24 News and Notes / 1pm-2pm

I don’t want to spoil anything but I have to say – what a HORRIBLE episode. It was just plain bad. After last week I was wondering where the heck they were going to go with the story and this weeks episode was a muddled mess. I never thought it could happen but it did…maybe another viewing will change my mind but I’m not holding my breath…

Onto the show…


1:00 P.M.
Cummings explains to Jack and Logan that a man named Nathanson recruited him. They were acting as patriots to secure oil interests. Chloe tracks Nathanson but his line has been disconnected. The terrorists are now operating on their own. Jack believes Cummings’ story.

1:04 P.M.
Logan doesn’t know what to do next, but Jack verifies that CTU will take over. If Jack needs to disappear again, he doesn’t want his daughter to know that he is still alive. Logan asks Jack to serve the office of the President even though he is not Palmer. He wants to reinstate Jack, regardless of what political ramifications will occur. Their urgent need is to recover the nerve gas before millions are killed.

COMMENT: The first mention this season of Kim. Interesting move by Logan since he was the one throwing Jack under the bus last season with the Chinese. Hmmm…

1:05 P.M.
One of Erwich’s men cannot figure out how to arm the canisters after Schaeffer locked them. He urges Erwich to forget about retaliation against the Americans because their true enemy is the Russians. Erwich warns him not to disobey orders.

COMMENT: Like Jack, Erwich is not a man to be trifled with.

1:06 P.M.
McGill’s sister Jenny calls him from a payphone asking for $500. He is annoyed, but she swears she is not using drugs anymore. McGill won’t let her come to CTU to get the money because he is embarrassed of her. Jenny threatens to hurt herself, so McGill agrees to meet her in a parking lot across from the office.

COMMENT: This has DISASTER written all over it. What’s it with CTU Directors and their siblings?? Last season it was the daughter – now the Hobbits sister is a junkie. Nice of the writers to start recycling plot lines 7 episodes in….. *sigh*

1:08 P.M.
CTU learns that the canisters are useless without the detonation codes.
Erwich gets a call from a man named Jacob Rossler, who has been asked to help him reconfigure the activation device. Rossler needs Erwich to cut into the canisters in order to get the identification keys so that he can set up new remote triggers.

COMMENT: Hey it’s the dude from Pretender. Cool.

1:09 P.M.
Buchanan lets Audrey know that President Logan has reinstated Jack with full autonomy and access. Chloe gets a tap on Erwich’s phone and she plays back his conversation with Rossler. Edgar traces the call to a landline in downtown Los Angeles.

1:10 P.M.
Buchanan calls Jack, who is in a helicopter, with the location of Rossler. Rossler is a software programmer who was indicted for high security code infiltration. Jack asks for schematics of the building and for Curtis to meet him there with a small team.

1:11 P.M.
Chloe alerts Buchanan that the security system in Rossler’s building uses a proprietary technology that is hard to hack into. She wants Spenser to help because he has more experience with it than her and Edgar combined. Edgar thinks this is a bad idea because Spenser had been spying on them. Buchanan relents on the condition that Spenser wears a security wristband.
Jack calls Audrey. He asks her to call his daughter Kim and bring her to CTU. He wants to tell her that he is alive in person.

COMMENT: Okay –we’ve got it….Spenser is good at what he does and CTU needs him….nice way to get it so he doesn’t spend the next 17 hours in holding…….another Kim mention. Audrey is going to bring her in…..now this should be good.

1:12 P.M.
Erwich enters an auto body shop and threatens to kill a mechanic unless he helps them cut some metal.

COMMENT: They should fit that guy with a nice red shirt because like all the non-descript Security Officers on Star Trek – he is doomed.

1:18 P.M.
Spenser is brought of out holding. He tries to thank Chloe for having him reinstated, but she says that she only needs his help with hacking. She does not forgive him.

Although Martha is still agitated with her husband, she doesn’t want to fight. She thinks he will need her because things are going to get rough for him. She slaps him, cautioning, “Don’t you ever do that to me again.”

COMMENT: Chloe and Spenser are SO 5 hours ago….let’s move on. Marty showing some spunk. We like Marty!

1:19 P.M.
Novick comes in, and Logan apologizes to both him and Martha. The President wants to discuss the Cummings problem with Martha present. Novick thinks they can cover up Cummings’ involvement in Palmer’s murder to protect the credibility of the office of the President. Martha is appalled, and she insists that the American public doesn’t like being lied to. Logan agrees and asks her to help draw up a press statement for him.

COMMENT: Oh dear….Marty is just a bit naïve if she thinks the American public needs to know that kind of stuff….and now because Logan almost had her committed he is going to do everything she tells him to do (just so she won’t slap him again!)

1:21 P.M.
With the mechanic ready, Rossler gives Erwich instructions on how to cut the canister.

1:22 P.M.
Curtis and his team meet Jack’s chopper on the roof of Rossler’s building. Chloe radios to Jack as Spenser monitors the men guarding Rossler. Jack wants Spenser to shut down the security cameras so that he can enter, but the cameras can only be disrupted for thirty seconds because they will reboot themselves.

1:24 P.M.
Erwich gives the mechanic directions to cut the metal but doesn’t tell him what is inside when the man questions him. Erwich recalls how his wife is in a prison and his son is being held in a state-run facility. “This is about justice, about ending tyranny,” Erwich says, explaining that the government is his enemy. The mechanic begins slicing the canister.

COMMENT: Justice, tyranny……blah blah blah….Erwich - you are a cold hearted bastard and that’s all she wrote.

1:32 P.M.
The mechanic opens the canister so that Erwich can make out the LED numbers of the ID keys.

1:33 P.M.
Spenser overrides the security cameras at Rossler’s building so that Jack and Curtis can raid the premises. A guard alerts Rossler that there might be a breach with a warning to remain in his office.

1:34 P.M.
As the elevator reaches the penthouse, Chloe lets Jack know that there are men with automatic weapons on the floor. Jack and Curtis come out firing when the door opens. Curtis is hit in his flak jacket, so Jack proceeds to Rossler’s office.

1:35 P.M.
Chloe tells Jack that Rossler is armed, and Jack quickly shoots him in the leg. Rossler tosses his handgun. Jack orders his backup teams to come in. Chloe says that there is someone else in the penthouse, so Curtis covers Rossler.

COMMENT: Nice shooting Jack!!....and who else is in the penthouse???

1:36 P.M.
Jack finds a young girl with bruises hiding in the bedroom. In her Russian accent, she says that her name is Inessa and Rossler was keeping her captive. Jack approaches her gently and leads her out of the room, promising that he will help her. He tells the medic not to give Rossler any pain medication for his wound.

COMMENT: Come on – do we really need this young girl??? As the plotline continues to stretch……

1:37 P.M.
Jack handles the interrogation while CTU listens in, but Rossler is unyielding. Jack even has Curtis step on Rossler’s wound. Rossler demands full immunity, his assets sent to a foreign country and Inessa to be given to him. Jack says no, and he has Curtis inflict pain on the man some more.

COMMENT: Ouch – that looks like it hurts. What’s with Rossler and the girl?? Time for Jack to get out his blade and start fishing for eyeballs….

1:38 P.M.
McGill radios Jack and orders him to accept the deal. McGill tells Buchanan to make sure that Jack follows the plan while he steps out.

COMMENT: WOW – Samwise rolled over like it was Frodo asking for the deal.

1:39 P.M.
Jack begrudgingly tells Rossler that he will be granted his conditions. Rossler wants the agreement signed by the Attorney General. He will only talk when he sees the document.

COMMENT: Something I don’t understand – why the hell do these “signed agreements” mean anything in the world of spies and terrorists?? Get the document all signed and dandy and when you get what you want from him – burn the document, throw him into jail and lose the keys….we are willing to torture people at will to get information but we can’t just “disregard” any “agreement” that we make to get information from someone?? I just don’t get it…..

1:44 P.M.
McGill goes outside and meets up with his sister Jenny. He hands her the number of a doctor who can help her. Suddenly, a guy jumps out and punches McGill, taking his wallet. Jenny apologizes to her brother and leaves with the man.

COMMENT: See?? DISASTER! I’m sure the guy will have ended up grabbing something vital to the story a few hours from now like the access codes to the super-computer or something like that…..it’s inevitable. If not – can Jenny and her thug just go away so we don’t have to deal with them anymore??

1:45 P.M.
Chloe is uncomfortable as she directs Spenser to hand his work over to Edgar. Spenser wants to keep working, but Chloe is adamant that his reinstatement is over now that Rossler is in custody. Spenser is escorted out by guards. Edgar tries to console Chloe for doing the right thing. “Shut up, Edgar,” she snaps.

COMMENT: You tell him Chloe!!! Interesting little smirk on Edgar’s face as Spenser headed back to his cell….still Edgar continues to bother me. He is this season’s Chloe.

1:46 P.M.
Rossler tells Jack that he only first talked to Erwich a half hour ago. He was put in touch with him by a Russian associate who is a commander in the resistance army. Erwich will be calling him back with the identification keys in the canisters so that he can reprogram the trigger with an updated chip. Rossler is going to deliver the chip to him at a location Erwich decides. Rossler won’t turn over the chip to Jack until he sees the paperwork granting his freedom.

COMMENT: Here we go with the paperwork again…..Anyone at CTU ever heard of this little thing called Photoshop? They don’t have some sort of forgery techie who can generate a fake “pardon agreement” to fool all the terrorists who ask for one in order to talk?? Geez – do I have to think of everything??

1:49 P.M.
Jack calls Buchanan, who says that the Attorney General will be sending the papers in a few minutes. CTU hasn’t found much on Inessa, who is fifteen and was listed as missing from Kiev. Jack tells Rossler that he can’t take Inessa. Rossler calls it a deal breaker.

1:54 P.M.
Martha thinks Logan should take responsibility for Cummings’ actions and offer swift punishment. Logan is happy to work with his wife again. Novick calls and urgently asks the President to meet him in the hallway.

COMMENT: Another “this can’t be good” moment…..and Logan is SOOO whipped. Marty is now in control.

1:55 P.M.
As the Secret Service cuts the strap that Cummings has hanged himself with, Logan and Martha enter, horrified.

COMMENT: Wonderful. Walt is dead. What an uneventful way for him to go. Kind of lame if you ask me. Would have been just as easy to throw him into prison….oh well. Been nice knowing you Walt.

1:56 P.M.
Jack calls Audrey to find out if she contacted Kim. Audrey promises to try her again.

COMMENT: Still no Kimmy?? Her time will come.

1:57 P.M.
Inessa asks Jack when she can return home. He carefully explains that he needs her to go with Rossler, but that agents will follow her and take her away from him. Jack swears that he won’t let anything happen to her, but Inessa doesn’t trust him. “You are no different from Rossler,” she says.

COMMENT: At this point I don’t really give a crap what Inessa thinks….she’s got some nerve telling Jack he’s no different than Rossler. Don’t know why but that pissed me off.

1:58 P.M.
After the mechanic finishes cutting open the last canister, Erwich calmly shoots him. One of the men inputs all the codes into a PDA. Erwich orders them to load all the canisters back into the truck. Erwich calls Rossler’s number from his sat phone. Jack has Rossler answer, and Erwich sends him the codes over text message. Rossler says he can have the chip ready in ten minutes. Erwich will call him back with a location.

COMMENT: What was that earlier about justice and ending tyranny???? Nope – cold hearted bastard (who needs to cover his tracks)……the battle between Erwich and Jack will be an interesting one.

1:59 P.M.
Jack has Rossler wired, and he takes Inessa to leave. Suddenly, Inessa pulls a gun from her shirt and plugs Rossler with two shots. Jack lunges for the gun, but Rossler is already dead. With Erwich calling back shortly, they have no other link to the nerve gas.

COMMENT: Come on! The writers had to resort to that???? Ummm – some originality would be nice….2 seasons ago – I recall Gael dying a puss-filled death from the virus and his grieving wife using a gun found in his desk to kill the one witness that could identify the courier carrying the remaining vial of virus….Is it wrong to expect more from them??? I guess so… *sigh*


As the kids say – So where we at? (how truly sad is that?)

~The Hobbit’s got a junky for a sister….how original…
~We are on the verge of a Kim sighting…everyone have your bear traps ready!
~Apparently Chloe doesn’t forgive very easily…Spenser – watch your back.
~Edgar – please stop being such a putz.
~Say hello to President Martha Logan!
~I’m sure Mike is thrilled at this latest development.
~Can Inessa just go back to hiding under the bed???
~Isn’t it about time Tony wakes up from his coma to wreak vengeance?

They’ve got some real work to do next week to get this whole thing back on track…let’s see what they can come up with…In the words of the immortal Judge Smails – “Well? We’re waiting.”