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24 Season 8 Episode 18

Day 8: 9:00 A.M. - 10:00 A.M.

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AIRED: Apr 19, 2010

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8.6

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Episode Summary

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After Renee's death Jack finds himself searching for information about the Russian Mob to lead him to her killer. Logan's talk with the Russians have brought them back to the Peace-Treaty table. Logan also learns that Jack is talking with one of the Russians and Dana Walsh who has come to light as an actual higher up in the scheme of things, to get vindication for Renee's death. This jeopardizes Logan's information that he's holding over the Russian's heads to keep them in the talks. Logan convinces the President to keep Jack in custody to control the information Jack has learned. Meanwhile Cloe is put in charge of C.T.U. and finds herself in an internal battle between her job as Head Of CTU and helping Jack when he escapes custody while being transported to an Air Force Base.moreless

Fan Episode Reviews (9)

Jack loses his mind

7.0

By entil2001, Apr 06, 2011

After the previous episode, a number of fans and critics alike were floored to discover that Renee Walker's death was a pre-planned plot point. Apparently Howard Gordon defended this plot twist as a great move, and praised the notion of sending Jack into a tailspin at the end of the season/series. And apparently Keifer Sutherland was on board with the idea, which just goes to show that some producers should stay the hell out of the writers' room.

Frankly, this is exactly the kind of thinking that has plagued "24" for years. It has also been a hallmark of Howard Gordon's writing style. To be fair, this is not something that falls on Gordon's shoulders alone; there is an entire writing staff that shares the blame for carrying forward a vision for the eighth season that undermines Jack's heroic journey and therefore the entire point of the series. But longtime readers, going back to the "X-Files" days, know that Gordon's plot and character choices have always been a subject of criticism.

Despite the grievous error of the previous episode, this installment manages to bring matters into focus. Jack's personal response to Renee's death gets some well-deserved attention, but there is also a welcome depth to President Taylor's plot thread.

Jack manages to keep himself reined in for the most part, but something has definitely come undone behind those eyes. The difference is simply his self-control. Earlier in the series, Jack would have gone on a massive rampage from the beginning. While Jack doesn't quite hold back with Dana Walsh, he does manage to keep his wits about him.

Yet during his confrontation with Bazhaev, there's no doubt that Jack is primed and ready for violence. And his moral compass is spinning completely out of control. There's no doubt that he would kill anybody who got in the way of putting those responsible for the atrocities of the day where they belong.

And that's what makes President Taylor's decision to let the Russians get away with Hassan's assassination, the terrorist threat against New York, and so many other things such a punch to Jack's gut. He is completely floored by the notion that President Taylor is choosing political expediency over such a clear-cut moral imperative. This isn't a debate over counter-terrorist tactics; this is real politik at its ugliest.

Of course, it all comes back to the symbol of all things ridiculous on "24". No, not Kim Bauer; she was just poorly written and stuck in inane plot threads. Charles Logan, on the other hand, was the terrorist President of the United States. The concept itself boggles the mind. As does the notion of ever trusting someone like Logan when he comes calling with a solution to a problem that didn't exist just a few hours earlier.

That's the one thing that hobbles this episode. It's pretty damn clear that Logan knew about the Russian collusion with the IRK dissidents because he was knee-deep in everything that happened. He's all but caught red-handed halfway through the episode, and yet, President Taylor just lets the matter go in favor of listening to the former Terrorist-in-Chief's advice.

While the advice does have a certain "ends justify the means" logic to it, it is predicated on two erroneous assumptions. First, that Charles Logan would ever give someone such strident advice on something that wasn't of deep and abiding value to his own self-interest. And second, that any peace accord for the Middle East, particularly one forged with a progressive Islamic regime, would truly end the conflicts in the region.

The problem is that Taylor is falling into the same trap that so many other politicians and leaders encounter: the Legacy Hunt. It's not enough to be a strong and competent leader. There has to be something monumental that history will always remember in their section of the textbook. When presidents go tilting at the legacy windmills, they almost always leave ethics and morality behind.

In a sense, this fits the overall theme of the season, which is not a bad thing. Taylor is failing to learn from the mistakes of the past, and she will find herself on the wrong end of Jack Bauer's resolve as a result. Of course, this is also quite unfortunate, because the series should have ended on a better note. President Taylor had grown to be the first president since David Palmer to trust Jack's judgment. Jack's restoration, and that of CTU, was bringing the series full circle. It's hard to imagine that happening now.

Overall, this episode managed to make the best of a bad situation, even if some of the logic was twisted to make certain characters make uncharacteristic choices. It was good to see a lot more of President Taylor; the writers haven't given her nearly enough to do. Though it's hard to see how the writers are going to end this season/series well, this isn't a bad start.moreless
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Jack begins his search for Renee's killer. He learns that it was the Russian government, not the IRK, who is behind all the attempts to stop the peace process. Disgraced former president Charles Logan learns what Jack is doing and tries to stop him.moreless

7.0

By meathead704, Jul 01, 2010

Last season, President Taylor made the decision to allow her daughter to be prosecuted for murder rather than cover it up. A tough decision, but it was the right one. I was somewhat surprised, and even disappointed, that in the face of another tough decison, she decided to go with Logan and cover up the truth. It for all intents and purposes, flies on the face of everything Taylor stands for. It's an unfortunate letdown from the person she was thought to be. In the end I shouldn't be surprised. After all it is "24" we are talking about, right?moreless
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Amazing Episode!.

10

By Roces24, Jun 30, 2010

Wow!. What an amazing episode!. This new plot of the season eight hooked me so much from last installment and it´s explosive ending.

But i didn´t expected this perfect follow up.

A really perfect episode!.

Engaging, brutal, breathtaking and surprising.

Kiefer Sutherland gives us his best performance in the season yet. A really angry Bauer, who does really shocking things in this episode, and Gregory Itzin, who returned to the series as Charles Logan in the last episode, shows that his Logan is back with his own personality and not like in the awful season six.

Jack seeks his solace searching all the people who were involved in Renee´s tragic death and he discovers a really important twist.

This episode is not only fully entertaining and tense as 24 used to be.

This one is an excellent and too much better follow up from the last one.

It could be stay at the same level of supremacy than the episode 16 itself.

It confirms that 24 ultimate ending is gonna be shocking, never seen before and really surprising.moreless
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Insane Jack and a welcomed Logan make for great 24!

10

By warthogjump, May 04, 2010

Logan and Jack (as always) stole the show in this episode. You can see the evil Jack is capable of directly in his eyes and absolutely nothing will have a chance of stopping him from reaching "justice." Not even the President!

Gregory Itzin's acting is superb. He fires in the role of Logan and really shines when he is on the screen. I can't wait for a confrontation between Logan and Bauer!

Overall, the season seems to be heading in the right direction towards a phenomenal climax. President Taylor is also really getting a taste of her Presidency role and she seems to be following in the footsteps of Logan: covering the truth for the good of the country!moreless
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lets try this again......

5.5

By 44tvfan, May 03, 2010

my review I just typed didn't show ....so here goes again....At least we have Jack being the old Jack! And having Logan back is good too. He plays such an excellent "bad" guy. Now for the WORSE part.....Once again we see the Presidents sickening ego in play. She IGNORES Jacks' warnings about the the Russians being involved. Which Palmer would NEVER have done! This President, is like the one we have today.....not interested in the "GREATER GOOD" just interested in her or his career and WORLD leadership. She's not in a tough position becaues she knows she's simply going to do what she can to further HER career, whether it's walking over dead American bodies etc. This peace conference won't mean a thing on 24 or in real life. Sorry, I got side tracked with real politics. In any event it makes me sick the way 24 has has gone.

I can't see anything really happening in the few remaining episodes. So disappointed in Sutherland for allowing the show to go down this pathetic road. But that's liberal Hollywood for you....sigh...it should have simply ended when TWO seasons ago. I'll keep watching and hoping JUSTICE will finally pervail!!!moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Kiefer Sutherland	Jack Bauer
Mary Lynn Rajskub	Chloe O'Brian
Annie Wersching	Renee Walker
Katee Sackhoff	Dana Walsh
John Boyd	Arlo Glass
Freddie Prinze Jr.	Cole Ortiz

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Brad Fleischer	Agent Winnick	Guest Star
Joseph Kamal	Sergei's Attorney	Guest Star
Jack Shearer	Judge Ruffin	Guest Star
Gregory Itzin	Charles Logan	Recurring Role
Bob Gunton	Ethan Kanin	Recurring Role
Graham McTavish	Mikhail Novakovich	Recurring Role

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Episode Photos

Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) takes a moment ...

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Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) meets with Pres...

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Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) begins his ques...

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Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) meets with Pres...

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (3)
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- Annie Wersching (Renee) appears in this episode but has no lines.
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- It took Jack over four minutes to go up the elevator and Chloe about 10 seconds.
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- This would be the first time that Jack Bauer shares a scene with a present or future President in more than one season. He of course met President Taylor in Season 7 and now in this episode.
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QUOTES (5)
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- President Taylor: This peace treaty is in the interests of the United States and of the world. That makes it a good in itself, and certainly more important than your desire for revenge.
  Jack: Madam President, I don't want revenge, I want justice.
  President Taylor: And I want peace.
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- Chloe: I have to leave the cameras on, Jack.
  Jack: You think I'm gonna kill her?
  Chloe: I wouldn't blame you if you did.
  Jack: If I wanted her dead, Chloe, she'd be dead.
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- Charles Logan: The power to make a difference. That's why we came into politics. How few of us get to achieve it, but you have. You so nearly have. Ethan will tell you to make a stand. I applaud his moral clarity, but then he's on the sidelines. He can afford it.
  Ethan Kanin: That's enough!
  Charles Logan: Is the situation ideal? No! Far from it, but you have a real chance to make the world a better place.
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- Charles Logan: Bauer torpedoed my presidency, tried to ruin me, almost did. There's no way I'm gonna let that happen again.
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- Jack: (To Bazhaev) Let me explain myself. This agent, Renee Walker, I considered her to be my family. So take a long hard look into my eyes and realize that I will have no problem taking out each member of yours before they even get home today unless I get the information I want.
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NOTES (2)
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- Mykelti Williamson (Hastings) is taken out of the main cast.
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- Original International Air Dates:
  Australia: May 18, 2010 on 7TWO
  Norway: June 14, 2010 on TV2 Zebra
  Latin America: June 21, 2010 on FOX
  Finland: November 9, 2010 on MTV3
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ALLUSIONS (0)
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