Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Uncategorized '24:' Episode 14, 9-10 p.m.
Posted by Debbie Michaud @DebsMichaud on Tue, Mar 17, 2009 at 3:30 AM
Last week, Jack and Bill thwarted Juma's presidential assassination attempt at the expense of Bill's life. Bill was one of CTU's last remaining vestiges, not to mention a salt-and-pepper sexpot of older man-ness. Bill's final words sent Jack to former Bauer tourturee Ryan Burnett's hospital room to intimidate some information out of him, where he was was promptly murdered by a third party, leaving Jack conveniently framed for the killing. Jack gave lead FBI schmuck Larry Moss a call to let him know he didn't do it, but of course, Larry doesn't buy it. So it goes with schmucks.
This week opened with Jack on the run. He hot-wires a car, commandeers the owner's laptop, and hacks into the hospital's security system to identify the attacker. Hey — he's Jack Bauer. It's what he does. Renee, who Moss has suspended for colluding with "wild card" JB, gets a call from you know who to ID the killer. Renee pauses dramatically before agreeing to do so and sends Jack the encrypted file. Larry returns as the transfer is completing, pats Renee on the head and sends her home. Larry barks to Janis that he suspects Renee, and pulls the old "tap into her system, find who she's talked to in the last hour," etc.
Meanwhile, Mr. Chloe O'Brian (Morris) is waiting in the conference room to find out about his wife, who's been in holding the past couple of hours/episodes; Olivia's at the President's right hand in the Oval office when Chief of Staff Ethan Kanin comes in to fill in Madame P. about Burnett's death; and Jack's on his way to Sen. Mayer's house to follow a lead about hospital assassin John Quinn's relationship to Starkwood, a defense contractor the senator's been investigating for the past six months.
Jack and the senator have a heart to heart about regrets, before the senator admits, "Bauer, you are an enigma." To which I say: "Seriously people? He reads like an open book to me at this point." Jack uncovers a connection between Juma and Starkwood involving bio-weapons. Queue authorities banging down door. Turns out, it's Quinn fronting as the local PD. Quinn kills the senator after he and Jack have just made amends and vowed to work together to "end this thing."
Quinn's attack at the senator's home actually had me fooled. Finally. This, with the exception of one or two other moments such as Bill's suicide mission, are the only times season seven's managed to circumvent the painfully obvious. Quinn chases down Jack, which ends in a lethal bulldozer/knife-to-chest/2-by-4 trifecta in Jack's favor.
Surprise, surprise, Quinn dies before Jack gets the details, but as he gurgles his dying words, Quinn does, however, betray that the weapons are "already here." Jack hollers at Tony for some back up, while Larry phones headquarters to report that Jack's killed the senator. To which I say, again, "Seriously Larry? You think Bauer killed the senator?" What's a guy gotta do to earn some R-E-S-P-E-C-T in this godforsaken country?
This season's taken it's sweet time, but the last few episodes have finally cranked up the suspense. I can really do without all of Larry's "wildcard," "he's gone rogue," "he plays by his own rules" cliches when referring to Jack. I could also do without feeling smarter than the FBI. Kind of. Really, though, my confidence in our national institutions is low enough as it is. With the FBI set up as such a floundering mess of misdeeds, I hope/wonder if they'll reinstate CTU by the end of the season. On a final note: Are Jack and Renee gonna do it? If not, Audrey or someone needs to pop back up, because this season's lacking in the sexual tension department.
Next week: Ethan tries to resign; bio-weapons in the U.S.; Tony's got Jack's back; and we're still not sure just how evil Olivia may or may not be.
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