4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

I like to think that if Kiefer Sutherland and I were to ever meet we would get along stunningly. We could go to a hockey game, hit some bars and he could tell me what it was like to torture and destroy the only replica of the Jack Bauer doll in existence. And it would give him a much needed break from tracking down nuclear bombs and working with his enemies.

Jack calls Bill to explain that his father escaped but left him with a lead on how to find Gredenko. He tells him that President Logan knows how to get to Gredenko. In case you missed season 5, President Logan was the one who helped orchestrate the assassination of President Palmer, Michelle Dessler and Tony Almeida, and helped supply terrorists with nerve gas all trying to "help the country." Bill explains to Jack that Logan brokered some backdoor deals and worked out a plea bargain to be under house arrest and that the American public never knew how he betrayed his country. This does not sit well with Jack, which is understandable, considering all the work Jack went through to bring him to justice.

Jack heads over to the log cabin where Logan is being held under house arrest. He has grown a beard, which I think is a nice addition because it hides his weird neck. He's also wearing plaid because I guess he's taken up lumberjacking and whittling in his spare time. Logan tells Jack he can lead him to Gredenko through a Russian consulate. Jack's like "been there done that Charles" and Logan explains that he has leverage against him. Logan worked with him before and didn't implement him, but he still could. Jack figures Logan's motives are to try to get a better deal, but Logan, rather convincingly tells him he doesn't want anything, just to help. He's "reconnected with his faith" and isn't the same man he was before. Logan tells Jack that their best bet in getting this guy to tell the truth is if Logan goes and talks to him in person.

Jack calls Wayne and tells him the situation and asks him to temporarily suspend Logan's house arrest so they can go chat with the Russian man. Palmer talks to Logan and is very upfront with him about how he doesn't trust him or forgive him. I mean the guy killed his brother (and I mean it the way white people mean it, which is less meaningful I think.) Wayne makes sure that Logan knows that even though he's agreeing to let him go for the time being, he in no way forgives him. Jack gets back on the phone and Wayne tells him to "make it count" ("meet me at the clock."- Lauren Greene with the clutch Titanic reference.)

We see that President Logan has become extremely neat during his confinement and then gets dressed for the whole rest of the episode. He says a prayer to himself in the mirror and Jack sees the same prayer highlighted in his Bible. I think it's about redemption. Jack seems to believe, as do I, that Logan is really doing this without any ulterior motives. He seems genuine when telling Wayne that he wants to help him the way David helped him a couple years ago. Logan seems like he really just wants to be able to live with himself. I don't know why Jack's not hurrying him up and telling him that there's no time to pick out just the right tie for the occasion. It's also convenient that Jack and Logan are the same size, because Jack gets dressed in a beautiful suit very quickly. That means no more denim jacket and formfitting metrosexual t-shirt that Jack didn't bleed or sweat in.

Back in the batcave, the assassin has arrived. He meets Reed in the room where Lennox is being held. He unties him from one pole and then ties him to another one literally one foot away for no reason. Poor Tom Lennox is bound and gagged the whole episode and only gets to say like one line. Reed runs around and tries to make excuses for no one being able to find Lennox. Side note: what has Chad Lowe ever done? Should I know something else he was in? Anyway. They talk about their plan to put a bomb made of highlighters onto the podium and then activating it while Palmer's within 10 feet of it.

At CTU Morris complains. For like half an hour. Chloe asks him if he's been drinking and if he's okay to work about 90 times and Morris says no to drinking and yes to being able to work about 90 times. Nadia thinks he can't work, Bill trusts him, Chloe doesn't and then she shoots him in the head. No that doesn't happen, but it's what I wish did because the only thing that happens in this episode until the end has to do with Morris and if he's able to type things into a computer. I really wish Fayed had just killed him.

Now it's time for Assad's speech. Reed nervously walks down the hallway and every person he passes looks at him. He puts the bomb under the podium where Assad will be making his speech and Palmer stands off to the side. Reed excuses himself saying he's going to go look for Lennox. He then stands outside the room and detonates the bomb. I honestly didn't think he was going to have the cajones to actually go through with it. Fortunately, Assad notices the highlighter fluid and warns everyone with barely enough time to move out of the way of the blast. Assad looks pretty dead, and Wayne is not moving at all. He's alive, but injured bad. Great. As soon as I started to really like Wayne as the president, he gets taken out of commission for probably a good amount of episodes.

This episodes fatal flaw was that there was barely any Jack - Logan interaction. The few times this did happen were the best parts of the episode. A couple of things that I noticed during this episode. Why does Bill continue to trust Jack and do everything he says? I don't think Jack has told him what he's actually been doing all day until after the fact. Yet every time Jack says "Bill I can't explain, you have to trust me, please just send me 76 tactical teams" Bill's like "okay yeah I'll make that top priority even though I never know what you're doing and every time I send you a team the only one left alive is you." And where is Bill's sugar mama Karen? A flight from D.C. to LA doesn't take 6 hours. Maybe she got a flight with a lay over in Canada or something.

I would say that this was one of the weaker episodes of the season so far. But I'm still really glad that Gregory Itzin is back playing President Logan because he's so much fun to hate.

P.S. The beginning isn't supposed to be one long paragraph, this isn't spacing right for some reason and I don't know why and I'm tired of trying to fix it.

season 1 top episodes

So a lot of message board threads discuss people's favorite episodes. This inspired me to write about my favorite episode, but since picking ONE favorite episode is as hard as deciding what I like better, hockey or the beach, I've decided to pick three from each season. I think I'll do a season a week.

A lot of times I forget how good season 1 is, since I went on such a 24 watching blitzkrieg. I love how every episode starts with Jack saying, "Right now, terrorists are plotting to assassinate a Presidential candidate" and "I'm federal agent Jack Bauer, and this is the longest day of my life." He also says "on the day of the California presidential primary" after what hour it is. My friend and I continued to say this after the hour well into season 3, which for some reason, never seemed to get old to us. Season 1 is Jack Bauer before he's "Jack Bauer" the invincible superhero. He makes mistakes. He's a regular guy, albeit one with an unusually stressful job, who is trying to fix his marriage and improve his family life. Jack is a family man and a CTU agent. After season 1, there's no line between "at home Jack" and "federal agent Jack" which leads to his emotional downfall.

1. 8:00 a.m. -9:00 a.m. This episode is directly after the terrorists try to make Jack assassinate David Palmer (which came extremely close to being in the top 3.) He's been taken into Secret Service custody and tries to explain that he's protecting Palmer and that his family is in danger. They don't believe him and he escapes custody, while handcuffed. That alone is enough to make this a top episode but the thing that sets this episode apart is when he accosts a driver, Lauren, and they hide out in an office. I think some of the best moments from the show are the times when it slows down, and we can see Jack as more human. As he waits in the office, he expresses to Lauren how afraid he is.

I used to be in the military. Used to do field work for the CIA. I've been to some horrible places. I've seen some pretty terrible things. I don't think I've ever been this scared in my whole life.

He also threatens her in a really sweet way: "I have killed two people since midnight. I haven't slept in over 24 hours. So maybe you should be a little more afraid of me than you are now."But more importantly, he's vulnerable. He dozes off the only time in the history of the series. He naively trusts Lauren to not call the police when he tries to make a run for it. After season 1, Jack barely trusts anyone. We can see in this episode how much Jack loves his family, and what he's willing to do to protect them.

2. 10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. This is the Jack in the limo episode. While trying to find his family, Jack hijacks a guy named Ted Cofell in his limo and proceeds to threaten to torture him for a long time. He wears these awesome bada** sunglasses, puts on an awesome soundtrack and drives him to an empty parking lot. Jack threatening to shove a towel down his throat (which I believe I just quoted in my previous post) is one of my favorite moments of all time on the show. He's so calm about it, and you know he'll do it. I don't remember anything else that happens in this episode, because Jack in the limo steals the show.

3. 11:00 p.m. - 12:00 p.m. This is the last episode of the season. So many unconventional things happen in this episode, and it really sets the tone for the seasons to come. Nina, who we find out in the episode before this one has been working for the Drazen's all day, calls Jack and tells him that Kim is dead. This is so that he'll go into where they are and they'll have the opportunity to kill him. We see Jack overwhelmed with grief and unable to keep himself together. Once he calms down, we only see a violent rage as he goes into the warehouse where the Drazen's are holding Kim, who had gotten away and is actually safe back at CTU. He takes out like 6 guys in a matter of 5 minutes. Then it's just him and Victor Drazen, the man behind the attacks all day. Drazen's out of ammo and Jack is clearly not in any danger. A "good guy" on any other show, or in any other movie, would have learned that revenge isn't worth it and would have just arrested him and put him in jail for life. Instead, he unloads the rest of the bullets into his body, even continuing to shoot him when he falls off the dock into the water. This was the first time I realized Jack was not a conventional hero.

Back at CTU, Teri overhears Nina speaking German and Nina ties her to a chair as she prepares her get away. Jack realizes that Nina's the mole when Mason tells him that Kim's fine. He comes back to CTU and finds Nina trying to run away in the parking lot. He explodes at her, and it takes George all of his powers of persuasion to keep Jack from killing her.

Jack: I trusted you!
Nina: I was just doing my job.
Jack: Your job!?!?! My wife and daughter almost died today!!! How many people that trusted you lost their lives today because you were doing your job!?!? Walsh Jamey? Ellis? How many others?
Nina: How many people died because of you Jack?

Then, Jack is reunited with his family. Finally this day is over and Jack can relax. He's debriefed and him, Teri and Kim head home. Right? No. The closing shot of the season is Jack sobbing as he holds Teri's lifeless body. Even though I hated Teri, this is not what's supposed to happen. Jack is supposed to fix his marriage, bond with his daughter and live happily ever after. But 24 doesn't care about happily ever after. This episode shows that you will never know what's coming, and that really no one is above being killed. It sets the precedent for future episodes. It gives Jack's character a completely different dynamic, and it makes him much darker.

I never thought that 24 would be a show that I could watch repeatedly. But like many shows, the more you watch them, the more details you pick up on. Knowing what's going to happen makes you watch it and notice things in a different way. I might have to go back and watch season 1 again, since it's been so long since I watched the whole thing.

When I'm finished with you, you're gonna wish that you felt this good again. -Jack Bauer

Instead of studying, I'm of course cruising the Internet. Story of my life. I found this article posted in the comments section of the Jack Bauer Torture Report. Executive producer Howard Gordon said that the final episodes of the season will be less torture-heavy than the first half has been. He claims this has nothing to do with "the U.S. military, human rights groups and children's advocates" wanting it to.

"It's not something that we, as writers, want to use as a crutch. We'd like to find other ways for Jack to get information out of suspects,'' said Gordon. "Our appetite has decreased. Personally, I think the audience may be tiring of it as well. My wife says it's too much.''

That's a good point. It's really easy to just have Jack torture someone to fill up the episode. I think the writers should be branching out more to have Jack obtain information more creatively, and not just having Agent Burke come in with his torture juice when they can't think of anything. Personally, I like it better when Jack just threatens to torture someone, like in one of my favorite Jack Bauer moments from way back in season 1:

You probably don't think that I can force this towel down your throat. But trust me, I can. All the way. Except I'd hold onto this one little bit at the end. When your stomach starts to digest it, I pull it out. Taking your stomach lining with it. For most people it would take about a week to die. It's very painful.

Needless to say, the guy told him who he was working for. I'm sure this shying away from more gruesome torture scenes will make some viewers happy, and hopefully we can see Jack use more clever devices to get the information he needs.

P.S. I read a very disturbing story this morning about a blogger in Egypt who is going to jail for 4 years for insulting Islam. That's no good. I really love the First Amendment.

just a rant

This post will probably be minimally 24 related but I feel like it must be addressed.

On blogs4bauer.com, they have nicknames for all of the main characters. This is the explanation for Chloe's nickname.

Potato-Face --- Television Without Pity's nickname for Chloe, because of that scrunched-up face she always makes and because it's a much less cruel nickname than Rene Zellweger-face.

Let me explain. If you've known me, for oh say more than a month, you know that I pure straight hate Renee Zellweger. If you ever watch Scrubs, my Renee Zellweger is Dr. Cox's Hugh Jackman. The reasons that I hate her include, but are not limited to, the movie Jerry Maguire, the movie Chicago, her weird body, her annoying voice, her disgusting hair, her "I just ate a whole lemon" face, her complete lack of talent. But even all of these reasons don't really add up to the violent hatred that burns in my soul. I really shouldn't have these strong feelings for someone I don't know, I can't explain it.

My point is, it made me really happy to see other people hate her too, and to acknowledge that Chloe is at least cooler than Renee Zellweger. This picture is evidence that Mary Lynn Rajskub is actually quite pretty when not scowling at CTU, and a million times better than Renee Zellweger.

I'm sorry if this is off-topic but every time I hear her name I cringe and want to punch children, and I really needed an outlet.

I'd like nothing more than to hang you as a traitor and watch you jerk until you die. -Ryan Chapelle

So apparently, there are mad people hating on this season of 24. An article posted on one message board on the Fox Web site claims that a lot of people aren't happy with this season and that it's "off" somehow. This article seems a little biased since they only quote people who aren't enjoying the season so far. The posts responding to this article are mostly defending the show, and point out that a lot of people are still liking this season.

One thing that I thought was odd about the article is the following quote.

Last season was just too good. Almost everyone agrees that "Day Five," in which Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) came back from the dead and saved the world from terrorists with nerve gas, was the best yet. It landed "24" its first Emmy and set up any follow-up to be a letdown.

I think this is a broad overstatement. While season 5 was the most popular in ratings yet, I think it's a bad idea to say that it was overwhelming every one's favorite. Amount of viewers does not equal every one's enjoyment. Personally, my favorite season is 3, how can you not love the Salazar's? Season 5 is a close second, but 3 wins because Tony and Michelle are both major, living characters.

After 6 seasons, some aspects of the show that you could overlook previously (like the fact that there's never traffic in LA) do seem to be a little more ridiculous. However, it's really easy to pick a show apart and over analyze everything. A lot of things that happen on 24, just need to be taken for what they are. Yes Jack never eats, sleeps or needs to charge his cell phone, get over it. Would you really want that to be included in the show?

One valid point that the article brings up is that with so many major characters being killed off in season 5, we don't know, or particularly care about the new characters. Personally, I just think that this season is vastly different from previous seasons. We've probably seen Jack show more emotions this season than in all the other seasons combined. It's also different in the sense that there is more political debate about civil liberties than usual.

I remember after seeing Spiderman 2 with a bunch of my friends, one of them said that he didn't like it because there wasn't enough action, and he didn't like the personal life of Spiderman. This is one of the things that draws me to the Spiderman movies is the fact that Peter Parker is a tortured hero and has so much conflict. My friend said all he wants is to see Spiderman fight bad guys. Maybe this is what people want 24 to be like, just Jack beating up evil terrorists, not caring about his personal feelings. But perhaps that's me being over broad now.

My friends and I have been really enjoying this season. We also enjoy the fact that we now like to think of Jack having Babe as a half-brother. This makes the show infinitely funnier.

3:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

With great Bauers come great responsibility. Yes I thought of that terrible pun all by myself and I'm pretty proud of it.

This was kind of the Morris back-story episode, but it was still really good. We begin with Marilyn and Milo fighting off bad guys in one of Los Angeles's famous abandoned industrial parks. Milo takes a bullet to the arm and holds off Poppa Bauer's henchmen until Jack arrives and saves them at the last minute. Milo is not phased at all by the machine gun bullets he's just taken to the arm, so I think I'm going to need to be giving him some more respect.

Jack then violently throws Marilyn against a concrete wall and snarls for her to tell him why Gredenko knew they were coming. She tells Jack they weren't Gredenko's men they were Phillip's. She explains that Phillip killed Graem and is threatening to do the same to Josh if she doesn't tell him where Gredenko is. Jack calls Bill and tells him that the team has been ambushed. Jack tells him that he can't explain what he's about to do, which makes Bill angry but Jack's going to do what he wants anyway, and Bill knows that.

At CTU, Nadia (who I expected there to be more of during the day, she's kind of been in the background) tells Chloe and Morris that Milo was shot holding off thugs and that he was going to be fine. This bothers Morris, because everything does, and Chloe questions his ability to work effectively. She tells him to talk to a psychiatrist of his sponsor. He tells her that he'll be fine, that he just needs to take a break and go for a walk. Morris goes to a quick mart and picks up a bottle of whiskey and Altoids. Morris should know that you should never drink and set up a perimeter. He goes into the alley and downs practically the whole thing, which impressed me. He then realizes he's made a huge mistake and throws it up. Chloe calls him and mid-breakdown tells her that he's on his way back to work. Morris picked a hell of a day to quit drinkin.

Meanwhile, Jack convinces Marilyn to call Phillip and tell her that she won't give up Gredenko's location until she can come see Josh. Phillip puts up a fight but eventually gives her the address. Josh overhears that Phillip will kill him if his mother doesn't cooperate. He then tries to convince grandpa to let him go down to the lobby and get a soda. Pop-pop Bauer pulls a gun and lets him know that he's not leaving. Now I'm doubting if Josh is Jack's son because Jack's son would have the ability to kill him with a throw pillow or something. Or even better, the room key card, Nina Meyers style. Anyway, by the time Jack and Marilyn get to the hotel, they see that Phillip and Josh are gone. Poppa Bauer calls the room phone and Jack and Marilyn see that they are on the roof of the building across the way. Jack tells his dad that he'll trade himself for Josh.

Cut back to Washington. Lennox gets Reed the president's itinerary and promises him that he'll give clearance to the man who is supposed to assassinate Palmer. Wayne asks Lennox for his help on Assad's speech. Lennox confesses that he didn't think the president cared too much about his opinion anymore. Wayne says that's not true, and apologizes for making him feel that way. He tells Lennox that his changes to the speech are great and thanks him. Lennox goes back to the bunker to see Reed and tells him he'll get the clearance within the hour. Reed leaves and Lennox calls the secret service, having changed his mind about helping kill the president. Note to bosses, just compliment your employees every once in a while and they won't have you killed. Reed overhears the conversation and bashes Lennox in the head repeatedly. Lennox says that he cannot condone the murder of the president, so Reed knocks him unconscious and cancels the meeting with the secret service.

Morris is back to work at CTU, but Chloe can smell alcohol on his breathe and calls him out on it. He explains to her that he drank it but spat it back out immediately. I feel really bad for Morris here as he explains to Chloe that he didn't drink it because he couldn't give up everything, especially her. He says it was at least one little triumph in his terrible terrible day. Morris is usually really annoying, but he was tortured, so maybe we should give him a break for wanting to have a little swig. Chloe believes him, but warns that she'll be watching him for the rest of the shift, aka another 14 hours.

Jack goes unarmed and alone to meet with his dad. Poppa Bauer lets Josh go and it's just Jack and dad. Phillip explains that he needs to find Gredenko to keep his legacy and enterprise alive. Phillip, we get it, you REALLY love this company. He says if Jack was in charge and hadn't abandoned the family, none of this would have happened. He tells Jack to get on his knees and points the gun at the back of his head. The camera zooms in on Jack's face and explains to his dad that he wasn't abandoning the family, he just had to go out on his own and make his own life. He finishes talking and tells his dad that he's ready. Nothing happens. Jack turns around, wondering what's taking so long, and Phillip's gone. Jack rushes outside and finds a cell phone instructing him to dial a number (which was a real number by the way, so if you want to call it someone from the set of 24 will answer. Or at least that's the way it usually works if you see a real number on a television show. The way you can tell is if the middle three numbers aren't 555) He calls the number and, in honor of President's Day, PRESIDENT LOGAN ANSWERS. YESSSS! He tells him that he can tell him where Gredenko is. I think, I was too excited to really hear what he was saying. Will this mean the return of Martha Logan? Dear God I hope so.

Let's get one thing straight, kid. The only reason you're still conscious is because I don't want to carry you. -Jack Bauer

As I sit here watching the original Jack Bauer, John McClane in Die Hard, I came across an article on msnbc.com comparing television and movie quality. I don't consider myself to be an avid tv watcher, and my movie theater going has been dwindling over the past years. This has a lot to do with not having a job, but it also has a lot to do with the decreased quality of the movies being produced by the mainstream studios. My last really enjoyable movie outings were The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine. But before that I can't really remember a GREAT movie that I saw. Then I thought about the television shows that I watch, 24, Rescue Me, Scrubs, South Park. No movie of late can compare to the levels of drama, suspense, or comedy, respectively, that these shows produce. This hadn't really occurred to me until reading this article.

One really good point that was brought up, is that both the television and movie industries are deathly afraid of the Internet, but they are both battling the problem differently. Television is giving any idea that's new and unique a chance, and Hollywood has delved more and more into sequels and special effects.

The Internet age has put both industries into a state of high anxiety, with everyone scrambling to figure out how money will be made in a digital future where people watch movies on their phones and surf the Web on their TVs. But while the major film studios have responded by taking shelter beneath big-tent franchises, the TV industry has gone the opposite route, welcoming anyone with an original idea. The roster of channels has ballooned into the hundreds, creating a niche universe where shows don't need to be dumbed down in order to survive (because the dummies have their own channels). DVDs, meanwhile, have upended how we watch television, transforming shows from disposable weekly units into 8-, 12-, sometimes 22-hour movies.

Before, many channels were afraid to give shows like 24 or Lost a chance because they were afraid viewers wouldn't stick with it. Now with DVDs, you can catch up on whole seasons of shows in a couple of days, with no commercials. With a whole season, you can do a lot more than with a two-hour movie.

There are a lot of really bad television shows (Grey's Anatomy) but more creative shows are being given an opportunity to thrive. It seems that the movie industry is afraid to try anything too different, and the same types of movies keep getting made. It's not mentioned in this article, but many people also feel the price of going to the movies has gone up too much. I personally don't mind paying $10 to see a movie, if I feel like it will be really good. I will not pay $10 to see a mediocre movie. However, I can sit home and watch a mediocre television show courtesy of Northeastern University.

Shows like 24, Rescue Me, Nip/Tuck are willing to make viewers think and "push the envelope" more than many movies I've seen coming out lately. There are plot twists upon plot twists, character development, controversy, and more entertainment packed into one hour than most movies have been delivering.

I'm getting real tired of your personality. -Tony Almeida

Every night on Keith Olbermann's show he picks a "Worst Person in the World." Tuesday night's winner was Joel Surnow, the producer of 24. I've never watched Olbermann's show, I only read this on the msnbc Web site so I can't tell if this award is semi-sarcastic. There's not much of an explanation for the award, only that Surnow did not attend a meeting with the dean of West Point. Olbermann has previously called for the cancellation of 24 because he believes it spreads negative stereotypes about Muslims. So to Keith Olbermann I say, stop overreacting and start loving television violence like all good Americans should.