I think what Chloe meant by an external drive is just something like an external hard drive. It wasn’t like she was sending data back to her home server or something, she was just copying stuff to the external hard drive she carries around with her, or something else not on the network. Which actually would be a very sensible thing to do. Also, I’m pretty sure the metal plate was the container for the memory card, not the card itself. Presumably Dubaku would want it to be easily found in the event of his death, so it actually would make a bit of sense for it to be metal instead of plastic. Of course, it’s still a pretty idiotic backup plan, since if his conspirators kill him then they’ll get it.
Of course, the self-deleting memory card was utterly asinine. No amount of fanwanking can get around that and the FBI moles’ psychic knowledge of that fact.
If there was some sort of major terrorists attack underway and I worked in DC, I might be tempted to call in to work that day.
The FBI needs to take some lessons on perimeters from the Metro Police. First successful 24 perimeter ever! I was also wondering why Jack & Co didn’t ultilize them in getting Dubaku.
Not officially being a govt agent at that point may have gotten him out of it. But more importantly, would you want to be the one to tell Jack he needs to fill out form 1193 in triplicate?
That’s what he does in the spinoff that’s targeted to accountants and actuaries: 240: Jack Bauer’s Case File Paperwork. All ledger entries and supporting attachments are filled out in real time.
No one has yet asked the question on the other side: Why make a self-erasing drive in the first place? I mean, it very clearly was the case that it self-erased after it had been copied. So under any normal circumstances, the source drive is now erased, but I still have this fine copy of all the data that I can copy again at will. So unless Dubaku had accurate fortune-telling and knew that molette was going to erase the entire system after the self-erasing disk had been downloaded, what point, exactly, could possibly be served by erasing the source after a copy has been made???
On a more serious meta-note, I, too, have been very disappointed in this season. I expect all the ridiculous, unrealistic plot contrivances, but in the past the pace has been quick enough and the suspense level high enough that those were overlookable. So far, this season has been just a snooze-fest.
And this episode seemed like they suddenly decided to wrap up all the loose ends; Dubaku gets captured, the FBI mole gets captured, even molette gets killed, everyone is safe, Dubaku’s girlfriend is killed, they’ve got the data on all the moles and have started the purge, etc. I had been hoping that the year-long delay would have given them time to be extra crafty in the plotting, but so far it’s seemed the opposite. Is it possible that they’ve been using the scripts written a year ago, and this episode signals the transition to the new ones (i.e. post writers strike)? It kind of feels like they had those in the can, so they felt they had to use them, but now instead of continuing those threads they want to strike out fresh. Why else go through the elaborate setup with the self-erasing drive, the “crisis” of all the data being lost, only to have Chloe pull out a rabbit with a simple “I made an external copy”? That just seemed tacked on, like the original intent was for the data to be really lost so that the hunt for the moles could continue. Ok, maybe just wishful thinking…
Agent Redhead’s problem makes more sense now. I was getting real tried of her blaming Jack for what obviously needed to be done. Now I get that she’s pissed off because Jack can be so nonchalant about it.
I hope that the writers go for the Jack has to save the senator plot. It seems like they are setting that one up.
“Sir, I’m going to get you out of here! Oh wait, I probably shouldn’t be on active duty with the investigation you have going on. It would probably be best if I just sat this one out.”
So there is a conspiracy at every level of the governement all focused on this one issue of Sangala and there is no hint of it until Almeda comes forward?
Look a conspiracy of two people is hard enough to keep secret…100? COuldn’t they just say it was a half dozen or so? That would be so much more believable.
