Four years after it went off the air and after its fictional main character, Jack Bauer, disappeared into the ether – the anti-terrorism drama 24 is back for what promises to be more pulse-pounding action and, let's be clear on this, a whole lot of ludicrous behavior.
24: Live Another Day is a 10-episode "event" series, which means Fox could probably trot this out every now and again as long as star Kiefer Sutherland's knees and stamina hold up. But – thankfully – it has given up the notion of doing 24 episodes, each representing one hour in one day. Instead, the number is just part of the title now, though the dramatic thumping of the clock and all the split-screens that defined the series when it premiered in 2001 are back.
After its groundbreaking first season, where it brought fresh storytelling and unique visuals to the small screen, 24 was never the same show. It couldn't be. You can only knock out so many bad guys, get out of so many impossible scenarios and hack into the subnet so many times before everything becomes hokey. And 24 wrote the book on hokey.
The 24 is at its best when it's hilariously bad. If an episode of 24 is not ludicrous and far-fetched, then it's not being true to itself. Stripped of pretension, 24 is addictive fun, a thrill ride for viewers. But saddle it with the expectations of a top five drama and you're just defeating its purpose and annoying people like me.
As it returns, four years after it left, 24: Live Another Day can and should only be judged on one metric: Is it entertaining? And that, happily, is a real no-brainer: Of course it's entertaining. Anyone who fist-pumped to "Jack Is Back" knows that the allure of the series is in our hero beating all odds to escape some incredibly complex jams and save the world from complete doom. It's why we watch. Or it should be why.
Oh, and yes, Jack being a badass is also central to 24's charm. "You know who I am? Trigger an alarm and I'll blow your head off." Everywhere you turn, there's a line that suits the Jack Is Back credo. "Just grazed me I'm fine! The old charms are there – four years and better dramas abounding do not dim them. I've come to terms with liking 24 on my terms. I no longer squint dubiously at its past desire to be taken seriously.
So, as the series returns to center stage, I'm hoping there's a mole. Or two. I'm hoping there's some torture to come. I'm thrilled that people still disobey direct orders because Jack taught us that the means justify the ends, and I'm never going to get tired of sussing out the bad guys even though the camera shots and music usually do that for me.
But am I going to make even one reference to 24 actually being great, or possibly meaningful dramatic television? I am not. This is a popcorn drama, so from here on out I will suspend belief in what is plausible while tossing overheated kernels into my mouth and dripping butter on the remote.
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