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From Abby (also asked by blazwhiz):
How did each of you come to recognize Michael Vartan, and realize you
had to do a website?
Kate: I first saw Michael in NBK, but he hadn't really registered with me until Alias. From the second episode on I was in lurve. The website was just something we felt we almost *had* to do. There were only a few Alias sites out there at the time and they were all dedicated to the show or Jennifer Garner. We really wanted something for this gorgeous guy who wasn't getting enough screen time! We'd met each other on a message board and talked about the show constantly. Eventually we started our own group and got to know each other personally. We realized that each one of us had something different we could bring to a website. It would have been a waste of really good access and really good, original ideas to not do it. There are so many sites out there that take themselves so seriously. We just wanted a site that was fun and made fun of itself, while still being pretty respectful and intelligent.
SB: All I knew of MV was that he was this really, really gorgeous guy in
this
new "Alias" show. After wandering over to the Haven boards and finding
Kate's thread about him, I posted a few times (rare for me)... of
course, we
eventually formed our own group, and I know I wanted to do a site
because I
wanted to do for the Alias community what Haven did for the X-Files
community.
Souris: For me, it was a bit of a gradual thing. I had seen him in "Mists of
Avalon," but for some reason I didn't connect that it was him in "Alias"
immediately. I thought he was very cute, of course, and then I thought he
was cuter, and then I watched what Lugia and I refer to as "those damn
vidclips" of his interviews at vartanetc, and I was irretrievably besotted
and now consider him the hottest specimen of manhood ever. I think
it was the "Stuff" magazine photo-shoot clip that really pushed me over the
edge from admiring-but-sane fan to full-fledged, drooling Ho. Once we XF
refugees started our own discussion list, someone suggested that we should
do a Web site and the rest, as they say, is history. Or is that Hostory?
;-)
Spygirl: I first saw Michael in Mists of Avalon and became immediately hooked to his pulchritude. Weeks later I came across an ad for Alias and learned that Michael had been cast as a primary character. I developed a focused admiration from the pilot episode. As for the website, from the moment I saw the pilot I had been mulling around the idea of a website. I also wanted to call it 'The Safe House.' However, the website is something everyone wanted to do and a year later - here we are.
Lugia: Ever since I got my DSL connection in 2001, I have been spending a lot of time at various message boards and keeping up with fan sites. I've been online since 1997, but not as extensively. As a disgruntled X-Phile and Mulder & Scully 'shipper, I considered the X-Files Haven for the FBI's Most Unwanted my second home. Being a complete spoiler addict and David Duchovny devotee certainly helped, too. ;-)
But over time, I detached myself more and more from the show. It wasn't easy to leave that huge part of my life behind, but I consider stumbling into "Farscape" my salvation. I wasn't willing to devote myself to another show again, but it was just too brilliant to pass up, and provided me with everything "The X-Files" was lacking. So I took the chance. I slowly started growing into that new fandom, and coincidentally found some like-minded people at The Haven's "Other Shows" folder.
Then on one boring day in December 2001, discussion threads about a certain individual named Michael Vartan started popping up in that same forum. I was totally unwilling to get into yet another fandom (after all, I was slowly just trying to get over "The X-Files" and learning to trust the guys at "Farscape"). It's still totally beyond me what made me open these MV threads, but I was strongly drawn to them, so I did. I was pleasantly surprised to find a load of pictures of one of the most gorgeous men I've ever seen. But what did me in where the people discussing him. They were so full of life and cool and it all seemed very fresh, funny, worthwhile, and immediate (a departure from the bleak nature of "The X-Files" and the distance to "Farscape" which was filmed in Australia).
At that point, I didn't even realize MV was the male lead of "Alias," which I had gotten to know as the show that killed "my" "X-Files". It was just a bit of escapism that I welcomed, so I decided to bite. The next thing I knew, Kate had assigned me an official Vartan Ho number, I was addicted to Souris' fanfics, even though I'd never watched a single minute of the show, and got rushed over to Vartanetc.
I didn't realize what lasting impression that site would have on me. I was impressed immediately, as it was one of the most professional and comprehensive sites I'd visited outside of the "X-Files" fandom. But clueless as I still was, I decided to download a couple of Lori's video clips. If only I had known what an impact they would have. The moment I watched Michael in motion, heard him talk, got to know his mannerisms, and learned about his interests... I was completely under his thrall, and justifyably carried the name "Vartan Ho #8" from that day on. I still have those clips saved on a special CD, and I'm not the only one to remember it fondly, as it's been used to recruit a lot of fellow 'Hos. :) Thank you, Lori!
A few weeks later, "The Mists of Avalon" premiered on a German TV station, I got hold of some later season 1 "Alias" episodes, and at last could relate to what everyone was raving about. That's when even the last bit of reservation went out the window, and I considered myself part of the Alias community. :)
Said community was still incredibly small at that point, though. We desperately needed a place to talk other than going off-topic at "The Haven" all the time. Luckily, Souris came through for us and founded a small discussion list were we could better engage in our Ho-dom. At this point Kate had already coined the term "Vartan Ho" and assigned numbers to us, so I took the liberty to keep track of those and started posting updates to our list.
After a while, we were really becoming our own little split fraction of the online "Alias" world, and thought it would be nice to create a more visible home for us on the web, in case anyone else shared our view and wanted to come for a visit. We tossed this idea around for a few weeks, and everyone seemed to be on board, but for various reasons. We still are a very diverse bunch of gals, so it took some time to get on the same page of what we wanted our home to be. That was one of the most creative and fulfilling times of my life, and we were so jazzed when it finally started to come together. Of course, we couldn't have had a better "object" to get creative with, and just followed our hearts and interests, so everything fell into place very satisfyingly. :)
Rosemerry: I had seen Mists of Avalon, but it didn't register until I had seen
the first couple eps of Alias.
Mel TM: I had always seen Michael kind of in passing (say, on Friends) and thought he was quite attractive, but I wasn't what you'd call a superfan. I was happy to hear he'd be on Alias, because it sounded like something I'd watch. A couple episodes in, he graduated to obsession status. As for the website, that was everyone else's idea, so I learned some basic HTML and started helping out.
From Lady J:
Name the exact moment when you knew that Alias was your new
obsession.
Kate: Watching Sydney head-butt the taipei torture guy, and flip her chair over. Then she kicked ass all over the place. She ran down the stairs shooting. Then when the voice of Sinead O'Connor blared as sydney ran out of the lab as it exploded, and she slammed into the wall but kept running... I remember just cheering. She is just the best character ever written. I loved this freakin show.
The pilot is still my favorite episode ever.
SB: The minute the series premiere was over. That remains my favorite
episode,
it was *that* fabulous.
Souris: When the pilot ended, I knew I was hooked. It just kicked total ass. I had
been boycotting ABC for a couple of years because of their cancellation of
"Cupid," but people at Haven had been talking about wanting to see this new
show, and I was bored and vegging on the sofa the night it premiered, so I
decided to give it a look-see. And I thought it was fabulous. I
think it was one of the best pilots ever.
Spygirl: Pilot
Lugia: Not counting the Michael video clips at Vartanetc. or Souris' brilliant fanfics, the defining moment when I fell in love with "Alias," was the second I saw Jennifer on screen in "Mea Culpa." That was the first ep I had gotten my hands onto, and when Dixon was shot, she truly put every last bit of energy into her portrayal of Sydney, and that impressed me enough to stay tuned. In hindsight, I'm convinced "Truth Be Told" was the best kick-off to a show ever, even if it didn't have nearly enough of Michael screen-time.
Rosemerry: When I started going to the Haven message board just to talk about
Alias and MV.
Mel TM: At the time of the pilot, Syd seemed a little too Felicity-esque to me. I absolutely love it in retrospect, but I had a couple reservations that first hour. I think I was hooked for life during episode 2, when Syd and Vaughn were sniping in the bloodmobile. Their chemistry just started to announce itself in a big way.
From Melissa:
If you had the opportunity to create/change/influence one major story
line for the show, what would it be?
Kate: Oh definitely that Danny Hecht is still alive and very much bad. Danny's death really began the whole downfall of SD-6. If Sloane's plans from the beginning were to bring down SD-6, it just seems *convenient* that someone close to Sydney died in order to start the ball rolling. If Sydney hadn't begun working for the CIA, it's possible SD-6 would still be standing. I think Sloane is devious enough to have planned this way in advance. Even though the focus has switched this year, Danny is still very much apart of Sydney and why she is who she is, and how she's gotten to where she is. I think if Sydney found out that Danny was part of Sloane's plans to take down SD-6 the whole time...it would be interesting to say the least.
SB: I'd just say "no" to Syd/Vaughn fighting. It's not necessary for angst
aplenty. Check out TXF. (Of course, [understatement] Carter had his own
problems with the MSR [/understatement], but one thing I give him
credit for
is for limiting the amount of Mulder/Scully fighting. (At least, I
think so.
I have a selective memory, so I may well have repressed other painful
memories.)
Souris: No UGLIs for Syd and Vaughn, ever. Period. (UGLIs = Unwanted Gratuitous
Love Interests.) I want them to stay together for the rest of the show and
prove that it's possible to explore a mature, loving relationship on TV and
keep it interesting. They can have conflict and disagreements and go
through rough patches, sure, but there's no reason to bring in other people
when there's so many inherent issues they have to explore. And I want
hotter and better-lit Spy!Sex.
Spygirl: I'd have to echo Kate on this one. Danny Hecht. I'd love to see Edward Atterton make some future cameo appearances on Alias.
Lugia: I would bring back SD-6! And get Edward Atterton involved somehow... As for a less delusional answer, I'd just like to offer two suggestions: 1) No UGLIs, please, and 2) Show us where Vaughn lives, will ya? ;-)
Rosemerry: I want to bring back Martin Shepard and have him help Sydney get
Sloane. I love John Hannah and thought he did a great job with this
character. :)
Mel TM: I'm not great at idea generation; I will say I wish they hadn't killed Francie. It was a great dramatic shock, but so far it's been kind of hollow for me. Other than that, I'm always trying to work Jenny back into the story somehow. My pet bonehead theory of the month is that Jenny is Freplica, exacting the sickest possible revenge on Will. "You and your apples and your Sydney obsession! You just made me so mad!"
From Lady J:
Please name your favorite Sydney costume.
Kate: I think the Italian Mob-Princess outfit was great. The leopard dress with the cane and the big hair. She looked fabulous. I really just liked the red hair from the pilot the best though. Probably because she was just so fantastic kickin' butt all over the place.
SB: Definitely the one she wore while rescuing Vaughn at the beginning of
the
season. That dress and her hair were *gorgeous*.
Souris: Well, it sure wasn't the geisha getup! I'm gonna say the black minidress
with stiletto boots that she was wearing when she parachuted into the party
in ... Rome, I think it was. It was a "yowza" outfit.
Spygirl: Probably anything black. But the bottom line is if I had a body like (Jennifer Garner) Sydney - every outfit would be my favorite.
Lugia: Laura Goldsmith does such an *amazing* job, so it's really hard to pick. I love the crazy-colored wigs, so I'll go with the red one from the Pilot as the ultimate classic. As for clothes, I actually loved her outfit in "The Enemy Walks In," when she's rescuing Vaughn from that scary Khasinau lab in France. But it might just be because of the "OMG, they're gonna kiss" moment. ;-)
Rosemerry: The outfit she wore in France when she rescued Vaughn from Khasinau.
Mel TM: The fringed pink outfit from "The Confession," with the pink hair and sunglasses to match. She had the whole dangerous come-hither thing down.
From Erika (also asked by Lizzy Holohan):
Have any of you met Michael, or the rest of the cast, and what was
that really like? Any impressions or details about any of them you
care to share?
Spygirl:To the best of my knowledge, none of us have met Michael or the cast of Alias. Believe me, if any of us met Michael of the cast, we'd make sure you all knew every little detail. Maybe.
From Erika:
What is Michael's tattoo of?
Souris: There are some things that even the Hos don't know. ;-) That seems to be
one of the mysteries of the universe. We know that his former fiancee's
initials are on the bottom, and I think there's a snake and possibly a tree
involved, but, frankly, I don't think the tattoo artist was very good!
From Katelyn:
Any plans/or news on what MV's thoughts are on your fabulous
website ??
Spygirl: You know, on the one hand it would be great to know what MV thinks of our little Vartan corner on the web. On the other hand, sometimes ignorance really is bliss. Right now we can fantasize whatever scenario we'd like....with regard to what Vartan's opinion might be. In reality, however, he might come to our site, take one look and think.....'Holy hell! Are these women a bunch of hos or what!' Yes, Mr. Vartan, we are.
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