He's Back

by Kate McCoy

As a typical American aged 18-24, I watch a good amount of television. Quite honestly, it gets me through my week. Whether I’m yelling at Meredith to choose Dr. McDreamy or trying to figure out what exactly the Others on the island are up to, I get to escape my humdrum life for an hour of escape here and there. With Fall well under way, all my weekly favorites have returned: Lost, Grey’s Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, The OC. But I feel like part of me is missing. There is a hole in my heart, and it can only be filled by one man. Jack Bauer.

Mine and Jack’s relationship is a fairly new one; however, we’re getting pretty serious. In fact, I could barely pull myself away from season 4 of 24 to write this blog. Jack and I started as a summer romance, a way to fill my empty summer days. Some friends and I made the decision to jump on the 24 bandwagon, even trying to consume a whole season in 24 hours, which is a nearly impossible task.

24 is enthralling. But besides being wildly entertaining and addictive, 24 strikes a fear in us all. We’ve changed as a country since 9/11 and 24 has become a show that exhibits that change. With each episode, the terrorism plots seem more and more realistically possible to a gullible viewer such as myself.

The trailer for Season 6 (see below), which premiers in January, raises the stakes. Whereas previous season’s terrorist attacks primarily centered around Los Angeles, the home to CTU (Counter Terrorism Unit, for all you 24 virgins), the new season shows a more widespread threat for the country. As a new resident of Washington DC, a sure terrorism target, my worst fears are played out onscreen as I watch 24. Yet I can’t look away.

Like the controversial The Day After of the 1980’s, 24’s success relies on the fact that it scares the shit out of us all. But as the trailer says, “Our only hope lies with one man.” You know the answer, and soon the fictional terrorists on FOX will know too.

(To see what fans of 24 are saying about the show and the new trailer, go here.)

(The Season 6 trailer is below. The promotional photo of Keifer Sutherland as Jack Bauer is courtesy of FOX.)



24
FOX
Television
Entertainment
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