Entil's State of the Union Part Duex

Just some more thoughts on shows that I watch that I don't write reviews for.

Except for now, apparently.

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STARGATE SG-1 - I admit, this is not the same series that it was back in the first four or five seasons. The writers haven't provided the same consistent quality or cohesion that used to be there. But if there's a series that can adapt to constant cast changes, this is the one. The cast hasn't truly been stable since the end of the fifth season, so perhaps it's time to jump in with both feet. And yeah, that means cutting the cord when it comes to RDA. If the series sustains audience after that, then it's more than just a question of comfort...it's an unquestionable franchise! (And my wife and I are still on board, if anyone wonders!) Speaking of...

STARGATE: ATLANTIS - This series is a good example of how to expand a franchise. Take the first season to establish a rapport with the fans and develop the characters apart from the original, and then move on from the initial conditions in the second season. This series deserves to continue and grow, and the producers should be pleased to know that even if "SG-1" falters, this series still has plenty of life to it.

NCIS - Every week, I fall deeper in TV-Lust with Abby. And that's about all I can say about that.

SMALLVILLE - Oh, yeah, and everyone else can have Lana or Lois. I worship at the altar of Chloe Sullivan!

ANDROMEDA - Can someone, anyone, please tell the writers of this show that being intentionally vague does not make up for the show's shortcomings? This season had the potential to be strong in terms of the writing, but instead, the writers can't seem to figure out how to work around the budget. The last episode was utterly impossible to understand, and yet, it pertains to a larger plot arc. I'm not stupid or even that thick-headed...so how come I can't make heads or tails of it all?

AMAZING RACE - No matter how annoying the teams can be, this is still the best reality show out there!

AMERICAN IDOL - And this is still damned funny, even when the producers are being overly cruel. And I maintain that there's a level to this process that can only be appreciated by those who have undergone the audition process and remember all too well what kind of self-delusional people show up, time and time again...and sometimes, you're one of them...

SURREAL LIFE/REAL WORLD - Yeah, we still sometimes watch this crap, but these days, it's like an ongoing cautionary tale for modern society. I still think Adrianne's hot (the kind of girl that could have been your high school girlfriend, but insane) and I think I'm the only person watching "Real World" who thinks Melanie is the most interesting person on the show.

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Recently, I wound up pissing off a friend for defending the fact that "Alias" was using a plot device that had once been used for "XF": going undercover in suburbia. I think my argument was taken somewhat personally, but it wasn't intended as that. But as I've read similar condemnations regarding episodes of other shows, I remembered something from my college days.

There's a quote out there (Ellison? Bradbury?) about how every possible plot has already been explored ad infinitum, so the true measure of originality lies not in the situation, but how the characters deal with that situation, and this grow and change as a result. So the question of whether or not a plot devide is "original" or a "ripoff" is moot. Most of the plot devices used in "XF" that are so easily recognized now, after the fact, were considered "ripoffs" when they were used for episodes of that series. What made them work, when they did, had everything to do with character.

This is why, most of the time, the success or failure of an episode that I review will come down to character. Even when the characters are going through a familiar plot device or jumping through the hoops of an all-too-familiar character arc, it can seem fresh or interesting if the characters themselves are growing in the process. Shows like "Buffy", "Angel", or "Babylon 5" took archetypical plot elements and put unique characters through hell, and those shows were creatively fertile as a result. Shows like "Enterprise", "Roswell", and "XF" would falter when characters failed to learn from their experiences or made decisions in service of the plot.

Or put another way...when it comes to cultural icons, like Kirk, Mulder, Spock, etc., how many people in the public know anything about what they actually experienced, episode to episode? Not much. Most people actually remember these characters for what they believed and how that defined them. Sure, Kirk was captain of the Enterprise, but that was integral to his psychology, and that's why people remember that. Mulder, as well, is remembered more for his desire to search for the truth than the details of that truth. Ultimately, it's about the ability to forge a rapport with a character's point of view, positively or negatively, that makes a story work.
So does it really matter if both "XF" and "Alias" used the same plot device? Was one better for coming first? Nope. Personally, I found both episodes wanting for very different reasons. "Arcadia" used the concept for some good laughs, but the situation did little to reveal hidden layers of the characters, and the plot itself was seriously lame. "Welcome to Liberty Village" focused on the characters, and while that development was strong, it was to the exclusion of nearly everything else that makes the series work. That could have been true even if some other plot device was used in each case for the same purposes, and that's why the "suburbia" device ultimately didn't matter.

Hopefully, this explains my point of view more clearly, without making anyone who disagrees feel like I'm calling them stupid...

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Oh, and onto another topic, just to show that I'm an equal opportunity kinda guy...

The vote in Iraq was a victory. It may disgust some anti-Bush types to hear that (some people are really against the whole idea), but it was a victory. And it managed to make us look like fools, and not for the reason that anti-Bush people would like to think. It made us look horrible because even though there were insurgents threatening to kill voters, even though there are massive religious divisions that will probably cause future strive, and even though there are those who hate the fact that the US brought the election about...around 60-70% of eligible Iraqia voted to have a stake in their nation's future.

Meanwhile, we're jumping for joy if just over 50% bother to get off their ass on a relatively warm day, with little more than political signs and exit pollers in the way, to routinely help determine the course of our future. There's even less interest when it's not a presidential vote, when the local government (usually more immediately important) is the only thing up for grabs. People, we get worked up over the thought of possible psychological coersion against voters, when the Iraqi voters stood in line, even knowing that at any moment, they could be dying for the right to cast that vote.

I'm not going to debate, at the moment, whether or not it's right to enforce democracy in the Middle East. That's for the people of Iraq to decide. While I may have certain issues with the circumstances under which this election was made possible, the fact remains that the people appear to have embraced the concept at this point and time. Supporting the people of Iraq in this effort does not constitute a blanket advocacy of the Bush administration, to be sure. But I'm also not going to let those disagreements on policy blind me to the fact that this is a major step forward for those who have, until recently, had no part in their own fate.

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Lately my left elbow has been incredibly sore. This isn't making it much better. Hopefully this is a momentary problem, and not a symptom......

Perhaps more later..."24" will be on soon!

Enterprise 4.12: "Babel One"

Written by Mike Sussman and Andre Bormanis
Directed by David Straiton

In which Archer and the crew of Enterprise becomes embroiled in a Romulan plot to disrupt peace talks between the Andorians and Tellarites, leading to violence…


Captain’s Log

After a couple of stand-alone episodes that digressed from the mini-arc format that dominated the early part of the season, the serialized storytelling returns with an arc devoted to the early groundwork towards Federation. It’s rather evident that this is the format that the writers prefer, since they get to take a big story, break it into three major acts, and then attempt to make something like a feature film re-cut into three episodes. It worked for the “Vulcan Arc”, and if this episode is any indication, it’s going to work for the “Babel Arc” as well.

The most popular (and inspired) episodes have involved the Andorians, particularly Shran, and this episode is no exception. Jeffrey Combs brings something to the table that few guest stars have been able to match, which is probably why he is always offered the most interesting recurring roles. Combs is in top form in this episode, giving Shran the measure of depth necessary to make the episode work.

The structure of the episode is all about peeling back the layers of deception, from the attack in the teaser to the final reveal. This is appropriate, given that the primary villains of the piece are Romulans. For the audience, this is hardly a shock, since it had been revealed at the end of “Kir-Shara” that the Romulans were manipulating Vulcan society to foment hostilities among the other major players in the quadrant. Having failed to spark a war between Vulcans and Andorians, the Romulans turn to another conflict, hoping for better results.

The Romulan plan makes a great deal of sense. Since the existing continuity demands that nearly everyone in the universe remain clueless when it comes to the nature and origin of the Romulans, it’s logical that their isolationism be used to support this fact. The remote technology utilized by the Romulans serves the purpose of keeping the actual Romulans on their homeworld, safe from detection, while allowing them to be the principal villains of the season.

This also sets the stage for the Romulan Wars against Earth, which supposedly begin around this point in the timeline. It’s not clear which part of the prototype is considered new technology: the remote command function, the holographic function, or the warp function. It certainly seems as though Romulan technology is limited, and much of it is being used to get other species to attack one another, with Earth/Starfleet getting in the way every time. The eventual attack against Earth could be conducted using whatever resources remain, including the non-warp, nuclear armed ships mentioned in “Balance of Terror”. It would make sense if those ship were remotely controlled or staffed by Remans, preserving the requirement that Romulans remain unseen.

Despite the fact that the remote command function is an elegant solution to the problem, it’s a plot device that is incredibly well concealed. Even after Trip and Reed quip about the lack of a crew, the possibility that the vessel is remotely controlled is not the immediate conclusion. In retrospect, the clues are all right there in plain view, but they are cunningly arranged to mask the truth. No doubt many fans were able to figure it out ahead of time, but it’s unlikely that many were absolutely certain that they were right.

In terms of the Romulan plans for the Andorians and Tellarites, they seem to be taking a page out of the Drakh playbook from “Babylon 5”. Essentially, they raid the borders of each respective power, plant or create evidence blaming traditionally opposing powers, and then come in and take over when each side is weakened by the resulting warfare. The Dominion did the same, though with more disturbing resources, and there’s a reason why it’s done again and again: it’s damned effective. It’s all too easy to believe that your usual enemy is the one killing your people, even when the technology at play is well beyond their usual capability.

One could argue over Archer’s role in this particular situation. After all, here he is, playing the central role again! But it still makes sense, given the circumstances, for Archer and Enterprise to be at the center of events. For one thing, if Earth is going to send someone as a intermediary, wouldn’t it be the same person who forged some measure of peace between the Vulcans and Andorians a couple years earlier? The Andorians, at least some of them, trust Archer more than any other Human, and Archer has gained something of a reputation after the Xindi and Vulcan situations.

For that matter, Archer’s key role in the slow but steady road to Federation does much to explain the lack of Klingon participation. Perhaps it’s not just the ideals of Federation that were unappealing to the Klingons, but the fact that someone who is considered an enemy of the Empire is pulling together an alliance of competing powers. Based on their own code, they would see this as a threat, an enemy drawing together allies for an offensive. Is it any wonder that they quickly see the UFP as their main opponent?

As previously mentioned, any episode with Shran is practically an instant classic. It’s great watching Shran and Archer go at it, especially since there’s a mutual respect constantly hanging in the air between them. For all that Shran expresses disdain for how easily Archer is being fooled, the truth is that Shran is more willing to accept evidence when it comes from Archer. Had it been anyone else asking him to stand down, the entire Tellarite delegation would have been dead in seconds.

It’s also interesting to watch Archer struggle with the Tellarite method of communication. He does well enough with Hoshi (who is utterly gorgeous when she’s pretending to be angry!), but he’s much less confident when dealing with Gral. It’s a subtle distinction, but it does a lot to reveal Archer’s thought process. He doesn’t quite accept that he needs to be so rude and unyielding to communicate with the Tellarites, but lacking anything better, he makes the effort.

Trip and Reed get to work together again, and it’s interesting to watch them tentatively resume their friendship. Reed wasn’t altogether pleased with Trip during the “Vulcan Arc”, and this is apparently part of the process of restoring their mutual balance. It’s good to see a reference to Reed’s initial attraction to T’Pol, and Trip’s denial of response to the end of T’Pol’s marriage. When they are forced to rely on each other to stay alive, the true strength of their friendship will be tested.

Oddly enough, Reed may not be the only one intrigued by a possible future with T’Pol. Archer seems to dance around the subject, bringing back thoughts of the first season flirtation between the two characters. The conversation that Archer has with Shran about Talas appears to be related. After all, in the first season, Archer and T’Pol wouldn’t have been worried about officer protocol. Now, things are very different. It would be unfortunate for this potential subplot to appear, given the disastrous handling of the Trip/T’Pol romance, but it does provide another example of internal continuity.

Speaking of Talas, the undeniably attractive Andorian, last seen in all her glory in “Proving Ground”, makes a strong return in this episode. Her attempted seduction of the guard outside her door feels more like the aesthetic of the original series than a calculated attempt at “sexing up” the episode, and her relationship with Shran brings up an interesting question about the Andorian reproductive scheme.

In the novels, quite a bit of work has been done of late to develop a four-gender Andorian relationship scheme, playing off of a comment made in an episode of “Next Generation”. This episode suggests more of a standard two-gender mating, which would complicate a rather elegant scheme (the Andorian characters/species details are some of the best in the modern Trek-Lit). On the other hand, there’s every reason to believe that Shran is choosing his words carefully, getting his point across without revealing anything that would be hidden from outworlders. The fact that Talas’ physiology appears very, very compatible could easily be deceiving!

Some might be concerned about the portrayal of the Romulans and their overall appearance. The use of special effects from “Star Trek: Nemesis” has caused something of an instant uproar, including several theories that the Romulans are really operating from the future, echoing aspects of the Temporal Cold War. That would be an unnecessary complication, since it’s just as simple to assume that the basic Romulan appearance hasn’t really changed, and that the differences in appearance are merely a function of basic variation in the genotype. For that matter, the “Nemesis” Romulans could be part of a faction obsessed with the days before the rise of the Federation, thereby making the similarities intentional.

While Hoshi gets her moment to shine early in the episode, as usual, she and Mayweather are sidelined in favor of the other characters. Even Phlox only gets a few minor scenes. Oddly, for as much as her character is a topic of conversation, T’Pol has very little to do in this episode. When she does appear, her post-“Kir’Shara” mask is firmly in place, only faltering when one would expect it. Some might consider this to be a “flat” or “wooden” performance, as if Blalock isn’t even trying, but this is clearly character development. She’s meant to be adhering to the ways of Sarek, and as such, her emotions are more in check. Isn’t that what everyone was expecting her to be like from the beginning, after all? To complain now is somewhat hypocritical.

It also seems wrong for critics to harp on the number of scenes that take place on Enterprise, utilizing established sets. This episode has a number of new sets and plenty of good CGI shots (the Enterprise approaching the debris field is one very good example), all made possible by the budget-saving stand-alone episodes that preceded it. The budget issues this season have been well documented, and while it has shown from time to time, it’s not nearly as obvious as it has been on other series with slashed budgets (“Andromeda”, for instance).

One could see this story taking place on the original series or “Next Generation”, and that’s perhaps one of the best compliments that an episode of “Enterprise” can receive. This is exactly the kind of material that Manny Coto had promised, and the “Vulcan Arc” actually stands as a strong precursor to the events depicted in this arc. In other words, this is exactly what the writers knew they needed to accomplish.

It’s also what the audience has likely been waiting for, and hopefully the ratings for the next episode will reflect that desire. The strength of the previous episode helped to bring some viewers back into the fold, and the fact that the concurrent episode of “Stargate SG-1” was considered a major disappointment could have helped “Enterprise” in the long run. The February ratings will be a critical test for the series’ future. Beyond the “Babel Arc”, the sweeps period will conclude with a two-part arc delving into the question of Klingon biology, answering a long-unanswered question about the appearance of the Klingons over the years. In other words, the producers are putting out episodes that ought to generate major interest in the audience, and if that fails, there are no excuses left. For what it’s worth, if this episode is any indication, it deserves to succeed.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode is another strong beginning to a potentially excellent story arc, building off of the strengths of the “Vulcan Arc”. The writers develop a clever solution to the problem of using Romulans as the main villains of the tale, avoiding any major blunders. As always, Jeffrey Combs shines as Shran, adding the requisite gravitas to the episode. This is exactly the kind of episode that the series needed going into February sweeps.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Season Average (as of 4.12): 7.4

Entil's State of the Union

Well, it's been a fairly crazy month so far. I swear, even though it hasn't been incredibly busy, work has been exhausting. Every week feels like a major ordeal. I have the feeling that things are only going to get worse until the first real holiday...or until the winter blues go away...

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All right, so a few general thoughts on non-reviewed TV shows that are on the Entil Family TiVo list:

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - I really enjoyed the miniseries when I finally got to see it, so I was optimistic about the series itself. I was rather shocked at how much better the series has been. The series, successful or not, is a worthy successor of "Babylon 5", "Farscape", and "Firefly", all of which held character above all else. This series has become appointment TV, without question!

MEDIUM - I have to say, after an average start, this series has won me over. I find the family dynamic to be rather compelling, and I really enjoy how the husband expresses a realistic level of doubt, forcing her to constantly question her interpretations. This is "Millennium", only with a much more attractive lead character and a more "audience friendly" tone. And since that series would be very popular nowadays, it's rather appropriate that this series has been very successful, beating or tying "CSI: Miami". The word is that this short mid-season will be extended, and that the series has already been renewed for a full 22-episode second season!

POINT PLEASANT - Unfortunately, I can't say anything remotely similar about this series. I really wanted this one to work, since the premise is fun, and Christina is super-hot when she's doing bad, bad things. Never mind that fact that Marti Noxon and many ex-Mutant Enemy writers are involved! The fact is, though...it's just not coming together very well. The whole mix of "The OC" and "Omen" is uneven at best, and when Ben Edlund can't write a strong episode for your series, that means there's a problem. The ratings are dropping through the floor, so apparently a lot of other people agree. Get the apocalypse going, Marti, or the show's the next victim!

WEST WING - I am totally loving this transitionary period. The season started off a bit shaky, but the overall scheme of the season is becoming clear. It's all about one door closing and another opening, and seeing the beginnings of the first Barlett campaign through the present day struggles of the Santos campaign. That last episode was brilliant, especially when Santos and Vinick came face to face, the two opponents having a conversation laced with an incredible amount of subtext. No, this isn't the Sorkin version of "West Wing" anymore...this is the John Wells version, and damned if it isn't finally finding its own voice! (Purists may hate it, but I'm won over...and the ratings agree with me...)

SMALLVILLE - I don't know what others think of this season, but at least it has more narrative momentum than the third season. I think the increased focus on sexuality is sometimes over the top, but there's always been a sensual side to the series, and this is just amping it up a bit. It's still very strong storytelling, and everything that I wish "Roswell" could have been, had the network given it a chance.

JACK AND BOBBY - I swear, my wife and I must be the only people watching this show and seeing it for what it is: a damned good drama, not afraid to buck convention or stir up controversy. It's exactly the kind of show that deserves an audience and was therefore doomed from the beginning to not get one. It's not perfect, but rarely am I so happy to be furious at a character as I am with that mother!

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As far as writing goes, I should be back in the saddle soon, now that the review-intensive mid-season start is more or less over. February sweeps ought to be busy as well, but not quite so insane. I'm still struggling to stay on task with the story, but I'm constantly "writing" it in my head, and it's just a matter of getting the thing on "paper"!

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More soon...right now, I'm getting in some well-deserved reading time...

Buffy 4.10: "Hush"

Written by Joss Whedon
Directed by Joss Whedon

In which Sunnydale is struck by a group of fairy-tale Gentlemen, who steal the voices of everyone in town in their quest to find and extract seven hearts from live but silent victims…


Status Report

Earlier in the season, it took Joss Whedon to bring the plot and character threads back on task with “Fear, Itself”. This episode is something of a mid-course correction, as the lines of communication continue to break down within the gang and questions of self-identity continue to percolate under the surface. Joss explores the concept of silence, and how the ability to talk does not translate into the ability to communicate. Or, in terms of the episode itself, “actions speak louder than words”.

The episode begins with one of Buffy’s psychic dreams, which is never a good sign. Creepy nursery rhymes about “The Gentlemen” are bad enough, but she’s also having dreams about Riley and presumably what she’d really like him to do. This indicates that Buffy is still trying to convince herself about her attraction to Riley, but she can’t put it into words or coherent thought. It’s part of Buffy’s ongoing self-identity crisis: what does she really want, and why can’t she find a way to get it?

She’s also having the dream in the middle of class, which is another bad sign, but it gives Riley a good excuse for some small talk. Of course, that’s the problem: it’s all small talk. Both of them are leading secret lives, and so they have to lie to one another about their lack of availability. This is killing the relationship before it even gets a fair chance to start, and while they both realize it, they can’t seem to break the silence.

Spike continues to be Giles’ houseguest, a situation which is always good for a laugh. Spike is basically eating Giles out of house and home, which is damned funny, since vampires aren’t supposed to enjoy food (or so it seems in the “Angel” episode “I Will Remember You”). Not only does Spike ignore Giles, but Xander and Anya have their little spat right in front of him, with no regard for his privacy. Considering that Anya is complaining that Xander doesn’t tell her how much he cares for her, little time is wasted getting the message across. These people are all interacting, but the lines of communication are all but gone.

Enter Tara, who seems to have communication issues of her own. It’s not a mistake that Tara was introduced at this point in the season, or that Joss was the one who wrote her introduction. Volumes could be written about the metaphorical concepts expressed in that relationship, even from the very beginning. In this case, it’s about Tara’s psychological barriers to communication; her self-esteem has been rendered so small that she doesn’t even try to make herself heard anymore. (At this point, one wonders if Tara has adopted her unique appearance as a means of expressing herself without words.)

Willow notices Tara, but she’s just as guilty of not hearing the words being spoken at the Wicca group meeting. The writers, including Joss, have always made gross errors in the depiction of pagan and Wiccan beliefs. For instance, Willow constantly refers to her explorations into magic as studying the “dark arts”. In this episode, she mocks the Wicca group for speaking about positive energy, blessings, and Gaian concepts. Willow makes it sound like they’re all on the wrong page, but as later season would aptly demonstrate, Willow is the one walking on the wrong path.

It’s hard to know if this was intentional or not, since the writers never make it very clear. Giles ought to know the difference, and when he warns Willow about the magic she’s trying to wield, that might be intended to communicate his concerns about her path. But it’s never said outright, making it seem as though the writers don’t understand the distinctions. Intentional or not, this episode shows Willow ignoring certain key aspects of the faith she believes she’s following, thus reinforcing the commentary on lack of communication and willful ignorance.

Before the festivities begin, Olivia arrives at Giles’ pad, something that would only happen a couple of times and only in Joss’ episodes. Olivia works for the current episode, and one guesses that Joss felt the need to give some relatively minor sense of closure, having introduced the character that never caught on with the rest of the writing staff. While it’s a shame that such an attempt at diversity failed, there’s a good reason for it: there was absolutely no screen chemistry between them.

That’s the extent of the setup, because Joss doesn’t waste much time getting to the heart of the episode. How the “gimmick” in this episode is handled delineates the difference between “Buffy” and most other series on television. Like “Once More, With Feeling” in the sixth season, this episode uses the conceit of a “silent episode” as a vehicle for character exploration and development. The episode is good enough on its own, but in terms of the season as a whole, it’s a critical point in the arc.

Joss understands that it’s better to give the audience a glimpse of the villain before the full reveal, so that the overall effect of the sudden inability to speak sinks in before the depth of the danger becomes apparent. There are few things more annoying than the inability to communicate directly through speech, especially when one has come to rely on that ability for the simplest of tasks. When it’s just one person with laryngitis, it’s bad enough; an entire town with laryngitis is a nightmare in and of itself.

The characters all react different, in keeping with their personalities. Buffy and Willow take the practical route, and immediately try to understand what’s happening. Xander blames Spike, who gets to toss off a profane British gesture without the censors realizing it. Riley and Forrest make their way to the Initiative base, but in their mild panic, they almost get themselves killed when they can’t pass the voice recognition part of the security protocol.

The entire town is stunned, which says a lot, since people seemed to shrug off the Giant Demon Snake attack at Graduation rather quickly. When a student drops a glass bottle in the middle of a room, it clearly communicates the terrifying extent of the silence. It’s not at all surprising that the liquor store is getting major business, or that smart profit-driven individuals immediately use the crisis to sell wipe boards for a neatly inflated price.

The gang comes together at Giles’ apartment, and they manage to catch a news report from Los Angeles. It’s rare for the writers to address how the rest of the world reacts to the news out of Sunnydale, but in this case, it’s rather revealing. Someone in the PR department of town government has a lot of experience with generating semi-rational explanations, it seems! The Mayor’s staff is probably still working on damage control, since the new Mayor would likely want to maintain some semblance of status quo. Whatever the case, the outside world, through spin control, gets to rationalize the strange happenings in Sunnydale as much as the local population.

Also interesting is the response of the Initiative. The full nature of the Initiative has only been hinted at by this point in the season, but Professor Walsh mentions the fact that their operations would be a “military presence”. This confirms the early suspicions that there are those outside of Sunnydale, particularly in the intelligence and military communities, who are aware of the presence of demonic creatures on the planet. They also know that Sunnydale is a focal point of demonic activity, and it’s rather easy to believe that the military would want to study and utilize demon biology for “special projects”.

Even before they run into each other in an official capacity, Buffy and Riley demonstrate how well they complement each other. Without words to get in the way, it’s easy for them to kiss and show affection, since they don’t have to lie to one another. This is where Joss’ intention begins to take shape, as the characters slowly but surely begin revealing what they normally find so hard to say with words.

With the reactions of the human (and, to a certain extent, demon) population covered, it’s time to introduce the Gentlemen themselves. Though reminiscent of similar figures in “Dark City”, the Gentlemen are memorable on their own. Their overly polite mannerisms are incredibly creepy, especially when they bear down on their victims with violent intent. This is also a moment in the episode where the evocative score by Chris Beck really shines, giving the proceedings the scope of a fairy tale, epic and yet personally terrifying at the same time. It’s worth noting that the Gentlemen are easily one of the most unnerving creations of the entire Buffyverse.

Giles’ lecture is a masterpiece of comedy and exposition, all rolled into one. This could have been an intensely boring scene had it been written in any conventional sense, but the use of character is nearly perfect. It’s amazing how easily Giles’ mannerisms are communicated in his choice of music and slides (macabre and unique, to say the least), not to mention his expressions. Xander gets to show how far his mind is in the gutter, Anya displays an amazing amount of indifference, Willow assumes her typical role of eager student, and Buffy’s just worried about how to kill it (and correct Giles’ version of her waistline). This scene shows how well-crafted the characterization is for this series: one doesn’t even need dialogue to understand what makes each of them tick.

Inevitably, when Tara decides to go to Willow to attempt a few spells, she becomes one of the targets of the Gentlemen. Already, Tara is more than a little intrigued by Willow, especially since she recognizes that Willow has a great deal of power and the desire to use it. Her decision to go to Willow for help says a lot about her character. Like Riley, Tara begins with a great deal of potential; like Riley, she would later outlive her logical pertinence to the plot, when the writers decided to keep her beyond her intended departure. At this point, Tara is a young woman with low self-esteem but strong survival instincts, born of years of personal adversity.

The separate battles fought by Buffy and Riley (displaying their fighting skills in able fashion) inevitably bring them together. This is one of the moments that had been coming for a long time, and it makes this particular episode the perfect forum for it. Under normal circumstances, they would want to grill each other, but without the ability to speak, they’re forced to maintain the silence and simply work together. It’s a great moment for the season, since it changes everything.

As Buffy and Riley reveal the truth about each other in the course of their battle with the Gentlemen’s lackeys, Joss turns to the other characters who have been unable to speak their true feelings. When it seems like Spike has attacked Anya, Xander loses it, rather effectively beating Spike to a pulp. This is not the same Xander that couldn’t land a shot on Harmony earlier in the season! Anya realizes that Xander really does care about her, and in response, she rather crudely suggests they go celebrate. Giles, Olivia, and Spike are suitably horrified.

In a moment dripping with subtext, Tara and Willow become trapped in a laundry room. Tara doesn’t have the power to move a soda machine and bar the door on her own, but when she laces her fingers in Willow’s hand and they work together, the soda machine practically jumps through the wall. Both of them are stunned by the rush of power, and there’s the wide-eyed heaving of bosoms, which more than suggests the future of their character development. Tara manages to express her interest without a word.

Even though the emphasis is clearly on the character development, the final act doesn’t skimp on the action. Buffy and Riley have more than enough time to show off for one another, and in this particular instance, they are both rather competent fighters. (In later episodes, Buffy is clearly the one with more natural strength and endurance.) After a hilarious moment of miscommunication, Buffy gets to unleash a scream that is rather memorable in its length and effect. It’s just long enough for the audience to wonder, once it’s over, what everyone is going to do now that they have words again.

The conversation between Tara and Willow at the end of the episode reveals a certain amount of ignorance on Tara’s part, equal to the ignorance shown by Willow. In her case, it makes more sense, given the fact that the men in her family had battered the “evil witch” mantra into her head. Seeing someone like Willow, openly able to explore her ability and willing to share the journey, it’s not at all hard to understand why she would initially fail to consider the long-term consequences. Ironically, Tara’s the one that tells Willow she has the power that she would eventually abuse, largely at Tara’s objection.

The scene between Giles and Olivia seems designed to quietly remove her from the picture, since her character wasn’t working out the way that Joss might have liked. This is probably for the best, as it works to further isolate Giles and remind him why he was thinking of leaving Sunnydale. Jenny’s death represented a terrible cost for Giles, but he was invested in the situation as Buffy’s Watcher, and therefore the cost was associated to how he defined himself at the time. Now, however, the personal cost is largely self-inflicted, and Giles has to be questioning his choice to remain, given his limited role in Buffy’s life.

Like the previous two scenes, the scene between Buffy and Riley ends in silence. But in this case, the short conversation is drowning in it, as if neither of them can figure out how to discuss something that wasn’t a factor in the midst of life-or-death struggle. Silence is easier, which is entirely the point. When it comes time for words, Buffy and Riley are unable to find them. And as a result, the gulf between them remains.

The first three seasons gave Joss the platform for expanding his storytelling skills, and this episode is his attainment of another level of excellence. Joss had come a long way from the clunky pacing of the series premiere as it was, using a holiday theme on more than one occasion to implement character development and establish multiple concurrent plot threads. The same is achieved here, but with the added bonus of a high-concept premise to add to the challenge. The excellent work in this episode would lead to future experiments in format and style (“The Body”, “Once More, With Feeling”) and would ultimately inform his work on “Firefly”.

This episode also points out the talents of the entire production staff. The cast makes it very clear that don’t rely on the snappy dialogue to carry them along; each of them manages to stay completely in character without saying a word. While there are several production glitches throughout the episode (editing and scene continuity problems), they’re easy to overlook, since there’s so much to look at in every scene. Without the dialogue, one’s full attention is on the staging of every scene, and not once does it work against the episode. The music is perfect throughout.

“Hush” is easily the best episode of the season (with a few not far behind), and it’s clear that everyone involved with the fourth season is well aware of that fact. Nearly every reference to the fourth season mentions “Hush” prominently, and the design of the DVD set features the Gentlemen, despite the fact that they were completely unrelated to the season’s main villain. These accolades are well-deserved, since “Hush” perfectly captures the best aspects of the series in one complete package.


Memorable Quotes

(And also, Memorable Moments!)

WILLOW: “So, were you dreaming?”
BUFFY: “Yeah…it was kind of intense.”
RILEY: “Intense, really? ‘Cause you looked so peaceful…”

RILEY: “Tonight you have crude oil?”
BUFFY: “And homework. What about you?”
RILEY: “You know, grading papers…”
BUFFY: “That’ll be fun.”
RILEY: “Not ‘petroleum’ fun, but it passes the time…”

ANYA: “Oh, you mean an orgasm friend!”
GILES: “Yes, that’s exactly the most appalling thing you could have said…”

BUFFY: “No actual witches in your witch group?”
WILLOW: “No, bunch a wanna Blessed Bes!”

XANDER: “I happen to be very bitable, pal! I’m moist and delicious!”
SPIKE: “All right, yeah, fine…you’re a nummy treat…”
XANDER: “And don’t you forget it!”

OLIVIA: “The flight was a horror.”
GILES: “Bad weather?”
OLIVIA: “Baseball movie.”

- Spike’s little obscene gesture

- Xander trying to call Buffy on the phone, and Spike’s look of disgust at the stupidity

- Forrest writing “Come on, Come on” on his notepad, despite the fact that Riley’s not even looking at him!

- Professor Walsh pointing to the sign that reads “In Case of Emergency: Use Stairway”

- Buffy casually breaking the wrist of the man about to strike Riley

- The first good look at the Gentlemen, as they politely wave to each other as they part ways on the street

- The Gentleman sliding by the window as Olivia jumps back in terror

- The entire scene where the unfortunate resident of room 118 becomes the latest victim

- Anya casually eating popcorn throughout Giles’ presentation (but where did she get it from?)

- Xander mistaking Willow’s gestures as a reference to her chest

- Giles’ rather bizarre artistic style, which would come into play again in similar hysterical fashion in the seventh season

- Everyone mistaking Buffy’s attempt to pantomime staking a demon

- Buffy and Riley facing each other in their secret roles for the first time

- Anya’s ability to come up with the most crude hand gesture in the entire episode

- Willow’s magically heaving bosom. Tara’s magically heaving bosom. The heaving of bosoms in general!

- Riley’s exceptionally proud moment as he smashes the completely wrong object in the bell tower, and Buffy’s weary rolling of the eyes

RILEY: “Well…I guess we have to talk.”
BUFFY: “I guess we do.”
(Silence.)


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode is a perfect example of everything that made “Buffy” work, from deep characterization to an exceptional visual style and musical force. Despite the lack of dialogue, the personalities of each character shine through. The Gentlemen are incredibly unnerving as one of the series’ most memorable villains. This is also the episode that introduces Tara, which for better or worse, would have a massive effect on future plot threads.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 4/4

Final Rating: 10/10

Alias 4.5: "Welcome to Liberty Village"

Written by Drew Goddard
Directed by Kevin Hooks

In which Sydney and Vaughn must pose as terrorists attempting to portray an American couple in order to uncover the goals of a Russian insurgency group…


Status Report

Like the previous episode, this particular tale was written by an “Angel” expatriate. Drew Goddard gained something of a reputation while working for Mutant Enemy, since most of his episodes were filled with continuity references, much to the delight of the audience. One might have expected the same now that Goddard is working on “Alias”, but there’s that pesky network mandate to make the episodes more self-contained. As a result, the continuity references are used sparingly, but in each case, it gives the episode added punch.

Even before the episode aired, there was something of a backlash against it. Many fans had already lost patience with the dearth of ongoing plot threads (character threads don’t seem to count in this argument), so trotting out an episode that looks like a retread of the an episode from the sixth season of “X-Files” (“Arcadia”) was perhaps the wrong move. It’s hard to tell if this was an intentional starting point, or if the network promotional team decided to play up the common elements in some bizarre attempt to get the attention of X-Philes. If it was intentional, then it certainly got their attention. Unfavorable attention, that is!

It’s entirely possible, however, that the similarities were less homage/rip-off and more coincidental. The idea of Russians creating a faux-suburb and training their intelligence personnel to act like Americans is hardly new. The concept appeared in several films during the Cold War, and it was at least partially based in historical concerns about the methods used to develop sleeper cells on American soil. In the modern age of terrorism, such methods are in play, and so it’s not a stretch to think that the writers would have wanted to tap into that. (Interestingly enough, none of the fans of that 1980s John Travolta film are accusing the writers of ripping that off!)

Ultimately the premise of the false-suburban setting is meant to facilitate the advancement of two other plot threads: the evolution of the relationship between Sydney and Vaughn and the ever-expanding legacy of Irina Derevko. The first angle seems to be the natural next step in the relationship, coming out of Vaughn’s confessions in “Ice” and Sydney’s subsequent desire to take things to the next level. The second plot thread was somewhat unexpected, even though it confirms that the writers are slowly but surely building up a season arc, just not as obviously as the fans are accustomed.

Even without the help of German authorities, it’s likely that Sydney and Vaughn would have tipped off the terrorists sooner rather than later. The two of them are so conflicted that they are having difficulty maintaining cover, and not just because of their intimacy issues. Sydney takes too many chances, banking on the hopes that the terrorists will interpret her actions as simple precautionary measures. Vaughn also seems far too reserved and uncomfortable in his cover role, enough so that the terrorists probably should have worried over his ability to seem natural as an American. How many times did Vaughn have that sour expression, anyway?

The timetable for the operation also seemed a bit too quick. Obviously the terrorists were preparing to mobilize within a relatively short period of time, but an operation like that requires a long-term patience that would seem to exclude new recruits within 48 hours of shipping off to America. One would think that a few weeks, at least, would have been more logical. This accelerated timetable might have been necessary for the purposes of the stand-alone format, but it robbed the “deep cover” aspect of much of its strength, rendering the terrorist operation itself illogical and poorly conceived.

This is only slightly mitigated by the fact that the premise is really an excuse to force Sydney and Vaughn into a “relationship crucible”. The mission itself is almost secondary to the effort of forcing the two characters to make some serious relationship choices. Sydney wants to take things back where they used to be, before everything went to hell in “The Telling”, and Vaughn is still not sure what he wants, since he is still working out his inner demons. Being told to screw like bunnies under such circumstances, especially when every move is being watched by critical eyes, is just plain surreal.

It’s debatable whether or not Garner and Vartan had sufficient chemistry in the first couple of seasons, but at the very least, they were interested in one another on a personal level, and that seemed to shine through. This season, despite the needs of the story, the two can’t seem to pretend to have positive feelings for each other. Or rather, it seems like Garner is trying to make the effort, but Vartan is phoning in the romance. He often looks like he wants to be anywhere but there, and in all fairness, he’s in a terrible position. This is the best gig for him right now, but it forces him to do love scenes with a woman who left him for Ben Affleck. Who would want to be in that position?

This undermines some of the character development, which is a problem for the episode and the series as a whole. JJ Abrams wants the romance to return between Sydney and Vaughn, and the character threads have become more important at this stage of the game. The lack of chemistry is distracting, to say the least, and when the character romance is supposed to be moving the story forward until the plot threads can sneak under the radar, that’s a big problem.

For all that, the writers try to make it work out, using the events of the third season to play on the distance between Garner and Vartan. This is where Drew Goddard gets to work a little of the continuity magic. When Vaughn starts describing his “proposal” in Santa Barbara, the same intensity that informed his confession in the previous episode reappears. It’s a great moment, because Sydney begins to understand the depth of Vaughn’s emotional scarring. Sydney never gave Vaughn a moment of compassion for marrying Lauren, but now she can’t help but realize that her attitude was entirely self-serving. Unfortunately, this important character moment doesn’t get enough time to play out.

Beyond the relationship issues, the writers openly address the fact that Sydney and Vaughn have fallen into familiar patterns. The mission is all about pretending to be a normal American couple. One could interpret their tentativeness to the relationship issues or an attempt to look like they’re working at the assignment. But at the beginning of the episode, the truth is revealed: Sydney and Vaughn can’t act like a normal American couple simply because they don’t remember what it’s like to live a normal life. The loss is deeper than the distance between the two of them; both of them have become isolated from the rest of the world.

Far more interesting was the parallel element with Jack and the small matter of Irina’s book collection. This is one of those completely unexpected continuity references that hits like a lead brick. Who expected that those books would ever play a part again? Well, not only do they play a part in getting Sydney and Vaughn out of Liberty Village alive (or so one is left to surmise), but they lead directly into one of the sneaky plot threads developing in the background.

The legacy of Irina Deverko is a major part of the season thus far. One could argue that the entire third season was about her true endgame, especially since the evidence points to Irina as the secret head of the Covenant. That would have been in keeping with the fact that most of the people in her previous organization ultimately wound up working for the Covenant (and for that matter, her previous organization never had a name, so it could have simply been revealed in that fashion).

With Irina dead, the Covenant seems to have dissolved, spinning out a number of new and exciting terrorists with various aims and goals. But someone is out there gathering up some of Irina’s old operatives. In particular, someone is looking for Irina’s sister Elena, who used to go under the codename of “Sentinel”. Considering the fact that Irina’s other sister, Katya, was running errands in the third season for some unknown purpose, it seems like the Derevko family isn’t done with the old business at all.

This suggests a number of things, not the least of which is the possibility that Irina is still alive out there. But even if she’s not, it’s entirely possible that Katya is running the Covenant now, or whatever replaced that organization, and she’s trying to gather the resources to make a play for whatever Rambaldi device Sloane and Nadia found after “Resurrection”. Jack and Sloane discuss Elena as though her possible re-activation confirms a shared suspicion, and that means they’ve had something up their sleeve for a little while now. Considering how much they hate each other, it has to be something substantial for the two of them to agree.

This is the real mystery of the episode, especially since it suggests that the lingering plot threads from the second and third season might finally be addressed in the near future. It also suggests that there may have been more to the documents Sydney found at Wittenberg after all, since Jack is running some kind of secret agenda with Sloane. And then there’s the question of Sloane’s motivations, which remain suspect at best. In a couple of very short scenes, the writers add enough intrigue to supply the rest of the season with long-term implications.

If this season is going to evolve into a true course correction, bringing the series back to the quality of the first and second season, the Derevko legacy must be fully realized and explained in sufficient detail. An interesting angle would be to have Jack, rather than Sydney, conduct an ongoing investigation into the Elena situation, using Sydney’s missions with the rest of the team as a pretext to uncovering vital clues. It would crate a necessary tension between Sydney, Jack, and presumably Nadia, and that would serve to expand on Sloane’s true purpose as well. This would allow the network to get what they want (Sydney on a different mission every week) while also serving the best interests of the series.

Understandably, the writers want to establish the current status quo in the first third of the season, so one would expect that the plot will kick into high gear around the end of the February sweeps period. Character work is very important, but the first and second season accomplished similar goals while also maintaining a strong sense of pacing. Future episodes should balance the need for character development with the expectation of unexpected plot twists and plenty of intrigue. This episode failed to capture that balance, and it suffered as a result.

Weiss, Nadia, and Dixon got very little screen time, which is another problem with the episode. The best episodes take advantage of the entire cast, giving everyone a moment to shine in their respective part of the story. With so much emphasis on Sydney and Vaughn, to the detriment of even the Jack/Sloane plot thread, the other characters were sidelined. Weiss and Nadia are used simply as a quick foil for Sydney and Vaughn at the beginning, and Dixon is essentially used for exposition again. Marshall gets more to do, including some wonderful scenes with Jack, but it doesn’t make up for the lack of variety.

Abrams did the right thing by assigning the former “Angel” writers to the early part of the season, since they have experience with making mostly stand-alone episodes fit into a larger framework. Still, it’s unrealistic to think that they would be able to make the shift in focus work every single week. Goddard does his best to give the story relevance, but it doesn’t quite come together, thanks to the lack of balance between plot threads.

It feels like the writing staff sat down and blocked out the first several episodes with index cards, and this was the episode where the writers decided they would have Sydney and Vaughn would address their relationship issues. The previous episodes of the season also seem to have been focused on a single purpose: introduce the new status quo, reveal the truth about Jack’s secret, have Jack fool Nadia regarding Irina’s death, have Vaughn come to terms with killing Lauren, have Sydney and Vaughn address their relationship. Each topic addresses something that was left hanging after the third season, more or less, so it makes one wonder how far out into the future the index cards go. Hopefully, the writers will eventually approach the season a bit more organically as plot threads develop, so that the previous level of sophistication can make a comeback.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode wasn’t quite as balanced as the last few episodes have been, focusing far too much on Sydney and Vaughn’s troubled relationship, to the detriment of the rest of the cast. There’s a rather intriguing subplot regarding Irina’s ongoing legacy, but it’s buried by the disappointing and somewhat illogical main plot. Garner and Vartan’s personal chemistry issues creep into the action, something that ultimately weakens the episode as a whole.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 6/10

Season Average (as of 4.5): 7.4

X-Files 4.19: "Synchrony""

Written by Howard Gordon and David Greenwalt
Directed by Jim Charleston

In which Mulder and Scully investigate the unusual and seemingly foretold death of a scientist, only to find that the old man connected to the case might be from the future…


Status Report

Time travel episodes are, as a rule, a messy proposition. On the one hand, they are an easy way to take the status quo and introduce major changes without long-term consequences, since time travel can lead to an “alternate universe”. Just as often, however, writers find it hard to make the time travel concept work within a scientific basis, and when they can, the resulting dump of exposition is almost impossible to deal with. Shows like “Buffy” can make it work, more or less, but as the Trek franchise has aptly demonstrated, time travel can be a blessing and a curse in the exact same moment.

This particular problem was at the center of the plagued writing snafu that became “Synchrony”. The trials and tribulations surrounding this episode have become something of legend. As the story goes, Howard Gordon (already reeling from a number of lackluster and poorly conceived episodes, even from his point of view) had no idea what to do with his next assigned episode. Chris Carter, perhaps already aware of the issues in the writing staff, pulled David Greenwalt into the mess to help Gordon brainstorm an idea. Several meetings later, they still had no clue what to do.

Gordon read a science article on developing quantum theories of time travel, and from there, the course was set. Unfortunately, quantum physics is a subject that even quantum physicists have difficulty understanding, so taking those concepts and developing them into a one-hour drama had some inherent problems. Considering that Gordon has a reputation for having good ideas but limited ability to translate them into a workable story, it’s not surprising that the script was still being worked over by the entire writing staff, even as the episode was shooting.

Oddly enough, the episode still manages to hang together well enough to make a certain amount of sense, even if the main concept is glossed over in a major way. The episode is also rather important when taken in context with the rest of the mythology, since it is this episode that essentially lends credence to the idea of Purity coming from a point in humanity’s near future. The episode itself speaks to what is best termed a “possible future”, rather than something set in stone. Nichols came back in time and changed how events would play out, but the result is rather clear: his research would be carried on by Lisa and applied in a different context.

The episode doesn’t get into the topic very far, but the Nichols compound (essentially a catalyst for instant cooling) was supposed to be mated with advances in wormhole theory to create “time travel” technology. Of course, this is something of an extreme application of such technology. The same advances would first result in a more mundane example of overcoming the natural boundaries of space-time: faster than light (FTL) travel.

What marks the difference between the conspiracy prior to the end of the series and the period of 2002 through 2012 is the level of available technology. During the time period of the series, experiments in FTL travel are still ongoing. The downside, as seen in episodes like “Deep Throat”, “Max”, and “Dreamland”, is the lack of control over the energy unleashed by manipulation of space-time. There are radiation effects (something apparently unavoidable) and, once those are dealt with, fluctuations in the containment of “warped space-time”, causing unusual properties to emerge in natural matter.

The Nichols compound, as seen in this episode, causes something of a runaway reaction. When active, it cools to the point of rapid cellular cryogenics: people are frozen solid. But when the compound is broken down, it causes rapid and uncontrolled increase in temperature. How a compound could exhibit such properties is problematic at best (especially something so simple as the molecule shown on screen), but the logical conclusion is that a refined version of the compound could be developed to operate within a more useful temperature range.

In the future that Nichols is trying to avoid, the compound is never fully refined, and the use with FTL technology (which, by the physics of space-time, is the same tech that would ultimately allow time travel by wormhole) is limited. Humans inject the compound initially so that they are shielded from the effects of FTL travel, and then must continually dose themselves to avoid the rapid heating that comes as the compound breaks down. Hardly what one would call practical, but apparently good enough for humanity to use regularly, since they have nifty little injectors to carry their lifetime supply.

One would think that Lisa would remember what happened and why, and would therefore take the research into another direction. If the Nichols compound results in rapid, non-destructive cooling of organic matter, then wouldn’t it also be useful as a general coolant, under the right circumstances? The logical conclusion would be that the FTL drives in the UFO vessels used by the conspiracy and the Rebels from 2002 – 2012 would have utilized that technology.

It’s also not a stretch to consider that a larger craft, like the large vessel seen in “Fight the Future”, would need much more of the Nichols compound to operate. The “mothership” was under the ice in Antarctica for hundreds of thousands of years, and there’s no reason to think that the Nichols compound would have broken down under conditions that would keep it at a fairly constant and low temperature. (The necessary stability of the compound, required for something that would have to withstand enormous heat and radiation effects, would suggest a long shelf life.)

As seen in many episodes, the biological activity of the Purity virus is proportional to temperature. Cold temperatures inhibit the progress of the virus. The Nichols compound used to control the FTL drive on the “mothership” would be a natural cryogenic agent for storing those exposed to Purity and “stored” in the remains of the vessel, as seen in “Fight the Future”. This also provides an explanation for Scully’s apparent death and survival; the initial warming would have broken down the compound, and the resulting heat generated would have killed her, except for the fact that she was exposed to the subzero temperatures of Antarctica. The temperatures would have balanced out long enough for the healing technology of her control chip to kick in, thus flushing out her system as though the Nichols compound had never been there.

Having a possible impact on the mythology, however unintentional or speculative that impact might be, doesn’t entirely excuse the weaknesses of the story as a whole. The elder Nichols’ medical use of the compound is never explained, even though it is critical to understanding the final act. For that matter, it’s never made clear how a person uses the time travel technology, only that it’s possible. It’s also rather annoying that the timing and context of Scully’s thesis on relativistic and quantum physics is never addressed; the title doesn’t cover nearly as much ground as the supposed content would suggest.

It’s also interesting that this episode represents one of those moments when Chris Carter let his natural instincts fail him. Like the prospect of a true Mulder/Scully romance, Carter wanted to avoid a story on time travel, citing the difficulties in making it work. And like the Mulder/Scully romance, Carter would have done well to keep avoiding it (at least until someone could do it correctly). The episode is often saved by the incredulous wit of the two agents, as they try to maintain something of a straight face while dealing with a plot that doesn’t seem to come together (perhaps ironically, demonstrating how the two characters best show their affection for one another).

Another example of a major flaw is the depiction of how quickly a person’s temperature rises when the Nichols compound begins to break down. When Dr. Yonechi was revived, it took seconds for his temperature to rise from 106 to hot enough to blister skin from the inside to combustion. That’s a rather large range to cover in seconds, which suggests a massive escalation in heat rate. When Lisa was being revived, however, it took a long time after her temperature hit 106 for her to be placed in the bath, more than the time it took for Yonechi to combust.

For all that, there is an interesting moral to the story (it wouldn’t be a Gordon episode without one). The elder Nichols explains that time travel must be avoided because time travel has allowed humanity to know everything about its past. It’s hard to see how that would be a terrible thing, but it would actually be very damaging. Society rests on the foundation of convenient tradition, and part of that tradition is a version of history that reinforces those traditions. American society requires a certain mythical view of the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. Time travel, as Nichols describes it, would shatter these myths, and the world would be faced with the truth about its heroes and human nature.

But there’s also the small issue of practicality. In the timeline of the mythology, time travel is limited, because it takes certain technology and a desire to alter and control events to make it worth the effort. Subtle changes require very minor incursions throughout the timeline, almost like surgical strikes to history. There’s the natural urge of competing powers (the conspiracy against the “Rebels”, in this case) to counterstrike, and thus something of a “cold war” scenario erupts. It’s more about the possibility of massive changes to the timeline, not the actual tweaking of events. That makes the application that the elder Nichols mentions far less likely.

When all is said and done, this isn’t the worst episode of the series, or even the worst episode of the season. It’s simply sloppy, and as a result, it represents the unfortunate waste of a concept that could have been put to better use. Instead, it was another underwhelming episode for Howard Gordon, who openly admits that this was a disaster of a script-writing process. Taken from that perspective, it’s actually impressive that the final product was more coherent than some of the more polished episodes that come to mind!


Memorable Quotes

MULDER: “He goes on to tell a pretty convincing narrative and to give a rather detailed description of the old man.”
SCULLY: “What was he wearing…a long black robe and carrying a scythe?”
MULDER: “Well, not when campus security picked him up…”

MULDER: “The security officer who’s now in the morgue has a body temperature a little south of Frosty the Snowman.”

SCULLY: “If he’d lie for you, what makes you think he wouldn’t lie to you?”

SCULLY: “And if you sister is your aunt and your mother marries your uncle, you’d be your own grandpa.”


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode is something of a mess. Critical plot points are completely missing, leaving only enough dialogue to speak to their absence. While the implications of time travel in this episode are interesting, it’s hard to see how this method is as practical as suggested. Episodes like this are the reason for Gordon’s decidedly mixed reputation as a writer, since once again, a big idea doesn’t translate very well on the page.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 1/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 5/10

24 4.6: "Day 4: 12PM - 1PM"

Written by Matt Michnovetz
Directed by Jon Cassar

In which Jack leads the effort to rescue Heller and Audrey, leading to a revelation about the next step in the terrorist plot, while the terrorists themselves make sacrifices to achieve victory…


Status Report

After three transitional episodes that seemed to be marking time, rather than developing the various plot threads, the writers finally drop a huge bomb on the audience. This episode starts with a magnificent action set piece that literally takes place over the course of an entire extended act, something that is rarely done with this series and was definitely appreciated. The tension and pacing barely let up as the hour wore down, even after a couple of predictable plot elements crept into the mix.

At the end of the previous episode, Jack was given a ten minute deadline, for all intent purposes. Even though ordered not to act alone, Jack takes the opportunity to display his combat skill. While the Rambo-esque action takes place, President Keeler refuses to call off the missile strike, which leaves Driscoll in the unfortunate position of supporting Jack’s actions without a clue.

The one-man assault on the compound seems rather easy at first, despite all the gunplay, until Jack manages to get Heller out of his show trial. After a couple of token scenes with William Devane desperately trying to look like he knows which end of the gun to point at the enemy, the sequence kicks into overdrive. As good as the scoring is in this scene, the producers wisely dial back the music to bring a certain hyper-reality to the constant barrage of bullets.

In a nice writing move, Jack is actually hit, even if it’s only a shot to his Kevlar vest. Instead of having him ignore the effects, Jack is actually sent onto his back, stunned for a few moments as he tries to overcome the pain. His recovery is still rather quick, but it’s better than having him barely flinch. Once the assault helicopters arrive, the scene feels less like television and more like a feature film, complete with the final showdown as Omar takes Audrey hostage.

The reactions in this situation are consistent with the characterization to this point. Heller immediately drops his gun, unwilling to place Audrey’s life in jeopardy. Jack knows better, but he’s not sure when to make his play. Audrey, on the other hand, displays her resolve, gutting Omar when it’s clear there’s nothing left to lose. In a flash of a throwing knife and several sniper rounds, Omar is dust.

The fallout is covered just as quickly. Jack tries to play it straight with Audrey, but Heller’s not a complete fool, and he notices the dynamic immediately. One could wonder why Heller hadn’t seen it before, but it’s not hard to understand. In that moment, Heller is almost entirely focused on Audrey and her well-being. He would perceive the kinds of minor things that normally wouldn’t rise to importance in his mind.

Of course, things get complicated when Audrey’s husband arrives at CTU, eager to be reunited with his wife. It wouldn’t be “24” without the soap opera elements, and in this case, it puts Jack in a terribly awkward position. He wants to be with Audrey, but there are issues with his working relationship with Heller and Audrey’s progress towards divorce. Dealing with all of that in the aftermath of a hostage rescue operation is hard for him to reconcile. This is exactly the kind of thing he never wanted to do again, and now, he has to deal with a pining husband who wants reconciliation with the woman he’s trying to protect for life.

Meanwhile, the writers begin to trigger some of the lingering plot threads from the first couple hours of the season. While the full revelation is left to the end of the episode, Marianne’s true colors are strongly hinted when she tells Driscoll that she has stolen FBI access codes that they can use. This is revealing for two reasons. First, it instantly explains how the terrorists knew about Andrew, since Marianne was obviously in possession of the codes, allowing the terrorists to covertly monitor FBI information. Second, it further demonstrates just how hypocritical Driscoll can be, since she should have viewed Marianne’s possession of the codes as a serious breach of security. Either Driscoll’s another mole, or she’s too stupid to live.

As expected, the trial was not the true objective, but the detailed nature of the terrorist plan is still clever and exciting (at least, from a dramatic point of view). It makes sense that Navi would keep the truth from Behrooz, especially since he seemed to have reservations about his son from the very beginning. When Tariq shows up, the implication is rather obvious. It’s a credit to the writers that they maintained a very consistent characterization for Navi, so that this decision does not come across as capricious. He holds everyone equally accountable, and his patience for Behrooz’s flirtation with Western culture was already wearing mighty thin. That said, the audience doesn’t want to believe the implication, which only makes it better.

It’s to Heller’s credit that he doesn’t get angry about the relationship between Audrey and Jack. It’s hard to dislike the guy who risked everything to save him and his daughter! But Heller is also very practical, and knows that Paul isn’t ready to let go. Heller has already demonstrated a direct and upfront manner of solving problems, and in this case, that means telling Audrey to settle accounts with Paul as soon as possible.

The plot moves right along once Curtis, one of the few CTU agents developing an actual personality, discovers amongst the items at the terrorist compound the remains of the briefcase stolen by the terrorists in the premiere. It’s clearly marked with the logo of a defense contractor, which is never a good sign. The stonewalling is little more than a tactic to drag out the reveal until the end of the episode, but it also gives the viewers time to put the pieces together.

Dina returns home to discover that her son is about to be killed, and as one would expect, her reaction is far from stoic. Another name is tossed out, Marwan, and perhaps this is the name of the terrorist leader. At this point, it hardly matters, since it’s made very clear that the terrorists are hardly a small operation. Over the space of several years, they’ve created a massive network, probably going back to the “Second Wave” operations in the second season. Such a group would have no problem killing a young boy who threatens the cause, but the real question is whether Dina will remain loyal, now that her son is a victim.

As is often the case with incompetent leadership, Driscoll is more than happy to take credit for something she had no part in, and she challenges Jack to dispute Heller’s interpretation of events. In another display of bad management skill, she asks Jack to take over as head of FieldOps until the crisis is over, giving Jack official sanction for activities he would have done anyway. This is bad for Driscoll on two levels. First, it gives all of the people supporting Jack confirmation that Driscoll was wrong. Second, it tells all of the people supporting Driscoll that insubordinate behavior is rewarded after the fact. The result will likely be more division and bad morale all around.

Before the issue can linger too much longer, the writers remind the audience that Richard, Heller’s son, is still in custody. Once again pointing out how well the seeds were planted for the next phase of the terrorist operation, it’s made very clear that Richard is aware of something unusual, something apparently related to the protest he was invited to attend at a nearby nuclear facility.

In previous episodes, the writers took care to demonstrate how both sides of the conflict use similar tactics to achieve victory. That symmetry is maintained in this episode, though not perfectly. Heller makes the choice to subject his son to non-invasive torture to get information, all in the name of getting whatever information he’s holding that might be of value. This is akin to Navi’s decision to sacrifice his son for the cause. Both decisions are brutal, but it’s all too easy to understand Heller’s point of view. That well-crafted moral dilemma adds to the tension.

Audrey’s talk with Paul provides a nice breather, even if the plot element promises to be annoying. Paul isn’t the most observant man in the world, or he would have noticed how Jack looks and talks to Audrey. Perhaps the most amusing part of the conversation takes place once Paul is out the door. Jack keeps fiddling with his right hand, which he had just used to shake hands with the husband of the woman he’s sleeping with!

As the episode winds down, the plot becomes somewhat more predictable. One could have easily guessed that Behrooz would manage to overpower Tariq and flee for his life. It’s inevitable that Behrooz will ultimately become important, if only to distract his parents and the terrorist plot overall. It would have been better, perhaps, to have Behrooz simply become another victim, to steal away that avenue of hope.

Around the same time, the defense contractor’s CEO finally gets back to CTU (after Heller apparently gave the OK for the civilian business to submit to a law enforcement division), and seems to be rather pleased with the little device that they created: a remote control for nuclear power plants. The man seems shocked at the idea that the device would be used to create a meltdown, but that would have been prevented by the firewalls around the control software, right? Well, that’s true, unless there’s enough activity on the network to hide the effect of a hack. Activity, say, from a worldwide internet broadcast of a live terrorist execution of the US Secretary of Defense.

The final revelation about Marianne is unfortunately a letdown, or at least, it feels like one. Who couldn’t guess that she was working with the terrorists? Granted, this could be something of a false cliffhanger, since the nuclear plot is supposed to come to fruition within a few hours, and that leaves a lot of time left in the season for the next complication. But for the moment, it fits that Marianne would have the FBI access necessary for the terrorists to know about Andrew’s call to Chloe.

Taken as a whole, the first six episodes are a nice bit of misdirection, even if the middle of the initial arc was less inspired than the overall concept. In retrospect, the intrigues of the Araz family helped make the whole thing work, because without the chilling Dina and the brutal execution of Debbie, the attempt on Behrooz wouldn’t have made sense. Jack’s extra-curricular activities don’t appear to have much meaning to the overall plot, other than to place Driscoll into the position of giving him official credence. And the less said about the CTU drama, the better.

The focus now shifts to preventing the terrorist takeover of the nation’s nuclear power facilities, a nightmare that touches on the public paranoia all too well. Jack is back in the CTU, at least for now, and it ought to be funny to see Driscoll beating her head against that particular wall. For now, it seems as though Jack and Heller are on the same page (Heller could be Jack’s future self, lack of weapons skill notwithstanding), but will that continue? And what happens when Jack needs to override Driscoll’s floundering, and she pulls the President into the equation again?

The net effect of this episode is a rapid gain in narrative momentum. This is the kind of pacing that the series should have had since the beginning. It’s not that the episodes since the internet broadcast shouldn’t have happened; rather, the plot threads could have been developed more effectively. It’s episodes like this one that grab the audience and get them excited to watch the series, and while not every hour can be so kinetic, the intervening transitional episodes can and should be as frantically paced. With the writers backed up against the wall, one has to wonder if the self-inflicted pressure will lead to the necessary inspiration.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode was a marked improvement over the past three episodes, delivering a solid hour of intense action, intrigue, and quick pacing. A number of plot elements come together in this episode, revealing the true nature of the first plot arc for the season in expert fashion. A couple of the final moments were predictable, but it didn’t take away from the overall excellence. Easily the best episode of the season thus far.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4

Final Rating: 9/10

Season Average (as of 4.6): 7.5

Enterprise 4.11: "Observer Effect"

Written by Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens
Directed by Mike Vejar

In which Trip and Hoshi come down with a lethal infection, forcing Archer and Phlox to find a cure at any cost, all while under scrutiny of unknown beings interested in their choices…


Captain’s Log

Like the previous episode, the scope of this episode is relatively small, telling a specific story without the encumbering influence of long-term plot arcs. Unlike the previous episode, however, this is a story very much in keeping with the “prequel” mantra that Manny Coto has been operating under since the beginning of the season. In essence, this ties the Organian presence in the original series episode “Errand of Mercy” to an earlier event.

The writers are careful not to go too far. After all, in the original series, the Organians were more or less content to observe the universe in a passive sense, and only became involved when the Federation/Klingon hostilities were becoming a nuisance. Even then, it’s hard to understand what the Organians were hoping to accomplish; the treaty they fostered lasted months, at best, and they never interfered in the progress of future galactic intrigue.

The Organians were essentially an expression of an oft-mentioned philosophy held by Gene Roddenberry. Roddenberry felt that humans would evolve past the need for internal conflict in the future, acting as one voice, and that the influence of the Organians was a sign that humans would be spreading, one way or another, this philosophy to the stars. It’s a rather nice sentiment, but in terms of drama, it’s incredibly stifling. It’s not at all surprising that the Organians disappeared once their high-handed purpose was fulfilled.

So the obvious question would be: how does one incorporate the Organians into the “prequel” concept without repeating the same basic plot structure used for “Errand of Mercy”? The answer is relatively simple yet clever. The writers explore how the concept of observance changed within the Organian culture. Rather than leave them as benevolent passive observers, as they are in the original series, the writers show them as somewhat more ambivalent in the morality of their calling. In true Trek fashion, it’s interaction with Humans that prompts a more peaceful shift in Organian methods, in keeping with the ideals of the Roddenberry philosophy.

This being the Coto era of “Enterprise”, the thin plot is actually an excuse for some interesting character development. A lot of time is spent focusing on Trip and Hoshi, which in Hoshi’s case is probably about twice as much development as she’s received before this episode. The writers have a keen sense of Hoshi’s psychology, as far as it can be determined from earlier hints and allegations. Hoshi deserves this kind of attention, especially since her inner resolve was a highlight of the end of the third season. As it turns out, not surprisingly, this fierce streak has been present all along. It was only buried under the intensity of her discomfort in space.

In a nice twist, the Organians take over the bodies of crew members from the very beginning, and it gives the tone of the episode a sinister edge. One of the best aspects of the story is the fact that the audience is always aware of which characters are under Organian control. That makes the plot very easy to follow while giving added complexity to the various crew interactions. Not to mention, of course, the disturbing concept of “the stranger behind the eyes of a friend”, which is always creepy!

As such, the Organians get to observe the actions of Phlox and Archer as they struggle to save Trip and Hoshi. The Organians seem to be vaguely interested in how Trip and Hoshi respond to their fate, but far more intrigued by how the rest of the crew handles the situation. If this episode is any evidence, the Organians are shocked by the Human reaction. It seems hard to believe that no other species would go so far to find a cure, or that Archer’s decisions would somehow prompt one of the Organians to questions their methods.

After all, it’s never quite clear what it is that makes the current situation on “Enterprise” unique. It’s implied that there are typically two outcomes: the infected are killed or otherwise isolated until dead, or the entire crew gets infected and everyone dies. Whatever the case may be, it seems that even in cases where only the infected die, the survivors don’t give a damn about anyone else, since not one surviving ship left a warning beacon. (Either that, or the Organians conveniently drop kicked any beacons into the nearest black hole.)

The Organians seem shocked that the crew of Enterprise managed to take things as far as they did, and that Archer would willingly expose himself on the hopes of saving Hoshi. Again, why would no other species be willing to sacrifice themselves like that, and how is it really different than risking the lives of the entire crew? What made Humans so special to the Organians in this case?

There’s enough of an underlying impression of an answer, if not a definitive one, to make the episode work. This is an example of an episode with flaws that manages to rise above the errors. For instance, the entire Organian plan hinges on secrecy, and yet, they fail to recognize that they can be easily observed when they inhabit Trip and Hoshi. One could argue that they had no idea that Trip and Hoshi were supposed to be under sedation, but that doesn’t quite ring true.

That doesn’t change the fact that this is an example of a strong stand-alone episode, easily on par with some of the best episodes of the first and second seasons. Like many of those episodes, excellent or not, there’s not much else going for it. The hour itself is intriguing from the beginning and definitely worth the time, but it’s hard to pin down something that would be a selling point for those not already interested in the series. There’s nothing that a casual viewer hasn’t seen on other incarnations of Trek, at least in tone and overall concept, so this is ultimately an example of preaching to the choir.

If the entire episode is geared towards the long-term Trek fan, which it arguably is, then are the Organians the only connection that the writers were trying to convey? There’s the fairly obvious question of the Prime Directive, and how the Organians use their version of the concept to further their own goals. The Organians believe in complete non-interference, but in the name of gathering details on corporeal beings, they have fallen into the trap that the title suggests: as with quantum physics, the very act of observation has a profound effect on the object being observed.

The concept of the Prime Directive, however, is not the only thing that comes into play. The Organians in question are actually playing out a real-world version of the Kobiyashi Maru Test. Unlike the cadets in Starfleet Academy, however, the crew of Enterprise has no idea that it is being observed and evaluated. The Organians are using a real-world “no win scenario” to see how Humans react to the fact that someone, regardless of whatever action is taken, will not survive.

There are also some subtle nods to continuity. The plot might be standard Trek, but the characters are all consistent with the development they were given since the beginning of the third season. In particular, T’Pol seems more like a typical Vulcan than ever, especially when facing the possibility of Trip’s death. If the producers actually stepped in to make sure that Jolene Blalock actually reined in her emotional lapses, then that decision is beginning to pay off. The difference is noticeable, even without any cues in the script to remind the audience what happened in “Kir’Shara”.

In another interesting move, the writers take the thin plot and use some nice layering and structural flair to give it additional depth. Nearly every scene is structured so that someone is observing the action, either in person or through some kind of monitor. This adds to the paranoia created by the constant “jumping” of the Organians, placing the action into a more isolated space.

This episode ultimately begs the question: were the last two episodes a good idea? The series is obviously struggling, and in terms of gaining some sense of momentum, the “Vulcan Arc” was one of the best stories in the series’ run to date. Why derail that momentum by coming out of a long holiday hiatus with two fairly lackluster episodes? This episode is strong from a storytelling point of view, but it’s not very exciting, especially for those fans just coming back for the “prequel arcs” that dominated the fall.

Clearly, the producers wanted to keep the next couple of arcs to cover the February sweeps period, while also avoiding a massive hiatus, which would have occurred without new episodes in January. But was it necessary to have such simple, quiet episodes, when the series is in serious need? Why not write a two-episode arc for January, covering some of the character development necessary for the second half of the season? The same topics could have been melded together rather easily (given the trip into unusual space in “Daedalus”), and it would have given the more casual viewers a sense of forward motion, rather than stalling on the way to first gear.

It might seem unfair to attach so much importance to an episode that, after all, works on its own merits, but this is also a time of great worry for Trek and “Enterprise” fans. There have been many indications that the series will be cancelled at the end of the season, and as a result, the ratings are under great scrutiny. Any little bump helps, and every slight decrease is a major roadblock. The series needs to keep trying to find a wider audience, and sadly, this episode is not going to supply that. Had this episode aired in the second season, when the writers were resting on their laurels, the impression left by the episode might well have been different.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode takes a rather simple idea and communicates it in a clever and intriguing manner. The constant theme of observation, in terms of both the alien presence and the crew, ties the entire concept together. Add to that some classic Trek commentary on non-interference and the “no win scenario”, and this is one of the best stand-alone episodes of the series.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Season Average (as of 4.11): 7.3

Alias 4.4: "Ice"

Written by Jeffrey Bell
Directed by Jeffrey Bell

In which Vaughn is forced to deal with his inner demons regarding Lauren when a mission requires him to make a connection with a woman with a dangerous past…


Status Report

This is the first episode featuring the talents of one of the expatriated writers from “Angel”, and the result is a character-based episode with just enough action to stay within the expectations of the audience. Some fans might not like the emphasis on character exploration this early in the season, but after a year devoted to plot excess, this is the direction the series needed to take. If the previous episode used a wide concept of “truth” to place each character in context, then this is a very narrow look at Vaughn and his mental state post-Lauren.

Hopefully, this is going to be an early trend. While the focus of the series has always been Sydney, the seasons have been dominated by her relationships with those in her world. The first episode of the season was mostly about her coming to terms with the changes in her universe, or rather, the complete lack of change. The previous episode pertained largely to her father, and how his continued reliance on deception continues to poison their relationship.

The next order of business must necessarily be Vaughn, especially now that Sydney doesn’t have to feel guilty for wanting him. That doesn’t mean that Vaughn is ready to move on quite so easily, of course, so the theme of this episode is forgiveness. Vaughn is still struggling to regain some sense of moral order, and one very good question is whether or not he can do his job while wearing sackcloth and dining on ashes.

The writers don’t make it simple. Everyone wants to have faith in Vaughn, especially since their job requires a certain amount of underlying dependence. They might not always get along, but in the field, none of them can worry about the ulterior motives of their boss or the emotional state of their partner. When the mission is on, everything else is secondary.

Except Vaughn is too eager to find forgiveness for his own actions to adequately gauge his ability to turn Kiera, and she’s an expert at hiding her true emotions. There’s no lack of warmth and honesty in her expression, even after he begins to show her the truth. But she’s also a creature of terrible duty, as her scenes with Sydney communicate very well. Kiera is damned good at compartmentalizing her emotions, and in his tormented state, Vaughn doesn’t catch it, even when he intellectually knows that she’s very loyal to her brother.

Placing so much focus on one mission and a handful of one-time characters is something of a change of pace for “Alias”. The usual pacing was far more kinetic, never stopping in one place for too long, keeping the story driving forward. There’s little doubt that many fans will react negatively to this episode because of the slower pacing, but this is ground that needs to be covered. JJ Abrams understood that, which is why he gathered writers with experience in character exploration.

The slower pacing, however, means that less happens in this episode than one would normally expect. In essence, the team gets a mission, they go on the mission, there’s a complication, Vaughn gets emotionally involved, and the mission is completed. Beyond the subplot about the picture of Irina, there’s precious little else to the episode. It’s mostly about humanizing Kiera so that Vaughn has sufficient psychological reason to open up and vent about killing Lauren.

Sydney is caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to Vaughn. She wants to start over, despite the occasional protest to the contrary, and they’ve already taken the first steps on that path. But Vaughn isn’t quite ready to move on from his marriage. Sydney doesn’t want to push, because she’s rightfully concerned that moving too fast and too soon could drive Vaughn in the opposite direction. Her need for some kind of emotional grounding, however, is making it hard for her to exercise patience.

One thing that the writers failed to capitalize on at the end of the third season was the parallel between Jack and Vaughn. Even though the topic was addressed, Vaughn never went as far as Jack would have, given the chance to do it all over again. This episode goes a long way towards giving Vaughn the dark journey that he should have had from the moment that Lauren’s deception was revealed. It would have been better had the writers actually shown the depths of Vaughn’s dark side, but as it stands the message is delivered.

For Jack’s part, he seems to have little or no patience for Vaughn’s hand-wringing. Perhaps it’s because Jack sees too much of his own moral breakdown following Irina’s deception, and he doesn’t like to think that he might have made different choices. Somehow, it’s hard to think of Jack as the introspective type, though. Whatever the case, from Jack’s perspective, Vaughn’s situation was rather simple.

It’s more complicated for Jack to logically punish Nadia for having the least moral parents on the planet, and he is starting to understand that his reluctance to discuss his knowledge of Irina is suspect. Still, he seems to be falling into the same trap that Sydney has strung. Neither of them have any reason to trust Nadia, and in fact, there are reasons to be wary of her very presence. They could both fall prey to “what might have been”, if they aren’t careful.

Nadia is operating out of a genuine desire to understand her mother and the family she has never gotten a chance to know, but one has to wonder if she’s hiding her true motivations. Is she beginning to suspect that the events of the previous episode were a cover-up, or is it more of a suspicion that Irina was running around with all kinds of people, having several children in the hopes of bringing about Rambaldi’s grand vision?

After all, Nadia is the only other person, beyond Sloane, who knows the full story about the Rambaldi device. It’s hard to imagine that the nature of Irina’s activities over the past 30+ years would have escaped Nadia, and she was willing to see the quest through to the bitter end, even if it meant dealing with Sloane. Nadia has to have a reason for joining APO beyond working with her family, so what is her expectation? Is she using this association to some personal end?

As usual, Dixon, Marshall, and Weiss have very little to do in this episode. At least Dixon seems a lot happier in the field than he ever was in a suit. It always helps to have variety as a supporting player, and this particular format plays to the need for engaging material. It’s interesting to see Sloane sending the team into a situation where OmniFam is acting out of order; it must be galling for someone else to be using his previous resources for the same faux-legitimate purposes.

As Kiera, Kelly McDonald is a revelation. She more than held her ground; in fact, her role was critical to the success of the episode. Had Kiera’s portrayal been substandard, even by a slim margin, the episode wouldn’t have been convincing. Instead, Kiera’s fractured and manipulative personality shone through, and that gave Michael Vartan exactly what he needed to give a powerful performance of his own. Beyond the acting ability, of course, she’s an incredibly gorgeous woman!

Beyond the character work, the concept of the Ice-5 was damned interesting, if somewhat derivative. Jeff Bell worked on “X-Files”, where a similar concept was used in an episode written by David Greenwalt, one of the original guiding forces of “Angel”. There’s plenty of reason to think that Ice-5 was additionally inspired by “Cat’s Cradle” by Kurt Vonnegut. Whatever the case, it was a concept that worked very well for the episode. The visual itself, especially in the teaser, was worth every penny.

There’s every reason to believe that the character-driven aspect of the season thus far is part of the rebuilding process, rather than an indication of the series’ future as a whole. But if it is what Abrams wants the series to become, that may not be a bad thing. After all, many fans have already said that the restoration of the original character dynamic is too contrived. Wouldn’t adding the same old style and format simply add to that contrivance? A familiar dynamic, mated with a fresh approach, could be what the doctor ordered.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode is a strong example of the new emphasis on character, finally giving Vaughn a chance to express his emotions regarding Lauren and his role in her death. As strong as Vaughn’s character exploration is, the episode wouldn’t work without an equally convincing performance by the guest cast. All around, a much better episode than one would expect under the circumstances.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Season Average (as of 4.4): 7.8