The Safe House - Expositions

When J.J. Abrams created "Alias," he threw in everything but the kitchen sink. Then he threw in the sink. Then he threw in the plumbing, the nearby storm drain, a local reservoir and a desalinization plant.

"Alias" is an action-packed adventure series. But wait, there's more! It's also a touchy-feely relationship drama, a dysfunctional family saga, a paranoid thriller, a far-fetched sci-fi/fantasy tale, a quirky comedy and a fashion extravaganza.

As nervous double agent Sydney Bristow, star Jennifer Garner may have the hardest job on television. On a weekly basis, she has to beat up thugs twice her size, comfort Sydney's lonely roommate Francie (Merrin Dungey), tentatively flirt with her CIA handler Michael Vaughn (Michael Vartan), negotiate a fragile peace with her father/partner Jack (Victor Garber), lie through her teeth to evil SD- 6 boss Arvin Sloane (Ron Rifkin), showcase a brand new foreign language and matching accent, squeeze into a different slinky gown and wig and, when all else fails, run in heels.

The excesses of "Alias" made it last season's most ridiculously addictive new series, but there was so much going on that it became difficult for viewers to keep up, and almost impossible for new viewers to jump in. Despite the semi-regular appearance of Garner's smiling face on every magazine cover in the Western Hemisphere, "Alias" ranked 65th out of 191 primetime shows last season, usually trailing Vincent D'Onofrio's one-man show on NBC's "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" in the same time period.

The competition isn't any easier this year, thanks to the return of Tony Soprano's crew, so Abrams had to dig deep into his bag of tricks to snare new viewers. The second season premiere has more action, more angst and more exposition than ever before. Anyone who can't get into "Alias" after tomorrow's episode either isn't trying or just doesn't care to watch the exploits of a willowy grad student moonlighting as an international spy while trying to make sense of her twisted family tree.

When last we saw our daring heroine, she was shackled to a metal chair (while sporting a fetching neon blue wig and leather pants) and finally meeting shadowy mastermind "The Man" -- who turned out to be Sydney's mother (new regular Lena Olin), a double agent herself who faked her own death so she could return to life in the KGB.

But I don't need to tell you that, because Abrams does a fine, entertaining job of it himself. In addition to a new opening sequence that better lays out exactly who the good guys and bad guys are, Patricia Wettig is on hand as a CIA shrink whose sessions with Sydney double neatly as character study and a way to explain the convoluted stories.

Another improvement in that department is the way that Sydney's reporter friend Will (Bradley Cooper) has been brought into the loop about her double life. He's now a useful tool for plot clarification, plus a comic relief character who gets to say the sorts of things that viewers at home are no doubt thinking about all the over-the-top events in Sydney's life.

Sydney's first visit with her mother in two decades doesn't go particularly well: Mama Bristow shoots her daughter and leaves her cuffed to the chair, bleeding and crying. After Sydney manages to escape in her usual "Perils of Pauline" fashion (with a little Bruce Lee nunchaku action mixed in), she tells Will and her father about the encounter.

"Excuse me, did you say you were shot by your mother?" Will asks, incredulous. Later, after Sydney describes the nature and reach of SD- 6, Will's only response is "Seriously?"

Olin, with her barracuda smile and bee-stung lips, is a perfect choice as both an unpredictable villain and Sydney's mom -- you can see how her genes and Jack's would have combined to form this lovely child -- and her arrival kicks the show's schizophrenic family dynamic to another sick, mesmerizing level.

She also fits nicely with the top-notch cast that was already in place. Ron Rifkin finds new depths of creepy to sink to each week, making you genuinely believe that this little middle-aged dweeb is the most dangerous man on the planet. Garber, with his cultured voice and bruiser's body, is cold and compelling. As Marshall, the geeky gadget expert -- and one of many SD-6 employees who think they really work for the CIA -- Kevin Weisman makes his weekly appearances a comic marvel of nervous tics and non-sequiturs.

Garner was always great in the fight scenes -- never more so than when running full-tilt, arms pumping and legs flying, straight at the camera -- but she's developed real confidence and charisma as an actress. If she occasionally seems out of her depth, it's only because she's mirroring Sydney's own insecurities. She's not Jane Bond; she's a young woman thrown into a never-ending nightmare of gunfights and betrayals. You try walking into the medical torture chamber Sydney discovers in tomorrow's episode and see if you can stay calm and collected.

For that matter, watch "Alias" tomorrow and see if you're not hooked.

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