![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
sarkastic.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
ship_manifestoTitle: Remarkable, Really
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sarkastic
Pairing: Mr. Sark/Sydney Bristow
Fandom: Alias
Spoilers: Up to season three
A Quick Note: I stopped watching Alias halfway through the fourth season, and I've seen none of season five. This will mainly focus on the first two seasons and the beginning of season three, as that is the only Alias that I am a fan of. Also, I apologize if this has some factual errors. The mythology of Alias is very complicated and I haven't watched the first two seasons in over a year. Please correct me if you see something wrong.
Remarkable, Really
I. Sydney Bristow
Sydney Bristow (played by Jennifer Garner) was recruited into what she believed was a top-secret branch of the CIA known as SD-6 but what was actually a terrorist group that was slowly destroying everything (and everyone) she loved. She became a double agent for the CIA and worked hard to keep her status a secret from the Powers That Be of SD-6 - namely Arvin Sloane, who pretends to be a father figure to Syd - who wouldn't hesitate to kill her. Sydney is guided by a strict set of moral codes that she believes she does not break, even though she commits the same acts of murder and sometimes torture that the people she is fighting against commit. She believes her actions are justified because she is fighting for good and against evil.
II. Mr. Sark
Mr. Sark (played by David Anders) is a young man of Russian descent but was raised at an English boarding school. The writers never actually came out and said how Sark became an assassin/spy, but it seems likely that he was recruited and trained by Irina Derevko - Syd's mother. Sark is intelligent, cunning, sophisticated, and pragmatic. He is always in control of a situation, whether the other characters realize it or not. For the first two seasons, almost all of Sark's actions were ordered by Irina or Sloane. However, he always used them to his own advantage, slowly gaining more power and influence.
III. Canonical and Subtextual Evidence
When most people think of the relationships on Alias, they think of Sydney and Michael Vaughn, her on-again/off-again CIA handler. For me, that connection pales in comparison to Sark/Syd. Sark has openly admired Sydney and obviously respects her abilities. He sees Sydney's strength and persistence despite any large pay-off for her work, and he definitely appreciates her physical beauty.
"Whatever Arvin Sloane pays you, it can't be enough. Would you consider coming to work for me if it meant I'd let you walk out of here? I believe if you took the time to hear the comprehensive offer, you might actually say yes." - Sark, 2x04 'Dead Drop'
"You and I, we're destined to work together. I truly believe that." - Sark, 2x07 'Counteragent'
"You are so good, do you know that?" - Sark, 2x07 'Counteragent'
In one very memorable scene in 1x21 'Rendezvous', Sydney serenades Sark in a Parisian club. She caresses him in what some have called a loverly way, and he gives the biggest smile the audience has ever seen in the entire series. That's how the two "officially" meet, although Sark doesn't find out it was Sydney until later.
"Please pass along to your daughter how much I enjoyed her stage show in Paris. She has a marvelous singing voice." - Sark, 1x22 'Almost Thirty Years'
After Syd wakes up in an alley and can't remember the previous two years, she soon turns to Sark for answers, who allowed himself to be captured by the CIA for one of Irina's plans. All he could offer was pleasant surprise that she was still alive. For once, he really didn't have his hand in an operation.
"If I'm to understand what you're saying, you have no idea where you've been for the last two years. . . . None? . . . Unbelievable! I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh, it's just . . . I'm speechless. Sydney, if Sloane had intended to abduct you, I wasn't privy to it." - Sark, 3x02 'Succession'
In the same episode, Sark is traded with a terrorist group for a hostage CIA agent. In a rare moment of vulnerability, he opens up to Syd with his fears. She makes eye contact with him for a moment, but has no answer to give him.
"My life's in danger, isn't it?" - Sark, 3x02 'Succession'
They always seem to keep running into each other despite Syd's best efforts to avoid him.
IV. The Appeal
Alias was my first real fandom. I started watching the show during the hiatus between season two and season three because of a need to get my mind off some crappy stuff that was happening in real life. From the first episode, I was addicted to beautiful, angry, rebellious Sydney Bristow and her world. I quickly became bored with the lack of chemistry between Sydney and Vaughn, and I also thought that Syd would be much better matched with someone who had a bit deeper thoughts than Vaughn. With Sark's guns-a-blazing entrance onto the show near the end of the first season, I knew I was seeing the perfect match for Sydney, both physically and intellectually.
Where Sydney judges both Sark and herself in black and white, he sees a myriad of shades of gray. He understands what Sydney refuses to see: both their actions, when it comes down to it, are only to further their own goals. Both of them have killed and tortured people for their own personal reasons. Sark doesn't see one of them as morally superior to the other; he sees two people trying to obtain their independence from controlling masters. Sark wants to become the new master, but Syd wants to eradicate that entire world of masters and servants. Different endgames, but the same means.
Most people think Sark and Syd represent polar opposites of good and evil, but they are more alike than one would ever think from a brief description. They are both masters at manipulation, raised in not-so-loving environments that forced them to take control of their own lives at a young age. They are the same in the way they set their trap: they catch their "prey" in a moment of weakness and use that moment to get what they want. They are both talented physical fighters and extraordinarily gifted mentally. Strangely enough, Sark spent years with Syd's mother, Irina, who Syd never knew until she was older; and Syd spent two years working with Sark's father, who Sark only knew as an abusive monster in his childhood. Their shared parental issues are greater than one would think possible. Upon a deeper look at their characters, a person can see just how well the two compliment each other.
V. Fandom Guide
General:
Fanfiction:
-Authors:
[The following is not a comprehensive list of all the Sarkney writers' archives in the Alias fandom. I apologize if anyone was not included. This is just an introductory guide and I only included those that had archives in some other form than lj memories, so I had to leave out some great authors.]
-Ficathons:
-My Top 5:
[These are my personal favorite Sarkney fics that I think a newbie would enjoy. Some are pure humor, some very angsty, most of them pretty damn smutty.]
Fanvids:
VI. Last Words
You may be saying, "Well, this is all lovely, Peggy, but why should I ship these two crazy kids?" The answer is relatively simple. This pairing is the perfect place to find real passion and a great story of mutual understanding. Sark/Syd addresses a certain proclivity of all those who love relationships that have meaning, that don't involve bad angsty music and whining, and that are almost poetic in their sexuality.
In short, Mr. Sark and Sydney Bristow's relationship is one that is remarkable, really.
Author:
sarkasticPairing: Mr. Sark/Sydney Bristow
Fandom: Alias
Spoilers: Up to season three
A Quick Note: I stopped watching Alias halfway through the fourth season, and I've seen none of season five. This will mainly focus on the first two seasons and the beginning of season three, as that is the only Alias that I am a fan of. Also, I apologize if this has some factual errors. The mythology of Alias is very complicated and I haven't watched the first two seasons in over a year. Please correct me if you see something wrong.
I. Sydney Bristow
Sydney Bristow (played by Jennifer Garner) was recruited into what she believed was a top-secret branch of the CIA known as SD-6 but what was actually a terrorist group that was slowly destroying everything (and everyone) she loved. She became a double agent for the CIA and worked hard to keep her status a secret from the Powers That Be of SD-6 - namely Arvin Sloane, who pretends to be a father figure to Syd - who wouldn't hesitate to kill her. Sydney is guided by a strict set of moral codes that she believes she does not break, even though she commits the same acts of murder and sometimes torture that the people she is fighting against commit. She believes her actions are justified because she is fighting for good and against evil.
II. Mr. Sark
Mr. Sark (played by David Anders) is a young man of Russian descent but was raised at an English boarding school. The writers never actually came out and said how Sark became an assassin/spy, but it seems likely that he was recruited and trained by Irina Derevko - Syd's mother. Sark is intelligent, cunning, sophisticated, and pragmatic. He is always in control of a situation, whether the other characters realize it or not. For the first two seasons, almost all of Sark's actions were ordered by Irina or Sloane. However, he always used them to his own advantage, slowly gaining more power and influence.
III. Canonical and Subtextual Evidence
When most people think of the relationships on Alias, they think of Sydney and Michael Vaughn, her on-again/off-again CIA handler. For me, that connection pales in comparison to Sark/Syd. Sark has openly admired Sydney and obviously respects her abilities. He sees Sydney's strength and persistence despite any large pay-off for her work, and he definitely appreciates her physical beauty.
"You and I, we're destined to work together. I truly believe that." - Sark, 2x07 'Counteragent'
"You are so good, do you know that?" - Sark, 2x07 'Counteragent'
In one very memorable scene in 1x21 'Rendezvous', Sydney serenades Sark in a Parisian club. She caresses him in what some have called a loverly way, and he gives the biggest smile the audience has ever seen in the entire series. That's how the two "officially" meet, although Sark doesn't find out it was Sydney until later.
After Syd wakes up in an alley and can't remember the previous two years, she soon turns to Sark for answers, who allowed himself to be captured by the CIA for one of Irina's plans. All he could offer was pleasant surprise that she was still alive. For once, he really didn't have his hand in an operation.
In the same episode, Sark is traded with a terrorist group for a hostage CIA agent. In a rare moment of vulnerability, he opens up to Syd with his fears. She makes eye contact with him for a moment, but has no answer to give him.
They always seem to keep running into each other despite Syd's best efforts to avoid him.
IV. The Appeal
Alias was my first real fandom. I started watching the show during the hiatus between season two and season three because of a need to get my mind off some crappy stuff that was happening in real life. From the first episode, I was addicted to beautiful, angry, rebellious Sydney Bristow and her world. I quickly became bored with the lack of chemistry between Sydney and Vaughn, and I also thought that Syd would be much better matched with someone who had a bit deeper thoughts than Vaughn. With Sark's guns-a-blazing entrance onto the show near the end of the first season, I knew I was seeing the perfect match for Sydney, both physically and intellectually.
Where Sydney judges both Sark and herself in black and white, he sees a myriad of shades of gray. He understands what Sydney refuses to see: both their actions, when it comes down to it, are only to further their own goals. Both of them have killed and tortured people for their own personal reasons. Sark doesn't see one of them as morally superior to the other; he sees two people trying to obtain their independence from controlling masters. Sark wants to become the new master, but Syd wants to eradicate that entire world of masters and servants. Different endgames, but the same means.
Most people think Sark and Syd represent polar opposites of good and evil, but they are more alike than one would ever think from a brief description. They are both masters at manipulation, raised in not-so-loving environments that forced them to take control of their own lives at a young age. They are the same in the way they set their trap: they catch their "prey" in a moment of weakness and use that moment to get what they want. They are both talented physical fighters and extraordinarily gifted mentally. Strangely enough, Sark spent years with Syd's mother, Irina, who Syd never knew until she was older; and Syd spent two years working with Sark's father, who Sark only knew as an abusive monster in his childhood. Their shared parental issues are greater than one would think possible. Upon a deeper look at their characters, a person can see just how well the two compliment each other.
V. Fandom Guide
General:
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
proclivityfans - My own Sarkney community, the first large, successful one on livejournal. Anything Sarkney-related can be posted here - fics, fanvids, mood themes, icons, etc.- Alias-Media - A general Alias site, one of the largest on the internet.
- David Anders Official - The official David Anders website.
- David Anders dot Net - One of the few DA fansites out there, with very strong tendencies toward Sarkney.
Fanfiction:
-Authors:
[The following is not a comprehensive list of all the Sarkney writers' archives in the Alias fandom. I apologize if anyone was not included. This is just an introductory guide and I only included those that had archives in some other form than lj memories, so I had to leave out some great authors.]
- A Work in Progress (voleuse)
- Allusions (auburnnothenna)
- Behind the Red Door (redrover1980)
- CG's Pub (cognacgirl)
- Midnight Tea (eretria)
- Rez Fanfiction (rez_lo)
- Sarkasm (corngirl_jo)
- Track Four (fatema)
- FanFiction.net: gabbysilang, serenitysea
- Skyehawke: shadesofbrixton
-Ficathons:
-My Top 5:
[These are my personal favorite Sarkney fics that I think a newbie would enjoy. Some are pure humor, some very angsty, most of them pretty damn smutty.]
- Complicity by Red (NC-17, WIP)
- Bad Wigs, Black Leather, and Guns by Auburn (R)
- Left Turns by Kim (NC-17)
- Magenta by Eretria (Mature, WIP)
- Endless Winter Mile by Brix (R)
Fanvids:
- Sarkasm - The best Alias vids out there, and some of the best fanvids in all fandoms.
VI. Last Words
You may be saying, "Well, this is all lovely, Peggy, but why should I ship these two crazy kids?" The answer is relatively simple. This pairing is the perfect place to find real passion and a great story of mutual understanding. Sark/Syd addresses a certain proclivity of all those who love relationships that have meaning, that don't involve bad angsty music and whining, and that are almost poetic in their sexuality.
In short, Mr. Sark and Sydney Bristow's relationship is one that is remarkable, really.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2005-12-06 05:49 am (UTC)You really have put it all in a nutshell. Most of us who feel really strongly about Sarkney will go on and on and on and on, but I'm so glad that you've gotten the point across so clearly.
Again, thank you.
cheers.
--Lex