The Horizon (14 Dec. 2005)

When Kelly Peyton steals some software from a CIA warehouse concerning the late Michael Vaughn, Sydney is soon abducted by Prophet Five agents where she is subjected to a hypnotic state ... See full summary »

Director:

Tucker Gates

Writers:

J.J. Abrams (creator), Josh Appelbaum,

Stars:

Jennifer Garner, Ron Rifkin, Carl Lumbly

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
Jennifer Garner	...	Sydney Bristow
Ron Rifkin	...	Arvin Sloane
Carl Lumbly	...	Marcus Dixon
Kevin Weisman	...	Marshall Flinkman
Rachel Nichols	...	Rachel Gibson
Élodie Bouchez	...	Renée Rienne (as Elodie Bouchez)
Balthazar Getty	...	Thomas Grace
Victor Garber	...	Jack Bristow
Amy Acker	...	Kelly Peyton
Patrick Bauchau	...	Dr. Aldo Desantis
Michael Massee	...	Dr. Gonzalo Burris
Kathe Mazur	...	Dr. Lynn
Michael Vartan	...	Michael Vaughn
Lena Olin	...	Irina Derevko
Dominic Comperatore	...	Doctor

Storyline

When Kelly Peyton steals some software from a CIA warehouse concerning the late Michael Vaughn, Sydney is soon abducted by Prophet Five agents where she is subjected to a hypnotic state making her flash back to her happier times with Vaughn in order to learn where a supposedly powerful device, called The Horizon, is located. Meanwhile, Jack must team up with Renée to locate Sydney when they captured and torture Aldo Desantis, while the mastermind behind Prophet Five is finally revealed... and why the person has a strong interest in Sydney's unborn daughter.

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Plot Keywords:

software | hypnosis | consciousness | pregnancy | memory | 

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 December 2005 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Stage 4, Walt Disney Studios, 500 South Buena Vista Street, Burbank, California, US

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bad Robot, Touchstone Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

41 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

All of Jennifer Garner's torture scenes were shot in one day. Although exhausting, the actress - now heavily pregnant - was sitting for the entire time.

User Reviews

Vaughn returns... in a way

This episode begins the way many other Alias episodes do; with Sydney in a difficult situation before jumping back a couple of days to show how she got there. This time she has been captured and is being questioned using some sort of hypnotic technique that makes her believe she is back with Vaughn. When we flash back we see Payton accessing a CIA facility to steal all the files on dead agents... creating a couple more in the process. Prophet Five are looking for something called 'The Horizon' and hoped to find its location is Vaughn's file; they don't find it but do discover that he told Sydney. It is at this point that they kidnap her and begin trying to find out what she knows. In the hypnotic state she talks to Vaughn about it even though she is vaguely aware that her experiences aren't real. When Sydney is kidnapped her father and Renée interrogate one of the kidnappers who Renée captures but he won't talk and the only clue leads them to a rather sinister room in Hungary!

This was an enjoyable episode with the right mix of action, intrigue and surprises. It was good to see Michael Vartan return as Vaughn even though he wasn't real his presence has been missed this series. Once again Amy Acker was fun to watch as Peyton; I love how her character acts believable sweet and innocent right up until the point she does something horrible! The best surprises, which I won't spoil, are learning who is behind Sydney's capture and where she is being held; the ending is certainly a cliffhanger!