24 Season 6 premiere quick review

My gut reaction to 24's 2-hour premiere is to watch something else.

Background on my 24 viewing experiences: 24's Seasons 2 (nuclear weapon) and 4 (bioweapon) were the best seasons of 24 and 3 and 5 were the worst (1 has its moments, which thankfully picked up about halfway through the season). Season 3 was so bad I didn't watch season 4 until I happened to catch it in A&E's two-day marathon while I was sick. As a result (of perhaps my illness), I concluded that season 4 was the best season ever, and thus I had high hopes for season 5 when it premiered. I tried to enjoy season 5 and watched it in its entirety, but I was let down tremendously. Therein lies my reluctance to watch season 6. Of course, after watching New England upset the Chargers and ironically, because I am sick again, I figured I would give 24 yet another shot, contingent on some sort of jam-packed shoot-em up action for two straight hours. Although it had its moments, this was not the case. I think the movie The Sentinel had more plot than 24's season premiere has developed. And I didn't think The Sentinel was that great.

Some commentary on the premiere: The effects of two-years in a Chinese prison shows that Jack has lost some of his edge. The Silence of the Lambs-esque scene at the end of the first hour was something I don't think has been on television, but I suppose they are trying to show the effects of his capture as a sort of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest sort of thing. I'm not sure why the President's sister interfered so much into the FBI investigation, but I'm sure it will be developed eventually. For now, I will assume she is the Roger Clinton of the Palmer family. Also, what was the deal with it being 5 minutes short? My clock is right; theirs was not.

Conclusion: Two more hours tomorrow (maybe) and that's it. Unfortunately or fortunately for me, The Drudge Report's front page flashed a spoiler about 24 that the show will once again have a nuclear element to it. For me, that plot has been told already in season 2 and the series (after perhaps sitting through it tomorrow) may be put on hold for another year to see if they come up with a better idea for season 7. If I hear good things about it, maybe I'll tune back in. If not, there is always Heroes (which isn't much better but at least it's not a rehashing of a previous season of the same show).

Tags: 24, season 6 premiere, 24 review, fox