Monday, May 21, 2007

24 Season 6: Episode 23 Recap
(Hours 4:00 a.m. - 6:00 a.m.)
The Season Finale
The 100th Post

WARNING: The following post may, and probably will, contain spoilers.

Alas we have come to the end of season six. This was supposed to be the best season ever, their follow-up to their "Emmy-winning" season five. So how do they follow that up? They create a season that featured more characters and plot twists than ever before. They included several recycled plot lines. They wrote crappy dialogue and dumbed everything down for their aging viewer base. Wow, what a follow up. Thank goodness we only had to spend 19 weeks with them this year, too bad the last episode was two hours long.

The Beginning of the End
The helicopter with Silver Spoon and Josh races along the coast and apparently is pretty sound-proof inside... that allows Silver Spoon to explain to Josh what's going on (which really serves as a chance to let the audience know what's going on). Silver Spoon needs to inject Josh with a tracking isotope for when he's taken -- let's hope he's not like Gredenko and cuts his arm off, too.

Jack is placed in temporary custody to protect CTU's operation. Say, how many times this year has Jack been placed in custody? Not to be outdone, Jack calls Chloe who immediately says "Nadia said you were in custody." Didn't that JUST happen? How would she know? Never mind that, Jack wants to know why they're trading Josh over to Daddy Bauer -- I don't ever recall hearing that being told to Jack, but he's all-knowing. Even though Silver Spoon has a plan, Jack doesn't trust it and wants to talk to Karen.

At the White House, Evil Veep, Fish and Karen are on the phone with the Russian President. Those three are the only three people that matter in DC -- decisions and conversations about war usually only involve three people. Evil Veep explains the dilly about the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component. Just then, Karen's 1980s cell phone rings and SHE LEAVES THE CONFERENCE CALL WITH THE RUSSIAN PRESIDENT. Jack talks to Karen and tells them that they're crazy for making a deal with his father. You see, his dad is "smart enough to manipulate this exchange." Please Jack, explain this to us dumb audience members, we don't understand the situation fully. Karen tells Jack that she agrees with him and that he needs to take care of it on his end. If only! He's under arrest... AGAIN! Just then the doors open and Jack has to get off the phone... man, it sure took a long time for those CTU agents to get in the car to take Jack back to CTU.

Karen updates Fish about her phone call with Jack... to which Fish asks, "I thought he was under arrest." Yes Fish, we're right there with you, Jack probably shouldn't still have a phone on him. She tells Fish that Jack thinks Daddy Bauer will try to get the boy AND the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component. Fish is perplexed, but Karen trusts Jack's instincts because, "he's been more right today than we have." Fish doesn't have the right relationship with Evil Veep to suggest an alternative plan -- but he'll definitely commit treason by looking the other way while Karen does! THAT'S why there should always be just three people running the White House -- less loose ends to tie up.

Karen calls Bill (aww, they have matching phones), who's at home with the FBI while they take all of his stuff... at 4:00 am. Karen spills her guts to Bill, who really shouldn't be hearing any of this information since he was FIRED. But Karen needs his help and doesn't care that the FBI is at his house and not helping CTU find the missing sub-circuit board/circuit board/component. Karen says that Nadia is a dead-end and asks Bill to do whatever it takes to stop the exchange.

Silver Spoon and Josh land on the beach, Nadia confirms that fact with the up-and-running-again-real-time satellites. They check on the tracking device inside of Josh, and, yup, it's working, too... since they made a big deal out of it, that must mean the signal will get scrambled or lost at some point. Also, it's important to note that, according to episode 16, the tracking isotope inside of Josh is only traceable up to 15 miles -- I'm willing to bet that CTU is much further away than 15 miles... don't you?

Silver Spoon, the only CTU agent at the exchange point gets a scrambled phone call -- don't worry, Morris explains to Nadia (and us stupid audience members) that they'll still be able to listen in on the call... just not trace it... or pinpoint the origin. Silver Spoon answers the phone and Daddy Bauer tells CTU to turn off their satellite feed (they must be stealing it illegally), apparently he has an "uplink" into their system. Morris confirms it but doesn't know how it's possible -- so he can program a trigger to work for a nuke, but can't figure out how this uplink is working? No worries, though, because Josh's tracker is on an internal network. WAIT... the satellite feed, something that could give away precious internal information is on an external network!?! Really!?!

Anyway, Morris shuts down the satellite and Silver Spoon sends the chopper back to CTU. Since their last conversation went so well and provided no real plot development, Daddy Bauer wants to talk to Josh again. Daddy Bauer tries to convince Josh that China will be cool. Silver Spoon and Josh wait for Daddy Bauer's goons to come get Josh. While they wait, Silver Spoon wants to know how he'll confirm that the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component is real... this is easy, the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component has an R72 Socket that he can plug his PDA into. Yes, the old Russian sub-circuit board/circuit board/component, that was inside of suitcase nukes from the 1980s and contains essential bits of information about Russia's security, has a port that a PDA can plug into.

Silver Spoon tells Nadia that he's going to try and grab the kid back if he has an opportunity, to which Nadia gets pissed and says no, apparently they've broken the rules too much today. Karen calls Nadia to check in on the status of the exchange. Nadia tells Karen that Jack is being transferred to detention at District... for the first time ever, someone won't be held at CTU... that'll make it so much easier for Jack to escape. Nadia gets called to the lounge because of Marilyn Bauer -- she wants to see her son and not be treated like a prisoner. She threatens to sue Nadia and CTU and then wrestles with the security guards. Two more security guards are sent in to take Marilyn into holding... yes, holding. Attention to all you mothers out there missing your children on the day of a nuclear attack on US soil -- don't act all hysterical!

As Jack is being taken to District, the vehicle he's in is forced off the road. As Agent #1 (Turner) gets out to check on the situation, Agent #2 remembers why he failed Arresting Class in Police School as the non-handcuffed Jack steals his gun. The VERY un-American Bill gets out of his Toyota truck and talks Turner down from shooting him... then Jack knocks both agents out and he leaves with Bill.

Back at CTU, Milo's Bro (Stuart) shows up and Chloe hugs him. He's there to sign a release for Milo's body and Chloe goes to help him.

At the White House, Karen opens her computer up and notices that she no longer has access. She calls Bill to tell him thanks, that she's sorry and loves him. Two seconds later, she gets arrested.

Nadia talks to Milo's Bro inside the CTU locker room? He asks how Milo died and she tells him the gallant story. He tells Nadia that Milo was really in love with her and had mentioned her before... wasn't their love a new thing on the show... I mean, wasn't he all involved with Chloe and Morris at one point this season? Anyway, after a phone call with Chloe about the breaking news regarding Jack's escape (that we knew about three minutes earlier, so who took Karen's access away since CTU just found out?), Nadia turns to find that Milo's Bro is gone to NEVER reappear. Ever. Pointless.

Josh pleads with Silver Spoon to not go through with this and Silver Spoon pulls the ole, "you gotta do this for your country" bit. And then, for good measure, the writers give him the Jack line of giving Josh "his word that he'll get him back." Nadia calls and tells Silver Spoon that Jack's escaped and on his way... to which Silver Spoon uses another Jack response, "damn it."

Karen's being held in some weird brick-walled detention cell inside the White House... they have detention cells in the White House? Evil Veep comes and to berate Karen for her actions. She protects Fish. Evil Veep says that if Jack prevents this exchange and the Russians attack, it's all her fault -- see, one of three people get pinned. Easy.

Silver Spoon gets a call from Daddy Bauer and is instructed to walk Josh down to the beach. Morris notices that Chloe is pale. A boat pulls up with Daddy Bauer's goons. Silver Spoon and Goon A exchange the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component at gunpoint. As Silver Spoon hooks his PDA into the sub-circuit board/circuit board/component, it explodes! Goon A grabs Josh just as Jack and Bill show up. Jack doesn't have a clear shot and the goons drive away. Daddy Bauer doesn't trust CTU so he has the goons scan Josh with a green LED light. Sure enough, they find the tracking isotope and then use a red laser pointer to disable it.

Jack calls Blondie (Reynolds) at CTU and asks for Nadia. He explains what happened and says that Josh is with Daddy Bauer's goons on a boat. He needs satellite coverage. Unfortunately, satellites are like stadium florescent lights -- they turn off in two seconds, but take more than five minutes to get back up and running. Nadia, fresh off of losing Milo, is concerned with Doyle's injuries. Jack tells her to hurry and fights off the urge to tell her he was right.

Evil Veep already knows the bad news about the exchange and is upset that Karen, and ulitmately Jack, was right. He gives Fish a lesson in power. Fish then tells Evil Veep that he should dismiss the charges levied against Karen... but Evil Veep just wants answers... and some sex.

Jack calls Nadia and tells her that Silver Spoon is okay but might be blind in both eyes. Nadia is sad that her rockin' body may not be fully appreciated by Silver Spoon and tells Jack that she was wrong not to listen to him... is this REALLY the morale we want to be telling in a story -- that one man is ALWAYS right? Jack figures out that Daddy Bauer is on an off-shore oil rig... CTU apparently sucks at their job since they didn't think of that knowing full well who Daddy Bauer is and what he did for a living.

Cut to the oil rig... Daddy Bauer is STILL working with incompetent Chang! They exchange horrible dialogue and then Daddy Bauer looks out to the ocean and feels Jack through the Force. Jack knows that there is still good in him.

Chloe's vision starts to get blurry. She gets up to talk to Morris and collapses. Morris yells for someone to help him, but no one wants to since he got drilled in the arm after helping arm the nuke.

Daddy Bauer's goons finally show up to the oil rig and Josh is reunited with his grandfather. Chang lets Daddy Bauer know that the submarine is on schedule and should be there in 30 minutes.

Chloe is resting in the CTU medical wing, she collapsed because she's exhausted and dehydrated -- uh, football players die from the exact same thing and I think Chloe should sue CTU for poor working conditions. She tells Morris to go back onto the floor and sheds a tear as he leaves... why does love make us do such silly things. Morris hops on Nadia's machine and does the ol' tried and true thermal scan on the oil rig. Sure enough, he finds the right rig in 10 seconds.

Fish tells Evil Veep that Daddy Bauer and Josh have been located on the rig. CTU is on their way, but one of Evil Veep's men suggests that an air attack is the best way to ensure not messing up. Fish agrees but isn't sure an aerial attack is worth the life of an innocent 16 year-old. Wait... WHAT!?! Let's see... waaaaaaaaaaar, or Josh. Waaaaaaaaaar, orrrrrrrrrrr Josh. Hmmm. Evil Veep concurs and sends the air strike.

Josh talks to Nadia and she tells him that Evil Veep ordered an air strike and that he and Bill are to come back to CTU for an immediate de-brief -- or to be arrested again since they've both committed treason. Bill tells Jack to not do something stupid. Jack says the only reason he's going to do said stupid thing is NOT because Josh is his nephew, but because taking the life of an innocent 16 year-old is not acceptable -- to stop a war Jack, I'd say... yeeeeeeeah, it is. But hey, Jack is ALWAYS right.

In the world of 24, where timing is everything, it took 20 minutes for the boat to go six miles on the ocean. It'll take the air strike team more than 27 minutes to get in range. But the helicopter has been flying for almost five, and it's still not at the oil rig? That's a slow chopper. Evil Veep talks to the Russian President and asks him to hold off on his attack based on some new evidence. Luckily, this time, the Russian President believes him since he knows that a Chinese sub is in their area... WAIT UP!!! HOW DID A CHINESE SUB GET THAT CLOSE TO THE U.S. WITHOUT US KNOWING!?!

Chang tells Daddy Bauer that a helicopter is approaching. He gives Daddy Bauer the component and goes to help attack the chopper. Bill lands the chopper as Jack snipes several people with an assault rifle. Impressive. Jack shoots everyone and doesn't believe Chang's "you're too late," line and goes searching for Josh. Daddy Bauer and Josh are in the basement of the rig and Daddy Bauer tries to give a lesson in the Force to Josh. Suddenly the air strike team is near and ready to blow the place up. Josh whacks Daddy Bauer in the head with a wrench. Josh takes the gun and shoots Daddy Bauer just as Jack finds them. Jack talks Josh down and tells him to get to the top of the rig.

Jack faces off with Daddy Bauer and jack tells him that by dying, he gets off easy.

You Said You Wanted a Resolution?

  • Bill takes off and Jack jumps on just as the rig is blown to pieces. Success!
  • As they're making it to the shore, Jack falls off of the chopper ladder. He washes up on to the beach and just as it appears that Bill will pick him up, Jack takes off because, "he's not ready to go back, yet."
  • Evil Veep wants sleep, but Fish wants Karen to be taken off the hook and for her and Bill to be able to resign. Evil Veep agrees and Fish gives him the evidence he held over him.
  • Morris goes to visit Chloe, who despite being exhausted and dehydrated, isn't hooked up to an IV or sleeping. Chloe's condition is serious and Morris wants to get back together with her. She's preggers. And yet, nobody cares.
  • Karen is released by Fish.
  • Josh and Bill return to CTU with Chang in custody.
  • Josh is reunited with Marilyn.
  • Nadia speaks with Bill and he tells her that Jack is gone.

The TWIST
Heller is talking on the phone at his house and Jack shows up asking for Audrey. He talks about Heller's ludicrous remark that everything Jack touches is cursed. He yells at Heller for not trying hard enough to get him out of China. Jack simply wants his life back... and he wants Audrey, too. Then Heller brings up Teri... diss! Heller takes Jack to see Audrey. Jack holds her hand but she doesn't respond because she's sleeping and is psycho. Jack decides that he has to leave her alone and go away on his own.

Jack leaves Heller's place and contemplates jumping off the deck into the ocean. And that's how it ends. Wait... that's how it ends!?!


THAT was the twist ending? THAT is how the writers are starting off the reinvented, re-imagined 24!?! You've got to be kidding me. People, they're grasping at straws! They were so ready for this lost season to end that they tried everything they could to get you to watch. Even the small promo for season seven promised it would be the best season ever... I'll tell you right now, if they just replayed season one next year, I would agree with that claim.

This season was awful. Abysmal. Not creative in the least bit. Nor exciting. I ask someone to go back and count how many times the plot shifted and how many stories they tried to tell. Young writers, take note... this is NOT how to write engaging television.

Good riddance season six.

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well said. I firmly believe that FOX (perhaps not the writers) had something to do with the extreme crappiness this season. I finished watching Season 1 and 2 just before Season 6, and what a breathtaking, smart, and stylish show this once was. What in the balls has happened?

On the Season 2 disc "behind the scenes", Cassar said that FOX wanted Jack to shoot Kingsley, instead of being helped by CTU, since this would promote teamwork. Instead they would have preferred the kind of predictable and cliched ending only found on "MacGuyver" and "Full House"

That good 'ol Corporate Dollar kills more than just small Muslim children...but that's a whole nother remodeled CTU set....

Anonymous said...

Sweet Jesus. Did they purposely make this ending as bad as possible? What a disgraceful season. I hope Jack dies next season so I can stop watching this horse shit.

Chris Fullam said...

I liked the confrontation with Heller, but the ending was just kind like, what? That's it? The only thing I can think of is that wanted to leave it open so they could rewrite the crappy season 7 script they had already started.

Anonymous said...

Did anyone else notice Silver Spoon call Josh 'Jack' in the helicopter? I replayed it like 4 times on the DVR just to be sure. Can anyone confirm?

Seth Gunderson said...

I'm pretty sure I heard that, too. Great continuity editing to go with their masterful writing.

Anonymous said...

Considering how crappy you all think this season was, why did you watch every second of it????

That's because you were hoping for something that fit the mold of what you've learned to expect over the previous 5 days. Day 6 was the antithesis to previous days purposefully. You cannot expect a show of this nature to continue to follow a winning formula and do so perfectly. Don't you think the lack of a twist at the end is a twist in and of itself? I sure do.

I just watched Day 1 for the first time a few weeks ago while sick in bed and there is plenty of silliness and unrealistic timing events in that season. Why was Day 1 so good? Because it was revolutionary TV, not because the writing or acting was stellar because I can assure you it isn't. Successful sitcoms usually take a few seasons to hit stride because the format is so formulaic. When 24 hit the scene it was virgin territory. One day, one storyline over 20 weeks! How hard is that to replicate year in and year out? The impact of this format reminds me of the sensation Star Wars back in '77 and The Matrix had on the movie-going audience -- we ain't never seen anything like it. Were the sequels remotely as good as the originals? No. The novelty was gone. But it was still entertaining.

One of the reasons I enjoy 24 is for the same reasons I enjoy the above-mentioned movies -- it's an unrealistic escape and a lot of fun to talk about.

Seth Gunderson said...

Thanks for posting. While I think your argument has some flaws in it (Empire is highly regarded as the best of the six Star Wars movies and the first Matrix the best from that trilogy), we're conditioned by the writers, media and networks to compare everything.

Was season six as good as season one? If you look at ratings (which largely define if a show is successful or not), then no, not even close. But if you compare season six's ratings to last year's, then again, season five was better.

I watch 24 because I am a fan of the show and it's concept (you can read all about it here). What stuns me is that season five, which is narrowly better than this season, won Emmys. We're talking Best Actor and Best Drama... awards that are usually given to something on HBO or written by Aaron Sorkin.

24 was ground-breaking TV, no one is denying that. But 24 has become a bloated shell of what it once was -- a thinking show. You can't remedy flailing ratings by shoving in more explosions, story lines and big name stars.

24 was theirs to create and, sadly, they're also floundering it, too.

Anonymous said...

When the first Star Wars came out, it was considered ground-breaking in so many ways. It revived the western, albeit in space, with the good-guys vs. bad guys theme. It created a new narrative by using action sequences to help tell the story and it used technology in a way that it had never been used before. Same holds true for The Matrix -- its visual presentation and narrative were groundbreaking, and many movies have follow in its wake, and unsuccessfully, I might add -- even the two sequels.

I agree that Empire was the best, but you have to admit, the dialog and acting in all of the Lucas films is horrendous. It's the amalgamation of the storylines and how the story unfolds that hooks you. Lucas is a great cinematic storyteller, not a good writer.

I think the same applies to 24. I don't think the dialog or the acting is that good. I've come to enjoy certain characters but I don't see it as stellar acting. 24 has a huge challenge in that it has to have commercial appeal to survive and blowing shit up soothes the savage Republican and redneck alike. Its success will ultimately lead to its demise.

I have to admit, I didn't watch Day 1 when it was on simply because I don't usually watch network TV because it sucks. (And reality TV is creating a zombie nation -- very sad.) And, as you said, NOBODY watched season one at the outset. It gained popularity throughout season one and became a hit by season three. The pressure was on to be less of thinking man's show and more appealing to the masses, meaning blow more shit up.

Having not watched season 1 until recently, I have to admit that I wasn't blown away by it compared to the last two seasons. I didn't think it was exceptionally better. I'm very much tuned in to continuity flaws in films and the biggest flaw in 24 is timing continuity. There isn't an episode where I'm laughing as a result of it. Like you mentioned in your original post, it took a Zodiac less than 20 minutes to go six miles and it took a helicopter longer? Laughingly bad!

Every show hits a point where it jumps the shark and I'll bet that this season will be the one that marks the beginning of the end. But not because of the writers, but because of Keifer. I think one more season is about all he has left in him. Saw an interview after last season where he said it's difficult to gear up for a new season because of how taxing it is physically. He ultimately will be the one who pulls the plug.

I'm going to suspend my rational thinking and hope that the "twist" truly is one. I think this ending leaves a lot of options, which ultimately will have everyone clamoring for the premiere next season.

Anonymous said...

I just read the link you posted in your previous comment. We echo the same feelings.

I should have read it first, it would have saved me writing a missive!

bh said...

I've never maintained that 24 is a flawless show. Seasons 1 and 2 are, by far, the best and even they have huge problems (the amnesia subplot, Dennis Hopper, etc). But whatever other problems each of the first four seasons had, though, you could always, always count on 24 pulling it all together for a great finale.

They faltered in season five, certainly. The last episode, with Jack taking the president hostage, was booooring. The second-to-last one, though, where Jack leads an attack on a nuclear submarine, was pretty exciting.

Season 6, though, actually managed to save the worst for last. The dialogue (never great even in the show's best moments) was worse than usual. For instance, Doyle calls CTU to say he's getting a phone call and/or spotting an approaching vehicle. Not once, but TWICE, CTU's response is: "Do you think it's Phillip Bauer?" Who else would it be? As if this isn't idiotic enough, Doyle actually says this in response, also I believe, twice: "I don't know. It could me." Yeah, I guess it could. Well said.

Not only that, but the best way they can find to introduce Milo's brother is to have him wander in to CTU (Now that CTU has been compromised so often they don't bother with security). "Find out who that is," says Nadia instead of the far more reasonable "Why the fuck is there a total stranger walking around a government security agency in the midst of a national emergency?" To each their own, though.

Add to that the whole business about Milo being able to tell that Philip Bauer has hacked CTU's satellite data, but has absolutely no idea how that could happen. I don't know anything about the technologically fictional world of CTU, but how can he know the former piece of information but not that latter? And why did it take so long to get that satellite imagery back up after turning it off, yet it appeared instantly when they needed to surveil the oil platform?

Ugh. I feel like I'm obsessing over silly details on the one hand, but on the other I'm stunned by the insultingly senseless and inconsistent internal logic. This show used to be something special. Fiendishly clever plotting, distinctive, tense action scenes, and Kiefer Sutherland (and Dennis Haysbert) bringing some understated sadness to an otherwise cliched role. This season has been a disaster by any show's standards, though.

At any rate, thank you Seth, and everyone else, for sharing the pain and frustration. Here's hoping for a vastly improved season 7.

Unknown said...

Yup, megalame. I'm glad the ex-commies believed the chip was destroyed, without any more evidence than the other times when they didn't believe it. Otherwise, we would have had to watch a few more lame hours as they pull out the Evil Veep's fingernails one by one. Yikes.

Seth Gunderson said...

Anonymous -- good points. Glad to see we're on the same page.

Bryan H -- as always, you're right there with me. CTU compromised again by Mio's brother. Nadia didn't know who it was, but she should've known that someone was going to show up at 4:45 am to sign for Milo's body.

And as I've said in the past -- people it's okay to obsess over these little details. Think about if you knew the little nuiances about what PDAs could hook into. If they said the ultra nerdy name for whatever port that is, you would love it. It takes just a little more time to do research about what IS truly plausible...

Ivan said...

First of all, congrats to the 100th post!

And congratulations to FOX for totally messing up a formerly good show.

Anonymous said...

I didn't watch the first season until about 2 years ago, after I'd heard so many people at work talking about it. Like everyone else, I was hooked. I got caught up via DVD around the time of the season 5 debut. Season 6, IMO, started out stronger than ever, but fell flat by the fifth hour (one week later). It was almost as if the writers had only focused on the first four episodes, and figured they could phone it in from there. This is evidenced by them releasing "the first four heart-pounding hours" on DVD literally the day after the premier. Which, by the way, has to be one of the most pointless DVD releases ever.
I think the main difference between season 6 and its predecessors is lack of an overall plan. As with most television shows, the writers know how the season will start, and generally how it will end. Of course, they haven't plotted out every little detail in between, but you can feel with previous seasons that the writers ultimately knew where they were going. With this season, the show fell victim to something it had no need to even worry about to begin with. Scrambling for ratings. A show that's staring down the barrel of cancellation should worry, yes. But not a show that has already been given the green light for two more seasons AND a summer blockbuster film. But nevertheless, it seemed like Heroes took the ratings throne for Monday nights, and 24 started panicking. This same thing happend to the Friends sitcom when Survivor debuted on Thursday nights. It took a huge chunk of ratings away from NBC, and they started panicking. Consequentially, just about every episode of Friends that year featured a celebrity guest star, and is viewed as the worst of the ten seasons. So what about 24? It's just like Seth said, they started shoving in more explosions, more tech babble, more twists, etc. They began writing for the individual "episode" rather than keeping their eye on the central story. When that happens, writers tend to forget what they wrote just a few episodes prior. They push and push toward the final seconds of an episode, then next week we're on to something else. Case in point, the Chinese sent in their attack team, who killed Milo and some extras, and turned CTU upside down. By the first commercial break of the following week, it was like they'd never even been there. Actually, I don't think they have future plans for Logan. I seriously think they just forgot. Same goes for Wayne Palmer. But like I said, the crew of 24 didn't have to worry about ratings. If the ratings dropped to "Trading Spouses" levels, then it's time to worry. But we all know that bottom line, 24 makes too much damn money to ever be canceled. I mean, what would FOX replace it with? Drive? Yeah, that worked out great didn't it? Like one blog stated, if anyone ultimately cancels 24, it will be Kiefer. So with this season, the writers should have stopped, taken a step back, and examined what they were doing wrong, what they were doing right, and kept their focus. But that never happened. So after they had kept writing for the sake of individual episodes, they realized that, OOPS! We screwed around too long, and now we're on hour 23! So rather than trying to come up with something, they just kept dragging on with the bullshit until the clock ran out.

Anonymous said...

"Which, by the way, has to be one of the most pointless DVD releases ever. "
Not really, because thanks to that, you could download the first 4 episodes a whole 10 days before they aired, which was pretty awsome for us European viewers.

"They began writing for the individual "episode" rather than keeping their eye on the central story."

Thank God this did not happen to Lost, when its ratings dropped after they were put in a later time slot. With Lost, it is more than obvious that the creators have the whole show thought through. But 24 creators, they can't even make up 24 episodes.

Anonymous said...

"With Lost, it is more than obvious that the creators have the whole show thought through."

Exactly. And unlike 24, if you go back and review episodes from say, 2 years ago, you still find clues you hadn't noticed before. But with 24, every time a season premiers, it's like they chuck the previous ones in the shredder. Only very rarely are references made to previous seasons or the characters that died in them.

Vita Wright said...

I am a huge fan of the show but I am also a huge fan of this website. I think it's hilarious and even though I enjoy the show, everything you say here is SOOOO true!! That being said, you left out any mention of the silent clock at the end of this season. I assume that means we won't be seeing anymore of Audry? Just thought I would throw that out there.

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Chris Fullam said...

Regarding the Season 1 "bashing" - nobody is saying it was 100% realistic. Let's be honest here people - it's TV. There is always going to be something a little far fetched. However, it was still solid. In the earlier seasons, the previous episode would ALWAYS pick up where the previous left off. If you've noticed in the last 2 years, there were multiple episodes where a character magically teleported at the change of the hour.

Anonymous said...

You forgot to mention these giant holes:

The F18s, Evil Veep in the White House and Russia didn't seem to notice or care that a chopper took off from the oil rig? The F18s surely would have had standing orders to make sure nothing got off the rig. The chopper's survival allowing for the possibility that the component survived. And Russia was prepared to go to war with the US over it, you'd think they would care more. This kind of hole in such a central plot?

I can buy that the Chinese sub was undetected for so long, but once discovered wouldn't the Americans and Russians have done whatever they could to contain the sub?

Why was Daddy Bauer so insistent that Jack didn't have time to carry him to the chopper when the boat that Daddy Bauer had planned on taking was not two feet from them?

So after jumping from the chopper, Jack hits shore at 5:36. At 5:51 he arrives at Heller's house? With a silenced pistol? With his face soaking wet but clothing seemingly dry? No, wait... 5 seconds later his face is dry... no... wet... no.. dry. At least the last shot showed that Heller's house was right on the coast so maybe it is possible that Heller lived on a direct line between CTU and the oil rig! But what a coincidence that he lived within a 15 minute soaking wet walk on the beach.

Anyway, I never watched 24 when it was on the air. Instead I've caught up in the past couple months. 24 is entertaining, but I wouldn't say it is good. It's incredibly formulaic and predictable and the show can't seem to keep straight its characters' motivations. I wouldn't give 24 any awards but I don't exactly regret the 103 hours it took to watch 6 seasons. (If I thought you people were as dumb as they writers seem to think, I'd explain my math two or three times in a row using different characters.)

I can't imagine this being anyone's favourite show either.. not when we have The Shield or The Wire.