This plot twist, however lead to the biggest pile of bullshit in 24 history, where we learn that Walsh was happily willing to whack the parole officer and stuff him in the walls. YET when confronted by a lameass parolee from half the country away, she chose not to kill him and instead to completely jeopardize her CTU job, her cover, and her terrorist mission.

If her endgame was to be the CTU leak for this nuclear plot, I presume she planned to leave CTU that same day anyway. What harm would it have done to kill off a few losers at her apartment? It wouldn’t have been discovered until at least the next day.

She is a hack.

Now she is a terrorist, and working with the other terrorists. The entire plot line with Kevin could have been averted if she had simply asked her buddies to kill him and his friend. Even if she didn’t want to be a team player, she could have killed him herself. The guys were in her apartment, all she had to do was walk in with a gun and silencer and shoot them both quickly.

All of her character development before it was revealed that she was a terrorist was just thrown out the window, and we are expected to believe that when Kevin and his friend were beating up the police officer, she was genuinely horrified, but sometime between then and now she became a sociopath who can shoot a man without any facial expression.

I think the writers were trying to appease fans who were bored of the Dana Walsh storyline. People were complaining about how much she sucked, and so they tried to make her a bigger character. Unfortunately, they did it in a way that was inconsistent with how they had previously developed her character, and so now we are stuck with a clusterfuck of a story.

The only way they can make it consistent now is if they reveal that she has multiple personality disorder. But I don’t think that will make it better. But if they really want to fuck things up, they can say she has a twin sister.

I didn’t see the foreshadowing of her death as mechanic though. Both characters needed the action. Plotting a story is essentially a mechanic process. It’s how you naturally portray the characters in any situation that makes the difference.

Okay, “unearned” is actually the wrong word. Perhaps “hackneyed.”

The problem is, once again, it’s all about “24″ going to the same well over and over again. Even a major death like this feels less emotional than it should because it’s so relentlessly … well, typical “24.” Major Deaths of Fan-Favorite Characters (David Palmer, Tony Almeida [even if he did un-die], Bill Buchanan, Michelle Dessler, Curtis Manning, Edgar Stiles, the list goes on) have become so commonplace on this show that they just become expected, and therefore it’s hard not to just shrug, no matter how previously important the character or how devastating for Jack it purportedly is. We’ve just seen it so many times.

I think the consequences may be more interesting than the actual death, because, as you said, watching Jack go nuclear will be compelling to watch, as in: “An all-new 24. THIS TIME IT’S PERSONAL.” Or something.

I mean, it was so hopelessly mechanically set up. (They had sex, you say? Across from a sniper? Okay, then, someone is Obviously Dead Meat. Will it be Jack? Naturally!)

So I rescind the word “unearned.” In fact, it was TOO earned, via shamelessly manipulative setup. Which made it feel kind of hollow, I must say.

Jack spent a lifetime trying to build a barrier to shield his personal life, his family from the inherent darkness that comes with being who he is. That suffered a brutal collapse with Teri’s demise. He started to rebuild it after the second season, to the point where he had Audrey Raines and a new lease on life. He ended up losing that over seasons 5 and 6, along with Kim’s love. Season 7 was a new starting point, designed for him to rebuild his beliefs, and overcome his regrets. Renee Walker was crucial to achieve that. Her role in reapproaching Jack with Kim is worth noting.

Looking back at the premiere, with Jack starting a new life with a granddaughter, it’s tragic to realize he can never really escape from the perils of the life he chose to live.

With Renee out of the picture (one of the most sad and brutal scenes ever on 24), Jack is going to become something more dangerous than any nuclear bomb. The next seven shows will be an unrelenting sprint to what will probably be a tragic, but inevitable resolution. Looking past Renee’s demise, i don’t think 24 could end any differently.

Curiously enough, season 8 of 24 reminds me a lot of Enterprise’s third season, in terms of story structure. The slow, sometimes questionable chain of events, that eventually ended building up to the amazing Azati Prime episode and the following unforgettable home stretch to the finale.

It’s obvious Manny Coto and Brannon Braga had a hand in putting the whole thing together this way. It made going through season 8 all the more satisfying at this point. One of the best things that ever happened to this show was bringing these two aboard as executive producers and staff writers.

Matt. I’ll write it off to to KS needing work for a year, but I still don’t think its anything spectacular that she’s in this role or that awesome of an actress. Good, yes, great no. Where’s her range as an actress? Take a look at Amanda Seyfried going from Big Love to Chloe and demonstrating a much larger range. Personally, I think KS hype is BSG fanboy obsession.

As for her knowing what she was getting into on 24, yeah…probably. But at the same time 24 is a moderate hit and a way to keep working. Just because she’s talented doesn’t mean she can just get any part on any show she wants. Even the best actors end up in the occasional bad show or movie. That’s the nature of the business. It’s better to take a so-so job and keep working rather than just sit around and be forgotten altogether.

I was never a devoted Battlestar or Katee Sackhoff fan, so i don’t see this Dana Walsh subplot with that amount of disdain. I don’t think the story’s interesting, but it’s not an abomination either.

24 may be feeling its age, but i still think the episodes generally work, in terms of suspense and excitement. It’s not just about Jack, but also about the beautiful Renee Walker. Season 7 was quite a high point (and many of Braga/Coto’s scripts were nearly flawless).

Maybe, if this does turn out to be the last season of 24, they will do some more actual NYC location work in the later episodes, after the sun comes back up and we head into the endgame.

Can anyone confirm that the show was still shot mostly in LA the last two seasons?