"Unveiled"

Written by Monica Breen and Alison Schapker
Directed by Jack Bender


In which Vaughn struggles with mounting evidence that Lauren is working for the Covenant, while the hunt for “The Passenger” takes an unexpected turn...

Status Report - Final Analysis







Status Report

After hinting at the possible relationships between Sloane and Rambaldi in the previous episodes, the writers delve even deeper into the series mythology in “Unveiled”. Not only are several aspects of the theories suggested by the previous episode confirmed, but new relationships between the major players emerge as the overall thrust of the season’s arc becomes clear.

If the first season was all about Sydney’s relationship with her father and the foundation of the Rambaldi mythos, and the second season was all about Sydney’s relationship with her mother and the revelation of Sloane’s true allegiances, then the third season is the story of Sydney’s relationship with Vaughn and Sloane’s true endgame. At once, the marked difference between this season and the first two seasons can be noted: Sydney’s relationship to her parents is far more complicated and interesting than the love triangle antics of the current Vaughn situation.

Thankfully, Sloane’s endgame continues to make up for much of the lagging interpersonal drama. Right from the start, the complicated connection between Sloane and Rambaldi makes itself evident. Despite claims that the Irina Box hadn’t been opened since the time of Rambaldi, Sloane claims that he used the box to intentionally hide the Di Regno heart (last seen in “The Telling”) so that the Covenant wouldn’t be able to activate The Telling.

Of course, Sloane also claims to have engineered the Irina Box to only open when specific Rambaldi keys were inserted, which doesn’t quite make sense. How could Sloane have altered the box to open for keys that hadn’t been found yet? Since the Order of Rambaldi has apparently been running around the world hiding Rambaldi artifacts in various places, perhaps there was a record of the keys before they were relocated. But it seems odd that Sloane would know so much about objects not yet recovered by any of the major players.

Sloane’s information about “The Trust”, however, provides an interesting answer. It seems clear that Sloane is secretly operating the Covenant, with or without Irina’s help. It also seems clear that Sloane maintained many of his connections with his moles in the intelligence community. After all, “trust” and “covenant” can be synonymous, suggesting that Sloane could have easily set up “The Trust” so that he could acquire Rambaldi information and research through legitimate sources, while also covering his own activities.

In the same way, Sloane intentionally revealed his affair to Dr. Barnett, knowing that it would get back to the CIA. He wanted Jack to know about the affair, hoping that the CIA would also try to find “The Passenger”. Sloane is a master at using available resources, even the resources of the enemy. His current dire situation appears to be little more than an inconvenience, at least until the moment that his fallback position with “The Trust” failed.

Sloane’s tactics changed immediately after he activated The Telling, setting into motion the events leading to this season. What remains unclear is Sloane’s ultimate goal, and for that matter, the ultimate goal of Rambaldi. Rambaldi provides the exact genetic information necessary to identify “The Passenger”, who is clearly the daughter of Sloane and Irina and the subject of Rambaldi’s prophecy.

But the Order of Rambaldi has been protecting “The Passenger”, and recognizes Sydney as a threat to her. If Rambaldi recognizes that “The Passenger” is destined to bring terrible destruction using Rambaldi’s works, and the tone of the prophecy seems to be a warning to stop “The Passenger” from achieving this goal, why would the Order of Rambaldi protect “The Passenger”?

The answer could be hidden within Sloane’s own scheme. What if Sloane’s information about the ultimate goal of Rambaldi, passed into his hands over thirty years earlier, detailed the exact conditions to bring about a state of peace…but only at “vulgar cost”? What if Sloane has been grooming Jack and Sydney as the key to defeating the woman in the Page 47 prophecy, knowing that “The Passenger” can only be defeated after attaining a certain degree of power?

Sloane’s entire scheme, done in the name of following a vague and perilous plan for world peace, could easily be defined as “vulgar cost”. Having assumed the responsibility for bringing about the peace designed by Rambaldi, Sloane has devoted his life to murder and betrayal, all in the name of setting up the necessary conflict between Sydney and her sister. In fact, Sloane could have been unaware of which of the two sisters would be the one in the prophecy until he activated The Telling.

The implication is that the theoretical relationship between Sloane and Irina over the years could have served this purpose. Sloane’s infiltration of the Alliance and the recruitment of Jack and Sydney allowed him to monitor and develop Sydney for her possible role, while Irina and her organization could have served the same purpose with Sydney’s sister. Irina’s intentional “surrender” in the second season could have been a part of the evaluation process as well as a necessary step in acquiring the components of The Telling.

Ultimately, it appears that Sloane is well aware of the identity of “The Passenger”, and may even know her location. By having the Covenant do the dirty work, he can deny responsibility until his goal is achieved. Setting the CIA after the necessary information allows Lauren to fill in the holes in the Covenant’s intelligence, but it also serves to set the two organizations against each other, keeping them from recognizing that Sloane is manipulating the game.

Sloane’s contention that Senator Reed was his contact with “The Trust” doesn’t quite hold water. After all, the documents linking Senator Reed to the Covenant were manufactured, so how can Sloane use them as a defense, not knowing what was written? There’s an obvious answer: Sloane and Lauren’s mother, directly or indirectly, have been working together at least as long as Lauren’s been an asset for the Covenant.

The revelations about “The Passenger” are matched by the painful process of revealing to Vaughn the overwhelming evidence that Lauren is the real mole in the CIA. Like the last episode highlighting Lauren’s ability to switch into “bad girl” mode, there’s some serious eye candy. Melissa George sometimes looks horrible as the blonde Lauren, but when she goes bad and goth at the same time, she’s beyond attractive. Add a gothic Sydney to the mix, and it’s a good thing that scene’s mostly played for atmosphere!

Lauren’s slow but methodical unraveling in the face of intense scrutiny of her constant shifts in fortune provide a nice summary of her limited covert skills. For someone operating for a couple of years without demonstrating even one bit of suspicious behavior, the last couple of months have been reckless, to say the least. Perhaps it’s just the setbacks caused by Sydney’s return, or unstable elements of her personality coming to the surface. Whatever the case, she’s damned lucky that Sark finds her wild side so alluring.

With this episode, there’s a considerable increase of tension, as the plot threads finally begin falling into place. One could argue that the pacing of the season was inconsistent at best, and that the overall arc structure relied too heavily on a love triangle that was more frustrating than interesting. But there’s also the feeling that this is a necessary movement in a larger symphony. Just as the first two seasons each took the story to a necessary place, this season seems to be heading towards a similar crossroads. One can only hope that the various public preparations for a fourth season come to fruition.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode was a strong mixture of Rambaldi mythology and Covenant internal politics. Once again, placing Lauren in the field for the Covenant gives her more depth, exposing her weaknesses and strengths. With the season driving towards an anticipated confrontation, Sloane’s master plan continues to show nuances that boggle the mind.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 3/4

Final Rating: 9/10




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