And I’m back! At sea that is….., so it’s DVD box-set time again! If you haven’t seen Season 1, DO NOT read this as it contains information that will spoil your enjoyment of the1st season. That is not to say that I would leave real spoilers of season 2 in my review since I believe that anyone who does so is scum and should be shot! A good review, in my opinion, does not give away the plot points, twists or surprises that make the show so gripping in the first place. However, several events in season 2 hinge on things that occurred in season 1 so I would strongly advise that you watch the 1st season before continuing here.
Cast: Jack Bauer – Keifer Sutherland - A non-traditional sort of hero David Palmer – Dennis Haysbert - A moral, upstanding, trustworthy President (fictional of course) George Mason – Xander Berkeley - Head of CTU Tony Almeida – Carlos Bernard - CTU agent Kate Warner – Sarah Wynter - a new face to season 2 Kim Bauer – Elisha Cuthbert - Jacks daughter and perennial kidnap victim Michelle Dessler – Reiko Aylesworth - new face and CTU agent
So the plot is this: Terrorists have got hold of a Nuke and are planning to detonate it in LA in the next 24 hours. It’s up to CTU to stop it from happening.
This one starts at 8am. It’s a year after the first ‘24’ and Jack has left CTU and let himself go a bit as both he and his daughter are having trouble dealing with his wife’s death. Okay, he’s grown
a beard. It’s not exactly skid row is it? But, I digress……
George Mason, who Jack doesn’t trust, with good reason, is running CTU. There are a few new faces at CTU including Roseanne’s daughter (how did she get in there?) Her acting is so wooden! Kill her! Quickly! (Sorry, that’s just a personal request and has nothing to do with the show).
Jack is ignoring CTU but due to a previous operational cover he is the only person in any sort of position to get to the terrorists quickly. The President asks Jack for help personally so Jacks back in. Meanwhile his daughter, Kim, has a new job as nanny to a rich young couples little girl. Everything seems perfect at first but, of course, things are not as they seem. Elsewhere, Karen Warner is helping her sister, Marie, prepare for her wedding. She suspects Razer, the Middle Eastern groom, is up to something and does some digging. What’s that all about I wonder?
Meanwhile the President is dealing with this emerging crisis and trying to keep the Press in the dark as to what is happening. He’s also trying to keep his advisors in line and his military on a tight leash – Sub-plots abound! Who’s got a hidden agenda? Who can be trusted?
Gosh! More twists than the previously very twisty thing! (Season 1)
And who is the shadowy figure whose name we hear but never see? Will the fate of the free world hinge on her decisions? Is she the big boss? Will we ever see her face? Is she really a he? The real mystery of 24 is this…..WHO IS AUNT CAROL?
If you’ve seen the 1st season you know the style of things to come, but you will be shocked and surprised by some of the twists and turns that the story takes. The return of some faces from season 1 may surprise you, but they were so good in season 1 that it would have been a crime to exclude them this time around.
Once again there’s no swearing and none of the main characters ever seem to use the lavatory. With all the mayhem and chaos going on, I’m sure my bladder would need emptying approximately every 2 minutes! I’ll say no more about plot now. Watch and enjoy!
Some people may consider the next paragraph a spoiler. I don’t, since it does not reveal any plot points ………. Having watched both Season 1 & now Season 2 in quite a condensed period of time (1 took 12 sessions and 2 took 8) I’ve noticed a couple of things that started getting on my nerves towards the end of season 2. If you don’t want them to get on your nerves too, then skip this paragraph! Firstly, Keifer uses an acting technique known as the ‘Corner Glance’. He first glances downwards, then to the left, then up and to the left and then directly back to where he started, all in quick succession. It’s very effective in portraying someone under pressure having to make quick decisions but I think he overuses it – well he must be overusing it since I’ve started to notice it. The other thing is Carlos Bernard’s (Tony) habit of breathing out in a short sharp exhalation whilst looking at the floor. He does it almost every scene. I think he must have got it from the Phil Mitchell school of acting! Anyway, if you don’t watch the shows all back to back then you probably won’t even notice, except you’ve read this now…. Ooops done it again.. sorry!
For me the most watchable person on screen is Dennis Haybert. His interactions with XXXXXX (you know who) are the best bits for me (apart from the shoot outs of course). Keifer hasn’t displayed a great emotional range so far this season – he does ‘intensity’ very well, but seems unable to emote happiness or joy very well. Ok, it’s not a comedy but he could look a bit more relieved each time his daughter escapes death! (I expect a backlash from the female Keifer fans out there now haha!) At least Elisha gets to run the full gamut of emotions which some of the other main characters don’t seem to get chance to do, It’s just a shame that Kim’s storyline seems a bit separated from the rest of the show. Whatever, it’s good to see that Kim finally toughens up a bit and starts fighting back! Hopefully she’ll have plenty of emotional scars for season 3 to exploit. Carlos Bernard, Xander Berkeley & Reiko Aylesworth all interact well at CTU as control of the situation whips back and forth and the bodies stack up. How many CTU agents are there? Plenty seem to get wiped out anyway!
The rest of the cast, whilst mostly unknowns to me, all give strong performances with the exception of Roseanne's daughter,.. what is her name anyway? She was rubbish.
Despite my little niggles above, I once again thoroughly enjoyed 24. The acting, action, scripts, lighting and special effects are of consistently high standard. The intricate, inter-weaving story-lines and well timed cliff-hangers combine to keep you on the edge of your seat throughout and I am looking forward to getting my hands on Season 3 and finding out whether or not (spoiler deleted here) really (deleted)!
Anyway, Season 2 comes on 6 discs with 1 for ‘extras’. Each disc contains 4 episodes and has the usual commentary, subtitle & language options. The menu’s are simple to use and quite slick. Overall the DVD’s are of high quality. The extras disc contains: ‘On the Button – the Destruction of CTU’ – behind the scenes with the special effects guys A 2 part documentary ’24 Exposed’ Multi-angle scene study of interrogation scene Deleted scenes
Technical stuff - 7 disc set - Language: English - Total running time: 1080 minutes
Warning: This review contains a Red Herring sub plot! Arggh I’m beginning to write reviews in a ‘24’ styley,....multiple ops in a single review, written in real time…. hang on, here comes the clock…..
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How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
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Production Year: 2002 - Thriller - Director: K.C. Bascombe - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over - Starring: Jesse James, Rachel Skarsten, Charles Powell, Linda Purl, Kevin Zegars
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I'm a big fan of 24 but I do think they are in danger of milking the idea too much, as I understand there is a season 4 coming soon. The only thing I find continually irritating is the Kim character particularly because, as Jonathan Ross says, she just doesn't run around enough in those T-shirts any more...
Delicate_Orchid 05.12.2004 23:07
Superb review. I cannot believe that I have still not seen 24 at all. Desiree x
Jack Bauer is having another one of his "very bad days" in the second series of the ... more
ground-breaking real-time thriller24. Once again the hours are ticking by with more guaranteed cliffhangers than a convention of mountain climbers. Holed up in a Los An...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Jack Bauer is having another one of his "very bad days" in the second series of the ... more
ground-breaking real-time thriller24. Once again the hours are ticking by with more guaranteed cliffhangers than a convention of mountain climbers. Holed up in a Los An...
Postage & Packaging: free Super Saver Delivery Availability: Usually dispatched within 2 to 4 weeks...
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