Day 5: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Characters Introduced:

• Schaeffer (Timothy V. Murphy): Nathanson’s man that Erwich is meeting so he can ship the canisters out of LA.

Returning Characters:

Nada

Key Moments:

• Erwich loads the canisters into a van that they have marked as SWAT, which gets them past security.
• Evelyn finds Martha sprawled out on her bed and calls for help.
• Curtis finds Erwich on the security footage. He and his team move into the hangar Erwich was in. They find the big hole and the empty container. Curtis spots some dead rats and calls in the chemical people to figure out what was stored there.
• Erwich meets up with Schaeffer about getting the canisters back to Russia.
• Logan walks in to find Martha’s paranoid ramblings sounding even more paranoid. He leaves and talks to Walt who suggests sending her back to the nuthouse. Logan agrees to institutionalize his wife.
• Nathanson updates Walt and tells him to deal with Jack Bauer. Walt says he has man on the inside of CTU.
• Curtis has found out that there was military grade nerve gas in the hangar.
• Walt calls Spenser to get the hitter into CTU.
• Lynn asks Audrey to question Diane about Jack.
• Jack gets the long shot of him reentering CTU for the first time since his “death”. Of course, he walks straight to Chloe to see how she is doing because she is the only one that matters. Lynn updates him and says he is not under arrest but would like his help tracking the nerve gas. Bill actually talks to Jack to see how he is doing then tells him that Audrey is in the building.
• Audrey and Diane have their awkward conversation. This is almost made worthwhile when Diane says that she “accepted Jack for who he was” to Audrey who dumped Jack when she saw the real Jack. Jack walks towards the door and Audrey is unable to hide her reaction. She leaves the room to talk to Jack. They talk about Jack’s fake death and Audrey tells him that she doesn’t blame him for Paul’s death. But he was responsible?
• Walt tells Evelyn to pack Martha’s bags.
• Spenser is acting shady in a tech room when Chloe walks in to apologize for how she has treated him. He walks out and she awesomely says “damnit, why do I that?” Then she gets it together and snoops what Spenser was doing. She tells Edgar to call Bill because Spenser has been naughty.
• Spenser gets Walt’s man past security and leads him to a computer to download files on Jack. He walks out of the room, failing to recognize that the guy is assembling a gun from his toolbox.
• Martha wakes up to see Evelyn packing her stuff and realizes what is happening.
• The CTU redshirts walk up and drag Spenser to a holding room. Bill and Chloe double team yell at him.
• Logan comes to collect Martha but figures out that she has made a run for it. Pierce puts Secret Service into motion.
• While Jack and Lynn discuss what is going on, CTU medical calls to say that Tony is awake and wants to talk to Jack.
• Edgar brings Bill what Spenser was doing, tracking Jack.
• Jack walks into medical but when he moves to talk to Tony he spots the doctor reaching for a gun on a reflective surface. A sweet hand-to-hand fight takes place. It ends with scissors to the neck. Bill walks in to warn Jack but switches to tell him about Spenser. Jack wastes no time by walking to interrogation and showing Spenser an image of the dead hitter. Spenser says he is there on orders from the White House and Walt Cummings. Bill and Lynn try to tell Jack how hard going after Walt will be but Jack says he is not apart of CTU and will go get Walt on his own.

Ridiculousness:

• There is literally no reason given for why Lynn wants Audrey to interview Diane. This is just 24 wanting Jack’s last 2 women to circle each other and act uncomfortable.

Running Totals:

Mole: 1 (12)

• Technically Spenser thinks he is some sort of Internal Affairs agent but his actions make him a mole.

Jack’s body count: 1 (110)

• Jack stabs a dude in the neck with scissors then slams them home for good measure.

Day 5: 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

• Ivan Erwich (Mark Sheppard): The second Russian boogeyman that Jack will be chasing down. Sheppard is a fantastic actor that has popped up for small runs on many of my favorite shows.
• Lynn McGill (Sean Astin): I guess it was nice to go against type and make Astin the asshole. In the end, just another in the long line of CTU suits that stand in the way of Jack.

Returning Characters:

Not this hour

Key Moments:

• CTU is scrambling after losing contact with Jack.
• Beresch threatens Derek until Jack gives up CTU’s assault plans. He tells his men to get him a new victim, but Jack notices when he waves off the choice of Erwich.
• Logan complains that CTU hasn’t retaken the airport yet. He then watches Beresch kill another hostage.
• Lynn walks in and immediately plays power games with Bill as he takes over CTU. Jack calls in the new plan that Beresch wants so he can ambush CTU. He says the phrase “flank 2 position” twice. Bill and Curtis don’t like the new plan, but decide to trust Jack.
• Logan will not give in to Beresch’s demands but is worried that more innocents are going to die. Beresch believes Logan will give in when the CTU assault fails.
• Walt squeezes Evelyn to find out what Martha took from the archives.
• The summit has begun and Logan is already in front of the cameras stalling for time.
• Lynn doesn’t like that Jack has changed the plan and argues with Chloe so he can get a transcript of Jack’s call.
• Jack spies Beresch get handed the keycard that came from Chevensky. He then watches Beresch walk towards Erwich and brush pass him the card.
• Curtis and Jack have one last conversation where Jack repeats the phrase “flank 2 position” again. Curtis says they will enter in 1 minute and Beresch sets up his ambush. Lynn runs into the room because he figured out that “flank 2 position” was a duress code when Jack was still alive. Bill tells Curtis to go with the original plan.
• Beresch gets pissed because CTU hasn’t begun their assault. He makes Jack call CTU and Bill lies and blames it on a faulty detonator.
• CTU blows through the ambush wall as a distraction because the agents come from a different angle and ambush the terrorists. Jack kicks out a window so he can cut through his ropes with jagged glass. Picks up a gun and joins the shootout. He prevents Beresch from shooting himself but can’t stop him from detonating a vest to accomplish his goal. The terminal is secure.
• Mike tells Logan the good news and Logan immediately tells the world.
• Jack frees Derek and sends him out to his mother. He then starts looking for Erwich and gets jumpy when he can’t find him.
• The second Logan walks off the summit podium; Martha starts harassing him and demands that he listen to her right now. He blows her off to continue shaking hands and being presidential.
• Lynn wants Jack arrested now.
• Jack tells Curtis about Erwich but Curtis tells him that Jack needs to head back to CTU to answer questions.
• Erwich meets up with another team of Russians and uses the keycard to open some big ass container that was buried underground. He calls Nathanson to tell him that he has the canisters.
• Walt assaults and drugs Martha so he can steal the phone transcript she pocketed.

Ridiculousness:

• Jack tells Derek that he wants to be the father figure he needs and will be there for him after this crisis is over. I sure hope Derek isn’t still waiting for him to walk through the door.
• You know the canisters are scary because when they opened the container lots of foreboding smoke greeted them.

Running Totals:

Jack’s body count: 2 (109)

• Jack takes out 2 of Beresch’s men but he doesn’t get credit for Beresch.

Day 5: 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

Not this hour

Returning Characters:

• Aaron Pierce (Last episode of season 4)

Key Moments:

• Beresch takes over the airport, kills a hostage for trying to make a call, and tells the police not to come in because his men are wearing bomb vests. Jack watches this first from the shadows and then from the vents.
• Jack calls Bill with the hostage situation. Bill wants Jack out but Jack tells him to screw off. He doesn’t work for CTU but is willing to help them if they want. Bill agrees and Audrey hears about Jack’s new family.
• Mike and Walt interrupt Logan’s press conference with Suvarov to them him about the hostage situation.
• While Edgar is having trouble identifying Beresch, Chloe is brought back to CTU in custody. She makes her case to Bill and he let’s her go back to work. She immediately finds information on Anton Beresch.
• Beresch’s hostage demands are on the air. Logan watches him demand that the treaty between America and Russia not be signed. Logan flips out and wants this fixed right now.
• Curtis is now onsite and Jack breaks down where all of Beresch’s men are located. Diane starts yelling that Derek is inside the airport.
• Logan tells Bill that he wants no more casualties at the airport.
• When Bill calls Beresch and tries to negotiate, Beresch responds by hanging up and executing a hostage. Sad faces all around. The next hostage to be executed just happens to be Derek. Diane sees this and freaks out. Beresch tells Logan that he has 15 minutes.
• Jack takes a picture of one of the bomb vests and sends it to Chloe. He wants to be able to remote detonate it to save Derek. She turns to Spenser for help.
• Pierce pops up looking for Martha. Evelyn covers for her, since Martha is off sexually assaulting some guy for his keycard.
• There is a great moment where Derek is hyperventilating waiting for his execution so Beresch talks him through some breathing exercises. He is still gonna kill him but manners still matter.
• At the absolute last second before Beresch pulls the trigger on Derek, Jack makes one of the bomb vests go boom. Beresch freaks but finds out that it is one of his own men’s vests. Jack tells Bill that he is responsible.
• Pierce finds Martha in a mess of paperwork.
• Walt calls Nathanson to tell him that Jack Bauer is inside the airport. After the call, Pierce tells him what Martha was doing.
• Jack gives Curtis the final locations of Beresch’s men before the assault. Beresch is on the phone with Nathanson. He hangs up and spikes communications throughout the airport. Then he uses the intercom to tell Jack to show himself or Derek dies. Without communication with Jack, Bill aborts Curtis’ assault. Jack gives himself up to Beresch.

Ridiculousness:

• I’m not sure if Beresch grabbing the teenager next is ridiculous or a solid shock tactic to get Logan to fold.

Running Totals:

Chloe drives a sane man crazy: 1 (11)

• She tells Bill that she is guilty of much more than he knows but then asks him if he wants her to identify Beresch or wait around in holding.

Damnit!: 1 (11)

• Jack is not happy that Derek is a hostage.

Jack’s body count: 1 (107)

• Jack’s bomb vest trick was a new one.

Day 5: 8:00 AM - 9:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

• James Nathanson (Geraint Wyn Davies): The middleman running today’s attacks from his room consisting completely of darkness and monitors.
• Anton Beresch (David Dayan Fisher): The first in a trio of evil Russians that Jack will take on today.
• Yuri Suvarov (Nick Jameson): Do Russian presidents rule for life? Suvarov will be the Russian president for the last 4 seasons of 24, which spans a long stretch of time.
• Anya Suvarov (Kathleen Gati): Doesn’t do much besides stand near Yuri for most of the season.

Returning Characters:

None

Key Moments:

• Edgar brings an image of Palmer’s assassin to Bill and Audrey. They stare at the monitor until the image cleans up to show Jack Bauer very much alive.
• Jack tells Chloe that he needs her help so he can investigate the Palmer crime scene. Derek tries to get away but Jack tells him, “the only reason you are still conscious is because I don’t want to carry you.” That’s how you treat petulant teenagers.
• CTU begins to work on the Jack Bauer lead over Audrey’s completely legitimate objections. Curtis reveals that Chloe took part in faking Jack’s death.
• Audrey calls Logan with the news that Jack Bauer was the shooter. Walt hears this and jumps all over Jack as bad man.
• Nathanson is on the phone with someone saying that Haas is dead and they will be launching within the hour.
• Chloe drives Haas’ van right past the security checkpoint at Wayne Palmer’s apartment complex. Chloe tracks all the FBI agents on site and Jack heads in. Jack takes out an agent for his sweet jacket. Derek watches Jack with awe. Jack rides the elevator up to Wayne’s apartment without anyone asking him questions. He pauses when he sees David’s body under the blanket. Jack moves into a room with a computer and gets to work. Chloe tells Derek who Jack was before he became Frank. While working on the computer, Wayne walks in and to room. Jack yokes him against the wall and pleads his case. When Wayne still doesn’t believe him, Jack gives him his gun. Wayne can’t pull the trigger and begins to accept Jack’s story.
• Walt tells Martha that he is looking into the phone call she had with David.
• Chloe decrypts a file on Wayne’s computer. It is the first chapter of David’s memoir and Jack and Wayne read it looking for the reason why David locked it down.
• Edgar figures out that Chloe is logged in from Wayne Palmer’s apartment complex. He informs Bill who calls Secret Service.
• Wayne finds an address hidden in the chapter. Chloe tells Jack that Secret Service is on the move. Jack tells Wayne to keep this a secret and makes his escape. He knocks down multiple agents along the way. He gets back to the van and Chloe tells him the address was actually an employee at an airport. Chloe speeds out of the garage before she is stopped and cuffed. This was a distraction as Jack breaks into a car and drives off with Derek.
• On his way to the airport, Jack calls Diane and tells her to meet him there.
• Bill questions Chloe about Jack but she refuses to answer because Bill doesn’t think Jack is innocent.
• Charles tells Martha that Jack killed David. When she doesn’t believe it, he plays her the phone call she had with David that contained nothing secret at all. He tells her that if she doesn’t take her meds her memory can be affected.
• Edgar says that there is chatter that the Suvarov helicopter may be a target.
• Charles refuses to change anything about the Suvarovs arrival.
• Jack hands Derek off to Diane and tells her to head to CTU. He runs into the airport.
• The Suvarov helicopter lands safely.
• Before the Huxley’s can drive off, Derek spots Beresch and his men hopping out of the van. He runs into the airport to warn Jack. Diane can’t follow because a cop stops her. Jack finds the employee but Beresch’s attack distracts him allow the guy to kill himself. Beresch takes over the airport, which now includes Derek.
• Walt calls Nathanson and tells him that Martha has been taken care of.

Ridiculousness:

• I’m not okay with Secret Service being completely fooled by the follow that van tactic. Jack should not be able to sneak out the back that easily.

Running Totals:

Jack’s million-dollar dream: 1 (4)

• Finally, Jack puts an FBI agent to sleep.

Jack loves America not Americans: 3 (16)

• The FBI agents were just in Jack’s way.

Chloe drives a sane man crazy: 1 (10)

• Bill gets angrier and angrier with Chloe as she explains that Jack is being framed. She then hands the phone back to the Secret Service agent when Bill starts to yell.

Day 5: 7:00 AM - 8:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

• Spenser Wolff (Jonah Lotan): You had to know that sleeping with Chloe would be high maintenance.
• Diane Huxley (Connie Britton): The single mom that Jack is slumming with. Her cluelessness towards Jack will be quickly remedied.
• Derek Huxley (Brady Corbet): Diane’s ratty looking kid who doesn’t trust Jack. I’m not sure if his morning with Jack will cure that.
• Haas (Jeff Kober): Only in this hour, but he is the man who killed David Palmer. Bastard.
• Martha Logan (Jean Smart): Logan’s loon of a wife. Jean Smart’s performance is definitely a matter of taste. It is a taste I do not enjoy.
• Evelyn Martin (Sandrine Holt): The poor assistant to Martha. Her day gets even worse than dealing with a crazy person.

Returning Characters: (Pack a lunch, by far the largest amount of returning characters to start a season)

• Jack Bauer (Last episode of season 4)
• Chloe O’Brian (Last episode of season 4)
• David Palmer (Last episode of season 4)
• Wayne Palmer (Last episode of season 3)
• Charles Logan (Last episode of season 4)
• Mike Novick (Last episode of season 4)
• Walt Cummings (Last episode of season 4)
• Bill Buchanan (Last episode of season 4)
• Curtis Manning (Last episode of season 4)
• Edgar Stiles (Last episode of season 4)
• Tony Almeida (Last episode of season 4)
• Michelle Dessler (Last episode of season 4)
• Audrey Raines (Last episode of season 4)
• Dr. Besson (3am – 4am of season 4)

Key Moments:

• Time for another DVD teaser and if you lost consciousness at some point it is presented by Toyota. That is very important.
• 12 months after Day 4, Jack is driving a Toyota. They play up the homeless vagabond aspect by Jack wearing a raggedy hoodie with long hair poking out the sides. In an important historical moment, the magical messenger bag makes it’s first appearance.
• Chloe pulls up in her own Toyota and shows off her new adult look with big-girl hair.
• Jack begins their meeting by yanking Chloe into the shadows. She tells him to leave Chicago because someone accessed her hard drive and will figure out that Jack is alive. She feels bad that Jack is living like a hobo but Jack switches to Kim. She tells him that his fake death destroyed her life.
• Then the rest of the teaser is Toyota commercial disguised as a car chase. Jack’s car out handles the non-Toyota sedan chasing him ending with the Toyota handling the slide but the non-Toyota loses control and crashing into a forklift.
• 6 months later, there is some man calling himself Frank (psst he is actually Jack Bauer) who can’t find work at the construction site today.
• The Palmer brothers are working on David’s memoirs. Wayne notices that David is distracted but before he can get him to open up, a sniper bullet opens up a hole in David’s neck.
• While Logan and Walt talk about today’s summit with Russia, Mike takes the call about David’s assassination.
• CTU is in motion and hasn’t made any significant changes since Day 4. There is now an upstairs meeting room for awkward conversations. Bill and Curtis talk with Logan about the assassination. CTU warns that Logan may be a target but he refuses to call off the summit.
• Chloe pulls off a walk of shame inside her own home. She is uncomfortable with Spenser and before she can come to grips with her one night stand her phone rings with David Palmer’s death.
• Jack is watching the news about David’s death and silently crying. Diane nearly gets shot when she invites Jack to breakfast. In a shocking twist Jack is eating food with the Huxleys, which should fuel him for the next decade. Derek questions Jack’s fake past but Diane stops him and says she trusts Jack.
• Tony and Michelle are arguing about whether they should go in to CTU and help with the Palmer investigation. She decides to go in and Tony hems and haws but he eventually follows her. Before he can get to the door, an explosion blows through the side of the house. He runs out to find Michelle on the ground and cradles her body. A huge explosion engulfs both of them in fire.
• Edgar and Spenser talk about the bombing of Tony and Michelle. Edgar calls Chloe with the news, as she is about to enter her car. Paranoia sets in as she looks around and spots a guy getting out of van. Always run when you see that. Haas sends his minion after her and she escapes him by using an escalator trick.
• While Jack and Diane banter over breakfast, a frantic Chloe calls Jack breaking their protocol. She tells him about Tony, Michelle, and what happened to her. Jack tells her to go dark from CTU (yes!) and directs her to some oilfield north of LA that he can get to in 30 minutes. During this conversation Jack is tooling up, he digs out his messenger bag and pops on his sunglasses but, disappointingly, they are not the aviators.
• Martha introduces herself by telling Evelyn that she doesn’t like her makeup and sticking her face in a sink full of water. Walt arrives to tell her about David’s assassination. She starts at sad but moves on to obsessed with speaking with Charles. Since he is in front of the cameras talking about David, everyone tries to stop her. Although she starts yelling and screaming in the background of the press conference, she is eventually convinced to shut the fuck up and wait a minute.
• Jack hijacks the emergency helicopter from the construction site he couldn’t find work at. Before he can leave, he spots Derek spying on him from the shadows. He yanks him up by the scruff of the neck and tosses him on the chopper.
• Dr. Besson wheels Tony into CTU medical … NO! You’ll die in there like everyone else! Curtis wants to question Tony about phone records he found between Tony and David Palmer on the day Jack “died”.
• Jack calls Diane and tells her to start driving to LA to pick up Derek. He gives her absolutely no reason why.
• Charles meets with Martha after his speech. She claims that David was killed because of something he planned to tell her. Charles tries to dissuade her from this belief but she pleads for him to believe her. He says he will have Walt look into it then walks out of the room and tells Walt that she is delusional and should be ignored.
• Chloe arrives at the oilfield at the same time that Jack touches down in the chopper. She touchingly runs right into his arms and thanks him for saving her ass. Before they can leave, Haas and his men arrive. Jack tosses some smoke grenades, gives Chloe a gun, and tells her to take Derek and hide. Jack uses the smoke to knife the first guy. In one of the many scenes that highlights that season 5 was when 24 was given a shitload of money to throw around, Jack kills Haas' other 2 men in a spectacular car crash. Haas spots Chloe but Jack spots him and shoots him in the leg. Chloe has developed the taste for killing man so she whirls around and shoots Haas in the stomach. Jack questions the dying Haas by promising medical care if he answers. Haas says Palmer was the target and Jack the fall guy but he let’s slip that he pulled the trigger on Palmer. Jack responds to this revelation by standing up and shooting him dead for killing his friend.

Ridiculousness:

• Toyota!
• I know that Jack is supposed to be living under the radar but did that have to mean that the television he is watching is from the 1970s and needs rabbit ears.
• How the hell could some teenager tail Jack without him noticing?

Running Totals:

Jack’s body count: 5 (106)

• Jack’s Toyota cannot be defeated.
• Jack wipes out Haas and all his men.

Chloe drives a sane man crazy: 1 (9)

• Her mile a minute rant explaining to Spenser that she is not a slut was fantastic.

The healing power of Jack tears: 1 (8)

• David Palmer was Jack’s friend.

Human beings still eat?: 1 (7)

• Not only are characters eating breakfast, one of them is Jack.

Cubs mug: 1 (5)

• Tony makes sure his coffee mug is in camera.

Jack loves America not Americans: 1 (13)

• Jack punches the pilot because he needs his ride.

The Best and Worst of the Fourth Season of 24

Best Moments

5. Mandy Returns

The Mandy character is such an odd piece of the 24 puzzle. In 3 of the first 4 Days, she just pops up to be the greatest pay-for-play terrorist in the world. Why did they stop doing this after Day 4? Everything she did in her couple of hours was phenomenal even the exclamation point of Curtis punching her in the face to end her reign of terror.

4. Jack robs a convenience store

When ideas like Jack dons a ski mask to rob a convenience store are brought to life, how did 24 ever run out of crazy shit for Jack to do? This was all about the visual of Jack pulling the ski mask down over his face.

3. Jack's one man assault to rescue the Hellers

Jack had gone alone against the world at the end of Day 1 to take out the Drazens and at the end of Day 2 to protect Sherry, but this went well beyond those climatic scenes. This was a step-by-step assault that left stacks of bodies in his wake. Jack is a video game character.

2. Tony arrives to save the day

Tony Almeida was an integral part of the show for the first three seasons. His absence at the beginning of the day was felt but the hours were still humming along. Then Tony showed up to save Jack and Audrey and I nearly jumped through the roof. It had a great buildup and the visual of him calling out to Jack nailed it.

1. Jack walks off into the sunrise

I've already written that this should have been the end of the series. This summed up the entire character and what he had accomplished and what he was willing to sacrifice in one moment.

Worst Moments

5. I can't even find a legit 5th complaint

4. Richard Heller

I should have timed his scenes because I think the majority of his dialogue was him screaming his lungs out. There was no character just a whiney punching bag. And having the big reveal of his secret being that he is gay ... that does not deliver after the hours and hours of torture.

3. The first blatant defense of torture on 24

Halfway through the day, someone behind the scenes realized that some character was being tortured at a rate of every other hour. It was completely out of hand and instead of finding a new plot cliche, they turned into the skid and said we are wrong for pointing out all of the torture. The douche lawyer protecting the guilty man from being tortured went beyond preachy. Sadly Day 7 will happen and make this seem subtle.

2. Maya Driscoll

Why the hell did Erin Driscoll need to have a handicapped daughter who commits suicide because mommy was busy saving lives? This felt like a replacement for the lack of Kim Bauer this season. There needed to be something awful stretching over hours of the day and here comes Maya.

1. Jack has to choose who survives inside CTU medical

I've been making fun of this scene for years now. The fact that this was the big climatic moment to the sacrifices Jack will make as a field agent that scare Audrey plot is hilariously weak. There had to be another way to get to Audrey not liking the man Jack has become without killing Paul in the most asinine way imaginable. The major government agency can only care for 1 critical patient at a time. And when there are two, you must let one of them die in order to save the other one.

The Fourth Season of 24

I’m not gonna bury the lead. Day 4 is my favorite season of 24. And after watching it all over again, I’m certain that I will be putting it at the top of the list when I finish this journey. This is the only season that did what I wanted 24 to do; introduce a threat and watch Jack Bauer chase it down for the entire day. There was no political B-plot. There was no right turn halfway through the day. We didn’t watch Jack bust his ass to catch one guy just to find out that there are 2 more dudes worse than him waiting on deck. And best of all not a single Kim Bauer storyline as far as the eye can see. So yes, Day 4 is the shit.

How did Jack Bauer distinguish himself in season 4? Well his one-man assault to free the Hellers was the height of his badassery. I could watch him annihilate in the double digits whenever it is offered. He also robs a convenience store, hung out at his buddy’s house, engaged a team of mercs with 3 civilians, and generally chased Marwan ass through the night. Unlike Day 3 where they went for the big shocks for Jack, Day 4 was more about showing Jack back in the field where he belongs. This was done to show that Jack may be happy in a suit with Audrey, but when his country needs him Jack becomes a different person to do what is necessary. And what is necessary is torturing the shit out of Paul in front of Audrey. I know this season is about Jack and Audrey but the stronger scenes were Jack bringing Tony back to life.

And there is the other key to the 4^th season, Tony Almeida. Yeah, making a character darker is a cheap out but that doesn’t mean it can’t work when done right. So after 3 seasons of professional CTU Tony, Day 4 gives us drunken angry Tony. His introduction was phenomenal. His bitterness when Jack and Audrey are hiding out at his house was palpable. And I also give him points for the ratty ass shirt he wore for most of his time at CTU. But mostly it was fantastic to see Jack partner with Tony in the field. It felt like they had done this for years, but Day 4 was really the first time. And he even gets to make out with Michelle at the end of the day, I’m sure they will live happily ever after.

Others returning for season 4 include Choe O’Brian, Michelle Dessler, Mike Novick, and David Palmer. We got the full Chloe treatment this season. Although she was sidelined for a handful of hours, Chloe got plenty awkward moments with every single person at CTU. We also got the first in a long line of Jack and Chloe reuniting to save the day. On top of that, Chloe killed a guy and it was beautifully over-the-top. Michelle came back mainly as a piece in Tony’s story. She did little more than stand around CTU and worry about her relationship with Tony. But in the end, that’s really all her character was about. Mike Novick’s return was nice to see. He got a new President to bounce off of and Logan is nothing like David Palmer. This will get much better next season. And speaking of Palmer, after Day 3 this was the perfect use of him. Have David pop in to lead during a crisis and then leave before we have to deal with any bullshit personal storyline. Oh yeah and Mandy made her final appearance on 24. They should bring her back for the movie. She can be hanging out in Europe when Jack needs some help staying off the radar.

Outside of Day 1, Day 4 introduced the most new significant characters of any other season. The second half of 24 will be populated by Audrey Raines, James Heller, Curtis Manning, Bill Buchanan, and Charles Logan. Audrey was interesting because it’s hard to get behind a character that doesn’t want Jack to do the all the fun stuff we tune in for. But on the annoying girlfriend scale, Audrey ain’t half bad. James Heller, on the other hand, is exactly what I want in my Secretary of Defense. He totally picked up a gun multiple times during his kidnapping and dropped some thugs. Then he put the suit back on and agreed to have his son sci-fi tortured to find out his secrets. Heller rules in the fourth season. Curtis Manning is a solid CTU agent who feels like a replacement for Tony Almeida. Everyone looks cooler when they get to play around in the field and Curtis takes advantage throughout the day. He will get better and better until he gets one of the worst deaths of any main character. Whereas Curtis was swap for Tony, Bill Buchanan was a complete change of pace from Ryan Chappelle. He does his job well and doesn’t stand in Jack’s way. What a surprise that that would make the character likeable? Bill rocks. And then there is Charles Logan. Who would have thought that from this introduction you would get the most villainous villain that 24 will ever create. He is just a scared shitless man in over his head during Day 4. He will be fun to watch evolve into a damn near comic book villain.

Even the dumb shit that occurred during the day can’t drag my opinion down. The two deaths that happened within CTU medical were easily the low points of the day. Why Maya Driscoll was stored there in the first place I will never understand, but to use her suicide as an excuse to get rid of Erin Driscoll was just weak sauce. Erin may have sucked but she deserved a better plot turn for her exit. As for Paul Raines, I can’t even marshal the energy to rip this apart. The whole day was about showing Audrey what Jack will do to protect his country, but was this really necessary? Hire another damn doctor or at least a medic who can help when there are more than two patients at a time. The only thing else worth mentioning is Richard Heller because, man, that guy can wail.

So if I were to change the history of 24, this is where the show would have ended. Knowing what seasons 5-8 will do, Jack walking off into the sun after faking his death is the ending for Jack Bauer. His job was done and his friends were alive. Ah well, Day 5 is actually a great season even if it burned the house down in order to accomplish it. Then Day 6 destroyed the magic of the show and Days 7 and 8 tried in vain to recapture what it once was.

Day 4: 6:00 AM - 7:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

Finale time

Returning Characters:

Finale time II

Key Moments:

• Before Mandy’s pardon is official, Pierce pops in to show Palmer footage of Mandy shaking his hand all those years ago. Logan has the decency to wait until David gives him the okay before signing the immunity deal. Mandy gets a confirmation from her lawyer and tells Jack where Marwan’s chopper is located.
• Marwan doesn’t like that Mandy is late and decides it is time to leave.
• Jack has the CTU chopper hover over Marwan’s chopper while he fires bullets into it’s motor until it dies. Before running for his life, Marwan shoots his PDA. Jack and Curtis chase after Marwan taking his pilot out along the way. Marwan shoots Curtis in the vest and Jack goes on alone. Jack crawls on his belly and hits Marwan in his ankle. Marwan crawls to the ledge and tries to leap to his death. Jack cataches him but can’t hold on after Marwan takes a knife to Jack’s hand. A really bad CGI shot shows Marwan falling to his death.
• Logan is on a rampage over Jack’s failure to keep Marwan alive. This is interrupted by a call from the Chinese. They play the video of Howard implicating Jack. Chinese want Jack Bauer. Logan looks for opinions; Walt says give them Jack, David vehemently argues against that, so Walt switches to killing Jack, David flips out, and Logan calmly tells Walt no.
• Chloe and Edgar are able to find the data they need from Marwan’s busted PDA. The missile is headed for LA.
• People are looking to the skies and watching monitors until a fighter shoots down the missile.
• Tony and Michelle reunite to swelling music.
• Audrey dumps Jack.
• David calls Jack with the bad news that he will be handed off to the Chinese. David tells him that he will make it his life’s work to bring him back home. Jack being Jack says he will do what has to be done.
• Walt calls the Secret Service agent and tells him that instead of picking up Jack, you can go ahead and kill him. Sneaky Mike peers from around the corner having listened to the phone call.
• Mike tells David. David tells Logan. Logan denies and says he will not be suspicious of people in his government.
• Jack and Tony are hanging in the CTU locker room talking about Jack’s shitty situation. David calls Jack and tells him to get out of CTU. Jack hangs up and goes back to Tony.
• Secret Service guys shows up and meets with Bill. After Bill gives him shit about taking Jack, the alarm goes off. Tony calls Bill and tells him that Jack is trying to escape.
• The Secret Service guy heads out to “capture” Jack. When Tony calls out to Jack, Jack fires on them causing lots of sparks. Jack and the Secret Service guy exchange fire until Tony pulls the guy back. He says he is going in and will bring Jack out. He turns a corner to find Jack with a pool of blood under his head. Tony says Jack’s dead. Everyone leaves but Tony, Michelle, and Chloe. Tony asks Michelle for the wake up drug and Tony sticks Jack in the chest. Tony starts contractions and yelling at Jack to wake up. Jack starts coughing and Tony tells Chloe to go fix the records.
• Bill has the pleasure of telling Audrey what happened. Audrey cries.
• Tony and Michelle are already driving away from CTU. Jack pops up from the backseat; they give him an id and a clean phone. Jack thanks them and hops out. Tony calls him back for the handshake of friendship. Jack walks off and makes a call to David. They share a moment of being awesome one last time. Jack Bauer is dead. He heads out onto the train tracks, pops on the aviators, fixes his messenger bag, and walks into the rising sun. Damn right he does. And yes that is the greatest visual in the history of 24.

Ridiculousness:

None for as far as the eye can see

Running Totals:

Jack’s body count: 1 (101)

• Jack kills the pilot but I can’t give him credit for Marwan since he was trying to keep him alive.

Day 4: 5:00 AM - 6:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

Get to the plot

Returning Characters:

Move along

Key Moments:

• Mandy likes her nudity so Tony is tied up and shirtless. She talks to Marwan and is told that he is leaving in an hour with or without her. Mandy looks up Tony’s history and asks him if Michelle will make the same sacrifice he did for her.
• Michelle receives a call from Mandy and is told that she will get Tony back if she removes all the cops from an area of the complex.
• When Bill talks to Michelle about the situation, Michelle cracks and tells him about Mandy’s demand. Bill, being really good at his job, calls Jack with the info and Jack puts a trap into play.
• Now that Tony is in danger, Curtis arrives on site. Jack moves the cops Mandy wanted moved.
• Mandy moves into action. She uses the stun gun on Tony, knocks on her neighbor’s door, kills the third person living in the apartment, and holds the two as hostages.
• Howard’s chopper has landed in San Diego and Bill calls to tell him to fabricate proof that he was in San Diego the whole day. The SUV that picks him up is not CTU, instead Cheng is waiting for him in the backseat.
• Mandy calls Michelle and threatens Tony’s life if this is a trap.
• Jack and Curtis are inside an apartment watching the empty zone. They spot 2 people walking under an umbrella. Jack is confused why a pro would expose herself like that. They reach the car and Bill tells the agents to move in but Jack calls them off. Mandy spots the movement, swears at Michelle, and blows up the car. Michelle reacts poorly to this outcome.
• Bill reports the bad news to Logan and friends. Logan immediately blames David for all his problems.
• Michelle is a wreck and Bill sends her home to mourn.
• Bill tries to get Jack to come back to CTU. Jack refuses because Mandy’s actions made no sense. He watches and rewatches the explosion over and over again. Eventually he realizes that he is not hearing the rain in the audio. Mandy faked it, so Jack sends the teams back in.
• Mandy sees what is happening and moves to plan C. She tosses Tony some clothes and gets ready to use him as a shield. Tony takes the opportunity to slice his foot on some broken glass to create a trail.
• An agent spots the trail and Jack and Curtis chase after the blood.
• When Mandy and Tony reach the garage, Tony makes his move and attacks Mandy. He gets some shots in but he is cuffed behind his back so Mandy reasserts control. The delay allowed Jack to catch up. They have their showdown. In another of the greatest lines ever, Mandy asks Jack “Do you have what it takes to let me kill him while you look him in the eye?” “Yes.” “I believe you.” She realizes Jack can’t kill her but before she can take advantage, Jack signals Tony to drop and Curtis comes from behind and punches her in the face! Jack sends word back to CTU who in turn sends word to Michelle. Sad tears turn to happy tears.
• Jack doesn’t waste time. He chokes Mandy and puts a gun to her head while offering her a full immunity deal. She says show me the deal.
• Cheng breaks Howard. He says Jack ran the operation.

Ridiculousness:

Too much awesome to fit in any ridiculous

Running Totals:

Mandy the super terrorist: 1 (7)

• What a crazy ass plan! Dress your neighbors up and send them to the car to be blown up so the fuzz thinks you are dead and will leave the area. Too bad Jack Bauer actually does his job.

Day 4: 4:00 AM - 5:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

Nope

Returning Characters:

• Mandy (Last episode of season 2)

Key Moments:

• With the missile launched, Jack goes to Marwan and tells him that he has won. What does he want? Marwan doesn’t want anything but the destruction that the missile will cause.
• Edgar finds Richard Heller’s phone number on Marwan’s cell phone. CTU jumps into motion to bring Richard back in for questioning. Bill goes to call Secretary Heller and Tony explains what they found to Audrey.
• When Jack and Curtis move to take Marwan back to CTU, they are attacked in the alley. Their second vehicle is taken out by missile and one of Marwan’s men jumps into the first SUV and drives Marwan away.
• Lot’s of angry voices as CTU tries to figure out what happened. Jack tells Curtis that he wants to question Richard personally.
• The Speaker of the House questions Logan’s authority.
• After hours and hours of annoying conversations, Tony tells Michelle that he wants to get back together but they need to get out of this line of work.
• A high-pitched scream announces Richard’s entrance back into CTU. Audrey finds out that Jack will be the interrogator and begs him for 5 minutes before he goes to work.
• Richard is set up in the interrogation room once again. Audrey asks him about the phone call. Heller arrives and Curtis tells him that Richard is withholding the truth. Audrey pleads and Richard whines. Heller heads in and kicks Audrey out. He explains to his son that he will authorize CTU to use anything at their disposal to get the truth out of him. We find out what Richard has been hiding. He picked up a boyfriend and girlfriend last week and while he screwed the guy, the girl must have used his phone. They left his place by taxi. There is lots of sadness with the Hellers.
• Chloe tracks down the apartment complex with help from the taxi company.
• David and Logan stage a briefing just so Logan can kick David out of the room in front of the Speaker of the House.
• Looky looky the mystery woman is Mandy. And she reintroduces herself by shooting the guy she just slept with in the chest.
• Jack, Tony, and Castle move into the apartment complex. Jack finds the dead guy in the apartment. Tony and Castle are surveying from the upper level. Castle is shot by Mandy and taken hostage. She gets Tony to drop his gun and radio, has Castle cuff Tony, then kills Castle. Jack tries to call Tony and Castle on the radio and gets no response. He races up to their spot and finds the dead Castle and raises the alarm.

Ridiculousness:

• Although Curtis has been in the field for about the last 16 hours, Bill tells Jack that he needs him at CTU. This is the weak excuse used to get Tony back in the field. I don’t know why Jack couldn’t have said he wanted Tony in the first place.

Running Totals:

Chloe drives a sane man crazy: 1 (8)

• The look Tony gives Chloe when he asked her if Audrey knows about Richard is the dictionary definition of a dirty look.

Mandy the super terrorist: 2 (6)

• Mandy tells the guy that both of them can’t escape so he will stay behind to cover for her. By stay behind she means his dead body.
• Mandy easily handles both Castle and Tony.

Day 4: 3:00 AM - 4:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

• Cheng Zhi (Tzi Ma): The face of the evil Chinese for many seasons to come.

Returning Characters:

Soon

Key Moments:

• Mike tells Jack about the dead consul and tells him to clean up any evidence.
• Cheng finds the image of Howard’s mask being lifted up.
• Jack and Chloe share a phenomenal moment where Chloe says that she is his friend and if Jack ever needs anyone to talk to she is there. Jack is speechless and just stares at her.
• Cheng calls Michelle and wants a meeting with CTU. Michelle tries to schedule something for the morning but Cheng means right freaking now. Michelle blows him off and that definitely won’t work.
• Logan finds out about the Chinese and tears David a new one. Palmer gets him off his back by sheer force of will.
• Cheng went over Michelle’s head and is already at CTU. Curtis leads him into the briefing room where Bill and a now suited Jack are waiting. Cheng wastes no time and accuses Jack of having the skill to run the operation on the consulate. Jack lies like a pro. After some tense moments, Jack spots Howard on the floor, fakes a call to get out of the meeting, moves to get Howard out of CTU, and sends him to the helipad.
• Lee is awake and tells Jack that Marwan is at a factory.
• Curtis tells Audrey that she needs to cover for Jack when Cheng questions her. She whines then spots Jack and whines to him. She asks Jack if breaking all these rules is worth it and Jack response is that she and her father is still alive. Shut the fuck up Audrey.
• Audrey covers for Jack with Cheng but does mention that they worked with Edgar.
• Jack and Curtis are on their way to the factory. Jack updates David and tells him that Cheng has an image of Howard. After the call, Palmer tells Mike that Cheng needs to be removed from CTU. Logan argues but eventually agrees.
• Bill escorts Cheng halfway out of the building but before Cheng leaves he questions Edgar and catches Audrey in a lie. He calls his people and tells them that Jack ran the operation.
• Jack and Curtis move on the factory. After taking out his guards, Jack and Curtis flank Marwan. Jack shoots him in the shoulder, steps on the wound, and moves his gun all around his face. Curtis stops him by showing him a computer image of the missile about to be launched. Everyone at CTU watches it take off, while Marwan smiles.

Ridiculousness:

Still all good stuff

Running Totals:

Chloe drives a sane man crazy: 1 (7)

• Chloe gives Bill a step-by-step explanation of how the satellites being hacked would be a problem. Bill responds by yelling at her.

Jack’s body count: 1 (100)

• Curtis beat him 2 to 1 in the factory assault.

Day 4: 2:00 AM - 3:00 AM

Characters Introduced:

• Lee Jong (Peter Chen): Chinese national who provided information to Marwan and now is in for a bad morning.
• Howard Bern (Robert Cicchini): CTU agent who can’t succeed at the simple task of keeping his mask on.

Returning Characters:

• Aaron Pierce (Last episode of season 3)

Key Moments:

• Pierce greets Palmer when he arrives at the White House. David meets with Logan and witnesses Logan grovel for his assistance. David will be in charge of finding the warhead and Logan will do the unimportant stuff. Mike offers to leave David if his presence makes him uncomfortable, but David is the biggest man alive and lets him off the hook.
• Chloe is working on the hard drive in the field when Jack asks her how she’s doing. Chloe responds like Chloe and just wants to get back to work. Edgar tracks the emails to a Chinese man named Lee Jong.
• David tells Jack he will contact the Chinese consulate directly but Jack should prepare for a direct assault.
• Edgar was able to reconstruct Marwan’s recording and plays it for Michelle and Bill. They speculate that Marwan intends to detonate before dawn.
• The Chinese consul is Dr. Pierre Chang! David asks him to contact the Chinese mainland to get permission to hand over Lee.
• The consul tells David that he expects to get permission in 3 hours.
• David calls Jack and tells him that they can’t wait for an official handoff and tells Jack to move in. This is a black op and there can be no evidence. Jack calls Tony for help.
• Tony coaches Jack with infrared of the compound. Jack dons the ski mask again and heads in leaving the rest of the team at the perimeter to reduce exposure. Tony walks Jack through while Jack tranqs the guards instead of killing them. Jack grabs Lee and makes a break for it. The Chinese open fire and kill their own consul. Curtis and Howard move to cover his escape. Howard’s mask is removed for a second. Lee gets shot.
• Hey look Paul is still around and needs to go in for emergency surgery.
• Jack questions Lee as they drive back to CTU. Lee wants protection from persecution and Marwan. David agrees to bring this to Logan.
• Another member of the Chinese consulate calls David to tell him the consul has been killed.
• Lee stops talking and Jack realizes he is in trouble.
• Jack brings Lee into CTU medical and Paul dies because of it.

Ridiculousness:

• Jack’s mission needs to be kept secret, so Tony calls up the images of the consul in the middle of the CTU floor. Shouldn’t he have gone to a private office to get this done?
• CTU medical only has the ability to treat 1 patient at a time. Jack pulls a gun on the CTU doctor and forces him to treat Lee and let Paul die. And this is one of the most asinine moments on the history of 24.

Running Totals:

Jack loves America not Americans: 1 (12)

• Jack pulls his gun on the CTU doctor.

Jack’s body count: 1 (99)

• I’m counting Paul.