24: Season 3

Thus reads the back of the boxed DVD set.Fox's primetime hit series =24= has peaked new heights in edge-of-your-seat storytelling with its third - and best - season. Commercials provide the only pause, the only letup, in this colossally suspenseful terror-trip.For those who would do so, there is no need to bash it for being less than perfect - nobody could expect absolute flawlessness from 980 minutes of television drama, no matter how refined. I will briefly mention the two foremost problems. (1) That so many events of such large and interrelated significance would take place, all within twenty-four hours, stretches probability way beyond the breaking point. (2) I have had the privilege of working occasionally with a substantial number of Spanish speakers; consequently, I can say that, for the show, the Mexicans should have spoken to and among each other always in Spanish, very nearly never in English (a problem with the Czecks in the first season as well). But the handling of the story is so very good that, understanding and accepting these and other minor flaws, most of us can suspend our disbelief.Jack is back! - this time to stop terrorists from unleashing a weaponized virus into the American public. The quest to capture it takes him through twists and turns, to a Los Angeles prison, northern Mexico, run-down neighborhoods, a hotel, subway, and an elementary school. This time the threat is biological ... on a virtually unimaginable scale.Since the series began in the fall of 2001, coinciding, as it would, with the awful tragedy of 9/11, the characters have become quite distinguishable, possessing interesting personalities, and colorful - if in some cases annoying - subtleties. Most of the acting appears quite convincing; as network dramas go, there is minimal contrivance. I shall go quickly through those at CTU and the president's company, first; followed by the terrorists, second. Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) has a secret this time, and he seems genuinely fearful of being exposed. We have a Tony (Carlos Bernard) who, not suprisingly, is down-to-earth, sometimes rigidly so, yet every now and then we see that he carries at his side a sense of compassion. Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth) has married, and though occasionally it doesn't look like she's handling things splendidly at first, we see quite the turnaround later. Kim Baeur works at CTU, not far removed from boyfriend Chase Edmunds, a newbie to the team. Those who like having Kim remain in the series but dislike the idea of her working for CTU should consider the alternative: Kim, on the outside, getting herself into further trouble. We watched this during Season One, then we were thrown the same KIND of thing in Season Two. Chase Edmunds is a tough guy; the more we see of him, the more we think, `Here is a would-be Jack'. Chloe (a quirky, annoying, protocol-wary technician), Adam (efficiency-loving), and Gaiel (cautious, ostensibly a mole) are new sign-ons as well. Finally, getting much more screen time than in Season Two, Regional Director Ryan Chappelle - a no-nonsense, give-it-to-me-straight boss. President David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) remains the strong moral compass we grew to admire in the first two seasons. But this time, it's not just him dealing with interpersonal problems within his own campaign and the ensuing damage to the outside world. Here we see how he responds to new situations, posed by the competing political party (Republicans, we may say, given Sherry's Season One statement to that effect) toward his own campaign, as opposed to the press and personal staff adversaries of the earlier seasons. And later in the third, we come upon a nasty and inevitable dirty struggle between the president and his much-needed contributor, Alan, who tries to extort him. In the middle is Alan's wife, Julia, not wanting to get involved but eventually forced to. How will David deal with new problems that tempt new compromises, as his steadfast morality goes head to head with the convenience of relativism? Taking Mike's place as chief advisor is his brother Wayne, whose broader philosophy is at least faintly like, however much less devious than, Sherry's. She, too, is back ... with intent more malicious than anything we've seen from her yet.Now, for the terrorists. In particular, Joaquim de Almeida does a terrific job portraying Ramon Salazar, the initially incarcerated leader of a north Mexican drug cartel. He looks, feels, and smells like a bad guy in every conventional way. His younger brother Hector is believable as a second-man in charge (even if the director should not have cast them as brothers; they don't `look' at all like family). Nina returns, escaping confinement in North Africa, and as we've seen what she is capable of in One and Two, it is not that difficult to imagine. Former CTU mole, conspirator in a domestic nuclear attack, and now buyer of a biological superweapon, Nina is more of a matter-of-fact `bad guy': a cold, sinister, `I-just-enjoy-this'-type killer. Michael Amador is an arms dealer, reserved in nature, and we think we know his intentions .... Alvers is a loyal agent in Stephen Saunders' plan, sent to distribute the virus in L.A. Saunders himself is the worst terrorist - a man with a single weakness - as he sets into motion a diabolical arrangement that more terrible than anything that's come before it. A final note: a teenager named Kyle Singer, while not a terrorist per se, constitutes part of the plan to deliver the package.Several hours into the season, a drastic plot shift will hit most first-time viewers more or less like a freight train. As in One and Two, perhaps the best reason the bad guys keep falling is, well, they underestimate Jack. Consistently: from Hector to Jack's airplane guard to Ramon to Amador to Alvers and even Saunders. Nina seems to be the only exception ... which makes sense enough, given their past. (Sorry, I can't reveal what happens to her.)I don't think I've ever seen one other network series attempt what =24= has. It would not be exaggerating, nor employing hyperbole, to say that if enough things went wrong over the course of trying to take and contain the virus, it is entirely possible that the vast majority of the WORLD's population might have perished, probably within several weeks. In no other show have I witnessed TV drama so carefully weave together a tapestry of plot and subplot, push the limits of suspense, raise the stakes as high - with so very, very many lives caught in the balance - or represent so tenacious, so persistent, or so very deadly-serious a counter-terrorist agent as Jack Baeur.The DVD set contains six episode discs, as well as a seventh for commentary, deleted scenes, and other extras.

I am continually impressed with the way 24 delivers on all levels, especially going into season 3.I am a late bloomer to the series. I try not to get addicted to television and suspected I might with this show. I had a few shows I already watched and didn't want to add another.But during a seminar by Robert McKee, he told us a story about becoming addicted to the show that finally made me go the video store and rent it. I don't need to tell you that I bought the first two seasons and after two weeks ordered the third from amazon.What I do need to tell anyone who might read this review is that it very quickly became my favorite show on television and it achieved that status by telling one of the most interesting, heart pounding, nail biting stories I've ever sat down to watch - beginning, middle and end.Most shows offer a captivating premise and get lost from the original idea. (Most movies do the same for that matter). Most shows have a gimmick or a great cast with chemistry that quickly fades with each passing season and most shows tell a story we've all seen at least one hundred thousand times. 24 doesn't make any of those mistakes - not in seasons 1, 2 or 3.24 delivers. It plays more like a film than a TV show and the restraints forced on the creators, writers, producers, actors, directors and crew somehow makes the show even stronger.For anyone out there who has tried to write any kind of story, imagine how hard it would be to effectively tell a story as capivating as 24 over the course of one single day -- and now try to make every single hour of it a show stopping hour of drama on television. To me, it seems a near impossible task. And having the love of storytelling that I do, I've actually taken notes from this show. Yes, it's THAT good.In response to the constant badgering the show receives for its use of torture and violence, yes - it's brutal. One 30 second clip communicates that rather effectively. No, torture is not glorified on this show. It shows the consequences of what violence does to people, about the consequences people must face - professionally and personally - as a result of their choices, including Jack Bauer. And it is important to remember that this is also a FICTIONAL storyline. It's unfortunate our world has changed to a point where we can see the parallels between the show and real life, but this is a healthy way to release those fears that are maybe a little too real to us today.I love the show. I love that there's a crew of people who put themselves out - I can't even imagine their exhaustion - for working so hard to stay one step ahead of the audience. To raise the bar so high that they don't even know if they'll make it is a pretty amazing thing.I wonder about how Kiefer is able to stay maxed out for 14 hours a day, six days week to make 24 hours of our entertainment so satisfying. And he produces the show. I don't know how one human being can expend so much energy without fizzling. I'm in awe of him and of all of the people who are behind the camera doing the same thing. I appreciate their hard work and am pleased to be addicted to such a groundbreaking show.