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24 7.5: "Day 7: 12PM - 1PM" |
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Tuesday, 20 January 2009 |
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By John Keegan
Visit Critical Myth for an archive of John's TV Review archives, with more than 1100 entries.
| As of this episode, "24" is back on its usual weekly schedule. Surprisingly, this episode takes its time advancing the story, with only three main plot elements getting substantial time. There are some good moments, especially closer to the end, but this will challenge who bristle when the writers deliberately take their time.
The main element is Jack's mission with Tony and Emerson. Jack is placed in the difficult position of working out a means of abducting Motobu. It's possible that Emerson is unable to work out the best way to extract Motobu from the panic room, but it's just as possible (if not more so) that Jack is being tested. It seems like a simple enough solution to the problem, even if one would expect a panic room to have a more secure dedicated air supply.
Agent Walker continues to operate in Jack-Bauer-wannabe mode, even as her actions in the previous episode come back to haunt her and the FBI in general. Agent Walker's decision to make things right at all costs is easy to understand, based on what has been shown of her personality, but it could have been handled a little bit better, especially at the end. The prosecutor's attitude about her tactics, on the other hand, never makes sense and flies in the face of common sense. With the nation in serious crisis, why would any credible prosecutor press that issue in the middle of an operation?
The other prominent plot is the hit on the First Husband, which was just a bit too predictable. The method of his desired execution was a nice touch, however, and it should be interesting to see how the conspiracy manages to cover the natural suspicion that comes with taking out the president's entire family in a matter of months. Conspiracies on "24" are rarely intelligent, especially when their big day arrives, but this is as obvious as Ethan's shenanigans.
The majority of the discussion will likely be on the end of the episode, however, which delivers an unexpectedly nasty fate to Agent Walker. (At least, that's what the silent count strongly suggests.) Jack does his best to keep Walker alive, and all things being equal, Emerson was probably anticipating that possibility. His decision to have Jack and Tony bury the body felt like another test of their loyalty to the cause.
It's a shame to see Agent Walker go so quickly; she was an important window into the process of deciding, under extreme circumstances, that extreme measures must be taken. Her fate delivers a somewhat different message: it's not just the difficult decision that must be made, but the right people with the right skills need to implement those decisions. That said, Agent Walker meets the kind of fate that Jack and others like him accept on each and every mission.
All too quickly, some of the best aspects of the season, particularly the philosophical issues at play, have been undermined by the plot choices. This is worrisome, since it was unnecessary given the advance planning, but hope is not yet lost. There's plenty of time left to the season, and what seemed like an obvious direction at the beginning could evolve into something equally intriguing.
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