Old friends are destined for fatal conflict heading into the last episode before the season finale. The writers know how to spin a great tale of military fiction, using proven formulas and making them crackle. 24’s newfound physics defying reality aside, this season reaches the peaks of entertainment and action we expect and deserve from this show. The setup is great, and the producers should have no trouble bringing things to a boil over the next three hours.
Washington Central Station is the target and the apparent endgame of the bioweapon canister. This is a pretty boring terror target, and we’ve seen subways under threat in past seasons. Still, civilian casualties are civilian casualties, and Tony sends his unfortunate muslim patsy to the tunnels. Jack takes some time to brutally interrogate a wounded goon. It is amazing how the show keeps finding new ways for Jack to force information out of tangos. Jack’s gruff threats sound as menacing as ever, and we get a great sense of his nothing-left-to-lose no-holds-barred death-is-fast-approaching desperation to save this country one last time.
The patsy surprisingly takes some initiative to try and warn the authorities, but Tony’s team has him tightly covered. I imagine that after fighting terrorists at CTU for all those years, Tony is glad to have the advantages of the other side. Tony was a closet terrorist for all those years, because he just knew, when he came out to his friends, they would react exactly like they are right now.
Olivia Taylor is still reeling from her murder for hire of Jonas Hodges. It is recommended that she either pay up or have the hit man pursue her. This would be a reasonable threat, but if you’re a member of the First Family, would you really be afraid? Kim’s flight is postponed, when a wild cougar corners her in the ladies restroom. Well, not really, but once again, it seems that Kim is in danger. She could be the Season 1 throwback ace-in-the-hole that Tony will use as leverage against Jack, now that Tony has been captured again.
These last episodes were subject to rewrites, and it seems to be worth it. Jack is getting right down to his violent no-nonsense roots. He’s doing what he does best, getting the authorities to look the other way while he does what has to be done. Jack gives Tony an incredibly well depicted beat down of vicious ferocity. But hey, neither of them have anything left to lose, and Tony isn’t about to crack. What’s a punch in the face when you’ve been blown up and brought back from the dead?
Jack uses his other classic superpower, namely getting average schmoes to deal with life threatening situations competently. Jack leads patsy through the disposal of the bioweapon, and he performs brilliantly. Once again Jack watches as disaster is averted at the last possible second, but now the WMD is out of the picture. Time to set up the season finale.
The terrorist cabal is playing catch up now, and they have one more play. I am guessing that the play starts with a K and ends with an M. That’s okay though, this is all about going back to the beginning as we near the end. Great covert ops stories require that old partners show up again as your biggest threat, and that your first mission forms your ultimate identity.
