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24 7.9: "Day 7: 4PM - 5PM" |
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Tuesday, 17 February 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.
| There's little doubt that this season has been much better, on the whole, than the laughable sixth season. (And despite endless claims to the contrary, the fifth season wasn't much better.) By developing a story around a central theme and character development over mindless action, the writers have made a slight but necessary adjustment to the tried and true "24" formula. It's working, even if some episodes are a bit average in the process.
This was essentially a transitional episode, despite the revelation that Sean is the mole within the FBI. That's not the most shocking piece of information, so the writers tried to frame the episode to make Janis look like the guilty party. Her earlier computer wizard's duel was one of the better parts of the premiere event, so more of the same would have been enjoyable, but the idea of Janis as conspirator was never going to be viable.
There was some concern in certain circles that the introduction of Dubaku's love interest would lead to an extended attempt to humanize the character. Those fears were unfounded; she merely became the latest item for debate between Jack and Agent Walker. Jack sees the situation in black and white; Dubaku must be captured, the girl is the best means to that end, and she's willing to do whatever it takes. Problem solved.
Agent Walker is not comfortable with that at all, and her resolve to be the distaff Jack Bauer is quickly eroding in the face of the psychological cost. She's still pragmatic enough to justify her actions with Agent Ross, but she's wavering. This particular aspect of the season has been very well done, because it's setting the stage for outright acknowledgment by all parties that organizations like CTU (and operatives like Jack Bauer) are a necessary evil. Most agents simply couldn't (and wouldn't) step into those grey areas.
President Taylor is certainly happy to have the ex-CTU crew around. She's given one of them command of her Secret Service detail, made another her personal counter-terrorist agency, and granted another full access to the FBI. With the addition of Pierce to the list of old friends coming back to service, it's like nothing ever changed. It's hard to imagine that any president would hand so much control over to these agents in the space of an hour, but stranger things have happened on "24".
Speaking of President Taylor, it's good to see her sticking by her guns and keeping her overall composure. In terms of characterization, someone on the writing staff is certainly a fan of "Battlestar Galactica", because President Taylor is like the younger, slightly less hardnosed sister to President Roslin. It's highly doubtful that the First Gentleman's condition is going to convince her to call off the invasion, and she may just start a few more wars for good measure. |
