24 - Season 3 (2004)

After a long hiatus from television due to the writer's strike last season, Season 7 of 24 will premiere next year on January 11 for a 2 night, 4 episode event. I am a relatively new 24 fan, having been introduced to the show by a friend. For those that don't know, 24 is a show that tells its story in real time. Each 1 hour episode corresponds to an actual hour in a day, with 24 episodes in all making each season the equivalent of 1 day. The stories typically involve government agent Jack Bauer, played by Keifer Sutherland, in a race against time to save the United States from impending terrorists threats and attacks. The show is filled with edge of your seat action and plot twists. It really is the best in serialized TV nowadays. Season 1 - Day 1 introduces us to Jack Bauer who works at the Counter Terrorist Unit, CTU, in Los Angeles. His wife and daughter are kidnapped and used as leverage against Bauer to force him to assassinate presidential candidate David Palmer. While Season 1 may not seem like much after watching the rest of the series, it's a very good start and pulls you in right away. It also sets the tone and foundation for the rest of the series. Season 2 - Day 2 occurs 18 months after Season 1 and Jack Bauer must stop a nuclear bomb detonation in Los Angeles by Middle Eastern terrorists. I ranked Season 2 a a step below the first season because it was very slow to start and Kim Bauer's subplot was not very interesting. Season 3 - Day 3 occurs 3 years after Season 2 and Jack Bauer is a heroin addict from working undercover in a Mexican drug cartel. He successfully put away the man in charge, Ramon Salazar, but must break him out of prison to stop a deadly virus from being sold on the black market. Season 3 I ranked a bit lower than the last two seasons because the formula is becoming very apparent and twists and turns are more predictable. Season 4 - Day 4 occurs 18 months after Season 3 and Jack Bauer now works for the Department of Defense under Secretary James Heller instead of CTU. A train robbery and the kidnapping of Secretary Heller and his daughter, Audrey Raines, has Jack Bauer working alongside CTU to save his boss as well as stop terrorists from melting down a number of power plants across the United States. Season 4 really brought the game back to 24 with the writers somehow working around the predictability of the show kicking it off with intensity right from the start. Season 5 - Day 5 occurs 18 months after Season 4. Jack is presumed dead, but is brought back out of hiding when the only four people who know he's alive are attacked. Nerve gas has been supplied to Russian separatists who may have ordered the hit, but a deeper conspiracy is at play. Like Season 4, Season 5 also hits the ground running and just might have the biggest surprises of the series so far. I have yet to review Season 6 and will return with that and 24: Redemption after Season 7 finishes. In the meanwhile I highly recommend the series. :)