January 21, 2008

24: Season 6

I really like 24, but I was disappointed by season 6. I feel like this is where the show has finally Jumped the Shark. Previous seasons have always brought something new to the series. New characters, political discussion, and plot mechanisms are part of the special sauce for this show. But as long as there's excitement and tension, I really felt compelled to watch. Admittedly the blatant sell-out to Cisco in the previous season was a little annoying, but I tried to ignore that as it was only in one episode.

But season six is the first season where I felt like everything has been recycled. The plot lines, the technologies, the threats, and the core character types are all remixes of the previous seasons. There's certainly a good level of current events pulled in, but that can't get rid of the unbelievable aspects of the show, which I won't discuss in depth at risk of ruining it for others. Cisco does make another blatant appearance, and the terrorist threats are now on the order of every three or four hours. They really need to stop trying to outdo themselves based solely on quantity.

The only saving grace of this season is the clearer focus on the characters. That's always been one of the most important parts of this series, and I think the writers realized that needed to be given some extra attention this time around, since the plot was weaker and less realistic than it needed to be. I'm really not sure where season seven will take us; it's a bit difficult for me to expect something great.

Posted by josuah at January 21, 2008 4:14 PM UTC+00:00