ALIAS – 4TH Season – Episode 8
ECHOES
“So are a lot of people.”

I must say JJ is not disappointing me this season. Another barnburner with action coming fast and furious. This time we get to see bad guy, SARK, and bad girl, ANNA ESPINOSA back in an episode together—separate missions, but same episode. It was wonderful to have them both back.

The show opens with Nadia and Sydney talking about the ‘date’ Nadia went with Eric. She tells Sydney how gallant he was. He makes her laugh. I am not sure she’s ‘in love’ with him, but she really likes him. Then we see Vaughn and Weiss talking about Nadia. Weiss is certainly showing all the signs of someone who is lovesick. Vaughn warns him to go slow because he remembers the last time Weiss was involved and got dumped. He began to go weird, building ships in a bottle…many, many of them. All four are now in APO.

At the briefing room, Sloane tells them they are going out on a mission and that he is, because of his agreement with the CIA, recusing himself. He turns the mission over to Jack, who will be charge. Jack tells them that Anna Espinosa is alive and working for another group. London intercepted some chatter about a dead drop meet.

“She’s supposed to be dead,” says Sydney.
“So are a lot of people,” answers Jack enigmatically.

Marshall serves up a report on Anna to the group, including the fact she is a member of a group called the Manifique Order of Rambaldi. At that moment, Nadia gets up a leaves the room. He goes on to say she was six and a half years on the most wanted list. She now has gone private for hire. She has a meet with someone in Brussels in 36 hours. Jack tells Sydney that she will go as an observer, but that if the chance comes to take Anna she can do so in a category force that will remain classified. (Dead is what he means)

Later Sydney asks Nadia what was wrong. Nadia says she was just light-headed. Sydney suggests lunch and there, she tells Nadia about Anna and the times they met in ‘battle’. Nadia relates the terrible hallucinations she had when connected with the Rambaldi…and the awful thing she saw in the dream.

“—that you and I faced each other with guns drawn. My hands were shaking, but I fired and you were hit—blood ran down your chest. I wanted to say I’m sorry, but you just looked at me as if you were expecting it. As if you knew all along…knew I was going to kill you…”

Sydney is about to tell Nadia something when the waiter comes over to tell Sydney she has a phone call. The voice at the other end is Anna and she tells Sydney to turn around. She does and sees Anna with Nadia. Furthermore, her associates won’t like it if she tries anything. Syd sees six dots appear on her chest. Anna ends the conversation with, “I’ve been looking forward to working with you again.”

“If I don’t do what she says—Dad, she’s going to kill my sister,” says Sydney to Jack. They have only 18 hours to bring Anna the thing she wants. Sydney has to pretend to be her and she goes on to tell everyone what Anna wants.

In Brussels at the meeting place, the man who has the item Anna wants. He tells her she has forty minutes to kill a man and bring back his ring finger and a picture as proof, before he will give her the item. It is, after all, a very valuable item.

Dixon and Vaughn wait in a room she has rented at the same hotel where the victim is sitting in a bar drinking. Sydney, dressed to look like a hooker, enters the bar, and tells the man she is a gift from his partner for the night. She dangles a key in front of him. He bites and follows her to the room. (Nice accent, by the way)

Willem Karg, their target, is set upon by the three immediately. Time is flying. Sydney tells him they are saving his life. They cut off the finger and paint a bullet hole in his forehead. Sydney takes the picture and makes it back to the park in time to get the item, which she is told is the last remaining sample.

Meanwhile, Nadia is threatened by Anna, who tells her “You look like your mother.”

She goes on to say she’s going to leave a reminder for Sydney, who is cursed.

“Every time she looks at you I want her to think me and one day, whether or not you choose to or not, you will help me destroy her.” She then brands Nadia in the neck with the <o> sign.

Back in Los Angeles, Jack and Vaughn hear Marshall tell them about the compound she has brought back. It’s called Dante Compound and is extremely volatile and dangerous. When asked, Marshall says he cannot duplicate it or construct a fake especially not in thirty minutes. Marshall tells them that there is someone in Federal custody that can lead them to CRF. Vaughn groans.

“I need to get my sister back,” Sydney says. Jack agrees and gives her the real compound.

Outside in the hallway, Sloane stops her and tells her that Anna won’t kill Nadia, it’s not her destiny. She then meets Vaughn telling him, “I just want the ghosts to go away.”

As agreed, Sydney goes to a dress shop where she and Anna meet. After a few niceties, Sydney gives her the compound when Anna hands her keys to the car where Nadia is kept. There is a fight during which Sydney drops the key and Anna drops her purse. In the middle of it, all is a security guard who is calling for back up.

“She can have the blouse,” says Sydney to the guard and turns, walking away.

Sydney pounds Anna into a table and calmly walks over to get her purse. Anna already palmed the key to the car. They meet again and quietly exchange the two, while glaring at each other.

At the parking garage, Sydney finds Nadia in the trunk of a car and releases her. She takes her back to APO.

“I’m glad you’re all right,” says Sloane, meeting them in the hall. “Thank you, Sydney.”

A doctor assesses the damage the branding did. He tells Nadia they can remove it and do plastic surgery.

Meanwhile Vaughn is off on his own mission. He is to see Sark in Federal Prison and Sark greets him with his usual snarky remarks. “We’re family,” he says alluding to the fact Vaughn was married to the woman Sark loved passionately, Lauren. However, he refuses to give Vaughn any information about CRF. He won’t tell where they are located. Vaughn threatens him with solitary confinement in darkness at another prison. Sark refuses again.

Back at APO, Sydney tells Nadia that in the file on her mother she found an audio tape of a conversation she had with an unidentified man in which she explains the symbolism of the Rambaldi symbol.

“She said that the outer parts represented her two daughters and the circle is the object over which they will do great battle with each other—and then Mom went quiet as if the next part was too painful.”
“Tell me,” demands Nadia.
“According to Rambaldi, only one of the daughters will survive.”

Sydney suggests it might be safer if Nadia returned to Argentina, but she scoffs at the entire idea that a man born four centuries ago could foretell this event involving the two sisters.


Later that night after being gassed, a doctor enters the cell and injects a passive tracker into his neck. Now the CIA can track him down to their headquarters. Sark is being transported to Alder Prison when the truck is ambushed. The truck weaves and Sark is tossed around like a paper doll. The door is pulled open and the attacker tells Sark to leave. He runs to the truck, telling him to get in the back. The transport truck is on its side and the guard and driver look dead. They are not. Sark is put on a motorcycle and told to get to wherever he is safe. Marshall indicates the passive tracker is now set to go off in 24 hours, giving Sark time to get to CRF headquarters.

Marshall tracks him to Johannesburg, South Africa. Dixon and Vaughn are leading the team to raid the headquarters, but instead of CRF members, they find only Sark drinking champagne. Sark tells Vaughn he will be glad to lead them to their objective, but he wants something in return.

Sloane is very concerned when he accosts Sydney again. Sydney snaps at him again.
“Your belief in Rambaldi dragged me and Nadia into endless confusion. Tell me what is your belief now.”
“I believe that only one of you will come back alive.”
She stares at him and leaves without saying anything more.

In Estonia, Sydney and Nadia are watching for any contact that might bring Anna Espinosa with the Dante Compound to meet with a member of CRF at a construction site. Watching they are suddenly accosted by Karg. Sydney goes after Anna, leaving Nadia to take Karg down. She has a brief fight, but he tries to kill her, so she kills him instead after he refuses to tell her about the Dante Compound.

“Too late,” he says and she leans forward as he whispers what is going to happen.

She leaves him to find Sydney, who is chasing Anna through the site. Sydney loses track momentarily and then seeing a shadow, draws her gun and swings around the plastic sheeting only to see Nadia facing her with gun drawn. Neither one fires. As Nadia is about to tell Sydney the secret, she is knifed by Anna, who turns and flees. Nadia falls to the ground, bleeding profusely.

Sydney drops to her knees, holding Nadia’s hand, crying “Don’t you leave me.”

Okay, yes, well we all know people have been dropping like flies…leaving Sydney: first, her mother, Laura Bristow, then Danny her fiancé, followed by Francie, killed by Allison Doren, then Mom, aka Irina Derevko, again, and finally Will who was placed in a witness protection program. She is left with Jack from whom she is estranged because he killed her mother and Nadia, her sister. Now Nadia is severely wounded.

REMARKS:

Irina Derevko is not dead…she has been mentioned in every episode so far. If she walked into APO headquarters one of these days, I would not be surprised.

Marshall certainly has been busy. We seem to see more and more of him even if he doesn’t get out into the field. I’m looking forward to seeing him with Sydney and Nadia, one of these episodes.

Vaughn and Sydney have not moved any closer. That’s good. I think Sydney is still afraid she will lose him again and she doesn’t want to go there. So a kiss here and there and that’s about it.

I know Nadia will be okay.

I love Anna Espinosa…she’s so bad she’s good. I mean she and Sydney play off one another like a tennis ball off a racket. Loved her in Season One, and now she’s back as bad as ever. I hope she’s going to be around for more than one more episode.

Notice the Covenant is gone. What happened? McKennas Cole and the gang just went poof! When Lauren died…or what? Now we have the CRF, another terrorist group. I really miss the evil guys…those ex-KGB and SVR hoodlums.


DISCUSS:

Obviously, we were left with a tiny cliffhanger: Nadia was been stabbed or shot and is bleeding rather badly. How will Sydney get her back to APO? We know she did because the promos saw Nadia in the hospital. Vaughn and Dixon are not with her. She’s in Brussels and they are in South Africa.

What does Sark want in return to leading them to the CRF’s headquarters? Any guesses?

Where is Irina? In the urn in Moscow or still in hiding, somewhere Jack knows OR did he really kill her without finding out WHY?

Where is Katya? She was supposed to have Covenant connections. Is she now with CRF?

Where is Yelena Derevko? Is she dead? Was she The Sentinel Jack referred too earlier? Will she show up later in the season?

I love this show…

yelena is the sentinel and I believe she will show up with or along with bill vaughn at some point

irina is alive - in some form - jacks comment really cemented that for me but I suspected it right from day one
I think a lot of other people are alive as well- and we will learn those secrets this season and next

I like S4 but it is somehow feeling a little unfamiliar to me up until nocturne and then detente and now this eppy

maybe its becasue jack and syd had always headed towards bonding in S1 2 and in 3 they were so close and now ...its all different

I miss the old theme the feel of the JTF

but I do like marshalls role this season and I want to see more of barnett, director chase, kendall ( who would need to get off of that island in LOSt)

but I love alias and if they are getting into the familial stuff again - and sotires that go on for a few weeks I will get that old feeling back

having Sark and Anna back was great and the scene in the boutique and the scene in the warehouse were awesome - we need more of this

Oh and jack dryly telling Syd to be discreet and professional- I was laughing my head off

what he was really saying was

I had to clean up one hell of a PDA I thought you were above brawling in the beverly hills dostrict but good on ya- you kicked her ass

I twas just nice to see spyfam conversation that was reminiscnet of the VG and JG chemistry

IMO anyhow

I am also glad we have secrets and rambaldi back

and I like worried weiss
and I love how Syd is kicking butt with nadia - their chemistry as sisters is really getting good- the quick thinking the -use whatever resources are at hand-
S4 is starting to feel likehome for me

this show reinvents itself with every season-

Bren

Brenda posted:

Me too. I love this season so far as you can tell.
Bev

me neither, that would be really cool if she came back fromt he dead, again.

.
I'll take that as a hint.

great column, can't wait for the next one, and sorry for repliying so late.

Wow! Am adoring Alias this season! It has def gone back to the greatness which was NOT season3!

So a few things...When Jack said that not evryone who was supposed to be dead was dead...I so caught that. And even sydney (in a brilliant moment of acting by Jen!) seemed to pause for a short second right there...v cool! B)

And hopefully they won't gross us out with too many of those!

I have to agree here! I know that Syd is the good chick, but it's good for her to sometimes get her own ass kicked, and can Anna do a job of that! That scene at the boutique when they kicked butt and then exchanged the purse and the car remote! :D classic!

They are still covenant, operating under a new name :rolleyes: it makes no bloody difference, lets be honest here! But if we are lucky perhaps McKennas Cole can make a comeback? If not in this season maybe in an upcoming one...he's still out there being bad! <Love Love LOVE Quentin Tarantino! Here's to...your hair!> :D

Have no idea what he wants, but he'll slither away into the cracks again...he always does. Just wait for it...

Oh no, Jack didn't kil her, but I'm curious why not if he had orders to...I liked your stroy on why!

ME TOO!!! :bunny: :wave: :bunny: