Created by JJ Abrams, Alias plays like a cross between Buffy the Vampire Slayer and James Bond. Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) is a super (and super-sexy) spy, fighting nefarious villains and working for the good guys--or so she thinks. Recruited as a college freshman for espionage work, Sydney found her true calling with SD-6, a secret division of the CIA. When her hunky doctor-boyfriend proposes to her, she decides to let him in on the truth she's not supposed to tell anyone: she's not a grad student with a demanding job for an international bank, but a secret agent who constantly puts her life on the line for the free world. But when SD-6 discovers her security breach, her fianc?? is brutally assassinated, and Sydney suddenly finds herself face-to-face with the truth: she's been working for the bad guys. Deciding to become a double agent for the CIA and bring down the evildoers, Sydney gets one more surprise--her estranged father (Victor Garber) is also working for SD-6, and the CIA as well. Welcome to the family, Syd!

Confused? This is all just the first episode. With its double-edged tension (how long can Syd play double agent?) and one heck of a MacGuffin (the dreaded Rambaldi device, the mythic creation of a Renaissance genius), the show leads its viewers from episode to episode with visceral, compelling action, not to mention the nascent romance between Syd and her CIA handler, Vaughn (Michael Vartan), and her clashes with her heretofore distant father. Sharp, smart and always suspenseful, Alias' centre was held by the gorgeous Garner, a stellar action heroine and an even better actress who could pull off Sydney's exotic undercover missions and conflicted emotions with equal dexterity. By the end of this first series, which concludes with a breathtaking cliffhanger, you'll be seduced into Alias' world with, happily, no desire to escape. --Mark Englehart

This is one of those programmes where people talk fast and don't say much of interest.If it's supposed to be action-driven the action is poor ( no well-choreographed fight scenes such as those you see in charlie's angels )and the film sets which are often meant to make us believe that filming took place in countries outside the usa were very unconvincing.I personally didn't like the dark interiors and poorly lit people and the pace of storytelling is too fast to allow the viewer to get wholly engaged with the action or the characters.A lot of episodes knocked out at a low cost to the studio.And it shows.

as usual with television programmes the first series can usually be quite weak.
not here!!!
JJ Abrams was put on the map with this fantastic fast paced tv show,as was the fabulous Jenny Garner.
it is a great start to what has to be the perfect spy series...24 just drags while this is always at the top of its game.
from the amazing pilot to the shocking finale this season has it all with some astounding episodes and fantastic acting...this season is just great.
Truth be told-5/5
it begins-3/5
parity-4/5
broken heart-4/5
doppelganger-4/5
reckoning-4/5
colour-blind-4/5
time will tell-4/5
mea culpa-4/5
spirit-4/5
the confession-4/5
The Box(1)-5/5-guest starring Quentin Tarantino(yay).
The Box(2)-5/5
the coup-4/5
page 47-4/5
the prophecy-4/5
Q&A-3/5
masquerade-3/5
snowman-3/5
the solution-4/5
Rendezvous-5/5
almost thirty years-5*/5-everything is revealed in a spectacular finale!!!
purchase today!

This isn't going to be a long and detaled critique. Quite simply, once you've been through all your 24s and Sopranos (more than once), you need something to fill the void. I was a bit wary before buying Alias at first, never having heard of it on TV, but it turned out to be a really entertaining show and a worthy addition to the big two. The plots are outrageous, as are the stunts, but it certainly is action-packed. The skills and talents of the lead girl are so over-the-top you just have to suspend belief and go along with the ride. She's like Jack Bauer with feelings, an enormous wardrobe, an olympic physique and superhuman talents. We're now on Season 2, have 3 on order and will definitely buy the rest.

Alias is okay. It's ludicrous pretty much throughout, and a good laugh can be had at the sheer awfulness of the plots and the allegedly "highly trained" agents who nevertheless never seem to complete a mission successfully. I bought season 1 on a whim, I won't be buying any more of it.

Season 1 is breath-taking.
Great start
Great action scenes
Great disguise
Great character development