Customer Reviews

Alias: The Complete Third Season

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Great series, 1,2 and 3, and hated to leave it at season three but I have heard so much about season 4 and 5 not being up to the high quality of seasons 1-3 that I choose to leave it at three and move on.

I know that the third season of Alias is often maligned, and I used to think it was for good reason. I just finished watching season three on DVD and, I must admit, it was much better than I remember it being. The show flows better when you are able to watch the episodes back to back. I still miss the additional storylines involving Sydneys personal life, (Will, Francie, etc...) but all in all this season was still better than most of the stuff that's on tv. The DVD package is good, beautifully packaged and packed full of great extras. The blooper reel is better than other years, with all the cast getting their turn to screw up and the commentaries (especially from the fans) are excellent and thoughtful, as well as funny. This is a must have for any self-respecting Alis fan. Enjoy!

Many critics agree that Season 3 was not this show's most shining moment. But all the more reason to pick up the DVD though! Why? Because the "fan commentary" on this set comes from none other than TelevisionWithoutPity.com's "Alias" recapper extraordinaire, Regina, who--along with a winner of a Chicago radio contest--recaps the premiere ep of Season 3, "The Two." As the saying goes, hilarity ensues.

Credit the show's producers with allowing snark of this magnitude to be attached to the official product by buying a set. At least they have a sense of humor and an ability to not take themselves too seriously.

I have watched the entirety of the first, second, and third seasons, and I, like many, found this season to be disappointing overall compared to the previous seasons. There was a block of episodes in the middle of the season that accomplished nothing (the 3 episodes between the North Korea incident and the episode where Vaughn pretends to be Sark). Additionally, the aura of the show has been a lot darker, especially with the absence of Will. The charm of Sark is lost in midseason as well - some of his lines get a little too cheesy, especially since in the past he's been pretty on-point with having a certain cynical, dry wit.

However, I think there are a lot of things that make this season worth watching and give the fourth season a fighting chance for being one of the better seasons. First of all, the first half of the season is excellent to watch - the attempts by Sydney to discover what happened to her in the past two years are interesting and well tied together in the resolution to this dilemma in the middle of the season. The second half of the season has its moments as well. The North Korea episode, while not a pivotal episode for the main themes of the show, was well done and intense. There is a glimpse of the humor that gave the show some charm in the first two seasons with the return of Will in one episode, as well as the episode where Vaughn pretends to be Sark. The return of Conrad (the monk in Nepal who originally sent Sloane on the Rambaldi mission) resolves what the documents were that he revealed to Sloane. The final episodes where The Passenger is revealed are also pretty well done, and the finale, while not as mindblowing as previous seasons, leaves the show open for the fourth season. Since the show won't be returning until January 2005, the writers have much more time to concoct a more intricate and satisfying plot.

While this is not the best season, it is interesting, worth-watching, and necessary to enjoy the subsequent seasons of Alias.

I'm not going to comment on the regular episodes, as that has already be covered extensively.
The packaging however is excellent. Skinnier than the first two installments, season three is packaged in a book style case. (http://www.blakex.com/alias/bookfan.jpg) Very convenient.
The extras are all worth your time and money. Unquestionably, the highlight of the multiple commentaries, is the one for the season premiere. It was recorded by two fans; one won a radio contest, and the other is the re-capper for Television Without Pity. Neither dissapoint, providing us with a good example of what hard-core fans of the show really think of their beloved obsession.
The much hyped animated short is entertaining but doesn't really move the plot along or answer any burning questions. Finally, the blooper reel is a good length and great quality compared to the last two seasons.
A good addition to any ALIAS fan's collection.

Have you ever wondered what the world of espionage, high tech gadgets and the goings-on of the CIA is like, this should answer a few questions for you.

Alias the 3rd season was great, although it may not have been the most action filled year of the three, it was a building on Sydney's emotional aspects, as well as Vaughn's. I never missed an episode.It kept you on your toes, as well as on the edge of your seat.

Sydney is just a great role model, sure the clothes can be a bit scary, but the girl underneath is great, Jeniffer Garner, known as Sydney on Alias and in the movie Daredevil as kick-butt girl Elektra, also known for her lead role on the summer of 2004 hit 13 going on 30!

Alias had an awesome season, with a great cast, Ron Rifkin,Merrin Dungey,Michael Vartan,Greg Grunburg, Melissa George,Victor Garber, David Anders, CArl Lumbley, and Kevin Weisman. With plenty of great guest stars this season including: a return of Will, Bradley Cooper,as well as Mia Maestro,Isabella Rossellini, David Cronenberg and Quintin Tarentino.

In other words, what I'm saying is you have got to see these, they are great episodes.If you are waiting for the next season (season 4) in the states or just in the middle of season 3 in the UK, you have just gotta see this!!

Alias has produced some of the most enjoyable, interesting television in years. Seasons 1 and 2 were action-packed, alias-filled and they kept you on the edge of your seat. Season 3 met those expectations, but didn't do anything spectacular to go above and beyond it's preceding seasons. That's where we were disappointed.

We came into Season 3 expecting the action, the aliases, the suspenseful missions. But the fact of the matter is, Seasons 1 and 2 had the SD-6 situation to fall back on. The Covenant, our current terrorist organization, is not as deceiving, as involved. Sydney doesn't have the determination and motivation she previously had to take them down. And we, the viewers, certainly don't have the motivation to sit and wait for her to find it.

Lauren's all-too-obvious reveal as a double agent for the Covenant DID improve the season. Dramatically. Except for one thing: we, the viewers, refused to see the advantages of her reveal. Between the 'cow-bashing' on the boards and the letters of complaint to JJ, you wouldn't know that there was anything ELSE going on in the season besides Lauren being evil.

The love triangle was overplayed, yes. But after all the complaining from viewers, the tension between Syd/Vaughn, are we not happy with our resolution? And for those who have become sick of Syd/Vaughn, were you sick of the first two seasons too? Because if you think about it, everything leading up to Phase One was theirs, their tension, their struggle to hold back on their feelings.

So what exactly is it that we're all sick of?

Alias is the best show on TV. it has everything that a show should have like an awsome love triangle, dangerous life or death situations and really hot stars. Jennifer Garner makes the character of Sydney Bristow soo amazing and in season 3 she proved why she is truly one of the greatest actresses to grace TV and movies. i loved season 3 and Lauren was the best villian on it since Irina Derevko. i loved how she drove fans like me nuts because of the way she played Vaughn and kept him and Sydney apart. (...) she was one of my favorite character's on the show. i was a bit dissapointed that the season ended the way it did and i wanted a huge Sydney/evil Francie fight between Sydney and Lauren but that didn't really happen and the fight was just ok but good. This dvd is definately a must have for the Alias freaks like me out there that have everything of the show!!!!

Alias is ultimately the best and most intriguing show on television. I, myself have been an Alias fan from the minute it began in 2001. It has been for the past three years the only show i cannot live without. Basically, i start preparing for Alias at least 3 days before. This include an increase of giddines and excitement. No show has ever done that for me. It is the perfect blend of drama, suspense, (a little comedy) and romance. Seasons 1 and 2 were the most riveting and amazing seasons of a television show ever.There were some problems with season 3 ..that somewhat disappointed me. And me being a hardcore alias nothing slips beneath my eye. NOTHING!!!However, seasoon 3 was still the best hour on television every week or (sometimes every 2 weeks )[thanks ABC ]
Some wrong things about Season 3:

1. In seasons 1 and 2, Sydney always had friends and a personal life (will and francie.) In season 3, her relationship with vaughn was no longer in existane and she didnt have her friends. Therefore, there really was a lack of relatable instances in season 3. I believe this definetely increased the chaos of the spy-world which made the show less believable and real. Hopefully, season 4 ..she'll make friends and have vaughn again.

2. Okay did anyone notice in season 3, the C.I.A workers were using different cellphones and my biggest pet peeve was that Sydney started calling Weiss-Eric and Vaughn---Michael..am i the only one this bothered. First of all the whole calling people by there last names was always very intriguing and just something different. I loved that!! hopefuly it comes back.

And all alias fans are pining the fact that we have to wait a looooong time for alias. I myself almost cried but realized that hopefully J.J Abrams(the genius) will be able to bring the show back to life and back to its old valor(which i know he can do)

I could stay here for days just talking about why alias is amazing and how good it is..however im going to go watch season 1 and 2 for the billionth time..

The third season of Alias picks up right where the second left off with Sydney waking up in Asia two years after the events in season 2, with no memory of how or why she got there. When Sydney makes it safely into CIA custody, she learns that fellow CIA agent and boyfriend Michael Vaughn( Michael Vartan)thought Sydney was dead,and moved on to marry another woman named Lauren Reed(Melissa George), her father Jack Bristow( Victor Garber) is in prison, Dixon( Carl Lumbly) is now the director of the CIA office she worked for, and her greatest enemy Sloan ( Ron Rifkin)is now a changed man who is running one of the most respected charity organizations in the world. Sydney manages to get Jack released, only to discover through videotape evidence from Jack that Sydney murdered a man in cold blood during the mysterious two years of her life that she went missing. This would begin the chain reaction of events for the rest of season 3 which include Sydney finding out who took the two years from her life and what happened during that time, as well as fighting her feelings for Vaughn.

I have been a huge fan of Alias for the last three years, and I have never missed a single episode. The first season of Alias provided for an original, sexy, and fresh spy thriller that was packed full of great action and dialogue. The second season of Alias managed to somehow be even better, and had an outstanding cliffhanger that left fans of the show feeling anxious to find out what happens. Season 3 did have a lot of momentum going in. But with Vaughn being married to the unlikeable Lauren Reed, and Sloan offering no suspense as a changed man, season 3 could not seem to find the same rythm as the previous two seasons. However, after the initial speedbump in the beginning of the season, season 3 still manages to offer plenty of twists, action, suspense, great cliffhangers, and the sexy Jennifer Garner. Overall, fans of the show will still be satisfied for the most part. The only problem, is that the first two seasons set the bar so high, that season 3 could just not go any higher.

The DVD package itself still manages to live up to its predecessors however. The extras are first rate with commentary from cast and crew, deleted scenes, and two featurettes. However, the blooper reel is what I am looking forward to the most. The blooper reels in the last two sets have been hilarious, and I have no doubt that the one for season 3 will be just as good. With great DVD features and a good overall season, the season 3 DVD set is definately worth owning.

A solid 4 stars...