24 5.2: "Day 5: 8AM - 9AM"

Written by Evan Katz
Directed by Jon Cassar

In which Jack becomes the prime suspect in the assassination of Palmer, forcing him to break into the crime scene to look for evidence to the true conspiracy…


Status Report

Before continuing with the review, a minor point. The Official Site used to post their minute-by-minute rundowns of new episodes within hours of the initial broadcast. This season, they haven’t posted a thing, and it’s nearly 24 hours later. Sure, it’s not a priority for anyone, but why highlight the episode guide as a source of immediate recaps if it’s not going to be updated properly?

It’s a minor issue because the second episode is relatively straightforward. There are a number of plot threads, but they all relate to the response after the revelation of Jack’s survival. Granted, most of the characters believe that Jack is guilty of the assassinations, which is a bit hard to swallow, but several nuances add scope to the conspiracy.

It’s clear that the writers are trying to make Audrey the lone voice of reason among the major players. Granted, Chloe or Tony might support Jack, but they have already been branded as overly loyal to Jack in past seasons. Audrey openly questions the assumption that Jack would kill the people protecting his secret, especially Palmer, and she brings up an obvious point in doing so.

So why do so many people instantly latch onto the concept of Jack as an assassin? Part of it feels like a writing convenience, to ensure that the tension is maintained at least as long as this one episode. Jack must labor against all odds to find some clue related to the true conspiracy, while being hunted down by the rest of the world. It works out well in terms of maintaining tension, but it’s a bit hard to believe.

After all, CTU and the rest of the world should be asking certain obvious questions. For instance, why would Jack choose this day and this moment to kill the people who knew about his survival? They know that there’s chatter related to the summit, so where’s the order to determine if there are connections between the victims, Jack, and the summit attendees?

It also seems odd, in the wake of his escape from the hotel, that Jack’s face wasn’t wired to every local law enforcement agency and egress to ensure that he could be identified. He manages to get into the airport rather easily. Then again, he needs to get in the building so he can be on the inside to deal with the terrorists. That makes it another likely plot convenience, which is unfortunate.

Speaking of the hotel, there were some great scenes during that stretch, particularly with Wayne Palmer. Not everyone hated Wayne in the third season, despite the idiotic plots attached to the Palmers in general, and his presence in this episode was much appreciated. The revelation about the clue itself could have been a bit more intriguing, like a passage that spoke to something from Palmer’s past that links to the current conspiracy (thus explaining his foreboding that something was happening), but the clue works in a pinch.

This leads to the obvious question: how did Palmer get the information about the man at the airport? Will the writers ever reveal that little detail? It actually seems rather important, since any effective frame job by this undefined conspiracy (including a member of the President’s staff, no less) would want to link Palmer’s killing by Jack to the information, thus robbing it of value. Was it simply that someone on the inside was going to ensure that the terrorists could get into the terminal and stage their hostage situation? Or was there something more specific happening at the airport, which the terrorist activity would be needed to conceal?

Again, the conspiracy must have a goal, which Jack’s apparent guilt is meant to conceal. That goal must be more substantial than the killing of a former president, or it wouldn’t make for a reasonable diversion. It’s not just about eliminating someone who contacted the president’s nutty wife, which seems to be the suggestion. Right now, one could assume that government factions opposed to this arms accord took measures to disrupt the summit, which required the elimination of any trace that there was a conspiracy (hence the killing of Palmer). But there’s always more to it…so what’s the real goal?

Derek’s place in the story is hardly in doubt. Not only did he fulfill the role of the character in need of recap, thus providing an excuse for exposition about Jack, but he personalizes the hostage situation, giving Jack even more of a reason to deal with it from his unique position. It’s almost a given that CTU will somehow come to the conclusion that Jack is the only choice for dealing with the crisis, above and beyond his possible guilt, so the direction of the next episode or so is more or less predictable. How it plays out is less predictable, since the writers are already looking rather bloodthirsty.

Logan continues to act like a complete idiot, placing his Legacy before the rest of reality. The writers are going for Nixon, to be sure, but it’s not a bad commentary on other recent presidents. Still, in this episode, the guy was being a complete moron about it. Even if he believes that Jack is the killer (and he has every reason to believe it), even if he dismisses his wife’s concerns, he can’t just assume that the timing is unrelated or that the threat is easily contained.

The first episode for the season gave the audience an effective gut punch, and gave evidence that the real aim of the terrorists this time around was so substantial that the killing of a former president was secondary to that goal. This episode seems to step back from that, and along the way, it depends a bit too much on plot contrivance. Yes, that’s something that’s part and parcel for this series, but it’s annoying when it’s so blatant. Someone other than Audrey and Chloe should be questioning the assumptions about Jack. For that matter, people should be reacting a lot more strongly to his apparent resurrection. It’s something that will be dealt with in the future, certainly, but where’s the shock and awe?

The writers and producers hinted that the first four hours, to accommodate the scheduling, would make up a fairly substantial mini-arc that comprises the full beginning of the season arc. That’s fine, but that means this episode and the next episode are the middle of the story, where the weaknesses typically lie. That being the case, the writers could have kept the strength of the story more intact, relying less on plot convenience so early in the game.


Final Analysis

Overall, this episode was not as strong as the premiere, since the plot required a number of conveniences to drive the story. In particular, characters fail to react to events of substantial impact and make decisions based on shallow assumptions. It’s still too early to know if the plot has been carefully considered, but there are already signs that some plot points may never be fully explained.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 7/10

Season Average (as of 5.2): 8.0