With only a month left, it's time for Fox's '24' to tie up all the loose ends, but the question remains: how ludicrously will they do it? If tonight's any example, well...pretty ludicrous.
Remember how, at the end of last week, President Palmer decided to nuke the Middle East because the Iranian Prime Minister wasn't giving up any info? Palmer is still going through with it, despite the vehement pleas of both Karen and Tom, and after an impassioned phone call by the Iranian Ambassador, where a connection through that country's government to Fayed, a General Habib, is given, Palmer calls off the strike. Also, it turns out that the warhead was fake, so it was a big bluff to begin with. They're just lucky the info was given up.
The main plot focuses on Jack and Mike Doyle tailing Fayed to the final suitcase nukes. At first, they viciously interrogate him, but nothing works. Bauer and Doyle then bring Fayed to a location where a pharmaceutical torture will take place, but before they can arrive, their truck crashes into an armored vehicle. A shootout commences, and both Doyle and Bauer are hit, apparently. The men in the vehicle take Fayed with them, but Jack and Doyle both get up, and it turns out to be a ruse; the men in the vehicle are CTU agents, undercover.
Everyone, including Palmer and his staff, are focusing on how well this coverup goes. The undercover agents say that they're working with Habib, and once he hears this, Fayed wants to talk to the General. This proves difficult, but thanks to some wheeling and dealing on the part of the President and the Iranian Ambassador, the phone call happens. Habib is badly beaten up, and the two men talk via Nadia's translation. It looks like Fayed is pleased with the call, and leads the undercover agents to the safe house where the nukes are being held.
Meanwhile, to get this silly subplot over with, Nadia and Milo are in the middle of a spat, since her and Doyle are back on speaking terms, and we all know Milo hates Doyle, etc., etc., etc. Moving on.
Something else to worry about is President Palmer himself, who after using adrenaline shots to keep himself going, is having major health issues. In fact, during a conference with Tom and Karen, he passes out. Later on, his doctor tells him that he has to go back into medical care, and refuses to give Palmer more adrenaline shots. Palmer decides to keep going on as long as he can, no matter how dangerous.
The undercover mission hits a snag under a tunnel, as it's found out that Fayed and Habib were using duress codes to give each other hints that they were in trouble. As such, Fayed kills the rest of the undercover agents and makes off on another truck. Luckily, Jack climbs on under the truck and manages to hold on long enough to get to the safe house. Once there, he kills a few different baddies, and then faces down Fayed. Though both men get beaten up, it's Jack who wins: he hangs Fayed on a length of chain, killing him, and having saved the nukes.
Well, that's the season, folks. Oh, wait, there's one more thing: as Doyle and Bauer walk away, pleased, Jack gets a call. From Audrey, who's not dead. She's being held by Cheng and the Chinese government, and if Jack doesn't do exactly as Cheng says, Audrey will die. Dun dun dun! Will Jack save Audrey, who looks really badly knocked around? Tune in next week to find out.
