Archive for the ‘24 (FOX)’ Category
24 8.23/24: 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Goodbye. But not for long. Hopefully.
The last two hours of the series. I decided to review them in one post, since I wanted to post them sooner than later, which works better, when I write everything in own single post – a bigger one, with more words.
Anyway, the Lost era ended a day before the 24 era ended, which makes it a bit difficult for me to believe that two series eras ended during 24 hours. It may be a shock for a TV nerd like me, and I might realize that US TV is never going back to the awesomeness, which was the fifth season of Lost and the fifth season of 24. These two hours might be the last two hours, where we saw something awesome, whether the writers overdid the series after a while, or it is still corny and unrealistic as always. But what the hell… FOX gave us eight years of a government agent fighting for justice, losing his family and friends, being close to death every fucking day. 24 was thrill. 24 was action. And this in series. I am almost certain that no series will bring that ever again. And this is already sad enough, when I am thinking about it.
This is not really my “goodbye” post to the series, since it stays a normal and simple review. But parts of it, I was writing with a tear in my eye, with an imaginative tear in my other eye and the thoughts that this will be the last series of its kind for a very long time. Goodbye, 24.
24 8.22: 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Another dead Russian in 24 history: Novakovich just died.
This is the second to last week of 24 in television history. This is the prologue to the (hopefully) ultimate series finale. This is the episode, where we learn the truth about who is behind all the previous terrorist attacks and murders (though the motives are missing yet). This is the episode, where Jack realized that he ain’t coming back. This is the episode, where Jack did a little massacre with Russian delegates. This is one of the episodes, where the writers realized that the series won’t be renewed for a ninth season, since such a situation Jack is currently in is unstoppable. Not even the twisted games during the fifth season can top this season’s last episodes.
This episode wasn’t really the burner like I was hoping it would be, but it was a good episode. After all, the final storylines are prepared, and the last 90 minutes can rock my socks away.
Next week the last two episodes. I am prepared. I am happy about the series finale, but I am a bit sad as well that 24 is ending. At least one series ending I am sad to see…
24 8.21: 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
No words can describe, how this scene saves this season.
Now I am asking myself, why the writers needed so much time to bring the season up to speed. Maybe it was the terrorist plot, which brought them to write a more solid, quiet and sometimes lame story; maybe it was the fact that the crew was still believing to work for a ninth season. You can clearly see that they put anything into the screenplay, when they realized, there won’t be another season. Or when they realized, they couldn’t top anything they’ve written during 24, so they give everything to really top the fifth season now.
And I have to say, these last six, seven episodes of the series could be really better than the fifth season. I like what I see, I don’t roll with my eyes, the whole damn story is thrilling as hell, and I get exactly what I wanted to see: Jack’s solo run against everybody, with all the world after him.
24 8.20: 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Run, Jack, run!
I don’t even know what to write for the introduction, but I think I’ve had the same problem in the past already. So, just a few words until the review: That episode was almost epic. That was 24, how I started to love it back in 2003, when I saw the first season for the first time. Finally thrill instead of action, finally just one straight story for the last couple episodes, without getting interrupted with another probably stupid storyline. The episode almost got a full ten, if there wasn’t the slightly boring Logan sideplot.
24 8.19: 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
CTU agent Cole is now a hired gun.
I don’t know how you guys see it, but I believe the producers and writers already had the series’ end in mind with this episode and the previous one. The story looks like it will bring all the characters to the edge and probably into the grave as well. The writers focus on bringing the twist Jack Bauer versus anyone else; they bring again a President, who does wrong choices and risks the own term; they bring again the conscious card and nobody listen to anybody else; they again bring a separate storyline into the last part of a season. There are no more terrorists alive anymore, no more attacks, which should be prevented. There is only evidence left, and probably a political disaster for President Taylor and her staff.
It was another good episode, but not that mindblowing as I hoped it would be. It rather looked like another one of those preparing episodes, which sets all the stories for the final episodes. And the eighth season of 24 kinda had already too much of those preparing episodes, so it is time for Jack Bauer to beef up the Russians. Five hours are left after this one, it should be enough to kill one character after another – one per episode…
24 8.18: 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
"Waz going on?" Charles Logan doesn't like it, when he has to ask himself questions.
There are seven hours left, before Jack hits the last second in the history of 24 in television. Kiefer Sutherland confirmed that 24 transforms into a movie franchise (which I like), so it should be obvious that Jack Bauer will survive this season. But before the producers can even consider going with the story into feature films, they still have to look, how the 24 community will see and evaluate the last hours of the series. The shooting of the last episode is already finished (as far as I’ve read), the post-production is working on the last episodes and there were some interesting pictures of the last episodes (characters with lots of scratches).
So, the countdown clock is running down and it looks like the episodes are getting better with every minute the series is walking to its final second. Considering the quite and partly boring first half of the season, we kinda have similarities with the third season: Back then I didn’t like the first half, but I adored the second half…
24 8.17: 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
It had to happen...
Well, it really had to happen. I was expecting it. And nobody can tell me that they never thought about Renee dying this season. And even though I saw her death coming (though I saw it in the series finale), the writers still showed they have many many balls throughout the last seasons to let one character after another die. Last episode it was Hassan’s last hour, this episode it was Renee’s last hour.
That means another “Wow” for the last act of the episode.
24 8.16: 7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.
Dana and Cole: Angry sex should save their relationship at least for this hour
Was this episode the prediction of what’s to come? Was the silent clock at the end of the episode a foreshadow of even more deaths to come? Was this episode the end for two main characters and actors in this season, since Chris Diamantopoulos was removed from the credits with this episode? What will be the next and final story of the season, after President Hassan didn’t survive this hour? This could have been the season finale (with a few small adjustments), and yet the writers decided to end the Hassan storyline early this season. Do we have another season 6.5 coming up now?
24 8.15: 6:00 a.m. – 7:00 a.m.
"WTF? I have to do things a mole has to do, and you are disturbing me. GTFO!"
FOX delivered the third 2-hour-1-night event for 24, and it won’t be the last one, when FOX doesn’t want to show the very last episode of the series on May 31st. But since they programmed Glee’s season finale into the summer season (a rolleyes moment for me), I already am wondering, how the network planned to air the last episodes. Anyway, this review contains the first of the two episodes, since I didn’t want to give up my single episode reviews and didn’t want to spend much time on one single post. Rather spending the same amount of time for two different reviews is much more fun (NOT).
24 8.14: 5:00 a.m. – 6:00 a.m.
Christina Cox is the newest amongst kick-ass women on 24, who showed action skills. I hope she survived this episode.
The word got out last Friday: As expected, FOX won’t renew 24 for a ninth season, which means that the series is finished after its eighth run. After 192 episodes of real-time action and thrill, after 11520 minutes of storytime we witnessed, after hundreds of kills, murders and deaths in nine years, after the ever-changing cast from the get-go, after all the gazillion twists during all the episodes, 24 goes off television for the well-earned retirement. NBC declined taking 24 and bringing the show back for a ninth season, since the series was way too expensive for the Peacock. So, let’s just enjoy the last eleven episodes, until the writers, producers and actors can start shooting the movie, which is almost about to be shot somewhere in the world (Europe, maybe?).
So, that is the countdown. Lost ends its run, one day later 24 ends its run. Two TV shows, which defined serial television in the 2000s, are finally put to rest. 24 has eleven episodes left with this one.
Okay, next week’s promo advertised 24 with the “final 10 hours” and the “final season” now. Why not going with FOX here?
for graphic language, sexual references and depiction of fictional violence
