"As if weapons-grade anthrax grows on trees."
Oh, Alias. How I wish I had nothing else to do today but watch the end of season four. Which is, as of this morning, only two episodes away. I watched The Descent, and was treated with puzzles aplenty, wonderfully quippy Jack Bristow, and a cliffhanger that made me jump around the room.
Vaughn goes to ask Jack for his blessing before he proposes to Sydney, which is, first of all, stupid, because we learned this season that Vaughn was already going to have proposed to Sydney in Santa Barbara pre-season 3 and the Lauren of Doom, and it's clear from Jack's reaction that Vaughn has never asked Jack for his blessing before. Second of all, Vaughn needs to watch the pilot, where Jack schools down Danny in the way of the Bristows. However, we do get to hear Jack talking in Russian, which is always fun, and the sub-titles tell us he's arguing with someone over payment. When he hangs up the phone, he says, "As if weapons grade anthrax grows on trees."
Jack also gets to deliver the Elena Reveal. Syd: "You think Sophia Vargas is working with Elena Derevko?" Jack: "I think Sophia Vargas is Elena Derevko."
I keep meaning to write about what betrayal means on this show, and how rampant it is. People get betrayed by their mentors, their bosses, their wives, their parents. Often many of these at once. Nadia's reaction to the truth about Sophia started me thinking about that again.
How wonderful it was to see Katya, and to have that exchange between Jack and Syd. Jack: "You want me to talk to your Aunt Katya. . . First you said I would hate the idea, and you're correct. Second, I arrived at the same conclusion myself. We're at a complete impasse here. Time is running out and she's the only Derevko we have." I'm not sure I completely understand the significance of Elena having run the Covenant, especially since the information that Jack was tricked into killing Irina pretty much eclipses the rest of their conversation.
I thought we would never get the flashback to Siena. And honestly, it's not as cruel and awful as Nadia and Sloane made it out to be. Maybe Nadia just doesn't know Sloane all that well, but that's certainly not Sloane at his lowest or his worst. At least he should have threatened Nadia or forced Nadia to get the box instead of just going to get it himself. It was barely manipulative. And, honestly, if they'd shown us the Siena flashback before they showed us Sloane beating a non-believer to death? Maybe then I'd see it as a more pivotal moment. But once they let us see Sloane, blood streaked all over his face, telling Nadia everything is all right? Yeah, a little name calling, some broken glass and a scary fall into a dirty pit doesn't do much for me.
But back to the present, and yellow-tinged Mexico: I think Sloane is playing Elena. I mean, I don't think he's working with her. Despite what I just said about his madness, I feel like he's going to bring down Elena for Nadia's sake. Which is why he told Dixon to get out of there before Elena appeared behind Dixon's back. And why he apologized to Sydney before he stabbed her in the neck with a tranquilizer, because he knew Syd would blow his chance at fooling Elena. I'm really torn, because I want to suspect Sloane, but I'm just not sure he's the bad guy right now. Or, at least, not as bad as Elena.
And then Dixon's jump-around-the-room-inducing hospital-bed whisper: Irina's alive!
Vaughn goes to ask Jack for his blessing before he proposes to Sydney, which is, first of all, stupid, because we learned this season that Vaughn was already going to have proposed to Sydney in Santa Barbara pre-season 3 and the Lauren of Doom, and it's clear from Jack's reaction that Vaughn has never asked Jack for his blessing before. Second of all, Vaughn needs to watch the pilot, where Jack schools down Danny in the way of the Bristows. However, we do get to hear Jack talking in Russian, which is always fun, and the sub-titles tell us he's arguing with someone over payment. When he hangs up the phone, he says, "As if weapons grade anthrax grows on trees."
Jack also gets to deliver the Elena Reveal. Syd: "You think Sophia Vargas is working with Elena Derevko?" Jack: "I think Sophia Vargas is Elena Derevko."
I keep meaning to write about what betrayal means on this show, and how rampant it is. People get betrayed by their mentors, their bosses, their wives, their parents. Often many of these at once. Nadia's reaction to the truth about Sophia started me thinking about that again.
How wonderful it was to see Katya, and to have that exchange between Jack and Syd. Jack: "You want me to talk to your Aunt Katya. . . First you said I would hate the idea, and you're correct. Second, I arrived at the same conclusion myself. We're at a complete impasse here. Time is running out and she's the only Derevko we have." I'm not sure I completely understand the significance of Elena having run the Covenant, especially since the information that Jack was tricked into killing Irina pretty much eclipses the rest of their conversation.
I thought we would never get the flashback to Siena. And honestly, it's not as cruel and awful as Nadia and Sloane made it out to be. Maybe Nadia just doesn't know Sloane all that well, but that's certainly not Sloane at his lowest or his worst. At least he should have threatened Nadia or forced Nadia to get the box instead of just going to get it himself. It was barely manipulative. And, honestly, if they'd shown us the Siena flashback before they showed us Sloane beating a non-believer to death? Maybe then I'd see it as a more pivotal moment. But once they let us see Sloane, blood streaked all over his face, telling Nadia everything is all right? Yeah, a little name calling, some broken glass and a scary fall into a dirty pit doesn't do much for me.
But back to the present, and yellow-tinged Mexico: I think Sloane is playing Elena. I mean, I don't think he's working with her. Despite what I just said about his madness, I feel like he's going to bring down Elena for Nadia's sake. Which is why he told Dixon to get out of there before Elena appeared behind Dixon's back. And why he apologized to Sydney before he stabbed her in the neck with a tranquilizer, because he knew Syd would blow his chance at fooling Elena. I'm really torn, because I want to suspect Sloane, but I'm just not sure he's the bad guy right now. Or, at least, not as bad as Elena.
And then Dixon's jump-around-the-room-inducing hospital-bed whisper: Irina's alive!