24 is a current U.S. television action/drama series, produced by the Fox Network and syndicated worldwide. It is named 24 because the action on the show occurs in "real-time", with each season covering the events of one day in the life of Jack Bauer and his colleagues at the Counter Terrorist Unit in Los Angeles, as well as the actions of both various terrorists and the White House. Every episode in a season covers the events of one hour in that day (hence 24 episodes per season). 24 makes frequent use of split-screens to show the actions of various characters concurrently.

24 was created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran (La Femme Nikita), and premiered in 2001.

Overview

24 is a thriller shown in "real-time", with each minute of airtime corresponding to a minute in the lives of the characters. This real-time nature is emphasized via the ticking of an on-screen digital clock appearing from time to time. Subtracting for U.S. advertising breaks, an episode actually lasts around 44 minutes. Action that takes place during the commercials is not shown. Throughout every episode the action switches between different locations, following the parrallel adventures of different characters all involved in the same story. The result is that there are long sections of narrative for each character that is not seen, and mundane actions (such as car journeys) are skipped just as they are in conventional drama.

The "real-time" technique is not frequently seen in television series, but it is not new. For example, the "real-time" format was used in an episode of M*A*S*H. In film, the technique dates back to at least 1949, with the film noir The Set-Up. 24 also borrows its use of split-screen techniques from Timecode , a film released in 2000, to show events in two different places at once. Despite not having invented the "real-time" and split-screen techniques, 24's techniques are still seen as innovative, undoubtedly being the most extensive use of these techniques to date.

24 has received both critical and popular acclaim, becoming a true "watercooler" show (i.e., a TV show that everyone talks about the next day). However the necessities of its format sometimes lead to egregious padding and some manifest absurdities (for example, traffic jams are surprisingly uncommon for a show set mostly in Southern California). The show is notable for its unusually accurate approach to technology, although many have found Season 3 and Season 4 to be less accurate than its predecessors -- it has shown the use of the operating system Linux multiple times, and in one season, touched on the Mac vs. PC debate.

At first sight, it may seem as if characters rarely eat, rest, or take bathroom breaks - and this is a common complaint made by people who haven't seen the show - but in fact, due to the sheer number of storylines, characters will usually only be seen for at most 15 minutes per episode, so there is plenty of time for these things to happen offscreen.

In the first season, Kiefer Sutherland, who plays the main character Jack Bauer, won a Golden Globe for his performances; Surnow and Cochran (the creators of the show) won an Emmy Award. In 2004, the show won the Golden Globe for Best Drama Series. 24 won Emmy Awards for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series, Outstanding Single-Camera Sound Mixing For A Series, Outstanding Casting For A Drama Series, and Outstanding Stunt Coordination.

Main cast

See List of characters in 24 for a more thorough list.

• Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer
• Leslie Hope as Teri Bauer (Season 1)
• Sarah Clarke as Nina Myers (Season 1, recurring seasons 2 - 3)
• Sarah Wynter as Kate Warner (Season 2, guest star season 3)
• Elisha Cuthbert as Kim Bauer (Seasons 1-3)
• Xander Berkeley as George Mason (Season 2, recurring season 1)
• Penny Johnson Jerald as Sherry Palmer (Season 2, recurring seasons 1, 3)
• Carlos Bernard as Tony Almeida (Seasons 2-3, recurring seasons 1, 4)
• Reiko Aylesworth as Michelle Dessler (Seasons 3, recurring seasons 2, 4)
• James Badge Dale as Chase Edmunds (Season 3)
• Dennis Haysbert as Senator/President/Former President David Palmer (Seasons 1 - 3, recurring season 4)
• Alberta Watson as Erin Driscoll (Season 4)
• William Devane as Secretary of Defense James Heller (Season 4)
• Kim Raver as Audrey Raines (Season 4)
• Lana Parrilla as Sarah Gavin (Season 4, initially a guest cast member)
• Roger Cross as Curtis Manning (Season 4, initially a guest cast member)

Haysbert and Devane received the 'And' credit during their runs on the show.

Season synopses

Every season so far follows a similar format, centering around a central threat posed by terrorists. Surprise sacrifices, backstabbings, and other plot twists are common. Besides the central threat, each season has several major subplots that span the majority of the episodes, interwoven with the main plot. Throughout each season, Jack Bauer faces drastic personal anguish in addition to his tasks to stop the terrorists. Each season starts at a different time of the day in Pacific Standard Time.

Season 1

The first season (2001–2002) revolves around an assassination attempt on Senator David Palmer, an African American candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination, on the day of the California Primary. The central character is Jack Bauer, a former Delta Force member who now works for the fictional Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) in Los Angeles. Bauer becomes personally as well as professionally involved when his wife and daughter are kidnapped by the people behind the assassination.

Major subplots:

• A mole at CTU is sabotaging efforts to stop the assassination
• Kim and Teri Bauer are kidnapped
• Political scandals threaten to erupt, centered around Senator Palmer's son killing his sister's rapist
• Jack's personal anguish: worried about the safety of his family

The season starts and ends at: 12:00am (midnight - LA time); the action begins in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (4:00pm, Kuala Lumpur time). Although it is not clear what year the series is set in, presumably it is for the 2004 election.

The season has a dramatic and unexpected ending: the death of Teri Bauer. Many fans were dismayed by this sudden plot twist, while others applauded 24's genre-defying willingness to kill major characters with little warning. As a consolation to fans who hated the fact that Teri died, the producers filmed an alternate ending in which Teri, Kim, and Jack are reunited. This alternate ending is available on the Season 1 DVD boxed set, although it is noticeably less dramatic than the actual ending aired.

Season 2

The second season (2002–2003) takes place a year and a half later and follows the work of now-President David Palmer and agent Jack Bauer to stop terrorists from detonating a nuclear bomb in Los Angeles.

Major subplots:

• Kim is on the run, having rescued a child from her abusive father
• Kate Warner suspects that her sister's Middle Eastern fiancé is a terrorist
• President Palmer faces traitors in his own cabinet, who attempt to remove him from power to advance their own agenda
• George Mason, director of CTU, is dying of radiation exposure
• Jack's personal anguish: worried about Kim; develops a heart condition after being tortured by terrorists

The season starts and ends at: 8:00am (LA time); the action begins in Seoul, South Korea (midnight, Seoul time).

After the nuclear bomb is disposed of safely, the story focuses on the United States' retaliation against the people responsible for constructing it. A recorded conversation between a terrorist involved with the bomb and high-ranking officials of three Middle Eastern countries (which are never specified) is used to implicate those countries in the plot. However, Palmer is reluctant to order military action against them until he has absolute proof that the recording is genuine. Several members of his staff then vote to relieve Palmer of his position under Section 4 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, believing his hesitation to be a sign of indecision and weakness. The Vice-President then orders military strikes against the three countries to continue.

Jack, Michelle and Tony race to find the evidence that the recording is a forgery, and they eventually discover that a group of American businessmen fabricated it in order to wage war with the Middle East so that they could benefit from rocketing oil prices that would result. The strikes are called off and Palmer is reinstated as President after the proof is produced, thanks largely to Sherry Palmer (who risks her life). The seven cabinet members and vice president tender their resignations (Palmer does not accept them), and Palmer then tells his staff that he believes that the strictest evidence of hostile intent is required before waging war. The entire storyline has thinly veiled references to President Bush's foreign policy in the Middle East following the September 11th attacks and the "three Middle Eastern countries" could be a reference to the Axis of Evil.

Like the first season, the second ends with a surprise twist. The nuclear bomb situation is resolved without massive loss of life, but President Palmer collapses after being attacked with a biological weapon, presumably in an assassination attempt. Viewers were forced to wait until the third season to see whether Palmer survived the attack. The sudden shift from nuclear to biological also foreshadows events in the third season, which centers around the threat of an engineered virus being set loose on the general public.

There were several large plot threads left unresolved from the second season into the third and fourth seasons, most notably the characters of "Max" and Trepkos, two men who seemed to be the driving force behind the day's events, as well as President Palmer's assassination attempt. How the assassination attempt ties into a war for oil is something that never quite fit together, and many have suspected that they may have had some larger and more sinister goal in mind. They were never seen again, and the only clue to their fate is a cryptic hint given by Wayne Palmer in the premiere of season 3. However, it has been revealed that the events directly preceding season 3 will be chronicled in the upcoming video game, currently in production. Presumably, the fates of Max & Trepkos will be dealt with, as well as how several of the characters at CTU in the third season began working there.

Season 3

The third season (2003–2004) takes place three years after the second season and centers around the threat of a deadly virus being released in Los Angeles while President Palmer is visiting to participate in a debate with his chief opponent in his re-election campaign.

Major subplots:

• President Palmer faces scandal during his re-election campaign involving his official doctor (unusually a civilian) and girlfriend (whose ex-husband may have 'cooked the books').
• Strained romantic relationships between Tony and Michelle, Kim and Chase
• Jack's personal anguish: recovering from a heroin addiction that he developed as part of an undercover operation

The season starts and ends at: 1:00pm (LA time). This is the first season where the action starts in the United States.

The driver's license of a 19-year-old character in the third season, Kyle Singer, shows his date of birth as 1987, thus setting the third season in 2006 or 2007, with the first season therefore being in 2002 or 2003. However, some believe that since the first and third seasons fall in Presidential election years, it could be a mistake and the seasons actually take place in 2000, 2002 and 2004. However, like The West Wing, it is possible that elections in the 24-world do not coincide with ours.

Unlike the first two seasons, the third does not end with a sudden plot twist. It is also the first season which has not concluded with a silent timer, though the silent timer was used earlier in the season when Jack was forced by the terrorists to murder his boss, Ryan Chapelle. Despite the lack of a last-minute plot twist, important events occur at the end of the third season that have major consequences for the next season. First, Jack chops Chase's hand off with an axe to detach a timed-release device containing the virus that was secured to Chase's wrist, thus saving both their lives. Second, Tony turns himself in to the authorities for his role in helping the terrorist mastermind escape in order to save his wife's life. Third, President Palmer decides not to run for re-election due to his ex-wife Sherry being murdered under suspicious circumstances. Presumably, Vice President James 'Jim' Prescott took over the Democratic Party ticket.

One of the greatest successes of the first season was that any one of the characters could have been good or evil. To bring back this feel, and to revamp the show, the producers decided not to renew the contracts of most of the cast. Thus, many fans see the first three seasons as a trilogy of sorts.

Season 4

The season starts and ends at 7:00 AM

The fourth season (2005) is set a year and a few months after the third and sees Jack, now working for Secretary of Defense James Heller, caught up in an elaborate terrorist plot which involves both men and the daughter of Heller, Audrey Raines, who doubles as his chief policy assistant and Jack's lover (whilst married, but separated). Jack must work with CTU and Erin Driscoll, the new director and woman who fired him, to uncover what is happening. Again, one or more moles is revealed to inhabit CTU to aid the terrorists. Unlike previous seasons, which focused on a singular threat, this season (so far) is based around a vaguely Arabic terrorist named Habib Marwan who controls an unknown number of Middle Eastern terrorist cells, either working independently to destabilize the United States, or working together towards a larger goal. Marwan worked undercover at the Defense Contractor McLennan-Forster, which allows him access to advanced military technology, such as the Dobsen Override and the nuclear football transponder. McLennan-Forster also seemed to be involved with the terrorist strikes, however, that subplot has been abandoned after two episodes, and it is currently unknown how deep their involvement goes or if it will resurface.

Based in part on the success of their earlier summer programs such as The O.C., the Fox Network decided to implement a year-round schedule, and decided to air the entire season, without any hiatuses, over 19 weeks - with double episodes airing twice in the first week, and another at the end of the season. Utilizing the extended planning session that this opportunity afforded the writers, they attempted to map out the season like never before, but as the season wore on, they eventually fell back to writing on an episode by episode basis, without any planning or foreknowledge.

This was particularly evident in the way the story was told. Unlike previous seasons, which all began with the discovery of the threat and went through the investigation, the containment of the threat and then often followed the aftermath, season four began with no one knowing what the threat was to be, and the characters - and audience - were kept in the dark for several episodes.

When the season began every character from the first three seasons was absent except for Jack Bauer, President Keeler and Chloe O'Brian. However, as the season went on several characters came back, including Tony Almeida, Michelle Dessler and Mike Novick. In future episodes more familiar faces are scheduled to reappear including David Palmer (seasons 1-3) and Chase Edmunds (season 3).

There have been many criticisms of season 4, most of them resting on its complete disregard for the real time format, with characters getting anywhere within Los Angeles within 10 minutes, the complete implausibility of most of the season's plotlines, and some plots which could be interpreted as a rehash of season 2, including the multiple nuclear threats, and the invoking of the 25th Amendment. In addition, it has also been sharply criticized for its portrayal of people of Turkish descent as terrorists.

Plot

A) The Train Crash

The terrorists first detonate a truck bomb, leading to a train derailment and the loss of 32 lives. The train was also carrying the Dobsen Override, a device created by the Department of Defense to remotely control America's nuclear power plants, which was acquired by the terrorists.

B) Kidnapping Heller

Secretary of Defense Heller and his daughter Audrey were kidnapped, so that their trial could be broadcast over the internet for alleged crimes against humanity. Later, however, it was revealed this was a ploy to generate an enormous amount of internet traffic so they could hack the firewalls of America's 104 nuclear power plants undetected. They were both rescued by Jack Bauer, but the firewall breach succeeded, and the terrorists gained control of America's nuclear power plants.

C) The Override

Marwan attempted to use the override to cause a meltdown of every nuclear power plant in the country. The override was essential to facilitate the mid-air sequestering of President Keeler aboard Air Force One, which was vital to Marwan's next phase of the operation. Jack Bauer, along with the Edgar Styles , again managed to thwart the terrorists by securing the override with the loss of only one nuclear power plant. However, the catastrophe created enough of a diversion for Marwan to succeed with his original intent, keeping Keeler airborne.

D) Shooting Down Keeler

The terrorists secured the services of Mitch Anderson, an ex-Air Force mercenary, who stole an F-117 stealth aircraft from an Air Force Base and launched an attack on Air Force One. Despite CTU's best efforts, Anderson's assault succeeded, and Air Force One crashed in the Mojave Desert. President Keeler barely survived, but his son and most of the crew were unfortunately lost. His Cabinet (assisted by David Palmer's old Chief Of Staff, Mike Novick, drawing an interesting parallel between seasons 2 and 4) quickly enacted the 25th Amendment, swearing Vice President Logan in as the new Acting President of the United States.

E) Acquire The Football

Amidst the wreckage of Air Force One, the Nuclear Football survived intact (What Marwan planned to do if the football did not survive is not stated). Marwan, presumably using technology salvaged form his employment at McLennan-Forster, was able to track the football to a campsite, where it was in the custody of two campers who had managed to find it and, on the advice of Jack Bauer, had run with it to a nearby power station. Marwan and his men acquired the football, but it was quickly recovered by Jack Bauer. The victory was short lived, however, when it was determined Marwan had stolen enough pages from the football's "playbook" to be able to activate a nuclear weapon.

F) Manipulate America's Nuclear Arsenal

With pages of the playbook in hand, Marwan is able to triangulate the position of a nuclear warhead that is being transported to Iowa. Conveniently, Marwan has associates in the area who quickly ambush the convoy and procure the weapon, with the apparent intent to detonate it as soon as possible.

Season 5

Season 5 has been unofficially confirmed, with David Fury joining the crew as a writer/executive producer.

Miscellaneous information

• A scene from the pilot episode depicting a Boeing 747 exploding was toned down for broadcast in the wake of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, which had occurred less than two months earlier.

• After the original November 25, 2003 broadcast of 24, Kiefer Sutherland broke character to address the issue of gun safety, most likely to waive Fox of liability in case someone attempted to recreate the Russian Roulette scenes. Sutherland gave a promotion for an organization called Americans For Gun Safety Foundation.

• Alberta Watson was hired for the first season but was ill and couldn't work, so her character was recast with Tamara Tunie and renamed Alberta. Watson later joined the cast in season four.

• DVD Seasons One through Three are available in DVD box sets, each containing all 24 episodes of a season. The DVDs present the episodes in widescreen (as it was aired on FOX's High-Definition Channel and enhanced for 16x9 TVs) and, in Seasons 2 and 3, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround. The DVD set for Season 1 contains an alternate ending. The DVD sets for Seasons 2 and 3 both contained featurettes and deleted scenes, and the Season 3 set contains a preview of Season Four.

• A graphic novel based on the show and titled One Shot was published in July 2004. Its story is set prior to the first season of the show, and details Jack Bauer's first day on the job at CTU, involving debriefing a former terrorist from the IRA and later defending her life from her former associates.

• To keep viewers hooked, 24 was aired more than once a week in many countries. Most notably, the first season aired with back-to-back episodes three nights a week in Germany, making for a run of barely four weeks; and during its Australian airing, season one was shown twice a week, and season three regularly aired as double episodes.

• A video game taking place between seasons two and three is currently in development by Sony Computer Entertainment's Cambridge Studio exclusively for the PlayStation 2.

• For the fourth season, Fox is giving its affiliates two public service announcements that portray Muslims in a positive light, due to criticisms raised by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. [1]

• A Japanese pharmaceutical company, Otsuka Seiyaku, has started an advertising campaign for Calorie Mate; a nutrient snack bar featuring Jack Bauer. Titled "Calorie Mate x 24", the first 15 second episode aired from April 9th. 15 second and 30 second versions of episode 1 (12:00.00 - 12:00.30) can be downloaded from the Calorie Mate x 24 website.

Fan phone

In Episode 5 of Season 4, the cell phone of Debbie (a minor character) could be heard ringing. A close-up shot was then shown of the phone's LCD, and a real phone number (as opposed to a 555 number) was visible. Many fans noticed this and began calling the number as soon as the episode concluded, however the number led only to a voice mail box. Persistent fans soon discovered that a member of the show's crew would eventually answer and chat with you. Among those answering was Joseph Hodges, production manager of the show. If the show was shooting at the time, you could even speak to a cast member.

Syndication

24 is syndicated worldwide, being broadcast in the following countries:

• In Argentina on Telefé (terrestrial television) and FOX (cable television).
• In Australia on the Seven Network and FOX8.
• In Austria on ORF 1 and ATV+ .
• In Belgium on KanaalTwee (Dutch) and RTL TVI (French).
• In Brazil on TV Globo.
• In Canada on the Global Television network and Télé-Québec.
• In Chile on RedTV.
• In Czech Republic on TV Nova.
• In Danmark on TV 2 .
• In Finland on MTV3 and Subtv (both channels are operated by Alma Media).
• In France on Pay TV channel Canal Plus and on Free TV channel TF1.
• In Germany on RTL II.
• In Hong Kong on TVB Pearl and Cable TV channel AXN .
• In Italy first on Pay TV channel Tele Piu' (which is now Sky Italia), then on Pay TV channel FOX Italia (part of the basic bouquet of Sky Italia) and also on Free TV channel Rete 4.
• In Israel on Channel 10.
• In the Netherlands on Yorin .
• In New Zealand on TV3 .
• In Norway on TV 2 .
• In Poland on Canal Plus and Polsat .
• In Portugal on 2: (terrestrial television).
• In Serbia and Montenegro on TVPink.
• In Slovenia on RTV SLO 1 .
• In Spain on Antena 3.
• In Sweden on TV4.
• In Switzerland on SF2 (German) and TSR 1 (French).
• In Turkey on CNBC-e
• In the United Kingdom on the BBC for the first two seasons and Sky One
• In the United States on Fox Network. Season 2 was also shown on the FX Network (which is also owned by News Corporation's Fox Entertainment Group), but this was discontinued for the third season.

External links

• Fox's 24 website
• Episode recaps (Television Without Pity)
• TV Tome's 24 guide
• 24weblog, posting news about the series and the actors
• Ryan's Report, the #1 portal of gossip & spoilers
• CTU Secure, a fan resource and news center