24: Live Another Day Review

‘You probably think I’m at a disadvantage. I promise you, I’m not.’

Amid mountains of hype and raised expectations, Jack Bauer and his deathly stare has finally returned to televisions around the globe in the new Fox event series 24: Live Another Day. Not as much a reinvention as a continuation, 24: LAD (as it has become affectionately known throughout social media) offers us a different Jack Bauer than previously seen. This updated Jack is no longer working around a system that accepts him blindly; he is now working against a system that wants him locked away…constitutional rights be damned.

Jack’s return in Episodes 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM manages to showcase the various aspects fans have long-loved about the character, while adding layers of methodical desperation. It serves as a vessel with which star Kiefer Sutherland can continue his nuanced portrayal of a man who will stop at nothing to do the right thing, all the while knowing he will be relentlessly hunted by the very men he vows to protect.

Jack has been on the run for four years when CIA operatives in locate him in London, tipped off by an an unknown source. Upon a seemingly easy capture, Jack is brought back to a CIA off-site location where the crux of our new story begins to unfold. Is he truly here to stop a Presidential assassination on foreign soil? Is there more to his story? How long until he bores of these petty rules and begins causing maximum damage. Time will tell.

While we wait, we are treated to characters like Kate Morgan (Chuck’s Yvonne Strahovski), a Jack Bauer-in-waiting. A slighted operative, reassigned due to her missing the seemingly obvious information that her husband sold trade secrets to the Chinese, Kate is determined to prove that Bauer has more going on than a simple apprehension on foreign soil. Through various means within these initial two hours, Kate goes more and more against protocol, while also establishing firmly that she is the one agent who can go toe-to-toe with Bauer himself.

We are introduced to various other characters throughout these two hours that we will come to know better in the following ten: Steve Navarro (Benjamin Bratt) is the CIA director with little personality and even less common sense. Erik Ritter (Gbenga Akinnagbe)  is Kate’s doppelganger, and also the one guy who wants her job more than she does. Jordan Reed (Giles Matthey), the new Chloe to Kate’s Jack as Jordan is more than willing to break CIA protocol to get Kate out of a jam. How about Adrian Cross (Michael Wincott)? Is this genius, underground hacker more involved than we know? Expect more from these characters going forward as these first two episodes served as nothing more than a fun reunion tour for fans, as well as a launching pad for newcomers.

We also are treated to a return of a few fan favorites. James Heller (William Devane) is now President of the United States, quite a promotion since we last saw him. His daughter, and the former tortured love of Jack’s life, Audrey (Kim Raver), joins Heller with her new husband, Mark (Tate Donovan)…who also happens to be Heller’s Chief-of-Staff…and the one guy who never wants Audrey to hear Jack Bauer’s name ever again, even if that means handing Bauer over to the Russians under the guise of National Security. Is it to protect her or simply out of jealousy? Oh, the drama! You also will be treated to a potential mastermind…one who will seem familiar to Game of Thrones fans, but will remain nameless here this far into the season.

Last, but certainly not least, is Jack’s right-hand: Chloe O’Brian. Hardened herself, we see a Chloe we have not seen before. New viewers will see her as a damaged friend to Bauer, yet the dedicated among you will see a darker, embittered Chloe than glanced in previous seasons, with her ultimate backstory still to-be-determined. It is nice to see actress Mary Lynn Rajskub finally able to stretch with her character after numerous seasons of quirky repetition.

Longtime fans of 24 have absolutely nothing to fear here, this is essentially the same show amplified by the tightening necessary for a truncated season. Those new to the series will not find anything groundbreaking, but it will not take long before you come to understand why fans love this series and this character so much.

The action is heart-racing and there are several set-pieces that seem far too cinematic for a television show. The writing has, thus far, lost some of the cheesier plotlines that drug down previous seasons (need we remind you of the cougar incident?). Most importantly, Jack IS back! Fans of the show can rejoice in knowing their former television passion-binge has returned with a vengeance and can sit back and enjoy this ride we never thought would come our way again.

Like its hero, feigning capture at the hands of the CIA, 24: Live Another Day has us completely in its grasps. And just like our avenging hero, that moment also causes us to pause, raise our hands in the air…and smile.

Welcome back, Jack. We’ve missed you.

Aaron Peteron
The Hollywood Outsider