24: SEASON 6
(not rated)
MOVIE: **** (out of 5)
DVD EXPERIENCE: **** (out of 5)
STARRING
Kiefer Sutherland as JACK BAUER
Mary Lynn Rajskub as CHLOE O’BIAN
James Morrison as BILL BUCHANAN
D.B. Woodside as PRESIDENT PALMER
Jayne Atkinson as KAREN HAYES
Peter MacNicol as TOM LENNOX
Created by: Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran
Studio: FOX
BY KEVIN CARR
Unlike most fans of “24,” I only started watching last year on DVD. Starting with Season Five gave me an interesting perspective in that I was introduced to Jack Bauer in his uncompromising glory. He was no longer saddled with love and fear of losing his wife. That was ancient history. Day Five on DVD got me hooked on the series, and I actually caught Day Six on television earlier this year.
Taking a look back at Day Six on DVD, I’m left curious on how they are going to top things (and if they’ll have a chance with the ongoing writer’s strike) next year. For the sixth excursion into CTU, Jack is sprung from a Chinese prison as a negotiating tool for terrorists. And this is a good thing, too, because when the inevitable double-cross comes, Jack is the only one with guts enough to save the day… again and again throughout the season.
Watching any season of “24” on DVD is different than seeing it on a week-by-week basis as it’s broadcast. The flaws of the show, especially in the timing and believability of the premise, works so much better in smaller chunks. But there’s definitely a joy to having a “24” orgy on the weekend and enjoying the entire seasons in one sleepless sitting.
Ultimately, though, you’re not watching this show for believability. You’re watching to see where it will go and how the story can shock and excite you. In Day Six, things are taken farther than ever, with devastating terrorist attacks, family drama and the ups and downs of torture. Certain things are wild and crazy, like Wayne Palmer looking more like a spokesman for Michael Jordan’s cologne than the President of the United States, but most are forgivable. And that adds to the fun.
My favorite part of “24” – and it’s very apparent in this season – is how gray of a show it is. Even in the midst of black and white morals, nothing is sacred, and our emotions are almost always conflicted. Loyalties will spin on a dime, and no one is protected from being a stat in the body-count list. Even as stories come to a close, there are plenty of loose ends, which happen in real life.
All 24 episodes are kept on the first six discs, with the seventh reserved exclusively for bonus features. They range from the promotional (e.g., a Season 7 preview as well as a preview for “Prison Break: Season 2”) to the minutia (e.g., webcast diaries and DVD-ROM exclusives). There’s also a funny bit with Ricky Gervas’ cameo, and if you care to search for it, you can find the Easter egg featuring Bart Simpson crank calling Jack Bauer.
The standard features are also there, including extended and deleted scenes as well as featurettes on shooting the opening scene, make-up effects and the technology of the series. If you can stomach the preachy global warming PSA with Kiefer Sutherland, you can make it to the mobisodes which show Jack’s debriefing after the day is over. One of the most interesting features to me was the sit-down in the writers room where the lead writers discuss the development of the scripts and what might be in store for future episodes.
Like you, I never watched any 24 episodes when they were aired, and actually just started watching a couple months ago. Yesterday I finished Day 6. I love the show, except for one or two things. First, I think most of us like to root for people. We like to attach emotionally to a protagonist, and certainly Jack fits the bill. But almost everyone else in 24 is exchanging white hats for black hats from episode to episode! I can’t latch onto Morris, for instance, because as much as I love his sense of humor and commitment to his wife, it’s only a matter of time before he does or says something completely asinine!
The other issue I take with the show is actually something you list as appealing – the “gray” morality. To me, it’s one thing to push back on something presumed to be black or white, but it’s entirely another to do something clearly wrong and then attempt to justify it based purely on utilitarian principles.
That said, there’s no show like 24 when it comes to emotional connection, and the roller-coaster ride it gives with unexpected twists and turns! Why can’t Jack finally have lasting joy with the women?! Maybe Audry snaps out of it in Season 7, then puts a restraining order on her arrogant father.