24 Things About 24
24 is a very exciting show to watch. I love the show. Ever since the first season, when Jack Bauer was introduced to the world as the CTU agent who was given the task of ensuring that candidate David Palmer was not assassinated.
The story, and world of 24, is compelling, engaging and just plain fun. There are twists and turns thrown in at completely unexpected times in the show, which keep viewers captivated. Even through all of this, there are oddities that take place in 24-land.
The following are 24 observations about 24.
- In order to truly enjoy 24 one must employ suspension of disbelief. The world in which 24 exists is nothing like reality and therefore requires the viewer to be willing to accept that what happens in 24 is possible, no matter how fantastic or implausible.
- The United States government does not work that fast. Ever. If the President of the United States were to grant a pardon or immunity to a terror suspect then it would take weeks for the paperwork to be completed. In 24, often times legal documents take a matter of minutes to execute. It almost appears as if there is some Microsoft Word form, or template, that a government lawyer uses, merely plugging in the suspects name and then printing out the document. The United States government does not work this way.
- There is an excessive and abundant use of cell phones. Everyone calls everyone on cell phones, with complete disregard for the lack of security that cell phones offer. In the real world of government operations, secure phones and secure networks are used to convey classified information. The use of an unsecured cell phone line is inconceivable.
- Satellites are repositioned within minutes, track suspects in real-time and offer DVD-like video quality. While there are satellites that can do many of these tasks, it is almost impossible for them to be repositioned so quickly. The United States government does not work quickly. Ever.
- Chloe can hack any computer or network in a matter of minutes. While it may seem plausible at first look, breaking in to various government computers, networks, street-cams and whatnot takes time. There are automated hacking kits available but many of those are useless against secure government networks. Granted, much of the government is run on half-assedly secure networks, but still.
- The President of the United States is easy to get a hold of and speak to on the phone. Agent Jack Bauer is regularly able to call the President in the middle of field operations. It is highly doubtful that agents call the President directly, instead relying on the concept of the chain of command.
- There are an insane amount of moles within the United States government, especially in high ranking positions. Additionally, those responsible for hiring such weasels rarely end up paying for such ill-advised employee decisions are ultimately are not accountable for such monumental mistakes. Prerequisite: Suspension of disbelief.
- Information is “downloaded” to PDA’s all the time. GPS coordinates, schematics, imagery and an assortment of other goodies are regularly transmitted over unsecured communications circuits to PDA-wielding agents out in the field. I wonder what wireless network is being used to transfer the data, because it sure is not any of the American mobile carriers. WiFi is not available in the middle of the desert either.
- CTU employees regularly open “channels” to just about every network in existence, ranging from CalTrans traffic camera’s to highly secret intelligence community networks. All of this is done on the premise that all an employee or agent needs in order to obtain access is to offer up some archaic “access code” that is authorized within moments by another employee. The United States government does not function like this. Ever.
- Jack Bauer is an excellent gunfighter, with supernatural accuracy, while his opponents lack intelligence and the capability of making that difficult shot. In many cases throughout the lifetime of 24, Jack Bauer has been faced with difficult situations that have displayed an above-human accuracy when firing his pistol. Maybe someone in the government needs to consider a way to clone Mr. Bauer and turn him in to a super-soldier.
- Interrogation of suspects takes mere minutes to complete. Regularly, suspects are returned to CTU for questioning and are either set free or give up the goods within moments of being placed in a holding cell. The information presented is rarely checked for accuracy, though in most cases when necessary Chloe, or another agent, will open a channel to another government system in order to verify the authenticity of the claims made by a suspect. In some cases, Jack has vouched for a suspect based upon a hunch. Prerequisite: Suspension of disbelief.
- CTU has some very “cool” technology, where employees are able to push information to another employee’s computer screen. You always hear Chloe, and others, announce that they have sent “the list” to “your screen” where upon the other employee, in many cases their boss, finds a document already opened on their workstation’s monitor. Colour me confused, but having worked for the government for as long as I have there has never been a single instance where I came across such a thing. In fact, being in information security, I find it hard to believe that such an application would be allowed on government networks.
- While there is an Apple computer here and there, the US government largely is a customer of Dell and HP. I definitely have to raise the bullshit flag on the many times that a 24 employee has been seen using an Apple computer. In Season Six we even see President Wayne Palmer wielding an Apple MacBookPro. This will never happen. Never. Ever. Are we clear?
- That single second between the ending of the previous episode and the beginning of the current episode has got to be the longest second in the history of time. There has been countless episodes that have ended in a major bomb blast with the very next second, which would conceivably be the opening second of the current episode, having already had rescue personnel on site. How in holy hell are police and fire rescue capable of being on the site of a bomb blast within a second after it has exploded? Either these rescue types are jacked in to some Minority Report-like “catastrophe system” or they were alerted in advance of the blast. Or, this is just all crazy bullshit that requires Suspension of disbelief.
- Everyone in the entire world, with the exception of Jack Bauer, is capable of performing their police-like or spy-like job. How many times has Jack Bauer been able to avoid authorities, escape custody, and “out-think” every other person in the entire world of 24? Is he the only individual with brains in 24-land?
- Is there ever traffic in Los Angeles? No matter where an agent needs to go, they are able to get there in 30 minutes maximum. I was born and raised in Los Angeles and rarely can anyone get anywhere of distance in such a short period of time. Especially considering how large Los Angeles County is, and the amount of mileage that the agents cover, makes it even far more outrageous that agent routinely get from Thousand Oaks to South Central in 35 minutes. To make matters worse, does anyone really think that traffic would be non-existent after major terror attacks, such as the recent nuclear explosion that took place in Los Angeles in Season Six?
- Since when are all terrorists, and bad guys, of foreign decent. Have the writers of 24 completely forgotten about Timothy McVeighs? All the bad guys have foreign accents as opposed to being our very own next door neighbors. Imagine what America would be like if that hot chick that lives next door turned out to be a wicked ass terrorist. What about Arlington Road anyone?
- The people, and parts, necessary for major nuclear attacks and other similar attacks are very easy to secure. Along the same lines, the terrorists appear to be of above average intelligence and capable of creating highly complex plans that completely misdirect our faithful CTU heroes. Just about every season of 24 has started off with a particular terror plot that fails, or partially succeeds, only to see the terrorists unconcerned because there is a “larger plan” at work.
- Jack Bauer, and other CTU agents, are capable of withstanding immense amounts of pain that no other normal human beings could handle. Additionally, the are capable of recovering from highly stressful situations, and harsh interrogation tactics, within minutes. Does anyone really think that the Secretary of Defense would truly be willing to sacrifice his life for the sake of America, and withstand such evils?
- is it me or is President Wayne Palmer, who is the President of the United States in Season Six, just a tad unbelievable in his role? After all, he does not look much older than 45, and that is pushing it to the max. He actually looks about 40 years old, and even acts as such. I just find it highly incredulous that the country would be willing to vote in someone so young, especially considering the history of the USA. As with most of the other things about 24, see Suspension of disbelief
- Jack Bauer appears to know more than his fair share of evildoers. On more than once occasion Jack Bauer has been intimately familiar with an individual who turned out to be an enemy of the state. Season Six has turned in to the epitome of this, with Jack’s brother having been discovered as the puppeteer from Season Five, who had a direct line to President Logan, ordering him around like a Marine Corps recruit in boot camp.
- A hell of a lot of evil, terror, death, destruction and mere chaos happens within the span of a mere 24 hours. Wicked underground, terror-driven conspiratorial plots are executed and uncovered within a mere day. Rarely does this much happen in an entire year in America, much less a mere 1441 minutes.
- Los Angeles must be the center of the universe, as more death, destruction and terror has taken place in this west coast city than the sum of every other city in America. Is there a reason that every terrorist in the world desires to strike solely in Los Angeles, rather than any one of the numerous other very important cities in the states, such as Detroit, Chicago or New York?
- 24 is the one show that truly gives me goose bumps at the end of just about every episode, especially when it ends with a major plot twist or extreme terrorist spawned destruction. While Season Six has toned this feeling down, even though it has been playing only for a couple weeks now, 24 still manages to offer far more goose bump induced WTF moments than just about any other show on TV today.
So now that I got those thoughts off of my chest, what interesting observations do you have about this highly acclaimed show? I imagine everyone has their own comments, which I am very interested in reading. With that said, sound off with your thoughts on Jack Bauer and 24.
I completely agree. The first point is the one you, as the viewer, needs to accept to truly enjoy the show. So far, I have enjoyed all seasons a lot (maybe with exception of season 3) and now that it started again, I can’t wait for new episodes.
It is just one very exciting show.
PS: And yes, the president needs to be shot in the face (*waves to the feds*). His acting is poor and he’s way too young. The best president was played by Dennis Haysbert — currently enjoying his role as Jonas in “The Unit” a lot.
Didn’t George W. Bush and Bill Clinton have PowerBooks? Although much of the government does have PCs, I’ve heard some branches do use Macs for security.
I love 24, and totally agree, that in order to fully enjoy and appreciate the show, one must look at it as if the events are possible. When the show ends, then we can return to reality.
I also miss Dennis Haysbert, but love him in The Unit, he is absolutely fantastic in it, and has a more intense role on that show.
Evil and terror abound, and we must be prepared to watch it unfold, in less than one hour, gore, tension, and all of the emotional rides we go through.
Yes, goose bumps are a constant, a never-ending series of them.
Yes, the current president on 24 does look young.
Oh, and I forgot, JFK was 43 when he took the oath of office, in January of 1961.
Let’s see….You scoured a FICTIONAL tv drama and found 24 fictional premises or props that just don’t make sense in REALITY. Sweety, the show ALWAYS takes place in LA LA land and for good reason. It’s not real. But it’s a thrilling, tautly written, action/thriller and I love every minute of it! Plausible? The threat of a terrorist attack on our land IS plausible (I live in NYC), but that’s about the extent of plausibility in ‘24′. Still, I shake my head over the implausible fact that George Bush is our President.
I honestly hadn’t watched 24 for a few years, because I couldn’t handle the Suspension of Disbelief required to watch the show…and this is from a serious 007 fan. ;)
However, this season has proven to be quite good, even with all the improbabilities you list here (and then some).
I know you’re enjoying the show for the show’s sake, as am I…but I found the list to be really cool.
Totally correct in terms of a serious suspension of disbelief is needed. If there’s a way for CTU to mess up an operation,they’ll somehow manage it.
Several times over the series cannisters of deadly gas have been placed near fans for AC units so it spreads throughout the intended target. Half the time said fans are completely unprotected,but apparently no one ever thinks to shut down the AC system or jam something into the spinning fan so the gas is contained. I guess if everything ran smoothly in the fight against terror it wouldn’t be 24 hours…..more 3.5.
It seems ‘24′ requires that viewers suspended their disbelief not just for the show’s duration. It can’t be ruled out that such a fascination may suck people in and unplug their critical faculties? Under the new ethos of
“militainment” says media critic Adam Sweeting, “it’s as if considerations of patriotism and national solidarity preclude any ethical or political questions†regarding any extra-judicial measures.
While common people are at liberty to the views they fancy, this tendency gets risky when it affects those who vow to lead the way to others. Signs are already visible where media activists and security scholars fancy if Jack Bauer has arrived as the new Rambo to help conquer terror. While some people fancy super-spy solutions applied to tackle nightmare scenarios as in ‘24′, critics ask if the ticking alarm scenarios are in crafted purposefully. It does not stop at just offering an escape from failures in the real world, but advocates debatable methods and approaches that can do the trick. With the launch of new season of super-spies fighting a no-rules-barred prime time war on terror concerns are being expressed that such fascination may numb any urge to question the justification of applying heavy-handed solutions to life-like situations.
The Guardian wonders if ‘24’ “trafficking in fearâ€. Is the serial used for softening opinions to sanction heavy-handed approach of the authorities? To Slate’s media editors it appears to be peddling “torture porn.â€
Woah! That is one hell of a post. I love 24 for all the obvious reasons plus the 24 things you mentioned. I would just like to add that Jack Bauer is a super human who never drinks, who never eats and never pees in 24 hrs. The ’suspension of disbelief’ reason is very apt and we should not forget at the end of the day, 24 is a TV show - good one at that given we just accept these implausible circumstances.
It is really difficult for me to choose which season has been the best. All of the previous 5 seasons have had something or the other going for them making no unanimous winner possible. But I really liked the part where Jack goes away from the world and pretends to be dead - the ending of s4 and beginning of s5. That was kinda something different from what we expect to see from JB. The soundtracks and theme musics in the backgrounds have been immensely better from s4, s5 and continued in s6.
24 rocks and here’s hoping there are a few more seasons of 24 before its death do us apart. Long live Kiefer Sutherland.
Ah, you are so right - and yet so wrong. Many of the things you contend will “never happen”, are actually available and do happen now. Ordinary cell phones can be encrypted via a government access phone - although we rarely see 24 characters dial more than 7 digits. PDA’s can be sent information via satellite - if they were gov’t-issued PDA’s with Satellite capabilities, but you never see that. I guess we could suspend disbelief and assume that the vehicle receives the satellite info and then bluetooths it to the PDA, but that is a bit tough to swallow when Jack is in a stolen car or an abandoned warehouse with his PDA. Of course, Jack was an ex-marine and covert spy before becoming a CTU agent, so I don’t think his unusual ability to withstand pain is without merit. And while I’m no fan of Mac’s, I don’t find it hard to believe that the President or other high-ranking officials couldn’t choose the laptop of their choice - and let IT sweat out the details. The “push to screen” feature could be some sort of IM program - wouldn’t be that difficult to implement as a custom-routine - and hardly is dangerous to security since they are just displaying a document via an already-open channel (IM or no) on an internal secure network. What I find the most hard to swallow about 24 is the “license to kill” that Bauer seems to have. I think a real agent would eventually be taken out of the field when he had racked up more than 100 kills of people. He never seems to have to answer for this, or if he does, he is somehow quickly whisked back into action. Of course, this is the show’s premise - that the urgency and tyranny of the moment overshadows all other normal procedures - or at least creates a conflict that needs to be resolved.
Lol.
i can think of same things for other TV shows like Prison break and lost and etc etc etc.
This way you will never enjoy any TV Serial….or movie.
So just forget these 24 points and enjoy
If you were able to get through Prison Break Season 1, then the stuff 24 pulls is nothing, lol.
I have been watching 24 since the first episode. Some of the stuff they try to pull off just drives me crazy.
I must say that I am not a big fan of new Palmer as Pres. How is he even remotely qualified? As far as we know the only thing he has done is assist his brother, who is excellent in The Unit. Also with this season there is one thing that is driving me nuts, Ep 5 I think. It has to do with Jack’s family, but I don’t want to say anything else in case anyone hasn’t seen it yet.
You really have to just ignore everything that happens and just takes things as is with shows like 24. If you try and think too much then you are screwed. :)
Detroit — an important city like Los Angeles and New York? Now that requires a suspension of disbelief…
First off, I LOVE 24. Us right-wing “nutjobs” can’t get enough. Mwahahaha. Your list cracked me up bigtime, but I gotta kick you in the shin for bringing up all the things I like to pretend are real. Damn you. ;)
And now for my observations:
1. Wayne Palmer is annoying, but not nearly as annoying as his sister.
2. Karen Hayes is a drag, but Tom unnerves me. He’s evil.
3. Jack hasn’t killed many people this season, and yet I am still entertained. Hmmm.
;)
Kit: I *love* 24 as well. Glad that you enjoyed the post on 24. :-)
I definitely agree with all 3 of your points. It will be interesting to see how the Karen Hayes saga plays out, because I am quite positive that we have not yet seen the end of her little confrontation with Tom.
Lastly, I am pretty sure that Jack will go on a killing spree here soon. He has to, he’s Jack Bauer after all!
Kieth Olbermann befittingly nominated Cliff Kincaid and “24″ as worst of the year. Here are some reasons as to why: While the media activist tries to deflect attention from major issues his favorite spy-opera attempts to dupe the audiences to suspend disbelief far beyond the show’s duration.
A media activist with a professed mission to mission is to educate the American people and to expose all myths surrounding American security has declared switching his attention from the real world to the reel world: “If Jack Bauer were in charge of U.S. forces in Iraq, we would have won by now.†This is not a quote from Fox channel’s fan mail but from “America’s Survival†a web site that warns that America is in danger of losing what our ancestors fought and died for. Why does Kincaid sounds so uncertain of the courage and capabilities of his compatriots?
What this over-fascination with Jack Bauer imply? Is it correct to infer that he has more faith in make-believe solutions rather than facing real life problems? Is this reflect he has more trust in the capabilities of fictitious characters than in the 140,000 brave men and women who put their lives in harms way so that ungrateful commentators enjoy soaps in their armchairs? When he feels frustrated that his arguments are ineffective he turns his guns on the messenger and demands not just to gag them but suggests executing extra-judicial solutions. How principles are being suspended for sake of passions is well illustrated by an example where a media activist publicly calls to destroy an entire television channel.
What is the motivation of big talk about little things? Would silencing a newly established small news channels expected to make the hard questions go away. Watchdogs like Accuracy in Media ought to probe the cakewalk crowd who promised a casual march to victory in Iraq. Cliff Kincaid should campaign for accountability of the likes of Ken Adelmen who misled the American media by claiming “measured by any cost-benefit analysis, such an operation would constitute the greatest victory in America’s war on terrorism.†Is the US any closer in getting the exact picture on the ground despite spending $ 2 billion a week?
Whether Cliff Kincaid likes it or not, ‘24’ openly “abets those to whom the rule of law is an unwelcome hindrance, and helps create the kind of climate in which human rights abuses thrive.
The London based Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture reminds cheerleaders like Kincaid that the readiness of some to torture has always been with us, along with the readiness of some to denigrate others because of their different skin colour, or cultural beliefs. “Both are aspects of the human condition that instead of indulging, civilised societies fight hard to resist. Giving up that struggle in pursuit of ratings is nothing short of a betrayal of the generations to come. “
The White House budget director, Rob Portman is asking, in the new budget, for another $365 billion over the next few fiscal years. This comes on the $433 billion that’s already been spent, a total of nearly $800 billion.
This doesn’t make Kincaidask what a lot of people wish to know, is this good money going after bad given the current situation in Iraq? Senator Patrick Leahy, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, said the other day: It’s doubly shameful because we’re trying to restore places like New Orleans and the Gulf Coast here in this country. That’s been held up, and this money’s being wasted in Iraq. Such issues remain marginal for Kincaid’s attention fixated thousands of miles away to scrutinize the contents of a channel in a language he never learnt about a place he never visited.