In a sneaky preview of Saturday's Screen Burn column in The Guardian's Guide, the ever-excellent Charlie Brooker gives us another reason to love '24'. He makes the (actually, quiet useful) point that, thanks to the show's on-screen timer, it's the ideal programme to cook to.
"You can run out of the room to put the broccoli on the minute the clock shows there's ten minutes left."
No idea if any of you eat so late in the evening - but I know I do. I find that broccoli generally takes a tad longer than ten minutes, though.
Whilst we're on the theme of recycling, the BBC have used portions of my '9AM - 10AM' review on their offical '24' site. Fifth one down, if you're interested.
From Dow Jones business news:
Gail Berman, the Fox Network entertainment president, said '24' was the fifth-highest rated program on television, and announced that Fox would renew the program for a third season.
"By making the pickup now, we can give the producers ample time to go complete the course of the season, and plant the seeds for the next one," she said. Ms. Berman said the show would retain its 24-hour concept, but declined to confirm if series star Keifer Sutherland would return.
"That could potentially give away a story line, and I'm not into doing that," she said.
UPDATE: The statement is covered at zap2it.com. Don't worry, there's no storyline spoilers on the page.
UPDATE UPDATE: The ol' faithful Guardian covers the zap2it.com coverage of the statement at guardian.co.uk. Face it, their stories pop up so often at this site, you should be able to guess the URLs by now.
The only confirmed guest for this week's 'Pure 24' on BBC3 is Natalie Casey - the woman from 'Two Pints of Lager and a packet of Crisps' and 'Hollyoaks'. Hopefully, she'll be asked to atone for her televisual sins before being allowed on camera, but somehow I doubt it.
I'd like to suggest Xander Berkeley, who stars as George Mason in '24', or Dennis Hopper, last season's baddie, as future guests. Or, alternatively, in a completely random slant, let's have ultra-popsters Coldplay on, so they can do one the '24' theme tune for one of their wild 'n' zany cover versions.
The Guardian publishes it's online supplement every Thursday. This week, the 'Web Watch' page includes a list of '24' websites to check out. Last, but not least, is this very weblog. I'd just like to welcome any potential new readers, and to thank the Academy...
02.26 | I laughed so hard I nearly died, I really did
"Kiefer gives head to terrorists. Uh, I mean, Kiefer gives a severed head to some terrorists."
Televisonwithoutpity.com sums up 9AM - 10AM in a far funnier way that I ever could. Be warned though - the index page of that site has plenty of information about the latest shows that have been broadcast in the US.
Well, 'Pure 24' managed to screen out the crap callers last night. Hoorah for 'live' TV! No, really - it is live, apparently. Ed Byrne was amusing with his super hero comments, but his lack of hair was scary. Jim Sangster (who isn't as big a geeky fan-boy as me, as he only wrote a book on the series, and not a website) was also completely ace - I haven't read his book though (maybe if he reads this he could send me a free copy?)
I nearly turned off when presenter Tamzin Sylvester said that '24's co-creator Robert Cochran wouldn't be interviewed, but writer and continuity geezer Virgil Williams proved interesting. He said that season three would be a definite go-ahead, on the two provisons that a) Fox recommissions the show, and b) Kiefer Sutherland agrees to appear on it again. For the stupid, this spoils the fact that Jack Bauer can't be killed off in this series, but it's not like this was ever a possibility, eh?
Anyway, back to 'Pure 24'. Tamzin Sylvester is getting into the flow of things, though it's quite clear that's shes seen every available episode in advance and is feeding us, the audience, all the plotlines in an attempt to make herself look like an adept guesser. I reckon she should provide a running commentary on the DVD release = 'Oh look, Kim's just thumped Gary with a socket wrench - I told you that was going to happen. Oh, aren't I clever?'
Yes, I agree. I'd like to be in your position - being paid to watch my favourite TV show. Now stop spoiling it for me, or I'll turn off and spoil your ratings, and your series, and you'll get the sack. Sorry to be harsh, but I take after Jack Bauer. Not really one to mince his words, him.
And, again, lose the 'sneak preview of the next episode' segment, please. I'd rather not know, thank you very much.
Still, there were sexy ladies in the audience! Even geeky fan-girls can be good looking. There's hope for us all.
Oh, and next week - watch the end of the show carefully. The Ford Motor Company have managed to squeeze in a bit of advertising that the BBC haven't managed to cut out, since it's in the credits. Well done, that subversive multi-billion-dollar, multi-national company.
02.24 | The Guardian gets it right - again
"While most of us are only imagining murdering and decapitating a man at 9.15am - and that's only if we've caught Kilroy - Jack has already gone to work with a head in his holdall. When you're trying to save Los Angeles from being nuked, infiltrate a terrorist cell and get your estranged daughter to return your calls, you learn to travel light."
I have a feeling than I'm going to have to link to The Guardian's review of the week's episode every Monday morning. Still, could be worse, eh?
02.24 | 'Jumping the shark' means 'when it became awful' - it's a 'Happy Days' reference - 'nuff said, eh?
"What everyone really liked about '24' was Kiefer Sutherland leaping around like the biggest repository of Alpha Male sperm known to womankind, and the clock going off in the corner. Instead of trying to remake the original '24' all over again, why didn't Fox take the cast and the format and give them new characters and scenarios? The explanation to all this lack of originality — and the sudden plethora of cast-members who fall into the nubile blonde category — may lie in the highly lucrative sponsorship deal with Ford Motors for the second series. Sponsors don't like to write cheques for new things. Essentially, they just want to backdate it to the previous, successful project. And put more tits in."
It's funny how Caitlin Moran, ex-Melody Maker journalist and general good sport, has written an article for The Times about '24' 'jumping the shark', when she herself 'jumped the shark' when she presented the series 'Naked City' with Johnny Vaughan back in the mid-'90s. I think she's just jealous that Kiefer can make his career recover, whereas she has ended up writing mis-judged comment pieces for a misjudged 'newspaper' read by an audience full of misjudgers.
I'm sorry: I'm taking this all seriously. Please strangle me. But not for another 22 weeks of Sundays.
Right, so did anyone else notice Jack Bauer surreptitiously starting his undercover mission by flying into a car park in a helicopter? No, just me, then? Good. Well, I'll let that one slip since he drove a couple of miles in a beat-up Sedan to cover his tracks before hooking up Wald's crew with the severed paedophile head. He should set up a mafia gift shop, or something – 'The Bauer Gift Boutique – When you need to apologise to someone, Say It With A Head'. Nice bowling bag he had the head stashed in, though. Do patriots approve of Louis Vuitton?
Darlene, AKA computer tech wiz Paula, seems a little unsure of herself. Stop being such a wuss, little girl. No idea how she got a job at the country's leading counter terrorist agency – especially since her predecessor was killed in the line of duty by a 'dirty' colleague. Still, she did good, and managed to 'upload files' to a 'server' 'through the firewall' (or something) before Wald's gang got suspicious over Jack’s alter-ego not appearing in the FBI's system.
It took Kim over ten minutes to find a phone booth that was twenty yards down the street. I love the continuity in this show, sometimes. No wonder she lost Megan.
When this is all over, President Palmer should probably send the reporter Ron Wieland a present from Jack's mafia gift shop. Considering his never-before-seen bit part character, and Eric Raeburn’s indifference towards the uninvolved, I don't think Wieland's long for this world. I'd give him until the next episode before Raeburn sends him to sleep with the fishies.
And Jack's car trouble was even worse than Kim's trip to find a telephone. Thing is, it wasn't even the crap Sedan that broke down - he was pretending it was busted. I don't think I would have been convinced by a wannabe terrorist with a posh Louis Vuitton bag and a crap old car. Still, what a tricky trickster, eh? It took him at least ten minutes of staring into the engine before he managed to catch himself a lift by breaking that guy’s ankle. At least he’s not going to have to call a taxi back to CTU, since it turns out that's where they're headed.
All in all, an average outing after last week's cracking opener. This week’s episode ranks on a par with last season's 3:00PM – 4:00PM nonsense of Teri's 'disassociative amnesia'. It can only get better. The best thing is that the myriad of characters are starting to get sorted out – clearly, the main ones to watch out for are Eric Raeburn, George Mason, Paula Shaeffer, Kate Warner and Gary Matheson. No one really gives a shit about Lynne Kresge, Carla Matheson or CTU’s dull Michelle Dessler – because they're just not getting enough action.
I still think Gary and Carla are going to end up at the wedding, if only the bomb doesn't get them first. And if the gang are going to blow up CTU, surely that means that there can't be another mole in the agency this year? I mean, why would the terrorists blow up their own double agent?
The 'Feeling Listless?' weblog discusses the 8AM - 9AM episode broadcast last week. Makes the good point of: 'How worrying is it that they only know about the bomb going off on the day the bomb is going off?' I'd never have thought of that.
Top comic tabloid The Sun has jumped aboard the '24' bandwagon and started publishing an hour by hour guide to the new season two episodes as they're broadcast. As it is with most stuff from The Sun, the text is pretty much bollocks, but there's some pretty pictures.
Thought Kiefer Sutherland was tough? He uses Sothy's skin products to soothe his skin, according to extratv.com. Mariah Carey also uses it. Maybe their shared use of natural, caring beauty products will bring them together, and the 'dirty howler' herself will end up with a guest spot on '24'. It'd be great - someone could shoot her. I'd pay to see that.
02.23 | This could get extremely complicated
The 'Scooby Doo' ending: Victor Drazen removes his Dennis Hopper mask to reveal he is, in fact... Richard Walsh! And he would have got away with it if it wasn't for those meddling CTU agents...
Not satisfied with how season two has turned out so far? Well, why not make up your own ending to season one and change the course of history?
02.22 | Everybody in marketing and advertising - kill yourselves
"I wonder how Ford will be judging success on this campaign. 12 x $184,550 = $2,214,600 (using 24’s 30-second rate card, without allowing for discount). How indeed will the company determine whether this sizeable investment actually worked?"
Some sad anti-advertising ad bloke has sat down and worked out how much Ford has paid to sponsor '24' over the entire season. It's strange that he thinks that advetising is such a waste of time, because that page seems to have five different types of banner ad on it.
Hypocrite.
Jess, of pithlog.com, says that her new favourite character on TV is 'The Guy Who Runs Jack Bauer's Errands'. Hopefully this isn't a spoiler, and '24' doesn't end up as some 'Jeeves and Wooster' type posho butler humour show.
You might as well set your videos again this week. The guests on this week's 'Pure 24' include comedian Ed Byrne, Jim Sangster (the bloke who wrote the unofficial '24' book) and Robert Cochran, co-creator of the series. Cochran will be worth tuning in for. Looks like the BBC's discussion show might not turn out to be the lame duck it looked like at the start.
Anyone else noticed the two themes behind the two seasons of '24'?
Season One - Missing Fathers
The Bauer family was missing their father (through work)
The Palmer family were missing their father (through work)
The Drazen family were missing their father (through imprisonment)
Jamey Farrell was a single mother with a missing husband
Season Two - Missing Mothers
The Bauer family is missing a mother (through death)
The Palmer family is missing a mother (through separation)
The Warner family is missing a mother (through death - though maybe they'll wheel her out for the wedding, eh?)
Kyle Farrell is missing a mother (Jamey Farrell died in the last series)
So, if Kyle Farrell was the 'small child' of the last series (even though he was unseen), is it safe to assume than Megan Matheson (this series' small child) also ends up motherless? And with a father like Gary Matheson, it wouldn't be a surprise if he eventually ends up killing his wife, would it?
You all know there's got to be a mole, or similar 'goodie-turned-baddie' this year. The fans are expecting it. I predict that David Palmer's aide, Lynne Kresge, may have something to do with it. Notice her character was kept quiet in the first episode, much like how Nina Myers was kept out of the way last season - plus the whole 'but-you-can't-suspect-her-because-Eric-Rayburn-is-far-worse' is similar to the 'but-you-can't-suspect-her-because-Jamey-Farrell-was-a-mole-already' thing going on last time around.
The killer for this theory is that Lynne Kresge is played by Michelle Forbes, who was a big shot on Homicide and appeared in Star Trek : The Next Generation. They've have to give her a good, juicy part to get her to be in '24'.
Anyway, that's my thinking. Let me know if I'm wrong.
02.19 | Arizona Bay, more like
"Thus far the plot boils down to some anonymous middle eastern state (who will remain anonymous for the benefit of race-relations/trade) has been sponsoring some terrorist to detonate a dirty bomb in Los Angeles. I've been to LA, I'm not sure which side they want me to be sympathetic towards."
Razorhead comments on both American foreign policy and the new storyline. Genius.
Indiana's Fort Wayne News-Sentinel says that 'Kiefer is more about substance than image'. Fortunately, it's the wrong Kiefer. It's some basketball player instead. I have no idea who he is, so don't ask me.
Oh God, this is geeky fanboy-dom beyond geeky fanboy-dom... I'll finally found the ringing tone used in the CTU office. Mitbiz.de has it posted up in 'Nokia tone composer' format, whatever that means. I don't think my phone that on it, but hopefully yours will...
02.19 | Bauer the Agent and Bushell the Fool
"It's 8.00AM and Senator Palmer has won the presidential race. My name is Jack Bauer, my wife has been killed and my daughter doesn't speak to me. Today will be the second worst day of my life."
IcWales.co.uk comes up with a new intro speech for Jack. Frankly, I'm not sure about it. I'm hoping their suggestion is meant to be lame, for ironic comedic reasons.
PS - The article is worth reading all the way through for the hilarious quotes from top telly critic Gary Bushell! He said "He said, "It was just brilliant, you could not second guess the programme at any point. I was absolutely hooked." Wow! What insight from the National Front man! Surely the whole idea of being a TV critic is that you are able to second guess the programmes?
Pete has posted the question on his site: 'What the hell is it with all those identikit-blondes?' Maybe the one (Carla) married to the wife beater (Gary) is the sister of the one getting married (Marie) and the jealous single one (Kate). It's because she's married to the wife beater that she doesn't live at home with daddy (Bob).
This theory is so lame that I am looking forward to being proved wrong.
02.19 | Get Bauer?
"Let's hope the army of screenwriters doesn't run dry after 10 episodes like last time.
Oddly enough the music seems to be composed around the leftovers of the theme from the original Get Carter."
Per of Fantastic4Edinburgh gives a slightly negative view of '24', but makes a good point about the theme tune. If you can spot any other musical references, let us know in the forum.
Someone thinks Elisha Cuthbert (Kim) has had plastic surgery. It's not that - she looks different because she hasn't got that low cut red top on, for once.
02.18 | More beard news than you could shave a stick at
For all those people who liked the look of Kiefer Sutherland avec cheveux faciaux, here's a picture to remind you just how fat, old and greasy he looked.
Weblogger kwe says that "Kim should be taken to a safe place, but guess what? She's off again". Well, that's the whole premise of '24', you know. Everyone thinks that it means '24 hours', but really the title refers to Jack's daughter's IQ.
02.18 | Great article about cult television
"The true nature of cult television is something you can't understand until you've been hunched over a computer screen at one in the morning, blearily reading chat posts from fellow watchers who might be idiots, dorks or vastly irritating in person, but who at least share your obsession."
Is this a fair statement? Well, yes - definitely in my case. I understand the nature of geeky fan-boydom very much. And so do all my online chat pals and BBS freaks.
Alan, a Java developer, posts to his weblog about episode one of '24' being broadcast in the UK. Aussie weblogger Nando also mentions that '24' is back. Of course, I don't have to tell you that they both love the new series.
02.18 | Yet more reviews from down under...
"Jack Bauer, betrayed so bitterly by his ex-lover in the first series, isn't a man to be reckoned with in the second."
...writes the Bega District News. I apologise for the spate of links to Australian sites, but it appears that season two has just started over there, as well.
OK - let's begin with 8AM - 9AM. Great start. After all that news that the series is completely sponsored by Ford, what happens? President Palmer spends the first five minutes bombing around in some kind of military four-wheel drive. It's blatently not a Ford product, but I'd still want one. If Terri Bauer and 'Alan Yorke' were driving around for six hours in some kind of all-destroying utilitary vechicle, the untouchable season one would have been a touch better.
In true televisual 'how do we show that the character has matured?' style, Jack Bauer has grown a beard. He ended the hour shaving it off in some bathroom that was so full of green tiles and condensation, it looked like a Tatu video.
I can't identify the song used to soundtrack the part near the end just before Gary beats up Kim and Megan. Any pop pickers out there with knowledge of American punk rock soundtrack music?
The programme's makers are obviously trying to make CTU new girl Michelle Dressler into the new 'is she a mole?' talking point. She's filling the same job role at the agency as the last mole (and we don't mean Jamey Farrell), she's slobbering all over Tony Almeida (always a sign of the dark side) and she's the only current member of CTU to be using a Dell PC.
All in all, it was a slow episode, but at least it's introduced a whole slew of new people - the nameless dumb blondes aside. The sooner that nuke goes off, the better, in their case. Or, more hopefully, in the middle of their stupid back garden wedding.
It might be a bit of a hint, but all of the surviving lead characters from the last series either appeared in, or were mentioned in, the first episode last night – including Keith, Nicole and Sherry Palmer, Mike Novick, George Mason, Tony Almeida and Ryan Chappelle. That is, all with two notable exceptions – Nina Myers being one of them. Is this a clue for eagle-eyed and big-earred viewers? Or will it turn out that bully boy kidnapper Rick is behind the Second Wave nuclear attack? Join in with more post-episode discussion in the forum.
02.17 | Old news?
"In the 1950s, radio listeners listened each week to 26 Hours. This was a thriller, made, I think by the BBC. The adventures of agent Gregory George Athelstone Keane were told in real time. As I recall, it involved some sort of derring-do in occupied Berlin. How about a poke through the archives?"
Dave Gittins of Australia gives the beeb an idea.
Over 3.5 million people watched the return of '24' last night. The Guardian reported this, as did the BBC themselves and Annanova. Hello everyone out there.
What if, at the when the whole series is over, Jack Bauer goes back into the office and reveals to the other characters that the past twenty four hours has been his birthday? That way, the season could end on a happy note (unlike last year, when Jack's wife bit the bullet - literally - in the last few frames), and the producers could write the wrap party into the script...
02.17 | The Jack Bauer / Osama Bin Laden theory
There is a part of me that would really like someone to just go in with a sniper rifle and off these assholes though, the same part that cheered the other night in the first episode of '24' when Jack Bauer shot that paedofile and chopped his head off and handed it to someone in a bag. I know it wasn't the right thing to do, but sometimes the wrong thing feels so good!
Hmmm, what a naughty thought. Someone's getting Jack on the brain. Even I've never thought about acting out like CTU's most unpredictable agent. Tell me, have you?
This Gary Matheson creep obviously can't be some kind of American 'big bad boss man' for the nuclear bomb project. He must be the fetch-and-carry boy. You can't give a wife beater and child molester with a short temper a role as the glamourous bad guy - American TV just isn't done like that. He's just some 'Dan and Rick' type dogsbody who'll probably get fucked over by the real baddies. Still, Gary's got a flash car, and I wonder why he was shown wiping his own finger prints off it when he pulled up outside his house?
I guess that the country harbouring Second Wave gets to remain nameless because the programme makers don't want to dirty the name of any possible suspect further, like they did in season one with Kosovo and the 'Serbian Overlord' Victor Drazon. Though, I also suspect that enforcing a plan of ethnic cleansing in reality may wipe out any slander caused by a TV show. Instead, this season we get to stereotype those who are presumed Muslims, like Reza Naiyeer's little 'My brothers all married virgins' speech.
The "I'm gonna need a hacksaw" line made 'Quote Of The Day' on Diego Doval's 'No Comment' weblog.
Frankly, if you're not sat in front of BBC2 right now, then what the fuck are you doing?
The BBC helpfully advertises its own shows on its news service, promoting them as news. Though, since it involves '24', we don't mind. I'm not complaining until they advertise shit like 'Sex In The City' in the news.
02.16 | Breaking news...
The new plot mirrors the real events unfolding across the United States at this very moment.
Well, duh. Isn't that the whole point?
Amy Amatangelo of zap2it.com dreams about Jack Bauer. No spoilers, although this is an American publication. Fans of Dawson's Creek (are there any?) may not be pleased to read about the details of the last ever episode. I mean, c'mon guys - a story about a wedding and set four years in the future? God forbid that ever happens in '24'. I can't see Jack ever getting over Teri, to be honest, and I'm sure even Tony Almeida wouldn't break Nina out of jail to go on the run for a quite-literal shotgun wedding.
I've identified some spoilers from the new series, and I've added a page to the site so that you can keep track of them and steer clear of any future plot information.
UPDATE: Yes, some of you have complained about this. Yes, it's a joke. I can't believe that some people took this seriously. More fool them when they find out that Jamey Farrell's long-deceased body won't be found buried in the basement.
London's Evening Standard has a huge feature on the new season of '24' today. It lists 24 things that you might not know about '24' - though, since you're reading a geeky fan-boy site, you probably do... Heh. My favourite is number five...
There are thousands of dedicated fan sites and chatrooms. Die-hard fans in Britain have already been downloading the new series from the internet. Each show is put on the net a week after its US transmission (they are about three months ahead of British TV).
Really? Thousands of fan sites? I could only find about twelve. Bloody hell, '24' fan sites might even cover an area of the internet that's the size of Wales. The good thing for all you non-Londoners is that
is that you can read it on the web. Beware of the third paragraph down, though - there's a slight spoiler that you might not have heard about the first episode. It also lists some of the new actors and character names which haven't yet been 'made public' in the UK.
Kiefer Sutherland and Dennis Hopper are two of my favourite actors. I was surprised when they both turned up together in '24' (Hopper played ultra-baddie Victor Drazen in the first season). I've now been even more astonished to see them both along side each in Flashback, from 1990, and 1997's comically titled The Last Days of Frankie the Fly. Looks like I'll have to search the bargain bin at the video rental place if I want to see these 'gems'.
And, as if by magic, here's a picture from the 'Flashback' film mentioned below.
For your information, Hopper is the one with the dodgy beard. Would it be a spoiler to say that Sutherland has a beard in the new series? Because, it's not like the BBC
have spoilt that little surprise for all of us by showing clips of it in their rubbish, needless trailers. Trailers that give away half the damn plot to the first episode. Cheers.
02.14 | It's Dennis Hopper day on 24weblog.com. No, really.
Dennis Hopper, now sober and drug-free for 18 years - save for the occasional joint - is most famous for directing and starring in Easy Rider, along with Peter Fonda and Jack Nicholson. The less culturally aware amongst you might be interested to know that MTV gave him an award for "Best Villain" after his appearance as the baddie in Speed. Waterworld proved to be a career lowpoint.
Enthralling, eh? I wrote that last year, before he'd filmed the episodes of '24' that his character appeared in. You can read the rest of the article here.
Heh. Whilst typing that last post, I kept getting the names confused and mistyping 'Dennis Hopper'.
Whatever you do, don't mix up Dennis Hopper and Dennis Potter. One
wrote incredible plays and stories about sexual deviants, the other
actually was a sexual deviant.
And don't even get me started on Dennis Potter's wife.
Weblogger Tom Coates has posted a good article to his site concerning a certain TV series and how to write about it, whilst not spoiling the plotlines for a UK audience. Unfortunately, it's all about Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and not '24', but the point still stands.
And for all those wondering - I won't be posting any '24' spoilers to this site. At least not until the episode in question has been broadcast on BBC2, anyway.
02.13 | It's a hard choice - and one we can't advise you on
"They do a nasty trick when they show it over here. It shows at 10PM on Sunday night and runs until 10.45. At 10.45, BBC Choice, the BBC's digital channel for repeats show the following episode immediately after. This Sunday was the first time I couldn't resist and switched over to watch two new ones back to back."
We sypathise with the person who posted this in an old Metafilter thread from this time last year.
Whatever happened to Jack's sofa? Some geeky fan-boys want to know. Yes, me included.
Do you run a '24' website or weblog? One that I haven't linked to yet? If yes, get in touch, and we'll sort out some kind of link trade. As long as I get my dying brother back, you can have your pathetic CTU agent... let's just cut a deal.
As you can see, over in the links bit, there's now a '24' discussion forum message-boardy type thing. You can need to register for them here. Anyone posting spoilers about season two will be banned...
The Guardian reported last October that the season 2 debut of '24' was watched by over 30% more viewers than who watched the first series. It broke records and gave the Fox network its highest ratings for a Tuesday night. In the UK, there's definitely more of a 'buzz' this time around. Do you think the new run could prove as popular over here? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
If anyone out there knows of a good '24' message board or forum (other than ones on the official sites), please let me know by posting a comment below.
02.11 | It might be crap, but we like it - the Daily Telegraph
"It's full of implausibilities and irritating sub-plots, but, every time you think it's become so silly that you've had enough, it grabs you by the throat again with some cleverness"
Read Sarah Crompton's Daily Telegraph piece from May of last year about why she loves 'this 24 carat tosh'.
And, yes, I did mean to infer in the headline that the Daily Telegraph is crap.
Jack Bauer jobbar på CTU. No, really. For anyone who can read Swedish, there's an excellent Swedish '24' fan site. I hope you realise that I have no idea what that first sentence means. I think it translates as 'Jack Bauer shits on CTU', but that would just be silly.
Mark Lawson of The Guardian has written a brilliant preview of season 2. Be warned, though - there are a few small spoilers. We can only hope that the newspaper sees sense to let Charlie Brooker devote his 'Screen Burn' columns to the series again this year.
BBC3 is broadcasting a half-hour discussion programme called 'Pure 24' straight after the first two episodes have been broadcast on 16th February. The BBC website describes it as 'a live studio discussion programme that invites 24 fans to phone, text or email their shocked reactions, plot analysis and predictions for what could happen next'. It would be great if something like this is shown every week. Though, you know, it'd probably just get replaced by darts, or tennis, or that episode of The Simpsons where Homer has to jump the gorge on a skateboard, or something.
Kiefer Sutherland's bizarre interview alongside Christian Slater gets a mention in The Guardian's coverage of the BBC3 launch. No mention of the fact that '24' will easily be the star of the new channel's line-up. Probably because the series won't start until Sunday, but I'm sure you're all sick of hearing that.
Book publishers Harper Collins are running a competition to win '24' goodies.
They've also got excerpts from their '24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings At CTU' book, which is the longest (and crappest) title I've seen in a long time. C'mon guys - keep it simple, like calling a 24 weblog website '24weblog.com', for example.
Kimberley Bauer gets bitten by a cougar, or at least that's what weblogger Xrlq says.
02.06 | Actress given props by Ozzies
"24 is shot like a film, so it was very appealing. And it's also shot in a way that ends like a film; the season finale really ends, someone dies, there's no cliffhanger. Even people on the show call it a film."
G'day mate. The Australian press have gone nuts since local lady Sarah Wynter has a starring role as Kate Warner, Marie's sister.
Looking for a Jack Bauer '24' screen saver? Well, there isn't a decent official one, but download.com can offer you the 'Another Countdown Screen Saver v1.01'. It's only a 32kb download, which should only take 10 seconds to grab even on a 56k modem. The programme is moderately hard to install, but there's copious instructions on how to do it. I'd recommend you give it a go.
The Beeb has seen fit to rejigger it's '24' website. They must have spent all of about, ooh, £12 doing so. No, actually - it looks lovely, especially that major spoiler about who is appearing as a certain new character, which is sitting up in the top right corner of the page.
Joke site tachyon-tv.co.uk says that the new season of '24' will be less complicated. For those who can't figure it out, the plotline spoiler about Jack saving a small dog in hour 3PM - 4PM is part of the joke.
Episode One will be shown on BBC2 at 10PM on Sunday 16th February 2003. That's this year. The next episode will be shown straight afterward on digital channel BBC3 at 10.55PM.
