Word Choice and Stronger Characters (On the page, the screen and in real life)

By Alexa Padgett

One of my all-time favorite television shows is Alias. Many of you don’t remember the hour-long drama, I’ll bet—though I bet you’ve ALL heard of Bradley Cooper, whose breakout role occurred on the show. You’re welcome for that bit of trivia.

Starring the smart, funny and versatile Jennifer Garner, the show ran for five seasons from 2001-2006. Now, why would I bring up a fifteen-year-old TV series? For a few reasons, and the first is the character Garner played: Sydney Bristow is a “young, athletic, college graduate who was recruited her freshman year as a secret agent for SD-6, a top-secret branch of the CIA.” When the evil head of SD-6 kills her boyfriend, Sydney learns SD-6 is–gasp!–actually part of a rogue international agency hell-bent on world domination. Sydney becomes a double agent…