I'm also just finishing up watching Season 2. Are they showing Season 3 on tv right now? Is there any word about a Season 3 marathon during the summer?

Chris

Or, conversely, watching them all without breaks might make the lame-ass expository dialog (with characters discussing stuff in detail that they already know... just to keep the audience 'up to date') will seem all the more painful.

I love(d) Alias, so it pains me to have to say this... but the writing/pacing of the show suffered considerably during Season 3. Having all episodes at hand to watch at your own pace solves one of the annoyances from this season, but it can't work magic. The show was poorly-written and adrift during S3. I just hope they can turn things around for S4.

(Although, I also agree that bad Alias is better than 99% of what's on television. It's just frustrating that such a great, promising show nosedived so quickly.)

Well I saw the first few episodes of Season 3 during their first showing, so I know the direction they were taking. But since I hadn't at the time seen Seasons 1 & 2, I stopped watching it, because too much stuff was going over my head.

I hope to see Season 3 before Season 4 starts in Jan 2005, which if I may say is a great idea for shows like Alias & 24. This last season of 24 was so frustrating when they went away for 5 weeks or so. I almost lost interest when it came back. So having both shows go for 22 weeks straight is a plus for me. Especially since we are all going to be checking out the new shows from Sept thru Nov and then the holidays in December, so January 2005 is a perfect time to start these 2 series.

Chris

I'm not so sure about that....

I found season 3 extremely unrewarding. Even the show's creator has practically admitted that it stunk. I hope season 4 (which doesn't start until January so they can try to fix it) will be better. If it isn't this was one of the fastest flameouts ever. X-Files and Buffy each had 5 years of pretty solid stuff before they started to slide. Alias drops aafter 2? That's sad.

Well now that I've seen the first 2 seasons on DVD, I think I can speak with a little knowledge.

The first 2 seasons were incredible in the sense of how everyone was connected to each other. In the last 2 episodes of Season 2 we saw how Francie/Allison was romantically linked to Sark, who was her handler (?). And Allison was one of the 'special' kids discovered in 1982. You get the idea.

This wasn't simple storying telling and even though a lot of it was unrealistic, it was still enjoyable to watch, especially over the course of 2 weeks for each season on DVD.

The stories and characters were so complex, that basically JJ Abrams 'shot' his wad the first 2 seasons and it became difficult to create a 'realistic' Season 3.

Of course I only saw the first few episodes of Season 3, so my comments about Season 3 are based on the majority of opinions in this thread.

But I expect Season 4 (and Season 3 for that matter, when I finally see it on DVD), to be enjoyable and worth an hour a week to watch it. And Jennifer Garner is a very beautiful actress, who makes even the slow scenes, watchable!

Chris

Spoilers






One thing I wish they would have did on the whole evil Francine thing is that instead of making her a clone, that was a sleeper agent. Why couldn't they have just made Francine the sleeper agent. I would have made the show more realistic, and it would have added a bigger emotional punch to the show.

my eyes, your spoilers didn't work!

Chris

Season 3 delivers on none of the promise of the end of season 2. It all just dies on the vine.

I just watched all of season 3 on dvd (I only caught the first episode of season 3 during broadcast), now I don't know if it was because I saw it all on dvd without any breaks, but I felt that this season was just as strong, if not stronger than the previous 2 seasons. The only thing that hurt it was Lena Olin not coming back. The production values and the performances are all just as good (even better) than ever. And the plots have always been rediculous and silly, so this was really no better or worse.

I really don't know what people are bitching about. Season 3 is still pretty much the same show it always has been - but maybe that's just how it plays when watching it on dvd.

I think it will play much better on dvd than it did when it was broadcast. You don't have to worry about a commercial every seven or eight minutes interruping an episode. And you also don't have to wait weeks on end waiting for a new episode to air.

This is why I'm happy that Alias & 24 are not coming back until January.

Chris

Just watched S3 on DVD too (the same way we watched S1 and S2) and really enjoyed it.

And I think there is something about going through 22 episodes in a week, which lets you just go along for the ride and enjoy it... rather than harp endlessly on small details during a week (or two or three, etc) between episodes.

In some ways, I'm not looking forward to watching S4 on broadcast, because of the wait.

My wife and I watched S1 and S2 of 24 on DVD, and then last year watched S3 via Tivo. And it seemed a lot slower, and less enjoyable.

The wife and I watched the cartoon that they put in the bonus materials. It was okay...I guess.

I too just finished watching the DVD. I really enjoyed the season. Maybe I liked it because I drastically lowered my expectaions after reading all of the comments on this forum. The finale wasn't the best, but that doesn't negate the whole season for me.

Two good seasons and an ok third season and you just write it off. I have a feeling you will be missing some good stuff in Season 4. There are so many other decent TV choices to choose from. Not.