I am certain that 24s Jack Bauer ( JB ) is an homage to James Bond ( ) We saw a terrorist stop a bomb with 0:00:07 left. If that's not a nod to James Bond, I don't know what is. (Ok, so Jack didn't stop the situation, but it's still 007).
Yep, noticed that one myself. Like you sez, Mr. M, it's hard to miss!
Now that the bomb has been disarmed and there's nothing left except to catch the people who did the horrible deed at the end of the 7am hour, what more could there be? What else do these terrorist want?
I think the terrorist angle may be played out. Since President Logan is coming back, apparently to "advise" President Taylor, it could be that some kind of international incident is brewing. She allowed a visiting head of state to fall into the hands of terrorists who did the dirty on him, and so now the "IRK" (or whatever it's called--I'm irked that I can't remember) is demanding reparations, Taylor's resignation, or whatnot. Of course, somehow or other there will be something that could blow up--otherwise, what else is Jack good for?
I finally caught up on the 24 and what an ending to the latest episode! I was really disappointed in the whole traitor in CTU storyline and only slightly less disappointed with the intrigue in the white house but then they pull out that ending. That's what makes this show great. This is shaping up to be a good season after all. I just hope that bringing back President Logan AGAIN doesn't mean we are going to get more recycled storylines.
"A blunt instrument wielded by a Government department. Hard, ruthless, sardonic, fatalistic. He likes gambling, golf, fast motor cars. All his movements are relaxed and economical". Ian Fleming
Absolutely amazing the way 24 managed to pull itself out of that spiralling nose-dive and become again a compelling show. And for the second time in a row this season, they delivered a knockout. Here's how you keep the show going in the final hours: re-introduce the Russians as bad guys who want to pull out of the conference and kill off anyone who can connect them to the terrorists; promote the Hot Widow to the IRK's new president (maybe Hot Daughter can come in as vice-president?); bring back Logan, who apparently has got the goods on the Russkies; dump Hastings and make Chloe the interim CTU head; and Renee . . . damn, Renee . . . Jack has the worst luck. A few weeks ago I was ready to throw in the towel and the news 24 is being cancelled didn't move my heart at all; now I'm starting to think The End is something to be dreaded after all. Until next week. . .
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
I agree HB. I was ready to give up on this season and call it a wash. I didn't care how it ended. But with Logan in the picture and World Peace hanging in the balance I'll be watching until the end. I'll also admit that I almost cried at the end of tonights episode. Lots of hints to the end of season 1, just a little more extended and a lot more emotional.
One last thing. Before this season started there was no talk of 24 coming to an end. But as this season has progressed I have a feeling the writers knew it was time to end it. I have a feeling no matter what this was going to be the last season of 24.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
Why couldn't the entire season have been like this? Again we got an excellent episode, with Jack being his baaaaaaaad self: hollow-eyed, grim, vengeful, all business, and literally kickin' ass and takin' names. He's back to being both a loose cannon who can push the series into any direction and a sympathetic leading man we'll root for. Ah, Jack, where've you been?
I also liked the political machinations. The scene with Presidents Taylor and Logan and Ethan Canin discussing swallowing ugly political truths in order to accomplish a task for the "greater good" is classic, and the evocation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar gave it a tragic poignancy. (But, if truth be told, the scene brought to mind Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, with Logan as the evil angel and Canin as the good angel competing for the soul of President Taylor.) And every bit of the soap opera stuff that dragged down previous "hours" of the season are gone--looks like the last six will be an adventure. . .and gawd knows where it will all end up!
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Has President Taylor sold out? Will she really let this peace process go down knowing it isn't a true peace process? Charles Logan still is a no good..........I'm going to bite my tongue. There has to be a reasonable explanation for this, hopefully Madam President will wise up and listen to Jack, he seems to know what's best for this country, and right now I'm with him.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
I really was disappointed with the last 2 seasons and then the last three episodes come and BANG JACK IS BACK! I couldn't be happier. Back to singing the praises of this show for me Oh, and you know Audrey is coming back. I know Jack is a tragic hero and all, but come on, killing all his women? This is getting out of hand haha.
I heard Kiefer say in an interview last year on Jimmy Kimmel that "we still have some people in comas."
Wonder what that means?
Bond: That looks like a woman's gun.
Largo: Do you know a lot about guns, Mr. Bond?
Bond: No, but I know a little about women.
I said it afore and I'll say it again--if only the entire season had been as good as these final episodes! I love that the focus has almost entirely been turned on political machinations, and it's fascinating to see President Taylor transform from the Do-Gooder-In-Chief to the female Charles Logan. And, speaking of which, the "Good Angel/Bad Angel" formula I pointed to last week--with Ethan as the former and Logan as the latter--was played to the hilt tonight, with Taylor a very spongey tennis ball being lobbed between them.
But not to forget Jack--who else could outrun helicopters and then foil a plot to set him up and catch him? (That said, his explanation that he could see it all coming--even down to Cole being put on the team to nab him--just because he knows how Chloe thinks, was a bit too much to take.) And, could it be, even Dana Walsh is serving a useful purpose in the show and she even manages to wring a bit of sympathy out of me?
So, five episodes to go. . .and I really, truly don't know what will happen next!
Man I hate what they did to Renee. She was a strong woman last year and they turned her into a basketcase and shot her. This season has been another massive let-down. Good to see Logan back though.
Hour 20 was a lot of fun--one chase after another, and the villains becoming nastier than ever. I have to admit that as much as I hated Dana earlier this season, she grew into one of the better bad-girls on the show (note past tense). Four more hours to go. . .
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Oh man, this hour had to be one of the best. Cold blooded Jack is back. Now that he has what he needs, will he get to where he needs to be? 4 more hours to find out. HB (and anyone else who watches), did tonights show remind you of a scene from TWINE (sort of)?
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
HB (and anyone else who watches), did tonights show remind you of a scene from TWINE (sort of)?
Hmmm, hadn't entirely thought of that, but I can see where you're coming from. It would make more sense if Jack were in love with the person in question, though. On a somewhat related note, I just watched last night's episode of CSI: Miami and I noted a definite nod to Goldfinger: a gang of beautiful women who steal gold, melt it down, and mold it into exhaust tanks for motorcycles as a way of smuggling it away.
But back to 24. My favorite scenes last night involved Jack in a hostage standoff: the first was when Dana was being held and her torturer kept lecturing Jack about how he wouldn't have the time to shoot him--only, of course, to take a shot in the head. Then was the scene where Jack himself was holding a cop, convinced another cop to lay down his weapon, says a nonchalant "Sorry," and shoots the disarmed cop in the foot. That's about as close to Bondian behavior as Jack gets!
Hour 21 can be summed up in one word: Intense. Lawd Amighty, this is what 24 does best--keep the action moving, with a well-plotted-out shoot-out in the clothing section of a department store (!), Chloe and Arlo nerding it up at the computers, and possibly one of the most gripping and brutal torture scenes ever shown on television. Great stuff, but not mindless entertainment. In fact, I suspect that the series is moving toward Jack's death, since it's established that not only is he being hunted by the government, but Cole has lost faith in Jack and still has some feelings for Dana--so he's likely to be Jack's executioner. This is starting to shape up as grand tragedy.
I also want to sing the praises here of Gregory Itzin as ex-President Charles Logan. He's always been a slimy character, sort of a poor man's Dick Nixon, but this time out he's emerging as a major villain, capable of seducing an honorable president and whose overwhelming ego is likely to cause Jack's death and national disgrace. The wretchedness of much of the first half of this final season of 24 is forgiven and forgotten: over the last few weeks we've been given the stuff of greatness.
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Hour 21 can be summed up in one word: Intense. Lawd Amighty, this is what 24 does best--keep the action moving, with a well-plotted-out shoot-out in the clothing section of a department store (!), Chloe and Arlo nerding it up at the computers, and possibly one of the most gripping and brutal torture scenes ever shown on television.
I was waiting for Michalel Madsen to step in, turn the radio to a station playing Stuck In The Middle With You, cut the guys ear off and proceed to douse him in gas. Oh well, what Jack did was far worse. I still wanted Stuck In The Middle With You to be playing.
As for Jacks death, i don't know. I think he'll survive. If he does get killed I don't know what the right way to kill him off would be? It's kind of like James Bond, he's survived so much drama he deserves a dramtic death. It would kill me if Jack stepped off a curb and was killed by a bus or was the victim of a mistaken identity drive by shooting.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
The darker this show gets, the more people Jack questions and kills, the more things are closing in on Jack himself, the more I'm reminded of a Jacobean revenge tragedy. (For those of you who snoozed through your Renaissance lit classes, the most famous--but hardly the most violent and brutal--example is Hamlet.) Like the classic revenger, Jack is out to expose and punish criminals in high places, approaching them when they're at their weakest and most venal (Charles Logan's blubbering was a real highlight) and clamping down like the Angel of Death. But what makes a revenge tragedy a tragedy? Well, all that revenge comes at a cost: the hero exposes what's wrong and cleanses the government of sin and evil, but the revenger himself dies (again, think Hamlet). Already we see Jack with a serious wound: the close-up of his blood on the wall as Hour 22 expired could, perhaps, anticipate Jack's last breath.
OK, enough of being the lit professor. I do that in real life. What made this episode work wasn't its literary associations but its suspense, its tension, the fact it was bloody hard to breathe while watching it. I'm also finding a political parable here: that the U.S. government is vulnerable to abuses and takeovers, and that even the most noble-minded politician can turn into a tyrant when it comes to safeguarding what he--or she--most desires. Could the notoriously conservative 24 producers be making a statement they hope a certain someone in Washington might pay attention to?
So next week it all ends. No more countdowns. No more CTU. Maybe I'll be wrong, but I'm pretty sure it also means no more Jack. 'Til then. . .
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Jack is getting more brutal as time passes. In the past two hours I think I've seen more blood than I have in the prior seven season combined. I also don't think Bauer is going to die. I have a feeling he'll be treated as a traitor to the country he's fought so hard to protect. I guess we'll find out in two hours.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
And this is it. No more countdown clock. No more somber narration telling us "the following takes place between. . ." No more Jack? Well, I won't say any more, so as to spare those who choose to ignore the spoiler tag on this thread.
Last week I waxed academic by talking about how the series has become like a Jacobean revenge tragedy; I think the way it's ended, however, is more like a 1970s political thriller--the sort of movie made after Watergate that shows how the government has lost its ideals and pleads for a return to truth and honesty. On the whole, I bought it--even if I found President Taylor's change of heart--through listening to Jack's recorded message and contemplating the pen Hassan gave her--more than a little contrived. I again think President Logan emerged as a fantastic villain, and Pillar was a good lackey, blubbering like his boss when Jack gets the drop on him.
So, on the whole, I think this was a fairly good season. It started well, took a disasterous turn into melodrama and soap-operish muck, but then turned into a good thriller that raises interesting questions about the politics behind peacemaking and the limits to which a government may be willing to go when it comes to protecting its own self-interests. Is it a good finale to the series, though? That I can't say. . .in part because I have a sneaking suspicion we haven't entirely seen the last of CTU. . .
Tick. . .tick. . .tick. . .
Vox clamantis in deserto
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
Hmmmm. I enjoyed tonights show, but feel a bit cheated. The only surprising thing was Logan turning the gun on himself. He should survive, but will have lots of brain damage. I'm glad Jack wasn't killed off either. But once again he's on the run. Two countrys are searching for him so where will he hide. I guess we'll never know, maybe that's the way the writers want it. Bauer goes into hiding never to be found. I'm sure he'll turn up again in a 24 movie, only time will tell.
*Two final thoughts. I enjoyed the short message at the beginning of tonights episode from Keifer and I like how the clock didn't tick from 3:58:58 to 4:00, but instead counted down from 00:00:02 to 00:00:00. A nice little touch to show time has run out.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
Mr MartiniThat nice house in the sky.Posts: 2,707MI6 Agent
I guess we'll never know, maybe that's the way the writers want it. Bauer goes into hiding never to be found. I'm sure he'll turn up again in a 24 movie, only time will tell.
.
Found this little tid-bit on-line and thought some of you might be interested:
24 is to return on the Fox network (US) for twelve episodes, the shows producer has confirmed. According to Deadline, Kiefer Sutherland is in talks to reprise his award winning role as agent Jack Bauer.
24 is to return on the Fox network (US) for twelve episodes, the shows producer has confirmed. According to Deadline, Kiefer Sutherland is in talks to reprise his award winning role as agent Jack Bauer.
24 is to return on the Fox network (US) for twelve episodes, the shows producer has confirmed. According to Deadline, Kiefer Sutherland is in talks to reprise his award winning role as agent Jack Bauer.
So will the show be called 12?
LOL!! They could do 12, Two-Hour episodes. I know lots of times Hells Kitchen used to have two one hour episodes on Tuesday nights. They've also done that to Kitchen Nightmares.
It'll be cool to have a 12 week run during the summer of 2014. I never liked the idea of a 24 film, since it would defeat the whole idea of what the show was about. I just hope they can get a decent script and good cast together.
Some people would complain even if you hang them with a new rope
Comments
Yep, noticed that one myself. Like you sez, Mr. M, it's hard to miss!
I think the terrorist angle may be played out. Since President Logan is coming back, apparently to "advise" President Taylor, it could be that some kind of international incident is brewing. She allowed a visiting head of state to fall into the hands of terrorists who did the dirty on him, and so now the "IRK" (or whatever it's called--I'm irked that I can't remember) is demanding reparations, Taylor's resignation, or whatnot. Of course, somehow or other there will be something that could blow up--otherwise, what else is Jack good for?
One last thing. Before this season started there was no talk of 24 coming to an end. But as this season has progressed I have a feeling the writers knew it was time to end it. I have a feeling no matter what this was going to be the last season of 24.
I also liked the political machinations. The scene with Presidents Taylor and Logan and Ethan Canin discussing swallowing ugly political truths in order to accomplish a task for the "greater good" is classic, and the evocation of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar gave it a tragic poignancy. (But, if truth be told, the scene brought to mind Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, with Logan as the evil angel and Canin as the good angel competing for the soul of President Taylor.) And every bit of the soap opera stuff that dragged down previous "hours" of the season are gone--looks like the last six will be an adventure. . .and gawd knows where it will all end up!
I heard Kiefer say in an interview last year on Jimmy Kimmel that "we still have some people in comas."
Wonder what that means?
Largo: Do you know a lot about guns, Mr. Bond?
Bond: No, but I know a little about women.
But not to forget Jack--who else could outrun helicopters and then foil a plot to set him up and catch him? (That said, his explanation that he could see it all coming--even down to Cole being put on the team to nab him--just because he knows how Chloe thinks, was a bit too much to take.) And, could it be, even Dana Walsh is serving a useful purpose in the show and she even manages to wring a bit of sympathy out of me?
So, five episodes to go. . .and I really, truly don't know what will happen next!
Hmmm, hadn't entirely thought of that, but I can see where you're coming from. It would make more sense if Jack were in love with the person in question, though. On a somewhat related note, I just watched last night's episode of CSI: Miami and I noted a definite nod to Goldfinger: a gang of beautiful women who steal gold, melt it down, and mold it into exhaust tanks for motorcycles as a way of smuggling it away.
But back to 24. My favorite scenes last night involved Jack in a hostage standoff: the first was when Dana was being held and her torturer kept lecturing Jack about how he wouldn't have the time to shoot him--only, of course, to take a shot in the head. Then was the scene where Jack himself was holding a cop, convinced another cop to lay down his weapon, says a nonchalant "Sorry," and shoots the disarmed cop in the foot. That's about as close to Bondian behavior as Jack gets!
I also want to sing the praises here of Gregory Itzin as ex-President Charles Logan. He's always been a slimy character, sort of a poor man's Dick Nixon, but this time out he's emerging as a major villain, capable of seducing an honorable president and whose overwhelming ego is likely to cause Jack's death and national disgrace. The wretchedness of much of the first half of this final season of 24 is forgiven and forgotten: over the last few weeks we've been given the stuff of greatness.
I was waiting for Michalel Madsen to step in, turn the radio to a station playing Stuck In The Middle With You, cut the guys ear off and proceed to douse him in gas. Oh well, what Jack did was far worse. I still wanted Stuck In The Middle With You to be playing.
As for Jacks death, i don't know. I think he'll survive. If he does get killed I don't know what the right way to kill him off would be? It's kind of like James Bond, he's survived so much drama he deserves a dramtic death. It would kill me if Jack stepped off a curb and was killed by a bus or was the victim of a mistaken identity drive by shooting.
OK, enough of being the lit professor. I do that in real life. What made this episode work wasn't its literary associations but its suspense, its tension, the fact it was bloody hard to breathe while watching it. I'm also finding a political parable here: that the U.S. government is vulnerable to abuses and takeovers, and that even the most noble-minded politician can turn into a tyrant when it comes to safeguarding what he--or she--most desires. Could the notoriously conservative 24 producers be making a statement they hope a certain someone in Washington might pay attention to?
So next week it all ends. No more countdowns. No more CTU. Maybe I'll be wrong, but I'm pretty sure it also means no more Jack. 'Til then. . .
Last week I waxed academic by talking about how the series has become like a Jacobean revenge tragedy; I think the way it's ended, however, is more like a 1970s political thriller--the sort of movie made after Watergate that shows how the government has lost its ideals and pleads for a return to truth and honesty. On the whole, I bought it--even if I found President Taylor's change of heart--through listening to Jack's recorded message and contemplating the pen Hassan gave her--more than a little contrived. I again think President Logan emerged as a fantastic villain, and Pillar was a good lackey, blubbering like his boss when Jack gets the drop on him.
So, on the whole, I think this was a fairly good season. It started well, took a disasterous turn into melodrama and soap-operish muck, but then turned into a good thriller that raises interesting questions about the politics behind peacemaking and the limits to which a government may be willing to go when it comes to protecting its own self-interests. Is it a good finale to the series, though? That I can't say. . .in part because I have a sneaking suspicion we haven't entirely seen the last of CTU. . .
Tick. . .tick. . .tick. . .
*Two final thoughts. I enjoyed the short message at the beginning of tonights episode from Keifer and I like how the clock didn't tick from 3:58:58 to 4:00, but instead counted down from 00:00:02 to 00:00:00. A nice little touch to show time has run out.
Found this little tid-bit on-line and thought some of you might be interested:
http://omg.yahoo.com/news/24-movie-in-jeopardy-after-fox-passes-on-script/53210?nc
The FULL article.
24 series to return to US television
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-22478477
So will the show be called 12?
LOL!! They could do 12, Two-Hour episodes. I know lots of times Hells Kitchen used to have two one hour episodes on Tuesday nights. They've also done that to Kitchen Nightmares.
It'll be cool to have a 12 week run during the summer of 2014. I never liked the idea of a 24 film, since it would defeat the whole idea of what the show was about. I just hope they can get a decent script and good cast together.