24: 2-4pm recap

The following was written in real-time (for the most part). Somehow it seemed appropriate. Needless to say, it is chock full of SPOILERS so if you haven’t watched the episode yet then you should probably stop here and fix that IMMEDIATELY. For the rest of you, hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it.

This is it folks. The moment we have all been waiting for. No, I don’t mean the series finale of Lost – that was last night. Nope, tonight we say goodbye to Jack Bauer and the rest of Team 24.

Last week ended with the massacre of a lot of Russians by our anti-hero, Jack Bauer. We pick up with CTU getting the report on that and Cole finding the guy Jack had been working with now that he and CTU were no longer on speaking terms.

Things I will miss about 24: Chloe’s snarky remarks to people that obviously have subtext asking “Why are you such an idiot?” to every stupid person she comes across.

Cole gets the intel he needs from Guy-whose-name-I-never-bothered-to-find-out and goes to meet Chloe at the UN to help with security. “We cannot let Jack assassinate the Russian President,” he tells her. No frickin DUH, Cole. Hence the you being there to stop it.

Meanwhile President Taylor is in some pretty hot water now. Like way over her head, boiling her alive type deal. She has figured out that this conspiracy goes all the way to the Russian President. This does not sit well with her. Shoulda thought of that before you worked your deal with the Devil, eh Madam President. As annoyed as I am at her, I realize the Devil in this case is a tricky son-of-a-gun. I’m glad we brought Logan back for the final season. He and his aide are both played by extraordinary actors (Gregory Itzin and Reed Diamond respectively) who have lit up the screen these past few weeks.

Back to the show though – Daughter Hassan passes on the message from Meredith to Mrs. Hassan. Mommy is skeptical but still willing to call her and see what she has to say.

Cheer moment #1 goes to Chloe – when she threatens to send the file with the evidence regarding the Russian’s involvement to every media outlet in the nation. That’ll put President Taylor in her place. And possibly get Chloe arrested. Oh well, that just means Jack can bail her out during the pending movie.

Jack has Jason PIllar held at gunpoint and is using him to get through security at the UN. Pillar notices Jack is bleeding, and is just as doubtful as I was that Jack would actually live long enough to carry out his mission. “Not if you stitch me up first, Jason!” Ha! Proof Reed Diamond is an exceptional actor – he plays a shady politician and yet we still kinda feel sorry for him when he is begging for his life. Give the man a gold star! Apparently Jack felt sorry for him too, because he spares his life and knocks him out instead.

Back at HQ, Mrs Hassan can’t get in touch with Meredith, so she goes in search of answers on her own. Who does she turn to for these answers? Why her trusted colleague President Taylor of course! Go ahead and try to keep a straight face as you pretend you don’t know what she is talking about. Or pretend that the accusations are unfounded. That could work too. If by “work” we mean work to make me hate you more. Mrs Hassan and I are both very disappointed in you. We might never speak to you again as long as we live. Of course with the show ending that won’t really be that hard to do. Cheer moment #2 – Mrs Hassan telling her to shove it and shutting down the peace negotiations now that this evidence has come to light. You go girl! Put her in her place. But *le gasp* is that our President using blackmail to keep her from backing out of the treaty? And we thought Jack had gone round the bend. I was trying to see things from her point of view and say she was stuck between a rock and a hard place thanks to Logan but this is going too far. I really hoped you would come around back to the Good Side Of The Force, but it’s not looking so good at this point.

Speaking of our buddy Jack Bauer, he’s sneaking around like the super spy he is and working his way towards the perfect vantage point for a little duck shooting. I hear Russian duck is especially game this time of year. Chloe has his location though, so he’s not in the all clear yet. She’s even packing some firepower thanks to Cole. Chloe with a gun? Sounds pretty badass to me. Tear moment for the night – Jack making his goodbye video to person we assume is Kim, telling his side of the story for when he can’t do so in person. Awww shucks, Jack. Don’t you know you have to be the star of the film? They sold the movie rights, so you gotta live!

And the awkward sauce award goes to President Taylor and Mrs Hassan greeting the Russian President. They all have to try to paste smiles on their faces and be all diplomatic and stuff, each of them knowing the whole awful truth of the matter. Mrs Hassan should get the Nobel Peace Prize for not ripping off his head right then and there. It was kinda comical the speech on honesty and trust we got right before the signing. Maybe she should also get an award for not laughing during the press conference. I know I was cracking up at that point.

But back to more important and uber tense things – like Chloe with a gun! I don’t know why this got me all nervous and excited, but it did. Jack was one step ahead of her though, and grabbed her inside before she could make a move. She tries to reason with him and show him there is a better way. What she gets for her friendship? Well she gets to live and just be passed out in a corner instead of a bullet to the head. Yay, friendship? Still, I couldn’t help but be excited at the idea he had a sniper rifle pointed at Logan’s head. How can you stay mad at the person who is going to potentially exterminate the biggest snake ever?!

And so the Big American Snake calls the Russian Snake and lures him into Bauer’s trap. Chloe continues to try talking sense to Jack, but he is just not hearing any of it. Time is running out on Jack’s plan though, because Cole has called in his location – and kept the shoot-to-kill order. I applaud Chloe for her continued pleas for Jack to stop and think about what he is doing, but I really had my doubts it would work. Of course pulling out the Renee-wouldn’t-have-wanted-this card, that completely changes things. Guess if anyone was going to talk sense to Jack, it was going to be Chloe. They are the only two remaining from the original series. It is only fitting they work together in the final moments. And if working together entails one shooting the other – well what’s a little gunshot wound between friends? The writers really seemed to work overtime in trying to make us doubt Jack would make it through these last two hours alive. Guess they didn’t want knowledge of the movie to take away from the tension the show was famous for.

Logan calls Pillar and tells him about the data card that implicates them in working with the Russians. As Pillar searches Chloe for said data card, I go back to hating him as a character and loving him as an actor all at the same time. I also love Chloe ten times more for being clever enough to stash it in her phone. Pillar – you got played son. Oh and while we’re at it, Jack would like to chew your ear off for a minute there. That would be cheer moment #I-officially-lost-count. It took a little longer than Lost but I knew it would happen eventually. Cheers are short-lived though, as Chloe is caught before she has a chance to do anything with the data. It was a valiant effort though. I salute you, Chloe.

The recording ends up in Logan’s hands, as he declares to President Taylor that they have won and it is over. He also says Jack Bauer will never let this go, which is what I was thinking when he said this was over. This will never be over as long as Jack is out there to fight them. Logan paints some scary picture to try to convince Taylor they should execute Jack. “Don’t do it!” I yell at her. “Stop him!” Taylor lets him go, but watches the data file and SURPRISE it is the message that I assumed was for Kim. So where is the taped convo we heard from before? Whatever happened, the message seems to have come through loud and clear, because President Taylor can’t go through with the signing. Instead she finally comes clean and puts an end to this farce of a peace treaty. She then jumps into actions in an attempt to warn them that Jack’s life is in danger. Thank God she finally came to her senses, even though it happens way late in the game. Too bad she didn’t have her epiphany moment sooner though, because Jack has already been abducted.

Surprised at Taylor’s sudden moment of enlightenment? Well there are more surprises ahead. Because Logan is not happy that everything has unraveled. You think his response is going to be to take it out on Bauer? Well you would be WRONG. Nope, instead he takes out PIllar and then puts the gun on himself. So if you were taking bets then you got points for Logan getting shot but lost them since Jack wasn’t the one to do the deed. (Although you could argue he blamed Jack for everything and was therefore indirectly responsible, but that would be a really weak argument in my book).

So now the race is on to find Jack before he gets snuffed out for good. And the only people who could have been tortured for info are dead (or at least brain dead). Drat! Just when it looks like Jack should be saying his final prayers, President Taylor somehow gets in contact with the people assigned to do the deed and stop them in literally the final seconds. Don’t you think you were cutting it a little close there, Prez? Taylor has her mea culpa moment on the phone with Jack, and I actually feel a little sorry for her – but only a little. She tells him he has to leave the country because both the Russian and American governments are still looking for him. And so our anti-hero is cast out from the country he has served for untold years. Before vanishing into the night, Jack thanks Chloe for all her help – not just today but since the moment she joined him at CTU. The final clock counted backwards to zero, which I thought was quite fitting.

Overall I was quite satisfied with the series finale 24 gave us. It wasn’t exactly happily-ever-after, but that is rarely the case with this show. The main problem was eliminated with its usual ramifications left behind. That’s as it should be. Jack will presumably go into hiding until whatever threat comes up in the movie flushes him out again. Or maybe the movie will be about the manhunt that will inevitably follow after the days events. Only time will tell.

So, what did you think of the finale? Satisfied? Disappointed? Sound off with your comments below.

24: 1-2pm

Sorry for the late post here, but it’s been a crazy last couple of days. Due to that fact, this will be a shorter recap than usual. There will still be some spoilers though, as is the nature of the beast, so viewer discretion is advised.

First notable event of the evening: Logan tries to convince President Taylor to stop the story that Jack has given to the reporter, but Taylor seems to be seeing the error of her ways. She definitely is not happy with Logan when they are discussing the matter. “I never should have let you do this!” she screams in frustration. This doesn’t seem to stop her from following Logan’s advice though. Maybe she has realized what she has been doing is wrong, but she is in too deep now and it is too late for her to stop. That must be her thought process anyway.

Meanwhile Reed (the reporter) calls the story that Jack gave her in to her publisher. And Jack gets ready to take Logan down. I expected lots of torture to be involved here but Logan was too scared of Jack for it to get that far. Still, it was great seeing Logan practically in tears being so scared of Jack when Bauer first captures him. At the same time, the image of Jack with the mask and own personal arsenal was quite frightening. If you didn’t already know it, you would finally have realized how completely gone Jack is. I’m not saying he is wrong for going after these men, but you can tell the situation is justification for him to get revenge for Renee’s death. Logan squeals like a little girl and gives Jack the name of the Russian who was behind all of the day’s events. Jack surprisingly takes the info and runs without killing Logan. Signs of restraint or just didn’t want to get caught? Either way it made me think that maybe he wasn’t completely gone. That was until we saw the end result of his next move.

Jack’s next move was for the Russian who’s name I’m not even going to try to spell out here. He can just be known here as The Russian. When making his move, Jack gets stabbed by one of The Russian’s men. It’s only enough to complicate things without being instantly fatal though.

This week ended with Reed getting arrested by the FBI. This wasn’t until after telling Hassan’s daughter that she had important evidence to give to Mrs. Hassan. Hopefully the daughter does the right thing and tells her mother before it is too late.

And finally, we end on a shot that looks like a massacre happened. The Russian and all his men are dead. Apparently he didn’t say anything, just came in shooting, but we only get a secondhand account. So much for Jack not being completely gone. If this was about bringing people to justice then he should have brought them in for questioning. I realize being a rogue agent this would be hard, but “shoot first, ask questions never” really wasn’t the way to go here. Logan calls the Russian President to warn him, but Jack has bugged Logan’s shirt collar and hears everything. Next week we’ll probably see him use this information, but only if he doesn’t bleed to death first. It looks like that wound is getting worse. Will time run out on Jack before he finishes his mission? Tune in next week to find out.

24: 12-1pm recap

*Yep, you guessed it – Spoilers time*

The theme for tonight seemed to be “Chasing Rabbits” *or* “How-far-ahead-can-Jack-get-in-this-game-of-cat-and-mouse”.

When last we left Jack, he had just killed Dana Walsh after getting the microchip that supposedly had evidence of the Russian involvement in the day’s events. At the time, I was scared the chip would turn out to be a fake and there would be no more leads to follow, but I should have known that was stupid. With very little time left, we are not wasting a single second of it for such lame storytelling tactics. Thus, my first thought was, “Wow, the microchip is actually real,” which was quite silly of me.

My second thought might redeem me a little though: I am really glad to see Reed Diamond *aka* Jason Pillar, getting more screen time. I enjoyed his appearances on the show Dollhouse, but was confused to find him playing such a small part here. I thought he deserved better and am pleased to see they are delivering.

Third thought for the evening: Chloe is on Jack’s side now? It took her long enough. If she had just listened to him from the start then maybe things would be different. So far her being on the inside hasn’t really contributed much. If it does then I might change my tune (although more likely I will say lucky for her it worked out for the best). Right now it seems like she and Arlo are just going to play catch up for another hour or so.

Every time Jack talks about Rene I feel so incredibly sorry for him. This happened a couple of times during this episode. The first time was with whoever that is that’s helping him. “The Russians took something from me. Her name was Rene Walker and they killed her inside my apartment. I need to make them pay.” Actually, that made me feel sorry and scared for him at the same time. Jack has lost one of the most important people in his life and is completely broken. I am wondering though, wasn’t it the beginning of this season that he was planning on moving to be closer to Kim? Has he forgotten about that just as easily as I almost did? Because that could be his only reason left in this world to go on living.

Going back to the story though… Jack calls in a reporter (Meredith Reed) who he helped earlier in the day, to pass off the info he got on the Russians. The call gets intercepted by the NSA, which puts them one step closer to catching up to Jack. They plan to dispatch the Russian team to take him out. Chloe gets suspicious and somehow becomes magically smart enough to figure out that Pillar is part of the cover-up and is planning on taking Jack out. Meanwhile, Logan tells President Taylor what is going on and she tells them, “let me know as soon as it’s resolved.” I had to wonder there, does she know how they are “resolving” it? Part of me wants to say yes and part of me says she doesn’t want to know. I don’t think she actually wants Jack dead, but at the same time this thing has soared way over her head at this point. She has lost control, and I think she is beginning to realize this.

Just when it looks like Bauer is caught in the cross-hairs, his partner takes care of the sniper. Go Jack for being on top of things! Shame on you for having a shoot-out in yet another public place though. First the streets of New York and now a department store… really now, Jack? That was not smart. He really doesn’t care who gets hurt anymore, does he? Loved the fact that Logan had just asked for some kind of public acknowledgment from the President and then has to hear that Jack got away with one of his Russian friends. Looks like he is finally going to get what’s coming to him.

So now Jack has the Russian who was going to kill him and can try to get him to spill who else was involved. “Four hours ago I had a friend,” he says, “A very good friend who was killed with a weapon just like that.” He is referring to the weapon they found with the sniper when they caught him. “Go to hell,” sneers the Russian. “You first,” Jack quips back. That exchange had the dual effect of making me smile and giving me chills.

Cue the torture scene that is really just a giant therapy session for him masked under the guise of being “part of the mission”. He says he is looking for info, but what he really wants is the name of the person who ordered the hit on Rene so he can go after them next. Jack has totally lost control here, folks (in case you hadn’t noticed). I was on his side in defying the President but this has become more about himself and less about what is right. He is going to extremes even for him. Tonight’s ending really drove that home for me. First there was the torture, then he cut open the Russian operative to get at the SIM card he swallowed. This leads him to the person behind it all – Charles Logan. Charlie, you are so gonna get yours next week. It was nice knowing you.

That concludes tonight’s episode. With only three hours to go, we are coming down to the wire here. Make sure you don’t miss a second of it.

24: 9-10am recap

Tonight brought us another action-packed episode of the final season of 24. Let’s take a look, shall we?

*WARNING, SPOILERS AHEAD. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK*

First of all, I have to say I don’t think I have ever seen Jack look as broken as he did in the opening of this hour. Still reeling from the loss of Renee, Jack looked like a man who didn’t know where to turn next. The nurse at the hospital asked if he was going to be alright. I honestly wasn’t sure that he would be.

Next we turn to former President Charles Logan. Who else thinks it is possibly the worst idea ever to be trusting him as much as President Taylor has? Normally Taylor is big on principles, but she seems willing to go to any length to make sure this peace treaty goes through. Is it right to essentially blackmail the Russian government to make this happen though? And how does this help create a meaningful and lasting peace?

Of course Dana Walsh is the one who knows everything Jack needs to know to find the people who had Renee killed. Once this was established, I looked forward to him interrogating her. Is that wrong?

But back to Logan… I really have to say, I don’t trust the man. He obviously only cares about his own interests. Also, how does he know about the Russian involvement in the days events? AND WHY DIDN’T HE TRY TO STOP THEM?! Oh, right, cause all he cares about is himself. And obviously this has helped put him back in a position of power within our government. I didn’t think I could hate him any more than I already did. That was until he started trying to make Jack look like the bad guy and get President Taylor to turn against him. I was proud of Taylor for sticking to her principles. Or rather, I was until later when she told Jack to stand down. After everything that Jack has done for her and the country, he deserves at least this much.

Finally I have a morality question for you. President Taylor argues that this is all for the greater good. That if this is what it takes to get the peace treaty signed then it is worth it. I am not entirely sure how I feel about this. It seems to me that getting the peace treaty signed means nothing if it is done in this manner. Also, Hassan’s daughter should know who she is dealing with before signing the treaty. These people are responsible for her husband’s death. She and her daughter have a right to know who destroyed their family. Logan has put President Taylor in an impossible situation, but she is responding just as he wants her to and it is wrong.

Which brings me to the quote of the night:
Jack: I want justice.
Pres. Taylor: And I want peace. If there was another way to get it I would but there’s not.

Debate time.

What did you think of tonight’s episode? Do you think President Taylor is doing the right thing? Or is Jack the one who is right in pursuing this, despite orders to the contrary? I would love to hear what others have to say on the matter.

Profile: Jack Bauer

*Caution! Huge amounts of spoilers for last night’s 24 follow. Read at your own risk. You have been warned!*

The following is a somewhat stream-of-consciousness thought process on the events of last night’s 24 and what it means for Jack Bauer. Sorry if it is hard to follow. I’ll try to be as coherent as possible.

After watching last night’s episode of 24, I had a few thoughts on the character of Jack Bauer.

First: this guy is seriously not allowed to be happy!

Case in point: after failing his mission of protecting President Hassan (and looking dejected as hell for it) Jack goes home and actually is seen being happy with a member of the opposite sex. Long-time friends rejoice, and yet are hesitant. Seeing Jack and Renee being all kinds of happy with each other, I couldn’t help but think, “But Jack isn’t allowed to be happy.” It didn’t take long for the writers to prove me right.

As the bullets started flying, I knew one of them had to hit Renee. I also knew there was slim chance she would actually make it to the hospital and survive (but was still hopeful). What little hope I had was dashed though when the doctors came out of the OR almost immediately after going in. “It’s too soon,” I thought, as a sat up in my seat. I knew she was dead even before the doctors said so. The look on Jack’s face was that of a man who had been broken. It was the best and worst kind of hurt puppy dog face ever. It was the kind of face that makes you whimper (both inside and out). I actually almost cried for him. After everything this man has done for his country, after everything he has sacrificed, couldn’t he once, just once, get a happy ending?! No, I said. This was too much. Hasn’t he suffered enough?

Apparently not.

My only hope is that Jack avenges Renee’s death and gets some solace in that. It isn’t the same as having someone to grow old and retire with, though. And for that, Jack, I am truly sorry.