Television Review: 24: Season Two
24 Season Two
Starring: Kiefer Sutherland, Dennis Haysbert, Elisha Cuthbert, Carlos Bernard, Xander Berkeley, Sarah Wynter, Reiko Aylesworth, Penny Johnson Jerald
Series Creator: Joel Surnow
As great as the first season of this show was, I think season two may be better. They figured out what works best with the format, worked out some of the kinks, and raised the stakes and the drama. Which is saying something, since the first season featured an attempted assassination of a presidential candidate and the kidnapping of Jack Bauer's wife and daughter. Whereas the first season began to stretch credibility a tad while trying to keep Jack's family involved, the action and story this season is tight and unified, with very few mis-steps along the way (perhaps just the one-- damn mountain lion).
For those who don't know, the second season of 24 does not immediately follow the first. It's not the next day, because that would be insane. Instead, a year has passed since Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) experienced the longest (and worst) day in his life, and he is still trying to cope with the events that transpired that day. He and his daughter Kim (Elisha Cuthbert) have an estranged relationship, and he no longer works for CTU. Instead, George Mason (Xander Berkeley) has taken over as director of CTU, working with the returning Tony Almeida (Carlos Bernard), and new character Michelle Dessler (Reiko Aylesworth). Senator David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) was successful in his bid to become President David Palmer since season one, and was equally successful in divorcing the scheming Sherry Palmer (Penny Johnson Jerald).
An immediate improvement from the first season is that we only see the super-annoying Keith Palmer briefly during the first hour, and then never again. For obvious reasons, there are no appearances by the annoying Teri Bauer, and Kim Bauer's involvement is toned down for the season, although she still maintains a significant presence, for little other reason than to play off the youthful sex appeal of Elisha Cuthbert. On one hand, her character is necessary as a humanising agent for the otherwise gruff and stoic Jack Bauer, on the other hand, she's annoying and not even as hot as Reiko Aylesworth (a significant improvement from season one's Nina Myers, who makes a pretty awesome return in this season).
The returning cast members are more comfortable in their roles and the intense nature of the show, and all step up their respective games for this season (well, maybe not Cuthbert). Sutherland is electric once again as Jack Bauer, this time portraying him not as a distracted husband and father, but rather a broken man who is thrust into a situation against his wishes, who simply wants to do his job and get out safely, until he finds the old spark that drove him to be the best in the first place. Bernard brings the quiet dignity to the Almeida role that he established in the previous season, this time adding an aura of confidence and leadership not seen last time around. Dennis Haysbert gets a lot of meat to play with in his role of president, occupied with military concerns and political intrigue, instead of the familial and relationship worries of season one. He certainly brings power and excitement to his half of the show, which are less action-based and could easily feel second-fiddle to the main action in the hands of a lesser performer. New cast member Sarah Wynter performs admirably as Kate Warner, a character that seems a little unnecessary and uninteresting at first, but eventually fits in well as another humanising agent for Jack, although I'm convinced that her role was only beefed up to give the testosterone-filled series an appealing figure to female viewers.
The standout of the first half of the season is Xander Berkeley as George Mason. An adversarial figure in the first season, Mason begins the second season in a similar role until he finds himself in a life-altering situation. From this point on, Berkeley is given an actor's dream job and he takes the role and runs with it. Hands down, the most emotional and powerful moments in the series belong to Mason, who gets the ultimate hero treatment by the time everything is said and done, a treatment earned by Berkeley's phenomenal performance.
I've said about all I can say without spoiling the season too much. The series creators were presented with the enormous challenge of topping what was one of the most interesting, unique, and captivating seasons in television history, and I believe they did. I can't wait to see how they did with their third season.
5/5
Related:
24: Season One (my review)
24: Season One (twistedyouth's review)
24: Season Two (twistedyouth's review)