24: Season 2 - Hour 24 - 5/20/03 Finale (1 Viewer)

[Patrick Sun]

FYI: I've remove almost all of the spoilers relating to last night's finale for easier reading.

I was underwhelmed by the final episode. I guess I was just expecting a really good twist (the plan B - stink-palm Palmer just doesn't cut it, plus it's just too easily done that it's laughable in many respect considering what the politicos went through).

But getting to see Mia/Mandy once again almost makes up for it...

 

[John Watson]

Hmm, good season ending, tho not as complete a closure as Season 1. (Do they expect me to buy the DVD of something that may never end?)

On possible plot developments, did Marie's weird remark to Kate in the Lecter room portend the hand job on Palmer, or as someone suggests, was that the start of a much larger bio-terrorism attack?

The shot of Palmer (dying?) was much like Lynne Kreske on her stretcher. At least Mike wasn't there to shake his hand, hehe!

Yeah, I too fail to see why the assassination of the Pres would cause the war after all. BTW the voice of the distingushed man who told Max that the war was off was strangely familiar.

Is the VP (Pres for what, 2 hours?) going to come up smelling like roses? Maybe as someone said, they can amputate Palmer's arm and he can come back.

As for Jack "Get back Jack, and do it again" (Steely Dan)

PS Why can't all these dam spoiler black-outs be lifted by the moderators now? 'Cause they sure spoil reading this thread...

 

[John Watson]

Gee Patrick, that was quick, you must have been pushing buttons while I was pushing a button

 

[Will_B]

plus it's just too easily done that it's laughable in many respect considering what the politicos went through).

But remember that the original effort to kill Palmer was also an attempt to make it look as if, um, I forget exactly, but weren't they trying to frame CTU? The Mandy-handshake doesn't do that, it probably just implicates some foreign countries which produce that blistering agent and weapon.

 

[aldamon]

Yeah, I too fail to see why the assassination of the Pres would cause the war after all. BTW the voice of the distingushed man who told Max that the war was off was strangely familiar.

He was "Operations" from La Femme Nikita. I can't remember hearing his voice on the show before this season.

 

[Craig S]

I think too many people are writing off the President as dead, just because his heartbeat stopped with the timer.

I'm not writing Palmer off because of the heartbeat, but because the whatever-it-is that was applied to him is working so quickly. It began shutting down his respiratory system less than a minute after application. I can't see anyway they can get him to a hospital, ID the agent, and reverse its effects in time if it's working this fast.

I'll have to check it again tonight (it's still on TiVo), but I thought I saw blotches start appearing on his face as the overhead camera pulled away during the final shot. If this is true it's already too late for the amputation suggestion someone made earlier.

Of course, if the agent is designed to induce a coma rather than kill, that changes everything.

 

[WayneG]

There has to be someone high up in the Government in on this thing b/c who edited the Palmer-Stanton torture tape?

I agree. They definitely played it as though there was some conspiracy from inside the ranks, and not just as though they thought Palmer had lost his mind. And that's besides Stanton and the guy he replaced.

 

[Jim DiJoseph]

Agreed, Wayne. Also, the "mastermind" on the yacht was receiving intel from a new player in the mix who knew immediately that the bombers were being recalled. Clearly, there is still a leak at the highest levels of the government.

Great episode...great year!

 

[John Berggren]

It's going to be torture waiting until October or November for the new season. We probably won't know much more about what's coming until September.

I was not let down. I thought that the finale was excellent. My nerves were a mess throughout the stadium finale though.

I don't know how they are going to manage the start of next season. Palmer's condition suggests that it should begin immediately, but all of our players need to sleep. Perhaps it'll start a few days or weeks after. However, if that's the case, I don't know how they are going to handle Palmer's status.

 

[DaveBB]

Some thoughts:
Did anyone else notice that the time on the clock in the stadium (in the backround behind Mrs. Palmer) was correct? It said aproximately 7:35.

I hope next season picks up a few days later with 24 hours left before President Palmer dies. If it does and Jack saves Palmer again; Palmer owes Jack in soooo many ways.

Hope to see more of Mandy: the lesbian, sometimes naked, non bra wearing assassin.

Let's hope for no Kim "b-story" next season.

 

[Tom Rags]

Let's hope for no Kim "b-story" next season.

...unless it involves Mandy: the lesbian, sometimes naked, non bra wearing assassin

 

[Greg*go]

Great episode, great season. I hope it isn't a continuation from today, because then Jack won't be in it. Tony sure does seem to be setting himself up for a Jack-a-like character, acting the same way Jack did last season when he was in charge of CTU. It would be nice to see some other good guy kick ass as much as Jack. Last season he had some help, whereas this season he was by himself for the most part. Maybe have Tony and CTU do some stuff for the first part, then bring back Jack "Mulder-style" mid-season with some new twists.

I don't know what season I liked better, but I thought this years finale was better. Here's why: (season 1 spoiler).... Last years finale had Jack finishing up his job in the first 20 minutes, with the rest of the show as a wrap-up. This year really was suspenseful until the end since you knew the German guy was immediately starting his "other plan."

Does anyone know if that Sept 2nd release for the DVD is still accurate? I noticed that was made 3-28, and was wondering if anything newer has come out.

 

[Ken Chan]

I agree with Tom

Some word from the suits at Fox. Palmer may not be dead.

//Ken

 

[Diallo B]

By the way, since Jack's "Matrix move" is mentioned, how about the fact that Jack died and came back to life earlier in the series? Maybe he is the One?

LOL!!!!

 

[Qui-Gon John]

It doesn't have to start right where this left off. I'd like to see it start a couple days later. Palmer has been saved, Jack has had time to recuperate. Now the mission is to find out who did this and also stop them from trying again. Or you could add another twist and after saving Palmer, Palmer, Prescott and Jack decide to make everyone think the assination was successful, to flush out the perps. You could even start the season with Palmer's "funeral", then we find out the truth.

I did think it was weird that they get to Palmer to try and kill him so easily, as President. Yet they were unable to pull off the plan to kill him as Senator/Presidential Candidate.

On the Kingsley shooting, I was hoping that Sherry was gonna be behind him and shoot him. I think Jack dropped his gun in the tunnel early in the fight. They shoulda had her pick it up, come up the other ramp and take Kingsley out. Then Jack could have told her, shoot him again!

 

[John Berggren]

Or you could add another twist and after saving Palmer, Palmer, Prescott and Jack decide to make everyone think the assination was successful, to flush out the perps. You could even start the season with Palmer's "funeral", then we find out the truth.

They did this already in season 1. I don't think the American public would appreciate being duped twice into thinking Palmer has been killed. This likely will not happen.

 

[Jeremy_Watson]

I just read an article in the AZ Republic weekly TV listing booklet about the next season of 24 that you all may be interested in. They interviewed executive producer Howard Gordon about this season and his thoughts on next year. He addressed the Kim issue by saying, "We love her so much that we try to invent reasons to keep her on-screen, sometimes when she shouldn't be." BUt he also states he didn't think it got bad until the convenience store thing, while I'm sure most of us here thought the cougar and crazy recluse were a bit much.
The most interesting, and surprising, to me were his comments on next season (not really spoilers, but I'll respect your choice to read if you like)
"It's probably not going to be nearly so much like how last year fed into this year. Last year, Jack lost his wife and Palmer's life was saved, so it allowed us to take the next step where Palmer had become president, and Jack was estranged from his daughter and from his work. This season was an answer, in many ways, to last year. Next year is going to be a more whole-cloth reinvention of the series. I hope that in finding a smaller story that, by definition, we'll have to find, it proves the concept that we're a show that can run for a long time."

I'm not sure when this interview was done, though, so we'll see if they have changed their minds since then.

 

[BrianW]

There's not a man, woman, or monkey alive today who can't reach the glovebox from the driver's seat. WEAK!

I don't know about you, but when the inertial lock on my seatbelt is engaged (it happens occasionally when I encounter a large dip in the road), I can't even reach the radio. Reaching the glove box, even in my tiny rollerskate of a car, would be totally out of the question.

 

[GlennH]

Another "24" article, from a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette columnist.

 

[Jeremiah]

If the seatbelt locked up on him than there is no way a person can reach to open the glovebox.