# Karen Sisco, er I mean Sidney Bristow... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 8, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276 "2003-09-08T12:32:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![moejuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@moejuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejuck)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/1 "2003-09-08T12:32:04Z")
Has there ever been a more blatant knock off of a show that is on the same network? Karen Sisco is a sexy, brunette who can kick ass on undercover missions while working along side of her father. This is cheap Alias at best. Is anyone actually going to watch this show? ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/2 "2003-09-08T13:39:44Z")
Doesn’t the character of Karen Sisco LONG predate Sydney Bristow? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/3 "2003-09-08T13:54:13Z")
Long predate? Yup. I was debating whether to comment on this thread. **Moejuck** , I don’t think I agree with you. _Alias_ is a very stylized James Bond-ian spy show that features a hot babe, world domination conspiracies, ties to Renaissance prophet-scientists, a dad who is a superspy, and techno (gadgets and music). _Karen Sisco_ is based on an Elmore Leonard character from a book and movie from a while ago and is a DEA agent (I think - some sort of federal agent), dealing with those types of cases in a version of today’s grimy reality. Her dad is a (retired?) agent. She _is_ a hot babe (didja see Carla Gugino in Wayne Wang’s _The Center of the World_? The scene where she tells her story about how she ended up with a black eye is jaw-dropping), and the feel of the show may be slicker than real DEA/Federal Agent work, but first impression is that it will be nothing like Alias in feel or premise… I guess we’ll see… ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/4 "2003-09-08T14:00:22Z")
Oh, and from what I have heard, the buzz on the show is pretty good… ---
**Author:** ![tanstaafl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba8739/32.png) [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/5 "2003-09-08T14:14:37Z")
And, FWIW, I’ve always thought that _Alias_ owed more than a bit of inspiration to _La Femme Nikita_. ---
**Author:** ![moejuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@moejuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moejuck)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/6 "2003-09-08T15:04:09Z")
o.k. didn’t know about the book with the Sisco character, but I guess that explains why they keep dropping Elmore Leanord’s name in the previews. Maybe my comment should have been more along the lines of: They are putting this show out now only because of the success of Alias. Of course all shows draw thier inspiration from somewhere, and maybe Alias did get some ideas from La Femme Nikita, but my main point is that this show is going to be on the same network while Alias is still just a few years old. I will give it a shot, I guess, but I just don’t see how I can get too involved in two shows that seem so similar on the surface. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/7 "2003-09-08T15:29:39Z")
Karen Sisco is a federal marshall, not a secret agent. The parallels that I’ve been reading about is more of a _Rockford Files_ vibe (more normal gangster & crime-type situations) for the show and not James Bond/global-conspiracy intrigue. The title character was played by Jennifer Lopez in the exceptional Steven Soderbergh film **Out of Sight** (with George Clooney). Robert Forster’s character was played by Dennis Farina in the film. Forster was nominated for an Oscar for **Jackie Brown** , also based on an Elmore Leonard novel. I love Forster, and Gugino is H-O-T. Can’t wait. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/8 "2003-09-08T17:52:06Z")
That’s right. I was thinking Forrester was reprising his role, but it was Farina. I knew there was a Forester/Leonard connection! One other thought on the new show: wasn’t that the kiss of death ABC gave it putting it head to head with Law and Order? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/9 "2003-09-08T18:00:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by ArchiveGuy \* > \*\*Gugino is H-O-T. Can’t wait. \*\* Again, if you haven’t seen _The Center of the World_ and are a Gugino fan, you must. The movie is only okay, Carla has a very small part - no nudity - but jeez… ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/10 "2003-09-08T18:55:27Z")
Thanks for the rec, WordMan. I first remember her (in an eye-poppingly way) in _Snake Eyes_ and was disappointed she wasn’t used to better advantage in the _Spy Kids_ sequels. I like Wayne Wang too, generally, so I’ll look it up. > [@](#): > > _watsonwil says:_ That’s right. I was thinking Forrester was reprising his role, but it was Farina. I knew there was a Forester/Leonard connection! Curiously, another Farina/Leonard connection is _Get Shorty_. As for the kiss of death, I was never under the impression that the L&O offshoots were big hits as much as old reliables. I know at least I’ll be tuning in. ---
**Author:** ![middleman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9a140/32.png) [@middleman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/middleman)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/11 "2003-09-08T21:07:49Z")
I thought it was on at 10/9Central on Wednesday. That’s the big gun isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/12 "2003-09-08T21:30:35Z")
Just wanted to confirm that (1) the buzz on _Karen Sisco_ is pretty darn good, and that (2) Carla Gugino is red-hot. Oh, and re this: > [@](#): > > They are putting this show out now only because of the success of Alias. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I think you have a misleadingly simplified notion of how TV works. I’d recommend you keep your eye on the schedule for the Trio network and look for a show called “Brilliant but Cancelled: Pilot Season.” It’s all about how new shows are created and what they have to go through to get on the air. Dude, there are _hundreds_ of shows every year; the TV executive mentality is to be derivative of what’s already successful but not _too_ obviously derivative. In other words, the familiar sells, but the ripoff fails. Anyway, I think you’d find the show extremely interesting and informative, and would dispel any notion you might have that _Karen Sisco_ was cobbled together by the network to capitalize somehow on a fundamentally dissimilar show. Anyway, I’m planning on tuning in. ---
**Author:** ![MovieMogul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f08c70/32.png) [@MovieMogul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MovieMogul)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2003, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/karen-sisco-er-i-mean-sidney-bristow/200276/13 "2003-09-08T22:25:06Z")
> [@](#): > > I thought it was on at 10/9Central on Wednesday. That’s the big gun isn’t it? Whoops, you’re right. All this _Alias_ talk had me thinking Sunday. Well, at least I have something to watch after _West Wing_ now.