And I can’t believe I haven’t seen this thread up already.
Did I miss it?
So, whaddaya think?
Me:
Very unsatisfying ending. But fairly realistic (w/in the context of this ridiculously unrealistic show) I mean, what did I expect–EVERYBODY’s fine and dandy at the end?
ON the other hand:
It sure made things good for a sequel/continuation.
Jack is now tragically single.
(pant pant—guiltily, since… it’s so sad for him…but—pant pant pant)
The part where the Senator tells his unbelievably awful wife
buh-bye…
Yeah!
Well okay that part WAS satisfying.
And it brings up the question: Can a black man be President?
What if he’s getting a divorce?
That’d be another first, for a presidential candidate.
I’d be very curious to see how they handle it.
And…what about Tony?
He was an extremely cool character and I think they should expand on it.
May I ask why you found it to be so unsatisfying? I only ask because you listed things you liked, but didn’t really say too much about what you didn’t like. Is it just that Teri died?
Personally, I found it to be very satisfying for a season finale. I usually find most finales to suck because I’m not a huge fan of cliffhangers that last for 3 months. Since this one didn’t really have a set chance at first, they at least wrapped it up reasonably well while still leaving opportunities to expound.
It wasn’t just that Teri died, but that they SO led you to believe that Jack’s fight for his family would be triumphant after all. I mean, given Drazen’s already-demonstrated cold-bloodedness when it came to other people’s children, and his singleness of purpose throughout the show, the odds were against Kim’s survival. Yet, she lives. Even when Jack was convinced his daughter was already dead–surprise!–she got away.
Sort of an opposite-foreshadowing of Teri’s death.
It just shattered our hopes and broke the expected pattern, was all.
Also…I had noticed a disappointing deterioration of Teri’s character, from the early part of the show (yeah I know, it was all supposed to happen in one “day”, but really…):
She struck me at first as being capable and sharp (note the handling of the situation when she and daughter Kim were being held in that barn together)…but in the last two episodes, Teri seemed dazed and weak. And with NO instincts–HOW could she have trusted Nina? We “audients” sure didn’t!
The original/strong character of Teri didn’t deserve this. Hell, she didn’t even get to fight. Her death was docile, like a lamb to the slaughter.
And that’s what I found unsatisfying.
But, like you, I did enjoy the show.
And another VERY satisfying moment was when Jack finally killed Drazen. Excellent acting from Mr. Sutherland, that scene.
Unlike you, I don’t feel that things were “wrapped up” very well at all.
But Teri did not know the same things about Nina that we knew. She didn’t know that Nina’s name was on a stolen key card. All she really knew was that Nina had slept with her husband. Other than that, she figured Nina was OK.
Nina realized that Teri was smart because she thought that Teri knew too much about her at the end.
I liked the ending; I’m tired of “perfect” endings. The whole concept of the show seemed to be one plan after another going horribly wrong due to unforseen complications, so it seemed fitting to me.
They did a good job of leaving the show open for a second season. I didn’t see any blood when Drazen was shot. Was he wearing a kevlar vest, or am I just imperceptive? For a second season, you have a new mysterious organization, a vengeful Jack, and possibly Victor Drazen (also vengeful).
I don’t think network television gives us many surprises any more and that’s why I thought the finale of 24 was superb! It surprised me that Jack shot Drazen even after Drazen had surrendered. (He did have his hands up, after all.) It seemed to me to be against character that Jack would execute him like that. I know, I know. . . at that time Jack was convinced that Drazen was responsible for Kim’s “death,” but Jack’s a lawman. . . and lawmen are supposed to let the law decide a person’s fate.
It did not surprise me that Senator Palmer dismissed the evil Sherrie. He has always seemed to put his political ambitions second to his personal ethics. He had to get rid of this modern day Lady Macbeth and I bet the voters in the World of 24 will not give a rip that he’s a single guy.
It did surprise me that Teri died. Nina had to shoot her, but we didn’t see her do it. I did not like the character of Teri, so I’m shedding no tears at her demise, but it surprised me.
And that’s why I thought this finale was an hour of very fine television.