24: Season 5, Episode 22: Day 5: 4:00 AM - 5:00 AM

Note: I know this is late as we are almost 1/4 into season six, but considering my schedule, you'll have to bear with me.

Day 5: 4:00 AM – 5:00 AM
Original Airdate: May 15, 2006
Writers: Sam Montgomery and David Fury
Director: Brad Turner

While last episode had a more transitional feel, this one was more about setting stage for the grand finale (some may say that’s the same thing). The cat and mouse game between Logan and Jack was really great to watch, but unfortunately, they got to the point where it was completely illogical for Logan to be using his resources to track Jack openly. However, it seems like they may have put too much on the table with Bierko on the loose. With a show like 24, the writers must’ve felt they needed more action, even with the political conspiracies being rich with drama.

The episode starts with them addressing the tape being erased. Unfortunately for the format of 24, there’s little the writer of a new episode can do to work around the shortcomings of certain plot points. I’m not going to fault this episode for that, since the aftermath was quick and it gave us not one, but two Miles smackdowns. Jack throttling him was expected, but seeing Karen get a smack in wasn’t, making it rather satisfying.

Like they did with Nina back in season two, they had to come up with a way to get Jack and Henderson to work together to stop Bierko from striking. We don’t need to go over why Jack wants to kill Henderson, or why the lack of trust between the two would be problematic. But Henderson is a little naïve in his belief that Jack and the cavalry wouldn’t come rushing in as soon as he told Malina to destroy whatever evidence he had if they didn’t know he was putting it on a storage device. Obviously he’s not on anyone’s favorites list, but why not explain to someone who isn’t so personally invested in killing him what he’s about to do?

This gives us a little bit of character for Jack. He’s had to give immunity to someone who betrayed him and killed someone he cared about before, and he wasn’t willing to do it again. Karen wisely reminded Jack of Palmer, and how he would go through with it for the greater good. We saw an instance of that in the season four finale, as he granted Mandy her pardon (speaking of which, where is she?)

Henderson’s demand not only for immunity, but to disappear like Jack did so they won’t find him is a nice nod to his earlier use of the recording as insurance should the conspirators find him not useful anymore. Even if the tape only implicated Logan, there was enough weight on it to possibly topple everything. These conspirators have been proven to be very powerful, with people all over the government that could make Henderson have an accident or “commit suicide”.

Henderson even hints at that during Jack’s offer. Had he not said anything, CTU would’ve been completely clueless as to who appears to be the real masterminds behind the day’s attacks. It would be too risky to have President Logan himself actively getting into bed with the terrorists/conspirators and it wouldn’t fit his character. He needed people like Henderson and Graham doing the dirty work for him so they can deflect responsibility. One can hope that Graham and his co-horts don’t wind up like Max from season two, forgotten after a monster cliffhanger.

Pierce, after being absent a few episodes, comes back in a big way. His forgotten cell phone on the compound lawn was an indicator that something went wrong, but little was mentioned as to what since then. Pierce has been through a lot already, but now he has been beaten and held in an empty room in the stables. However, he is far from out.

While Pierce is known for being professional, respectful of orders and loyal, he is also a man of honor. There’s no way he would accept Logan’s smarmy offer to work anywhere but on his detail. That makes Pierce’s condemnation, capped with the perfect “Charles?”, a cheer inducing moment. This was improvised, but it fits the character. Glen Morshower as Pierce has had a juicy role this season, so he knows this character better than ever.

The botched hit on Pierce shakes Martha out of her heavily medicated complacency. She was willing to stay quiet for the sake of the country, added to her perception that what Logan was involved in seemed to be already done. But with someone she’s grown close to in the past 24 hours in immediate danger, she knew there was too much to ignore. There have been some sparks between Martha and Pierce all season, and this is probably the closest they’ll get to satisfying any shippers. It also finally gives Novick enough reason to side with the counter conspiracy.

At this point, Bierko’s attack on a Russian sub feels like an afterthought. There is evidence of the writers making it up on the fly because Bierko gave no hint that they decided to hold one of the canisters for a contingency plan. Last season, we had about the last quarter of the season devoted to Marwan obtaining a nuclear warhead and sending it flying straight toward LA. Bierko manages to get there in about an hour. As a result, it comes off as rushed, like in the ending where it only takes about ten seconds to contaminate the sub and kill its crew. This nitpick does take a backseat to the high stakes it raises for the two hour finale that would air the following week.

Despite some of the garbled nature of the narrative, this episode does a good job of setting up the players in interesting scenarios for the final act. It has been one of the most devastating days for 24, which has made it very entertaining, and there are still two hours left!

Overall Score: 7/10

24: Season 5, Episode 21: Day 5: 3:00 AM - 4:00 AM Review

Day 5: 3:00 AM – 4:00 AM
Original Airdate: May 8, 2006
Writers: Manny Coto
Director: Brad Turner

This episode brings this season to a difficult crossroad. Jack has the evidence implicating Logan and is in the clear to bringing him down. The only problem is that there are still three episodes left in the season, so the writers had to come up with a way to send Jack two steps back again. Unfortunately, the contrivance at the end hurts what was otherwise a really good hour.

That contrivance is Miles erasing the only copy of the incriminating recording. The most common nitpick of this episode is why does no one ever think of making a copy or play the recording over one of the secure lines to more people. Chloe could certainly handle turning that into an MP3 file. This is more frustrating because only a few lines could’ve explained why they didn’t copy the recording. Something about how a duplicate couldn’t be completely verified would’ve worked well. But such an explanation doesn’t exist, which makes the characters appear dumb for the sake of the story, which hinders the characterization.

There is some really good stuff in this episode, particularly the first half with Graham contriving a reason to justify shooting down the plane while Jack and the CTU A-Team try to find a make shift landing strip. While it may be absurd that the plane managed to stop just before crashing into the overpass, it’s still riveting to watch (plus crashing into an overpass would be awfully expensive to stage) because “24” requires that suspension of disbelief.

With the evidence in Jack’s hand, Logan is trapped, and that has him considering suicide as a way out of a long embarrassing trial and implicating Graham and his co-horts. Logan committing suicide would be an appropriate way to end this tragic figure. However, there are three episodes left, and to kill him off now would be anticlimactic. Plus, he really needs to suffer, as Martha said earlier.

Novick in the last hours has been privy to a lot of suspicious behavior from Logan that you wonder why no one has gotten him involved in the counter conspiracy sooner, especially considering his relationship with David Palmer. Logan’s insistence on shooting down the plane is just another in an on going series of tells that something is deeply wrong with this picture.

Heller surviving is a relief, but I wonder why they decided to keep him alive. The bigger question is why no one at the Presidential compound has found out about what happened to him. The Secretary of Defense plunging into a lake should shake everyone, and validate those who know something is wrong.

Bierko was kept alive for a reason. Clearly, his gesture to the van driver foreshadows the entire escort team getting killed and him breaking out for one more thrill before season's end. I can't wait to see how Bierko and a potential strike will figure paired alongside the conspiracy. Perhaps Bierko's ultimate role will be the one to bring down the conspiracy with the tape destroyed. But how did one of Bierko’s allies happen to be the guy driving the transport? This could simply be another distraction to keep CTU from getting too close to the conspiracy.

Miles is certainly the least likeable agent CTU’s ever seen. Although he’s been a yes-man to Karen and claims his allegiances are solid, he goes against that by covertly helping Logan cover his back. Obviously, Karen keeping him out was a mistake, but would he have been willing to follow along had he known the truth earlier? Karen’s following is clear after some of Logan’s questionable actions, but Jack playing the recording for her would’ve given her a bit more ground to act the way she has, even though she admits she’s trying to remain skeptical.

Since this is the 21^st episode and everyone is getting ready to unfurl the “Mission Accomplished” banner, there were going to be setbacks to halt the celebration. The only problem is that the ending underwrites the intelligence of the characters by not giving them any reason not to do what the audience thinks would be a logical contingency plan.

Score: 7/10

24: Season 5, Episode 20: Day 5: 2:00 AM - 3:00 AM Review

Day 5: 2:00 AM – 3:00 AM
Original Airdate: May 1, 2006
Writers: Michael Loceff and Joel Surnow
Director: Dwight Little

This episode, which coincidently aired the same week as the United 93 film release, deals with our hero hijacking a plane to get that vital piece of evidence implicating Logan in the day’s events. Some may believe that is in poor taste, but considering the scheduling, it's doubtful that 24 was aware of when this episode would air and any 9/11 films scheduled for release around that time. Also, the impact of that coincidental airing has been diminished over time (this review is being written January 2007).

It is certainly a lot to consider as Jack has to hijack a plane to get the terrorists. Often Jack resides on a blurry line, often acting like a criminal to prevent a major terrorist attack from happening or in this case, to bring those to justice. This episode brings Jack dangerously close to the negative extreme. It’s surprising more passengers don’t try to turn the tables on Jack.

Given the way Jack is behaving, screaming "people will die", waving a gun around, messing with the plane’s engine, and demanding to get in the cockpit, it's no wonder that the pilot (played by Jean Smart's real life husband) wouldn't want to let him in. He causes turbulence by playing with the He is behaving like a terrorist to foil the conspirators. Of course, it doesn’t help him that he has no idea who he’s looking for, and any of them could be likely candidates until Chloe tells him otherwise.

It is great that Karen is able to keep at least Chloe functioning in the CTU A-Team. I want to see her wheel in a cart with chicken wings, beer and ice cream to interrogate Bill just because it would make Miles even angrier. He'll certainly be mad when he learns that not only did Chloe sneak out, but operated covertly in a hotel bar! If his head doesn't explode by the end of the season I'm going to be disappointed.

Bill is definitely the best CTU head ever, besides when Jack held the position. He, like many members of the cast this season, have gotten plenty of good moments to shine, in this episode protecting Chloe and telling off the weasel Miles are two great examples. It would’ve only been better if he made himself look more disheveled when the CTU agents came to his house.

The drunken jerk at the bar could've blown out into another lame story, but thankfully that storyline was tasered out before it got there. Jack and Chloe are probably the two worst people you could approach at a bar, especially when they are on the job.

Getting Martha her medication, when we saw her start self medicating last episode, is placing her in a very bad situation. Anyone who can read a pill bottle knows mixing alcohol with medication is dangerous, and she was obviously drunk by the end of the episode. It’s no mystery why: she just found out her husband is involved in the conspiracy that’s responsible for all the bad things that have happened, including the murder of someone she cared about.

It is also the realization that their marriage is over, only functioning to keep up appearances. Logan and Martha draw certain comparisons to Palmer and Sherry from the first three seasons. This time the roles are reversed, and this time Logan’s tragic flaw is his obsession with legacy opposed to Sherry’s lust for power. Also Sherry’s association with Kingsley only came after the Palmer’s divorce and her entrenchment with the conspirators wasn’t nearly as active.

While the comparison has been made in this episode between these two first couples, it is hardly a retread. First, because Palmer is what every American (except a racist ignoramus) would want as a president. Logan is the antithesis, a man who is so tragically obsessed with how he’ll go down in the history books that he’ll help orchestrate a terrorist plot to help boost his image. It’s too bad they overdid Sherry and killed her off in season three, because it’d be really interesting to see what she’d be doing with Logan.

The end development, with Graham demanding Logan shoot down the plane, was foreseeable back when they talked about the hostage situation earlier. Had this been paced quicker, Graham would've suggested the plane be shot down, and the episode would've ended with the plane being shot down or not. Although I don't mind seeing it put into two episodes, it could've easily been thrown into one.

The main plot of this episode is an interesting examination of Jack being pushed the edge for the greater good, whereas the B and C storylines appear to be transitional, as repercussions continue throughout these final episodes.

Score: 8/10

Status Report - 1/2/07 - Happy Ought-Seven!

Hello everyone,

Hope the last two months have been good for everyone and hopefully no one missed my posts too much. I'm on vacation now and it seems my bout with the plague is over, so hopefully I'll have some reviews, including MIA ones for the most recent seasons of 24, Nip/Tuck and the mini-season of Lost. Well here's the first report of Ought-Seven.

What I'm watching: Not much, just repeats and junk food TV. Pretty much everything is on hiatus for the holidays. I thought I'd catch Dirt, but I heard some heinous things about it.

What I watched: The Wire (the show to beat for best of the 06-07 season), Heroes (a welcome treat), Studio 60 (flawed, but good enough to keep watching), Nip/Tuck (past its prime, but I still watch), The Office/Earl, Stewart/Colbert, Prison Break (got good toward the end of the fall season).

On DVD: I got a ton of DVDs, Santa came early and completed my Sopranos sets, I also got S1-3 of The Wire, S2 of Veronica Mars (still haven't touched S1), SNL S1, Simpsons S4 (When a fire starts to burn/there's a lesson you must learn/Something something then you'll see/You'll Avoid catastrophe!") I also got Homicide S1&2 for my dad, so I'm watching those with him.

Writing: I'm taking a stab at writing a long form fiction. I'm reluctant to say book or novel, because it may not pan out that way. We'll have to see.

Music: The Beatles' "Love" album, which is pretty great reworkings of the classics.

Well that's it for me. I got plenty to write, so hopefully there will be a lot of new additions coming up soon. Until next time, the remote is yours.

Matt