Jack is on the run, as Kane is determined to frame him for the murder of Sloane's wife. Sydney is sent on a mission to retrieve a device for SD-6, and Vaughn invites her out on a date.

You just don't realize how much Weiss has been missed until he puts in an appearance and offers Vaughn some suggestions as to what he should do next to take the next step in his relationship with Sydney. Admittedly he does manage to land him smack in the middle of an ambush, but at least he's trying, and we've not had much insight into what's going through Vaughn's mind for a while simply because of Weiss's absence. We can tell some things from Michael Vartan's facial expressions, but this works far better.

The date itself is great to see, although when they discuss work and have trouble finding another topic of conversation, it appears that however much we might want these people to get together, it's not going to happen unless they show some kind of shared interest aside from destroying a hidden organization pretending to be part of the government. It's also a neat little trick to rip it all away by Vaughn being recognized and both of the pair being in mortal danger. There's some fantastic stuff as they fight their way to safety, both incredibly competent agents, neither needing to provide assistance to the others.

It's a very sad part of the story, as the experience leads both agents to come to the conclusion that their future together is far from assured, and that they don't dare flout the rules again. The moment near the end when the pair almost kiss is beautifully played by both of those involved, even if you really want them to do it after everything they've gone through. Sooner or later, it has to work out, but it doesn't look like it'll be anytime soon.

Before all this, however, we still have the story of Jack. Cleverly playing against expectations, Sloane's call last episode is revealed to be a ruse to save Jack, as the Alliance already knows everything Sloane is doing and saying. It is Sloane that points Jack in the right direction to find the person who is really responsible for what is happening, and it's Kane herself. This is the only part of the episode I found saddening, as I was expecting Faye Dunaway to only have a short run on the show, and it made the most sense for the culprit to be her. It's a shame there was no cleverer method of getting her out of the way. However, it does lead to the shock revelation of who did fake Emily Sloane's death, which ties it all together rather nicely, at least in my mind after a bit of thought, and provides an extra dimension to Sloane, who really does appear to be acting out of love.

Aside from all this, I'm even glossing over Syd's mission, which is great fun; a clever bit of bait and switch, played out perfectly, and with Jennifer Garner having to strip down. Of course, the other thing that's kind of bugging me about the mission is why Dixon and Syd seem to have so much time apart before returning home. It's awfully convenient when Syd needs to get a device duplicated or swapped or whatever by the CIA. Surely someone will rumble to this eventually?

And finally, amidst all of this, we have Irina, who here seems to be working with Jack with no problems at all. She honestly seems to be trying to help, partly for the sake of Sydney, but I still can't get it out of my mind that she's still got something else up her sleeve and is now just waiting for the right time to do what she's been planning all along.

****

Would you like to go to the Alias Season Two guide, head back to the main TV reviews page, read older reviews in the Reviews Archive or return to the front page?