Review of Episode 11: Maternal Instinct
04/19/06
Moreau: "I'm sure she'll be a wonderful parent to
her own child. She has two such lovely role models."
Spy Mom and Spy Dad, together again. Oh, Irina, how I've
missed you. I dare say Jack and Irina together are "Alias"
at its best. It was so much fun to see all three of them undercover
together. And Sydney going into labor during a clandestine
mission? Had to happen.
Loved Jack taking the beacon out of Irina's bra. Loved Peyton
calling Jack "Grandpa" right before he took her
down. Loved Irina staying to deliver Sydney's baby. Loved
the way Dixon and Renee interrogated Jean Bertrand. I even
liked the faux Italian accents.
It's a girl. Another Derevko woman. (Be afraid. Be very afraid.)
What will Sydney name her? In the first episode of season
five, Sydney and Vaughn agreed on a name: Isabelle Bristow
Vaughn. But I still think it should be a beautiful Russian
name ending with the letter A. It's a family tradition, after
all.
And now Irina has the Horizon, whatever it is. Irina, Irina,
Irina. What are you doing? Irina confessed to Sydney that
she was ordered to get pregnant (what they called "blood
cover" on "La Femme Nikita"), and that she
couldn't be both a good mother and a good agent. But Irina
couldn't bring herself to leave Sydney alone while she was
in labor. Sydney is still more important to Irina than anything
else. Maybe what Irina is doing with the Horizon isn't evil;
she did say, "They're not my team" when she was
talking about Prophet Five.
Vaughn is alive! I knew it! (Well, I hoped it.) The scene
where he was shot three zillion times was faked then; it must
have been squibs. And it appears that Jack and Sydney knew
all along. I'm trying not to hope for too much for the series
finale, but I want Sydney and Vaughn to live happily ever
after, taking down bad guys and raising their daughter together.
I want Jack and Irina together in the end even more than Sydney
and Vaughn, although I don't believe it will happen. And since
I'm making wishes, how about Weiss and Nadia? I'm a romantic,
what can I say.
Bits and pieces:
-- Sydney's initial reaction to seeing Irina ("Mom?")
was a callback to the beginning of season two. She and Irina
talked about "truth takes time," also from season
two. And Prophet Five's extraction of Jeffrey Davenport, complete
with scary car accident, was just like Vaughn's at the end
of season four.
-- The x-ray of the Horizon made it look like a large tampon.
-- Sydney had to hold a gun on her mother while she was in
labor. ("Cover your mother.") Only on "Alias."
-- Jennifer Garner looks so much like Lena Olin that it's
almost eerie.
-- Things with Tom are still looking bad. Did he tell the
Cardinal about Davenport? And Tom just scammed the heck out
of Rachel, who is still way too naive for a secret agent.
-- We got the short version of the Jack and Marshall show.
Jack's voice modulates a little when he's talking to Sydney.
:)
-- Loved the shot of Amy Acker walking away as the helicopter
debris fell behind her, outside the office windows.
-- Jack didn't go to jail after all.
-- Still nothing about Nadia. You're an aunt, Nadia.
-- "Leo 47 Norte." I shouldn't even have to mention
it, since we all know 47 is Rambaldi's favorite number.
-- When Jack asked Sydney where she'd like to be, I immediately
said out loud, "On a beach with Vaughn." And that's
just what Sydney said.
-- The Prophet Five organization is thirty years old. That's
close to how old Sydney is, isn't it? It got active again
only six months ago.
-- This week's itinerary: Paris, Vancouver, Bhutan. For a
moment, I thought we were going to see David Carradine again.
-- This week's hot look: Undercover Irina in her little black
dress. And Renee Rienne, with those fishnet stockings, spike
heels, and blonde wig.
-- Dixon: "Let's be honest, Syd. Right now, you waddle."
Not any more, thank heaven. It felt like Sydney was pregnant
forever. Fie on you, Ben Affleck.
-- Marshall: "I love secret conspiracies. As long as
I'm a co-conspirator."
-- Sydney: "She has Vaughn's eyes." So she's not
Rambaldi's baby? Maybe Rambaldi has Vaughn's eyes, too.
-- Irina: "Tell the team they'll need diapers."
Looks like they brought baby clothes, too.
An episode in which a major character gives birth is usually
so sweet that it's gagworthy. But not this one. Loved it to
bits. Four out of four spies,
Billie
- Review by Billie Doux
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