“Conscious” – It’s a pretty misleading name for this episode. Most of the worthwhile scenes actually take place in Sydney’s sub-conscious, and revolve around Syd’s weird and wacky dreams hinting at her equally crazy shenanigans during her missing time.

But ignoring that for a moment, the episode is the first one of the season (and the first Alias outing for writers Josh Applebaum and Andre Nemec) in which Sydney actually comes close to uncovering what happened to her two years previously and also why The Covenant were involved.

But would Alias be Alias if she discovered what happened? No, the mystery and the fun of watching would be gone. As much as I want to know where Sydney was for the last two years, I would rather watch and learn the truth a piece at a time. But will Alias let this happen, or will we suddenly have all our questions answered at once? Because that very decision could have dire results for Alias. Too many answers could leave the series missing something, and not enough will give us the same thing.

But regardless of how you feel about the missing time direction, there are a few scenes that will make you cheer no matter what! Sydney punching Lauren is obviously going to be a hit for the Sydney/Vaughn shippers and helped to relieve some of the tension that stills exists from her introduction. Last week was a start to getting rid of that tension, as Lauren helped bust Sydney out of NSC custody, and now she’s taking on a more personal role by letting Syd beat the crap out of her. Shockingly though, it was both very satisfying and very disturbing with the relative ease with which Vaughn allowed it to happen. I’d don’t hate Melissa George. In fact, I rather enjoy her role in the series. She is an asset but has the unfortunate job of being the scapegoat for any problems the series has.

In the episode, which saw Sydney get that little bit closer to the answers that have thus far evaded her grasp, Ken Olin (the mastermind behind the car chase in “Repercussions”) very cleverly directed the dream sequences and they all bore some significance to the old-school days of SD-6 (Sydney in the red room for example). Additionally, the fight scene where Lauren morphs into Syd was very intriguing and is no doubt filled with some greater purpose. Is Lauren a Covenant agent, or does Syd just want her to be so she can get Vaughn back? And lets not forget the comedy stylings of Marshall and Weiss playing Rambaldi card games.

David Cronenberg’s character of Doctor Brezzel is perhaps one of the most fascinating the Alias team have ever included. But the highlight of the episode isn’t the cliff-hanger, nor is it the combat between Lauren and Syd. Its Sloane. Yes, finally some confirmation of what all fans know to be true – he has a plan. An endgame. And it involves Sydney. Even Director Lindsey’s dealings with Sloane is a welcome one. It seems Lindsey is about to overtake Sloane as the guy you love to hate.

And finally, in true Alias style, the ominous Room 47 holds the key to her past. What is it with the number 47? Appearing all over the place in episodes from every season, there has to be some larger agenda to their inclusion. Or is it just an Alias spin on Douglas Adams’ 42 joke?