sydney once again suspecting Jack when she finds a bit of Russian code
embedded in a book that he gave to her mother.
1.9 Mea Culpa
Grade: A-
This episode provides plenty of nail-biting tension despite the fact that
we know Sydney's cover can't be blown or the show's over. The centerpiece
is an excellent choreographed sequence that has Vaughn wanting to save
Sydney from a potential sting. Jack objects, and the tension between them
is wonderful, made even more knotty because Sydney's life hangs in the
balance.
1.10 Spirit
Grade: C-
Sydney gets out of her initial dilemma much too quickly, then acts
uncharacteristically impulsive by going after Jack with no backup or a
decent plan. The only thing that makes this outing worthwhile is Alias'
best cliffhanger to date, in which Hassan orders Jack to kill Sydney.
1.11 The Confession
Grade: B+
This episode consists of a lot of action with two excellent twists. For
one, the sight of Jack and Sydney somehow wriggling out of their initial
dilemma is truly a delight to watch. For another, the final revelation adds
yet another wrinkle to the show's already-complex framework -- it turns out
Sydney's mother was the KGB agent.
1.12 The Box, Part 1
Grade: A-
While Tarantino will never be mistaken for an Oscar-caliber thespian, his
scenery-chewing here is good fun. The real meat, however, lies in Sydney
and Jack teaming up to save SD-6 from destruction. Estranged father and
daughter finally come together -- they might not be good with the emotional
side of things, but when it comes to action, they're both old pros.
1.13 The Box, Part 2
Grade: B+
This tightly wound outing neatly capitalizes on the irony of Sydney working
to aid SD-6. Sydney and Vaughn are especially appealing when they team up
for action. In the end, we learn that Cole was working for someone called
"The Man," and the CIA gets its hands on what Cole was trying to steal -- a
small vial of liquid. The only false note is the Will storyline, which
takes us away from the primary action.
1.14 The Coup
Grade: B
The delicate balance of Sydney's separate lives is beautifully illustrated
here, as Sydney races to complete her mission and keep her spy existence a
secret from her friends. The action in this sequence is particularly
heartstopping, as Sydney somehow manages to time things just so. The
storyline is marred by and out-of-nowhere subplot involving Francie and
Charlie breaking up.
1.15 Page 47
Grade: C
Will becomes even more annoying as he doggedly pursues his investigation
and unceremoniously dumps his current girlfriend when Sydney shows a spark
of interest. At least there's a good cliffhanger: The CIA uses the solution
that Cole tried to steal to reveal the seemingly blank page 47 ... which
contains a drawing of a woman who looks remarkably like Sydney.
1.16 The Prophecy
Grade: B
The Rambaldi/Sydney storyline is a little murky, but at least there's some
good Sloane stuff in this one. The usually icy baddie shows some unexpected
reserves of human emotion when his duty to SD-6 forces him to off an old
friend. This episode also boasts a fine, slithery cameo by former Bond star
Roger Moor as duplicitous SD-9 leader Edward Poole.
1.17 Q & A
Grade: C-
It's standard television practice to do a clip show at some point, but this
one is more than a little tiresome, considering we're not even all the way
through the first season yet. At least the handful of new scenes is fairly
entertaining. The teaming of Jack and Vaughn is genius. Also, Sydney's
eventual underwater escape is good stuff.
1.18 Masquerade
Grade: B-
While it's nice to see poor Sydney finally getting some romantic action,
the Noah plotlline feels oddly out of place. Why haven't we heard of him
prior to this? Luckily Jack's story keeps things fresh, as Sydney's usually
implacable father finally starts to break down.
1.19 The Snowman
Grade: D
While Alias' stock-in-trade is pulling the rug out from under us, this
too-quick, too-pat wrap-up of the Noah storyline is way too obvious a
gimmick. The meant-to-be-melancholy conclusion falls flat.
1.20 The Solution
Grade: B+
A silly metaphor involving rat traps drags this one down a little bit, but
the sight of Sydney and Vaughn going undercover together as French
insurance agents is not to be missed. Also, we once again get to see Sloane
displaying authentic human emotions, and the cliffhanger -- which has
Sydney running into Dixon at the worst possible moment -- is one of the
most well-choreographed to date.
1.21 Rendezvous
Grade: A
The various plot threads twist and turn at breakneck speed as we hurtle
towards the finale. Sydney's sultry cabaret singer get-up is one of the
best disguises of the season -- Will's expression upon accidentally
learning of her secret identity is priceless. Sloane's scenes with Emily
are oddly heartbreaking, and it's nice to see Dixon get a bit of a subplot
as he grows suspicious of Sydney's motives.
1.22 Almost Thirty Years
Grade: B+
The first season finale boasts one heart-stopping sequence after another.
Vaughn's apparent demise is particularly intense, though it should be noted
that we don't actually see him die. The only thing that disappoints is the
fact that the final revelation -- Sydney's mom is The Man! -- has been
telegraphed for several eps.
© Cinescape
 Back To All About Alias 2002
|
|
