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TV|Shark 011: 24

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    TV|Shark 011: 24

    The following thread takes place on the day of the eleventh shark post-mortem...




    24
    Ran: 9 Seasons plus 1 Special (2001 till 2014)
    Episodes: 204 Episodes plus 1 Special
    Following Jack Bauer, a CTU Federal Agent based in LA, the shows main gimmick was its semi-real time format of having a 24 hour storyline told over 24 hour long episodes. The first season began with a simple tale of Jack's life being turned upside down during an attempt on the life of US Senator David Palmer. With each subsequent season the price for Bauer rose as he faced down domestic threat after threat culminating in the final season that saw him dragged away to a Russian prison where he remains to this day. The show originally became a phenomenon due to its high stakes twists and hollywoodised action but became too heavily tied within a formula that increasingly made the storylines convoluted and reliant on political babble. It became easy to play 24-Bingo, marking off the threats on his dim daughter, his screaming about a bomb to a suspect, there being a mole in CTU and a central character getting bumped off. Regardless though, Jack remained the anchor of the show throughout its life.

    24: Legacy
    Ran: 1 Seasons plus 1 Special (2017)
    Episodes: 12 Episodes
    With only one returning character, the short lived spin-off proved the show hung on one character. Legacy followed an ex-Army Ranger who finds his squad mates are being hunted one by one. The real-time format returns but due to the shortened episode count uses time jumps to keep events within a 24 hour window. However, the show attracted the same criticisms as the main shows later seasons and without Jack viewers failed to see a reason to hang on in there resulting in the shows cancellation.

    Share your thoughts and memories of 24!


    #2
    Season 1 was a great ride once I got around to it, I'd steered clear at first but when I eventually saw it I did so via DVD and I think I almost caned the entire show over 2 or 3 nights. The season worked so well with its only wobble being around hour 12/13 when it's all too obvious that the story was originally built around the possibility it wouldn't get picked up for the back end episodes but it manages to re-orientate itself quickly and maintain momentum. Finishing it on a last minute OMG moment was a masterstroke as well.

    Season 2 was the one I struggled with, eager to see it I watched it on TV and the format of watching 1 episode per week never suited the show on any level. It felt emphasised key moments as well like the nuke that felt stupid. A few years later I ended up rewatching it via DVD and it played much better showing itself to be a decent second season.

    Season 3 was okay, I appreciated the aim of changing the nature of the threat to chemical weapons but those kinds of threats have never felt as imposing on screen so S3 feels like it moves at a slightly different pace.

    Season 4 is probably the high point for me, it's just before the turns became too hackneyed and has so much going on. In a way it was like they were blowing all their remaining ideas over a single run and I just loved it.

    Season 5 is often mentioned as a high point but I found it to be one of the weakest. It's incredibly dry and plodding with little pay off for enduring it.

    Season 6 is the one where it started to become really stupid with Jack's family being brought up as involved in counter CTU terrorism, a really poor decision that plays dumbly through the entire run.

    Redemption was... passable, served little purpose really except to show that the idea of a movie based on 24 never would have worked.

    Season 7 was a little better despite starting the lazy obsession with moving to a new city each season hereafter but by now the formula was wearing thin and the writers room was clearly exhausted of ideas. The turn with Tony played out very poorly for me as well.

    Season 8 was running on fumes and felt at times like an endurance challenge to get through.

    Season 9 was something I kind of looked forward to even though it was poorly chosen to be set in London. I thought the shorter run and time off would mean it would be more focused and have a clearer intent to it but it was straight back into the same fumes S8 was running on and remains only really notable for the hilariously bad character veer they made with Chloe and for taking all these years of seasons work and leaving it on such a bum note for Jack

    I lined up Legacy to watch but in the end couldn't muster the effort. After it aired I glanced over the feedback in case I'd missed out on anything worthwhile but it seemed to confirm 24 without Jack just isn't worthwhile.

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      #3
      Obscenely obvious clue for thread 12:

      Clue - Giggety

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