As the clock on this final season winds down, we oft-suffering 24 fans have been treated to a fairly big surprise: a plot element that isn’t completely lifted from season prior. I am of course talking about Jack Bauer’s sustained jihad against Russia and anyone who stands in the way of his mission. We’ve seen Jack go ape dirt before, but typically in short bursts. He’s clearly off his gourd, and for the first time since the show came into existence, I’m pretty sure he’s on the wrong side of the equation.
This was brought into stark view this episode, when he infiltrated the White House-sanctioned Security Firm’s torture hideout and murdered a whole bunch of dudes. Anyone else feel like this kind of crossed the line? Sure DB Sweeney’s mustached henchman may not have been a peach what with his water-boarding (though I have a hard time summoning up a shred of sympathy for Dana Walsh, both for the fact her storyline sucked and she was complicit in the attempted irradiation of the New York metropolitan area), but those other guys may have just been hard up for work. The economy’s rough, you know.
Still, Jack ventilates them, takes Dana, forces her to give up the location of the evidence, they head to a bank for a safety deposit box, Dana tries to get into Cole’s head, the bank trip was a scam, Dana escapes, shoots some bystanders and Jack finally corners her in an abandoned building and quite coldly, shoots the crap out of her.
See, he’s bonkers!
Back at the UN, Logan is still scheming, working with the Russians to silence Bauer for reasons I’m not completely clear on and President Taylor has morphed from a rigidly principled decision-maker into a sea sponge.
Taylor dispatches Logan’s aide to CTU to run the Jack Bauer recovery operation (?!) Chloe isn’t terribly pleased about her power being usurped. I expect an alignment once more between her and Jack as they fight back against Logan’s encroaching influence.
So big stuff going on this episode and the ending was genuinely chilling. I like Jack’s full-fledged anti-hero status, too. He’s gone dark side and it appears like it’s for realsies this time.
RIP Dana Walsh. Your moronic narrative will be missed, mainly because it was so easy to ridicule.
4. May 2010 at 2:35 pm
Jack is never on the wrong side of the equation. Who cares if he’s about to ruin an unrealistic peace treaty that could save millions of lives & also ruin President Taylor’s legacy (OK, maybe that isn’t so bad), he has to avenge the death of a woman he knew & loved for only, uh, what was it, 2 days?
The bank trip wasn’t a total scam, as Dana got the magical, all knowing, omnipotent microchip that will bring down American Evil Inc. & Logan once & for all. BTW, Logan is a great weasel & a big improvement in the villian department over Taylor’s incompetent, whiny daughter & Will Patton’s Evil Inc. from last season.
Seriously, even if Jack is wrong, I like having the old Jack Bauer that kills bimbos like Dana in cold blood. Judging from the preview, it looks like Jack gets to torture some scumbag Russian with a FREAKIN BLOWTORCH. Hell Yeah! Have the writers finally overcome their fear of good fictional characters using “enhanced interrogation techniques”? There aren’t that many likable characters left anyway, so I’m all for Jack shooting & torturing anyone who gets in his way.
Was I the only one who thought, for a few seconds, the producers had the nerve (or stupidity) to give Dana a silent clock?
4. May 2010 at 5:46 pm
Oh, HELL yes! I stood up and cheered when Jack shot Dana. That’s the Jack Bauer I watch 24 for! I am a bit concerned about the President becoming such a milksop rag for Logan, of all people. I mean the guy’s another Nixon!