Jaunted

First let's talk about what the heck is going on with Maggie (Christina Ricci). Girl is still a conflicted character, with one leg in liberal pants and one leg in bed with a conservative Congressman she supposedly hates. Republican Rep. Rawlings is a bastard for sure, and Maggie writes a whole column on the topic which she submits to her buddy Mike at The Village Voice. He hates it, suggesting she calm down her "angry diatribe" and not "lead the reader and beat him with a baseball bat."

Truthfully, the only beating that's going on is Congressman Rawling's beating down Maggie's convictions enough to get her into bed. He's staying at The Ritz (of course), but they kick it in the Village instead. Speaking of Village...Mike does end up running Maggie's searing column on Rawlings (after a re-write) to fill space in the Village Voice. This news comes after Maggie decides Rawlings isn't so bad after all and she tries to stop the publication, but we'll find out in the next episode (according to the preview) that—yeah—he totally deserves it.

Onwards and upwards. Frenchie Colette and her man, pilot Dean are getting along swimmingly. Their relationship is progressing and Colette hints at news she has for him, but she won't tell him til London, which is their flight destination this episode. Our guess? She's pregnant or wants to get married. Sadly we don't find out Colette's secret because—TA DA—spy girl Bridget is back and she's got a hairdo big enough to be its own hat. Plus, she's set a bee-line for Dean. Bridget, if you can remember all the way to episode 1, is a British spy with MI6. Only Kate knows this since she herself became a CIA spy after Bridget had to go into hiding following a compromised assignment. Confused yet?

Don't be, because the confusion really comes when Dean, faced with the truth of Bridget's spy identity (he can see through her bullshit story about being "very sick"), chooses her over Colette. Whatever, Dean; you are so weak. Colette yet again gets the short end of the stick and ends up spending what was supposed to be a romantic, expensive night out with Dean, alone in London in a hotel also hosting The Beatles. This episode does feature some fun Beatles songs of the period, so at least there's that.

Meanwhile in cameo land, Ashley Green of Twilight fame is playing Amanda, co-pilot Ted's old flame returned. She is society girl deluxe, all pearls and proper gloves and little nods over lunch with Ted and his father. She even adjusts Ted's drink order for him, a little preview of her overbearing tendencies. At this stage, however, Ted can't see past "the bonus" of finding her again, still a virgin.

In cuts Laura, the prettiest stewardess of all with her icy blonde hair and innocent eyes. She's developing her photography hobby literally, with an assignment to "photograph one beautiful face, and one unusual one." The pretty face is Colette, naturally, and the unusual one? It's Ted, who sits for her shoot while giddily spilling about his relationship with Amanda. Laura, it's obvious, is finally falling for him though at the worst time of all, when he's saying stuff like "What's the point of boiling the water if you're not going to make the hot toddy?"

Ted buys Laura and even fancier camera, then shocks her with the request to help him shop for an engagement ring for Amanda. Don't do it, Ted!

Finally finally we re-enter Kate's CIA plot, after she's just shot a man during a botched operation. She wants out of her side-spying, but British MI6 officer Anderson notes that, during her debriefing, she'll have to take a polygraph test...and she must lie. Anderson has taken the fall for the killing and he is far too important to MI6 to be handed over to Scotland Yard. Kate, however, isn't. One caught lie and she could not only end up in jail, but could compromise other agents in the field.

Anderson teaches her how to pass the lie detector—"false answer another question's truth"—and she pulls it off. Anderson confirms that she's out of the spying game, but not before complimenting her on her abilities at it. It seems that's all the motivation she needs to rethink her decision, and she re-approaches Anderson to seemingly offer her spy services...again. For the story, she really does need to stay in it as she's got love interests in the agency all over the place, from her past with the Yugoslavian diplomat-turned-spy to her current furtive glances with Richard (American CIA contact) and whatever is going on with Anderson, the Brit dude.

As for the flying, there were no cockpit shots this episode and only very few in the cabin, mostly as Kate made up a second Tom Collins for Anderson and Bridget took her seat to return to her job with Pan Am out of London.

Next week: Communists! Girl kissing! Marriage proposals!

[Photos: ABC]