LOL. I feel you on the Topher thing. Damn you, Paul! But somehow I can't hate him. I just feel really, really bad for Paul. AND YEAH. THERE WAS SO MUCH GOING ON IN THAT EP. I think what made me happy was that Alpha couldn't get into Topher's computer at least and had to break into the system somewhere else.
I think it's really a shame that you couldn't join the game. You seem like you'd be enthusiastic and fun to plot with. :[