S1 E7 – Color Blind

So Sydney is trapped in a mental institution with someone from K-Directorate posing as a doctor, not a great way to start for her.  Vaughn set up a meeting with Jack, but since Jack hasn’t met him before the first thing he does is pull a gun on him and shove him up against the wall. So knowing what we know, not the best way to meet your future father in law. But Vaughn did set up the meeting to tell Jack that K-Directorate is in the mental institution and that he wants to pull Sydney out.  He is very concerned about Sydney’s well-being right now. And he’s a little concerned that Jack doesn’t feel the same way.  Vaughn tells him that Sydney’s life is more important than the mission, and tells him that they will retire her early to keep her safe.  Jack tells him that Sydney would not see it that way.  He goes on saying that shutting down SD-6 is what gets her up in the mornings.  But then he adds, “Or did you think it was those meetings with you?” Jack knows that Vaughn likes her, and he does not like it one bit.  Vaughn takes big offense to this and asks “What is your problem with me?”  Jack is mad about Vaughn pulling his file, and wonders if he was just curious or if he was trying to impress Sydney.  Vaughn calms himself down and tells him that Sydney thinks that he is KGB, and would like to know why Jack isn’t worried about that, but is instead checking up on Vaughn checking up Jack. (I hope that makes sense, I have typed five different ways now, I said I wasn’t a writer, right?)  Jack immediately ends the conversation and leaves.

Sydney managed to talk her way out of the torture room; of course she had to go thru some shock therapy first unfortunately.  She found Shepard (the man with the information she is supposed to get) again, but since she knows the code to his brain, he doesn’t trust her, also because he has seen her before.  She tells him that they have never met.  She has reached the point where she has abandoned the mission, but just wants to get out and she thinks that Shepard can help her.  But he is very reluctant.  But he does eventually help her to escape and he escapes with him.  She gets to the safe house and goes to call Vaughn to check in, but reaches Jack instead; he had Vaughn’s number forwarded to his phone. (Not cool in my opinion) He tells her how she will get back home with Shepard.   Sydney is talking with Shepard and she is empathizing with his thought process of feeling like someone took over who he is and programmed him, and wonders who he really is.  After finding out about SD-6 Sydney, I’m sure, had some of those same feelings. But he tells her, “Please tell me who you are Sydney maybe that will help me understand.”  She never told him her name, and she wants to know how he knew her name.  He tells her that it was on the banner that said, “Happy Birthday Sydney.”  Suddenly she realizes why SD-6 wants him back; he was the one who killed Danny.  It wasn’t another terrorist organization that programmed him, but it was SD-6.  She goes out into the woods and has a good cry, but then comes in and tells Shepard who Danny was and why he was ordered to kill him.  She tells him who programmed him and promises that she will take down the people that did this to them.  When Sydney returns to SD-6 she tells Sloane that Shepard gave up the information and then later committed suicide.

Sydney is retelling the story to Vaughn, is the storage garage and tells him that she was going to tell him the lie too, but she can’t stand lying to anyone else.    I think that she has to lie to everyone in her life, except her father and she can’t / doesn’t trust her father, so she is happy to have Vaughn there as someone that she can be honest with.  I can’t imagine the strain that she would be under, having to keep up with all the lies that she tells and who she has told what.  It must be exhausting.  So Vaughn must be like a lifesaver that she can grab on to when she feels like she can’t tread the water any longer.

Vaughn is appreciative that she isn’t lying to her, then he admits that “we” were worried, Sydney replied by telling him that she knows how the agency hates to lose assets.  So he corrected himself and said, “I was worried.” I love his smile here.  (Granted I will always love Michael Vartan’s smile) He admits that he contacted Jack, she was surprised at this, I think she even thought that it was sweet that he was so concerned for her.  He tells her that they are getting a gold mine of information from the leak that they placed in the SD-6 computer.  Then tells her to go home, get some rest and to have a good Thanksgiving. 

Jack stops by Sydney’s apartment while she is having Thanksgiving dinner with her friends, there are some awkward moments between them, and them he blurts out that Shepard killed Danny, and he assumes that she already knows.  She tells him that if she didn’t, thanks for breaking it to her so gently.  He wants her to know that he isn’t out to keep secrets form her.  She asks why he does; he brings out papers that clear him from any affiliation with the KGB.  He tells her that during the cold war everyone was being investigated, so he supposes that in a way he is to blame for her mother’s death.   Jack loves Sydney so much that he is willing to take the blame and let her be mad at him for the death rather than tell her the truth that will hurt her to hear even more.  She tells her dad that she doesn’t need the papers, and asks him to come in and join them for dinner.  He tells her that he has to work and goes back to being cold towards her.  But they defiantly had a good moment.  Plus the fact that she brings him leftovers the next day to SD-6 is really sweet, and shows that she really does care about her father, contrary to what she said to him in the last episode.

A new mission has been set, and Sydney is getting ready to go, so she meets with Vaughn at the Micro Storage.  They go over the basics and then he tells her that Anna Espinosa was spotted at the mental institution after Sydney escaped, so she needs to be careful since Anna may be there when she gets to London.  They essentially wrap up their conversation and Vaughn looks at Sydney longingly as she puts on her jacket.  Then he asks how her Thanksgiving was.  She tells him about Francie getting engaged, he seems truly interested in how she spent her time, asking the right questions, great moment.  Sydney returned the question and he told her it was pretty typical, he spent it with his mom.  Sydney then asks about Alice, he smiles as he tells her that they broke up.  She says she’s sorry, but she smiled as well.  Than they walk out together.  It was a great moment!  I love how he is initiating more personal interactions.  If it wasn’t obvious before, Michael Vaughn has officially fallen for Sydney Bristow.

•   Items I found noteworthy…
• When Sydney is hit with a tranquilizer she doesn’t go down immediately, unlike everyone else does. 
• Sloane mentions to Jack that he cares for Sydney like his own daughter. 
• Will finds out that Eloise Kurtz was found dead.  Asks to write the story, then when his editor realizes it is a real story he has changed his mind and has decided that he can’t do that to Sydney.  He is told that he is doing the story or someone else will. 
• Someone tells Sloane that the Alliance believes that Sloane has a mole; in fact they believe that he may have two.  He tells them that he will take care of it.