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PLEASE NOTE: Michael D's is currently in READ ONLY MODE. Anything submitted will simply not be written to the database.
Lots of stuff is still broken, but at least reviews can now be looked up and read.
24-Season 1 (Complete) (2001)

24-Season 1 (Complete) (2001)

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Released 3-Dec-2002

Cover Art

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Details At A Glance

General Extras
Category Action Main Menu Introduction
Menu Animation & Audio
Alternate Ending
Introduction-Preview Season 2
Rating Rated MA
Year Of Production 2001
Running Time 1006:41
RSDL / Flipper Dual Layered
Multi Disc Set (6)
Cast & Crew
Start Up Menu
Region Coding 4 Directed By Stephen Hopkins
Paul Shapiro
Jon Cassar
Bryan Spicer
Studio
Distributor

Twentieth Century Fox
Starring Keifer Sutherland
Sarah Clarke
Dennis Haysbert
Elisha Cuthbert
Leslie Hope
Carlos Bernard
Penny Johnson
Xander Berkely
Richard Burgi
Zeljko Ivanek
Case ?
RPI $159.95 Music Sean Callery
John Fusciante


Video Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame None English Dolby Digital 2.0 (192Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio 1.78:1
16x9 Enhancement
16x9 Enhanced
Video Format 576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio 1.78:1 Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures No
Subtitles English for the Hearing Impaired Smoking No
Annoying Product Placement Yes, : Apple, Sony, Dell, Nissan
Action In or After Credits No

NOTE: The Profanity Filter is ON. Turn it off here.

Plot Synopsis

    As someone who does not watch too much TV and who does not find much on TV overly appealing, I was surprisingly desperate to see 24 when it finally aired in this country. A long time fan of Keifer Sutherland, I was elated to see him back on screen and from all reports, kicking ass again! With these expectations in mind, I was setting myself up for failure and disappointment. Gladly, I was not let down.

    For those who are uninitiated, here is the basic plot and set up for the show. Jack Bauer (Keifer Sutherland) is the head of a government department called CTU (Counter Terrorist Unit). The show picks up from midnight on the morning of the California Presidential Primary. The most important presidential candidate in years, a black man called David Palmer is set to take the primary, and thus a giant step towards the White House. Shortly after midnight, Bauer is called into CTU headquarters by his 2IC, Nina Myers with the news that there is a serious threat on Palmer's life today. With that, Jack is off to work to stop the assassination. At the same time, his teenage daughter, Kimberley goes missing. Jack is forced to stop the assassination attempt as well as try to look after the well-being of his daughter.

    That is the basic plot, but trust me, there is SO much more to go into this than what is written here. The plot of this show is so complex and heavy that it would take me all day to explain it all, and it would not be as much fun for you, either. The show runs out in real time, with 24 1 hour long episodes, hence the name of the series.

    The real time aspect of the show is a good one, and one that is used to heighten the tension whenever it can. For the most part, the real time aspect is accurate enough for it to be a commendable effort, but the show's creators cut corners whenever they need to in order to make show run smoothly. For instance, it never takes Jack more than 10 minutes to get ANYWHERE in Los Angeles throughout the day and during peak hour - usually, it only takes him about 5 minutes - the amount of time it takes most of us to find our car keys and put the cat out!

    Without being as cynical as that, the real time aspect of the show adds more to the show than a gimmick, and it works very well to bring a reality to the show that makes it feel more gritty and legitimate.

    Sutherland is simply awesome throughout the series. It is great to see someone with such an awesome amount of talent back doing what he does best. Hopefully, he will use the momentum he has garnered through this series to relaunch his career...again. He shows enough macho gun slinging action and enough emotion to appeal to most viewers and manages to convey a steadily cool performance over a huge amount of time. The supporting cast is equally good with turns from Sarah Clarke as Nina, Dennis Haysbert as Palmer and Elisha Cuthbert as Kim.

    The following is a description of each episode for those who have seen the series. If you have not, or if you do not want to have it spoiled, please do NOT read these descriptions as it will be your own loss....there is some stuff in here you really do not want spoiled for you....

0:00-1:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) CTU agent Jack Bauer's daughter sneaks out of the house to meet up with some boys with a friend. CTU gets information that Presidential candidate David Palmer is under threat of assassination and he is forced to go into work despite his daughter's disappearance and his wife, Teri, is made to search for Kim herself. During the investigation, Jack Bauer is forced to blackmail District Director George Mason to get higher clearance and begin the investigation. A mysterious lady steals Palmer's photographer's identification and blows up a 747 over a Mojave desert.
1:00-2:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack rushes to the aid of his superior, Jack Walsh who is under attack after receiving a key card filled with information about the Palmer hit. Walsh tells Bauer that CTU has been infiltrated by a spy and not to trust anyone. He tells him that the person who created the key card is the mole inside CTU. The boys Kim is with turn out to be kidnapping her and her friend, Janet. Senator Palmer receives a phone call from Maureen Kingsley, a news reporter, and he is upset about it. Bauer finds out that the key card was made by Nina Myers, his most trusted friend and someone with whom Jack has had an affair whilst he and Teri were separated.
2:00-3:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack confronts Nina about the key card. It turns out that Nina could not have made the card so another person at CTU must have been the mole. Kim and Janet escape the boys but Janet is hit by a car and they do not escape. Palmer reveals that Kingsley is going to reveal a story that Palmer's son, Keith, killed the man who raped his sister, Nicole.
3:00-4:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) CTU is put into lock down mode by George Mason, but Jack escapes to investigate an address found on the key card. There, he gets into a firefight with a man who knows his name and who knows about Jack's missing daughter. The man is arrested by the LAPD after killing a police officer. The boys capture Kim and return to kill Janet, but she is picked up by an ambulance, and they deliver Kim to Ira Gaines, their boss. Palmer discovers that the source of the information about Keith has come from Dr Ferragamo - Keith's psychiatrist. Teri Bauer continues to look desperately for Kim along with Alan York, Janet's father.
4:00-5:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack discovers that he can use the suspect to rescue Kim and save Palmer. He breaks the suspect out of jail and is lead to a car with a dead body in the back. The boys, Dan and Rick, deliver Kim to Gaines' compound and Gaines kills Dan in front of Rick. Palmer meets with Kingsley to uncover more information about Keith.
5:00-6:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) While visiting the hospital where Janet has been taken with Teri and Alan York, Jack receives a phone call from Ira Gaines, who directs him to a car and instructs him to put in a two way earpiece and drive to CTU. Rick and Kimberley become closer. Alan York reveals himself to be a villain as he kills Janet, the girl whose father he is meant to be! As "Alan" and Teri are driving, Nina identifies the body from the boot and tells Teri that the body belongs to a man called Alan York! Palmer confronts his wife, Sherry about why she kept Keith's secret from him all these years.
6:00-7:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Under the surveillance of Ira Gaines, Jack is forced to impede the investigation at CTU. After being caught by Nina, Jack is forced to kill Nina at Gaines' order - he shoots her 5 times and pushes her down a hill. Teri is captured by the kidnappers after she is she is given up by Jamey Farrell, a mole inside CTU. Kim and Rick almost escape the compound, but they hear the screams of Teri and must save her.
7:00-8:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack is forced by Gaines to smuggle a gun into Palmer's breakfast address. When it is clear that Jack will be framed for the assassination, he foils the plan and Palmer escapes. Nina is alive because Jack thought to put a bullet-proof vest on her, and together with fellow CTU agent Tony, she questions Jamey after they discover her ulterior motives.
8:00-9:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) After being arrested for the Palmer assassination attempt, Jack escapes the Secret Service and becomes a fugitive on the run. Nina and Tony continue to interrogate Jamey. Tensions between Palmer and Sherry continue to rise and Teri is raped by one of the henchmen - she steal his phone and tries to call Nina at CTU. The episode ends with Nina and Tony discovering Jamey with her wrists slashed.
9:00-10:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jamey dies in hospital and Alberta Green takes control of CTU in Jack's absence- she calls for them to find Bauer and bring him in as he is a major threat to Palmer after the breakfast assassination attempt. Jack escapes the police net and begins looking for Ted Cofel - a banker whose name appeared in one of Jamey's emails. Palmer's aid, Carl vows to 'take care' of Dr Ferragamo. A man by the name of Drazen threatens Gaines if Bauer and Palmer are not dead by the end of the day.
10:00-11:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) After being attacked by Cofel, Bauer finds out that he has a Serbian heritage that links in with a military operation Jack carried out 2 years ago. Bauer drives Cofel to where he was meant to be meet someone called Kevin Carroll. When Carroll arrives, we see that it is the same man who was masquerading as Alan York! Bauer takes him hostage and heads toward where Teri and Kim are being held. Gaines decides to kill Teri and Kim, but they kill the henchman who is sent to do the job.
11:00-12:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack breaks into the compound and with the help of Rick breaks out with Teri and Kim. Pursued by Gaines, Carroll and a small army of hostiles, they are chased overland by the end of the episode. Palmer goes to see Ferragamo but his office has been torched and he is dead. Alberta Green gets heavy on Nina and Tony, but when Jack calls, she actions CTU to help them out of the compound.
12:00-13:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Teri, Kim, Rick and Jack escape the compound. The CTU chopper arrives and rescues Teri and Kim while Rick runs to the highway to avoid capture. Jack hunts Gaines and kills him before being arrested himself. Palmer is told by Carl that if an investigation into Dr Ferragamo's murder is made, then Keith will be found guilty. At the end of the episode, Nina and Alberta discover that another shooter has arrived from Yugoslavia - we see him arrive and drive away....
13:00-14:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack is taken into custody at CTU while Teri and Kim are taken to a hospital for examination. At the hospital, Nina discovers another assassin who may be out to get Teri and Kim. As a result, she moves them to a safe house. Teri is given a pregnancy test as a precaution after her rape. Palmer visits CTU to talk to Jack after learning that Jack led a crack team of marines in Kosovo two years ago. The "other" assassin kills Kevin Carroll and we see him last on a rendezvous with one of Palmer's aides - Elizabeth Nash.
14:00-15:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Palmer confronts Jack and after fully explaining his situation, they discover that the threat is against both of them directly. Two years ago in Kosovo, Palmer OK'd a mission that was headed by Bauer to assassinate Victor Drazen, the right hand man to Milosovic. Together they contact Bob Ellis, the only person who could link them both. As the episode ends, Jack is on the phone to Bob as he is killed in New Orleans. Teri discovers that Nina was Jack's lover during their separation, and her pregnancy test is positive. It turns out that she and Jack had been trying for a baby.
15:00-16:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) After sending pictures of suspected assassins to Palmer's headquarters, Jack and Mason interview Elizabeth Nash. Terrified that she had been sleeping with the assassin, she agrees to meet with him again to plant a tracking device on the man we now know is Alexis Drazen. The safe house is stormed by one of Drazen's men and all the CTU agents are killed, but Teri and Kim escape. As they speed away from the pursuing killer, Kim is involved in a car crash that traumatises Teri to the point where she loses her memory. Keith confronts Carl and secretly tapes him blackmailing Palmer about Ferragamo's death.
16:00-17:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Teri gets a lift to a restaurant she recognises and is met there by a man called Phil whom she is friends with. Elizabeth is set to follow the plan to meet with Alexis, but ends up going crazy and stabbing him with a knife - almost killing him. At the end of the episode, Jack answers Alexis' phone and, impersonating him, sets up a meeting with a man in a red baseball cap. Kim survives the car crash and travels to Rick's house.
17:00-18:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Kim tries to leave Rick's house after Dan's brother comes home expecting to see the $20,000 they should have for kidnapping Kim. He needs this money for a drug deal that will now turn into a robbery. Jack meets the man in the red cap and before having his cover blown, he is told that the power will be shut off in sector 26GG at 7:20pm tonight. Teri and her friend, Phil, go back to the Bauer house, where we see Drazen's hit man waiting for them. Sherry Palmer tries to destroy Keith's tape of Carl, but David had tricked her to illustrate how little trust he now has in her.
18:00-19:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Jack and Mason travel to sector 26GG and find nothing but a nature reserve. They see a helicopter fly past overhead on some sort of surveillance mission. Teri and Phil are attacked by the killer - Phil is hit, but Tony Almeida from CTU saves Teri from execution. The drug deal at Rick's house turns into a drug bust and Kim is arrested along with everyone else.
19:00-20:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Mason leaves Jack after receiving word that Alexis Drazen is about to wake up. Jack stays at the nature reserve until 7:20 when the power was meant to be shut down. He stumbles upon a below-ground concrete building that turns out to be  a secret holding prison owned by the government. After arguing with the man in charge it is discovered that at 7:20, a high profile prisoner is being transported here. The prisoner arrives and after finally getting a glimpse of him, Jack cannot believe his eyes - it is Victor Drazen, the man he killed two years ago! Andre Drazen is outside wanting to break into the prison to free his father, but after having his plan foiled upon Victor's arrival, he finds another way into the prison at the end of the episode. Teri is taken to CTU, and Kim is interrogated by the police about the drug deal. As Sherry and David Palmer discuss their turbulent day, the marriage seems doomed.
20:00-21:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Palmer's victory in the primary seems assured. With all the trouble with Sherry, he spends more time with his young speech writer, Patty. Drazen's men storm the compound and kill most of the guards. Jack is taken hostage, and Victor Drazen is back in control. About to be killed by Victor, Jack bargains for his life, by offering Alexis Drazen in return for his life. Victor contacts Mason at CTU to arrange the swap. Mason is met with refusal from his superior due the embarrassment on behalf of the US government of keeping Victor Drazen without trial. Kim is released from jail and is en route to CTU when her police car is attacked by kidnappers and she is taken hostage...again.
21:00-22:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Mason defies orders and agrees to exchange Jack for Alexis Drazen. Palmer and Patty continue to spend time together and Sherry Palmer reveals that she is orchestrating the affair between the two.
22:00-23:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) The Drazens make another assassination attempt on Palmer through Jack. After foiling the attempt, Jack arranges to exchange himself for Kim. In a shocking surprise, the mole inside CTU is revealed.....
23:00-0:00
    (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Yeah right... as if I am going to ruin the ending of this series for you in such a public forum!  The series is so d*** good that it does not do it justice to read the twisting, turning ending here. Trust me, you are much better watching the series yourself and experiencing one of the best TV series in years! If you simply must see my synopsis for the final episode, you can email me for it and I will send it to you.
 
 
    I really dug this show, and with great appearances by (SPOILER ALERT: highlight with mouse to read) Dennis Hopper and Lou Diamond Philips, the show's credibility just got better and better as the series went on. As mentioned above, there are quite a few plot holes, but nothing too shocking. I loved this series and cannot wait for the next one!

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Transfer Quality

Video

    The video transfer of 24 goes through a few different stages of quality dependant on what stage of production the show was at. Generally, the early episodes have low quality production values with plenty of grain and an unclear picture, and as the show progresses, the quality of the picture and the sound gets better and better before being a beautiful bright image by the end of the series. The first episode is the pilot for the series and as such, it suffers from terrible grain and a lack of shadow detail. By Episode 4 it is better, and then by the end of Episode 13, where the production presumably got a large financial lifeline, the quality is 100 times better again..

    Each episode is presented in a ratio of 1.78:1 and is 16x9 enhanced. Brilliant!!  Having watched all of the episodes on TV with cropped images, it is great to now see the picture without anything impeding my view. As the producers of the show realised that their product would be displayed in a ratio of 1.33:1, there is not a great deal to be seen in the wide version of the show, but it looks a lot better nonetheless.

    As this disc is time coded only to the specific episode, all time references will be noted in reference to its show. Each show's name is taken from the time the episode starts. i.e the episode from 1:00-2:00 is called '1:00'.

    As mentioned above, the quality of the episodes get better as the series progresses. For the first quarter of the series, there is a lot of grain and an unclear picture. Large amount of grain can be seen during Episode 0:00 at 3:29, 3:49, 6:31, 16:35, 20:08, 22:19, 26:27, 28:11, and 34:03. During episode 1:00 at 38:14 and 39:23, 2:00 at 3:29, 9:16, and 13:16, 3:00 at 5:40 and 6:00 at 35:10 there is grain evident throughout, but after this first portion of the series, the image clears right up leaving only minimal grain which is part of the show's dirty, documentary feel. For a series like this, there is bound to be a lot of edge enhancement, and this artefact is found throughout the series on all six discs. While it is strong, it is never horrible, and the grainy image tends to cover it up quite a bit. Nevertheless, it is found during 0:00 at 17:59 and 38:54, during 1:00 at 10:14, during 7:00 at 2:54, during 9:00 at 12:52 and 32:22, during 11:00 at 3:20 and 8:13, during 13:00 at 31:15 and during 23:00 at 8:43.

    Shadow detail is very good by the end of the series, but toward the start as all scenes are set at night, shadow detail lacks a bit at the following times; during episode 1:00 at 15:02, 2:00 at 14:05 and during 6:00 at 6:30. There is some great shadow detail in episode 21:00 at 11:25, however.

    There were no problems with colour throughout the series. While quite dark, after the sudden change in picture quality, all colours are visible and steady.

    There were no MPEG artefacts, but quite a few film to video artefact in the form of aliasing and a very jerky picture at times. Aliasing can be found mildly during 0:00 at 3:24, 1:00 at 2:55, 2:00 at 3:22, 7:00 at 2:18, 2:34, and 15:33, 8:00 at 2:53, 11:00 at 16:10, 12:00 at 8:49 and during 13:00 at 24:56. Not so much telecine wobble, but the picture will jump or skip very lightly but very noticeably at various times. It is quite annoying and ugly and happens a lot during the middle of the series, during 7:00 at 3:00, 3:38, and 3:50, 8:00 at 4:04, 11:00 at 3:32 and 29:19, 12:00 at 5:53, and 1:00 at 23:57. To go with this, the picture appears very jerky and distorted at times - usually when the camera is moving during 2:00 at 13:38, 4:00 at 2:32, and 8:00 at 22:42 and 23:45. This artefact is very ugly and is far worse than any other artefact I noticed.

    There are also a lot of negative film artefacts throughout the series. Probably the worst can found during 0:00 at 23:49, 1:00 at 7:02, 3:00 at 6:15, 21:00 at 12:54, 22:00 at 35:07 and 23:00 at 21:21.

    I watched about 30 minutes of the English subtitles and found them to be accurate enough to the spoken word with only the occasional word left out to accomodate the flow of the dialogue.

    All of these discs are RSDL formatted with two episodes on each layer. Therefore, no layer changes were noticed.

Video Ratings Summary
Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

    The audio transfer of this series is very good. It does not knock your socks off but it is crisp, clear and serves to enhance the picture.

    There is one audio track present, an English 2.0 Dolby Surround encoded track running at 192 kb/s.

    The dialogue is clear enough throughout the series. A lot of dialogue is spoken and as the plot is so twisted and confusing, it is very important for this to be the case. Audio synch is fine, without any major instances of missync of note. There is a nasty skip in the audio during 0:00 at 28:07 which results in a word being spoken twice, and the ugliest sound dropout I have ever heard during 10:00 at 32:36.

     The music by Sean Callery is fantastic, with an original score which suits the action and suspense beautifully. It pumps from the left and right channels with fantastic 'oomph!'. Interestingly, John Frusciante from the Red Hot Chili Peppers also contributed music to the series.

    The surrounds are used sparingly at the start of the series, but by the end, they are used quite well. Mainly for large effects than anything else, they serve their purpose well. The surrounds really start to be used from 15:00 onward.

    The subwoofer only really gets a work-out during the introductions to each episode as the 24 logo blasts onto screen.

Audio Ratings Summary
Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Extras

    There are not a lot of extras here which is quite disappointing, with only an alternate ending and a 'preview' of Series 2 which is almost a complete lie!

Menu

    WARNING!!    If you have not seen the series, once the menu loads do not watch it. The menu for each disc shows plot points of what happens on that disc, and it will ruin many of the surprises and twists that occur throughout the series. Otherwise, they are very sexy menus that reek of quality.

Alternate Ending    (2:20)

    Presented in a ratio of 1.78:1 and 16x9 enhanced, this ending starts off similarly to the original ending but is nowhere near as good. I assume that this was shot as a precaution so the producers could decide where to take Series 2.

Series 2 Preview

    Presented in a ratio of 1.33:1, this does not show any footage of series 2, but is Keifer Sutherland talking about Series 1! He does mention that Series 2 is ripped from today's headlines, but that is all that is mentioned. Nevertheless, the production of the piece is pretty sharp.

R4 vs R1

NOTE: To view non-R4 releases, your equipment needs to be multi-zone compatible and usually also NTSC compatible.

 

    The Region 4 version of this disc misses out on;

    The Region 1 version of this disc misses out on;     To be honest, the alternate ending is so useless that the commentary would not add too much to the experience anyway. With the superior PAL resolution, I would give the nod to the Region 4 in this case.

Summary

    24 is a simply brilliant show!  It twists and turns its way through a complex plot, and besides a couple of episodes, does not slow down. Keifer Sutherland is superb and his supporting cast is equally good. I cannot wait for Season 2 and recommend this Series to anyone who enjoys action, suspense, drama, and well written and produced entertainment.

    The video is dirty, but does improve a lot by the time the series is over.

    The audio is adequate for what the show demands.

    The extras are a bit of a disappointment.

Ratings (out of 5)

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall

© Hugh Fotheringham (what the hell is going on in bio??)
Wednesday, November 27, 2002
Review Equipment
DVDSony DVP-S525, using Component output
DisplayLoewe Xelos (81cm) 16:9. Calibrated with Video Essentials. This display device is 16x9 capable.
Audio DecoderBuilt in to DVD player. Calibrated with Video Essentials.
AmplificationOnkyo TX-DS797- THX Select
SpeakersJamo X550 Left and Right, Jamo X5CEN Centre, Jamo X510 Surround

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