24: SO MUCH FOR MY HAPPY ENDING

For those of you who watch 24, you know that each episode always delivers a shocking plot twist. That is what makes 24 so great. Check that. It is one of the things that makes 24 so great. The concept of the show is different than anything else out there (it is 24 hours in real time for those of you living in a cave) and Jack Bauer kicks ass on a regular basis. It also scares the crap out of me every season. I have never thought so much about terrorism, or counter-terrorism, as I have since I started watching 24. I was also pretty oblivious to the mindset of terrorist groups. That is no longer the case. I don't understand hate on that kind of level, but I get that it exists. There are groups out there that find honor in killing themselves in order to kill others. Say that over and over and it makes less sense.


Anyway, Fox announced recently that this would be 24's last season. I was saddened by this news. However, apparently this was Kiefer Sutherland's choice as the driving force behind the show, and if he thinks it is time to shut it down, well who I am to argue? If you have been watching the show all along, you know that Jack has not had good luck in the romance department. His wife, Terry, died in Season One. I am really sorry if I am spoiling things for you. I was hopeful about his romance with Kim Raver's character (her name is lost to me at the moment) a couple of seasons back, but that didn't last. But, things were really looking positive for him and Renee this season. And I thought to myself, "Please let Jack have the happy ending if this is going to be the last season. His love life has been dryer than the Sahara Desert." Seriously. That man oozes sex and he isn't getting anything.


Well, my hopes and dreams for Jack's happy ending went down in a hail of bullet fire from a sniper after Jack and Renee finally made love. The man finally had sex after a three year dry spell ~ or something like that ~ it has been a LONG TIME. Let's put it this way, the sheets were still warm, when he got up and the sniper took his shot and took Renee out. It just doesn't get any worse than that. Well, they could have been having sex and he could have took her out during. That would have been worse. This guy can't catch a break. Obviously, it wasn't a highlight for Renee, either. I really liked Renee. I liked Renee and Jack together. They had chemistry and shared a similar enough background that she got him. In other words, he didn't scare her half to death. She knew he had made really tough choices for his country, and she respected it. In fact, she had made some really tough choices herself, so she felt his pain. These two understood each other on a visceral level. It was possible for a happy ending. I really wanted a happy ending, but it didn't happen. I found the above photo at this site and it also contains footage of the horrible death scene. Waaah.


I know why I didn't get my happy ending, mind you. They needed to keep Jack in the game. He was ready to jump ship on this terrorist plot and let CTU handle it. It wasn't his problem anymore. He had fulfilled his commitment to the president. Now, it is personal. Jack Bauer is something to see when he is doing the job. When terrorists start killing the people he loves, he is fierce. I know why they made this choice because Jack Bauer is now on a mission. We have been here before. When 24 launched Season One terrorists kidnapped Jack's wife and daughter. Things got very ugly. They got ugly for the terrorists, that is. It was 24 hours of fly by the seat, hold on to your armchair action. Watching 24 is like watching a 24 hour movie. I didn't think anything could top tht first season and then they just kept bringing it. Turns out they didn't need to kidnap Jack's family to really piss me him off at the end of the day. You get shot at enough times, you tend to get mad. Well, in this last season we've come full circle. It's gotten personal again. Things are just now getting interesting... I found this photo here and it has other interesting 24 stuff.