222 M.I.A.
- Thread starter alsplacebartender
- Start date
ladystoneheart said:
Honestly since they as well as the franchise are over ten years outdated I wouldn't think so.
They're not even in bookstores or libraries that I have found. I've gotten all of mine off Amazon.
Wow. What can I say? Is this my favorite episode? I'm not sure yet, but it certainly is *one* of my favorites. This is where we really, REALLY get to know Al. To see him slide into deeper and deeper despair is very hard to watch. His clothes and hair become more and more unkempt, he looks like he hasn't slept in days, even his voice starts cracking. To say that this episode was well-played by Dean would be the understatement of the century. I generally do not cry when watching television or movies (I don't even cry at funerals), but the final scene in this episode left me a little sniffly, I won't lie.
"If you're lucky, life gives you ONE shot at true love." As I'm sitting by my spouse of 19 years, I realize - Al is right. And I am damn lucky. And then the final scene comes along, and it's time for the tissues.
Yeah, this might just be the best episode in the series. I'll give you two guesses as to what my rating for this episode is. The first guess doesn't count.
"If you're lucky, life gives you ONE shot at true love." As I'm sitting by my spouse of 19 years, I realize - Al is right. And I am damn lucky. And then the final scene comes along, and it's time for the tissues.
Yeah, this might just be the best episode in the series. I'll give you two guesses as to what my rating for this episode is. The first guess doesn't count.
Prepare for my longest review so far... Wow. Going by the ratings alone, this episode is the absolute favourite of this forum as a whole. It's deserved. It's a high quality, emotional episode that packs a hell of a punch. Unfortunately, some people have decided to rank this below excellent... I'm ashamed to say I was one of them.
Back when I first created this account, I did do a handful of ratings here and there. For the most part my opinion hasn't changed. But with this one it has. I cannot fathom why my 18 year old self would only class this as a good episode. I can somewhat understand my reasoning for not putting it in my personal top 10, but there's no denying this is an excellent episode. I still stand by the fact that this episode is far from perfect, though, and one of the reasons why it wouldn't quite make my top 10 today. And that's for how Sam behaves in this episode.
I can understand the reasoning for not interfering in such a momentous decision, but I can't understand Sam himself (knowing the character like I do) behaving this way. He just comes across as a big hypocrite. In the very next episode he's doing everything he can to change history, even if that only meant given his dad a few extra years of life. I believe Sam cares for Al like a brother, and I don't believe he would have acted so cold like he does towards the end of this episode. For the most part he comes across as indifferent upon finding out (except for a second or two when we see the pain on Scott's face). Even in previous episodes he's thrown the rules aside, like with Donna and then arguably with Nicole. So yes, I do think Sam's behaviour in this episode is a major problem. It just makes him look selfish.
Dean Stockwell elevates this episode into my top 20. His performance alone is what does it. The agony you can just feel in that last scene is heartbreaking. It's just so...gutting. It's pain and that's all it is. There's no bittersweet feeling at all, it's just pure pain and Dean does such a great job with it. Susan Diol doesn't get enough credit either. Her performance as Beth is really good throughout.
The fact that this particular mistake in time eventually gets rectified is what really saves Mirror Image for me. It brings the whole series full circle. But more on that when the time comes for my final review.
My rating. Excellent. A brilliant, heartbreaking finale to season 2.
Back when I first created this account, I did do a handful of ratings here and there. For the most part my opinion hasn't changed. But with this one it has. I cannot fathom why my 18 year old self would only class this as a good episode. I can somewhat understand my reasoning for not putting it in my personal top 10, but there's no denying this is an excellent episode. I still stand by the fact that this episode is far from perfect, though, and one of the reasons why it wouldn't quite make my top 10 today. And that's for how Sam behaves in this episode.
I can understand the reasoning for not interfering in such a momentous decision, but I can't understand Sam himself (knowing the character like I do) behaving this way. He just comes across as a big hypocrite. In the very next episode he's doing everything he can to change history, even if that only meant given his dad a few extra years of life. I believe Sam cares for Al like a brother, and I don't believe he would have acted so cold like he does towards the end of this episode. For the most part he comes across as indifferent upon finding out (except for a second or two when we see the pain on Scott's face). Even in previous episodes he's thrown the rules aside, like with Donna and then arguably with Nicole. So yes, I do think Sam's behaviour in this episode is a major problem. It just makes him look selfish.
Dean Stockwell elevates this episode into my top 20. His performance alone is what does it. The agony you can just feel in that last scene is heartbreaking. It's just so...gutting. It's pain and that's all it is. There's no bittersweet feeling at all, it's just pure pain and Dean does such a great job with it. Susan Diol doesn't get enough credit either. Her performance as Beth is really good throughout.
The fact that this particular mistake in time eventually gets rectified is what really saves Mirror Image for me. It brings the whole series full circle. But more on that when the time comes for my final review.
My rating. Excellent. A brilliant, heartbreaking finale to season 2.
I'm watching this episode on Comet right now and I just noticed something.
In the scene where Dirk and Beth meet Beth repeatedly raises the hand she's wearing her MIA bracelet on to wipe at her tears and spoiler alert the name 'USN - Al Calavicci' is visible and legible on the bracelet.
In the scene where Dirk and Beth meet Beth repeatedly raises the hand she's wearing her MIA bracelet on to wipe at her tears and spoiler alert the name 'USN - Al Calavicci' is visible and legible on the bracelet.
Am I the only one here that noticed that the cop car that pulls into the alley when Sam is being shot at is a 1966 Dodge Coronet. Then the instant they shoot at the car it's now a 1968 Dodge Polara! Maybe the 68 Dodge leaped into the 66 to change its history? Lol. There's also a shot outside the police dept. In which a Dodge Aspen is shown. The Aspen didn't exist in 1969...the first Dodge Aspen came out in 1976.
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I love this episode. It's one of the best because it shows why Al's marraiges never worked out,and why the other women were more sex objects than anything else. As Al put it,if you're lucky you get one shot at true love,and Beth was it. Deans performance here is nothing short of phenomenal. The subtleties,looks of anguish,tears in his eyes,his not shaving,we all felt his pain. I wish Sam would have gone back in and told her that Al was alive and coming home. He completed his main objective and there was time for Sam to go back and tell Beth to wait for Al.
As great as this episode is,it's painful to watch.
As great as this episode is,it's painful to watch.