I was just watching the first season of Alias on DVD, and a few things struck me. In the beginning, the show was a lot more tightly plotted, and it felt a lot more taut... maybe it was because it was all new, and it hadn't hit its stride and found almost all the convenient buttons to push.... or maybe its because the stories were swinging closer to James Bond than All My Children at the time. There were cliffhangers, which are sorely lacking in some of the later episodes(and outside of most series outside of sweeps and their season finales. The missions seemed somewhat plausible, and it was entertaining watching the ops succeed and fail based on the equipment and circumstances. It was fun and a little bit light(two statements you really couldn't make about its contemporary: 24), and that's sort of what made it such a great show to watch.
After watching the pilot, I noticed it held up remarkably well in regards to where the rest of the series went. The characters developed organically from that point(rather than unnaturally changing) and aside from the layout of SD-6 changing between the pilot and the second episode, it seems very consistent. I do miss Anna Espinoza and the K-Directorate though. Hopefully Ms. Espinoza will return in Season 4(along with the lovely Lena Olin and Bradley Cooper's Will). I also hope that the some of the original snap comes back and it becomes fun again. This last season took a lot of the lustre the show had going into it, and it will take a good deal of polish to bring it back.
I can't begin to express my disappointment at the last season of show, because it seemed like they were playing it a little bit safe and as J.J. Abrams admitted, it went off-course. I can only hope that on January 5th, my faith will be renewed in the show.