yvonne strahovski

24: Live Another Day, Ep. 1.06, “4:00 PM – 5:00 PM” almost ends the party

24 is a wonderfully enjoyable show at its best. At its worst, it offers the same rehashed ideas over and over. While old tropes can work when they’re given a fresh twist, as we’ve seen over the last few weeks, a mole working in the CIA is narratively constraining. There are usually only two ways for it to play out: the mole is successful (as Nina Myers so very nearly was) or fails miserably. There is a third option, that of the double agent, but we saw that wayyy back in Day 3 with Gael.

24: Live Another Day, Ep. 1.04 “2:00 PM – 3:00 PM” pins down Jack

One of the reasons 24’s original run came to an end is that it was no longer original. It was running out of ideas and ways to tells stories without introducing moles, double-agents, and inorganic obstacles for Jack Bauer. What 24: Live Another Day has managed to do, so far, is to use familiar elements from the show but present them in a fresh way. While it doesn’t completely revitalize the franchise, it’s brought a solidly entertaining action-thriller back to the schedule.

Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) returns in 24: Live Another Day

24: Live Another Day, Ep. 1.01 and 1.02: “11:00 AM – 12:00 PM” and “12:00 PM – 1:00 PM” bring Jack and Chloe back together

Jack Bauer is further outside the system that made his name than he’s ever been, both literally and figuratively.

On the run for years after supposed terrorist acts that actually protected American citizens, he resurfaces in London, far away from the U.S. metropolises he saved so many times. It’s the first time 24 has left the confines of the States for an entire season, though previously took a several-episode detour to Mexico and placed Jack in Africa for the 24: Redemption TV movie.

Louie S04E02 promo image

Louie, Ep. 4.01-02, “Back” and “Model” see the series return in style

Louie is utterly unique to the television landscape. There are very, very few shows of which this can be said. It’s part standup, part experimental film, part character study, part whatever else Louis C.K. wants it to be, and in its first three seasons, the series that started out well grew increasingly confident, playing with form and stretching C.K. as a filmmaker and storyteller. After C.K. decided to take 2013 off, some viewers may have been concerned he wouldn’t be able to recapture the magic of the first three seasons. Fortunately, with “Back” and “Model”, C.K. picks up right where he left off, as sure and relaxed as ever.

‘I, Frankenstein’ Fails to Find its Lightning Bolt and Remains Dead on the Table

Despite having his origins in classic literature, Frankenstein’s monster has become a truly cinematic beast, having shown up in countless screen iterations since first being brought to life by Boris Karloff in 1931. No surprise then that I, Frankenstein, originally a comic series by Underworld scribe Kevin Grevioux would get the big screen treatment, and even less of a surprise to results aren’t particularly pretty.

Dexter Ep 8.10 ‘Goodbye Miami’ another infuriating slump of form & final nail in the coffin

What’s the best way to wrap up a big long story? Do you concentrate on the characters, ensuring that their journeys come to an end in a satisfying manner? Is it a matter of destroying the world you have set up to justify the use of such a clinical term as ‘the end’? Or is it a case of doing both, throwing every last inspired thought and radical idea into the pot for one final thrill ride both visceral and emotional

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