Rating: 
Summary: "24" SEASON 1
Review: "24" always seemed to puncture stereotypes of dramitic television. It comes in with a tacit whisper but ends solely on the face of combat. In its first season, the aboveboard objective never seemed out of focus. Terrorism in the hands of script-writers planning its every breaking maneuver to oust the Presidency of the United States. Rigid and thought provoking that lasted for a good twenty-four hour marathon.Kiefer Sutherland's protagonist, "Jack Bauer" brought the demeanor of John McClane to a whole new generation. The spirit that is somehow incisive and diverting will never fail with an audience. Sutherland's ability to take Bauer and sculpt him into
the ordinary man doing remarkable wonders exhibits strength rarely seen in televison or film. Outside of Sutherland's persona, this show was brilliantly cast and directed. Its substantial portrayal of its characters made it intensly realistic and firmly believable. Its fast paced directing style was unlike anything before or since. The blastering of gorilla camera angles pounded on the structure that captivated its audience under complete control. "24" dvd box set of season one is an amazing joy ride of entertainment. Also included is an alternate ending to the season finale and a brief promo of the complete season. If you like action and suspense, see to it, you get it immediately. Understand too, if this doesn't go down in history as one of TV's most influential shows, it sure beats the price of paying full price for a movie ticket these days.
Rating:
Summary: The Jack Bauer Power Hour
Review: "24" is an intense and addictive show. Many shyed away from this show because they feared that if they were to miss an episode, they would be completely lost. This DVD is the perfect way for those who missed this season to find out what they were missing.
The premise of the show is listed above, so I will not go over it again. The main players are Jack Bauer, Senator David Palmer, Teri Bauer, Kim Bauer, Nina Meyers, etc.
The first 10 or so episodes are simply a work of art. They flow so well, the double-crosses are unexpected, the stories are riveting. Everything simply fits. The suspense is so high that you will blow through these episodes and be unable to stop.
Things do slow down after about halfway through. That doesn't mean things get bad or anything, by no means. The second half of the season is better than practically anything else on TV, just not as brilliant as the first.
In what would look to some as a simple game of intrigue and gunfights, there are real emotions at stake too. "24"'s characters are believable and the drama is touching. Particularly David Palmer's dilemma over his family's troubles, which he prioritizes far above the assassination threats against him.
The DVD set is good, but fairly bare bones. There is an alternate ending that changes things completely, but it doesn't make quite as much sense as the actual one, and kills a lot of the drama. It's disappointing that there are no chapters, so if you stop watching halfway through an episode, you'll have to fast forward to get back to your place.
This show is one of the best shows on the air, and owning the DVD set is well worth it. There are episodes that you'll want to watch again and again, particularly the pilot episode. Buy it, you'll be glad you did.
Rating:
Summary: Best TV Show that I've seen in a while
Review: "24" The new spy show from fox Hooked me from the very first minutes. I watched and taped this religously. Now that I know that there is a DVD set coming out... Well You know where I'll be that day. "24" Stars Keifer Sutherland as counter terrorrisim unit agent Jack Bauer. The episodes are one day in his life. As he says,"Today is the longest day of my life". With the many plot twists and the feeling that our hero is never out of danger gives the Edge of your seat suspense. BUY THIS DVD SET!!! You won't regret it!!
Rating: 
Summary: Parenting, promises, protocol, pistols, and palm pilots
Review: "I promise you," has to be the most uttered phrase in this excrutiatingly tense psycodrama. Dripping with implausibility (people leave their cell phones on even as they are sneaking up behind people with guns who want to kill them), it is made compelling by its powerhouse acting, frequent plot twists, and paranoid visions of families challenged by relentless dark forces. I say "families" (plural) because this drama cleverly interweaves the destinies of several different families, not just the family of key character Jack Bauer (Keifer Sutherland), the head of the CIA's Los Angeles Counter Terrorist Unit. As the series opens Jack and his wife Teri (Leslie Hope) are trying to mend their troubled marriage when their only child, daughter Kimberly, is kidnapped. For this family, the events of the next 24 hours forces them to reestablish their bonds. Another family drama that unfolds is that of Presidential candidate Senator David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert). Jack's assignment is to protect the Senator and his family from a known assassination plot. As the day unfolds the Senator slowly comes to realize how little he knows the other members of his seemingly "picture perfect" family. And playing off against these two families are the Drazens, the terrorists behind the abductions and assassination attempts...showing, I guess, that villains need love too, and have family bonds as strong as "good" people (but I guess if you also watch The Sopranos, you knew that already). And yet another family is apparent in the mix--Jack's family of coworkers down at CTU headquarters. What we have is a complete smorgasbord of dysfunctional families ricocheting through a single day, clashing and combusting occasionally, but mostly proceeding according to their own perverse logic. Everyone's loyalty is questioned at some point, friends become captors and captors friends. But through it all everyone manages to stay in touch through cell phones and satellite technology. "Patch me through," is the second most uttered phrase. As exciting as the series is, it does have its false moments. I found the frequent I love you's and I'm sorry's a little hard to take. And there's one scene when Senator Palmer manages to break away from his secret security protectors in order to conduct some business. He encounters a couple of vandals in a parking garage, spews a little presidential-timber type jargon at them, and manages to get away without a physical encounter. The scene felt like an out-take from "Stand and Deliver." Oh, and there's the de rigueur amnesia scene in which both the onset and recovery are the result of traumatic emotional shocks. Technology is ubiquitous and glamorous in this story. Gunfire virtually unending. It's tempting to say "Don't anyalyze this story. Just roll with the punches and enjoy the ride." But "24" has a lot to say about human values, the fragility of the family, the false faces we present to the world to achieve our equally false goals, the myth of individuality, and the myth that we lose our individuality when we join forces with others, and the arbitrary nature of risk and choice. Try watching the "24" episodes in quick succession. I promise you, when the ride is over, you'll have plenty to think about.
Rating:
Summary: Innovative, Action-Packed, Suspenseful! WOW!!
Review: "Right now terrorists are plotting to assassinate a presidential candidate, my wife and daughter have been kidnapped and the people that I work with may be involved in both. I'm federal agent Jack Bauer and this is the longest day of my life." Kiefer Sutherland, as agent Bauer, opens each episode of "24 - Season One" with these lines, which accurately describe the plot of this action-packed thriller. Each hour-long episode represents 60 minutes in a 24 hour period, beginning at 12:00am and ending at 12:00pm - thus the title "24." The real-time storyline is extremely innovative, the cast performance is superb, as is the script. And the suspense and quick pace will take your breath away. If you missed segments of the 1st season, and/or just love the series and want to be able to see it again and again, then the DVD is a terrific buy! I don't watch much television and so missed the first season completely. I had heard friends rave about this series and decided to rent the first DVD. I never looked back! Excellent! ENJOY!
JANA
Rating:
Summary: "24" IS A BRAND-NEW FORM
Review: "24" is _not_ "like a soap opera" except in the superficial sense of a story that more-or-less continues from week to week. The closest analog I can think of is a saga like that of the Monkey King being translated to a series format for Asian television. But I don't think there has been any series ever before envisioned and executed with the tight structure and story line of "24." I made the mistake of renting episodes of the first season (now available at my Blockbuster on DVD). I had seen maybe two and a half of the episodes in the first season when they aired, then gave it up because I didn't want to watch it through to the end without having seen the lead-up. Watching it all at once is like reading a novel that you can't put down. And I realized that that's what this is: a novel, in cinematic form.
The show is most obviously unique in the minute-by-minute gimmick. But the gimmick is itself deceptive -- going minute by minute suggests a naturalistic, "slice of life" approach, but in fact the direction and script are tightly stylized. (And because the show keeps cutting between different developments, it's not _really_ minute by minute.) The show is realistic and persuasive, but very highly selective in what it shows and how it shows it, always achieving the maximum effect by minimum means.
This is a complete visual novel -- not a condensed translation of a novel, like a mini-series adaptation. It is a complete novel with individual chapters. No other series has ever done this. Many have elements of continuity, etc., with characters developing over time and various sub-plots developing. But except for two-parters, the individual episodes are almost always self-contained. Not here. That's because the goal is to present a visual novel, not just to cover a 24 hour period with minute-by-minute suspense. "24" is also the opposite of soap operas, whose stories never reach any closure. I also appreciate "24" for never thunking you over the head with the effects it is generating. It avoids cliche altogether and always assumes that the viewer will "get it." I think in the first season there was only one misstep, and that was the casting of Dennis Hopper as a bad guy with an accent.
Somebody is going to figure out that the same cinematic-novel approach will work with other kinds of stories, not just something with a time deadline, and then we'll see more of them. Right now I don't think people realize something new has been invented here. A cinematic novel done from scratch. Done perfectly the first time out of the gate.
Rating:
Summary: Great Show --- But where's the advertised Season 2 teaser?
Review: "24" was the BEST show on television last season. Of course I quickly ordered the DVD set, and recieved it... today. The image quality and sound is spectacular, and my review WOULD have gave it 5 stars. BUT, it didn't have the advertised "Season 2 teaser trailer" that hyped me about the DVD release in the first place. Happy with the show and the bonus ending, but upset about the teaser that was taken out.
Rating:
Summary: Innovative, Action-Packed, Suspenseful! WOW!!
Review: "Right now terrorists are plotting to assassinate a presidential candidate, my wife and daughter have been kidnapped and the people that I work with may be involved in both. I'm federal agent Jack Bauer and this is the longest day of my life." Kiefer Sutherland, as agent Bauer, opens each episode of "24 - Season One" with these lines, which accurately describe the plot of this action-packed thriller. Each hour-long episode represents 60 minutes in a 24 hour period, beginning at 12:00am and ending at 12:00pm - thus the title "24." The real-time storyline is extremely innovative, the cast performance is superb, as is the script. And the suspense and quick pace will take your breath away. If you missed segments of the 1st season, and/or just love the series and want to be able to see it again and again, then the DVD is a terrific buy! I don't watch much television and so missed the first season completely. I had heard friends rave about this series and decided to rent the first DVD. I never looked back! Excellent! ENJOY!
JANA
Rating:
Summary: WOW!!! Best TV in years!
Review: (See above for the show synopsis)
I never saw a single episode of this show on TV; I can't commit to 24 episodes of any show - I just know I'll miss a few. And on top of that, I'm not a fan of Keifer Sutherland either, so this was a no go for me from the start. And the show didn't sound like anything particularly original...
Wow - have I been missing out. After nagging from my friends, I borrowed series 1, and literally, I was gripped from the first hour (episode). This is without a doubt, one of the most exciting and addictive shows I have seen in years! The acting from all is superb, and there are so many twists and turns you are so anxious to watch the next episode, desperate to know what happens next.
Brilliantly written and superbly put together, I defy anyone NOT to be thoroughly impressed.
As for the extras, there is an alternate ending which is inferior to the actual ending.
Rating:
Summary: Go get it
Review: (written before DVD's release)
An excellent engaging series, hurt on television by the medium: you've got to see every episode and you've got to see them in order, or it won't do much for you! Even with FX repeating episodes a week later, it was hard to keep up (many episodes were never aired again after their original week). This is why delivering a DVD of the whole season is perfect, perfect, perfect. I was so glad to hear that Fox had decided to release this to DVD.
Although the series is slated for a second season this Fall, the first (this set) can easily be viewed as a stand-alone plot-line (no apparent cliff-hangers were left, for instance). It is also rumored that Fox has some special features planned, such as including an alternate ending (!) I'd also like to learn more about the changes they made to the first episode (it was filmed before 9/11 but slated to air after, and needed some sensitive touch-ups relating to its terrorists and particularly an incident with an airplane) and hope that these will be detailed on these DVDs as well.
I definitely plan to buy this right away. The price can't be beat for the scope (24 hours of tv!), the plot, or even the casting. You should get it too.
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