Season 5; Hour Eighteen (12:00AM - 1:00AM)
Air Date: 17 Apr 2006
Reviewer: J
[A quick shout out to J for being a mensch, watching my back, and writing up this week’s ep. Life – real life – got a little too crazy for me this week to ramble on at length about the best show on television so instead I’ll just be interrupting his typically sterling commentary with more than the usual amount of snarky side comments. Thanks, boss! –D]
We kick off Hour Eighteen with Logan still being a shifty bastard and calling Henderson to confirm Bauer’s been killed. I find it interesting that Logan has totally crossed the line and is now openly discussing Bauer’s murder – quite a shift from the limp-wristed Logan we’ve come to know and more great acting from Greg Itzin, who shines in this hour.
Henderson prattles on about how CTU is the best resource for catching Jack. Clearly, Henderson has been away from CTU for a while since catching Jack has been nearly impossible for them for years. Jack gets caught when he wants to get caught, okay Henderson? Logan seems to agree with me as he says “You’re putting an awful lot of faith in their abilities.” Yeah, especially since you and the Vice President have been fucking up CTU by firing everyone and replacing them with Homeland Security people. Nevertheless, Logan immediately calls Karen Hayes to lean on her a bit more and, in my opinion, nearly tip his hand. When she says they’re still looking for Bauer and Henderson, Logan snaps that he wants Bauer to be a priority. See, if I were Logan, I’d try to suggest Bauer might be helping Henderson and point to their history and how they were friends at one point. It’s not like CTU/Homeland is going to just forget about Henderson, so why not play up the relationship of those two and further deflect suspicion? As we’ll soon see, there isn’t a Wonder Woman bracelet big enough to deflect what will be coming at Logan this hour. In the scene where Logan is pestering Hayes again, I think it’s interesting to note that Miles, in the foreground, is shaking his head as he hears Hayes’ side of the conversation. I’m beginning to wonder if he’ll eventually come around, too, and begin to be suspicious of the President’s motives. For now, though, he’s not and simply wants to follow them.
A few minutes into the hour, we see Jack and Wayne (and presumably the now-dead bank manager) waiting for someone. A car approaches and it turns out to be Buchanan (still wearing his tie, mind you). Bill drives a Toyota 4Runner. Vanilla, yet rugged. Yes, that’s Bill. Anyway, Jack introduces Wayne and Bill and Bill immediately extends his condolences about David Palmer. I really liked this touch – despite the franticness of the moment, Bill doesn’t forget his manners or to say something he clearly means. Wayne looks choked up all over again, or perhaps just sickened by all the death he’s been around today. Jack fills Bill in on the evidence implicating Logan and asks him (Bill) to look after Wayne and keep him somewhere safe. And presumably not in a motel room.
Speaking of which, has Jack sent anyone to check on Evelyn? And let’s not forget about the Bank Manager’s wife, who is still tied up to a chair with her deceased husband’s neckties.
Anyway, Bill agrees to look after Wayne and they run off together. No, not that way. And I hope you enjoyed seeing Wayne because that’s it for him this hour. Thanks for stopping by, DB! Maybe Bill will hide Wayne in the same place that Curtis has been hidden for the past two hours.
Over at Van Nuys Airport, security is fairly nonexistent. Why do I say that? Well, Audrey was able to park on the tarmac as the Secretary of Defense’s plane arrived. […inconspicuously wearing a shiny white full-length coat to boot…-D] She lets Jack know and then she goes to her pops who greets her warmly. I really like these two together as father and daughter. They maintain a professional relationship most of the time but allow themselves to clearly love one another in private moments. I supposed nearly being killed together does that.
As the Secretary is asking what the Heller is going on, Jack screams up in his boosted patrol car. Like, nice and inconspicuous, Jack! Why not run the lights and siren as well? As he jumps out, Heller gets agitated and refers to him as a fugitive. There’s probably a joke here about Jack’s former partner Chase being the one-armed man, but I’m not going to try to make the connection.
Anyway, Jack turns on the velvet and convinces the Secretary of Defense to not only listen to him, but to do it inside the hangar while his security detail stays behind. Wow, Heller really goes with his gut, huh? And I bet those security guys (likely Secret Service) aren’t supposed to allow that sort of thing, but hey, who’s going to argue with the SecDef?
Jack plays the tape for Heller and William Devane does a great acting job of looking just about like you’d expect him to. Shocked, but able to take it all in within a second or two. He questions the veracity of the recording, to which Jack replies “I trust the source.” The source, of course, is Evelyn, who Jack had never met before a couple hours ago and who he left bleeding to death in a motel room. And who, by the way, is surely dead now, courtesy of Henderson’s pistol handiwork.
Heller agrees to take the tape from Jack, who wants him to go to the Attorney General to take down Logan. Jack even uses the sappy, “You’re the only one I could trust,” and it appears Heller is moved to trust Jack. He walks out of the hangar and Jack and Audrey do a little sweet exchange where there’s some smiling (even by Jack!) about how things will be okay now. […clearly not aware that there are still 6 hours left in this season…-D] Suddenly, Heller re-enters with his security boys and walks up to Jack saying he has to tell him one more thing. With Jack not expecting anything, Heller hits him with a trachea punch that puts Jack on the floor. I love it. Heller is such a crusty veteran (remember, he’s a retired Army captain) that he takes it upon himself to use the element of surprise on Jack. Somehow, I think these two would be a fair fight, despite the age gap. While Jack is gasping on the ground, both hurt from the punch and also utterly flabbergasted, Heller lectures him and Audrey about destroying the country if they openly take down the President. I don’t know about you, but I felt like Jack and Audrey were the kids and Heller was the lecturing parent in this scene. He’s probably right, in the long run, but it’s not the kind of justice that Jack and Audrey had in mind. Heller decides to leave the recording with one of his men and he takes a car (with no security) to head to the President’s retreat to confront him and insist that he resign. Jack and Audrey are tied up (which seemed odd to me) and held there. I mean, doesn’t Heller understand the kind of danger this could put his daughter in? Or is he unaware of the level of threat that Henderson warrants?
While all this has been going on, Miles and Hayes have hatched a plan to trick Chloe into leading them to Audrey who will hopefully lead them to Jack who theoretically might lead them to Henderson. Got all that?
Anyway, Shari is involved in the setup and Miles and Hayes listen in as Chloe realizes what is happening and heads off to call Audrey. Remember, though, Audrey took the batteries out of her cell phone so as not to be tracked so Chloe calls the pay phone near Audrey’s car. Naturally, Audrey, who is tied up with Jack, does not answer. Miles is undeterred, however, and he hones in on the location of the pay phone at Van Nuys.
What happens next begins the unraveling for Logan. Hayes calls him to report their findings and that they’ve dispatched a team (with Curtis?) to Van Nuys. Logan tells her to back off and that he’s sending in the military since the situation with Jack is “sensitive.” So send in a battalion rather than domestic field agents? That doesn’t even make sense and Karen feels the same way, yet she agrees since it’s the Prez giving the orders. She decides not to just take this yo-yo treatment, though, and she calls Mike Novick who has apparently arisen from his nap. Novick even says “I’ve been in on some other things, but I’ll look into it” when Karen fills him in. [I loved this “other things” line. If this was '24: The Musical,' Novick would break into a song about the “other things” that he might have been doing, to the tune of “My Favorite Things.” “When the gas kills / When the blood spills / When I’m feeling sad./ I simply go work on some other things and Logan doesn’t seem so bad…”-D] So now Logan has Novick and Hayes questioning him and he had the VP asking questions last hour. And this is to say nothing of his wife, Martha.
Novick checks with VP Gardner, who is unaware of why Logan would make such decisions, but being a good company man, backs the President up. Novick’s next call is to the general who is heading up military ops in Los Angeles. The general received no call from Logan, so now Novick is really beginning to think his boss is a liar. This leads him to confront Logan, who pulls rank on Novick and reminds him that he doesn’t answer to Michael Novick. However, he quickly comes up with an interesting lie, and that is that he used a covert task force because he doesn’t want the Chinese to find out that Jack is still alive. Ah, yes, the Chinese. I’m glad we’ve at least mentioned them this season, seeing as how they’re the reason Jack had to fake his death and disappear at the end of last season. Novick clearly thinks this is bullshit, but what can he say? He was there when all the BS at the Chinese embassy went down and so he can’t really argue. Point to Logan.
Back at CTU, Chloe has been locked up and Miles is in the holding cell lecturing her. Chloe runs to him as he’s leaving and puts her hands on him, ostensibly to turn him around, saying “Miles, wait…” As she does this, she smoothly pickpockets him and palms his keycard. [A couple of eps ago, I was thinking Agent Pierce and Wayne Palmer should get a show of their own. It’s clear that Chloe – computer hacking, machine gun toting, pickpocketing Chloe – should be in on this as well. It could be the 21st century’s answer to ‘The Mod Squad!”-D] Using this keycard (and man, aren’t keycards just the prop of the season) she exits the holding room and makes a break for it. Shari catches her and they squawk at one another briefly, with Chloe winning out by mentioning that she knows Shari lied about Miles’ sexual advances and that she’ll recommend Shari for a psych counseling. That is, if she’s not in jail. [One question: do crazy people know they’re crazy? – D]
Over at Camp David Palmer, Logan is pacing around, waiting for word from Henderson when his wife comes in and tries to coo him to bed. Logan promises to be in soon but gets a call from the Secretary of Defense, who is driving towards the retreat. Logan takes the call and there’s a fairly brusque exchange between the two. At one point, I love how Logan says “Perhaps you’ve forgotten that you’re addressing the President of the United States.” Heller knows exactly who he’s talking to and says he’ll be there in 5 minutes. Good thing he knows his way around LA. By the way, Heller, watch out for random killers on the road into the retreat. Oh, and shut off Wayne’s headlights if you get a chance. Thanks.
Martha then goes to Aaron Pierce and asks him what’s going on. He agrees to tell her outside and suggests they meet “near the south stables.” You know, Martha, that location where Pierce caught you cowering in a stall twelve or so hours ago?
Martha agrees to meet him there and when she does, Pierce is absent. Martha pulls out her celly and dials Aaron’s number which, to the continuity staff’s credit, is a “202” number (202 is a DC area code). In a moment that made all loyal viewers and fans of Aaron feel a pin in their stomach, she hears Aaron’s phone ring on the ground near her. She finds it and picks it up and sees her own name and number on the caller ID, thus confirming it’s Aaron’s phone. Incidentally, Martha has a 310 (Los Angeles) area code and the same number that Debbie’s mom had last season!
So what happened to Aaron? We don’t find out this hour but I’m thinking it’s not good. Are we losing yet another five-season mainstay?
Inside while this is going on, Heller has arrived and Logan walks out to greet him. What an outstanding scene between these two. Logan dismisses the security personnel and hesitantly puts out his hand for Heller, who makes not one move to take it. The way Greg Itzin semi-sheepishly recoils his hand is just terrific. I doubt it was written that way but more likely was played up by Devane and Itzin. Very small thing but very nicely done. […and another moment that adds to Itzin’s growing treasure trove of Emmy-worthy scenes…-D]
Heller gets right to the point and references the recording that he listened to. Logan looks to deny it at first but his poker face is for shit and he caves in when he talks about protecting the interests of the country. Basically, he knows that if Heller has the tape the jig is up, so why not try to reason with him. At least that’s the plan. Heller asks if the interests are oil and Logan says yes twice – once rather quickly and then again more forcefully, almost as though Heller sort of inadvertently reminded him of what this was all about to begin with. Logan comments on how the people who put him in office won’t be able to afford to heat their homes or drive their cars. I’m not sure if the people put him in office at all, actually. He was Keeler’s VP and he took over for Keeler less than 18 months into Keeler’s term, which was 18 months ago. So no, there hasn’t been an election yet but there should be soon. [I think he was talking about Keeler (or at least his widow), Mike Novick, and the shady bagmen Logan seems to associate with, all of them probably SUV drivers…-D]
Anyway, Heller keeps pressing Logan, who comes right back at Heller, telling him, “Until you’ve sat in my chair, you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
Heller responds, very evenly, “Your chair is not a throne, Charles.”
Ah, the first name! If ever there’s a way to show a lack of respect towards the President, it’s to call him by his first name. […and then drop your pants and crap on his desk, but I don’t think Devane would go for that one…-D] Logan seems to completely miss this since he’s all worked into a lather at this point. He realizes his goose is cooked and he asks Heller what he wants. Heller responds with his appetizers: Back off of Jack and leave Audrey alone. I wasn’t aware Audrey was in any danger from Logan, but okay. Logan seems to show some hope here (another great performance by Itzin) and says, “Anything else?” It was as though he was ready to agree to anything if it was going to be that easy. And that’s when Heller drops the bomb – resignation. And he agrees to keep the recording secret, which almost seems to pacify Logan who, as we all know, has never really been able to handle being President and is more concerned with his public image than anything.
As this is happening, Chloe is arriving at Bill Buchanan’s (Safe) House to the tunes of the James Bond-like guitar music I first mentioned last week (and which was the latest comment we’ve made here that another Website’s recapper apparently liked and used as his own), where he apparently has Wayne stashed in the attic. Chloe gets set up to work remotely from Bill’s pad (hopefully, Bill sprung for high-speed Internet access). Bill’s no longer wearing his suit jacket or his necktie – it’s undoubtedly the most casual we’ve ever seen him. Fortunately, he does not have soft music playing and wine in a chiller.
Over at Van Nuys, Jack takes advantage of the fact that Heller’s security boys aren’t in the same room with them (when will TV security people learn?) and he is able to melt off his restraints on a hot pipe. He then knocks over one of the agents and takes his gun. Out on the tarmac, he sneaks up on the other agent and gets the recording back from him. Suddenly, Henderson and yet another cadre of men (who apparently multiply like the bad guys in a James Bond video game) arrive via helicopter and begin shooting. Jack tells Secret Service Agent #2 to take cover and that if they’re going to survive they’ll have to work together. He tosses him back his gun and the two fire at Henderson’s chopper, taking out many more of Henderson’s men. At one point, some of Henderson’s men actually take cover near….a tanker truck. This makes it way too easy (and probably kind of fun) for Jack as he blows up the truck and incinerates some bad guys. In the crossfire, Henderson is able to book it into the hangar (somehow knowing right where to go to find Audrey and have leverage against Jack) while Secret Service Agent #2 takes a bullet and goes down. Jack rushes over and loots his corpse of, presumably, ammunition and whatever cash he has on him.
Jack hoofs it into the hangar and, naturally, Henderson has Audrey at gunpoint and is demanding the recording. Dammit, Audrey. [We’re talking Audrey here – she could’ve hid behind a swizzle stick and Henderson wouldn’t have found her for days. I’m thinking she must have been doing an interpretive dance around the hanger – think '24: The Musical' again – when Henderson barged in.-D] Jack and Henderson yell back and forth for a while, with Henderson again being cryptic about who he is protecting. Jack says he’ll turn over the recording if Henderson lets Audrey go and he throws in his patented sweetener: “I give you my word.” Well, there’s word-giving all over the damn place today, isn’t there? We should ask Theo Stoller how much stock he puts in Jack’s word. Henderson seems to know this, too, and suggests meeting Jack halfway, to which Jack yells back, “What does that mean?” This struck me as funny for some reason.
What it means, apparently, is that Henderson nearly cuts off Audrey’s arm and then sends her strolling towards Jack. Jack realizes what is going on, as Audrey bleeds all over the floor and ruins her weird, cream-colored coat. Henderson says he cut her brachial artery and that she’ll bleed to death in three minutes. Yikes.
Audrey repeatedly tells Jack not to turn over the evidence but Jack does it anyway, sliding it over to Henderson who takes several shots in their direction but hits nothing. I suppose if Jack knew Henderson was that poor of a marksman, he might have reconsidered sending over the recording.
Back at the Presidential retreat, Heller is handing over a typed resignation letter (apparently, Logan was kind enough to allow him use of a computer and printer) for Logan to sign. Vice-President Gardner is entering the room and pleasantly greets Heller, who defers to Logan to tell Gardner what he’s doing there. Logan looks as though he has no other recourse and turns to Gardner. “Hal,” Logan begins, but trails off because his cell rings with a call from Henderson. Henderson confirms he has the recording and you just knew what was going to happen next. Logan, ever the shifty bastard, announces to Gardner that he is asking Heller for his resignation because Heller came there to accuse him of being complicit in the day’s events. Heller is pissed and tells Gardner the truth about the conspiracy, stating that he has evidence. Logan, smugly, asks to see it, which tips off Heller that the phone call Logan just got had to do with the evidence and, likely, Jack and Audrey. He leans in and begins the threat, “If anything happens to my daughter…” He doesn’t finish it, though, as security comes to escort him out at the request of the President, who barbs Heller one more time with, “I’d like your resignation on my desk by the morning.” Throughout all of this, Gardner is staring at both men with an absolutely horrified expression on his face. I thought it looked like he didn’t know who to believe and I’m sort of hoping that this accusation by Heller pushes Gardner’s suspicions of Logan over the edge. [What was with all the repeated mentions of things happening before the “news cycle” starts the next day? It’s clear that neither the President nor the terrorists are in control of the country – it’s the media twits that juice up the morning news shows every day…-D]
We go to the final-minute split-screen and it’s a doozy, once again showing us how much the shit has hit the fan. We have no fewer than seven splits, including Heller walking out of the retreat, Martha wondering where Aaron is, Jack tending to Audrey, Henderson driving away with the recording, Buchanan and Chloe fretting, Novick, Hayes… and we’re treated to the President doing his bird-face routine. And if you were expecting the customary final scene after the split-screen, you’re still waiting. We’re left with the feeling that things aren’t good. And that, in itself, is what makes the episode very good.
Reviewer: J
[A quick shout out to J for being a mensch, watching my back, and writing up this week’s ep. Life – real life – got a little too crazy for me this week to ramble on at length about the best show on television so instead I’ll just be interrupting his typically sterling commentary with more than the usual amount of snarky side comments. Thanks, boss! –D]
We kick off Hour Eighteen with Logan still being a shifty bastard and calling Henderson to confirm Bauer’s been killed. I find it interesting that Logan has totally crossed the line and is now openly discussing Bauer’s murder – quite a shift from the limp-wristed Logan we’ve come to know and more great acting from Greg Itzin, who shines in this hour.
Henderson prattles on about how CTU is the best resource for catching Jack. Clearly, Henderson has been away from CTU for a while since catching Jack has been nearly impossible for them for years. Jack gets caught when he wants to get caught, okay Henderson? Logan seems to agree with me as he says “You’re putting an awful lot of faith in their abilities.” Yeah, especially since you and the Vice President have been fucking up CTU by firing everyone and replacing them with Homeland Security people. Nevertheless, Logan immediately calls Karen Hayes to lean on her a bit more and, in my opinion, nearly tip his hand. When she says they’re still looking for Bauer and Henderson, Logan snaps that he wants Bauer to be a priority. See, if I were Logan, I’d try to suggest Bauer might be helping Henderson and point to their history and how they were friends at one point. It’s not like CTU/Homeland is going to just forget about Henderson, so why not play up the relationship of those two and further deflect suspicion? As we’ll soon see, there isn’t a Wonder Woman bracelet big enough to deflect what will be coming at Logan this hour. In the scene where Logan is pestering Hayes again, I think it’s interesting to note that Miles, in the foreground, is shaking his head as he hears Hayes’ side of the conversation. I’m beginning to wonder if he’ll eventually come around, too, and begin to be suspicious of the President’s motives. For now, though, he’s not and simply wants to follow them.
A few minutes into the hour, we see Jack and Wayne (and presumably the now-dead bank manager) waiting for someone. A car approaches and it turns out to be Buchanan (still wearing his tie, mind you). Bill drives a Toyota 4Runner. Vanilla, yet rugged. Yes, that’s Bill. Anyway, Jack introduces Wayne and Bill and Bill immediately extends his condolences about David Palmer. I really liked this touch – despite the franticness of the moment, Bill doesn’t forget his manners or to say something he clearly means. Wayne looks choked up all over again, or perhaps just sickened by all the death he’s been around today. Jack fills Bill in on the evidence implicating Logan and asks him (Bill) to look after Wayne and keep him somewhere safe. And presumably not in a motel room.
Speaking of which, has Jack sent anyone to check on Evelyn? And let’s not forget about the Bank Manager’s wife, who is still tied up to a chair with her deceased husband’s neckties.
Anyway, Bill agrees to look after Wayne and they run off together. No, not that way. And I hope you enjoyed seeing Wayne because that’s it for him this hour. Thanks for stopping by, DB! Maybe Bill will hide Wayne in the same place that Curtis has been hidden for the past two hours.
Over at Van Nuys Airport, security is fairly nonexistent. Why do I say that? Well, Audrey was able to park on the tarmac as the Secretary of Defense’s plane arrived. […inconspicuously wearing a shiny white full-length coat to boot…-D] She lets Jack know and then she goes to her pops who greets her warmly. I really like these two together as father and daughter. They maintain a professional relationship most of the time but allow themselves to clearly love one another in private moments. I supposed nearly being killed together does that.
As the Secretary is asking what the Heller is going on, Jack screams up in his boosted patrol car. Like, nice and inconspicuous, Jack! Why not run the lights and siren as well? As he jumps out, Heller gets agitated and refers to him as a fugitive. There’s probably a joke here about Jack’s former partner Chase being the one-armed man, but I’m not going to try to make the connection.
Anyway, Jack turns on the velvet and convinces the Secretary of Defense to not only listen to him, but to do it inside the hangar while his security detail stays behind. Wow, Heller really goes with his gut, huh? And I bet those security guys (likely Secret Service) aren’t supposed to allow that sort of thing, but hey, who’s going to argue with the SecDef?
Jack plays the tape for Heller and William Devane does a great acting job of looking just about like you’d expect him to. Shocked, but able to take it all in within a second or two. He questions the veracity of the recording, to which Jack replies “I trust the source.” The source, of course, is Evelyn, who Jack had never met before a couple hours ago and who he left bleeding to death in a motel room. And who, by the way, is surely dead now, courtesy of Henderson’s pistol handiwork.
Heller agrees to take the tape from Jack, who wants him to go to the Attorney General to take down Logan. Jack even uses the sappy, “You’re the only one I could trust,” and it appears Heller is moved to trust Jack. He walks out of the hangar and Jack and Audrey do a little sweet exchange where there’s some smiling (even by Jack!) about how things will be okay now. […clearly not aware that there are still 6 hours left in this season…-D] Suddenly, Heller re-enters with his security boys and walks up to Jack saying he has to tell him one more thing. With Jack not expecting anything, Heller hits him with a trachea punch that puts Jack on the floor. I love it. Heller is such a crusty veteran (remember, he’s a retired Army captain) that he takes it upon himself to use the element of surprise on Jack. Somehow, I think these two would be a fair fight, despite the age gap. While Jack is gasping on the ground, both hurt from the punch and also utterly flabbergasted, Heller lectures him and Audrey about destroying the country if they openly take down the President. I don’t know about you, but I felt like Jack and Audrey were the kids and Heller was the lecturing parent in this scene. He’s probably right, in the long run, but it’s not the kind of justice that Jack and Audrey had in mind. Heller decides to leave the recording with one of his men and he takes a car (with no security) to head to the President’s retreat to confront him and insist that he resign. Jack and Audrey are tied up (which seemed odd to me) and held there. I mean, doesn’t Heller understand the kind of danger this could put his daughter in? Or is he unaware of the level of threat that Henderson warrants?
While all this has been going on, Miles and Hayes have hatched a plan to trick Chloe into leading them to Audrey who will hopefully lead them to Jack who theoretically might lead them to Henderson. Got all that?
Anyway, Shari is involved in the setup and Miles and Hayes listen in as Chloe realizes what is happening and heads off to call Audrey. Remember, though, Audrey took the batteries out of her cell phone so as not to be tracked so Chloe calls the pay phone near Audrey’s car. Naturally, Audrey, who is tied up with Jack, does not answer. Miles is undeterred, however, and he hones in on the location of the pay phone at Van Nuys.
What happens next begins the unraveling for Logan. Hayes calls him to report their findings and that they’ve dispatched a team (with Curtis?) to Van Nuys. Logan tells her to back off and that he’s sending in the military since the situation with Jack is “sensitive.” So send in a battalion rather than domestic field agents? That doesn’t even make sense and Karen feels the same way, yet she agrees since it’s the Prez giving the orders. She decides not to just take this yo-yo treatment, though, and she calls Mike Novick who has apparently arisen from his nap. Novick even says “I’ve been in on some other things, but I’ll look into it” when Karen fills him in. [I loved this “other things” line. If this was '24: The Musical,' Novick would break into a song about the “other things” that he might have been doing, to the tune of “My Favorite Things.” “When the gas kills / When the blood spills / When I’m feeling sad./ I simply go work on some other things and Logan doesn’t seem so bad…”-D] So now Logan has Novick and Hayes questioning him and he had the VP asking questions last hour. And this is to say nothing of his wife, Martha.
Novick checks with VP Gardner, who is unaware of why Logan would make such decisions, but being a good company man, backs the President up. Novick’s next call is to the general who is heading up military ops in Los Angeles. The general received no call from Logan, so now Novick is really beginning to think his boss is a liar. This leads him to confront Logan, who pulls rank on Novick and reminds him that he doesn’t answer to Michael Novick. However, he quickly comes up with an interesting lie, and that is that he used a covert task force because he doesn’t want the Chinese to find out that Jack is still alive. Ah, yes, the Chinese. I’m glad we’ve at least mentioned them this season, seeing as how they’re the reason Jack had to fake his death and disappear at the end of last season. Novick clearly thinks this is bullshit, but what can he say? He was there when all the BS at the Chinese embassy went down and so he can’t really argue. Point to Logan.
Back at CTU, Chloe has been locked up and Miles is in the holding cell lecturing her. Chloe runs to him as he’s leaving and puts her hands on him, ostensibly to turn him around, saying “Miles, wait…” As she does this, she smoothly pickpockets him and palms his keycard. [A couple of eps ago, I was thinking Agent Pierce and Wayne Palmer should get a show of their own. It’s clear that Chloe – computer hacking, machine gun toting, pickpocketing Chloe – should be in on this as well. It could be the 21st century’s answer to ‘The Mod Squad!”-D] Using this keycard (and man, aren’t keycards just the prop of the season) she exits the holding room and makes a break for it. Shari catches her and they squawk at one another briefly, with Chloe winning out by mentioning that she knows Shari lied about Miles’ sexual advances and that she’ll recommend Shari for a psych counseling. That is, if she’s not in jail. [One question: do crazy people know they’re crazy? – D]
Over at Camp David Palmer, Logan is pacing around, waiting for word from Henderson when his wife comes in and tries to coo him to bed. Logan promises to be in soon but gets a call from the Secretary of Defense, who is driving towards the retreat. Logan takes the call and there’s a fairly brusque exchange between the two. At one point, I love how Logan says “Perhaps you’ve forgotten that you’re addressing the President of the United States.” Heller knows exactly who he’s talking to and says he’ll be there in 5 minutes. Good thing he knows his way around LA. By the way, Heller, watch out for random killers on the road into the retreat. Oh, and shut off Wayne’s headlights if you get a chance. Thanks.
Martha then goes to Aaron Pierce and asks him what’s going on. He agrees to tell her outside and suggests they meet “near the south stables.” You know, Martha, that location where Pierce caught you cowering in a stall twelve or so hours ago?
Martha agrees to meet him there and when she does, Pierce is absent. Martha pulls out her celly and dials Aaron’s number which, to the continuity staff’s credit, is a “202” number (202 is a DC area code). In a moment that made all loyal viewers and fans of Aaron feel a pin in their stomach, she hears Aaron’s phone ring on the ground near her. She finds it and picks it up and sees her own name and number on the caller ID, thus confirming it’s Aaron’s phone. Incidentally, Martha has a 310 (Los Angeles) area code and the same number that Debbie’s mom had last season!
So what happened to Aaron? We don’t find out this hour but I’m thinking it’s not good. Are we losing yet another five-season mainstay?
Inside while this is going on, Heller has arrived and Logan walks out to greet him. What an outstanding scene between these two. Logan dismisses the security personnel and hesitantly puts out his hand for Heller, who makes not one move to take it. The way Greg Itzin semi-sheepishly recoils his hand is just terrific. I doubt it was written that way but more likely was played up by Devane and Itzin. Very small thing but very nicely done. […and another moment that adds to Itzin’s growing treasure trove of Emmy-worthy scenes…-D]
Heller gets right to the point and references the recording that he listened to. Logan looks to deny it at first but his poker face is for shit and he caves in when he talks about protecting the interests of the country. Basically, he knows that if Heller has the tape the jig is up, so why not try to reason with him. At least that’s the plan. Heller asks if the interests are oil and Logan says yes twice – once rather quickly and then again more forcefully, almost as though Heller sort of inadvertently reminded him of what this was all about to begin with. Logan comments on how the people who put him in office won’t be able to afford to heat their homes or drive their cars. I’m not sure if the people put him in office at all, actually. He was Keeler’s VP and he took over for Keeler less than 18 months into Keeler’s term, which was 18 months ago. So no, there hasn’t been an election yet but there should be soon. [I think he was talking about Keeler (or at least his widow), Mike Novick, and the shady bagmen Logan seems to associate with, all of them probably SUV drivers…-D]
Anyway, Heller keeps pressing Logan, who comes right back at Heller, telling him, “Until you’ve sat in my chair, you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
Heller responds, very evenly, “Your chair is not a throne, Charles.”
Ah, the first name! If ever there’s a way to show a lack of respect towards the President, it’s to call him by his first name. […and then drop your pants and crap on his desk, but I don’t think Devane would go for that one…-D] Logan seems to completely miss this since he’s all worked into a lather at this point. He realizes his goose is cooked and he asks Heller what he wants. Heller responds with his appetizers: Back off of Jack and leave Audrey alone. I wasn’t aware Audrey was in any danger from Logan, but okay. Logan seems to show some hope here (another great performance by Itzin) and says, “Anything else?” It was as though he was ready to agree to anything if it was going to be that easy. And that’s when Heller drops the bomb – resignation. And he agrees to keep the recording secret, which almost seems to pacify Logan who, as we all know, has never really been able to handle being President and is more concerned with his public image than anything.
As this is happening, Chloe is arriving at Bill Buchanan’s (Safe) House to the tunes of the James Bond-like guitar music I first mentioned last week (and which was the latest comment we’ve made here that another Website’s recapper apparently liked and used as his own), where he apparently has Wayne stashed in the attic. Chloe gets set up to work remotely from Bill’s pad (hopefully, Bill sprung for high-speed Internet access). Bill’s no longer wearing his suit jacket or his necktie – it’s undoubtedly the most casual we’ve ever seen him. Fortunately, he does not have soft music playing and wine in a chiller.
Over at Van Nuys, Jack takes advantage of the fact that Heller’s security boys aren’t in the same room with them (when will TV security people learn?) and he is able to melt off his restraints on a hot pipe. He then knocks over one of the agents and takes his gun. Out on the tarmac, he sneaks up on the other agent and gets the recording back from him. Suddenly, Henderson and yet another cadre of men (who apparently multiply like the bad guys in a James Bond video game) arrive via helicopter and begin shooting. Jack tells Secret Service Agent #2 to take cover and that if they’re going to survive they’ll have to work together. He tosses him back his gun and the two fire at Henderson’s chopper, taking out many more of Henderson’s men. At one point, some of Henderson’s men actually take cover near….a tanker truck. This makes it way too easy (and probably kind of fun) for Jack as he blows up the truck and incinerates some bad guys. In the crossfire, Henderson is able to book it into the hangar (somehow knowing right where to go to find Audrey and have leverage against Jack) while Secret Service Agent #2 takes a bullet and goes down. Jack rushes over and loots his corpse of, presumably, ammunition and whatever cash he has on him.
Jack hoofs it into the hangar and, naturally, Henderson has Audrey at gunpoint and is demanding the recording. Dammit, Audrey. [We’re talking Audrey here – she could’ve hid behind a swizzle stick and Henderson wouldn’t have found her for days. I’m thinking she must have been doing an interpretive dance around the hanger – think '24: The Musical' again – when Henderson barged in.-D] Jack and Henderson yell back and forth for a while, with Henderson again being cryptic about who he is protecting. Jack says he’ll turn over the recording if Henderson lets Audrey go and he throws in his patented sweetener: “I give you my word.” Well, there’s word-giving all over the damn place today, isn’t there? We should ask Theo Stoller how much stock he puts in Jack’s word. Henderson seems to know this, too, and suggests meeting Jack halfway, to which Jack yells back, “What does that mean?” This struck me as funny for some reason.
What it means, apparently, is that Henderson nearly cuts off Audrey’s arm and then sends her strolling towards Jack. Jack realizes what is going on, as Audrey bleeds all over the floor and ruins her weird, cream-colored coat. Henderson says he cut her brachial artery and that she’ll bleed to death in three minutes. Yikes.
Audrey repeatedly tells Jack not to turn over the evidence but Jack does it anyway, sliding it over to Henderson who takes several shots in their direction but hits nothing. I suppose if Jack knew Henderson was that poor of a marksman, he might have reconsidered sending over the recording.
Back at the Presidential retreat, Heller is handing over a typed resignation letter (apparently, Logan was kind enough to allow him use of a computer and printer) for Logan to sign. Vice-President Gardner is entering the room and pleasantly greets Heller, who defers to Logan to tell Gardner what he’s doing there. Logan looks as though he has no other recourse and turns to Gardner. “Hal,” Logan begins, but trails off because his cell rings with a call from Henderson. Henderson confirms he has the recording and you just knew what was going to happen next. Logan, ever the shifty bastard, announces to Gardner that he is asking Heller for his resignation because Heller came there to accuse him of being complicit in the day’s events. Heller is pissed and tells Gardner the truth about the conspiracy, stating that he has evidence. Logan, smugly, asks to see it, which tips off Heller that the phone call Logan just got had to do with the evidence and, likely, Jack and Audrey. He leans in and begins the threat, “If anything happens to my daughter…” He doesn’t finish it, though, as security comes to escort him out at the request of the President, who barbs Heller one more time with, “I’d like your resignation on my desk by the morning.” Throughout all of this, Gardner is staring at both men with an absolutely horrified expression on his face. I thought it looked like he didn’t know who to believe and I’m sort of hoping that this accusation by Heller pushes Gardner’s suspicions of Logan over the edge. [What was with all the repeated mentions of things happening before the “news cycle” starts the next day? It’s clear that neither the President nor the terrorists are in control of the country – it’s the media twits that juice up the morning news shows every day…-D]
We go to the final-minute split-screen and it’s a doozy, once again showing us how much the shit has hit the fan. We have no fewer than seven splits, including Heller walking out of the retreat, Martha wondering where Aaron is, Jack tending to Audrey, Henderson driving away with the recording, Buchanan and Chloe fretting, Novick, Hayes… and we’re treated to the President doing his bird-face routine. And if you were expecting the customary final scene after the split-screen, you’re still waiting. We’re left with the feeling that things aren’t good. And that, in itself, is what makes the episode very good.
Labels: Season Five
posted by J Money at 12:51:00 PM
7 Comments:
I don't think anything happened to Pierce - I just get the feeling that was his way of telling Martha that "I ain't telling you nothing - I just wanted you to get out of my hair."
It better be something like that. I'd HATE it if Pierce goes down too.
It was a great episode, but once again, I really have no care for Audrey . . . last time I had any pride for her was when she got Curits to take Lynn down.
But again, Great episode. I'm surprised Heller didn't Trachead Logan!
I'd like to mention how I enjoy that comment on Novik's "Other Things" HILARIOUS!!
Just some More thoughts on Aaron -
Okay, I doubt that Aaron's in any trouble yet, even after the scene with Martha in the stables. I think that was just his way of saying, "Get off my back, I ain't telling you anything yet . . ."
But still, Aaron is in a tough spot.
He's Head of Secret Service AND in the "Eagle One" Position. He has a DIRECT responisibility of taking care of the President since perhaps Day III. Probably as far back as 24: The Game. And guess what? The President's dirty. DOWN RIGHT Dirty. This is NO Coup d'etat -- Logan is not being influenced by anyone. And yet Logan remains President of the United States -- the role that Aaron must be willing to scarifice his life for. And oh yeah, Logan is the CAUSE behind Palmer's death. Henderson may have been the one who gave the Order, but in the end, Logan was not disspleased. And Aaron knows this as well.
What's a Secret Service Agent to do?
IMO, I'd love to see the final showdown have Logan vs. Aaron & Henderson vs. Jack. Both of them avenging those they care for. Aaron for Palmer, and Jack for Tony. The Tetramvirate will hopefully be avenged then. I don't know where Wayne will come into play, but I'd like him to live till next season, maybe having the chance to have a Presidential Bid (ala Robert F. Kennedy - But hopefully he won't be killed too!)
PS - Aaron BETTER NOT DIE. I will seriously kill! Palmer was the "Reason for the Season," and Tony (I guess, but he still deserves a S.C.) demonstrates how 24 is a Tragedy, but Aaron is truly the glue of the show, alongside (and more obviously) Jack.
I wouldn't be so certain that Logan's the head man behind everything.... I think we're about to learn that Logan is still the puppet he looks to be and that someone else is pulling the strings.
Also, I have to disagree with your assessment of Aaron -- I think that's just you liking Aaron so much you don't want to admit he's in trouble. :-)
We shall see.
Please don't tell me that J! I know you have a good way of predicting things and I don't WANT this to be one of them!!!!
Hey, if Logan isn't behind everything, then it may just make more sense . . .
I'm glad some folks think Pierce may still be alive. I'd hate to see him go. It'll be a hell of an ep tonight if both the First Lady and Pierce buy it.
I'd also just like to say it's almost embarrassing how much mainstream press '24' has been getting lately. This morning's USA Today has not one, but two articles about Mary Lynn Rajskub. Last week, while on my way across country, I picked up Rolling Stone's last issue with an interesting interview with Kief as well as some commentary on what 24 says about our world today.
It almost makes me nostalgic for those days four years ago when '24' was a cultish little show and J's commentary was the only one (or at least the BEST one) around. It makes me feel all parental -- our little '24' has done growed up!
Yes, I meant to comment on that Rolling Stone piece on Kiefer -- very good stuff. And I don't normally think much of Rolling Stone.
As for Aaron, no, I don't think he's dead. But I also don't think it's just his way of ditching Martha... And I don't think Martha will be made dead either -- probably locked up (perhaps in Vermont?) but I don't think killed.
Vermont, yeah, that be really funny . . . and sad too.
I saw the Rolling Stone Article as well, and I couldn't help but think Kiefer was being a tad 'jerkish' (can't think of a better way to say it) when he mentioned how he's sort of getting the feeling he's stuck in the role (I'm paraphrasing and that's what I remembered from a couple of weeks ago). He may have a point, but come on, he's got one of the most coveted jobs in Hollywood right now!!
And yes, D, it does feel wierd that 24 is so mainstream now. I remembered Pre-Day III when I had to hunt hours on end for a decent 24 news site only able to find a Canadian Reviewer, CTUsecure (now deceased), TVTome (mutated), and of course, the Unofficial, Unauthorized 24 Page! Now, I can find something on 24 wherever I want. It's a love/hate attitude, I guess.
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