Watching 24

I made a commitment as I watched season 1 again, to check out if there are any times within the show that wouldn’t mesh with the bombshell we find out about Nina at the end. I’ve always had this kind of obsession with going through a movie, or TV show again and again trying to find any slip-ups or things that just absolutely didn’t make any sense when you compare them to how the show actually turned out.

After watching season 1 again I couldn’t find any of those slip-ups and realized that throughout the entire show they were “telling” us it was Nina anyway. By something so simple as the introduction (which was only done on season 1 and then they switched to the “Previously on 24″ stuff) where Jack would explain to us what is happening that day. I would usually fast forward through that part, but I noticed every time they showed a clip of Nina looking shifty. To take some wisdom from Homer Simpson, it’s always the person with the shifty eyes, and Nina shifter her eyes throughout the entire season.

I also realized, again, how much I loathe Sherry Palmer. Out of all the mean, sadistic, and just plain weird women that have appeared on 24 Sherry Palmer is the one I hate the most. Even more than Nina, yes. At least Nina is getting paid to do what she does. Sherry is just plain evil. The way she would talk down to David Palmer, the way she said “David,” made me want to strangle her.

All-in-all I love season one. Not so much the first half of the season where we think Gaines is the bad guy, but when we get to the whole Drazen storyline that’s where the season really kicks into overdrive.

The scene that moves me the most from the first season is the one when Jack finds out from Nina that his daughter has been found dead, floating in the harbor. At that point, when Jack thinks he has nothing left is some of the finest acting Kiefer has done in the series. Crying uncontrollably for a minute or so, and then his face switches from sadness to anger, in an instant never forgetting that first and foremost he’s a trained killer, and that’s just what he’s going to do.

When he crashes into the warehouse with the van and starts killing everyone in his path you realize what kind of character Jack Bauer is when he’s out for revenge. There’s no stopping him. It’s just a great scene.

Alright, I’m off to go cue up season 2…
(Check out the first part of Retro-24: Reviewing Season 1 here)

24, Kiefer Sutherland, Jack Bauer, season 1 of 24, Retro-24