Friday, November 09, 2007

Friday Fun: Song of the Day

Okay. I have not been here. At all. For days. It's bad, I know. So from now on, I will post each Friday. Something fun, something interesting, something from back in the archives to keep us entertained.

Today is Song of the Day!

Today's song is "Give You Back" by Vertical Horizon. The song appears in the pilot, at the end when Sydney visits Danny's gravesite and she learns that Jack is also a double agent. The song is perfect in the fact that Jack can never give Sydney back her old life or Danny. It sucks, but its the truth. Truth be told. See what I did there? Ha!



I was thinking- I watched the pilot only after I began watching season 2. I already knew Jack was a double agent- so the moment he hands her the cell phone was lost on me. What about all of you? Was it a shock to learn Jack was also a double?

Oh and by the way, how are all of you???

Til next Friday- Girlscout over and out.

16 comments:

Lisa said...

oh yes, I remember that moment, GS, the first of many Alias shocking cliffhanger endings. it was genius, really, showing just a shade of the complexity of Syd and Jack's relationship to come.

I/we (my family) are fine! thanks for asking!!

Page48 said...

Oh, GS, don't get me started on "Truth Be Told".

It's a thing of television beauty. Three weeks of watching the aftermath of September 11, nothing but Wolf Blitzer and Aaron Brown and Dan Rather and America's Mayor and canceled sporting events, etc...., and then, completely out of the blue (at least to me) comes TBT, with a slender young Sydney Bristow ready to match wits with evil, biting off more than we ourselves would ever dare to chew.

TBT could have been a theatrical release IMO, it was as good as all that. It pisses me off when I see TBT cut down for 60 minute viewing when the series is shown on TV in reruns.

As far as the song of the day, I never heard of Vertical Horizon before or since. The only place I have ever heard "Give You Back" is at the end of TBT, and that's the way I want it. I don't ever want to hear that song on radio or, God forbid, in another TV show. Like so many musical contributions to "Alias", it seems like the perfect music for the scene.

And, what about that scene?? It's gorgeous visually (hazy sunshine, palm trees, breeze blowing Syd's hair around,). It's gorgeous sonically (with the song of the day). And it's gorgeous in the terms of shock value, when we find out that Jack is CIA too.

If you get the chance, watch the scene again. Notice the camera as it does almost a 360 around Sydney at the gravesite, keeping Jack's presence a secret until the last possible moment, revealing his black sedan seconds before Jack himself is revealed. Do these guys know how to deliver a powerful scene or what?

Kids, there's nothing like this on television anymore. "Chuck" tries to be a funny "Alias", but that doesn't cut it with me. "Bionic Woman" is often described in reviews I see on the net as an "Alias" replacement, but, truth be told (see GS, we can all play that game), BW is as close to "Alias" as a frog is to feathers.

"Alias" spoiled me, I can't accept trash TV anymore. The problem is, trash TV is everywhere. Do we think Michael Vartan doesn't know that his show is crap? Do we think it hasn't occurred to Ron Rifkin et al that their new show blows? Do we think Victor Garber isn't nervous about having his 3rd cancellation in 3 years?

For those of us who now cling to the hope that "Alias" will heed the call of the big screen, hope comes in the form of "X-Files", a show that was put down 5 seasons ago, and is now coming back for more.

Paul Kremer said...

Hey GirlScout, I'm back! It's Paul. For some silly reason, this page won't accept my password.

I was thinking about starting watching ALIAS through again sometime now that I am caught up on Heroes! Heroes is my new addiction. I completely ignored it the whole first season, and just offhandedly rented the first disc one day. My roommate became totally addicted and blew through the whole first season in a week! I just can't believe how good the show is. It's not ALIAS, but I am enjoying it just as much.

It's nice to see Greg Grunberg and Sark back together in a show again. Yes, I know Sark has a real name, but he will always be Sark to me! :)

SKlaft said...

Welcome back Paul.

It is the concensus here at LTA that heroes is pretty good, but its pacing is way too slow. Personally, I think it is even slower than LOST, though I contiue to look forward to the next episode of each. No, they are not ALIAS, and really do not even deserve to be compared, but at least we have something to watch while we wait for the next episode of more mature shows like "The Unit," "Battlestar Galactica," "House MD," and "Burn Notice." (Okay, Burn Notice lacks a little maturity, but it makes up for it by being as smooth as satin sheets).

Of course, college football absorbs my Saturdays from noon to midnight, often watching two or three games at a time. I have also been lauding the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Challenge) and thier mixed martial arts competitions.

One show that I rarely tell anyone I watch is "Boston Legal." The aggrivation of an unballanced presentation of the prevailent political philosophies (Liberal vs. Conservative) is bad, but the humor and intelligent story-telling makes it worth enduring. (As a disclaimer, I would be opposed to either side of a debate attempting to influence public thought by coloring the opposition as goofy, stupid, and heartless. Its easy to make your own side look intelligent and compassionate when you get to frame the issue and design the scenario to fit the ideology you want to promote.) At any rate, it does deal with controversy from a very human, and often humorous point of view, and if nothing else, it makes you think. Anything that causes people to think for themselves is good for... well, everyone.

I didn't mean to rant, but it IS a good show and I enjoy it very much.

...and that's all I have to say about that.

-R.

Page48 said...

Another useful function of "Boston Legal" is that it gives grizzled veterans like John Larroquette a reason to live.

Now, if they could just find room for Markie Post...and Bull...and Harry.

uncle111 said...

I totally agree with Page 48 about TBT. It is TV art at it's finest. It is the best of Alias episodes, and hence of any TV episode ever. And I think the cemetary scene might be the best of TBT. TBT set the mold for the whole series, and the next 5(+) years of our lives. Is that too dramatic a statement?

Page48 said...

Since "Chuck" wants to be "Alias" with laughs, why not have Kevin "Marshall" Weisman guest star?

Okay, done.

Instant "Alias" credibility??? Uhhhhhhh, not quite, but good to see Marshall get a gig. Next hour, Weiss and Sark.

Page48 said...

Shame on moi for not noticing before today that Syd's off-the-charts scene with Dixon beside the oil rigs in "Phase One" was in some ways a reprise of her confessional chat with Danny about her CIA career path in TBT.

I kept switching back and forth from one scene to the other to see if I could spot a building or equipment that would confirm that it was the same location for both scenes, but I could not be certain.

If you'll recall in PO, as Dixon walked away from Sydney in disbelief, Syd maneuvered herself quickly to get back in front of him ("you have to listen to me"). She executed a similar move with Danny as he, too, began to walk away, proving, I suppose, that you do not walk away from Sydney Bristow when she's talking to you near the oil rigs.

In other news, I never get tired of seeing the exchange between Syd and Will on the track when Syd tells Will she's getting married. Will tries to play it cool, but he's so obviously gutted by the news. (Who among us hasn't suffered that indignity?) He feigns interest in her ring and quickly tries to change the subject. Syd knew it was going to crush him, but the truth had to be told. Still, you can see in her expression that she took no joy in plunging the dagger through Will's soul. Great facial expressions on both actors. What a truly bitchin' piece of television!

Page48 said...

And, going OT for a second, I see the boss of "Heroes" has been hearing the whispers of disgruntled viewers who have been quickly growing tired of Season Two's tedious storylines.

I read today where he has more or less apologized for boring the crap out of loyal fans with such poop as the 7 episode arc showcasing Hiro and Sark in 17th century Japan (snoooooooozefest) and wasting our time with Claire's uneventful new life, hiding out at the local high school. They saved the cheerleader, but now what do they do with her?

Apologies were not issued, however, for giving Hiro the night off last night, after taking so long to return him to present day civilization. Last night was notable for it's absence of major players, such as HRG, Weiss, Suresh, Sylar, Hiro, Claire and Mr. Muggles. On the other hand, Julian Sark was front and center.

All things considered, there isn't much on the tube these days.

Bonkers for Bristow said...

OK,
I'm gonna try and post here. A couple days ago i wrote a nice long post but it wouldn't log me in and I lost it all. I got so frustrated that I said forget it. I'm ready to try again. :)

Monday's Heroes was awesome. Any episode that features Mr. Sark as much as that one did is a-ok in my book. I didn't even miss some of the other characters. Although I'm done with the Mexican Wonder twins and Nicki/Jessica and her bratty kid.

A couple weeks back we were talking about The Unit. In my review I almost said that it was just a matter of time before they had to kill someone off to stay as gritty as it is. Now I feel both clairvoyant and a tad bit guilty. Like I had something to do with the way that episode ended. I haven't see the follow up yet but I've heard it's good.

And since this is still an Alias blog, I agree that the pilot has to be one of the best episodes in the history of tv. Followed closely by Phase One, which in case I haven't mentioned it before, is my FAVORITE episode ever. :) And speaking of music, I think it was Page who said that the music in BW is sorely lacking. You don't realize how much the music was a character in the show until you see a show that doesn't quite get it.

Page48 said...

Bonkers, I have serious "who cares?" issues with the Mexican Wonder Twins as well. I believe "Heroes" has enough juggling of characters to accomplish without bringing in too many newbies (Sark being a notable exception, of course). And, IMO, they also have enough captioning going on without bringing on more. A person can either watch the picture, or read the captioning, but if someone can do both, they're a better man than I am. Surely, it's not a stretch to have English-speaking Mexican Wonder Twins.

Maybe I'm just out of the loop, but I don't recognize any of the music on BW. "Alias" was full of recognizable songs and voices, (Sinead, Doors, Cat, Dylan) and many artists I've never heard of, but whose music fit right in. The only song I've recognized in BW was in the 2nd eppie, when they ran a song that was being played to death in a car commercial. And they used it twice in the same show!

I noticed this week's BW introduced a funky new entrance into the Burket Bunker, reminiscent of the APO bunker as well as the Season One entrance to SD6 (Bright light, etc...). I also couldn't help but notice that BW caved into the wishes of the old-school lobby and brought back slo-mo to accompany the bionic noise which has slowly returned in recent eppies.

BW still hasn't decided who it wants to be, but I don't think they'll have to worry about that much longer unless they start telling a connected story and lose the fluff angle.

uncle111 said...

Page48-
Good comments as usual.
I think the Heroes illegal aliens are simply a play for illegals viewers. That kind of "viewer engineering" always ends up degrading the quality of a story.

uncle111 said...

Well, since we are talking about the broader realm of television, and yet keeping my comments to the world of spy TV:
1964, at age 12, while watching the TV series "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." is when I first wanted to be a spy.
In 2007 at age...well, you figure it out... I received an advanced copy of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. 4 season DVD set free of charge because my U.N.C.L.E. website was chosen to be used in the DVD's bonus material. My name even appears in the credits.
Little did I know that my favorite adolescent TV show was actually conditioning me to become addicted to Alias. My evidence for the advanced indoctrination comes from what little I have watched of the DVDs so far:
-The number 47 appears in more than one episode. One time it is on the hero's speedometer, in two parts of the same mileage reading!
- In one episode there are two characters who foreshadow Alias characters- A German genius named Oscar (Mueller?), and an Italian woman, last name Donato. In another episode there is a character named Irina, and in another there is one named Elena.
- And the series long world wide evil organization (The Alliance/P5?) has a Project Christmas type program.

I wonder what other Alias foreshadowings I'm going to discover as I make my way through the series. Will I ever discover the mastermind behind this plot? And could it actually have it's origins in the 15th century?

Okay- on to a dreaded dose of reality- work.

Page48 said...

And now the vigil is on until the next great spy show comes along. How long will the wait be? Don't know, but it will be too long whether it's 10 years or next year.

Spy movies are great, but there might be one a year if we're lucky. "Casino Royale" rebooted the Bond franchise this year and the Bourne movies are always a rush, and in spite of Tom Cruise's personal nonsense, I really like his MI movies.

However, 22 eppies per season beats the heck out of one movie every 3 years. I used to watch a British show called "MI5", which I enjoyed, but it disappeared from Canadian TV rather unceremoniously.

The next great spy show is out there somewhere, but it may only be a gleam in someone's eye right now, in which case, we'll have to suffer through the kind of poop the networks treated us to this fall until that next JJ bursts onto the scene with his outrageous vision.

Bonkers for Bristow said...

Forgive me for beating a dead horse here, but no one will appreciate this as much as you guys.
I am required to watch Bionic Woman because my husband enjoys it and every episode is a stab in the heart. I continually see scenes, plot elements or character development that come straight from Alias.
Please humor me while I list the things the BW writers have stolen - and watered down - from Alias.

1)Our main character finds out in the pilot that the life she was living was manipulated by someone close to her (fiance vs Sloan).

2)Her fiance dies.

3)She lives with a female roommate with which she has a close relationship and is uncomfortable lying to.

4)She has a male partner in her new job that is older, has been with the company longer, and is Africa-American.

5)She has to pass through a lighted tunnel and be scanned before entering work.

6)She is dating a CIA agent.

7)She had to fly to France for an assignment, scan potential bad guys for the techie guy in the van and use her sex-appeal to get past the guards. Then, the CIA agent asked her to dinner in the most romantic city in the world.

8)There is soft, soulful music when she interacts with the person who she lives with.

9)Plans get broken at the last minute by cell phone calls.

This last episode featured a race track and I half expected someone to get beaned in the head by a shovel while skulking around the stables.
Do you think the writers strike hit BW early so they found the old Alias scripts and put different pages together to make their own?

Page48 said...

Bonkers, not to mention that Nathan is clearly a dressed-down, only slightly post-adolescent Marshall Flinkman, fulfilling the goofy geek requirement of every underground, special ops-type organization.

One thing that BW forgot to borrow from "Alias" was the excitement, the mojo, the OMG factor, the adrenaline rush, whatever you want to call it. No copyright infringement there.

Also notable here is that, contrary to what Aerosmith would have you believe, Jaime don't gotta gun. I don't know how many times they refer to her as a weapon, and she's not even packin'.

Run of the mill bad guys, no rival outfit, no mission statement (i.e. take down SD6), sloppy stakeouts requiring compromising cleanups, a 50 million dollar retrofitted babe with no spy training and no gun, these are all problematic for the "Alias" addict looking for a fix.

I wouldn't be in any hurry to pull these writers off the picket line. Let 'em sweat it out and think about the error of their ways. If there are any "Alias" writers in the vicinity, perhaps BW writers will have a chance to rub shoulders with greatness and maybe they'll bring some of that greatness back with them when BW resumes...or maybe pigs will fly.