From: rck1@ellis.uchicago.edu (roberta chi-woon kwong)
Subject: QL: "DUfE": observations
Reply-To: rck1@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations
Date: Wed, 11 Nov 1992 06:49:08 GMT

Uhh...

*SPOILERS* for "Deliver Us from Evil" below.


Hmm...I have mixed reactions on this one again.

First off, I had been a bit anxious about the appearance of the
Evil Leaper this season...it seemed almost cliche'. Especially when
the NBC promos insisted on showing her with glowing eyes...it
sounded like _National_Enquirer_. But I tried to convince myself it
couldn't be that bad...

So after all the build-up, I found myself slightly disappointed by
her. I'm not sure what I was expecting; more of a threat, I guess.
Her *most dangerous* aspect was that Sam didn't know who she
was--but now, he *does*. And he seemed to be able to talk her out
of shooting him relatively easily. In losing her advantage of
surprise, she now becomes more of a nuisance than an actual threat.
("Oh, look, there's that Evil Leaper again. Gotta go track her down
and give her another good talking-to.")

Sam's final speech to her left me feeling slightly uneasy. Alia
seemed to refuse to shoot him *not* because she genuinely feared
that she would would be killing herself by killing him, but rather
because she felt something for him. Score one point for "Good."
Sam's speech was based on the premise of a balance of power between
"Good" and "Evil"--but according to that, the balance of power has
now shifted!! If she had stopped the shooting for purely selfish
reasons, the balance would have remained intact. 

Not only that, but Sam's assertion that she would cease to exist if
he did would only be true if Sam himself were Good Incarnate. Sam's
a good person, yes; he's important, yes; but he's also *human*.
Sam's *leaping*, not his *existence*, is the consequence of his
(for want of a better word) goodness. The most that should happen
to Alia is that she would stop leaping. Unless *she's* not human,
and exists (was created?) specifically for the purpose of
counterbalancing Sam. But the script certainly made her act human
enough.

Alia seemed not so much evil as amoral...Both "evil" and "good"
were able to talk her into doing things at separate times, and
while that probably happens to everybody at some point or another,
these were during very *crucial* decisions (to destroy or not
destroy Jimmy's (Frank's, etc.) life; to shoot or not shoot Sam).
She seemed tired of the whole thing, and just sort of did
everything without much conviction (and even though Sam gets tired
too, at least he still *cares* about what he does). As a
*counterbalance* to Sam, she just isn't very effective. 

The "we-lost-two-days" bit got me, too; so, did everything just
right itself after Alia leaped out? It wasn't like Sam actually
straightened out the damage she'd done or anything; he'd merely
gotten her to leap out. Either I missed something crucial, or it
was the most blatant use of "SCENE MISSING" since MPFC. What
happened??

Oh...I said I had mixed reactions...Well, I'll put that in another
post later. This was my major area of concern, and it seems to have
taken up a lot more space than I originally intended...

All IMHO, of course.


Robin C. Kwong ("er)
				Quantum Leaping (n.) def.--
					Literally, a *flash*back.