The Bauer clan has kept us glued to our seats and cursing
the time clock all season. The white knuckle, real-time
pace has created a show viewers absolutely refuse to miss
weekly. However, with a plotline as twisting and turn-y
as this one, it's hard for first time viewers to catch
on. With the show up for renewal, producers have decided
to go it at a slower pace next year (which takes the pressure
off them to come up with another "longest day"
of Jack Bauer's life). Instead, the show will resemble
more of a traditional drama than an action movie.
Readers
in the Primetime TV Forum have their own ideas about
how to handle 24's sophomore season
Kiefer Sutherland stars as Jack Bauer, the head of an
elite team of CIA agents who uncover an assassination
plot targeting Presidential nominee David Palmer. With
only 24 hours to find the killer and save Palmer, Jack
must also deal with the sudden disappearance of his
troubled teenage daughter. -- Fox
The first episode begins at midnight on the day
of the California Presidential Primary. Jack Bauer (Kiefer
Sutherland) heads up the government's Counter-Terrorist
Unit. He discovers that there's going to be an assassination
attempt on Senator Palmer (Dennis Haysbert), an African-American
presidential candidate. Bauer faces a battle against
the clock to avert disaster.
The
series follows several characters as they live through
a day that none of them will forget. For Kimberly (Elisha
Cuthbert) a night on the town takes an unexpected turn.
Teri (Leslie Hope) sets out to find Kimberly and encounters
more danger than she ever imagined possible. Senator
Palmer, unaware there's going to be an attempt on his
life, faces the threat of a long buried scandal resurfacing.
Meanwhile, Jack, with help from his Chief-of-Staff Nina
Myers (Sarah Clarke), is charged with the responsibility
of stopping the assassination. But who can he trust,
when it appears a rogue element inside the Agency is
in on the hit. And all the time, the clock keeps ticking...
The
programme was created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran.
Ron Howard, one of the show's executive producers, has
directed many hit films including A Beautiful Mind,
Apollo 13 and Splash. He also starred in classic TV
comedy Happy Days in the 1970s.
24
has earned rave reviews in America, where it's won the
Golden Satellite Award for Best TV Drama, and Kiefer
Sutherland picked up a Golden Globe for Best Actor in
a TV Drama.
Kiefer Sutherland has appeared in many popular films
including A Few Good Men, The Lost Boys and Young Guns.
He
recently wrapped up production on the movie Paradise
Found in which he portrays the Post-Impressionist artist
Paul Gauguin. His next project is the World War II film
To End All Wars. The screenplay is based on the best-selling
book Through the Valley of the Kwai, an account of life
as a prisoner-of-war in a south-east Asian prison camp.
His
other film credits include Dark City, A Time to Kill,
The Three Musketeers, A Few Good Men and Stand By Me.
Son
of the actor Donald Sutherland, Kiefer was part of the
1980s American brat-pack which also included Lost Boys
co-stars Jason Patric and Corey Haim. He's also worked
as a director and producer.
