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ENTIL'S REVIEWS http://www.entil2001.com/series/24/24.html
6:00AM-7:00AM 7:00AM-8:00AM 8:00AM-9:00AM 9:00AM-10:00AM 10:00AM-11:00AM
11:00AM-12:00PM 12:00PM-1:00PM 1:00PM-2:00PM 2:00PM-3:00PM 3:00PM-4:00PM
4:00PM-5:00PM 5:00PM-6:00PM
6:00AM-7:00AM
And so another horrible day begins for Jack Bauer. All things considered, this story begins in a rather unconventional fashion. For one thing, it’s not about stopping a terrorist attack, which is the usual excuse for pulling Jack out of the arsenal. Instead, the country has been the victim of a string of small but psychologically devastating attacks, and CTU has run out of options. Sacrificing Jack for the chance to get the apparent ringleader of the terrorists is seen as a terrible but necessary tactic. By approaching the season in this fashion, the writers introduce a few major themes of interest right from the beginning. First and foremost, Jack has been beaten down to the point where he’s staying alive so his death can have meaning. He’s looking for something worth dying for, and that’s never a good motivation. That said, it’s the most interesting starting point for Jack in quite a long time. He’s not starting as the reluctant hero; he’s starting as the willing sacrificial lamb. That’s interesting in and of itself, but imagine where this will allow the writers to go, if they have the ability to make it work. By the end of this episode, Jack is taking the first step towards finding something worth living for, even if it’s just for a little while. He needs to find himself again, and if the writers can resist making that a quick process, it should be more than rewarding. The writers also set the stage for a debate on the price of security, which is topical, to say the least. Neither side of the debate is portrayed as the “right” side. While there does seem to be a lot of objection from popular characters to the idea of sacrificing civil liberty for the sake of national security, the writers undermine the simple interpretation by having the most obvious victim of such a policy be, in fact, one of the terrorists. In other words, what if the unpopular and possibly immoral choice is also the most effective? Karen Hayes and Thomas Lennox make good representatives for their sides of the debate, and by making Wayne Palmer a relatively new and besieged president, it’s easy to believe that he would have many advisors and that they would disagree. It should be interesting to discover more about Wayne and his rise to political power, considering what kind of trouble he’s had in the past. Given the timing of the first attacks, wouldn’t it be interesting if Wayne himself was the target of the attacks in such fashion? As with most seasons of “24”, the best material is sometimes overshadowed by the silly relationship issues. (The other mistake, the inclusion of idiotic non-CTU characters, has thus far been avoided.) This season already has a slew of annoying interpersonal conflicts. Morris was a nuisance from the moment he appeared out of nowhere in the previous season, and there was little reason to bring Milo back in his current incarnation. Nadia seems to lack the gravitas of a Tony or Michelle, and even the possibility of a strong mature relationship between Karen and Bill doesn’t overcome the tedious nature of the subplot. And while the revelation about Ahmed does give balance to the episode by proving the strengths and weaknesses of both sides of the civil liberty/national security argument, the story might have been more interesting if Ahmed had been completely innocent. Imagine a scenario where the most dangerous terrorist is the one who is driven into that fanaticism by the effects of an overly aggressive anti-terrorism policy. Considering how far they’ve strayed from the usual template with Jack this season, it wouldn’t have been that large a gamble. Final Analysis Overall, this episode was an unexpectedly unique start for the season. Breaking format somewhat, the writers gave themselves a lot more freedom to tell their story. While some of the perennial weaknesses remain, and some aspects of the core concept aren’t explored to their full potential, this is still one of the more inventive beginnings for a season of “24”. Writing: 2/2 Acting: 2/2 Direction: 2/2 Style: 2/4 Final Rating: 8/10
7:00AM-8:00AM
As expected, this episode begins with Jack taking the first steps towards his true heroic form, despite the fact that he’s courting disaster by acting outside of the desires of CTU and the president. Even with his confidence shattered, Jack is the only one who seems to see the truth of a complex situation. At the same time, the writers follow through on the promise of a more haunted Jack Bauer. In a critical scene, Jack finds himself interrogating one of the enemy, and while he starts the job without much hesitation, he falters. Immediately, the audience is reminded that Jack has been the victim of similar treatment for well over a year, and it’s impossible for him to overcome that in the space of days. Jack’s struggle is likely to be an early highlight of the season, but it could be matched by Alexander Siddig’s portrayal of Assad. The writers of “24” have created an interesting connection to organizations like Sinn Fein, the political arm of the IRA in Northern Ireland. This is actually quite clever, because it highlights the fact that such a man (or movement) is completely absent from the “real world” scenario. Never mind that Assad is a man with a deeply violent past and present, making it very possible that his apparent goals are not what they seem. This episode once again tries to strike a balance in the civil liberty/national security debate, and it generally works well. While the subplot involving Sandra Palmer (the sibling nobody discussed for a decade) is annoying, especially given the inclusion of yet another inter-office romance, it’s also necessary. After all, within the story itself, there are good arguments for and against handing over that information, given where it could lead. Sandra Palmer destroys the integrity of their side of the debate by destroying the information that she was required to provide. It’s a classic case of undermining one’s position through ill-conceived action. On the other side of the debate, there are the clear actions of terrorism and fanaticism. Ahmed was initially shown as a young man conflicted, but by the end of this episode, his true colors are revealed. Much like the fourth season, the writers have given themselves an opportunity to explore the mindset of a terrorist. It remains to be seen if Ahmed will be around long enough for them to explore his rationale. Hopefully, the writers will avoid the ridiculous cliché that there is no rationale and that the terrorists are beyond reason; all humans who commit premeditated acts are acting out of reasoned motivation, however misguided or incorrect that reason may be. The suicide bombing, foiled by Jack, was provocative for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it removes the remoteness of the exposition given in the newscasts. It’s one thing to say that terrorists coordinated suicide bombings in two other locations; it’s another to show people who barely escaped the same fate. It makes the audience think about the possibility of such a situation. In short, it strikes at the heart of the national security argument. Jack was there to save the day, but in two other cities, the damage was done. Doesn’t that justify the arguments of Tom Maddox? If the writers remain true to form, the situation will continue to escalate until the debate becomes much more than an intellectual exercise. The plan to inter Muslims should remain on the table, and civil liberties should continue to be abused, so that the audience can consider whether or not a line has been crossed. Equally, the reality of Islamic terrorism should not be avoided. So far, the only complaint is that the civil liberty aspect has been hampered by cliché and silly plot devices. One other weakness comes to mind. In the premiere episode, Chloe and Morris both broke protocol in a misguided attempt to save Jack. That decision was a horrible miscalculation, and it should have resulted in terrible legal and personal consequences. Instead, Chloe and Bill conspire to help Jack in this episode, despite the similar implications. That doesn’t quite track, and it makes CTU security and protocol even less impressive than in previous seasons. Final Analysis Overall, this episode continues to flesh out the central debate of civil liberty vs. national security, taking both arguments into certain extremes. While some aspects of this debate fall into realms of cliché, the writers are doing a better job of maintaining a balance between both sides than one might have expected. In some key aspects, the character exploration is better than anticipated. Writing: 2/2 Acting: 2/2 Direction: 2/2 Style: 1/4 Final Rating: 7/10
8:00AM-9:00AM
The episode begins with the standard “24” tactic: identify an action to be completed within a short-term deadline and let Jack do everything possible to prevent that from happening. And as usual, the best iterations of that familiar plot come with unusual and interesting interactions. In this case, Jack and Assad, men who should be enemies, work together in relatively clever and effective fashion. Once Curtis is in the mix, the main plot improves. Curtis has been a character in need of further definition, and this episode provides some of that. The conversation between Jack and Curtis reveals much about both men. Curtis seems to have the kind of certainty that Jack once had, and Jack seems uncomfortable facing that truth. Jack may be wondering, in that moment, where his own certainty has gone. Ahmed’s decision to use his friend as a hostage, forcing Ray to betray his own country to save his family, adds an interesting aspect to the episode. Though the audience never had the chance to see Scott and Ahmed in happier times, it’s still riveting to see them face each other down. It makes what is effectively a short delaying action for the writers a lot more tense and effective. There’s no question that Ahmed will follow through on his threat, which in turn makes it believable that Ray would be forced into murderous action to save his family. Though some may feel that Wayne Palmer is demonstrating weakness, he is taking the same kind of action that David had to make on more than one occasion. If Wayne is less confident, it’s likely the combination of his lack of political experience and the besieged history of his short presidency. It should also be noted that his character, if he should survive, will probably become more confident over the course of the season. If so, his apparent weakness would be designed to help provide contrast to his strength in the future. It certainly doesn’t help that his sister seems hell-bent on distracting him at the worst possible moment. Her own tactics leave much to be desired, since they make a difficult situation a lot worse. Walid in particular ends up as a detainee, despite his previous attempts at cooperation, and Sandra bears much of the blame for that. It would be quite a twist, however, if Walid’s experience led him towards a more negative opinion of the United States. Once again, the weak point is the ridiculous relationship antics between Chloe and Morris. Anyone with Morris’ petulant attitude should have been fired long before this point in the story, if he had been problematic during the terror response over the past few months. Then again, CTU is hardly known for dealing with personnel issues at the right time! Despite being part of the overall introductory premiere, this has the feel of a transitional episode. Characters and plot threads are moving into position over the course of the hour, and given Fayed’s deadline, it’s clear that nothing particularly earth-shattering will happen before the end. The point is to reveal Fayed’s possession of a nuclear weapon and his ability, quite soon, to detonate it. To that end, the episode accomplishes its task. Final Analysis Overall, this episode is largely transitional in nature, despite introducing some of the long-term plot and character threads to be explored over the next several episodes. The writers use this opportunity to explore some of the minor characters while setting the stage for something a lot more action-packed in the next episode. Writing: 2/2 Acting: 2/2 Direction: 2/2 Style: 1/4 Final Rating: 7/10
9:00AM-10:00AM
The episode begins with long scene at CTU, aptly demonstrating why the entire organization needs a serious overhaul at this stage of the game. Immediately after Bill Buchanan rightfully tells the entire room to get their act together, a consideration that should have been dealt with much earlier in the game, the effectiveness of the entire anti-terrorism effort is undermined by petty posturing and self-interest. It’s little wonder that the terrorists this season have been so successful. As usual, without Chloe to set things straight, the world would go straight to hell. Wayne Palmer faces down an immediate threat on a level that rivals anything his brother was forced to handle. He turns to the one person that he has been able to trust in the past, and the man that David would have turned to: Jack Bauer. Of course, this is made far more interesting by Jack’s current psychological crisis. The central question is raised: is Jack Bauer still the man for the job? The previous episode established that Curtis is acting more like Jack than Jack, and there were hints of a personal issue between Curtis and Assad. While this is hardly surprising, it is an effective plot device for putting immediate, direct pressure on Jack during the course of his operation. Wayne’s decision to give Assad a pardon only serves to tighten the screws, and the result is one of the best twists in recent memory, largely because it makes sense within the context of the story (unlike, for example, Tony’s death in the fifth season). Jack’s inability to move past his decision to shoot Curtis has nothing to do with the eventual success of Fayed’s plan, but he will no doubt feel responsible. The situation with Ray, his family, and Ahmed has just enough time to escalate into something truly tragic. It also provides Jack with the means to deal with the pressure on his shoulders and fight past his lack of confidence. Ahmed continues to provide insight into the mind of the terrorist recruit. Despite his friendships, he sees himself as a soldier, and he’s willing to turn on those willing to accept him. This is a frightening yet necessary counterpoint to the exploration of civil liberty abuses. It’s hard to believe, however, that Sandra Palmer is the best spokesperson for the civil liberty aspect of the debate. Her willingness to ignore the current crisis and the need for the president to see to the protection of the American people is disturbing. It also seems disingenuous that Sandra would constantly use her relationship with Wayne to her advantage when she obviously had nothing to do with her brothers during any other major crisis in the past. As anticipated, Walid’s situation as a detainee puts him in the perfect position to be contacted by the wrong element. Specifically, he gains the attention of terrorist recruiters. This is a natural progression of his subplot and one that should prove to be provocative if the writers take the unexpected path. It’s quite possible that his decision to pass on information through Sandra will make his situation far worse. The detonation of the nuclear device in the middle of Los Angeles is a first for “24”, and the effect should be immediate and profound on nearly every character. It’s no longer a matter of preventing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, but keeping that number from escalating to millions. Jack now has a great deal of guilt and shame to overcome in addition to his lack of confidence. The writers have given themselves a lot of good material to work with for the rest of the season, and as they move into unplanned territory over the next few weeks, it remains to be seen if they can capitalize on that potential. Final Analysis Overall, this episode brings the sixth season premiere event to a close in thrilling fashion. The writers managed to earn the plot twists in the final act, and as a result, the twists were far more satisfying than they would have been otherwise. The writers have given themselves more than enough material to explore for the rest of the season, if they can avoid some of the pitfalls that come with their chosen writing process. Writing: 2/2 Acting: 2/2 Direction: 2/2 Style: 3/4 Final Rating: 9/10
10:00AM-11:00AM
At the end of the season premiere, the writers changed the landscape of the “24” universe by setting off a nuclear bomb just miles away from Los Angeles. By allowing the terrorists to succeed on such a level, the writers gave themselves quite a job. Not only did they have to pick up the pieces of Jack Bauer’s psyche, but they had to give every single character a distinct but logical reaction to that event. More than that, the plot had to keep moving forward. In the initial moments, Wayne Palmer presents the characteristics of a strong if shocked leader, recognizing the needs of the country as well as the needs of the government. Considering that this would be the fourth use of a nuclear weapon in history (the two in WW2 and the bomb detonated in the second season), it shouldn’t be hard to recognize that Wayne is keeping things together rather well. His brother would no doubt be proud. As one would expect, the immediate suggestion is a show of force to likely Middle Eastern states supporting Fayid. Wayne keeps the response rational and measured. Most surprising is Tom’s open support of the president, despite his own feelings on the matter. Granted, his actions are designed to gain support for his hard-line security agenda. Wayne thankfully keeps a strong and steady course, despite his apparent inability to deliver a speech with conviction. Fayid’s plans are held up by a relatively logical plot issue: the man meant to reprogram his bombs died in the nuclear blast. This takes the writers off the hook in terms of moving that plot thread forward too quickly. They get the chance to concentrate on the introduction of co-conspirators and the inevitable fallout (no pun intended). McCarthy and his annoying partner represent the worst elements of American society: the ones who would happily watch fellow Americans die for a little cash. Jack is shocked back into action by the most noble of causes: the preservation of a single life. Considering the chaos all around him, it would have been easy to turn away and wallow in his self-pity a bit longer. Staring up at that expanding mushroom cloud (nicely kept within realistic proportions over the timeframe of the episode) would have been a simple enough excuse. But Jack fell back on instinct. It might have been a little too easy for him to get back in the game so quickly, but it’s reasonable to think that seeing the impact first-hand made him realize how much worse it could have been and might still be. One only hopes that his lack of confidence remains intact, so that the character can be meaningfully explored. The tension between CTU and Assad is well played. After all, the agents at CTU had been tasked with Assad’s capture for weeks before the beginning of the season. Assad clearly has his own agenda in mind, and it’s quite possible that he will be revealed as a villain. But for now, his earnest complexity is one of the highlights of the season. It would have been a lot more fun to see him work with Jack, however, considering their chemistry. Assad’s intel puts Jack on an unlikely collision course with his own family, which was an unexpected but welcome touch. We’ve had a very limited exposure to Jack’s personal world, and considering his recent history, this is a shocking development. Equally shocking is the off-hand revelation that Jack’s brother is one of the men responsible for sending him to China and, more importantly, manipulating Logan into everything that took place in the fifth season. This is a major plot revelation, and it was neatly underplayed by the writers. For all that, the writers fumbled some of the introductions for the Bauer family. Graham is a lot less imposing outside of his fifth season enclave, and the dialogue with his wife is about as painful as it gets. And it’s ridiculous for Graham to have married a woman that was, of course, in love with Jack years earlier. Considering how guilty Graham acts throughout the episode, it’s no surprise that Jack immediately suspects him of holding back information. Similarly, Sandra Palmer continues to be a liability to her cause. As the FBI agent said quite plainly, she’s more than happy to abuse her relationship with the president while crying about the liberties taken by others. For all the rough treatment of Walid, he does the right thing by acting as a mole for the authorities. It should be interesting to see if Walid starts to disagree with Sandra and her theatrics. Final Analysis Overall, this episode was surprisingly strong, considering the tall order of following up on one of the most memorable events in the series’ history. This episode manages to drop a few bombs as well, even if the execution of an intriguing idea is not quite what one would have hoped. Still, some characters demonstrate unexpected strength, which is a welcome turn of events. Writing: 2/2 Acting: 2/2 Direction: 2/2 Style: 2/4 Final Rating: 8/10
11:00AM-12:00PM
12:00PM-1:00PM
1:00PM-2:00PM
2:00PM-3:00PM
3:00PM-4:00PM
4:00PM-5:00PM
5:00PM-6:00PM
