Alias

This episode was an amazing finale. It was so dramatic. I loved watching this episode. It was perfect. It was the perfect way to leave viewers hanging until the season premiere. Nadia is in a coma, Irina is gone yet again, Sydney and Vaughn are engaged... And then, the biggest clliffhanger of all... Vaughn and Sydney get in the car crash. It was so suspenseful. It was definately a series classic. It was very nerve wracking. It was so well written and the actors really shined on the screen. This episode was a perfect installment to the fourth season. It was one of the best episodes of the series.

This _S_H_O_U_L_D_ _H_A_V_E_ _B_E_E_N_ the Series Finale -- they could have cut this episode about 2 minutes shorter and had the good sense to go out on top!



Instead they gave us season five -- with 17 pitiful episodes hardly worth watching, as they tried to pull together a convulted plot (even more convulted than usual for this series) in a hopeless attempt to set things up for a spin off version of the series.



Alias wasn't the first series to make this mistake - and probably won't be the last - but it was certainly a classic example of a show that died a lingering and painful death by trying to go back to the money trough once too often.

With all the hype on the forums about this episode (many people consider it there favorite) I would have thought that I would have enjoyed this episode more then I did. This, from my standards, is the worst season finale of Alias to date. Almost Thirty Years had the connection with the Pilot that I liked a lot, The Telling was...The Telling, and I am one of the rare people who thought the entire hour of television in Resserection was very well done. Before The Flood simply doesnt hold a candle to the season finales that came before it.



Save for the ending scene, I thought the rest of the episode was really bad. And, depending on how they play the finale cliffhanger in the next season, could be one of the most heart-wrenching stories of all time. Sydney and Vaughn, after four years of torturing us with there on-screen connection, finnaly get engaged only for Vaughn to possibly come clean about something that could end it just like that?? The next episode is going to make or break this entire show for me, why establish something for four years just to take it away? It doesnt make sense. Moving onto Bill Vaughn. Why would Vaughn chase her father down only to be revealed his name isnt Micheal Vaughn? Is he Bill, why go on the wild goose chase if he isnt who he was supposed to be. The finale is confusing and unlike Reseruction and Almost Thirty Years, the next episode has a lot of explaining to do. And if Micheal dies - worst waste of my time ever.



The "Resident Evil" based storyline for the final episode wasnt my thing either. Im all for millions of people dying if they drink water, but turning into flesh eating zombies that turn other people into zombies? Also - how is Nadia pushed to the ground and surrounded by 8-10 zombies, only to be fighting them off in the next scene? Thats impossible. Dont know why this is the highest rated episode of season 4, all four of the episodes before this one reminded me of why I watch Alias. This one brought me back to season 4 as a whole - stupid and...zombies. Only thing missing was an ice man.

Oh my god...



Man I heard that season 4 was where the show got weak and apparently they werent kidding. Too many confusing storylines that dont fit well with those done in the past, but the action and direction was still good and there were a few good episodes (I think "Tuesday" is my favorite).



But then things started to build up with Irina being found and the giant red ball of mass destruction floating over the city.



I was totally expecting an epic fight between Nadia and Sydney (with no brainwashing involved)...some sort of badass revelation by Sloane that he was fooling the CIA all along...a major epic character death...



Instead we get ZOMBIES! Yes, zombies! Man, the writers could've though of a million other logical means of increasing the suspense of stopping the end of the world and they come up with zombies of all things! That really sucked away all the seriousness and epicness out of this episode. I couldn't take anything about the episode seriously after the zombies were introduced and the character dialogues started to get pretty cheesy. The only thing about this episode worth watching was the last five seconds. And I'm sitting here thinking...why couldn't the rest of the episode be written like that? Of course I think Michael Vaughan's little revelation should've been built up better instead it comes out of nowhere after dealing with zombies as a "meh"...till the car crash of course. But damn, the writers of this episode must've been smoking something crazy. And we don't even get a kickass Sydney fight.



Maybe once I start watching season 5, I'll wake up and find that season 4 episode was really a joke all along and we'll get back to real spy stuff and intense character development instead the joke we got here.

Ok...first I want to talk about what everybody either loves or hates about this episode ...the last scene. It was the beginning of an admission by Vaughn... then CRASH. Totally shocking! I actually jumped! I thought it was well done. A season finale, if done well, is supposed to make you want to come back for more next year. This episode definitely did that. It defintely has alot to answer next year. For example, what about the hunt for Vaughn's dad if his last name isn't Vaughn, etc. I'm sure the show will answer this though.



The rest of the episode was good as well. I loved the zombie storyline. Very interesting. The only thing that I wished was more of a build-up between Syd and Nadia. They kinda robbed us of the fight to the death scenario. Maybe they will explore that in the next season.



Still, I thought it was a perfect ending so I gave it a perfect score.

Alias is or perhaps I should say was an absolutely brilliant show. It had two great season and then started to spiral downwards with season four being really bad.



This perticular episode had the feel of the Resident Evil movies including Zoombies ;-)



Only the very last minute somewhat restores my faith in the show.

I loved this episode - it was cool.

Poor Nadia.

I loved the end - Vaughn turning to Sydney and saying that wasn't his name - then - CRASH.

I was screaming and crying - they couldn't let it end like that - i was screaming cause i wanted to see if he stayed alive and to find out what he meant by he wasn't called Vaughn. I was crying cause 2 weeks before i became a massive Vartan fan and to see him "die" just made me cry.

OVERALL - a very good episode which left a hell of a lot of cliff hangers.

Okay the season finale. When the show started I was tired (in Denmark the show is aired at 23.50PM) but when the show ended I couldn’t sleep!





The fight between Sydney and Nadia:

I was looking forward to the big fight between the Chosen One and the Passenger, But what an anticlimax! What kinda fight was that? We have seen better fights on the show (e.g. Sydney vs. Anna in the first season and in one episode this season). When Sloane disappears and Irina commands “Vaughn” up to the roof I thought that Sloane would try to kill Sidney but no he shot Nadia and that was that fight. Disappointing! But wait those anyone remember the first season where the prophecy said that the Chosen had never seen some mountain in Italy? And then Sydney climbs the mountain. So one could believe that the Chosen One is Irina and the Passenger is Elena. But that makes Jack and Irina’s conversation (the one in the streets about the fight) irrelevant. So I’m a bit lost!



The acting:

One word GREAT





Michael Vaughn? What the f was that? What a cliff-hanger. I actually fall of the chair. What was the point of him looking for his father? Who is he? What was the reason that he was Sydney’s handler? I am so confused. Some people are saying that the last scene was a dream – I hope not coz that’s just bad writing.



Great episode

Great acting

Great cliff-hanger



I can’t wait till next season.



/Tuncay

One of the greatest ever Alias episodes, I never would have imagined back in 2001 that a little espionage show would, in four years, turn into complete sci-fi horror with an episode reminiscent of a George Romero movie!



Before the Flood has Syd, Jack, Irina, Vaughn and Nadia landing in Sovogda and battling it's inhabitants, who have all turned into zombies. In order to stop the world from succumbing to the effects of the Mueller device, the team have to disable the device and end Elena's plans.



I never imagined I'd see zombies in Alias but they were absolutely amazing. They were very reminiscent of Resident Evil but I did love seeing them attacking the group and the scene where Nadia was running from the horde of flesh-eaters was nail-biting stuff. It's a shame, however, that we didn't see more zombie action. I have the feeling that the episode was probably written for a two-hour finale but they had to cut it down, as some scenes did feel slightly rushed and any action was kept to a minimum.



I expected Nadia to turn evil in the final episode and I was eagerly looking forward to the prophecized fight between Syd and Nadia all season. Sadly, their big fight scene was very short and it didn't have much action in it. Compared to the amazing Syd vs Francie Clone brawl in The Telling, this fight was just disappointing. I liked Brodien returning but it was extremely obvious that he wouldn't survive the episode, but his death was extreme jump-out-of-your-seat stuff!



I think the Sydney/Vaughn relationship slightly overshadowed the episode. I have always disliked their love for each other and have always found it incredibly boring. Michael Vartan is like the TV version of Benjamin Bratt, both of them being actors who are basically programmed for sending viewers to sleep. The only redeeming feature of their relationship was the shocking cliffhanger of this episode, which we'll get to later.



It's sad to see Irina leave at the end of the episode. Thankfully, her departure does leave Lena Olin open for more guest spots in the next season. Irina, despite appearing in only two episodes this year, has been a character sorely missed and I loved every minute of her appearances in season four. Her big standout scene in this episode is her confrontation with twisted sister Elena. I loved her "hello sis", followed by the hilarious pistol-whipping scene. Victor Garber was also brilliant in his scenes, in particular when he was about to torture Elena and said "I've learnt to have a little more fun this year". Garber is excellent at comedy (as witnessed in his current guest spot on Will & Grace) and it's about time the writers let him have some comedic scenes.



The Marshall/Weiss team-up in this episode was the comedic highlight. Their discussion with the Russian minister was extremely fun to listen to and the allusions to the minister's sexual exploits were hilarious. I loved Marshall's tearful phone conversation with wife Carrie and how she asked if he was drunk when he expressed his love for her.



I did feel bad for Carl Lumbly, who doesn't even appear in this episode. I don't know if Lumbly was busy at the time or something, but it's a failure on the writer's part to leave one of their regulars out of the finale. I have to admit, they should have killed Dixon off in The Descent as he hasn't appeared since and most of his actions during the series are, dare I say it, slightly un-needed. The only thing keeping him interesting now is his relationship with Angela Bassett's Director Chase, but that was only mentioned once or twice. It's a shame to underuse such a talented actor.



The most memorable moment of this episode is, unsurprisingly, the cliffhanger ending. I hope that the writers have a believable back-story for Vaughn as it will be disappointing if his double life is a slight cop-out. It was good of the writers to have such a double shock for the closing moments. I was on the verge of falling asleep when the scene began as I thought it was just a boring Syd/Vaughn talk. Boy, was I wrong! The "My name isn't Michael Vaughn" line was a massive shock but when the other car just plowed into Vaughn's vehicle, I literally jumped out of my seat! How will they follow it up next season?? I can't wait!



Season four has, undoubtedly, been the worst year of Alias. It started well but had some awful episodes mid-season, only managing to regain the excitement of seasons 1-3 when Arvin Clone popped up. I haven't enjoyed the mission-of-the-week episodes this season and I hope they don't continue in season five. I found it difficult to find episodes I really loved during the first half of this year, with only Sark and Anna Espinosa's return having any sort of impact. Many characters have been badly underused whilst others only get one episode in the spotlight. Thankfully, the season did (finally) find its feet and episodes 16-22 have been some of the best in Alias history.



Hopefully season five will return to season two-style action and adventure. I can only hope that rumors of next season being the last are true as it should manage to go out on a high. That shark still ain't jumped over!

Before the Flood was a great episode one of the best season finales of all of the past alias seasons.I love that even four years into the show rimbaldi still plays a hugly amazing part in the show and this episode is all about it. It wa skinda lyk the season one finale with the device but it was even bigger and you could see how it affects people.rimbaldi i think is just evil and look at all the people who obsess over him..salone,elena etc.there all the bad guys. neways some great things happpened in this ep.I loved how irina derecho,syds mom returned.im relieved jack didnt actually kill her plus she such an important character and i can see some amazing story plots with her in it.in the ep u also see the chosen one and the passenger prophecy fold out. but is this really the fight rimbaldi was talking about?i mena salone shot nadia not syd.and it said the passenger was suppose to kill the chosen one which ibv didnt happen or atleast not yet!im just gunan jump through this ep by saying i loved the ending.syd and vaughn finally got to santa barbras lyk 4 years late if u count syds two year absence.and they are happy and engaged and then he admits hes one of the bad guys and his name isnt really michael vaughn! and just before syd or ne of us viwers have a chance to react..BOOM a car smacks right into them!i really wanna see how that whole vaughn story folds out!!overall i think this was a good episode..possibly one of the best!

'Before the Flood' is probably the writers' attempt in trying to bring back the good old days of season 2. To compare it to Passage I&II (they do have a similar theme, SpyFam saving the world from a potential destruction) would be an insult to the quality of writing of season 2. It would also be an insult to the writers who had stayed true to the characters. But considering what the fans had been through with season 3 and this season, this episode definately stands out. Lena Olin returns to the show as Irina Derevko, Sydney's mother. Her return was probably the best thing that had happened in this episode and probably of the whole season.

See, this show had bad reviews in the beginning and then after a little while they shot right up. It became a popular show. But, let's face it: when Jennifer Garner and Michael Vartan stopped dating in real life and then she gets pregnant and married (in real life)...all the chemistry these 2 shared VANISHED!!! I mean in the car @ the end of the episode, I didn't think they looked to "in love". I was not too happy with how this panned out. They never should have dated in real life...cuz guess what? I see the ratings going down...

You know; its strange that I actually had this episode spoilered for me a good few months before I saw it. But it only made me more desperate to watch how things transpired, and I thought I knew everything that was going on - well let me tell you, I was wrong.



Please note this review has already been featured fully on http://naturalflux7.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1827 written by myself.





"If you think THIS is wierd...well, just wait and see.."



This mindblowing finale features everything a perfect episode should have - characters on the brink of death, characters dying, lots of gunfire, lots of special effects, the apocalypse, an engagement thats 4 years overdue, a prophecy and its signs being all too present, one of the best characters the shows ever seen returning, one of the best characters the shows ever seen leaving, the most unexpected moment ever, the biggest cliffhanger since "Who Shot JR?".



You'd think I'm kidding. But between Irina Derevko [Lena Olin] meeting one of her daughters for the first time, to her shooting her evil sister in the head point blank - Alias really doesn't let up for two hours straight. It was easily the best episode the show has had since the fantastic season two finale; In fact I'm pretty certain that everyone can agree this cliffhanger tops the "Mom?" shock value by a million times. And I even knew it was coming.





"SHIT SHIT!"



I almost cried when Lena Olin returned to my screen. But reserved my tears for later on in the episode. I rubbed my eyes a couple of times in sheer disbelief. She elevates the show like no one else can; her beauty, her grace, her acting prowess, her character; everything about Lena Olin and Irina Derevko helps Alias. Shes made season four all the better for her presence. But lets not forget who we should be really praising here. Jennifer Garner is fantastic. She battles with all of these huge actors around her demanding attention from the viewers and comes out on top. Sydney returns to center stage here - and thats what makes season five so promising already. Garner deserves her Emmy this year - depriving her of it would be slightly insane.



The supporting cast are as always fantastic. Kevin Weissman, Victor Garber and Ron Rifkin give the best out of the other performances. But Sonia Braga and Mia Maestro give their best performances of the season. Angela Basset makes a short but welcome appearance too.





Alias is usually all about the fun. And yes, there are a few moments of exciting silliness [See Vaughn telling Sydney shes too rough around the home when they are on a mission in an Ibiza nightclub as sexually agressive doggers - Sydney arguing with him about it and their sex life whilst Comms is on and Jack abruptly declares "YES comms IS on!"] but this double finale is about specatcle, awe, and revelations.



The Ramabaldi prophecy is coming to a end it would seem [although in Alias don't take that as a granted] and could this be the endgame that he had foresaw? We aren't told enough about the prophecy to know if it is or not. But we know one thing - whatever is going on over the two hours of this finale is pretty big shit.



Im surprised that J.J Abrams wasn't involved in either part of this finale - for they are actually two of the best episodes the shows ever seen. He usually pens the big moments in Alias because he knows how to please fans, combine visuals with amazing moments of realization and cliffhangers. Yet what the writers and director Lawrence Trilling do is actually surpass this in quality.





Michael Giacchino's score is mindblowingly perfect. Capturing the emotion of the episodes whilst also incorporating the "Alias Sound" of strings, horns and techno - hes a musical genius and Hollywood is already taking note.



The cinematography is amazing; it even seems like they've chosen a more professional film stock for the finale. The "Alias" look these days is modern, pure, mature and grainy. Its a wonderful look for the show. But in the finale the look is rich, deep, and harrowing. It works even better. I can't go this whole review without talking about the special effects. Lets just say watching a city get flattened by a giant body of toxic water is pretty damn special.



Theres nothing that can be faulted. The acting is flawless, the script is incredibly written, the action is high paced and exciting, the epic greatness that is this finale reminds viewers that Alias is head and shoulders above ABC's other horses in terms of sheer quality and utter brilliance. It certainly kept me on the edge of my seat, this year on Alias I've cried, jumped, screamed and laughed. Heres to many more to come. Lost and Desperate Housewives - take note.



Now ive been reluctant to go into too much detail about the events that transpired in this episode. If you want to know what happens go watch it yourself.



But heres what happens in the last 30 seconds of the finale. Don't Click if you dont want to know. But if you really dont want to know then you probaboly wouldnt have read a review marked with spoiler warnings.





Possibly the greatest thing to ever grace television

I'm not even talking about the whole show, even though it was quite eventful. I am only talking about the last 5 minutes. The ending to this series finale will definatly keep you on the edge of your seat without a doubt. I am just waiting for a tiny look at series 5, i can't wiat till i can see it. This episode was very good to watch and even thought i had known what was going to happen in the end my heart still skipped a beat in the last 10 seconds. This was a great cliffhanger and i will definatly be tuning into the next series.

From the moment of their descent in the infected city you could see that this wasn’t going to be a normal episode. You could see that this was so good that a whole new category would have to be created just to classify it.

A lot of Rambaldi references.

I liked to see Marshall and Weiss working with them from the base. It was remarkable to see their despair when they thought that the rest of the team was death. Great acting from these two amazing actors.

On the infected city the rest of the team had to face a treat bigger than everything they had ever seen. Everything seemed lost for a couple of times but with teamwork and perseverance they managed to save the world. All the actors did an amazing job. I want to call everyone’s attention to Lena Olin. She came back as a guest star and as always she stole all of the attentions. Besides being one of the most beautiful women of her generation she is a very talented actress.

This episode ended with a cliffhanger: Who is the character played by Michael Vartan? He isn’t agent Michael Vaughn, so who is he? Did Sidney and “Vaughn” survive the car accident? Will they find a cure for Nadia? And what about Dixon? Will he survive?

A lot of questions are still without an answer. This kind of an ending is the specialty of J.J. Abrams. This is what he does best: kip the audience wanting more at the end of the season so that they will come back for more.



I can only say one thing: 10 in a scale of 0 to 10 and that is because I can’t give more. This was one of the best episodes I ever saw on television. Season 5 I’m waiting for you :D

This episode totally bored me...then the last few minutes woke me up, shocked me, and made my head spin! I cried for five minutes after the car crash, and Vaughn telling Sydney he's not really Vaughn. I have had a couple months to ponder it, and I still don't really know what it all means. Is Vaughn really a bad guy? Why was he so nuts (and why did he risk his life) when looking for his father, if he really didn't even exist? I'm so confused. I really hope they put an end to anything Rambaldi after this. I was one of the few that liked it, but it's definitely gone too far. Looking forward very much to some answers next season!

This episode was a great way to end Alias' "weakest" season. I personally liked Season 4 alot. I have enjoyed all of the seasons very much, but this was not as good as the previous 3. However, they used the last 4 episodes to tie up the season in true Alias fashion.



I thought the plot was great and I loved seeing Rambaldi's endgame finally come into play. I loved the twist involving Irina. It was a very good ending to the season.



Nothing beats the sudden cliffhanger in this episode though. It happens so quickly that you are left in almost disbelief and clamoring for more.



Why can't Season 5 start tomorrow?

The context before I review this episode is that I have been watching Alias for about a month now, I have now with the conclusion of this one watched every episode (in quick time) but the problems with this episode are apparent with a disenfranchiased individual episode plot throughout the season with a shining storyline arc.



This episode was the climax of the Season, saying that the Fourth season started of getting exponetially worse but the pickup did come and it did get better, the whole arc of the finale of a slight revolution in this city somewhere near Russia which would outlay the evil on the world and its down to a TEAM to stop it, not Sydney made the episode extra good.



I've always felt when Sydney is the main character it weakens the show, focusing on just her makes the other characters seem redundant and this season has done that exceptionally well, especially with the Jennifer Garner montage JJ Abrams decided to implement (which I hope he flushes down the toilet with the ending of this episode). Subtle things in this episode also emphasis The Sydney Show over Alias, the most dominanting one was the scene when the train was leaving and Nadia was killing loads of zombie-like creatures with a machine gun, SHOW THAT not Sydney watching HER kill loads of monsters, it just would have added that extra bit of 'yeah' factor, unless it was portraying tension of trying to save her, which it failed.



The storyline of this episode, faultless, Marshall and Whise trying to save the day back at APO was excellent, the Sloane, well predictable, Jack's tourture methods were excellent, loved that whole scene (and again Sydney wasn't involved... coincidence?).



Since this episode only had the subtle Sydney elements it makes it an excellent episode compared to the rest of the season, each character had their moment of the episode, it was enjoyable and fun to watch, it really did feel like an excellent movie, spoiled by the beginning of the season, the episode was great.



However the ending of the episode - rubbish, felt like it was 'added on' rather than anything or planned a more fitting ending to the season would have been Jack starting to snoop into the dealings of a guy who has an alias called Michael Vaughn (get it?) and finds something maybe 'Oh God' then switch to him telling it, just a simple out of the blue thing makes it again a diminishing tacky tagged on storyline we didn't really want which spoiled the episode.



So probably the 2nd best episode of the Season, behind the one where Marshall / Kerry saves the day.

Overall this was a pretty great finale. Of course the last few seconds is what made it great. One thing that was kinda disappointing was the fight between Syd and Nadia. I mean she's had WAAAAYYY better chick fights. The best one to me is her fight with Francie on the season 2 finale. This one should've been better than that one. Other than that this was a very good episode. The only thing that sucks about this is that we have to wait till freekin January to find out what happens with this so called Vaughn guy. And after reading someone's review and them planting the idea that the whole last scene could be a dream sequence, I'm praying that doesn't happen. Cause I think it would piss me and anyone else who loves and appreciates this show off. But I think JJ knows better than that. :) This is gonna be an agonizing 7 months.

After much anticipation for Season 4 I was disappointed with the first few episodes but once the true stories got underway I knew the writers had written a roller coaster end for the season. There were some rehashed ideas this season a.k.a APO filler for SD-6 but I was ok with that since APO had a futuristic look. The writers could have did so much more with Nadia but just wrote her in as a fill-in character for Francie. I would have liked to see her in more missions. I would have to say the stunt she pulled off in The Index was killer. This was a nice wrap to the season bringing Nadia into the mix for some zombie butt kicking. I was disappointed the so called face off between The Chosen and The Passenger I always saw it as Apocalyptic but maybe that wasn't the true fight here's hoping. The cliffhanger was undoubtedly the best part of the season in a season with very few cliffhangers and the writers either intentional or not tied in this revelation with last season's cliffhanger which made Syd question everything and everyone she knew. This new info truly showcases that.



Overall Season score 8.3/10

This is the reason Alias has such a huge following. The writers never cease to amaze with how drastically they can change a whole existance with only a few small words. The revelation that Vaughn is not who he says he is, right before the car him and Syd are travelling in is just amazing. Where will it go from here, who knows! The whole season leads to this point, they are eventually in Santa Barbara, engaged, in love and able to do whatever they want, or so Syd thinks.



After a bit of a slump during this season, I\'m totally psyched for the next one. Bring it on JJ Abrahms!

Before the Flood – Untitled



I put off watching this episode for almost 2 weeks after it aired, due to the fact I was too scared at what would be thrown at me – what cliff-hanger I would get this time. In a complete accident I found out that a major cast member’s life would be in danger in the cliff-hanger and instantly assumed it would be Vaughn, I got all pissed off and abused as many people as possible checking Michael Vartan would be a regular next year. Satisfied from other spoilers I worked up the courage to watch the episode, to discover it was absolutely-frikkin brilliant! This I think is my favourite episode…



I didn’t pick out a running theme for this episode, there was so much going on that I didn’t want to, and my head was mush anyway – seriously I had to scrap my first set of review notes from the first time I watched it coz they made no sense. I watched it again, as I had planned and took different notes, so forgive me if my review is a wander-y but I need to say how I feel and all my speculation for next season.



There were several Rambaldi factors in the episode, of course there had to be, as it was the big story that made it so great. Of course our token of this was the Rambaldi symbol in the sky at the very beginning as our spy-family jumped out of the plane.



It was great to have Marshall and Weiss working together throughout the episodes, the two characters used for comic relief working together lit up the screen, each scene written well, making me laugh. The first of their scenes what when they were thinking as if they were Jack - the using the Blackwell Index, their interaction about Sloane still possessing the index was really well played out. When Weiss explained that the president, the cabinet and all other people of importance had been taken to a safe place, the sadness we saw was really cute. Of course, I feel bad that they didn’t get to be the ones to go into the bunker, especially as it made them feel their job was of no importance to the people of their country, while they were one of the few who were doing their best to save the world from what could be the apocalypse. When Marshall called Carrie, I saw a lot of the scene in Phase One where Dixon called Diane, except in Marshall’s case he had a belief the word was going to end. Weiss stood in the background during the call, and I got the feeling he wished he could call his loved one, to tell her that he loved her, except she was unavailable, on of the ones risking their lives big time to stop whatever was going on.



It was nice to see Brodien return, almost gave a full circle to what was Season 4, and at least this time I can see the relevance of bringing back a character, in the apocalyptic-state, it would be more believable to the viewers if the team knew the person they were associating with.



Rambaldi’s prophecies are obviously taken too literally, blood red horses and fallen angels aren’t quite what they seen, yet it fulfilled the prophecy all the same, the horses were blood red from the light cast by the Mueller Device and the fallen angel was simply what looked like a concrete or marble angel, ripped from a building. Nadia and Sydney did clash, although we’re yet to find out if only one survives, as always the prophecy should not be taken all too literally as the clash ends with Sydney being saved from the fight by Sloane, who shoots Nadia, ending the fight – for now. The fight was rather anticlimactic after Nadia’s vision back in 4x08 “Echoes” where they both were facing each other with guns and Nadia pulled the trigger, in the end the fight was very different and actually ended through Sloane firing. I think that although the scene was effective in pulling the story together it may not have been everything that it could be, like the way we all expected it.

All in all knowing this, that his prophecies may leave room for adaptation are there any others that could have this wiggle room (cool phrase, tehe J)



Sloane may have been a good guy all this time, god who knows when it comes to him? The way that he appeared at the train station, I was rooting for Jack to shoot him dead, but as it turned out he was able to help in a vital way. When he was the one to shoot Nadia on the roof I was shocked, but it make you realise maybe he does want to be do the good thing, he could have shot Sydney, and help find an antidote for Nadia, saving his daughter and enacting the Rambaldi prophecy that he spent so long trying to be a part of. It was nice at the end to admit that



Having 2 of the Derevko sisters together was an explosive scene, the way they interacted showed that they may be on the extreme side but they simply suffer from a case of sibling rivalry. Jack’s chance at torture was simply classic, from his speech about wanting to have more fun, to the way he told her there was no way of knowing whether or not he would inject her anyway, of course I would be worried, after all Jack hates Ylena and after he gets what he wants, if I were him, I’d kill her too. The fact that when Ylena was faced with her own creation, her own doing, to be injected with the infected water and being scared of what she would become made me very angry at the character, she’s done this to so many people, including one whom she told was like a daughter to her, if you’re gonna be ruthless you should at least be fearless, of course if that were the case then Jack, Irina and Sydney would never have gotten what they want, in effect destroying the device.



When the device was destroyed, the wall of water once again fell, I must ask, was the contents of the ball the same as the one at the end of season one?? Will it cause the return of the virus that almost killed my-name’s-not-Vaughn? The way, when Sydney, my-name’s-not-Vaughn, Nadia and Sloane, ran from the on coming water rushing at them before they got back to the bunker had many similarities to the Season 1 finale, except this time they made it back, effectively saving themselves and the world.



Of course, the ending, the way everyone was saved (bar Nadia and Dixon) was just too perfect, they took our favourite couple to Santa Barbara and there was talk about eloping and how much they loved each other. Then of course Vaughn had to go and tell Sydney he had a secret. Irina revealed earlier that she knew about this secret, yet still gave him her blessing and later talked to Sydney as if she knew there would be a wedding, this leaves me with hope that whatever he did is not something that will destroy their relationship, if it is, I’ll get extremely pissed of and torture some exec Jack-style. One thing I can assume is pretty safe to guess is the fact that Vaughn did not see ramifications such as this when he first signed on to do whatever he did, he probably did something for his job and may not have foreseen himself falling for Sydney, having to stay as Michael Vaughn to stay with her, but hey, it’s pure speculation, chances are everything I’m coming up with won’t actually be what happens

There are various speculations to what Vaughn has done, mine include:

Vaughn was an agent working for Kendal or the DSR ensuring Sydney completed the Rambaldi prophecy, so they could prevent the apocalypse

Vaughn was a Rambaldi follower or another person in a Rambaldi prophecy ensuring Sydney completed the Rambaldi prophecy, so they could prevent the apocalypse

Vaughn is Rambaldi :P



As you may see the ones I like, I like because they could cause minimal damage to Sydney and Vaughn’s relationship, but of course the Ask Ausiello column tells me the story is awesome, so I have hope. As you can also see I’m more worried about Sydney and Vaughn’s relationship than the fact they were hit by a car, reliable sources ensure me the both live J



One thing nagging in the back of my mind is that the scene may have been a dream sequence, the dialogue and Sydney’s hair going into the reason for my theory. I’m not sure how it would all fit into the story if it was, thus why I don’t believe it’s true, just a remote possibility.



Quote-Ables



“They do understand that destroying this device with conventional explosives would cause enough toxic fall out to make Chernobyl look like a kitchen fire” – Jack

(Just to get a perspective of the impending doom…)



“What would Jack do in this situation? Jack is the king of this sorta thing.” – Weiss

(Nice to be recognised)



Weiss: “I thought Sloane turned The Blackwell Index over to Langley”

Marshall: “He didn’t, it’s complicated”

Weiss: “Yeah, not really, Sloane’s evil, why wouldn’t he hold onto blackmail material on world leaders?”

(Have some faith… :P)



Jack: “Marshall and Weiss are working with the Russians, stubborn bunch you’re countrymen”

Irina: “We like to control our own fate, you never put much faith in that, did you, fate, destiny?”

Jack: “I have about as much faith in horoscopes and fortune cookies”

Irina: “Look, Rambaldi wrote that when blood red horses wandered the streets and angels fall from the sky The Chosen One and The Passenger will clash and only on of them will survive”

Jack: “You’re really through the looking glass, aren’t you? When I see angels fall from the sky, I’ll start to worry.”

(Started as a cute exchange, ended in an oh crap moment)



Sydney: “Hey Brodien. That ear healed up pretty nicely”

Brodien: “Yeah, if you plan on putting any other holes in me, just go ahead and tell me now”

(Nice continuity)



Irina: “You shouldn’t wait”

Vaughn: “For what?”

Irina: “I saw the ring”

Vaughn: “You know what? You killed my father, the way I see it, I don’t have to ask for your blessings.”

Irina: “Despite that, you may have them, along with some advice.”

Vaughn: “Marital advice from you, wonderful, like what? Don’t betray your spouse?”

Irina: “Yeah, that would be one of them, but even between a husband and a wife secrets are acceptable, however your activities are not”

Vaughn: “What are you talking about?”

Irina: “You’re not as covert as you’d like to think. Consider my life an object lesson, if you don’t want to end up like Jack and me, tell Sydney the truth.”

(Loved the sarcasm and the way they play off each other, but a secret... oh god)





Sydney: “Vaughn asked me to marry him”

Nadia: “Sydney, that’s amazing”

Sydney: “I’m sure there are plenty of brides that want to kill the maid of honour – I’m not one of them”

(Sydney reassuring Nadia she doesn’t want to fulfil the prophecy, what I want to know is if Sydney still wants Nadia as the maid of honour now she’s a zombie)



Weiss: “What’s the significance of the green balloons?”

(I will never see green balloons the same way ever again after hearing whatever Weiss and Marshall saw)



Weiss: “Oh, sure thing minister, or should I call you – (Russian accent) Cowboy”

(Tehe, same as above but for cowboys)



Nadia: “You’re right, I see my future, two minutes from now I see myself killing you. The only reason you want me is because you believe I’m the one to stop Sydney Bristow, but she is my sister and you mean nothing to me”

Ylena: “I’m sorry you feel that way”

Nadia: “What’s that?”

Ylena: “Don’t worry darling, it’s only tap water”

Nadia: “I will never betray my sister!”

Ylena: “We’ll see”

Nadia: “Nooooooooooooooooo!”

(Dun, dun, dun, cute exchange btw.)



Vaughn: “Syd!”

Sydney: “Did I forget something?”

Vaughn: “Yeah, me. I’m coming with you.”

Sydney: “Did my dad change the plans?”

Vaughn: “No I did, I’m joining you on the roof”

Sydney: “It’s a one person job, my mom will relay the wiring instructions and I can disarm the device myself.”

Vaughn: “I know you can but you can’t out run the wall of water that things gonna turn into.”

Sydney: “How are you gonna help me?”

Vaughn: “We’ll figure something out. You’ll run faster if I’m chasing you”

Sydney: “I’ll be fine and they need you in the bunker…”

Vaughn: “Syd”

Sydney: “You won’t get Ylena – don’t say it. I’ll see you in a few minutes (walks away, turns and walks back) Just in case, yes”

Vaughn: “Yeah?”

Sydney: “Yeah I’ll marry you”

(They kiss)

Sydney: “(Takes the ring) It’s perfect – so are you”

(They kiss)

Vaughn: “Go”

Sydney: “I’ll see you”

Vaughn: “I know”

(AAAAAAAAAWWWWWW, awesome, completely, wow J)



“Honey, I don’t have a lot of time but I just wanna tell you that I love you – I don’t get to tell you that often enough (Listens) No I have not been drinking!” – Marshall

(Isn’t it nice to have a wife with no faith?)



“Hello sis, ever since you were 11 there was something I wanted to do” (Punches her) – Irina

(Sibling Rivalry J)



Jack: “You have to take her out”

Sydney: “No dad, she’s my sister”

Irina: “She’s not you’re sister anymore”

(Once infected – they’re gone)



Irina: “ I’ll give you the chance to do the right thing – not that you were ever any good at that. Which wire?”

Ylena: “It’s useless, in a few minutes, when the signal broadcasts the whole world will be different, however you plan on torturing me, I’ll hold out for at least that long”

Irina: “I’m not gonna torture you – I’m gonna let him do it and he really doesn’t care for you, especially after you tricked him into killing me. One thing you should know about Jack, he hates being anybody’s puppet.”

Jack: “I’m actually hoping you don’t tell us what we need to know, there’s a 50/50 chance Sydney cuts the right wire, I’m willing to take those odds, if it means I am able to stand here and watch you turn into an animal.”

Ylena: “You’re not a [inaudible word] man Jack”

Jack: “I didn’t used to be but it’s been a rather interesting year for me, it’s made me re-evaluate certain parts of my life. I’m trying to have more fun these days”

Ylena: “Wait! How do I know you wont inject me anyway?”

Jack: “You don’t”

Ylena: “White! Tell her to cute the white wire”

(Irina Shoots Ylena Dead)

Irina: “Sydney, cut the blue wire.”

(A combination of the best Jack line ever and an awesome Irina moment)



Jack: “No one can hold onto Irina Derevko for too long”

(Damn it; is this a hint that there’ll be no Irina next year?)



Irina: “3 years ago when I told you, you were The Chosen One, that only you could take down the greatest evil, I know your mind must have been overwhelmed with confusion but tonight you should recognise, that you’ve done just that. I’m so proud of you”

Sydney: “Thank you”

Irina: “Sydney, you may not see me on your wedding day – but I’ll see you”

(Aaaaaw, once again the Rambaldi storyline is closed, and we get a hint that Irina thinks the wedding will go ahead)



“I didn’t think I’d ever say this – but I believe you were trying to do the right thing”





Sydney: “I had a thought – What if we blow off the big wedding – what if we do it on the beach?”

Vaughn: “The beach?”

Sydney: “What do you think?”

Vaughn: “I like it, barefoot on the beach – you’d look sexy as hell. But what about you dad – he doesn’t look like the kinda guy who likes sand between his toes”

Sydney: “That’s true – so we won’t invite him”

Vaughn: “You’re father?”

Sydney: “What if we don’t invite anyone – we just elope”

Vaughn: “You serious?”

Sydney: “I would love it”

Vaughn: “Alright then, we’ll elope”

Sydney: “Have I told you that I love you?”

Vaughn: “Yeah, but tell em again.”

Sydney: “I love you”

Vaughn: “I love you too”

Sydney: “I know – say it again”

Vaughn: “I love you Syd – that’s why I need to tell you something, just so there’s no secrets between us.”

Sydney: “Okay – whatever it is I can handle it, just don’t tell me you’re a bad guy. You’re not a bad guy are you?”

Vaughn: “Depend who you ask.”

Sydney: “Vaughn?”

Vaughn: “It’s from a long time ago, before we met, actually it’s the reason we met, it’s no accident that I was the one you came to when you walked into the CIA with your story about SD-6”

Sydney: “Wait Vaughn, I don’t understand, what are you telling me?”

Vaughn: “Well for starters, my name’s not Michael Vaughn.”

(WHAM! Car is hit)

(So in once scene, we got a cool conversation about eloping, the “I love you’s” I’ve been waiting 4 seasons for and the Vaughn goes and points out there may be some sinister history)



Note-Ables



There’s only one that I picked up on throughout this episode worth mentioning and that would be that on Ylena’s big world map there were pins over various places, most likely indicating areas where she would attack, there were no pins over Australia, does that mean I’m safe??



What’s In A Name?

Before the flood, the liquid in the red ball or the flood of evil on the world



Scene of the Ep

Either when Sydney accepts the proposal or the start of the last scene



Loathed

The panic the cliffhanger puts me in… No Sydney and Vaughn??

Liked

Irina Derevko

Loved

Finally they’re engaged



Eilidh Nicholson :) all my reviews posted at http://spaces.msn.com/members/eilz3291

Ok what is going on? Last year we get what could have been a very big cliffhanger to the series but turns out to be something quite trivial and later false. But I can only hope that the end of this series has the big meaning behind it that it could imply. By the end of this episode I was left in quite a state it was quite a rollercoaster of information. With this rambaldi prophecy coming to an end you may think finally but I was quite upset with the lack of ‘humph’ in the fight between syd and her sister. This could have been better and I was expecting quite a big showdown. However I did like the fact it was Sloane who shoots her.

Who is Michael and what does all this mean, and why does Syds mum know about it? I think this may stem back to his father and will no doubt be linked to Rambaldi. I hope it is fully explained and not just pushed under a carpet.

The episode is good although very rushed and the cliffhanger is one of the best I have seen.

For the episode itself, this was a pretty good episode. Having Lena Olin back was awesome as she has always been one of my favourites. I wish, however, that they could have brought David Anders in somehow just to have a good dose of Sark.



They definately played it well with Sloane showing that he has redeemed himself however knowing this show it could just be leading to him turning again.



While msot are probably thinking that this means the Rambaldi prediction didn't come true however there is plenty time for one of the two to kill each other. You also can't count out the fact that Irina could still be the Chosen One and not Sydney. You just never know.



At the ending of the episode I was think where is the cliffhanger and then we had it. I am interested just to see how they plan to explain the fact that his father is a vaughn and he played it so well wanting to find his "father" when he thought he was alive. J.J. has a lot of explaining to do on this next season.

Although I must admit that there were some jumpy scenes in this episode, I have to say this was my favorite one from this season. There were quite a few twists thrown in, and the ending was just amazing. I actually jumped out of my seat, something I don't do often, especially for a TV show. One thing I want to see done next season is some kind of story about why the characters did what they did in this episode, especially Sloan. Although the special effects seem "cheap" at times, this episode was probably one of toughest done yet, because of the red ball and the water raining down upon the building.

I somewhat liked this episode. If it weren’t for the whole "My name isn’t Vaughn" cliffhanger it would have been my least favorite. I didn't like how they said there is no antidote once you're infected yet everyone knows Nadia isn't going to stay all freaky. I also thought her makeup was overdone. It seemed a little to Resident Evil if you ask me. One complaint, more about the series, is the continuality. I mean you can tell he never planned it originally for so long. Between the whole Irena situation (she’s dead, she’s alive, she’s dead, its a clone, she’s alive) I mean they should of thought some stuff through more because its seeming a little hard to believe now. Overall the episode wasn’t too bad. It just didn't seem very finale like, except the ending cliffhanger. I mean it seemed like they could've went to some weird city most people haven't heard of, and dismantled it, in ANY episode. Also the bring back Brody for a few minutes then kill him seemed like they just wanted it for a moment for people to squirm. Hopefully they will make up for the mediocre finale with a awesome next season (please go back to season 1/2 style) and hopefully the best season/series finale ever next time.