AddictedTo24 Exclusive: 24's Enduring Legacy

November 6, 2001 - May 24, 2010

By: Rita I. Ray
Blog Creator/Editor

(Contributions by Lisa Thomas)

11/6/11


"This has been the role of a lifetime, and I will never be able to fully express my appreciation to everyone who made it possible, but when all is said and done, it is the loyal worldwide fan base that made it possible for me to have the experience of playing the role of Jack Bauer and for that, I am eternally grateful."


-Kiefer Sutherland on the end of '24'

Very few television shows can truly be said to be groundbreaking. The premiere of a new drama on FOX 10 years ago today changed television forever. 24 established a new type of real-time drama for television and Jack Bauer as an iconic hero known world-wide. 


Premiering a couple of months after 9/11, audiences were ready for an on-screen hero like Jack Bauer who would relentlessly go after the bad guys even if he had to break some rules along the way. Season one was written before 9/11 not about the type of terrorists the preceding seasons were about, but Jack Bauer's relentless pursuit to protect innocent people resonated with audiences right away. 


It did take awhile for 24 to find a larger audience. The first season's ratings weren't stellar but once the DVD of season 1 was released, the show took off in the U.S and especially overseas. The world LOVED Jack Bauer and the format of the show. It was so different than anything on television at the time.


Thankfully for fans, FOX stuck with the show after the first season and we were able to see 7 more (bad) days in Jack Bauer's life. 


For this 10th anniversary, I've come up with 24 reasons I believe have made this show so unique and leaves such an impressive, enduring legacy...

#24 - The Real-Time Concept - '24' was the first prime-time drama to be in real-time. Meaning if it took Jack Bauer 20 minutes to get somewhere then you would not see Jack until he reached is destination 20 minutes later. Admittedly, over the years the show kind of fudged the real-time aspect of the show, but nonetheless it was a clever concept that kept the show interesting and helped to incorporate the "up against the clock" tension in the show. 

#23 - The '24' Boxes - Probably one of the most recognizable aspects of '24' are the boxes showing various characters and scenes going on in an episode. Another cool, unique characteristic of this show. It was also an integral part of keeping the pacing of the show what it was as well. 

#22 - 24's Creators - '24' would not even exist if it weren't for the creative minds of Joel Surnow and Bob Cochran. Joel Surnow came up with the real-time concept and they were also two of 24's best writers. THANK YOU Joel and Bob for coming up with such an incredible, entertaining show! 24 fans will be forever grateful. 

#21 - 24's Casting - Some of the best casting of characters on any television show was on '24'. 24's casting directors had a knack for finding just the right actors to portray the characters on this show, in particular the villains. 

#20 - 24's Villains - Speaking of villains, some of the most interesting, compelling villains on any TV show or movie could be found on '24'. Who can forget The Drazens, Sayed Ali, Ramon and Hector Salazar, Michael Amador, Stephen Saunders, Habib Marwan, President Logan, Cheng Gi, Jonas Hodges and of course the evil Nina Myers played by the amazing Sarah Clarke. '24' did a masterful job of making their villains so interesting to watch and have some depth to them, not just cardboard cut outs. 

 

#19 - The Music - What can you say about the amazing music score for '24' by Sean Callery? So deserving of the many Emmy's he won for this show, it's been said Sean's music was like another character in '24' and that's so very true. His compositions added so much to '24' by helping to enhance the drama and tension that was so much of an important part of this show. Many kudos to Sean and his musical talents! 

#18 - Ticking Clock - The beeping digital clock at the very beginning of each episode and clock ticking sound throughout each episode is probably the most recognizable aspect of '24'. Remember the pilot episode and how different the clock sounded then as opposed to the episodes after that? It sounds so funny now when you go back and watch the pilot. 

#17 - Use of Technology - Try to imagine '24' without cell phones. Hard to isn't it? I don't think a show like this would work without cell phones. They were such an integral part of the show. Also the use of other computer technology and com units were unique to '24'. Some of it was a bit faster and a little more advanced than what was available at the time, but one of the best things about '24' was the magic Chloe could create on those CTU computers! Although looking back now, those cell phones in season 1 really look old! 

#16 - 24's Presidents - There have been Presidents on television before, but I would argue none as memorable as the ones on '24'. The top of the list has to belong to David Palmer. No other TV President had the command and presence Dennis Haysbert brought to that role. Never understood why Mr. Haysbert did not win an Emmy for season 2. Speaking of Emmy snubs, that brings us to the other end of the Presidential spectrum, the evil President Charles Logan. Masterfully played by Greg Itzin, Logan was probably Jack Bauer's greatest nemesis other than Nina Myers. Since he survived a suicide attempt in season 8,  I'm hoping we might see him appear again in the 24 film.

Season 1

#15 - CTU Directors - The leadership at CTU was very important to '24' certainly had a variety of leaders starting with Jack Bauer himself in season 1. From George Mason to Erin Driscoll, Jack had to work with (and against) several CTU directors. My favorite had to be George Mason. A great character that you should have hated but you couldn't completely because of his sarcasm. George had some of the best lines in all of 24's 8 seasons. He's also a character who ended up being a hero by going down with the plane with the nuke in season 2. Season 2, 10pm-11pm for me the all-time best all around episode of 24. Another memorable director was Bill Buchanan. The most competent CTU director, Bill seemed to understand Jack better than any of the others previously. Bill even heroically sacrificed himself during the White House siege in season 7. Fans were very sad to see Bill go but he was given a hero's exit as he should have.

#14 - Jack's "Man Bag" - Ah, Jack's "man bag"...what all was he carrying in there? Hmmm...it sure came in handy for Jack during season 5. Only Kiefer Sutherland could still look masculine while carrying that thing. I missed seeing it on a regular basis after season 5. 

#13 - 24's Action Scenes - One of the signature aspects of '24' were the big action scenes. Big explosions especially. '24' had excellent stunt and pyrotechnics people who pulled off some of the most realistic, exciting action scenes you could find on TV or even in films. 

#12 - Memorable One Episode Characters - One of the unique qualities about '24' were the memorable characters that only appeared in one episode. The first was Lauren the waitress who was held "hostage" by Jack Bauer in season 1. Such a realistic portrayal by the actress in that episode. I never could figure out why she turned Jack in since she seemed to believe his story. Another stand out was George Mason's son John who Mason brought to his office so he could say goodbye since he was dying from radiation poisoning. This scene showed us for the first time that George had a soft side. Wonderfully acted and written scene. There were many other memorable one episode characters in '24' but those two always seemed to stand out for most fans. 

#11 - CTU - The physical epi-center of '24' of course was CTU. CTU certainly changed a lot from the small, kind of plain setting of season 1. That facility went through as much as Jack Bauer at times. Bombed in season 2, a nerve gas attack in season 5 and held hostage by Chinese mercenaries in season 6. A lot of action happened at CTU not just out in the field. Interestingly, the actual National Counterterrorism Center in Washington D.C. looks very much like CTU and believed to have been modeled after the one in the show.  

Actual U.S. National Counterterrorism Center

Season 2

#10 - CTU Ringtone - Other than the digital clock beep, the most recognizable sound of '24' has to be the CTU ringtone. Imagine how many fans have made that their cell phone ringtone, including myself! I really missed hearing it during the last 2 seasons. 

#9 - Female Hired Assasin (Mandy) - Something you don't see very often...a hired gun who is a female. How surprising was that to see that the flirty, seemingly ditzy woman sitting next to Martin Belkin on the plane in season one turned out to be an assassin who blew up the plane?! What I loved about '24', they would shake things up by doing something different like coming up with a character like Mandy.

#8 - Chloe O'Brien - Where would Jack have been since Day 3 without good ole loyal Chloe? Their relationship started a bit rocky at the beginning of day 3, but Jack soon came to rely on Chloe and could count on her more than anyone else over the years. She always had his back no matter what and would even risk her career many times by going off book to help him out. Next to Jack, Chloe in my opinion is the best character on the show. Mary Lynn Rajskub did an incredible job playing the socially awkward Chloe who could also manage to inject humor into the show without it seeming out of place. It would be a crime if Chloe is not in the 24 feature film.  

#7 - Jack Bauer Kills - It was always interesting to see what new and different ways the writers would come up with for Jack Bauer to off the bad guys. Some of the most memorable to me were Marshall Goren (S2 - "I'm gonna need a hacksaw"), killing the Russian baddie on the sub with a knife in the throat (S5 - "We're clear") and one of my favorites, the ax to the chest of the bad guy chasing Jack and the informant in episode 1 of season 8. Amazingly shot as well with the fall off the staircase at the end. So many memorable, creative Jack kills over the 8 seasons.

Season 3

#6 - Moles - What would '24' be without moles inside CTU trying to thwart them and Jack Bauer? There have been many (Jamey Farrell, Roger Stanton, Marianne Taylor, Walt Cummings, etc.) but none as shocking and memorable as Nina Myers revealed as a mole in episode 23 of season 1. I will never forget how shocked I was when she was revealed to be working with the Drazens. Maybe the best shocking revelation about a character in TV history. 

#5 - Jack's Interrogations - As memorable as Jack's kills were even more memorable have to be Jack's interrogations. So many great ones! Jack with Ted Coffel in the limo & the towel is probably the most memorable. What was brilliant about it was the first part of that interrogation Jack didn't even touch the guy but he was scary and you knew he meant business. Other great interrogations was Jack and Nina in season 2 (my personal favorite), Syed Ali (season 2), the fake setup of killing his family to get him to talk...awesome! So many compelling interrogation scenes through all the seasons, hard to mention them all here but Jack could interrogate a suspect like no other. 

Season 4

#4 - "Edge Of Your Seat" Tension - No other show could put you on the edge of your seat like '24'. Building the tension to the next surprising scene or plot twist, no other show did it better. An example that comes to mind for me is in season 6. When Jack had to defuse the suitcase nuke at the apartment where Morris was held and forced to arm it. You  knew with Chloe's help Jack would manage to disarm it, but in that scene the show managed to still create such tension in that scene you actually started to worry if it would go off! Amazing work to make you feel that tension in a scene where you knew how it would turn out.

#3 - Unexpected Character Deaths - One of the most unique aspects about '24' was it's willingness to kill off characters that any other show would never dream of. As sad as it was that Teri Bauer was killed or that sweet, innocent Edgar died during the nerve gas attack, I LOVE '24' for having the guts to do it. SO many other shows would lead you to think a beloved character would be killed only to be saved at the last minute, but '24' was the first one I remember to actually do the unthinkable and that's what made it so unique and different from any other show...doing the unexpected.

Season 5

#2 - Surprise Plot Twists - No other show could knock your socks off with a surprise plot twist than '24'. So many great ones during it's run, just when you think the show could not shock you they would do it again. The best and most frequent plot twists were probably in the first season. Jamey Farrell being a mole, Alan York is actually NOT Alan York but Kevin Carroll working for Gaines. Then Kevin Carroll turns out to be the guy meeting with Ted Coffell! And of course the ultimate plot twist, Nina Meyers actually worked for the Drazens. Probably the biggest, most shocking plot twist since Nina had to have been President Logan being behind everything that happened on day 5. Another brilliant plot twist that '24' managed to pull off after I thought the audience could not be surprised anymore. These surprise twists are one of the things that made the show so much fun to watch!

Season 6

24: Redemption (TV Movie)

#1 - Casting Kiefer Sutherland As Jack Bauer - Think about this for a moment...try to imagine anyone else playing Jack Bauer other than Kiefer Sutherland...hard to imagine isn't it? For me as great as the concept of the show was and the writing and everything else, the casting of Kiefer Sutherland as Jack Bauer is really what made the show as successful as it was and last as many seasons as it did. You could not have a more perfect type of actor to portray Jack Bauer. Kiefer had the commanding presence needed for a bigger than life character such as Jack, but he could also portray just as perfectly a soft side when necessary in relation to the people he cared about in his life such as his wife, daughter and other people he wanted to protect. 

Season 7

Season 8

Kiefer has those gifts as an actor to make Jack a well-rounded, compelling character that you care about and just want to keep watching. I have read so many comments about how this show and especially Jack Bauer is missed so much. I miss him too. Other shows on TV now are trying to give us the "new Jack Bauer" well, they may be fine shows and fine actors, but there will NEVER be another Jack Bauer in my opinion and NO ONE could portray Jack Bauer better than Kiefer Sutherland. For me, '24' is Kiefer Sutherland and Kiefer Sutherland is '24'. He was truly the heart and soul of the show as Howard Gordon has said. There will never be another character like Jack Bauer and no other actor who could fully inhabit that character and become Jack the way Kiefer could. 

Sadly, '24' is no longer on television but thankfully there are DVD's and Netflix and other ways to relive this great show for many years to come. The good news is that Jack Bauer is not gone forever, looks like there will be a movie shot next year (spring 2012) and thankfully '24' fans will be able to see one more bad day in the life of Jack Bauer.

Hurry to the theater screen Jack...we miss you.


...And thank you for 8 incredible days!