252 replies to this topic

[Qwerty]

That is true DLibra, I guess it just might have been cool to see that problem of sorts continue on for a few new episodes, unless (and he probably does), the creator has far more interesting things in mind, which is great in that case.

Oh, I have complete faith in JJ Abrams....I just wish I didn't have to wait a whole week for a new episode (it's so much easier when you get a season set on DVD because then you can just click on the next episode).

Oh, most definitely. I've been considering these DVD's for a while, especially Set 2.

[Turn]

Last night was another fine episode, much better than last week's. The teaser was particularly bizzare and fun. It's good to see Weiss join the black ops team, and I dig some of Sloan's jackets with the turtlenecks; they kinda remind me of Blofeld.

My only minor complaint is that the last 2 bad guys looked and sounded pretty much the same. They need some baddies who are a little more distinctive and not so much middlemen for bigger game. Gimme Sark back.

[DLibrasnow]

I also liked last nights episode and the teaser shocked me (I initally thought it was a false leg - but the whole shattering effect caught me off guard).

My only quibble was they never gave anything for Marshall to do. The whole baby pictures thing was funny, but that was about all. I also thought the interplay between Vaughn and Dixon at the clinic was fun.

[License To Kill]

For those who know how I want my ALIAS, it's chock full of Jack, which sadly did not occur last night. But he did have a cool scene with Nadia at the end when he totally heists her. I wonder who that kid is?

[DLibrasnow]

I agree that Jack was missing for most of last night, but then the last two weeks (and especially the season opener) were both Jack-heavy.
You think that Jack wasn't telling Nadia the truth about the babyt?

Am I the only person who liked last weeks episode?

[Qwerty]

For those who know how I want my ALIAS, it's chock full of Jack, which sadly did not occur last night. But he did have a cool scene with Nadia at the end when he totally heists her. I wonder who that kid is?

I think we'll soon find out more dealing with all of that. Next week's episode looks great!

[DLibrasnow]

Next weeks episode does look great - but not very Jack-heavy,

The story as far as I could tell from the preview last night involves Sydney and Vaughn posing as a married couple to infiltrate a community of assassins.

Doesn't that sound a bit like MR AND MRS SMITH.

[Qwerty]

I don't need 'Jack-heavy' episodes all of the time, this upcoming one for example, looks just as good.

[DLibrasnow]

Yeah, but I was referencing License to Kill's comment earlier in the thread that he likes Jack-heavy episode.

Personally, I like Sydbey-heavy episodes, but thats just me.

Marshall also cracks me up all the time.

[Qwerty]

Yeah, but I was referencing License to Kill's comment earlier in the thread that he likes Jack-heavy episode.

Personally, I like Sydbey-heavy episodes, but thats just me.

Marshall also cracks me up all the time.

Ah, sorry for the confusion.

Marshall is a great character. He's a perfect example of the kind of character that they could go way overboard on, but wisely haven't, making him very effective.

[Turn]

Just for fun, I was bored at work and a guy I work with and me drew up our list of coolest people. I included the Jack Bristow character. He's like an older version of a super agent who has just greyed in the hair and gotten a little heavier.

His threats and surprising moves are always interesting. I particularly liked the one last season where he paid a visit to Irina's sister and suddenly layed a heavy kiss on her.

[Bon-san]

I found last night's eppy a bit on the bland side (after the kick- opening sequence). I can tolerate the watered-down nature of the show for awhile here, but I'm really hoping for a return to the edgy vibe that permeated the first three seasons.

But as long as JG is Sydney, I'm watching every episode!

[DLibrasnow]

Agree totally. I can watch Jennifer Garner in anything.

[ComplimentsOfSharky]

I wasn't a big fan of last night's ep.

I agree with LTK on liking the Jack-heavy episodes...then again, Sloane is my hero (anyone know where I can get one of those suits?).

As for Sydney, I love the girl and any episode where she doesn't just break down and start bawling is ok with me.

[Turn]

The latest episode was a lot of fun. A pretty creative premise that featured a lot of subtle humor. At times it seemed like something out of an old Avengers episode.

If I have any small complaint it's that the last three episodes feature villains that all kind of look and act the same only with different accents. There's nobody distinctive like a Tarantino, Roger Moore or that guy who was the lead in Amistad (I'm not even gonna attempt to try and spell his name).

It's interesting how they are keeping the shadow of Irina out there although Lena Olin supposedly refuses to come back to the role. According to the IMDB, she has a couple movies set to come out this year, so who knows. She'd definitely be welcomed back.

[DLibrasnow]

Last nights episode was a blatent rip-off of the John Travolta/Kelly Preston movie THE EXPERTS.

As such it was a major disappointment.

C'mon JJ Abrams, come up with something original rather than ripping off a 1980s B-movie spy flick.

[Qwerty]

I didn't know it was a rip-off, but it was certainly one of the oddest ones lately. It just didn't feel like something I'd expect on Alias.

[DLibrasnow]

I know what you mean Qwerty.

I expect that Abrams and Co. were counting on not many people remembering THE EXPERTS.

[Bon-san]

I expect that Abrams and Co. were counting on not many people remembering THE EXPERTS.

Considering that this episode of Alias was 1000 times better than "The Experts", a studio motion picture seen by perhaps 1073 people in North America, I can understand JJ's assumption.

I thought this was the best Alias eppy of the season, thus far. Some good dramatic tension, finally!

And seeing how this episode was gripping from the opening frames, while "The Experts" was hopelessly weak from wire-to-wire, I wouldn't even consider this to be a ripping off of "The Experts". More like a this-is-how-it-should-have-been-done-in-the-first-place.

My take, anyway.

[Qwerty]

I know what you mean Qwerty.

I expect that Abrams and Co. were counting on not many people remembering THE EXPERTS.

You are probably right in that assumption.

[DLibrasnow]

I thought THE EXPERTS was good hokum fun Bon-san. But isn't it irrelevent which was better done since the concept for THE EXPERTS was clearly lifted for this episode of ALIAS.

Don;t get me wrong - I enjoyed the episode of ALIAS, and I don't consider THE EXPERTS to be in the same league, but creedit where it is due - the episode had no originality.

Take away the concept of THE EXPERTS from last nights episode and what are you left with - a McGuffin (EMP weapon) and we've already seen that in a Bond movie (GoldenEye) and mentioned in another Bond movie (A View To A Kill).

The episode was disappointing because it had nothing original in it.

[Bon-san]

I thought THE EXPERTS was good hokum fun Bon-san. But isn't it irrelevent which was better done since the concept for THE EXPERTS was clearly lifted for this episode of ALIAS.

Don;t get me wrong - I enjoyed the episode of ALIAS, and I don't consider THE EXPERTS to be in the same league, but creedit where it is due - the episode had no originality.

Take away the concept of THE EXPERTS from last nights episode and what are you left with - a McGuffin (EMP weapon) and we've already seen that in a Bond movie (GoldenEye) and mentioned in another Bond movie (A View To A Kill).

The episode was disappointing because it had nothing original in it.

Agree with you that it was clearly derivative. And that was a tad disconcerting to me for a moment. But I got so engrossed in, as Turn mentions above, The Avengers-like fun of it, that I forgave them for failing to concoct a wholly original story.

I was also heartened by the hints of sinister things to come in the Sloane-Jack exchanges.

[Turn]

I forgot to mention the thing about the electromagnetic pulse. I was being a wiseguy and explaining it as Jack was on the show, saying I've known this for about 20 years. The things you learn from Bond film.

Anyways, who cares how original the episode was if you compare it to some C-grade movie nobody cares about? So there were rough similarities. Was there an actual shoot-out in a car dealership or any sense of menace? It had a creepy Stepford Wives tone to it, venturing into black humor at times.

But all this season's shows have been about McGuffins -- the second week with the code and last week with the virus thing. It was certainly superior to the 2nd week's show where Sidney had to smuggle the code and play dumb when it seemed she had plenty of chances to escape the estate of the bad guy. Then Jack and Nadia show up in the nick of time and all that. This time they did it for themselves.

[DLibrasnow]

I'd say it was a little more than "rough similarities" Turn, but i think this weeks episode was the weakest of the season so far precisly because it lacked any original thought.

its like the writers had writer block and decided to plagiarize ideas and concepts from THE EXPERTS and throw in a well-known McGuffin (EMP weapon). Really, I don't think anything of this weeks episode really stood out.

I'm just hoping the show redeems itself when it returns in two weeks time.

The only thing I found remotely intriguing about the show was the exchanges between Jack and Sloane.

[License To Kill]

Last nights episode was a blatent rip-off of the John Travolta/Kelly Preston movie THE EXPERTS.

As such it was a major disappointment.

C'mon JJ Abrams, come up with something original rather than ripping off a 1980s B-movie spy flick.

I remember the exact same plot from an old Mission:Impossible episode back in the 60's. So, I guess its a favorite recycled idea!

[Bon-san]

Truth be told, recycled plots have been a mainstay of the performing arts for centuries. "Romeo and Juliet" becomes "West Side Story", "Pygmalion" becomes "Pretty Woman", etc.

A lot of the "remakes" are quite good stuff.

[DLibrasnow]

Truth be told, recycled plots have been a mainstay of the performing arts for centuries.  "Romeo and Juliet" becomes "West Side Story", "Pygmalion" becomes "Pretty Woman", etc.

...And the excellent TOPKAPI with Peter Ustinov and Maximillian Schell becomes THE TOPKAPI AFFAIR with lame Pierce Brosnan

[Turn]

So, what did everybody think of last night's episode?

I kinda' like the way they are doing one-offs instead of keeping any real ongoing theme. You can't beat the teasers on this show. In the downside, these stories about drugs or formulas are getting kind of stale. And Jack saving the day at the last second is also getting kind of predictable. Did anybody really think he was knocked out for long at the end?

The Dixon-Sloane confrontation was cool. I like the way they are throwing out little things like that and dropping hints about Irina to keep some continuity about things other than just the present mission.

[Bon-san]

So, what did everybody think of last night's episode?

I kinda' like the way they are doing one-offs instead of keeping any real ongoing theme. You can't beat the teasers on this show. In the downside, these stories about drugs or formulas are getting kind of stale. And Jack saving the day at the last second is also getting kind of predictable. Did anybody really think he was knocked out for long at the end?

The Dixon-Sloane confrontation was cool. I like the way they are throwing out little things like that and dropping hints about Irina to keep some continuity about things other than just the present mission.

Agree with your points, Turn. I am looking forward to the return of story arcs (supposedly coming very soon). But it feels like they're hitting their stride. I do have a few complaints re lighting/camera work, but mostly I'm just glad to have the show on every week.

Sark returns next week or the week after, I hear!

[DLibrasnow]

I liked the confrontation between Dixon and Sloane, but I didn't really get into last nights episode for some reason. I felt really underwhelmed by the whole experience and didn't buy into the situation at all.
Hopefully the show returns to form next week when Sydney and sis team up to kick some .