Alias 5.3: "The Shed"
Written by Breen Frazier
Directed by Tucker Gates
In which the search for Dean leads Sydney and Grace to a young woman with a remarkably familiar career history, while Sloane hunts down a possible cure for Nadia…
Status Report
Giving the audience a reason to care about a new character, especially one about to serve as a replacement for the lead character, is a tricky business. Quite often, the new character is seen as an intrusion, an interloper. Witness the hue and cry within the “X-Files”, “SG-1”, and even “West Wing” fandoms: when the old guard moves on, in whole or in part, the new guard is less popular than the plague.
Two characters are in the spotlight in this episode, each one effectively stepping into the vacuum created by the changes dropped in the producers’ lap by apparent outside contingencies. Thomas Grace steps into Vaughn’s role, and it’s practically impossible for him to live up to the expectations. For one thing, Balthazar Getty plays the role with a low energy stoicism that seems rather wooden in contrast to Vaughn, and his chemistry with Garner is questionable at best.
However, he’s not supposed to be Vaughn, and that’s what the audience will need to recognize. Clearly, Grace is a character that needs definition, and Getty is trying to portray the character with that vision in mind. It’s just not an easy character to embrace at the moment, because he’s still a cipher. He has a checkered past, apparently, but what that means is still unclear. And it’s his connection to Rachel that’s important, not his chemistry with Jennifer.
This episode is basically a huge introduction for Rachel and why she fits into the “Alias” mold. The writers take the easy way out, in a sense, by having Rachel play the part that Sydney was playing at the beginning of the series. One couldn’t send out a more obvious message: if the series is to continue, Rachel’s character is at the center of the reboot.
It’s almost certain that Rachel Nichols will be lambasted for not immediately communicating the depth and presence that Jennifer presented in the series pilot. That’s not entirely fair, because Rachel as a character doesn’t have the luxury of standing on her own. The audience already saw how the series began with Sydney, and Rachel is her successor. She’ll never be seen as Sydney’s equal, and in a way, the writers made sure that it’s part of the character’s make-up.
Rachel represents Sydney as she might have been, had the truth about SD-6 been revealed much earlier in her career. Rachel is going to have to deal with a learning curve that would get most people killed, and with Sydney rapidly losing her ability to work in the field, Rachel is perfectly positioned to step up to the plate. Tying Rachel to Dean was a smart plot device, because it gives Rachel as much reason to hunt down Dean as Sydney has, making it logical for Sydney to train and develop Rachel as an agent.
The writers also provide Grace with a tenuous reason for taking care of Rachel as a new potential partner by having him feel responsible for putting her in danger. One can see the dynamic already: Sydney wanting to push Rachel so she can get answers about Vaughn, Grace trying to keep Sydney from going too far, Rachel finding the strength to make up her own mind. If the fans give it a chance, it might actually work well, since Rachel Nichols ought to look damn good in Sydney’s old wardrobe, and she’s a capable actress.
As far as the Sloane plot is concerned, it’s about as good as it can be without any references to Rambaldi, the events at the end of the fourth season, or actually seeing Nadia and her condition. This subplot felt more forced than the rest of the episode, largely because it feels like the writers don’t know what to do with Sloane without the Rambaldi context. Sloane needs something to do, and it will probably come around once the new characters are more established.
So the season seems to be coming together as such: Dean’s organization, the one devoted to the whole Prophet Five/Vaughn situation, is like the new SD-6, right down to the pseudo-Rambaldi obsession. Sydney and Grace are like the new Weiss and Vaughn, with Rachel stepping into Sydney role. Sloane will no doubt eventually join Dean’s crusade, ostensibly because the genetic information in the Prophet Five document might help Nadia. In other words, things are falling into a very familiar pattern.
Amy Acker gets to play the bad girl, ala Sark, with full knowledge of the true purpose of Dean’s organization. Peyton is bad to the bone, right down to the cliché smoking habit, but Acker manages to play the role well. Her accent is more suited to the someone dorky Fred on “Angel”, but as her turn as Illyria on the same show demonstrated, she can do sexy and evil with the best of them.
One interesting question: are the producers trying to give Rachel some edge by suggesting that she’s not into men? Peyton seems to hint at that, saying that they don’t have the same taste. Sure, it’s just speculation, but it would be a quick and easy way to eliminate the cliché of the two new agents being interested in one another. It’s also a somewhat obvious ploy.
The question is whether or not the producers intend to continue the series past this season, should the network decide that the low ratings are still acceptable. If so, then the writers need to give Rachel a background with the depth and intrigue that came along with Sydney in the pilot. If they don’t do that, then the series won’t be able to survive Sydney’s absence, since the majority of the character conflict center on Sydney. Right now, the writers have time to do that, but the question is whether or not the network will make it worth the effort.
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode is an incremental improvement over the first two episodes of the season, even if the writers are using an overly familiar plot structure to make the new characters relevant. Rachel should prove to be interesting, but with the Sloane subplot going nowhere, the real question is whether or not the writers intend to tred new ground or use the new dynamic to bring the series to a close.
Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 7/10
Directed by Tucker Gates
In which the search for Dean leads Sydney and Grace to a young woman with a remarkably familiar career history, while Sloane hunts down a possible cure for Nadia…
Status Report
Giving the audience a reason to care about a new character, especially one about to serve as a replacement for the lead character, is a tricky business. Quite often, the new character is seen as an intrusion, an interloper. Witness the hue and cry within the “X-Files”, “SG-1”, and even “West Wing” fandoms: when the old guard moves on, in whole or in part, the new guard is less popular than the plague.
Two characters are in the spotlight in this episode, each one effectively stepping into the vacuum created by the changes dropped in the producers’ lap by apparent outside contingencies. Thomas Grace steps into Vaughn’s role, and it’s practically impossible for him to live up to the expectations. For one thing, Balthazar Getty plays the role with a low energy stoicism that seems rather wooden in contrast to Vaughn, and his chemistry with Garner is questionable at best.
However, he’s not supposed to be Vaughn, and that’s what the audience will need to recognize. Clearly, Grace is a character that needs definition, and Getty is trying to portray the character with that vision in mind. It’s just not an easy character to embrace at the moment, because he’s still a cipher. He has a checkered past, apparently, but what that means is still unclear. And it’s his connection to Rachel that’s important, not his chemistry with Jennifer.
This episode is basically a huge introduction for Rachel and why she fits into the “Alias” mold. The writers take the easy way out, in a sense, by having Rachel play the part that Sydney was playing at the beginning of the series. One couldn’t send out a more obvious message: if the series is to continue, Rachel’s character is at the center of the reboot.
It’s almost certain that Rachel Nichols will be lambasted for not immediately communicating the depth and presence that Jennifer presented in the series pilot. That’s not entirely fair, because Rachel as a character doesn’t have the luxury of standing on her own. The audience already saw how the series began with Sydney, and Rachel is her successor. She’ll never be seen as Sydney’s equal, and in a way, the writers made sure that it’s part of the character’s make-up.
Rachel represents Sydney as she might have been, had the truth about SD-6 been revealed much earlier in her career. Rachel is going to have to deal with a learning curve that would get most people killed, and with Sydney rapidly losing her ability to work in the field, Rachel is perfectly positioned to step up to the plate. Tying Rachel to Dean was a smart plot device, because it gives Rachel as much reason to hunt down Dean as Sydney has, making it logical for Sydney to train and develop Rachel as an agent.
The writers also provide Grace with a tenuous reason for taking care of Rachel as a new potential partner by having him feel responsible for putting her in danger. One can see the dynamic already: Sydney wanting to push Rachel so she can get answers about Vaughn, Grace trying to keep Sydney from going too far, Rachel finding the strength to make up her own mind. If the fans give it a chance, it might actually work well, since Rachel Nichols ought to look damn good in Sydney’s old wardrobe, and she’s a capable actress.
As far as the Sloane plot is concerned, it’s about as good as it can be without any references to Rambaldi, the events at the end of the fourth season, or actually seeing Nadia and her condition. This subplot felt more forced than the rest of the episode, largely because it feels like the writers don’t know what to do with Sloane without the Rambaldi context. Sloane needs something to do, and it will probably come around once the new characters are more established.
So the season seems to be coming together as such: Dean’s organization, the one devoted to the whole Prophet Five/Vaughn situation, is like the new SD-6, right down to the pseudo-Rambaldi obsession. Sydney and Grace are like the new Weiss and Vaughn, with Rachel stepping into Sydney role. Sloane will no doubt eventually join Dean’s crusade, ostensibly because the genetic information in the Prophet Five document might help Nadia. In other words, things are falling into a very familiar pattern.
Amy Acker gets to play the bad girl, ala Sark, with full knowledge of the true purpose of Dean’s organization. Peyton is bad to the bone, right down to the cliché smoking habit, but Acker manages to play the role well. Her accent is more suited to the someone dorky Fred on “Angel”, but as her turn as Illyria on the same show demonstrated, she can do sexy and evil with the best of them.
One interesting question: are the producers trying to give Rachel some edge by suggesting that she’s not into men? Peyton seems to hint at that, saying that they don’t have the same taste. Sure, it’s just speculation, but it would be a quick and easy way to eliminate the cliché of the two new agents being interested in one another. It’s also a somewhat obvious ploy.
The question is whether or not the producers intend to continue the series past this season, should the network decide that the low ratings are still acceptable. If so, then the writers need to give Rachel a background with the depth and intrigue that came along with Sydney in the pilot. If they don’t do that, then the series won’t be able to survive Sydney’s absence, since the majority of the character conflict center on Sydney. Right now, the writers have time to do that, but the question is whether or not the network will make it worth the effort.
Final Analysis
Overall, this episode is an incremental improvement over the first two episodes of the season, even if the writers are using an overly familiar plot structure to make the new characters relevant. Rachel should prove to be interesting, but with the Sloane subplot going nowhere, the real question is whether or not the writers intend to tred new ground or use the new dynamic to bring the series to a close.
Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4
Final Rating: 7/10
posted by John Keegan | 16:51
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