I thought the show was doing ok....but I guess that's my opinion. http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/headline/entertainment/2473722 How is 24 treating you? I confess that, in its third season, the Fox "real time" action drama gives me headaches. I buy that Season 3 is taking place a couple of years after Season 2; I have to or I couldn't watch Jack Bauer save the world from terrorism for a third time. Even Superman deserves a day off. I applaud the decision to move Jack's daughter, Kim, inside the Counter Terrorist Unit. That makes her less likely to be attacked by a cougar -- an embarrassingly lame plot line from last season. But Kim is suddenly valuable at CTU, and I can't buy that, not after producers Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran portrayed her as not-so-smart in Seasons 1 and 2. The truth is, I've had to swallow so much this season, I now consider 24 a fantasy series. I used to perceive it, post 9/11, as feasible drama. 24 has lost 18 percent of its audience from last season, dropping from 11.7 million viewers last season to 9.7 this one. I blame the story, for making the hero harder to root for, the villain harder to pinpoint and the premises harder to stomach. This season's world threat is a highly contagious virus, and Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) is trying to find it before villains wipe out millions of innocent American lives. OK, I can buy that. But, quick, can someone tell me who the villain is so I know who to be rooting against? Hector Salazar? Ramón Salazar? Gael Ortega? Michael Amador? Nina Myers? Marcus Alvers? And, come on, how many side paths must we take to get to the source of the problem? Will somebody please explain to me how Jack's dependence on heroin, so strong from 1 to 2 p.m. (Episode 1), miraculously vanished 12 hours later? And what's the deal with Lady McBeth? With Sherry, the president's ex-wife, guilty of murder (she did a Bette Davis, watching -- and not helping -- as her adversary had a heart attack), the show has become over-the-top melodrama. Tonight, as 24 resumes after a brief hiatus, we learn that the virus has indeed been unleashed inside a Los Angeles hotel and that as many as 1,000 people could die; that Sherry has a plan to avoid being connected to murder, one that involves the participation of the president; and that there's yet another unforeseen nemesis in Jack Bauer's life. I'll be watching -- I've invested too much time in the show to bow out now. But after watching the next three episodes, I'm more convinced than ever that the show has lost its way.
It's friggin TV, what does he expect? Like any other crime drama is so much more real. Also,how has this assclown seen the "next three episodes"?
I have to agree with one point, and that is pinpointing the villian. I dont feel we have a strong villian here. That would be nice.
TV critics often get to see advanced episodes in hopes that they will promote them in their columns. does anyone think this show would have succeeded without 9/11?
Holy crap this show is back! I totally forgot! Damn FOX and their stupid midseason pauses. Jack is back baby!
The first season wasn't really about a terrorist hit, iirc ... they were just trying to take out the prez. So I would say yes.
My buddy is an editor at TV Guide and he gets little 3-packs all the time. Its frustrating because he's a loudmouth.
I agree with the guy that Season 3 is weak compared to the first two years. That's what happens when the writers and producers only map out the first 6 episodes heading into the season. If you'll recall, at the end of the 6th(or was it 7th?) episode, we find out the events of the first 1/4 of the day have all been a ruse and since then the storyline has just been meandering with seemingly no direction. Don't even get me started on the soap opera that is President Palmer's subplot! This seems to be a problem with a lot of my favorite shows lately. Alias's 3rd season is also its weakest by far. Smallville is a mess this year, as all the viewers now appear to hate Lana with a passion, and justifyably so. Angel's final year is its most inconsistent since the 1st season, although it has picked up considerably recently. Thankfully, Curb Your Enthusiasm is still a brilliantly funny series, even if its 4th year didn't quite match the level of lunacy of Season 3. The O.C. is a great show, but it's in its first season, so I can't count that. I don't know. Maybe it's just a down year for TV in general. Hopefully at least a few of these shows(the ones returning next season anyway) can bounce back. It would be a shame if nearly every series I watched jumped the shark simultaneously.
I thought the second season ended up being weak. They took such great pains to drag things out over several episodes and then didn't give themselves enough time to really wrap up the story lines. The ending, especially the stuff with the President, which was set-up as something of an internal coup led by the Vice President that turned out to be nothing of the sort and was resolved in the last hour. It just seems like the show sets-up a lot of stuff that never ends up paying off or, when it does pay off, it happens too quickly and easily in the final seconds, which is annoying given how much padding ends up during the course of the season.
Season 3 is weaker than the other two...but I still love it. Finally it's back. The thing I would change about it would be to lessen the swerves...it kinda loses its impact after a while and sometimes you can see it coming.
I agree with the original writer, maybe for different reasons though. I just think its become way too soap-operaish and too many unrelated storylines. And I agree about the heroin thing - it was there for a few episodes then basically disappeared. Then there was the silly "you don't trust me" crap between Michelle and Tony. Maybe ultimately all the random stories will play out and fit together, but as of yet, they just seem stupid. Who cares about the whole baby storyline? Jack's also lost some of his heroism qualities. He was directly responsible for a few innocent prison guards getting killed. Yet, no penalties for that. Then there was the bizarre thing about making Gael look totally evil, then just say "oops, it was all planned - we just didn't tell anyone." What if Tony had died from that bullet? The entire operation would be dead? Totally unrealistic. It's almost like they are just going for shock value over quality plot now.
SPOILERS FROM 3/30! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . In last night's episode, LOVED when Michelle shot that one dude trying to leave the hotel. Awesome. She did EXACTLY what she should have done. Very gritty. Great episode for her character. Great episode last night in general, things are really picking up!
SPOILER 3/30 . . . . . . . . . . . . "You're not gonna shoot me" BANG!!! Simply awesome. But hasn't the virus been released now that a window has been shattered? Can't contain that puppy any longer.
