24 (TV series)

For other uses, see 24 (disambiguation).

24
24 title screen 24 intertitle
Created by	Joel Surnow Robert Cochran
Starring	Kiefer Sutherland Mary Lynn Rajskub
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	144
Production
Running time	approx. 43 minutes
Original release
Network	FOX
Release	November 6, 2001 – present (renewed through May 2009)

24 is an Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning American television series created by Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran, and produced by Imagine Television. Broadcast by Fox Network in the USA and syndicated worldwide, the show first aired on November 6, 2001, with an initial thirteen episodes. In January 2007, 24 was made available online to US viewers through Fox on Demand. It is set in the fictional U.S. government Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU).

After leading actor Kiefer Sutherland won a Golden Globe for his role in the first 10 episodes, the ratings of the show increased, leading FOX to order the second half of the season. There have been six seasons of 24 produced. On May 15 2007 it was confirmed that FOX has ordered seventh and eighth seasons, with the seventh planned to begin airing in January 2008. A motion picture based on the show has been written and was scheduled to be filmed in 2007 for a 2008 release but plans for production were put on hold to focus on the TV show.

24 is presented in real time, with each season depicting a 24-hour period in the life of Jack Bauer, who works with the U.S. Government as it fights threats on its soil. Bauer is often in the field for the fictional Los Angeles Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) as they try to safeguard the nation from terrorist threats. Based in Los Angeles, the show also follows the actions of other CTU agents and government officials associated with the plot.

Elements

Real time

File:24 split clock screenshot.jpg

An example of a 24 split-screen with the running clock

24 is a thriller that purports to be shown in "real-time," with each minute of airtime corresponding to a minute in the lives of the characters. This real-time nature is emphasized by an on-screen digital clock appearing from time to time—this corresponds roughly to the minute of the broadcast hour, factoring in commercials. The characters will often place time windows (such as the common "within the hour") on certain events such as terrorist threats, thus strongly hinting that the attack/event will occur before the end of the episode.

The action switches between different locations tracing parallel adventures of different characters involved in the same overarching plot. As a result, there may be long sections of unseen narrative for each character; in that case, a character may only be seen for a portion of an episode's overall running time. The notice preceding each episode announcing that "events occur in real time" was only included in the first three episodes of the first season, as well as the premiere episodes of the second and third seasons.

Storytelling and visual style

24 employs fast-paced and complex plots.

A recurring theme of 24 has characters faced with the decision of whether or not to let something tragic happen for the sake of a greater good. In Season 2, a member of the presidential staff has the chance to warn CTU of an imminent attack on their building, but believes that doing so would put the culprits on alert and thus cause a valuable trail to go cold. A similar situation occurs in Season 5, when terrorists plan to release a canister of nerve gas inside a busy shopping mall. In Season 3, the President and CTU agents must choose between the life of a high-ranking CTU official and the imminent threat of further attacks, while Season 4 is notable for a scene in which two men — one of whom possesses crucial information about a nuclear missile strike, and the other is the ex-husband of a major character — lie dying in an emergency room, creating the ethical dilemma of whom to save. In addition, the sitting President often has to deal with a similar quandary. For example, in Season 6, President Wayne Palmer asks Jack Bauer to sacrifice himself in exchange for the location of a known terrorist. The first season began and ended at midnight, leading to the situation that the main characters had to go almost two days without sleep. Later seasons have tended to use a less punishing time window, starting in the morning or early afternoon.

For the first two seasons, 24 frequently used split-screen action to follow multiple plots, although from Season 3 onward this was scaled back somewhat and confined mostly to phone conversations and shots leading into and out of commercial breaks.

Creative influences

Immediately prior to 24, series co-creators Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran executive-produced La Femme Nikita for its entire five-year run on USA Network. Both series deal with anti-terrorist operations, and the lead characters of both series are placed in situations where they must make a tragic choice in order to serve the greater good. As a result, the on- and off-screen creative connections between 24 and La Femme Nikita are highly pronounced. Numerous actors from La Femme Nikita have portrayed similar roles on 24, a number of story concepts from La Femme Nikita have been revisited on 24, and many of the creative personnel from La Femme Nikita currently work (or have worked) on 24 in the same capacity.

24 "borrows" some aspects of the 1997 film Air Force One too. In Seasons 2, 4 and 6, Air Force One can be seen and the series reused the same set as the one featured in the movie. Much like in the film, the 25th amendment has been invoked three times on 24 in Seasons 2, 4, and 6. Additionally, three actors featured on 24 — Xander Berkely, Wendy Crewson and Glenn Morshower — played roles in Air Force One.

Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU)

The Counter Terrorist Unit (CTU) is a fictional elite branch of the United States Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and similar to the real-life NYPD/FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and the CIA Counterterrorist Center's Special Operations Division. Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C. with satellite operations in major cities where threats are likely. CTU's primary mission is to disrupt and destroy foreign and domestic terror cells hostile to the United States, as well as protect the U.S. from terror attacks. With an office in nearly every major city of the U.S., CTU also has a role in creating security policy and fighting groups of organized crime that fund terrorism. Although CTU is fictional, a similar department, the National Counterterrorism Center, was set up by the government.

CTU offices are run by a Director, also called the Special Agent in Charge, to whom the Director of Field Operations and the Chief of Staff report. Departments within a CTU office include Communications ("Comm"), Logistics, and Tactical ("Field Ops."). Communications and Logistics personnel report directly to the Chief of Staff, whereas Tactical personnel are deployed into Tactical Teams ("Tac Teams") by the Director of Field Operations.

The Los Angeles CTU Field Office houses several areas. The first floor contains the Situation Room, as well as the main communications complex and command center, often referred to as "The Floor." On the second floor is the Director's office. Situated elsewhere in the building are the Information Technology department (I.T.), an in-house Medical clinic, Meteorology department, several Holding Rooms used for interrogation and confinement, and Tech Rooms, which contain the bulk of the physical computer hardware used by CTU.

The CTU offices within a region report to a Divisional Office, overseen by the Division Director. Divisional offices cover a larger amount of territory in their jurisdiction. Finally, the Divisional office and all other offices report to a District Headquarters, overseen by a Regional Director. This title implies that each District Headquarters has jurisdiction over an entire region of the United States. However, in Season 1, the reverse was implied: the District Director, George Mason, reported to District Manager Richard Walsh (who was killed in the second episode), and then Ryan Chappelle, the Regional Director from Division. However, in the Season 2 finale, Chappelle referred to a Mr. Vaughn, the District Director, as his superior.

CTU often suffers setbacks for the sake of plot. Despite the high-profile and high-risk nature of its duties, it is frequently infiltrated by double agents, and several times has been attacked or seized by terrorist forces.

Recurring elements

There are some plot devices that are used constantly on 24.

• Weapons of Mass Destruction: WMD's, especially nuclear weapons, are constant threats on the show. Seasons 2 and 6 have been based around the threat of nukes. In Season 3, it was a weaponized virus. Day 5 was a fictional nerve gas variant.

• Traitors in the government: CTU is often compromised by moles. A major subplot in Day 1 was the so-called presence of a "dirty agent" working with terrorists. Since then, another agent was found to be dirty, in Day 4. Two traitors in the White House were exposed in Day 5 (Walt Cummings and Charles Logan). Many others have been accused of espionage.

• Invocation of the 25th Amendment: Section 4 of the 25th Amendment states that if the majority of the President's cabinet votes that the President is unable to fulfill his duties, he will be removed. It was first invoked during Day 2, to stop then President David Palmer from aborting an attack that would propel the U.S. into war. He manages to stay in office and prevent the attack. It was invoked on Days 4 and 6, after failed assassination attempts on Presidents Keeler and Wayne Palmer. Ironically, Mike Novick was involved with it being invoked in both the 2nd and 4th seasons.

• Insubordination from Jack Bauer: Jack Bauer has broken CTU protocol at least once all six seasons. He manages to convince other agents to help him (usually Chloe O'Brian, Tony Almeida or Michelle Dessler). He usually is granted amnesty for his actions.

• Frequent Change in Command: So far on the series, there have been six on-screen presidents. Only three of those six were actually elected into office, and only one served for a full term. Also, there have been 12 directors of CTU, many of whom have resigned or been killed.

• Death of Major Characters: Only Jack Bauer and Aaron Pierce have appeared in all six seasons. Ten main cast members have been killed off, and many more recurring characters have been killed as well. Many have been killed with little warning (the most notable was the death of Teri Bauer, which concluded the first season). Season 5 holds the highest body count of main characters, three of whom have had a priceless impact on the show (David Palmer, Tony Almeida, Michelle Dessler).

• International Issues: Though terrorism is the primary threat shown, the threat of war has also been featured. This became the theme of Day 2, during which American businessmen attempted to detonate a nuclear bomb, and to create a fake recording which implicated three unknown Middle Eastern countries. The resulting retaliation would drive up the prices of their oil. Two separate incidents arose during Day 6. Acting President Noah Daniels attempted to launch a nuclear missile against an unnamed Arab nation in retaliation to the nuclear attack against L.A. that morning. The second occurred that night, when Jack Bauer handed a piece of classified Russian technology over to a Chinese agent, which would give China access to Russian nuclear defenses. Russia threatened to attack a U.S. military base if the technology wasn't recovered.

Cast

See also: List of 24 characters and List of 24 (TV series) cast members

File:24-cast-season1.jpg

Season 1 promotional photograph of the 24 cast.

File:Promo24season3cast.jpg

Season 3 promotional photograph of the 24 main cast.

File:24Day4.jpg

Season 4 promotional photograph of two of the 24 main cast.

File:24 Season 5.jpg

Season 5 promotional photograph of the 24 main cast

File:24sea6cast.jpg

Season 6 promotional photograph of the 24 main cast

Main casts

24 is known for making major changes to its main cast every season — the sole exception being Kiefer Sutherland, who is the only main cast member to star in all six seasons to date. Honorable mention should be given to Glenn Morshower who plays Aaron Pierce - the only actor besides Sutherland to appear in all six seasons. Due to the unpredictable nature of each season's storyline, main cast members are added and dropped frequently. In a few cases, guest stars have been upgraded to main cast members during the course of a season. Main cast members who return from prior seasons — whether they return for one episode or the better part of a season — are often given a "Special Guest Star" billing, although this is also used for other cast members who are well-known film actors, like Dennis Hopper, Powers Boothe, Sean Astin, and James Cromwell.

Because of the intense nature of the series, the number of onscreen deaths is high compared to other television dramas. Of the 28 characters who have comprised the main cast over the past six seasons, ten are deceased. That number is considerably higher when guest characters — whether they be government agents or terrorists — are also included.

Actor	Character	Main Cast Seasons	Recurring Cast Seasons
Kiefer Sutherland	Jack Bauer	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7*	NA
Leslie Hope	Teri Bauer	1	NA
Sarah Clarke	Nina Myers	1	2, 3
Elisha Cuthbert	Kim Bauer	1, 2, 3	5
Dennis Haysbert	Senator / President David Palmer	1, 2, 3	4, 5
Sarah Wynter	Kate Warner	2	3
Xander Berkeley	George Mason	2	1
Penny Johnson Jerald	Sherry Palmer	2	1 , 3
Carlos Bernard	Tony Almeida	2, 3, 5	1, 4
Reiko Aylesworth	Michelle Dessler	3	2, 4, 5
James Badge Dale	Chase Edmunds	3	NA
Kim Raver	Audrey Raines	4, 5	6
Alberta Watson	Erin Driscoll	4	NA
William Devane	Secretary of Defense James Heller	4	5, 6
Lana Parrilla**	Sarah Gavin	4	4**
Roger Cross**	Curtis Manning	4, 5	4**, 6
Mary Lynn Rajskub	Chloe O'Brian	5, 6, 7*	3, 4
James Morrison	Bill Buchanan	4, 5, 6
Gregory Itzin	President Charles Logan	5	4, 6
Louis Lombardi	Edgar Stiles	5	4
Jean Smart	First Lady Martha Logan	5	6
D.B. Woodside	President Wayne Palmer	6	3, 5
Peter MacNicol	Tom Lennox	6	NA
Jayne Atkinson	Karen Hayes	6	5
Eric Balfour	Milo Pressman	6	1
Carlo Rota	Morris O'Brian	6	5
Marisol Nichols	Nadia Yassir	6	NA
Regina King	Sandra Palmer	6	NA

* = Attached to star/not yet produced.
** = Was moved from guest star to main cast member midseason.

Notable guest stars

24 features a large number of guest characters in every episode. Below are the guest stars who have made the greatest number of appearances during the past six seasons.

Actor	Character	Seasons
Jude Ciccolella	Mike Novick	1, 2, 4, 5
Glenn Morshower	Aaron Pierce	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6
Paul Schulze	Ryan Chappelle	1, 2, 3
Mia Kirshner	Mandy	1, 2, 4
Daniel Bess	Rick Allen	1
Michelle Forbes	Lynne Kresge	2
Zachary Quinto	Adam Kaufman	3
Jesse Borrego	Gael Ortega	3
Geoff Pierson	John Keeler	3, 4
Tzi Ma	Cheng Zhi	4, 5, 6
Nick Jameson	Yuri Suvarov	5, 6
Powers Boothe	Vice President Noah Daniels	6
Ricky Schroder	Mike Doyle	6

Cameo appearances

• Senator John McCain (R-AZ) makes a cameo appearance in the "1:00 PM - 2:00 PM" episode of Season 5. He has a non-speaking role as an unidentified bureaucrat who delivers a file folder to Audrey Raines (Kim Raver), and can be seen in the "split screen" for about six seconds beginning at 1:32:22.
• NASCAR driver Carl Edwards made a cameo appearance with a small speaking part in the "10:00 PM - 11:00 PM" episode of Season 5 which was broadcast on April 3, 2006.
• The Office co-writer and director Stephen Merchant makes a non-speaking cameo appearance in the first episode of the sixth season, which takes place between "06:00 AM - 07:00 AM" originally broadcast on January 14, 2007.
• Nancy Cartwright, best known for providing the voice of Bart Simpson on the animated television show The Simpsons, makes an appearance in the "4:00 PM - 5:00 PM" episode of Season 6 as Morris O'Brian's former AA Sponsor.

Storylines

Season synopses

Season 1

Main article: 24 (season 1)

Season 1 begins and ends at 12:00 AM, and occurs on the day of the California presidential primary. Jack Bauer must protect Senator David Palmer from an assassination plot, and rescue his family from those responsible for the plot, who seek retribution for Jack's involvement with a covert U.S. mission in the Balkans.

Season 2

Main article: 24 (season 2)

Season 2 begins and ends at 8:00 AM. Jack must stop a nuclear bomb from detonating in Los Angeles, then assist President David Palmer in proving who is responsible for the threat.

Season 3

Main article: 24 (season 3)

Season 3 begins and ends at 1:00 PM. While struggling with heroin addiction, Jack must re-infiltrate a Mexican drug cartel in order to keep it from acquiring a deadly virus. Jack must then stop the mastermind behind the virus from releasing it.

Season 4

Main article: 24 (season 4)

Season 4 begins and ends at 7:00 AM. Jack must save the lives of Secretary Heller and his daughter Audrey Raines (with whom Jack is romantically involved) when they are kidnapped by terrorists. The same terrorists then launch further attacks against America, and Jack is forced to use unorthodox methods to stop them, methods that will have long-term consequences for both Jack and the U.S.

Season 5

Main article: 24 (season 5)

Season 5 begins and ends at 7:00 AM. Jack is believed to be dead by everyone except a few of his closest friends. Terrorists with connections to the U.S. government attempt to steal nerve gas in order to protect US oil interests in Asia, and Jack must resurface to stop them.

Season 6

Main article: 24 (season 6)

Season 6 begins and ends at 6:00 AM. Jack is released after being tortured in a Chinese prison for twenty months. Terrorists attempt to set off suitcase nuclear devices in the United States and Jack must stop them as well as prevent sensitive circuitry from falling into the hands of the Chinese to prevent war between the U.S. and Russia.

Season 7

Main article: 24 (season 7)

Season 7 will begin airing in the United States in January 2008. Kiefer Sutherland has been signed to stay with the show through 2009. Mary Lynn Rajskub has also been confirmed to be returning in Season 7.

Cross-season storylines

Each season of 24 has a primary storyline which is self-contained within that season. However, a number of these storylines involve backstory established in prior seasons, which continue to play a role in the series.

Season 1 - 3

• The death of Teri Bauer. Jack loses his wife at the end of Season 1, and he is still devastated by her death in season 2, while attempting to reconnect with his daughter Kim over the course of the day. In Season 3, Jack and Kim have resolved their differences, with Kim now working at CTU with Jack; however, Jack has become addicted to heroin as part of a cover operation, but it also is a way of coping with Teri's death. At the end of Season 3, Kim leaves CTU with fellow operative Chase Edmunds.

• The betrayal of Nina Myers. Jack's relationship with Nina was complex. He was romantically involved with her during his separation period from his wife Teri prior to Season 1, only to discover that Nina was responsible for murdering his wife at the very end of the season. During Seasons 2 and 3, Jack was often put in situations where he had to choose between seeking revenge against Nina or giving into her demands in order to halt the crisis of the day. Nina was also connected, in some way or another, to all three terrorist threats in Seasons 1-3. Finally, in the middle of Season 3, Jack shot and killed a wounded Nina as she "struggled to reach for her gun".

• Operation Nightfall. In the latter part of Season 1, Jack was forced to face the repercussions of a secret U.S. operation in Kosovo which he had commanded exactly two years prior to Season 1. The target of the mission, Victor Drazen, who escaped into covert U.S. custody, is revealed to be the mastermind behind the plot to assassinate David Palmer, who authorized the mission. In Season 3, Stephen Saunders, a British Intelligence agent who was part of that mission but presumed killed, returns to seek revenge for being left behind.

• President David Palmer's relationship with Sherry Palmer. David and Sherry Palmer are married when he seeks the presidency during Season 1, but when it becomes clear to him that Sherry will do anything, including treason and murder, to secure his presidency, David files for divorce. In Season 2, Palmer has been president for some time, and ex-wife Sherry insists on assisting him with the latest terrorist threat, which he grudgingly allows; however, it soon becomes clear that she herself is involved in a government conspiracy behind the threat, though at the eleventh hour she helps bring down the terrorist mastermind. In Season 3, Sherry once again returns, this time on David's request, to resolve a threat made against him by a high-powered political contributor. Her "solution" results in the man's murder, and Sherry is eventually shot dead by the political contributor's wife. Because of this and other tragic events in Season 3, David chooses not to seek re-election, despite already being in the middle of his re-election campaign.

Season 2 - 5

• Tony Almeida and Michelle Dessler's relationship. The romantic relationship between Tony and Michelle developed over the course of Season 2. They kiss after a series of traumatic events end with Michelle's brother, Danny, hurts colleague Carrie Turner. By Season 3, they are already married, and the strain that the bio-terrorist threat puts on their relationship is a focus of that season's storyline. At the end of the season, Tony goes to prison for treason, after he willingly impedes the ongoing operation in order to save Michelle's life, leaving their future in doubt. In Season 4, when Jack seeks Tony's help, it is revealed that their relationship has dissolved. But when Michelle is called in as acting head of CTU in the latter half of Season 4, her relationship with Tony is rekindled, and in Season 5, they are once again married and living together. Soon after, Michelle is killed by a car bomb, and Tony is murdered by a lethal injection.

Season 4 - 6

Beginning with Season 4, a new storyline for 24 began, as the only continuing regular characters were Jack Bauer and Chloe O'Brian. As a result, there was little continuity from the past three seasons until the returns of Michelle Dessler, Tony Almeida, and David Palmer late in Season 4. (Kim Bauer returned for a two episode arc in Season 5, but this did not have a major impact on that season's storyline.) All three cross-season storylines were resolved at the end of Season 6.

• Jack's romantic involvement with Audrey Raines. As Season 4 begins, Jack is working for Secretary of Defense James Heller, and is quietly involved with his daughter Audrey, who works as Heller's chief policy assistant. Although Audrey is still married, she is separated from her husband and plans a future life with Jack. Unfortunately, the events of Season 4 lead to the death of her husband, an event directly caused by Jack's actions to save a Chinese national with information critical to national security. Audrey ends their relationship, but by Season 5, it has been tentatively renewed when she returns to CTU as a DOD liaison. Immediately after the events in Season 5, Audrey travels to China to search for Jack when he is kidnapped by Cheng Zhi, but she is presumed killed in an auto accident. Late in Season 6, Audrey resurfaces in Cheng's custody, mentally incapacitated due to being tortured. Despite Jack's successful efforts in saving her life, Secretary Heller takes Audrey away from CTU and demands Jack cease all contact with her. He eventually realizes that Heller is right, and an emotional Jack says a final bedside farewell to Audrey at the very end of the season.

• Jack Bauer's family involvement with a U.S. government conspiracy. In Season 5, attempts are made on the lives of the four individuals who knew Jack was alive after the events in Season 4. Of those four, three are killed — David Palmer, Michelle Dessler, and Tony Almeida — with the fourth, Chloe O'Brian, saved only because Jack had resurfaced from hiding to investigate. In Season 6, Jack discovers the person who manipulated President Charles Logan and was responsible for the threat against the U.S. in Season 5 was none other than Jack's estranged brother Graem. His actions were designed to provide a pretext for Bauer's company — under the protection of the U.S. — to secure all oil reserves in Central Asia. In Season 6, Jack learns that Graem was working at the behest of his father, Phillip Bauer, who kills Graem and disappears. Late in the season, Phillip resurfaces to repair a stolen Russian-made nuclear component for Cheng Zhi in exchange for an attack on CTU which will secure his grandson, Josh, and provide them both with safe passage back to China. On one of Phillip's offshore oil rigs, an unwilling Josh overpowers Phillip just prior to an impending U.S. military airstrike against the rig to destroy the stolen component. Jack, who arrived at the last minute to save Josh, had no time to take the injured Phillip into custody before the airstrike. As a result, Phillip is believed to be deceased.

• Jack Bauer's Conflict with the Chinese In season 4, a suspect who CTU believed (and later did) could lead them to terrorist mastermind Habib Marwan was identified. The man was a citizen of the People's Republic of China and took refuge in the Chinese consulate. The White House contacted the Chinese government to institue his release, but the diplomatic method would have taken several hours and days, time that they did not have. Acting President David Palmer authorized a covert operation to be carried out by Jack Bauer to capture the man. He was sucessful, but during the extraction, the consul was killed as a result of friendly fire. The Chinese eventually figured out that Jack led the assult, and demanded he be turned over to their custody to face murder charges. President Logan, who disagreed with Palmer's decision from the moment he found out about it, decided to hand Jack over to China, rather than admitting that the White House authorized the mission, which would have caused an international crisis. Walt Cummings, Logan's security advisor, decided instead to order the Secret Service agent coming to pick Bauer up to kill him instead. Mike Novick overheard, and notified President Palmer, who then notified Bauer. Bauer then worked with Palmer, Tony Almeida, Michelle Dessler, and Chloe O'Brian to fake his own death. 18 months later, at the conclusion of Season 5, Jack was captured by the Chinese. After two years of torture in a Chinese prision, new President Wayne Palmer negotiated his release. 17 hours after being returned to the United States, Jack recieved a call from Cheng Zhi, the agent who had been holding him for the last 2 years. He informed Jack (and provided evidence to him) that he had Audrey Raines in his custody and was willing to exchange her for classifed Russian intelligence. Jack had planned to destroy the intel via suicide bombing until CTU & Vice-President Noah Daniels interfered, which allowed Cheng to escape. Russia found out about the exchange, and threated World War III if the intel was not recovered. Jack did manage to recover the intel.

Broadcasting information

US television ratings

Seasonal rankings (based on average total viewers per episode) of 24 on FOX.

Note: Each US network television season starts in late September and ends in late May, which coincides with the completion of May sweeps.

Season	Timeslot	Premiere	Finale	Rank	Viewers (m)
1	Tuesdays 9/8c	November 6, 2001	May 21, 2002	#76	8.60
2	Tuesdays 9/8c	October 29, 2002	May 20, 2003	#36	11.73
3	Tuesdays 9/8c	October 28, 2003	May 25, 2004	#42	10.30
4^	Mondays 9/8c	January 9, 2005	May 23, 2005	#29	11.90
5^	Mondays 9/8c	January 15, 2006	May 22, 2006	#24	13.78
6^	Mondays 9/8c	January 14, 2007	May 21, 2007	#27	13.0
7	Mondays 9/8c	January 13, 2008	May 19, 2008	TBA	TBA

^ = Indicates a "non-stop" season

Viewership increased midway through its second season when the mega-hit American Idol became the lead-in to 24 starting in February 2003. For its fourth season, FOX gave the show a vote of confidence by moving 24 out of the post-American Idol time slot (to make room for the eventual hit drama, House) and placed it on Monday nights at 9:00 p.m. Eastern (8:00 p.m. Central) while it aired the show in consecutive weeks, beginning in mid-January of 2005. The consecutive-week schedule was also implemented for 2006, beginning in mid-January 2006.

In comparison to its 2005 season, 24 in 2006 was up 16% in overall viewers and 14% in viewers of the advertiser-friendly 18-49 age demographic. Thus, the series has so far reached its ratings peak in 2006.

The sixth season's two-night, four-hour premiere gained its largest audience ever, scoring an average 15.7 million viewers. At one stage, ratings peaked at 16.3 million viewers. The show recently celebrated its huge ratings during the season six premiere of the show in which 33 million people watched the premiere.

Viewership has increased steadily for 24, except for a slight fall in the third season. FOX was able to continue gaining audience share in 2005 and 2006 with non-stop seasons and the number of viewers was up over 60% in season 5 vs season 1.

International broadcasters

Main article: International broadcasters for 24 (TV series)

24 is widely broadcast in other parts of the world, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, Australia and the Middle East.

Critical reaction

24 parodied in the South Park episode "The Snuke"

Main article: Critical reaction to 24 (TV series)

Because of the "real-time" storytelling approach to 24, and the series' willingness to directly address the threat of terrorism, the implementation of torture as a way to acquire information and the use and misuse of government authority, the series has generated a sizeable critical reaction, both positive and negative. The series has won numerous Emmy Awards for its technical and artistic achievements, but at the same time has been criticized by a number of prominent individuals and organizations who have objected to how the series has handled story and character elements. The series has also been accused of a conservative political bias. Nonetheless, 24 has become part of American popular culture and has been the subject of numerous parodies. The word "protocol" is spoken or appears in writing in each episode at least once.

DVD releases

The release of 24 on DVD has had a significant impact on the success of the television series. In an interview with IGN in 2002, Sutherland revealed, "[24's] success in England was phenomenal. It was the biggest show the BBC has ever had. It was the number one DVD there; knocked off Lord of the Rings, which is unheard of for a television show DVD to actually knock-out every feature DVD available. And that's because they showed it without commercials." The US sales of the Season 1 DVDs increased the audience size of Season 2 by 25%.

At CES 2007, Fox Home Entertainment announced that the complete first season of 24 would be released on the Blu-ray disc format in early 2007.

The Region 1 DVD releases of 24 strictly emphasize actor Kiefer Sutherland on the cover art for all five seasons to date, while the Region 2 DVDs instead echo the series' split-screen format by featuring the major players in each respective season.

In mid-2007, the first four seasons were re-issued, featuring slim-packaging in line with the season 5 release, and improved video quality, especially in the first season which was initially rushed to DVD.

Other media

Main article: List of Other Media for 24 (TV series)

The success of 24 has led to the series being extended into other arenas, including media specifically created for mobile devices and the internet. In addition, the series has spawned video and board games, toys, soundtracks from both the series and the video game, and a number of original novels inspired by the series, as well as a number of "behind-the-scenes" books. A feature film based upon the series is scheduled for sometime in the future.

References

• "Inside Move: Phone number has a familiar ring". Variety. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
• "Mention of 24 movie in interview with Joel Surnow and Howard Gordon". The Rush Limbaugh Radio Show.

External links

• 24 (TV series) on 24 Wiki

• Wiki 24 encyclopedia
• Template:Tv.com show
• TVWeek.com weekly podcast: Backlot Talk With Exec Producer Howard Gordon
• 'Getting Dirty in Real Time,' 2005 American Spectator article

Unexpected use of template {{24}} - see Template:24 for details.