24: Redemption

Characters Introduced:

• Ike Dubaku (Hakeem Kae-Kazim): The first bad African we are introduced to. Working that stereotypical child soldier trainer angle hard.
• Frank Trammell (Gil Bellows): Another in a long line of government douchebags hounding Jack Bauer. He may have become the worst by the end of this story.
• Willie (Siyabulela Ramba): A not too bright kid that decides to choose Jack as his role model.
• Desmond (Mbongeni Nomkonwana): Willie’s older brother who doesn’t care about the rules.
• Carl Benton (Robert Carlyle): Jack’s old Special Forces buddy who is now running a school in the fake African nation. Unlike Jack, he seems to have put his past behind.
• Charles Solenz (Sean Cameron Michael): The United Nations aide worker who exists purely to show that being a pacifist is a joke. Jack is the only way.
• Youssou Dubaku (Zolile Nokwe): Dubaku’s younger brother who goes out recruiting and runs afoul of Jack Bauer.
• Jonas Hodges (Jon Voight): Like I said, the later seasons of 24 fully took advantage of the early seasons prestige for casting. Voight plays his standard shady businessman.
• Nichols (Mark Aiken): Hodges’ first right hand man.
• Chris Whitley (Kris Lemche): Druggie financial analyst that is helping Nichols cover Hodge’s financial evil.
• Thomas (Sivuyile Ngesi): Benton’s right hand man.
• Samantha Roth (Carly Pope): Roger Taylor’s girlfriend who doesn’t do much here but plays a big role early in Day 7.
• Roger Taylor (Eric Lively): The incoming President’s son. Being friends with Chris is not good for his health.
• Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones): Taking over the Presidency after defeating Daniels in the election. With the way 24 treats women, this will get interesting.
• Henry Taylor (Colm Feore): The first First Husband. You can already see the cracks as he is stuck in the shadow of his wife.
• Ule Matobo (Isaach De Bankole): The President of Sangala who is trying to hold Juma off but needs American help.
• Edward Vossler (Mark Kiely): Faux-Secret Service agent tracking Roger Taylor.
• Benjamin Juma (Tony Todd): The African boogeyman (or maybe Candyman) coming to take over Sangala.
• John Quinn (Sebastian Roche): Another one of Hodges’ scary men that will play a role in Day 7.

Returning Characters:

• Jack Bauer (last episode of season 6)
• Tom Lennox (last episode of season 6)
• Noah Daniels (last episode of season 6)
• Ethan Kanin (last episode of season 6)

Key Moments:

• We start in Sangala, Africa … looks at a map … where the fuck are we?
• A truck of kids is being brought to Dubaku and then we see Dubaku giving his brainwashing speech to another group of kidnappaed child soldiers. The scene ends with one of the kids killing some guy with a machete.
• Trammell is traveling on an African road holding a menacing federal subpoena.
• Willie and Desmond argue about going into town to play soccer. Desmond takes off without permission while Willie sneaks into a room and starts rifling through someone’s rucksack. He pockets a knife and pulls out a pretty piece of cloth. The camera moves and we see Jack watching from the doorway. We learn that Jack has been all around the world recently but has no plans to go home. He lets Willie keep the piece of cloth but does ask for his blade back. After Willie leaves, Benton shows up with Trammell. Trammell puffs out his chest to tell Jack that he has been subpoenaed by the United States government but goes too far when he tries to slap Jack with the envelope. Jack grabs his wrist and twists it so the envelope falls to the ground. He tells Trammell that if the government wants him they can come get him. After Jack leaves, Trammell turns to Benton and pretty much threatens his school if he protects Jack.
• Dubaku sends his brother, Youssou, out for more child soldiers since they are planning to take over the country soon. Afterwards, Dubaku takes a call from Hodges and they discuss weapons and coups. Hodges tells Nichols to cover up his African transactions.
• Chris is popping pills at his desk when he is called into a meeting with Nichols. He sees Hodges leave the office before being told to destroy all the records.
• Benton tries to engage Jack in a conversation about where his head is at the moment. Jack relents and they sit in the sun and discuss the things they’ve done. Benton tells him why he got out of the life and says Jack can stay as long as he wants. Jack won’t bring his problems to Benton’s door and they shake hands as if they are saying goodbye.
• Thomas and Charles are arguing over whether Juma is really beginning to take over the country and kidnapping children. Benton finds out that Desmond went into town and leaves to go looking for him.
• Youssou and crew drive up on the soccer game Desmond is playing in. Youssou rounds up all the children. Desmond and another kid try to run but are shot by one of Youssou’s men.
• Samantha and Roger are getting dressed for the inauguration ceremony. Chris calls Roger and begs him for a meeting before he leaves for the ceremony.
• Allison and Henry Taylor are walking through the White House and are greeted by Lennox. He tells Taylor that Daniels has been delayed by a situation. Allison demands to know what is going on. We get the TELEPRESENCE! Daniels is technologically meeting with Matobo. Matobo is pleading for American assistance to hold off Juma. Lennox tells Daniels that Taylor wants to meet with him so he ends the call. Daniels and Taylor disagree over Sangala. Daniels has ordered the withdrawal of all Americans within the country. Taylor disagrees but gets the full Powers Boothe treatment.
• Benton is looking around the soccer field and spots one dead kid. He then finds a wounded Desmond by a stream.
• Jack washes up and packs his stuff for his exit. Willie doesn’t want him to leave but Jack comforts him before walking off. Before he can get to far, Thomas comes running and says Benton is calling. Benton tells him that Juma’s men are coming for the kids at the school. He begs Jack to protect them and Jack sounds the alarm. Jack bitches out Charles before arming himself with Benton’s guns and dynamite. Youssou and crew arrive at the school. Jack tosses a stick of dynamite blowing up a car and couple of soldiers. He uses a second stick as a distraction and shoots a couple more. He runs, hides, and shoots a couple more before a RPG is fired at him. He dives as a building blows up. Jack gets up and continues running through Youssou’s men. When he runs out of bullets, he runs off and fights off a couple more before being knocked out by a rifle butt. Youssou doesn’t want him killed because he can’t find the children. Benton drives up and sees the smoke. He leaves Desmond in the truck and spots Jack being tied up for some torture.
• Benton calls Trammell for help but finds out that America is abandoning the country. Trammell gives him 1 hour to reach a chopper.
• For some reason Youssou thinks beating Jack will get him to talk, but eventually he turns to a white hot machete to the face. After being burned, Jack sees Benton signaling him with a mirror. Jack gives Youssou a location; he even pretends to cry to sell it. Youssou sends his men but stays with Jack. When Benton’s bullets distract him, Jack trips him and snaps his neck with his legs, the ole number one. Benton frees Jack and tells him about taking the kids to the helicopter. The kids are loaded on the bus as Charles flees thinking the United Nations helmet will save him. Jack offers to help Benton avoid Juma’s men.
• Vossler checks Chris before Roger calls him off. Roger listens as Chris frantically tries to explain his predicament to Roger. Roger wants proof of these financial transactions before Roger will bring this to his mother. Chris says he has evidence on his home computer.
• Juma arrives at Dubaku’s camp. They get a call from a patrol that caught Charles. He gave up everything that happened at Benton’s school and even tells Dubaku that his brother is dead.
• Jack and Benton listen to Dubaku’s orders through one of his radios. They take the bus off the road and realize they will have to walk the rest of the way.
• Lennox and Henry have a weird argument over Henry being the First Husband. Daniels and Taylor are finishing up the transition of office. Daniels finally deflates a bit and warns Taylor over what being the President will do to you. She leaves the Oval Office and tells Henry about Sangala. Henry tells her he will contact Ethan.
• Dubaku convinces Juma to allow him to go searching for the man who killed his brother.
• Chris arrives home and begins downloading the evidence. He hears a noise and explores the other rooms but comes back to his computer to find a man sitting there. He answers some questions, but Quinn arrives to begin the more advanced interrogation.
• Roger and Samantha talk about Chris in the back of the limo as Vossler listens in from the driver seat. They arrive at the ceremony and Vossler gets an update from Quinn.
• Jack has lead Benton and the children close enough to the city that Benton tells him to go in another direction and get out of the country. They depart but both stop when they hear an incoming helicopter. Dubaku opens fire on them but Jack takes out the helicopter with a rifle. And of course he does. Dubaku lands as Jack tells everyone to run through the trees. Willie drops the piece of cloth Jack gave him and runs back for it. Benton tries to stop him but steps on a landmine instead. Jack tries to disarm it but Benton tells him it impossible. He begs Jack to protect the kids and get them to the helicopter. He gives Jack the papers and Jack gives him the rifle.
• Benton surrenders to Dubaku’s men. Dubaku asks him where Jack is but Benton denies. He gets shot twice for his denials but Dubaku and his men keep getting closer to him. Benton starts mumbling and Dubaku leans in; he tells Dubaku to go to hell as his men pull him off the mine. Jack hears the explosion and is sad. We almost get some Jack tears but there is a mission to complete. Dubaku is messed up but alive.
• Roger is still cheching for Chris’ message when his mother arrives. Ethan greets her and says that a briefing on Sangala will be waiting for her after the inauguration. In the crowd, Vossler and Hodges discuss Chris and Roger. Vossler tries to argue against killing Roger but Hodges is a bad man.
• Willie cries and runs off when Thomas tells him that Benton is dead. Jack chases him down but spots a suspicious man walking through the street. He tells the children to hide and engages Juma’s men in shootout in the middle of the street. He eventually faces down a child soldier but is able to talk him out of firing.
• Trammell loads Matobo on to a helicopter to get him out of the country.
• Jack is at the gates of the American Embassy and shouts his name to get some attention. Trammell acts like a dick and turns away when Jack tells him Benton is dead. Jack gives him the papers but Trammell demands Jack turn himself over if he wants the kids to be choppered out. Of course they arrest Jack and delay letting the kids in for dramatic effect, but Trammell does let them all in after a couple of beats.
• While Taylor gives her speech, Jack is flying back home, Chris’s body is being disposed of, and Hodges’ looks on from the crowd.

Ridiculousness:

No time for crap here

Running Totals:

Jack’s body count: 15 (203)

• Jack takes down the majority of Youssou’s crew in the initial fight.
• Jack leg-snaps Youssou’s neck
• Jack gets a few of Juma’s men during the shootout in the streets.

Torture doesn’t mean you can’t be creative: 2 (45)

• Burning with a machete is a new tactic.
• Quinn delivers some chemical torture to Chris but we never really get an explanation of what is going on.