Monday, April 20, 2009

24 Season 7: 2AM-3AM Quick Review

Let's skip the headline artwork and get straight to the review:

1) Larry is dead- and it's actually a meaningful death. Moss' death played into the plot by drawing Renee and Jack away from FBI HQ and into the field. Now, Jack had a pretty mad cow-laden piece of comforting words to offer Renee ("I lost a couple of partners too.") and Renee was having none of it. Yet again, Annie Wersching gives a fantastic performance. She's got gravitas, I tellz ya!

2) Tony looks suspicious. No, seriously, what the heck was up with Tony all episode? Shifty-eyed, evasive and downright suspicious, Tony sulked in the background and answered questions with some very unimpressive "Yeah, yeah that's the ticket!" type responses. Not since Jon Lovitz' character "Tommy Flanagan: The Pathological Liar" from SNL have I seen a more obvious liar. Carlos Bernard played it a little too heavy.

3) Mad Cow has rendered Jack impotent. This was kind of annoying, given the fact that Jack had Tony nailed on a lie (thanks to some help from FBI de-briefer Mozelli- who seemed to be writing a "24" fan blog of his own on company time). I liked the tension leading up to Jack's confrontation with Tony- but man was that an obvious writers' gimmick, making Jack have convulsions just as he was about to put Tony under arrest. Ehhhhhh, it's a TV show, I know.

4) Jonas Hodges- best villain since... ? I think Jonas Hodges is the best villain since Charles Logan. Some folks may disagree with me, and that's fine. Hodges' little interaction with the soldier putting him in the paddywagon was fantastic. Hodges is complicated- and he's sympathetic on a very weird level. Jon Voight plays his scenes big, and it works. And how about that single blonde female lawyer (Ally McBeal, anyone?) giving Jonas the suicide pill? Tony sure knows how to pick his ladies. And enter Will Patton's villainous Alan Wilson. A bigger bad guy than Jonas? My brain is buzzing.

5) Next week- if you're worried about spoilers, stop here. Okay, you're still reading. Good- so next week we get the greatest scene imaginable- Jack v. Jonas. The sneak previews look awesome. I cannot begin to describe my enthusiasm for that showdown. What a great buildup for the last few episodes!

So, tonight was a winner. Tony is "evil" still, but things can always change. Let's wait and see, there's still plenty of time left in this season.

12 comments:

wisekrakr said...

Liked your analysis, thanks. Just a thought, brought on by seeing all the blood on Larry's chin. He appeared to have taken two shots from a huge shotgun at pretty clsose range. Vest or no vest, he was hurt, enough for internal bleeding, it looks like, from his mouth. Could Tony have made a snap judgment that Larry was toast anyway and took advantage? It's more of a mercy killing than cold murder. So maybe Tony is not as evil as he could be?

jay toby said...

It was so great, amist his deteriorating condition, seeing Jack piece together everything and realizing Tony's the bad dude. Yes, annoying job by the writers for him to have a seizure there (and how would Tony steal the needles off Jack of all people??) but with 2 minutes left in the episode, of course you saw that coming.

Brian Pelts said...

Yeah, as much as I wanted to be into the episode it gave me a pretty "meh" vibe for the most part. I think it's because you know it's more of a transitional hour than anything else; we already know we're advancing another level up the baddie ladder. If this season were a video game, this episode would be the cut scene before you start the Boss level.

Rickey said...

Next week, Will Patton's character absolutely needs to have a scene where he places a little toy space shuttle on Hodges' hospital bedside and walks away.

"I got something coming up, something kinda big. You just might be proud of me."

TheJackSack said...

@Rickey: That right there is fucking gold. And since you mentioned "Armageddon," Hodges' meeting with the President kinda reminds me of the scene where Bruce Willis delivers his demands to Billy Bob ("None of us want to pay taxes anymore... ever.").

@wisekrakr: I thought about that as well- but then Tony had to go and plot the explosion of two dozen federal agents in the abandoned apt. building. Fans of "The Wire" could imagine a moment where Galvez runs into Snoop and Chris hiding bodies in the same building! If you don't get the reference, this means you need to watch "The Wire."

@jackster: I was more shocked that Tony could boost Jack's needles. I was saying to myself "That's the best lift he's made yet!"

@Brian: you loves yourself some shoot-em-ups, I bet. Well, I think this season will deliver large amounts of pain and death in due time.

JustABill said...

I have to say that I like this twist. There's no turning back now. Tony killed Larry, tried to kill Renee, and basically taunted Jack. I soo want Renee to get Tony, but it will probably be Jack.

Dr. Alice said...

I loved Hodges' little scene with the soldier, too. It cemented his insistence all season that his company, and his men, had been dissed by the US gov't. And as you said, it made him just a little more sympathetic. But I still think hurling his CEO over the railing was cold.

Squish said...

Darth Tony just got a whole lot more evil then?

I fear that we may have a full on Jack/Tony showdown on our hands. And course, if this is so, I think we know who won't make it. :\

Amy Vernon said...

I am going to try my damnedest to get this phrase into a conversation somewhere: "mad cow-laden piece of comforting words"

J. Todd Hatcher said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
J. Todd Hatcher said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
J. Todd Hatcher said...

While it's bizarre and painful seeing Jack so vulnerable and barely able to function (though he's still a solid detective if I've ever seen one), the thing I'm happy about is that they've finally made 24 personal again. Despite the Tony turn, knowing their history just makes things that more impactful. Plus Jack's back to trying to balance his family and work again with the whole Kim situation.

..and yeah, Jack having a seizure at the most inopportune moment ever was the oldest trick in the book.

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