24

The following review takes place between 6:51 a.m. and 7:13 a.m. Words are written in real time...

This was one of the weaker episodes of season nine. For starters, far too much time was dedicated to Dana's weak B storyline.

Granted, any number of seconds is really too much to spend on yet another example of how terrible a screening process CTU has for its employees, but the 10 p.m. hour actually went to commercial twice on this development. The suspense of the ticking clock doesn't exactly build when the only thing at stake is Dana's job.

The show really needs to end this storyline or somehow tie it into the bigger picture, and soon. How many more weeks does it plan on going with everyone at CTU - Hastings, Chloe and Arlo - wondering why Dana is so distracted?

As for Renee, we'd have wagered a month's salary on her murdering Vladimir at some point, so at least 24 didn't drag out this obvious development for too long. We also didn't see her stabbing of Jack coming, so that made for a nice surprise.

His recoery didn't, of course. It's gonna take more than one knife wound to keep Jack Bauer down! It doesn't get much better than watching him remove a knife from his own body and fling it directly into the neck of a terrorist across the room.

Or shoot blindly through a wall and kill another.

It does make us wonder where these bad guys were when Jack initially ran in to see about the commotion between Renee and Vlaid, but that curiosity was quickly eclipsed by Hastings' hilarious reaction to Renee killing Vladimir:

She had sex with him 30 minutes ago. I don't understand!

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Welcome to this week's edition of the 24 Round Table!

From action on a rooftop to action on Vladmir's sofa, there was a lot to dissect during the 9 p.m. hour of the show. We've already posted our weekly episode review, but our staff has now gathered to go even more-depth.

As always, we apprecite all reader feedback...

Should Renee have slept with Vladimir?
M.L. House: Yes. Jack slept with Nina Myers, remember? And she pretty much looked like a man.

LJ Gibbs: Given the amount of time that passed between her accession and his regression, I think "slept" is a gross exaggeration.   Vlad's nickname in Mother Russia was Quick as a Wink. Nonetheless, I think most psychiatrists would agree she did the right thing. It's like getting back on a bicycle.

The Barnacle: I think Vlad is the one who made the wrong decision here. Sleeping with a train wreck like that is a surefire way to contract RenAIDS.

Will Josef turns on his father?
M.L. House: Yes. This will be a bigger father/son feud since Jack vs. his dad on Lost.

LJ Gibbs: Yes. Either by putting opiated hash in his samovar, or by dressing up like Adam Lambert.

The Barnacle: At this point, all Josef should turn on is a Russian accent. Did he go to "university" in America, too?

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We may find it impossible to believe that the Renee Walker we've learned about this season - a former spy that went through Hell during her undercover days - is the same straight-laced FBI agent we met last year, but we're still fans of what the show has done with her character.

That said, thank goodness Jack Bauer actually saw some action at the end of this episode. We were afraid 24 forgot what he can do!

Jack's German exchange with Vladmir's henchmen, and subsequent ass kicking (with help from Cole Ortiz, of course), was the highlight of an otherwise boring episode. The show has now taken over two hours just to establish Renee and Jack as bonafide undercovers. A majority of that time was spent with Jack sitting in a car.

There was actual tension in Renee's decision to sleep with Vladimir, however. We weren't sure the show would take that step, but it was a nice - and disgusting - way to show how far Renee has fallen, while also highlighting one major difference between her and Jack.

No offense, Kiefer, but seducing the enemy was never your strong suit.

While the main Jack/Renee storyline appears to finally be moving, the B plots are stuck in neutral. To wit:

• Jenny is smart enough to get on the NYPD secure website, get access codes, and print out a spiffy ID card to get her ex-boyfriend and his sidekick into an unguarded police warehouse... yet not smart enough to realize that CTU has security cameras right outside its entrance and that a van the Beverly Hillbillies would be ashamed to drive might attract a little attention? 
• President Hassan's mass arrests are already being discussed at Downing Street, where the British Prime Minister resides; and several countries are threatening to pull out of the peace talks? We know time works in its own way on 24... but it's 4:30 a.m. in London!
• The doctor was killed. The Russin brothers were returned to their lair. The sick one was killed. The older brother was spared and warned... and this was the cliffhanging note the show chose to end on?

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Welcome to the latest edition of the 24 Round Table!

As our review of this week's episode explained, the 8 p.m. hour was filled with more character development than most installments, but that doesn't mean there isn't plenty to analyze.

Our staff has gathered for a discussion of the episode. As always, we encourage viewer feedback on the topics and opinions below...

Should Jack have called Hastings and put an end to the mission?
M.L. House: No. But he should totally have called Hastings... out on that goatee. Dude looks like an idiot!

Dr. Shepherd: Jack was definitely hasty in calling Hastings. Who cares if Renee dies? She tried to off herself already. Besides, with Vladimir's favoring a shot to the chest, there's a decent chance Renee would have survived the attempt anyway.

The Barnacle: D. Absolutely not. The name of the show would have to be changed to "5." Plus, calling it off would guarantee that Farhad would get the nuclear rods and destroy peace in the Middle East forever.

More likely to come to Dana's rescue: Cole or Arlo?
M.L. House: With his array of snappy one-liners and come-ons, Arlo is better equipped for the 24 dating show (Tick... Tick... Vavoom!) than a rescue mission. This is a job for Cole. Cole Ortiz.

Dr. Shepherd: Both. With their powers combined, they shall become CARLO, a smooth-talking, pelvis-gyrating, musk-scented South American gentleman whose machismo will overpower anyone who dares threaten DJ Dana Jenny.

The Barnacle: Arlo. Cole looks a bit clueless and would be upset by Jenny's deception. Arlo is wildly happy that a woman even acknowledges his presence.

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The following review takes place between 7:32 a.m. and 7:49 a.m. Words are written in real time...

As always, the clock was ticking this week on 24 - but the action was ratched down a few notches and replaced with character study/progression. It was a nice change of pace.

First, let's check in with Dana. We mean Jenny. We mean this season's most distracting B storyline. Fortunately, instead of another hour of threats made to expose her past, shady ex-boyfriend Kevin made his demands clear last night: get me a lot of money via your cool, insider job and I'll disappear. Naturally, Dana wasn't enthusiastic about this plan, but we have a feeling it will lead to another CTU agent raising suspicion at work by acting in his/her own self interest.

We've been there before, highlighted by Tony helping a villain escape in season three in order to spare Michelle's life. Man, we miss those two.

Second, let's move to the Russian brothers with a worse fatherly role model than Michael Lohan. It was nice for Josef (David Anders) to wanna help his brother survive and all, but are viewers supposed to sympathize with these men? For now, the plot seems like another way to kill time in between Jack/Renee exploits.

Next, though, we have nothing but positive things to say about the Hassan vs. President Taylor stand-off. This came across as a true moral dilemma for the leader of the Islamic nation. How do you maintain power at home without using force... while trying to set an example of peace in the region? It's also exciting to see the show utilize Cherry Jones in a more forceful manner. She's too great of an actress to have her express nothing but shock or acquiescence at developments around her.

Finally, we come to Renee. It is worth noting, one more time, that the show has clearly taken creative liberty with her character. There's no way the straight-laced FBI agent we met last season had a history of undercover work that included an abusive relationship with the Russian mob boss.

Still, if we overlook that hiccup, we must give kudos to Annie Wersching. She's doing a great job selling Renee as a truly damaged individual.

Also, for a show that typically goes at breakneck speed, we welcomed the chance to watch Renee take a full episode to infilitrate her way into the underworld. It made sense on a storyline level and it added gravitas to both Renee's character and Jack's relationship with her.

Would we prefer Jack Bauer in the field than in his car for an hour? Of course. But we'll get plenty of that. This week's installment gave viewers a chance to sit back and watch this action hero react to a helpless situation involving someone he cares about.

BELOW, WE GIVE THE EPISODE A RATING AND PREVIEW NEXT WEEK'S NEW HOUR OF 24.

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Viewers of 24 have been treated to a new Chloe O'Brian so far on season eight. She's dyed her hair and she's no longer the top analyst at CTU.

But the character is still good for a few awkward one-liners, while remaining ever loyal to true American hero Jack Bauer. In a recent interview with TV Guide, actress Mary Lynn Rajskub refrained from spilling at 24 spoilers, but did open up a bit about what's ahead...

On Dana Walsh's past: In the next few episodes, there's going to be some pretty twisted stuff happening. Honestly, you can't really grasp what's going on with her for many episodes, and we're all just trying to do our own stuff. Although I give her a look and we suspect [something], it doesn't really come out for a while.

On Chloe's ties to Renee: Her and Renee join together a little bit... It's already been shown that Renee is kind of nuts, but I will say that there is a support system down the line between Renee and Jack and Chloe.

On if this is the final season of 24: I have no idea. We've been wondering that all year. Every day I go to work, we wonder if we're going next year. Right now, I've only read Episode 19 and 20, so I'll be really curious to see what happen.

Don't get us wrong: we love 24.

Kiefer Sutherland is always great as Jack Bauer and it's impossible to not get caught up in the ticking clock, multiple split screens and overall production of the show.

Still, it's clearly not as suspenseful as it used to be, considering the repetitive plots (there's a mole at CTU?!? An informant is killed before he can open up?!?) and need to suspend such disbelief each week.

Every week, my friends and I exchange a series of post-episode emails for our amusement. These point out plot inconsistencies in (hopefully) humorous ways. Following last week's two-hour installment, I'm excited to present a few below. We encourage readers to chime in with their own 24 musings...

"Dana Walsh" gets a call that she has "a visitor."  At CTU?  Why not a Girl Scout selling cookies?  Or a phony Census taker?  Who can't just come knocking at the CTU bunker door?

Given the apparently easy access to CTU, or at least the overall awareness of its location (probably in the back of a strip mall parking lot, from the looks of it), combined with Dana Walsh’s choice in work attire, I’m surprised there wasn’t a phalanx of paparazzi waiting for her to return to CTU to ask “who are you wearing?” and “Are you and Kevin back together? Is DEVIN back on? Is this the end of DANOLE?”

If I could change one thing about Brian Hastings, I would change two things: stop the constant pacing when you are talking on the phone, improve your g-d-damned posture and stop stooping like you're looking for abandoned winning tickets at Aqueduct, and take the fucking Bluetooth thing out of your ear, NOW!  I guess that's three.

Getting a job on the show would be considered a good thing for someone, especially someone like Freddie Prince, Jr., who hasn’t worked since the earlier part of the decade (I know what Freddie did last summer: sat around). So you give this actor who is best known for being Sarah Michelle Gellar’s husband a role in your hit show, something that I assume he’s happy to have. Why not make his love interest’s name “Buffy”? I mean, would that be too much to ask? To have him constantly telling “Buffy” how much he loves her? It’s not like Dana Walsh is even the fake character’s real name. Why couldn’t she have gone with “Buffy Walsh” when creating that new identity?

Jack has an innate feel for the city he’s lived in for thirty minutes. First, he knows where the polar bears and the black bears are at the Bronx Zoo. Then, in the middle of a high-speed car chase, he is able to determine that the United Nations is just above 42nd Street (who knew?). And then he tells the NYPD officer where he has to turn!

The following review takes place between 6:56 and 7:19 a.m. Words are written in real time...

We welcomed back a pair of old friends to 24 this week:

1. A storyline involving nuclear weapons.
2. Renee Walker.

Because the first led to the second, let's delve into that one now.

It would be nice to see a season that dealt with a single assassination plot, similar to the season one storyline that was almost entirely centered around an attempt on David Palmer's life. The world doesn't need to be at stake in order to produce great suspense, as the 24 movie in Africa also proved.

Still, this nuclear weapons-based storyline isn't similar (yet) to past seasons for one reason:

The enriched uranium is not on U.S. soil because an attack is planned. We have no doubt millions of American lives will soon be in danger, but for now the material is here simply to be exchanged for (lots of) money.

We can buy that (though not literally, not on a TV critic's salary). We're glad 24 hasn't dipped back into the well of yet another militant group planning to destroy the country.

This, of course, brings us to Renee.

It took us awhile last year, but we came around on Annie Wersching in this role. She's even better already on season eight, as a depressed, suicidal, barely functional, former FBI agent.

We like the pairing of Renee and Jack and we loved the ending of Jack, for once, aghast over the actions of a colleague. Remember when he chopped the head off an informant on season two, in order to back up his undercover story? Talk about a role reversal!

Still, this must be said: based on the way 24 introduced Renee last season, it's wholly unbelievable that she'd have spent two years undercover with the Russian mob prior to that. Before events forced her to go all Jack Bauer on a suspect and see the world differently, Walker was a by-the-books agent that couldn't comprehend Jack's methods upon first meeting him.

We've been led to believe that her character transformation took place as a result of season seven developments, but there's no way she would have been the straight-laced agent depicted for most of last year if she had been undercover for so long.

Long-time viewers of 24 have series evidence with which to back up this belief: hearken back to season three and recall the toll undercover work took on Jack.

With that complaint out of our system, we're willing to suspend reality because well, how else would we enjoy 24? We can at least give the show props for following up on Renee's storyline from last season. Other thoughts on this week's second two-hour episode:

• Was the show hinting that Renee and Jack were romantically involved at one point?
• Brothers of main 24 characters can't do anything right! Wayne Palmer got himself blown up as President and Farhad reacted rather hastily by killing a CTU agent in front of everyone.
• It's always nice to see David Anders. The actor pulled double duty last night, guest-starring on Heroes and as the (healthy) Russian son of the uranium dealer.
• Is Dana Walsh the next Kim Bauer? Both are blonde and both love to distract from the main storyline with annoying sub-plots.
• We feel bad for Morris, but way to acknowledge a struggling economy by stating Chloe's husband got downsized. Wonder if Ryan Bighman broke the news to him. 

What are your thoughts on the first four hours of season eight? Are you happy to have Renee back, and more destructive than ever?

The first two hours of 24 have come and gone.

On some ways, a lot has changed: CTU is based on New York and Jack is now killing people with an axe. In others, it's exactly the same: Jack has chosen country over family and is running a rogue-like operation with only Chloe on ops.

What did you think of the eighth season premiere? As we do for so many shows, the TV Fanatic staff has gathered to analyze various 24 developments. Reader feedback is always encouraged...

Give Kim a grade.
M.L. House: A. She didn't get caught in a single animal trap. Amazing.

Dr. Shepherd: B Minus. She offered mature advice and looked really good. I'd have given her a much higher grade... but she's still Kim Bauer.

The Barnacle: D. For the inevitable guilt trip she'll give her father and for whatever way she's bound to get in the way as the season progresses.

Which new character will be killed first?
M.L. House: We all know this is coming. The show always introduces a new, seemingly important character - and then kills him/her off within the first few episodes to make an impact. I vote for Arlo, the CTU programmer.

Dr. Shepherd: Hassan's brother. The assassination dudes will kill Farhad to silence him, while Hassan will mourn his sibling's death, unware of the reasons behind it and the role Farhad was playing in his the plans for his demise.

The Barnacle: Brian Hastings. When has being the head of CTU ended well for anyone?

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The following review takes place between 7:33 and 7:53 a.m. Words are written in real time...

Having Jack Bauer back in our lives is like a warm glass of milk; a troubled, heroic, will-kill-you-with-an-axe warm glass of milk.

Sure, 24 has fallen off a bit in recent years, as there are only so many government moles, world domination plots and intense interrogation sessions to go around. Still, any long-time fan of the drama has to smile and subtly pump his/her fist at the countdown, the multiple on-screen boxes and all the familiar reminders that one of the best produced shows is back on TV.

This time, Jack is living in NYC, seemingly out of the CTU game. But it doesn't take long for him to get pulled back in, despite a promise to move to Los Angeles with Kim, little Terri and Paul Wesley (taking time away from battling with Damon on The Vampire Diaries to serve as the universe's most understanding husband).

What stood out in the first hour of the premiere?

• A believable plot: There are many directions left to turn, but the basic set-up is nice and simple: there's an assassination plot against the leader of an Islamic nation that wants to sign a peace treaty with the U.S. Shades of the season one storyline that focused on an attempt to kill Presidential candidate David Palmer, kudos to 24 for simplicity so far.
• Solid casting: We actually buy Freddie Prince Jr. as Cole Ortiz; everyone loves Katee Sackhoff; Mykelti Williamson has us believing he was an incompetent, controlling head of CTU instead of Forrest Gump's BFF; and Anil Kapoor is perfect in the role of President Hassan.
• A lack of distracting, annoying B plots: This might change soon.

Thoughts on the second hour follow:

• So much for the lack of a B plot. Dana Walsh used to be... Jenny Scott! At least Kim isn't stuck in an animal trap again.
• If anyone out there was surprised to learn that Hassan's brother was the traitor, as opposed to Meredith Reed, you'll also be shocked to learn eventually that Jack prefers when interrogation subjects give him the answers NOW!
• Thank you, writers, for not having Jack go rogue (like Sarah Palin!) again. Was it a stretch for Hastings to just give him a gun and permission to follow up on his own lead? Sure. But it was preferable to an angle that would have had CTU chasing Jack again.

Overall, an enjoyable two hours. 24 may have forever lost its initial suspense and creativity from the first couple seasons, but it's still a unique, well-produced, well-acted show. There's something both comforting and exciting in having Jack back, off to find bad guys, with Chloe running ops from CTU. Some things never change... to the chagrin of terrorists around the world!

We leave you with a few questions from the two-hour premiere: Was was Renee? How will she get brought back? Is Ethan tapping the newly-single President? Can we trust this Chief of Staff? Who will get killed first: Arlo the programmer or Hassan's daughter?

And, most urgently: do you think Kiefer Sutherland records new voiceovers each season when he tells us what times the following events occur at?