ALIAS – Episode 9 – SYDNEY
A Man of His Word
“A Matter of Faith!”

This week was another rip-roaring episode. Action was fast and furious at times and gave me little or no time to watch and make notes at the same time. This is one reason Wednesday’s episode is one day late. (I am kind of a promise-nut: if I tell you it will be up a certain time, I try to keep it.)

This was a fairly straightforward episode with action at the CIA hospital, the mausoleum where Lauren was ‘buried’ by Vaughn, APO headquarters, and Venice: nightclub and the home of the ‘buyer’. Of course, as always the dialogue was snappy and quick. I’m going to have to buy hearing aids in order to get it all. The names they toss to us are not Smith and Jones.

The episode opens with a reprise of a few scenes from last week, the first new scene is at the hospital, and Sloane is watching Nadia, who is unconscious. Sydney, who was standing at the door when Sloane arrived, hears they put Nadia in a coma in order for the wound to heal properly. Sloane doesn’t blame Sydney. It’s Anna Espinosa that he wants and she has the bomb. His cells phone rings and he is asked to return to APO headquarters.

There he faces Sark for the first time in a long time:
“This is classic,” he says as he faces Sloane for the first time since Season 2.

They talk about the reason he has been brought to APO including the past. Sark congratulates him on ending up where he started, head of SD-6, supposedly a black ops section of the CIA, and now head of APO a real black ops operation of the CIA. “…Arvin, you have my undying admiration…” That was so cool.

He promises to help APO get Anna, but he has his own demands. He wants to see Lauren Reed and he wants Vaughn to open the coffin. Jack sees Vaughn talking to Sydney and asks him to do it. Vaughn agrees.

Inside the Mausoleum, Vaughn opens the coffin and Sark pulls the zipper over the body bag. He notices the bullet wound marks (she was remarkably preserved) and comments they were CIA? He tells Vaughn, “You shot her didn’t you.” Vaughn coldly responds in the affirmative.

At this moment, Sloane is sitting by Nadia’s head. Sydney is watching. He says that Syd should not blame herself for Nadia’s condition.

Suddenly there is a commotion outside and personnel are rushing out, responding to a fire alarm. There is a small fire in the sub-basement. Everyone leaves, but a nurse…shades of Anna Espinosa and it is. She walks into Nadia’s room and fires three times at the girl. Sydney rushes back in time to give chase, but Anna takes a fire hose and leaps out of the building (Reminded me of Irina’s drop in S2) and escapes.

Sydney rushes back horrified, but Sloane tells her he had Nadia put into the room next door unbeknownst by anyone. He has her moved to APO in order to keep anyone else from reaching her.

Marshall with Jack watching shows Jack what happened just before the shooting. It looks like Nadia has a secret that APO needs to know. She knows where the bomb is.

Sydney and Vaughn talk about their mission with Sark. They have to go to Venice to find Ushek San’ko. Sark is to be their connection to him. Sydney is supposed to be Lauren Reed. She has to go as Lauren because San’ko heard her voice once. It is not Sydney’s preference. She dresses and uses make up to transform her into Lauren. Vaughn approves.

Meanwhile, Jack has gone to see the doctor about Nadia. He wants to know how long it will be before she is awake. Ah yes, the plot doth thicken. Sloane is watching Nadia and Jack watches them both.

In Venice, Sark and Sydney meet San’ko. San’ko slyly suggests that he likes to watch lovers act. Lauren drinks some vodka and takes a slice of lime between her teeth and leans to Sark, kissing him. When she pulls back, Sark has a slice of lime as well as blood on his mouth where she ‘playfully’ bit him.

Suddenly there is a shot and San’ko is killed. The patrons in the nightclub scatter. Sydney handcuffs Sark and races out to help Vaughn. When they return, Sark is gone. He has been rescued by Anna Espinosa, who is in a powerboat racing along a canal. She cuts out the explosive device in his neck and tosses it overboard.

Anna and Sark working together? Oh, oh. Sark says they were Fated to do so. (Sly dog). She has brought him dinner and wine. She tells him the Cadmus Revolutionary Front is weak and that she is going into business herself and wants him to join her. He believes it to be a brilliant idea and drinks to it.

At APO, Jack has made a decision he confides in no one about. He takes the meds needed to wake Nadia up. He needs the information that Anna’s associate whispered in her ear when she and Sydney were in Brussels.

Jack notifies Sydney and Vaughn that the bomb is going to be sold to a Michael Guinot, a Venice businessman. They are instructed to get the bomb.

Sloane sees that Nadia is awake and it’s early. The doctor tells him Nadia will be fine, but that someone used four times the necessary medication. He thinks he knows who did it. Sloane waits.

Oh oh, there‘s going to be trouble in River City!

Back to Venice: Anna and Sark sell the bomb for twenty million. They wait as the money is transferred to the bank account they set up. At the same moment, Sydney and Vaughn sneak into the estate. At the time the sale is completed they fire, killing the guards. (What no tranq guns?) Vaughn goes after Guinot who as the bomb. Sydney takes off after Sark and Anna. However, Sark gets to the door first. He slams and locks it so Anna is trapped.
No honor among thieves is there.

We then have a classic battle between Anna and Sydney. Sydney nearly buys the farm, but gets out of a stranglehold and whacks Anna with some sore of stanchion, knocking her down. Vaughn kicks her gun (which she lost early on in the fight) to Sydney who holds it on her enemy. She’s tempted to fire as her father told her she could in the previous episode. (Glad she didn’t…it opens up opportunities later on for Anna to return).

The next scene shows Weiss entertaining Nadia with tricks much to her delight. Sydney comes in and talks…telling her sister that Anna Espinosa has been caught. Nadia says, “So you got her and we didn’t shoot each other.”

Now to be best part of the show—the confrontation between Jack and Sloane. I have tried to give the essence of what they said in the word that follows:

“You also indicated that this wasn’t Nadia’s time that she would pull through. Don’t tell me you’re losing your faith.” Jack stares at him stonily.

“I would have appreciated as a father to be apprised of your decision to put my daughter’s life at risk.”

“As you do mine on a daily basis…”

We could use a little MOM here with some of the following dialogue:

“Stop it, both of you…THEY both are MY daughters and I want them out of the CIA NOW…I’m tired of Rambaldi! It has gotten me nowhere and them in a world of pain.
I am going to kill you both if you don’t stop!” (Visualize Irina Derevko holding the gun on Sydney in Barcelona and the look on her face.)

REMARKS

I gave this episode top grade over last weeks which was I admit more exciting if only because of the confrontation between Jack and Sloane. Of course, we know there is now trouble brewing in the ‘happy’ family at APO. Dixon, Sydney, and now Jack have stood their ground against the evil ‘troll’ as some fans refer Sloane to be. I think I would watch my back…all three of them.

Interesting that Vaughn put Lauren in a cryogenic mausoleum. My first thought was they were going to do a grave opening as they did when Sloane opened Emily’s grave. Why not put her down six feet and toss dirt. Oh yeah, then they couldn’t have the scene there with Sark. I wonder if Melissa filmed that scene before she left.

At least we know she’s dead…Lauren, that is. And speaking of her, Sydney had to disguise herself as Lauren. I’m sorry, but the wig didn’t look like Lauren…it looked like the ‘daughter’ in Passage 1’s episode.

Notice they took Anna prisoner, which means we no doubt, will have the opportunity to see her again kick Sydney’s butt. I loved the fight, but Sydney was getting the worst of it until the very end. She should be able by this time to respond to Anna’s techniques to take her down quickly. Oh well, then we wouldn’t see flying bodies.

DISCUSS

What do you think the pact between Jack and Sloane was? Did it have to do with Irina and her ‘death’? Did it have to do with Rambaldi? Did it have to do with Sydney and Nadia?
Or have you some other idea?

How did Anna know about the tracker? Has she underestimated Sark? If and when she gets out of prison, do you think she’ll go after Sark for revenge?

Is Anna acting on her own volition when she teamed up with Sark?

Jack gave Sydney permission to kill Anna (Echoes) if she deemed it necessary, but she didn’t. Is this because of her so-called empathy or is it that she likes Anna in spite of her evil. Is it because Anna reminds her of Irina, her mother?

Many things to think about until next week… including the promos, which are never as they seem.