Mark Watches ‘Alias’: S03E16 – Taken

In the sixteenth episode of the third season of Alias, the Covenant gets revenge for Sark’s capture. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Alias. 

God, this show. It’s just???? We are nearing the end of season three, and there’s so much going on, and all of it stresses me out??? LITERALLY ALL OF IT. Let’s chat, friends!

Lauren / Dixon

Like… I hate all of the Covenant, and Sark has been easy to despise for a while, particularly this season. But there’s a certain element to my dislike of Lauren, and this episode truly highlights why she’s just as evil as Sark. Yes, she makes one comment about Dixon going through a nightmare, but SHE HELPED ORCHESTRATE THAT NIGHTMARE. She’s made her husband suffer; she’s made Sydney suffer; she has killed NUMEROUS PEOPLE WITH NO HESITATION AT ALL. But knowing that she leaked information so that Dixon’s kids could be kidnapped—after his wife was already killed because of his job—is so incredibly goddamn evil that I can’t ever see her finding redemption. (Same with Sark, for that matter.) I suppose it’s especially hard because Dixon’s suffering and torment is on full display throughout “Taken.” Lumbly is fantastic here, playing Dixon on the edge of grief and rage, and his scenes are all the best ones in this episode.

So there’s a contrast that I can’t ignore. Lauren is calmly leaking information and setting up Arvin Sloan and Dr. Barnett while Dixon has a near nervous breakdown. UNFORGIVABLE, Y’ALL. I really don’t think I can see her as a sympathetic character after this! Having just one statement that hints at remorse doesn’t make up for the metric TONS of pain she’s given to other people!

Arvin / Barnett

I had a brief, sneaking thought that Dr. Barnett was actually part of The Covenant and that she seduced Arvin in order to help frame him. In hindsight, I’m very glad I didn’t vocalize this poorly thought-out theory because IT MAKES LITERALLY NO SENSE AT ALL. What, was she just waiting around until she was useful? Maybe to get secrets from him or something? Rather, it makes much more sense that Lauren made Sloane the scapegoat because it’s so believable that he would betray everyone to the Covenant. I am still not at all willingly to believe that he’s turned a new leaf, but y’all. THE HORRIBLE IRONY. He is actually telling the truth in “Taken,” and yet no one will believe him! I don’t want to give Lauren props for this because SHE DESERVES NOTHING, but… shit, Arvin was the perfect person to frame.

I admit, however, that I am deeply confused about Dr. Barnett’s attraction to Arvin and her decision to break protocol to sleep with him. I always saw her as such a principled, ethical person, and I don’t know what she sees in him. And now, I have no idea where there story goes. I could see it being finished with this episode, given that she believes that he betrayed her and used her for his own end. Which would have been a very Arvin Sloane thing to do!

The Truth

Of course, a huge form of suspense that the writers have been using since “Full Disclosure” is the reveal that Lauren Reed is a double agent, that Vaughn’s been on a parallel journey to Jack Bristow, that the person responsible for all the leaks is RIGHT FUCKING NEXT TO THEM IN EVERY MEETING. Look, I can’t even fathom how pissed these people are going to be when they learn the truth. I think Dixon alone would kill her, but the writers make a very fascinating choice here: it’s Jack who first notices a clue that hints towards the identity of Sark’s partner. The episode ends on that realization, and all I can imagine is that he’s going to be sneaky as HELL. He is going to want to definitively prove that Lauren is the mole, and y’all. Y’ALL. He is not going to confront her immediately. He’s going to set a fucking trap. HE’S GOING TO DO IT.

Oh, I can’t wait. I CAN’T WAIT. Plus I suspect that all this Rambaldi/science fiction nonsense (which I love!!!) is finally going to be addressed in full. WHAT IS IN THE BOX WITH IRINA’S NAME ON IT!!!!

The video for “Taken” can be downloaded here for $0.99.

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