TV Review: 24 – 4:00-5:00 P.M.

Posted by Josh Radde (josh@filmschoolrejects.com) on February 17, 2009

24 Airs Monday nights at 9/8c on Fox

Episode: 4-5:00 P.M.

Synopsis: Bauer rushes Henry Taylor to the hospital after getting shot, while President Taylor asks for her daughter to be picked up and brought to the surgery. Jack and Walker track down Dubaku’s girlfriend and ask her to cooperate. We find out who the leak is inside the FBI’s office.

Review: Sean: “You’re a little bitch, you know that?”
Janis: “You’re a little bitch.”

And with that exchange between Rhys Coiro and Janeane Garofalo, what began as this season’s TV movie “24: Redemption” has become a full redemption for “24″ as an enjoyable TV series. I’ve said it before, but after a lackluster sixth season, “24″ is back in full swing. The characters are as engrossing as ever, Jack Bauer (Keifer Sutherland) is kicking as much ass, and the new characters introduced have been fun to watch as well. Among the new characters, Cherry Jones’ President Taylor is strong and carries a lot of punch. Annie Wersching’s Renee Walker is everything we’ve been waiting for as a counterpart to Bauer. And Janeane Garofalo has been very endearing as the FBI’s information queen.

This is not the best episode of the season, but because it’s running so smoothly, I don’t really have much to say about it. Jack and Walker put into motion a plan that was sure to fail anyway, while we find out who the mole is in FBI’s office (and by the way, it’s EXACTLY who you probably thought it was). Meanwhile, some old characters return. Carlo Rota returned as Morris O’Brien and we got to see his and Chloe’s little boy. And what made me particularly excited is Glenn Morshower’s Aaron Pierce returned. You’ll remember Pierce as secret service agent to Presidents Palmer and Logan as well as a cuddly partner for Logan’s ex-First Lady wife Martha (Jean Smart). Whether his and Morris’ return is going to be consistent or if these were small cameos, I’m not really sure.

Overall, decent episode. We get to see some fantastic acting from Cherry Jones and Annie Werschling who have such amazingly descriptive eyes. Also, the writing this season is about as good as its been in a long time. Sometimes “24″ doesn’t really stand by its own timeline. In other words, its pretty unrealistic that a guy would leave a shoot out, get on a train in DC, and into his apartment within 8 minutes. But if you keep the plot moving and the relationships keep developing, we can overlook small inconsistencies with the timeline.

Watch “24.” Although it is one of those shows where the plot carries over week-to-week (and by carry over, I mean picks right up), it’s easier to jump in then it is with a show like “Lost.”

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