Sydney Bristow could definitely kick my ass

[roxybisquaint]

After much prodding by cj2017, I started watching Alias this weekend. It's so awesome. How did I miss out on this show when it originally aired? Oh yeah... 9/11. We watched nothing but news for like two months after 9/11 and mostly news for several months after that. Regular TV just felt weird so we only tuned in to a few returning favorites that season

Comments

[intrepid01]

The first season was the best with season 2 coming in second, the rest was hit and miss but still good times.

I want to add to your awesome TV chicks list, Nikita from La Femme Nikita, which was pretty much Alias before Alias.
As an Aussie, I have to say Aussie chicks kick ass, there's three on your list and if you like my contribution, that makes four! :)

[roxybisquaint]

I finished season 2 of Alias tonight (and watched the first ep of s3) and I liked s1 a lot more than s2. Season 1 was all cool and stylish and I loved Sydney and Dixon out on missions in disguise and lots of fights. Season 2 largely dropped all that in favor of blander delta force style raids. The story was still interesting enough, though, so it hasn't lost me yet.

I never watched the La Femme Nikita series. I see there's going to be a new one this fall, though. I may give it a try.

[the_narration]

I see there's going to be a new [Nikita series] this fall, though.
Wait, what? *wikis* Holy crap, it's true.

Having enjoyed both the original French film Nikita and the TV series version La Femme Nikita (although they're very different) back in the day, I'm totally going to have to check this out when it airs.

[intrepid01]

The TV series followed the Bridget Fonda film 'Point of No Return,' or as it was called here, 'The Assassin,' which was based loosely on the awesome French film if you didn't already know.

I heard about the remake awhile back, mixed feelings, I really like the Peta Wilson version so I think it might be too soon, but, who knows, it might be good, we'll see.

[trystanknight]

Sydney's brilliant, some of the characters are brilliant, especially Jack.

Just be warned, after season 2 it became apparent the writers literally had no idea what they were doing. I still like the show, but it definitely started having flaws after season 2 and many people did not like the ending. I just want you prepared that the first 21 eps are the best 21 eps.

[roxybisquaint]

I'd heard from everyone before I even started watching the series that only the first 2 seasons were really god and after that it starts going downhill to the point that seasons 4 and 5 aren't really even worth watching. I figure I'll just keep going until it bores me or gets to stupid.

Season 1 was truly awesome even compared to season 2. I've just hit season 3 now, and I have a feeling it's going to start getting really ludicrous (the s3 opener already had me questioning obvious logic flaws in the writing). I'm intrigued by Sydney's 2-year absence, though, so the show hasn't lost me yet.

[trystanknight]

Nice icon BTW...

I kinda liked the S3 opener. Please do keep us apprised of what you think as you go on...

[phantomwriter05]

Yeah ...

I use to watch love Alias, but I haven't seen it in awhile.

Irena's Fuckery and Vaughan's Badassness makes up for the fact that the bristow family are some of the worst spies ever!

LOL!

Seasons two and four the best.

[roxybisquaint]

I've really not been a fan of Vaughn since he became more of an operative. I liked him early on when he was just Sydney's handler and not actually out in the field with her all the time. I figure somewhere along the line network suits decided the show would be better if Vaughn should be out in the field more than Dixon. But I loved the Sydney-Dixon team!

I just entered s3 with Dixon running things and Vaughn's not even CIA anymore. I'm not sure how I liked that yet. Sydney being rogue was kind of fun, but that lasted all of many 20 minutes :P

[cj2017]

Woot for the Alias love and we owe it all to how utterly shite Covert Affairs is (sorry Piper, I did try but life really is too short.) I'd forgotten about the weekly cliff-hangers till I started my own little rewatch. That format kind of dies after S1, I guess it was just too much to try and sustain that kind of pacing.

No Sarah Connor on the list?! No, she's on THE SARAH FUCKING CONNOR list (and she's the only one on it).LOL. I concur. Syd is awesome and she can run in heels and rock a wig, but Sarah Connor is Sarah Connor and there's nothing Syd can do to live up to that. (plus, Sarah also rocked a wig, once

[cj2017]

Found that vid!

http://charmax.livejournal.com/53509.html

As Cat so succinctly said on a quick rewatch "you can always trust the lesbians to get the point; running! in wigs!" ;-)

[roxybisquaint]

That video totally rocked. Thanks for the link :)

[roxybisquaint]

You were so right about Alias being the antidote to Covert Affairs. Covert Affairs isn't great by any means, but it's summer fare and it's fine for that.... well, it was fine for that until I started watching Alias. Now I'm not sure I can go back to Covert Affairs. It'll feel so lame in comparison.

Syd is awesome and she can run in heels and rock a wig, but Sarah Connor is Sarah Connor and there's nothing Syd can do to live up to that. (plus, Sarah also rocked a wig, once...)

Are you still suggesting that's a wig on Sarah in your icon? You're crazy. It's totally not.

I guess the PTB were terrified of her appearing unsympathetic and therefore decided that she couldn't shoot anyone EVER, until the later seasons when they quite plainly didn't give a shit.

It wasn't even later seasons. They went from her barely touching a gun in season 1 to blowing people away nonstop early in season 2. That wasn't quite what I was looking for when I said she should pack a gun! It went from one extreme to the other instead of finding a logical

[bobmacpharson]

Sarah Walker makes the list? Dunno, I guess, but she is so obviously written by and for men, only really getting to act badass if she can be objectified while doing so, that I just can't take her seriously. (We're talking about Chuck, right?)

I like me some Chuck, but strong female role models it has not. (Well, the sister actually kinda counts, but not in a way I'd describe as badass).

[the_narration]

Sadly, I would have to agree. Chuck is fun, but feminist? Not so much.

Ever since Chuck got downloadable kung fu, Sarah has been damsel-in-distressing a lot so he can rescue her. And even before that, she was getting relegated to the Designated Girl Fight a lot. Her feelings seem to change as the plot requires, her priorities are largely defined by the men in her life, and she gets shoved into some really sexually exploitative outfits on a regular basis.

I wish I could like Sarah more, because she does have some badass moments here and there and she's clearly supposed to be thought of as badass, but the writing needs to improve before that can happen.

[roxybisquaint]

If Chuck wasn't still on, Sarah Walker wouldn't make the list; she's not a lasting awesome TV chick. But you guys are way too hard on her! It's a fun current show and I love to watch her kick some ass even if they often stick her in exploitative outfits. If that were to eliminate a character from the list, Sydney wouldn't be on there either.

[the_narration]

I do confess, my standards for action heroines are unusually high. Too many years of seeing endless parades of Faux Action Girls--who'd be purported to be badass but then not be able to actually deliver results when the chips were down--has made me hyper-sensitive to any sort of apparent marginalization of a female character.

(That said, a lot of this is coming from Season 3, where Sarah seemed to be increasingly in peril so Chuck could flash on fighting skills to save her. Sure, she got that one five-on-one fight that time that was awesome, but it seemed to be the exception to the trend.)

I enjoy Chuck, and I'll be sticking around for Season 4, but it's not going to wind up being a show that I still love and rewatch five or ten years down the line. And even right now, while I have some affection for Sarah, I don't think a list of my favorite badass TV chicks would include her. (For the record: Aeryn Sun, Sarah Connor, Kira Nerys, Kirka & Mireille, the Major, Balsa, Toph & Katara.)