24: Season 5, Episode 15: Day 5: 9:00 PM - 10:00 PM

Day 5: 9:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Original Airdate: March 27, 2006
Writer: David Ehrman
Director: Jon Cassar

While this episode finishes the nerve gas threat, it is still a transitional episode, since the American conspiracy is what will drive the story for the rest of the season. It's doubtful that there are any more tricks up the Russian's sleeves, so now it is up to Jack to disarm a major conspiracy while maneuvering around a back up plan set to distract him.

Since Collette claims she can identify Audrey, why doesn't Jack have Chloe, Shari or even Karen pose as Audrey and trick her into identifying the wrong woman? Sure, that type of trick is cliché, but it is a classic for a reason. However, if that happened, we wouldn't have the opportunity to vilify Homeland Security for torturing Audrey.

Things between Jack and Audrey were going to be tough after Collette's bombshell, but things are worsened when Chloe informs him that Audrey shared a hotel room with Walt. This intimate connection shakes Jack, and likely makes him less sympathetic to her. However, Jack quickly figures that she was embarrassed over her affair and not complicit. There's no reason for him to be mad at her: she wasn't aware of Walt's duplicity when they were involved (Jack can relate to that), and she believed Jack was dead when the affair happened. Although they resolve their problem by the end of the episode, their complicated relationship goes through several phases in the course of an hour. However, the lingering issue over their heads is Jack's Chinese involvement. Would Audrey be willing to go into hiding with him? Initial reports indicate yes, but that could change as there are still 9 episodes left.

Despite Jack believing that Audrey is innocent, Karen sees it as Jack letting his sympathy get the best of him. The writer wisely calls back to how Jack was misled by Nina back in season one and this could be a similar instance. While this is a reasonable point, it seems that to be a high ranking CTU official, you must doubt Jack's instinct to determine whether someone is guilty no matter how many times you're proven wrong.

Jack becomes aware that Audrey's implication is a major distraction, and realizes that they need to get information out of Collette, despite her having immunity. Considering how easily they find that Collette was in contact with Henderson, you wonder why Karen didn't sign off on it (or Jack thought of it) earlier. The actual interrogation is good, but the real treat was when Jack took the guard's gun and handed it back to Buchanan afterward, saying he'll be looking for it.

It's worth noting in this episode shows just how powerful Henderson really is. The higher ranking members of the conspiracy are the generals, and Henderson is the highest ranking soldier, allowing the "generals" to claim ignorance if he's caught. Henderson has interacted with Collette (thinking out how this works would ruin the fun) and is in charge of the soldiers looking for Wayne, who were obviously allowed in by those higher up. The evidence is damning for Vice President Gardner, who knew about Wayne's arrival shortly before the attack.

I had one problem with Aaron's storyline this episode, besides the lack of screen time. Since it didn't take him long to find Wayne, why didn't they just go back to the compound instead of lurking through the woods back to the black ops van, where several trained soldiers were waiting with a variety of weapons? They would've been toast if they didn't leave the keys in the ignition. While it doesn't look good for Wayne, he survived the initial ambush for a reason. We don't know exactly what information he has, but that is likely what will ensure his survival (I usually don't like it when they bring someone back just to kill them off).

One thing that worries me is the new Shari. Granted, Kate Mara is easy on the eyes (I remember her playing a naïve lesbian on Nip/Tuck), but her crying sexual harassment over an innocuous gesture seems uncomfortably close to the melodramatic subplots that have bogged down 24 before. Thankfully, there haven't been any stories like that this season, and even those that came close were tied to the main threat quickly. The immediate implication of Shari's instability is that it undermines Chloe's position with Miles when she stood up for her, although that was a highlight.

Bierko's plan would amass 200,000 casualties, but the writers never explained how they could do it at a time when many people would be at home instead of a crowded area. Now it's clear that was the point, as it would be released through a plant that pumps natural gas to the homes. And because of some gas science, they need time to depressurize so the nerve gas can travel through the system, giving our heroes time to find out while the terrorists force a patsy to make the gas movement happen

The final action sequence is a lot of fun, reminiscent of the climax of Return of the Jedi. 24 always does well with these action sequences, like the Saunders apprehension and Heller and Audrey's rescue, but it is more related to a major piece of pyrotechnics than several minutes of stunt work. We know Jack would be OK, but having the explosion chasing him, only for Jack to run back to get Bierko makes for a riveting end.

Jack is clearly safe, but what about Bierko? His proximity to Jack makes him a likely candidate for survival, but what would his purpose be, now that the Russian side of the conspiracy has ended? He would likely want some payback from those responsible for tricking him and his men, but how could they play that out?

Although the nerve gas crisis is over, this episode also wanted to continue to show that there is a lot more to the American conspiracy, as popularly assumed. Henderson is poised to be the big bad, but he is protecting people far more powerful than he is. So who are they?

Score: 8/10