24 Episode 23 & 24 (Season Finale)
I have to come right out and say it, I’m torn between whether I liked this finale and whether I thought it was very possibly a huge let down.
On the negative side we have really horrible acting by Ricky Schroder. I mean the parts he was in he was just terrible. We also had Jack storming an oil rig, which had a lot of promise to it, with very little pay off. I would’ve much rather seen Jack surgically take out Cheng’s teams of men rather than watch him blow up a few barrels of oil. If you think back to Jack taking out Fayed and his team, that oil rig rescue wasn’t even in the same league.
This episode also featured a lot more “fluff” at the end than we’re used to in 24. I remember the 1st season, and being gripped right up until the end minutes where Jack kills all the Drezens, captures Nadia and finds Teri dead. It was insane and something I wasn’t used to seeing in a show before. This time we had to go through all the stuff with Karen and the VP. I just thought it was something that could’ve been dealt with by just the VP saying, “Release Karen.” They didn’t need to waste time showing how she reacted.
Jack’s showdown with his Father wasn’t nearly satisfying enough for me. I was sitting there thinking after all that’s happened this day. After Jack’s Dad being the head of everything that happened in this season, and the last, he’s done in by a teenager with a wrench. It just didn’t seem fair to end it like that. Don’t even get me started on the Chloe pregnancy. That was a complete waste of our time I thought. How does something like that help a story move forward in 24? In Grey’s Anatomy, I can see how something like that would be a plot mover, but in 24…come on.
Ok, not everything was bad I thought. Bill being brought back into the mix was a nice touch. Although, did anyone notice that there was absolutely no mention, ever again, of the District Doo-Doo Head that came in to take control of CTU? I know I said to keep that out as much as possible, but to ignore it all together seemed kind of weird.
I thought seeing a whole 180 degree change in Tom’s attitudes was great character development. Tom went from one of the most annoying characters to one of the best at the end.
I thought delving into Jack’s character as a human being at the end was great. His speech to Heller was fantastic, and his choice to leave Audrey behind was heart-wrenching, but necessary.
But, taking this whole season in now it doesn’t compare to earlier seasons. The first 4 episodes of this season set such a high bar there was no way the writers could achieve driving that kind of story for another 20 episodes.
For me the season finale just didn’t really separate itself as a “season finale.” 24 finales in the past have really distinguished themselves as the best episodes of their given seasons. But, it wasn’t true tonight. The episode where the bomb went off and the episode where Jack killed Fayed were by far the best episodes of this season. The season finale was just average.
Now I’m kind of mad that we were fed that stuff about a character showing up at the end. I guess it was put out there to throw people off the “Jack staring out into the ocean” ending, (heaven forbid we give that away). Was anyone else mad that there wasn’t a big character reveal at the end? I felt a little bit duped.
Well, that’s it for the reviews for this season. I hope you liked them. The Character Countdowns will appear Tuesday and Wednesday night. It’s way too hard to do 2 in the same day, so I’m going to split up the 2 hours. Until then let me know what you thought about the finale. Do you agree with me? Or do you think I’m insane in saying that this finale, and season as a whole, was just average by 24 standards?
May 21st, 2007 at 8:50 pm
Kind of a weak ending… it would have been a mroe fitting ending for the series finale not a season finale.
I would have preferred this:
Jack stares out into the endless ocean, his eyes conveying a feeling of dread with the realization of what kind of man he has become…
SUDDENLY… WHITE BRIGHT FLASH… tree leaves russle in the air, the sky darkens… Jack shields his eyes from the intense brightness.
A black silhouette emerges in the light…
AN OLDER JACK BAUER (either Kiefer in prosthetics or DONALD SUTHERLAND) reaches his hand out…
OLD JACK: “Hey you, I mean me… Hurry, the future is in danger and the only thing that can save the universe is TWO JACK BAUERS!”
JACK: “Dammit! What is this???”
OLD JACK: “I don’t have time to explain! Terrorists are holding time itself hostage…” OLD JACK grabs JACK and pulls him into the swirling white vortex…
OLD JACK: “Chloe… EXECUTE THE TEMPORAL PROTOCOLS! NOW!”
The vortex disappears! TO BE CONTINUED!
May 21st, 2007 at 9:25 pm
As regards the “District Doo-Doo Head”, if I recall correctly, he wasn’t sent in to take charge of CTU, but simply to perform a security review in light of all the breaches that had taken place (the computer hack, the armed assault, etc.) during this crisis.
I felt it was put in there more as a way of underscoring all the bad decisions Nadia kept making after she was placed in charge. Once that point was made, there was no real reason to refer back to them.
Overall though, I agree with you on having mixed feelings on the finale.
And the whole Chloe being pregnent thing - I called that as soon as Morris said she looked pale. Sometimes 24 can be a bit too predictable anymore.
Ah well, only 8 months to go till we see Jack again.
May 21st, 2007 at 9:31 pm
I enjoyed the finale just like I enjoyed the whole season. I agree that it was an average season, but an enjoyable one it was. I liked the whole Bauer family saga though i probally would have done it diffrently. About the finale though,I was looking forward to Jack sticking it to Cheng finnally, so the fact that didnt pan out was disappointing, and also we should have had a major father-son showdown, that would have been just wonderful but agian I didnt get that, so though dissapointing, it didnt wreck the season or finale to me.
And as far as the ending, I thought it was wonderful. I loved the emotional high it endend on. I mean watching Jack for six seasons now you kinda bond with the guy, and I really felt bad for him, I mean in one day this guy lost everything, A brother, a father, the love of his life, i mean i feel for this poor guy. I knew watching it unfold that people were gonna be dissapointed in the lack of a “shock” ending to the season, but i read on this website that Kiefer wanted to take this show in a new direction, and the way this season ended, is there really anything left in L.A. for Jack Bauer?
May 21st, 2007 at 9:37 pm
I think the last minute was necessary. Now they can take the next season anywhere they really want. Very unlike 24, yet very appropriate.
The season had its up and downs.. But, i still can not wait for January.
May 21st, 2007 at 10:12 pm
It seems to me that the even seasons (2, 4, and 6) are not as good as the odd seasons (1, 3, and 5). That doesn’t mean I didn’t like the even seasons (if it’s 24, I’ll love it), but they just don’t seem to be as exciting and pulse-pounding as the odd seasons.
I was VERY VERY VERY DISAPPOINTED about the big character not showing up. That was one thing that I was looking forward to since I read that TV Guide article that was posted on this website. But when it came down to the final 10 minutes of this season, no big character showed up. I felt so cheated. (I was really hoping Tony Almeida would out of the bushes as Jack was staring off into the ocean).
Overall, this was a cool season. I like how everything has wrapped up nicely and we really have no idea what to expect.
May 21st, 2007 at 10:50 pm
Didn’t like it.
May 21st, 2007 at 11:01 pm
“I like how everything has wrapped up nicely and we really have no idea what to expect.”
SOME things were wrapped up but many things weren’t. Marrage between Bill/Karen, what is up with Palmer, what happened to logan ect
One question I was curious about what a possible explanation about Jack’s injury. At the start they made a few glances to it and I was expecting a good character moment explaining it. That never came either.
I do agree i like that you have NO idea what to expect. Season 6 was very clear where we were going to be with Jack’s character..next year we have no idea.
May 22nd, 2007 at 12:03 am
I liked the finale. Even if the TV Guide “spoiler” was completely wrong, it ended on such an emotional high point that completely makes up for it.
And I thought the season did a good job of answering almost every question. Bill/Karen are resigning and retiring, Palmer is recovering. And Jack’s injury having came from two years of torture in China!
Although the rest of the season didn’t live up to the first 4 episodes, it was still packed with many cool moments.
May 22nd, 2007 at 12:42 am
I didn’t like this episode at all. It seemed to me as if the writer’s had writers block and just said let’s have some explosions and bad acting and go home for the season. I fear this show may soon be running it’s course.
May 22nd, 2007 at 1:19 am
I agree with you that Lennox’s character development and the Bauer-Heller scene were definitely very good. The rest really felt like the writers through something together at the last minute.
Overall, it left me unsatisfied. However, since obvious this season was mainly to “tie up loose ends” as it were, I think it did a relatively decent job. Although comparitively with other seasons it was obviously sub-par and predictable a lot of the time. I hope they come up with some good stuff next season.
P.S. I think Jack and his dad could’ve gotten on the boat instead of Jack having to leave him behind and rushing up to the helicopter. On the other hand, Jack left without getting the chip and his father still alive with what seemed like a non-fatal wound WITH a boat. Chinese sub picking up Phillip Bauer and then returning to China? Heh…
P.P.S. It was kind of stupid how the “preview” for next season was scenes from this season. It kind of pissed my friend and I off a bit.
May 22nd, 2007 at 2:15 am
A disappointingly dull end to the season…
May 22nd, 2007 at 3:57 am
Well now that we killed off that they ended just about every storyline in that season we can start fresh next season and hopefully write an actaul storyline.
Very dissappointed with the season finale. As someone who has seen all of the finale’s I’d have to say this sucked pretty bad.
Season’s one and two were probably my favorite endings. They ended with some great action seens.
May 22nd, 2007 at 5:12 am
I have already seen the ‘08 series, the writers will draw off of what is said this off season, thereby making it
1. suspenseful.
2. thrilling
3. bomb blowin’ up
4. weekly cliffhanging.
rip roarin’ time. Just remember that the writers are human too and I am sure they said a few episodes ago. Aww crud we have to wrap this all up in a two hour finale. Boyz we dug in too deep so get out the oil barrels and have Jack make it quick. Oh ya don’t kill. Ricky Stratton er uh TJ Flynn, you knw who I mean MIKE DOYLE, just blind him so he can look like LeVar “Geordi” Burton on Star Trek. Ya cool.
And Dad, just make him uh go away so we can resurrect him in a future episode, oh ya the chip, It was in Gramps pocket, or did josh grab it HMMmm I don’t know but didn’t you see cheng wrap it in a wanton and swallow it, Oh ya I saw it! Chaeng Scarred for life Mhe heh heh
So strap on the wayback machine Ziggy I’m comin’ home….
May 22nd, 2007 at 5:15 am
Thematically, I enjoyed how the finale brought the season full circle. We started out with Jack having nothing to live for except for a meaningful death. We end with Jack having even less than that; he finally realizes that he can never have a normal life. For this, I applaud the writers; however, the season on the whole left me dissatisfied by not exploring this theme much.
Shortly after Curtis’ death, the season was put on autopilot and went through the motions everyone expects from it. The closest it came to the theme of Jack’s death wish was the final fight with Fayed. While the fight was remarkable, I enjoyed it on another level as it tied back to Jack’s death wish from the beginning. This would be a worth death, rushing headlong into danger to save the nation from another nuclear attack.
I enjoyed Jack’s soliloquy at the end; I felt that was the best part of the finale. Beyond that, it lacked the tension that previous finales had; those had me on the edge of my seat for the full two hours. This one just left me reclining back on the couch waiting to see if the rumors about the Mystery Machine would roll up and tell Jack to get in were true.
I still rank season three as my least favorite, but this season had the same soap opera feel — Chloe/Morris/Milo triangle, Nadia/Silver Spoons/Milo triangle, Jack might be Josh’s father, etc. — that puts season three at the bottom of my list.
May 22nd, 2007 at 5:17 am
Hey Ziggy,
Why am I still here,
Oh OK… .to all those wah wah’s that are so dissapointed, next season go watch LOST or Jericho. That’ll bring ya back happy. If you have better ideas, they are taking applications for writers right now over at Fox. Ya that’s what I thought…
24 IS the best watchin’ around.
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:07 am
Well, I do agree that this season finale was the Hallmark Moment finale that I did not expect. That ending was not what 24 was ever about. BUT, I believe that this finale was more of a series finale than anything. I believe they needed to do this so that we could have some closer with the old 24 and be ready to move on to the next part of Jack’s life in the new 24 to come.
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:34 am
I think the TV Guide spoiler was leaked to keep our interest until the finale - I felt the end of the season was very weak and didn’t really leave me wanting more week after week like 24 normally does.
I thought the ending was 100% lame. I don’t think 24 is structured for character development and building attachments to people, thus all the romance and bs is hard for me to stomach sometimes. Also, there was no cliffhanger or “come back and watch me again next season” part to the ending.
Also, I don’t feel like they tied up all the loose ends - how about Wayne Palmer and Charles Logan? What happened in Denver?
Oh well, here’s hoping next year will be back on track.
May 22nd, 2007 at 7:12 am
I thought overall the season was not as strong as 1 and 4 (the two best, IMO) and 2 and 5 (both strong, but not stellar). This one was more in line with 3. It had much of the same feel as 3 with tying up story lines, just like Sutherland said in TV Guide. I think we now have two sets of trilogies, in a manner of speaking, with character development and plot.
I think one of the most important themes of this season has been Jack trying to find himself and answer questions about his life and purpose after the imprisonment in China. Remember at the beginning when he stopped torturing that arabic man and said, “I don’t know how to do this anymore?” So, with that in mind, this season ended on a high note with that sense of closure for Jack, much like the tears he shed at the end of 3.
BTW, you just can’t have good TV without good character development. Hence, 24 has always had some good CD with Jack, Tony/Michelle, now Chloe, the Palmers, etc. Yes, there have been some weak characters but some strong ones as well. I think 24 is going to take a new direction next season with many new characters, a new location, etc. But Jack will be back and ready to take on the world. Remember, 24 has really always been about Jack first and everyone else second.
May 22nd, 2007 at 7:34 am
Holy crap i LOVED that finale! The part when jack said, “If you send someone to get us Ill kiill him, pretty good at that too” We paused the TV and started applausing. It beats Jacks line of I NEED A HACKSAW. I just am sad that there are NO characters left, cloe and morris have the baby, karren and bill are in vermont, heler and audry may be gone also! WHOS LEFT? The wisperer and powers booth??? AND FRIGIN NADIA???
SO i disagree and liked the finale, it just wasnt the same calaber as other seasons…O well, next january!!!!!
May 22nd, 2007 at 7:52 am
I believe this season finale was meant to stand on it’s own. As others have said and as the producers have said, next season will be a ‘reboot’ for the series. They needed to end it the way they did with no cliff hanger so they could start with a clean slate.
I wish they would have tied up some of the plot threads though. No one has mentioned yet how they didn’t reveal exactly who was behind the assasination of palmer.
I read a rumor they’re taking Jack to NYC next season, and hopefully more Jack vs Group of bad guys and less white house crap.
May 22nd, 2007 at 8:40 am
I believe this was a bit rushed, meaning the oilrig scene. But the ending was one of the best moments inthe whole series. Jack seemed frustrated with his life, he wanted to live a normal life. Heller shows him that he can’t. I really though Jack was going to kill him. The end of this season left me wondering where next season is going to go.
As for the rest of the season, I do believe the climax was with Fayed and the terrorist. Another great scene was after Jack and a few of the CTU employees beat the crap out of the chinese agents. The running sliding shot Jack made was amazing.
This season did what it was suppose to do, tie up loose ends and set up for a brand new season with a completely new plot line. I belive Chloe will still be in the next season, what would Jack do without her.
January seems so far away…
May 22nd, 2007 at 9:04 am
I pretty much agree with everything you said there.
I think season 6 should be entitled: 24, Day 6 - THE ANTI-CLIMAX
It had a few good moments, but for the most part, it was a very below average and anti-climatic season with a lackluster ending.
They focused too much on things that no one cares about, and left all the great potential things fizzle out. They really dropped the ball this time around.
May 22nd, 2007 at 9:07 am
I was disappointed at first by the ending but the more I thought about it I’m getting very excited for next season.
Like others have stated all of the sub-characters have an excuse to not return.
Bill & Karen - retired
Chloe & Morris - Prego
Doyle - blind (would have to retire)
Nadia - maybe leaves CTU and takes care of Doyle? (Division already said she was only a temp
Charles Logan - dead
Martha Logan - in prison?
Heller - retired and weak after Jack’s verbal beatdown
Audrey - in coma and Jack left her
Wayne Palmer - could be back but not a big deal if he’s not
Jack - done with CTU
Effectively they closed out every significant character and Jack’s involvement with CTU which leads the writers to go a completely direction with the plot.
We could see a much darker Jack Bauer still fighting terrorists but maybe around the globe Rainbow Six style. Could be the David Palmer faked his death and is now heading up this elite anti-terrorist group and needs Jack to head it up. Oh the possibilities!
I also think its very possible that the first episode next season will have the big spoiler we were looking for in the finale. You watch all of the trailers will hint at it leading up to next January.
May 22nd, 2007 at 9:36 am
Josh Byers I hope you were right about the mystery character at the start of next year.
This finale was good BUT… I think so many people were looking forward to a possible Tony return and Kiefer himself said in the tv mag himself that the finale was going to make the series. These 2 episodes were good but Jack killing Fayed and episode 4 were far superior.
Ok it does give 24 a new fresh start which is good but I guess I was too excited about a Tony reunion damm they fake spoilers.
Great work this season Aaron hope you do it all over again next year
May 22nd, 2007 at 9:56 am
How can Sandra Palmer be classed as a main character? VP Daniels, Mike Doyle and even Reed Pollock had more to do with this season than her
May 22nd, 2007 at 10:25 am
“We could see a much darker Jack Bauer still fighting terrorists but maybe around the globe Rainbow Six style. Could be the David Palmer faked his death and is now heading up this elite anti-terrorist group and needs Jack to head it up.”
That was my theory on the “familiar face” exiting from the car that was the TV guide rumour. I was hoping to find Bill, Chloe, Tony and one of the black guys (I don’t really see Palmer beatin’ down any foo’s though :
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:15 am
@Byers
Maybe Pres. Palmer faked his death and is now going to recruit Jack to “The Unit” with him. That would be sweet! JK. That would totally suck.
May 22nd, 2007 at 12:13 pm
This was the biggest dissapointment in 24 history. I was so let down. This has made me question whether or not i will be watching next year. I own all the seasons, but this ending put the nail in the coffin for me. Hands down season 5 and 3 were the best. Chloe should have died.
May 22nd, 2007 at 12:23 pm
Poor end to a pretty poor season. As for it allowing the show to move in a different direction, they’ve had chances to do that before (most noticeably at the end of S5 when they could have devoted S6 to Jack escaping from the Chinese) so I won’t be surprised if S7 is just the same as S1-6. They were always struggling after the nuke went off.
May 22nd, 2007 at 1:18 pm
PALMER WAS SHOT IN THE NECK!
May 22nd, 2007 at 1:22 pm
I thought that the season, save the first four episodes, was pretty weak.
I hope this was a “Day of rest” for the series and not “calling it a day”…if so, this is horrible.
Next year I hope they explore more with Jacks personality.
There is no way his dad is dead and that little sissy nephew of his going to end up being his son.
YIKES!
I hope they don’t ruin this show any further.
May 22nd, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Um I wonder the future significance of cheng saying “my people will not abandon me like ur people did jack bauer”. Not that Cheng will have anything to do with it, but could that be a hint China is not done in its involvement in 24?
May 22nd, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Cheng speaks in text message language?! Who would’ve known?!
May 22nd, 2007 at 8:49 pm
Zach,
China will totally rethink getting Cheng back once they see what he actually looks like now. He’s extra crispy.
May 23rd, 2007 at 6:31 am
At least they were consistent in using a weak (at best) finale to close off a season that seemed to be like a virtual ‘clip show’ using the recycled plot lines from previous seasons. This show is fading…
May 23rd, 2007 at 1:32 pm
I agree that this wasn’t the best season finale ever, but I thought that Jack frickin loosing it on Heller was amazingly funny.
May 23rd, 2007 at 6:19 pm
I hate to say I told you so, but I TOLD YOU SO! That rumor was just a fake ending, planted as usual by those rascals at “24″.
I do have to admit though that I entertained the possibility that it was for real.
Anyway, I thought it was a pretty satisfying ending, sort of like the ending of a good movie. Everything was sort of tied together, but not fully perfect (Jack’s sorrows, Doyle’s eyes). It was like the antithesis of the Grey’s Anatomy finale, so I was quite pleased.
May 23rd, 2007 at 9:20 pm
I believe this season’s ending was among the best (and most unusual) in 24. Setting the stage at the shore was a nice idea: it added a nice melancholic feeling to an overall emotional episode.
The last scene also had a very unusual pace, and no one would be surprised if Jack jumped to death outside Heller’s house. Very sorrowful; kudos to Kiefer for the acting.
Now, Aaron, what is to happen to the blog until next season?
November 9th, 2007 at 4:04 am
[…] smuggled into the country…I really can’t watch that show anymore. Not even as a joke. Last season was a monstrosity, and such a let down after a really good fifth or fourth season, you know, the one with Jean Smart […]