24

This episode is no doubt the best of the sixth season. After so much criticism that 24 has lost its edge this season and the season being labeled as "disappointing," it's great to see 24 get back on track. I do have to say that I do not care for the plot recycling in this episode (Jack going into the consolate unauthorized) but that is just a small flaw in a tremendously entertaining episode. The scenes of Jack interrogating the consolate were excellent. It's nice to see Jack being Jack again! Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.

Ah…another day, another illegal Consulate invasion. Back in the US for less than twelve hours, Jack Bauer's already dressed in a suit and torturing foreign diplomats. His latest opponent is Russian Consul Anatoly Markov, who may or may not (MAY) know Gredenko's location. Yeah, the finger snipping bit is nice, but it destroys all hope I had for seeing a Jack truly traumatized by his time in China.
And some tremendous potential has been wasted by killing Assad off. But here's a major plus: Vice President Noah Daniels moves into the bunker and takes over the injured Wayne's duties. This shift in power gives the DC plot a very different feel for the better as Daniels throws his refreshingly tough attitude around the place. Also great is the recently sympathetic-ized Lennox, who keeps displaying new facets upon Daniels' decision to scapegoat Assad for the bomb. The guy's come a long way since half a day ago.
I don't think I have to mention this episode's extremely glaring similarities to an earlier one. Alright, I just did, but come on; it's sad that they actually reused the idea of breaking into a Consulate and brewing an international situation. It's a good thing I retain my firm policy on season individuality. Logan's meta-complaint to Jack helps matters too.
But the hour isn't completely unoriginal—a cell phone does finally vibrate. Stay tuned for the exciting continuation.

Hourly Highlight:
Lennox ratting on Pollock and Carson.

Oh.. So, what's up this time - I most say nothing original or shockingly new, same old thing i am afraid.



Specially the whole consult thing is deja vu. They did this - Jack went in, Jack got into trouble. We have seen it.



And if that was not enough, there was not much going on either. Logan is their lead, they got nothing out of the consult. The ending was not good either - usually they have something remarkable happening but not this time - just one man shot.. in 24, that happens a lot.



So, I most one of the weakest episodes from this season so far.

This was another great episode of "24"...it had adventure, unpredictability, and i found it very enjoyable...After the plot is taking place, Reed decides to free Lennox, in hopes that this won't give him in...Unfortunately for him, Lennox does it...VP Daniels assumes the presidentship and decides to blame Assad for all this, and to implement Lennox's plan...Jack goes with Logan to the Russian consulate...Although Logan is unsuccessful to make the consul talk, he is able to see that the latter has informations he doesn't wish to disclose...So Jack takes a risky movement to find out...Although he manage to find out the truth, he is kept hostage into the consulate.

This was one of the most interesting episodes to ever hit 24 - agree or disagree with me if you really want to, but it really did get a bit out of hand, but they still managed to just about keep all of the action all together. Have you noticed how ALL of the computers and networking and communications are too fast:



e.g.



"I'll send you the hard drive. There has been an attempt to erase all of them."



(No pause)



"Ok its coming through. I'll have a look."



How utterly silly. What next?



The assassination of the President of the United States. I hate Mr Reed - who does that bloke think he is? And his little 'associate' who got the funny liquid bomb is just a bit of a nutter. What a strange and disordered man. He had the idea of making the people believe that Lennox was hanged. Who is that dopey?



Overall, I think that this episode was silly and confusing.



Please post whether you agree or disagree with my comments.

This episode is kind of a mixed bag for me.



On the one hand, this is the kind of episode I really would have enjoyed in say, Season 2 or 3 or 4. And I kind of enjoy it here. In a way it's classic 24.



But that's also part of the problem. Like many things this season, this feels like rehash. So much of this season feels like "24 - Greatest Hits" - particularly this episode, which sees Jack torturing a Russian delegate at the Russian consulate, which is for all intents and purposes Russian soil. What was Jack in a Chinese prison for again?



Not to mention the fact that the way Jack handles this is completely ridiculous and full of plot holes. Here you have Jack, a man so intent on stopping suitcase nukes - which, for all intents and purposes, are pretty small for nukes - that he goes so far as putting the United States government in a position that could possibly lead to a nuclear war. What if Jack was wrong? What if this Russian delegate truly had no connection to Gredenko whatsoever? Mr. Bauer'd be in pretty hot water then, eh? I dunno. I'm just frustrated that they're taking us down a road we've been on before - Jack needs information, so he breaks into a foreign diplomatic building and then tortures somebody. It's a two-for-one rehash. I also love how everyone is just kind of like, "Eh, whatever." You've got the VP who was kinda testy, but when Jack broke the news to Buchanan he was just like, "Oh, okay." He should be furious. If it were anyone other than Jack Bauer, he'd be furious. My other complaint with this episode comes, again, from the story of the Russian consulate. The audience is told right away that this guy is, in fact, working with the terrorists. This takes the suspense out of every scene thereafter, because we as an audience know for a fact that he's lying. There's no "what if he's telling the truth?" Instead of being riveted and interested in finding out what happens next, our reaction is more like "Eh, okay, get on with it." It should have been more ambiguous. Other than that, this wasn't a bad episode of 24 - just a standard one. It doesn't reach the level of suckitude that some of the earlier episodes this season have, but it's not really doing anything to raise the level of quality, either. It's mostly just there.

Just when you think things couldn't get any worse....



What is going on with 24! The main plots so far in this season have been covered in previous seasons which were far superior. Jack gets caught in another countries embassy building, seen it.... Vice president overthrows the current president, seen it.... Nuclear threats, seen it....



This episode was just terrible. Is Jack the only person doing anything at CTU? Bill talks to Karen who withdraws her resignation and will take another 6 hours to get back to her office, how exiting. Chloe turns off the power to a building, wow. Morris and everyone else must be on their lunch-break, probably a good time to take it as they have no other leads, entralling stuff.



And what one earth was that ending about? Jack: "Hey russian guy, can you call CTU and tell them where the nuclear bombs are. I would do it but was caught trying to walk out of the front door of the embassy after everyone knew I was in here cutting the ambassadors fingers off"



Russian guy: "Yeah, no problems. I would do it in this room but no one would see me. Let me wander the corridors suspiciously and go to an empty room, I may even leave the door open. Let's hope I don't get shot"



Absolutely appalling writing, I may never watch another episode of 24 after this pile of rubbish.

bUT I am more sorry for Cutis's character, and President Palmer they could of at least killed the brother off later on in the season but that just goes back to what I was saying about earlier eps. this season when I said he was a good man but way too naive. Now he is nearly killed off and some slimey caucasion who set up the assasination attempt is in power. Things look REALLY bad for the country on the show. Not only do they have constant terrorist attacks, but thier leaders keep getting caught up in conspiricies, and getting murdered,not to mention thier is about to be a martial law that probably wont rescind after Jack stops the threat so that might b exciting just a bit sad that no minorities(MAJORITIES) are left on the show now and that the show seems repetative and predictable. I think I am just about done w/ this show, and next week I can honestly say I will b giving all my attention to HEROES.

Once again a vice president plotted to replace the president, again Jack volunteered to break into a consulate to find a clue, does it sound familiar?



The first half of this 6th season is really dispointing and it seems that the writers can't find out something fresh and so the old intrigues go on and on......



The end part of this episode is nothing but silly. After torturing the Russian diplomat and getting what he wanted, Jack made a move to the door like he was some kind of a guest (with several Russian agents behind the door waiting to capture him) and don't tell me he thought he could leave like that!



And the most stupid part came when the Russian agent sneaked out, found himself a room to call CTU and forgot even to close the door. Why not just write on the door "I am here, I am calling CTU, just come and get me...".



Seriously, I do hope that the second half could be better or I will not watch 24 again.

Finally, after a few weeks where the show dragged, we're back to not only the main plot, but also what many fans of 24 tune in to see: Jack Bauer taking matters into his own hands. I'm really excited to see where we go from here. Jack's gotten himself "cornered" and things are really picking up for the new administration and CTU. It's going to be one crazy ride for the remainder of Season 6 and I couldn't be more excited. The chase is on for Gredenko, Fayed, and the nukes. Time to fire up the Tivo and enjoy some of tv's best fare.

After a pretty slow start for this season, it has

Picked up slowly but surely which I am glad that

It is as Wayne is injured, Daniels takes action and Wayne

Is in the hospital recupperating. While Jack takes action and kicks butt of course in the Russian Counsulate.

Daniels holds a grudge against Lennox, as the terrorist latter hopes to get a deal out of this by naming names.

Wayne Palmer and Assad are seriously injured from the assassination attempt. Vice President Daniels assumes the presidency for the time being while Wayne Palmer is incapacitated. Logan interviews the russian consul general and finds out right away that the consulate is lying to him about his knowledge of Gredenko. Jack sneaks back inside the russian embassy and holds the consulate hostage. This is an exciting episode, the writers came up with a really cool storyline. So much happen within the 42 minute episode, the plot is so engaging. I really enjoyed this episode, I just can't wait for the next one. 24 rules.

Also, we speak about the latest hour of 24, the halfway point for the season:



With that fat lard of a turkey in the President's chair, the country's pretty much screwed. Anyone who may have played a beneficial role (Tom Lennox, Karen Hayes, etc.) is now out of commission. On top of that, Jack once again proves that he's completely selfless. Too bad all of his selfless efforts have been in vain. With his last chance of getting word out dead, coupled with the revelation that more nukes are on their way, looks like all hope is lost. Not even Buchanan and CTU can get Jack out of this one. With "Heroes" on hiatus, "24's" got our undivided attention. And deservedly so. Easily one of the best hours of "24" ever. And that's saying a hell of a LOT. Keep this up and it'll truly make television history.

Yay for the true Jack being back. Nothing short of cigar clipped pinkies, it was pretty good. it was Jack back in his element, calling the shots with no family to get in his way. Karen Hayes shows her face again to turn back to CTU, which I'm excited about because I'm a big fan of Karen. Thankfully, Tom had his turn around and turned in "the bad guys" right away, yay for him. He's turning out to be a more dynamic character than the original annoying little bugger he originally was. I miss Wayne Palmer. I want him back.

This season, the writers of 24 have often been (rightly) derided for recycling plotlines and threads from seasons past, overstuffing episodes with largely uninteresting subplots and minor characters, and upping the suspension of disbelief factor to ridiculous levels- all contributing to the general decline of this current season.



I have been chief among their detractors. I didn't begin the season that way- the first four hours were crackling, crisply written, tightly paced, classic 24, as we witnessed the birth of a different Jack Bauer emerging from Chinese imprisonment. Then it began- the slow, painful erosion in quality and believability: Jack's angst seemed to disappear into thin air, and he returned to superhero status in minutes; a nuclear bomb explodes on U.S. soil, and we see absolutely no aftermath; Curtis is killed, seemingly just for shock value; CTU becomes the place where any momentum the show gathers comes to a screeching halt; Chloe becomes an uninteresting caretaker to the tiresome Morris; Buchanan is reduced to a cardboard cut-out expository talking head answering the phone- don't even get me started on Milo and Nadia; the debacle of the Bauer Family Hour; Marilyn's bad acting; President Wayne Palmer's bad acting; recycled plotlines that were done better in seasons past- Arab terrorists. Russian separatists. White House intrigue. Terrorists detonate nuclear bomb on U.S. soil, etc, etc.; the squandering of precious screen time that was Sandra Palmer. My patience very quickly wore thin. Then episode 12 happened, and suddenly there is a glimmer of hope. I know, I know- I was ranting and raving just a second ago, but that's what makes us 24 fans such special creatures- you can mistreat us for weeks, but give us a little bit of what we crave, and we love you all over again.



And the writers delivered this episode. Still not up to par with their best work, but it's getting there. Uninteresting subplots were largely jettisoned in favor of solid plot development and some action, for once. The plot with former President Logan remains engrossing. Jack is back in full action mode, enlisting Chloe in some under-the-radar operations which land him in deep doo-doo. With Palmer out of the way for a while, the White House plot is heating up, with lots of potential for interesting interaction between V.P. Noah Daniels, Tom Lennox and Karen Hayes. Yes, there was a lot of suspension of disbelief required to buy Jack's actions at the Russian Consulate, but all is forgiven once this series regains its dramatic momentum. And the ball is rolling once again.

Plot: In the wake of the Presidential attack, Vice-President Daniels takes over. He might as well have been sworn in wearing a cowboy hat and a friendly heil Hitler Tom rats out the traitors behind the attack on Palmer, but in doing so finds it hard to cover his own ass. Jack doesn't play nice with the Russians.

While this is far from a power episode, it does beat 45 minutes of Morris and Chloe, the dysfunction dynamic duo. Wow, that was a lot of alliteration! This episode sets up the next arc very well. I'm glad to move away from Fayid and the Arab subplot and focus more on the Russians and their possible motivations for this attack. I know I'm not the best detective in the word, and maybe I wouldn't make a great secret service agent, but why in the hell would anyone possibly think Assad was behind this attack? Everyone, in that room clearly saw him walk up to the podium, look confused, comment on the bomb, and then jump in front of Palmer to protect him. Damn you to hell terrorists! How dare you try to upstage me and protect my President?

Tom is finding himself in a bit of pickle. He somehow managed to convince his idiot captors not to kill him, in the hopes that he would keep quiet and go along with their plan. Surprisingly, he stands up for himself and immediately turns them in. The cost of being implicated in a plot to assonate the President: the death penalty, seeing the look on your lover/assistant’s face when you double cross him: priceless. I should stay out of advertising. Tom is now having some difficulty extricating himself from his intricate web of lies. The lesson being that no good deed goes unpunished; that and torture totally kicks ass!

Jack and Logan check out the digs at the Russian consulate, but Logan can’t make much headway there. Logan attempts to blackmail him by revealing his involvement in the nerve gas attack, but the consulate refuses to give up any information on Gredenko. This looks like a job for Jack Bauer, torturer extraordinaire. Out of the way FCC or I’ll cut your god damn fingers off! Honestly, won’t someone please think of the children? After beating the dude to a pulp he admits that Gredenko is in the desert, planning a series of attacks using drones.

Unfortunately, Jack is immediately captured. There just wasn’t enough time, he should have explained in the car! Jack convinces one of his Russian guards to call CTU for help; however, things don’t end well for him either. Clearly, helping Jack is hazardous to your health. Chloe, you should think twice the next time you upload some crap to Jack’s PDA.

Parting Thought: At long last we can release our super soldier on the Russians!

www.lifereviewed.com

We all knew that the last hour was pure filler. Yes, there were some good scenes and plot development, but we knew that it was setting up for this hour. And this hour absolutely delivered.



From President Palmer being operated on as he lays unconscious to Jack's brutal interrogation of the Russian embassy guy, to Jack's capture and almost successful attempt to turn a Russian guard, this hour was packed with thrilling moments and excitement. On top of all this, the next hour looks even better.



Other than Jack's scenes, I thought the coolest part of the show was how the Vice President used Tom Lennox's words against him. Tom was all for putting in tougher rules for people in America of middle eastern descent, but now he is against it. Well, if he wants to be found not to have conspired with the deputy chief of staff in the assassination attempt of President Palmer, he had better side with the VP.

24 always seems to step it up in the 2nd half of the season, and this season is no exception. Getting back to the reasons on why we watch 24, Jack going all out to get the information that is needed. The writers giving us things to speculate on, is the VP behind the Palmer hit? Has Logan really changed his ways? What will Karen's return to the White House bring us? Where will Tom Lennox's loyalties lie with...Palmer or the VP?



You can just feel this season is really about to take off, with the previews for next week....the attack on the Russian consulat, the return of Martha and Aaron Pierce. This episode got me excited again, and marks the return of what 24 is all about.

All in all, it was a pretty good episode - but it just felt like some ideas were already used. Jack attacking the russian general, and the assasination on President Palmer (another President Palmer, by the way) - both ideas were used already. However, this time, they added alittle extra to both events. Jack's investigation was beyond creepy. I didn't think he'll really remove one of the General's fingers! But he did, and he got the information out - and then he got caught. Same idea as the one in season 4 (kidnapping the Chineese guy), but done even better, in my opinion. I also liked the fact that his guard believed him and was going to inform Bill. The only dissapointment I had was, that I expected to find out someone else - interesting - is involved. When Jack's guard was attacked trying to contact Bill, they seemed to have hide the attacker's face till the last second, but he's not someone we know or care about. So what's the point? If it was Logan... Now that would have been cool! Acting like he wants to help, making Jack go in and do the same mistake he did in season 4, and then go back to his usual evil way. I would have loved that. Now, while everyone think the VP is behind the bomb, I have a feeling he's not. Simply because I still trust "24" to come up with something less obvious. One can only hope. I liked the fact that there was less Chloe/Morris drama, and more on the bomb and Jack/Logan. Felt alot more like "24" then in the last few episodes where all we heard about was "did Morris drink, or did he throw it up". Almost made ME throw up!!



I love Tom Lenox after the last episode, cuz I actually thought he'll be tempted to help Reed and his friend but he was moral enough to turn them in. I am dying to see how this plays out. I also wanna see how Tom and Karen will work together again. Something tells me Tom might actually be nicer to Karen now... Specially when he knows the truth about the attack, that it was Reed and NOT Assad. One last thing - it's so funny/weird to see how this season, the writers are trying to fix the damage they did in the last 5 seasons. After years of showing Arab terrorists, this season the real terrorists are using the arabs (yeah, Fayed is no angel, but you know what I mean). First the russians using Fayed, and then Reed and his friends using Assad. The arabs are poor victims this time around, while russians and americans are setting them up. Hell, the suicide bomber on the bus (in the first episode) was chineese!!

For the first time since hour four, I finally feel like something is happening. It's been a long time since I was this involved with an episode of 24. I'm not saying it's an instant classic or a return to form, but from the interest stand-point and being on the edge of my seat, this one was a definite step in the right direction.



For one thing, now that all the cliched family drama is gone from Jack's life is gone, we can get back to Jack doing what Jack does best--being the biggest, baddest secret agent around. I loved when Logan reminds Jack, you know the last time you violated the sanctity of a consolate, it didn't end well and that Jack totally disregards that. For Jack, the ends justify the means and he doesn't seem to care about personal freedom or any of those small things that you and I might think about in a simliar situation. I loved seeing Jack waltz back into the Russian consolate, take the ambassador hostage and then torturing him for information. OK, maybe I didn't love the part where Jack used the cigar clipper to encourage him to talk, but you still have to admit that in those scenes Jack was totally bad-ass.



And then, Bill Buchanan sits in CTU headquarters, finds out Jack has been captured and decides to go a bit Bauer himself. Bill decides he's going to have a strike team ready to go in and get Jack back. And I get the feeling that whether or not the vice-president orders it or not, Bill is going to make sure Jack doesn't stay in Russian hands too long. Of course, part of this is the necessity of the show--we have to rescue Jack to have him continue his pursuit of the nukes. But I have to wonder if part of this isn't a feeling that Bill owes Jack somehow. Jack has paid a pretty big price for keeping us safe in the past few seasons and has bailed Bill out by faking his own death and then going to China as a prisoner. Yeah, I'm just saying--Bill owes Jack one.



Of course, in good 24 fashion we had to completely strain credibility to get to this point. So, Jack doesn't trust Logan any farther than he can throw the former president but he lets him meet with the Russian diplomant alone...and without checking the room first to see if it has--oh, let's just say--another door?!? Yes, rooms rarely have two doors and a consolate wouldn't possibly maybe have a secret escape route for the important diplomatic officials. No, that would never, ever happen.



That said, I loved the scenes with Logan and the Russian diplomat where we find out that the Russians supplied last year's conspiracy with the Centox gas. Nice touch there.



Meanwhile back at the Presdential bunker, things are finally moving as well. Powers Booth takes over as acting president. And his first job is cleaning up the situation Jack has created. I loved the scenes when Bill calls up the v.p. and says, "Yeah seems Jack is out creating diplomatci incidents again." Yeah, that big chair is not feeling as comfy as you thought it would, now is it?



Tom Lennox is freed and does the right thing by having Chad Lowe and fellow conspirator arrested. But no one believes Lennox. Now, this twist while a nice win for Lennox makes no sense. Why didn't the bomb-maker just kill Lennox and frame Chad Lowe for it? I can't see why having Lennox still alive would be a good idea....or they can blame it on Asad somehow and that gives everyone a way to push through the legislation in honor and memory of Lennox. I'm just saying that it seems like the conspirators aren't thinking this through.



That said, I still think there is a link between the White House drama and the terrorist plot. But we'll see. I've been know to be wrong before.



Oh and we even get to see Karen Hayes who is running back to take her old job back. So, while it's not classic 24, it's still a darn sight better than what we've been getting this year. Maybe it's the turning point....at last!

Great episode.



The White House storyline was enthralling, it somehow gathered an amazing amaount of pace and threw in a few twists that weren't expected such as Lennox's spring on Reed Pollock. And the Russain consulate raid by Jack and Logan and then Jacks re-entry was just superb. It was very Season 1 and 2 esque, no gun shots it was just a grea situation that managed to build tension. And Jacks threat with the cigar chopper, however cliche was just cool with the casual snip snip if the cutter as he said it.



I just liked how they showed Karen again, casually having coffee in an airport cafe before she heard the news, it wasnt over the top, it was just grounded and fairly realistic. Some scenes just had a very distinct early 24 feel to them. CTU was good without Morris' problems but was filmed well in short sequences with characters acting very well, being able to convey more in a short space of time than the extended periods theyve been given so far. Bill's stress in the directors office was very well conveyed and it just felt real.



Not enough scenes with Logan but Im thinking these will grow in number and the twist was well done at the end, personally I was grudginly expecting the agent to call Gredenko, but no one of the officials sneaked in and ousted the man.



A brilliant return to form, picking up a few original story ideas along the way. Tom's plan is interesting at the White House where we dont quite know what to think about it, and Jack being taken hostage, although the consulate is familiar territory it feels fresh.



Next week we'll see the introduction of the new agent who will undoubtedly be part of Jacks rescue team, it promises to be a good one. And one of my favourite scenes from this episode was from Noah describing what Jack had done was creating a diplomatic mess, his annoyance apparent as the Russian President called, the scene, almost a theme for the episode, just felt like a realistic reaction. Something that hasnt been around since Season 2 and parts of 3.



Whilst the first 12 episodes of Season 6 had their highlights it was slightly messy and found it hard to find a good pace between the all out action of Seasons 4 and 5 and the storytelling of 1, 2 and 3. I have faith that the final 12 episodes can keep the bar raised from the latest episode and produce a 12 episode stretch

24 Episode 6.12 "Day Six 5:00PM-6:00PM"

Airdate: Monday, March 5th 8:00PM-9:00PM





Now that we're officially halfway through the sixth worst day of Jack Bauer's life and can officially mark it over the second half of Day Four as the worst half of a season ever on 24, I can also officially breathe a sigh of relief after an episode that was a significant improvement over the 24 we've seen of late. The absences of the Morris drinking saga, Jack's annoying family, and Sandra Palmer for a wonderful fifth straight hour combined with a returning resemblance to the 24 intensity we know and love culminated into one of the better hours of the season.



While Jack's awesomeness level was at a season high by turning a cigar clipper into a pinky amputater, his level of retardation might have equally matched that. Invading Russian territory when he just spent 20 months in a Chinese prison for that same reason could be justified to the fact that it's Jack Bauer and tracking down nuclear weapons is practically considered more of a hobby to him than a job, but walking right towards the door to get it blown up in his face is something we'd expect from that not so bright mindless mess we know as his daughter. Then again, Jack might have acted under the assumption that if he wisely attempted to give Gredenko's location to CTU before walking right into getting captured, there's the distinct possibility that the crisis would not take twenty-four hours to resolve; thus ridding him of his sixth full day of work (fourth in which he wasn't even technically employed).



Speaking of nonsensical decision making, enter stage right random Russian security officer who followed the three infamous steps of stupidity. One... have Jack Bauer give you critical information to relay to CTU so they can prevent a nationwide nuclear holocaust. Two... leave the room to call CTU from a different room while leaving the door open. Three... get a bullet shot through the empty hole in your head where the brain is supposed to be located. Putting aside the illogical decisions from the characters, the decisions on the writers part were far from it. I've always found the concept of an additional international dilemma to be a profound way of adding an extra layer of dramatical tension to the show. After all, furthering complicating matters is what 24 is known for; might as well make Jack Bauer have to multi-task.



Lots of tonight's insanity also came from everything that was going down in the White House. First off, there was the look Jack gave Nina in Season 3 after Chloe stopped the computer virus that Nina launched into CTU, the look Jack gave Chloe in Season 4 when Chloe said she'd be there for him if he needed to talk, the look Mrs. Logan (who returns next week!) gave Sir Charles in Season 5 after he realizes that she contributed to his downfall, and now the newest on the list of classic 24 facial expressions is the look Tom gave Reed after implicating him in Palmer's assassination attempt. Tom's still a douche bag, but that look was simply priceless; not to mention he's become such a complex character that has only magnified the situation at hand. The change in leadership, change in national policy, change in Karen's decision regarding her resignation (thanks to those good 'ol five hour delayed planes for National Security advisors), should bring about some interesting developments to come.



I'm still not satisfied with the level of quality this season has presented so far, but ending the first half of the day on a positive note will hopefully set the stage for next week in beginning the second half. The incident going on at the Russian consulate not only has the potential to be a second international enemy for Jack, but with the confirmed link to the terrorist threat America is facing, should expedite the suspense and intensity that the show is known for while at the same time been lacking in Day Six. Future implications to the season aside, I thought the episode on its own was very good and served as a reminder that the series can still produce some greatly entertaining while at the same time breathtaking moments.



Overall Episode Rating: 8.7

We learn that Hassad died in the explosion and that Wayne was only injured but is severely hurt and is unconscious. Vice President Daniels arrives ready to take over his duties for the time being. The White House plays right into Carson and Reed's plan by suspecting Hassad murdered himself in an attempt to also kill the President. Despite Lennox telling them otherwise that it was Carson and Reed framing Hassad Daniels does not believe him and tells him to go change his story so he can get the charges dismissed and help him impliment his plan.



Meanwhile Jack escorts Logan to the Console to supervise him as he meets with Markov. Markov maintains his innocence and that he doesn't know the whereabouts of Gredenko. Even with Logan claiming to give him up in the syntox nerve gas situation last yaer Markov claims to have not talked to Gredenko in over a year. However Logan suspects he's lying and tells Jack who heads back to the consule to investigate. So once again Mr. Bauer is on the verge of creating an international incident this time with the Russians. This time was also more risky and nerve wracking for myself personally as a viewer.



Anyways Jack interrogates Markov until he finally confesses he's in the Shadow Valley preparing to launch drones within 2 hours. However Jack is finally caught by the rest of the consule. He is tied up and placed in a room guarded by one of the members. Jack convinces him of Markov's role in today's plot and that he has been in contact with Gredenko. Jack convinces him to call Buchanan however the console member is killed by another member who is obviously out to protect Markov. My only confusion with this was why did the console member leave the room to make the call if he had not then obviously he would have been able to get through to CTU before anyone interfered. Although perhaps he needed to make sure privately that Jack was not lying.



All in all a very exciting episode for myself personally it had everything a loyal 24 fan could want. It had good character development, great acting , intense edge of the seat action, classic Jack Bauer investigating, and best of all Chloe breaking the law to aid Jack. Probably one of the best episodes so far of this still young season.

I must confess I'm a bit lost. Brilliant way to start a review of this episode, but it's the truth. And I think Jack is lost too. The writers are out of ideas, or so it seems. Season 6 is starting to feel like a well crafted hommage to 24, instead of a worthy follow-up to the great fifth season of this adrenaline pumping series I used to love.



I've seen Jack at a consulate, I've seen him torture people in a room (in much more interesting ways before), I don't care much for Reed or Lennox, or whether Wayne Palmer will be back. It's a pity Hassad died, because he seemed like a guy to reckon with, unlike most of the supporting cast, although he didn't have much to do the last hours but spot the bomb.



The vice president is one big mean man, man. He immediately put some weight to the White House. Karen is coming back, which is great and hopefully CTU will look like a serious Counter Terrorist Unit next week, after being totally pushed to the background this week.



I'm a bit lost, still. Can't see a way this season will grab me again. Please let it grab me again.

...slowly. But it is! Make no mistake: this season's good, but by 24 standards, it's probably the worst yet.



The ground work for the season(first 4 episodes) were amazing, but since then... apart from one or two episodes, it's been pretty mediocre.



And after last's week incredible disappointment, Jack saves the day.



The episode's just good. Very good - almost great.



Why only almost? Well, several reasons.



I still don't like the focus. We... Need... More... Jack.



The Vice President although is alot more fun to watch than Wayne, he's not remotely as entertaining as Jack.



However, every scene which Lennox was in was golden. He's officially off the 'red-herring' status. The moment he turned Reed and his partner in, I think alot of us, 24 fans cheered.



Although the episode operates with mostly recycled storylines, it plays out pretty well, and keeps you on the edge of your seat.



Jack's hopeless situation adds more to the suspense. The writers are really good at pushing things to the very edge. Unlike in Prison Break, our heroe(s) often suffer, and can't really go away harmless. That's being said, Jack is captured on basically Russian soil, which forces Bill to call spec ops and organize a rescue mission.



This sounds neat: and let's hope this one will be played off the next episode.



Overally, the episode set up the main arc for the second part of the season: The presidential storyline is kicked in high gear after all, with a commander in chief who's doing the OPPOSITE of what Wayne did, and Gredenko's master plan is revealed. And now that Jack knows about it... let the game begin.

This episode represents the mid-point of the season, and coming into this installment, the writers seem to have lost a lot of focus. After a strong start with an unexpected level of destruction, suspense, and loss, the writers have failed to maintain that level of tension and complexity. The main villains seem to be shuffled off to the side, while Bauer family politics have been introduced in a rather ham-fisted and unsatisfying manner.



The best aspect of the previous episode, the assassination attempt against President Palmer, takes away some of Jack’s support system. This is a tried and true tactic used in nearly every season. Like in other situations, Jack is in a somewhat compromised position when it happens. For all that Logan speaks of redemption, this is the perfect time for him to make a move. And this would also suggest, under the right circumstances, a connection between Philip Bauer, Logan, and the conspiracy against Palmer.



There’s still no attempt to explain Philip Bauer’s decision to let Jack live or put him in contact with Logan, but that shouldn’t reflect directly on this episode. Logan’s conversation with Markov was a lot of fun, and Gregory Itzin gets some time to shine. It’s only a short time in the spotlight, of course, since Jack needs to raid another consulate and torture another diplomat.



Back at CTU, Chloe is back in her usual role as Jack’s secret support team, complete with a mission that has to be kept from everyone else. Thankfully, that doesn’t last long (much like Morris’ coping issues, apparently). Jack is instead forced to wait on the sanction of the acting Daniels administration. Jack gets that sanction from one side of Daniels’ mouth, and he’s sold out by the other. So while Jack manages to get the critical intel, he’s in no position to make use of it.



Despite the fact that he would make an easy scapegoat along with Assad, Tom Lennox is given a chance to survive by Reed, who seems to think that the conspiracy can afford to play the odds during such a delicate time. Tom displays his true loyalty and patriotism by exposing Reed. This is a nice bit of complication for Tom’s character at this stage of the game, since he’s likely to be implicated as well. After what he did with Karen Hayes, it’s well deserved, but it’s hard not to like his choices now.



It seems unlikely that Vice-President Daniels was directly involved in the conspiracy to assassinate Wayne Palmer, as it would be a foolish thing to do if he wanted control. His interaction with Tom is therefore rather important. Daniels comes across as an opportunist more than a ringleader, but after Logan’s inexplicable reveal in the fifth season, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine that Daniels was the one who started the conspiracy.



Assad’s death is a serious blow to the season. His rapport with Jack was a strong element earlier in the premiere, and he was completely misused after that point in the narrative. None of the other supporting characters have his presence. Even Logan, a relatively compelling character in the fifth season, doesn’t have that gravitas.



This episode provides the usual “24” hook of setting a new short-term deadline for another terrorist attack. The writers give themselves two more episodes to work out some scenario for Gredenko’s plan. Perhaps in that short stretch of time, the writers will clarify the terrorist connections and some of the other disparate plot threads dangling since the premiere. With the season now on the downhill stretch towards the finale, it’s time to start pulling the pieces together and making sense of it.

Plot lines:



---JACK---Jack and Logan take a field trip to the Russian Consulate. You know Jack just loves to visit those consulates. There’s something about being on sovereign foreign soil that makes him appreciate torture all the more. Logan talks to the Consul and threatens blackmail unless the Consul gives up Greidenko. Logan is certainly no Jack Bauer, however, giving up and leaving w/o any leads despite being positive (and correct) that the Consul is lying. Upon this news, Jack knows that he gets to do what he does best. Before he goes to torture the consul, Logan points out the fact that Jack spent 2 years in a Chinese prison for violating the sovereignty in a LA Consulate of a permanent UN Security Council member and harming one of their employees. Jack proceeds to say, “oh, that’s right I forgot. Well, I probably shouldn’t do this again. Lets go back to your place. We can eat milk and cookies, and then you can read me some bible passages.” So anyways, Jack breaks into the Consulate, with Chloe’s help of course, and takes the Consulate hostage. With the Russians beating down the door Jack extracts the information on Greidenko’s location and plan (as well as the Consul’s pinky as a keepsake) only to be taken down before he can pass on the intel to CTU. Jack convinces a Russian to pass along the info, who foolishly does not close the door behind himself while on the phone and gets capped. Buchanan, on learing that Jack is being held by the Russians, decides not to tell the VP, but rather prep an assault on the Consulate (and his letter of resignation. Season 7 will be a buddy comedy with him and Jack in Russian Prison)



---PRESIDENTIAL BUNKER--- We open with Palmer being rushed into medical care. Lennox’s lackey (“LL”) is standing outside the door looking in and sweating profusely. Could this guy act anymore shady and obviously guilty? This was a rhetorical question, the answer is no. Later, the Secretary of Defense asks Lennox. Finally, after two hours of being missing, someone actually sends out a search for the President’s top aide. LL convinces the assassin that Lennox will cooperate with the side of evil. Maybe if they free him, Lennox will finally agree to let LL suck his dick. They let Lennox free, who immediately turns in the conspirators. Go Lennox!! He may want to intern all Muslims, citizens or not, but he’s still a good guy. While giving his statement to the DOJ, however, the Vice President convinces Lennox to drop the whole assassination conspiracy thing and pin everything on Assad (who, by the way, is dead. I guess the writers didn’t feel like they needed to tell us until this point). The VP isn’t very subtle about his potential connection with the assassination conspiracy, “did LL tell you who else was involved? Was my name mentioned?” I hope Lennox pieces this together or else I will loose all respect for him.



---CHLOE & MORRIS--- This plot line is thankfully absent.



---SCENES FROM NEXT WEEK--- Logan visits his ex-wife and gets peanuts thrown in his face. Also Aaron now is doing her; good for Aaron. She’s a hot 60 yo woman. The raid on the Russian Consulate goes down, led by the kid from Silver Spoons. No, not Carleton Banks, the other one.

24 is getting way better. The furthur the season progresses the better episodes we see and this episode was very good. President palmer is out of commission for a while so the vice-president has to take over for a while. Powers Bothe did a very great job in this episode it was nice to see him for more than 30 seconds in this episode. Jack and Logan go to the russian embassy and Jack tortures the head guy. Talk about torture Jack cut some of his fingers off with a cigar cutter. This was another great performance by Kiefer Sutherland. I can't wait to see next week's episode because it looks action packed and even better than this episode, that is saying alot because this episode was awesome. Later...

Episodes like this are why I watch 24. Jack Bauer is the definition of a hero. He risks everything including his own life constantly. Jack breaks into the Russian embassy after Logan fails to get the Russian who knows Gredenko to spill the beans. Of course Jack using the guys trusty cigar cutter gets the info out of him about the use of pilotless drones to deliver the bombs just in time for the Russian security guys to blow down the door and capture him. Yet again he will have to escape from the clutches of evil! Will he channel his inner LOST boy again and bite out a chunk of some Ruskies neck now that hes tasted blood?



Jack convinces his Russian guard of his superiors treachery who tried to contact CTU, but takes a bullet in the head before he can spill the beans. Why didnt the guard use his cell phone inside the room? Pretty stupid going outside to make the call. Dumb Ruskie!



VP Daniels assumes office and wastes no time implementing Lennox's security plan to lock up Muslims, though Lennox, after revealing the conspiracy to kill Palmer is now against his own plan. What will he do? Will he support the plan or try to get the word out about what really happened? If Lennox tries to blow the whistle what will Daniels do to him?



What will happen if one or more of the bombs find their targets; Daniels seems to be itching to nuke somebody; he has that wild eyed look - like a character from Dr Strangelove. What are the drones targets? Drones are pretty slow moving and should be able to be shot down. Will Jack be in the air hunting them down, one by one and save the day?

Wow, I'm still recovering from yesterday's adrenaline pumping episode, in fact I believe I'm still high with 24 action, amazing episode that jack is one courageous guy

I found new respect for him, going back to that Russian consulate that was suicide. I particularly loved the scene where he tortured the ambassador for information and off goes the pinky OUCH. but it was entertaining he got what he deserved Nothing stops the selfless agent his country comes 1st; you gotta love him, if only there was a real jack Bauer to help in the real world. tom lennox proved me wrong once again and ratted those 2 idiots out, good for him cant live with a guilty conscience I would've done the same thing, I just hope CTU gets jack message somehow before its too late.