Evaluation: 24
24 is a television show that aired on fox from 2001-2010. The story follows a government agent, Jack Bauer, who works for CTU (Counter Terrorist Unit). The plot revolves around Bauer trying to stop the terrorist threat. 24 is a great show that keeps the audience on their toes. While the terrorist threats are wild and crazy, the show does a great job of showing how the government would strive to stop something this unexpected. So why is 24 important? 24 is special because it shows what regular people can do to protect their country.
Jack Bauer is a fictional character, but even if he were real, no one (except the people who work with him) would know that he saved the country. Bauer knows that he will never get the recognition that he deserves. It is better if the perception is that the government saved the country, not one man. Jack Bauer risks his life for the country, knowing that he will never be known as an icon. While Jack Bauer is the main character, it is the unexpected characters who help Jack along the way that make the show special. In season 1, a women cop dies while helping Jack. It is the ordinary people who go above and beyond for their country that make the show different. In season 2, George Mason, district director at CTU, was exposed to lethal amounts of plutonium and was told that he had a day to live. Instead of going home to his family or taking the day off like most people, he stayed to help solve the nuclear threat. Mason could have taken the easy way out but instead stayed for the betterment of the country. Redemption is a big theme in 24 and many people change in order to save the country. In season 5, Lynn McGill, (played by Sean Astin) regional district director, showed how an ordinary man can be a hero. Lynn was mugged of his key card by his drug addicted sister and her boyfriend. Lynn was embarrassed that his sister had stolen his wallet and card and decided not to tell anyone. As it turned out, Lynn’s sister sold the card to a terrorist who used the card to enter CTU. The terrorist got into CTU and flooded nerve gas into the building. CTU was able to evacuate into holding rooms but almost half of the staff perished. Lynn confessed that the attack was his fault. The gas was leaking through the walls which would kill the remaining staff. Lynn then made the ultimate sacrifice by going into the computer console to get control of the ventilation system, knowing well that he would die. Even though Astin was saved, he knew it was his fault and gave his life to save the remaining people.
While 24 may seem like a flashy show about terrorism, it is much more. 24 shows the good in normal people who do extraordinary things without expecting anything in return.
Although I think you wrote a great synopsis, I am forced to disagree with some of your points about the underlying tone of the show. It easy for me to calculate how you could perceive the show as a story of "the untold hero", but I think you are looking in the wrong places. Using isolated incidents such as Lynn McGill does not cover the entire theme of the show. Instead, I think it is necessary to look at what is consistent in the show. To me, that is a repeated trend of stressing the danger of what terrorism really is.
ReplyDeleteFor instance,I remember an episode in one of the more recent seasons where Jack claimed that he would not do the job unless he got clearance from the President of the United States. I never got the sense that Bauer was completely okay with going unnoticed. That was more of a characteristic they tried to develop in him but it became crass and cheesy. The magnitude of the potential attacks in 24 are very similar to real world events and that, I believe, is what the series is all about.