24: 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.
March 13, 2007 at 9:15 a.m.
One word to describe 24 this week: awful.
Two words to describe 24 this week: really awful.
We find out that Martha Logan was institutionalized (again), but to avert CTU’s assault on the Russian consulate, Charles claims he can get Martha, his ex-wife who hasn’t spoken to him in two years, to use her close friendship with Anya Subarov, the first lady of Russia, to convince her husband that Markov is a traitor.
This is an absolutely absurd plan. Why would President Subarov listen to his wife on this matter? It’s like the people who listen to Grandma on Deal or No Deal. They end up winning $1 because Grandma is nice and makes good cookies, but what does she know? Oh, but wait. This plan works. President Subarov says he supports the U.S. use of force on the Russian consulate, and it took all of eight seconds to convince him. Some president.
Logan shows up at Martha’s bungalow, and I really wanted her to start throwing ninja stars at him when he walked in the door. I made this comment totally off the cuff, but little did I know that MARTHA WAS GOING TO STAB THE BEJESUS OUT OF HIM! After angrily chopping some kiwi in the kitchen, Aaron (her new boyfriend) warned her to not get all “stirred up.” I was wondering who really gets agitated chopping fruit, but apparently it got her riled enough to STAB HER EX-HUSBAND. I don’t know what sort of mental illness Martha is supposed to have, but I can’t think of one whose main symptom is the thirst for flesh, both of the fruit and human varieties. So, this episode ends with Logan being rushed to the hospital and looking like he might die. Are two presidents really going to die in one day? (Well, apparently not, because the VP says President Palmer will make a full recovery, when, last week, he was on his deathbed.)
But, even though Martha shanked her ex-husband, Aaron still put her on the phone with Anya Subarov to diffuse the international crisis with the Russian consulate. Yes, this situation is totally plausible…in CRAZY WORLD!
My other beef with this episode is the fact that Tom Lennox is going along with the VP’s plan to frame Assad for planting the bomb in the assassination attempt on President Palmer. The VP tells Tom that he has to tell the ambassador from Assad’s country that he saw Assad plant the bomb and that if his country doesn’t cooperate, the U.S. will attack his country. WHAT COUNTRY? This part of the show made we want to throw my TV out the window. For a show that tries to convince everyone that it isn’t biased against Muslims or Arabic countries, it is infuriating that the writers have refused to name which country this ambassador and Assad are from. This makes a pretty sweeping generalization that all Muslim countries are the same and that they all harbor terrorists. All countries, Muslim or not, are totally different, and to imply that they are all so similar that it’s not worth their time to name a specific one is a gross oversight on the parts of the writers. Of course, they are probably trying to avoid offending a specific country, but in the real world, there would be a specific country attached to this ambassador and to Assad. But, as I already established in this post, the writers of 24 are operating in CRAZY WORLD!
A few random notes:
We meet Mike Doyle, the new head of CTU tactical operations, who, apparently, has some sort of history with Milo. I’m hoping for an epic slap-fight between them, in addition to the Marilyn-Audrey cage fight.
Jack was in about three scenes this episode. In one, he takes a Russian couple hostage, and orders them to find a phone for him to use. These people don’t have cell phones? Seriously? Is the Russian consulate located in a time warp that puts them somewhere in the vicinity of 1993? Details, details.
When the CTU team does storm the Russian consulate, everyone except Mike Doyle is decked out in SWAT gear and, you know, stuff that you would wear to engage in a gunfight. But, Boy Wonder is wearing a spiffy mock turtleneck that Mommy probably bought for him last Christmas. Yes, this will protect you from a gunshot wound…in CRAZY WORLD!
AND, while we’re on the subject of the consulate raid, the CTU team shoots Markov. Yes, they shoot him, the one guy who can give them more information on Gredenko. Smart. I think it’s because they weren’t wearing their mock turtlenecks like their fearless leader.
Meanwhile, back in the desert, Fayed and Gredenko have armed the drone that’s going to drop the next nukes. I’m convinced they have been standing in the same exact spot for the last four episodes or so, but I could be wrong.
And finally, I am going to start answering my phone “Martha Logan’s bungalow,” mostly because this episode made me angry enough to show a kiwi fruit who’s boss and then stab the nearest man.
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