24 Recap: 4/30/07

OK, so here's what we know. Jack has been arrested. Again. Ricky intervened last week, allowing Cheng to escape with the sub-circuit board. However, in doing so, it appears Ricky may also have inadvertently saved Jack's life.

Recapping Day Six: 1:00 AM - 2:00 AM...

At the White House, acting-President Daniels video conferences with Russian President Sukarov in the Cisco Telepresence Suite. Seriously, is this an actual room in the White House? Because I don't recall Wolf Blitzer or Jon Stewart even mentioning it.

Sukarov has learned the Chinese have possession of the sub-circuit board--which if you recall, holds all the secrets of Russian intelligence, the KGB, the politburo, and possibly Baryshnikov's defection. He threatens Daniels with military action if the US doesn't intercept the component.

They hang up--or de-link, or do whatever it is you do to end a video conference. Daniels wants to know how Sukarov found out about the Chinese. Tom says the only way the Russians could have found out would be from someone inside the US Government or CTU. Attention! We have a leak!

At the Family Inn, as Lisa enters her room, some guy grabs her from behind!!! Oh wait. False alarm. She apparently knows him. They fool around. When Lisa goes to shower, her boy calls some guy who asks, "Does she know you're working with us?"

Jack, Ricky, and Audrey are brought back to CTU. Jack is taken to Holding. Audrey is taken to Medical and evaluated by a doctor. His diagnosis is she's a type-three catatonic, capable of following simple commands and repeating basic phrases, but otherwise unresponsive. No! Not catatonic! That's what Laura was on General Hospital. First, Laura. Now Audrey. They can't do this to me. They just can't!

He says Audrey has suffered severe psychological abuse, amplified by pharmacological agents. Pharmacological? Is that even a word? That sounds exactly like something I'd make up. He recommends treating her with drugs to try and shock her out of the catatonic state, but says it could be dangerous and in extreme cases, fatal. Ricky implores Nadia to let Jack talk to Audrey first, but Nadia says the doctor has jurisdiction. Ricky then tells her Buchanan would have done it.

Meanwhile, Chloe and Morris still appear to be auditioning for some 21st Century version of Melrose Place. Morris tells Chloe she crossed the line with her seemingly innocuous "don't arm nuclear bombs for terrorists" jab last week, then tells her, "We're done." Chloe appears to start crying--quite possibly for the first time in her life. What is this salty discharge?

Hightailing it in a Hummer, Cheng calls one of his men and uploads schematics from the sub-circuit board to his computer. The man tells Cheng it appears the board has been damaged and can't be repaired without "necessary expertise." Otherwise, it is useless.

Back at the White House, Tom has traced the leak to a lobbyist, Mark Bishop. He tells Daniels credit card records show Bishop and Lisa stayed at the same hotels on the same nights several times, and that they can probably prove Lisa is sleeping with him.

Daniels responds, "Then we have a bigger problem than you think, Tom."
"Why is that, sir?"
"Because I'm sleeping with her, too."
OK, I'm a little lost here. How is that a bigger problem than her giving information to a Russian spy?

Ricky goes to see Jack in Holding and uncuffs him. He says he thinks Jack needs to try and help Audrey, tells Jack to "make it look good" then turns around. Jack appears to pinch Ricky in that tender spot right between your neck and shoulder. Ricky crumples to the ground. I guess in the absence of any real action, staged action is the next best thing?

Jack goes to Medical, knocks down a couple of doctors and leads Audrey away. One of the doctors sounds an alarm. Morris pulls Jack & Audrey up on surveillance. You know, since the Counter Terrorist Unit wouldn't have continuous surveillance on someone in Holding to begin with.

Jack takes Audrey into a room and jams the door. He tries to get her to remember anything that might help find Cheng. She doesn't say a word. As agents began to cut open the door with a blowtorch, Jack and Audrey share a moment. He holds her hand. Stealing Daniels' number one move are we, Bauer?

Ricky, Nadia, the doctor, and a couple other people enter the room. Jack pulls a gun and says he's not letting the doctor take Audrey back to Medical. Suddenly, Audrey utters a word! She says, "Bloomfield." Bloomfield! Of course! Wait a second... what the heck is Bloomfield?! Figuring this means Jack is making progress, Nadia assures him she won't let the doctor touch Audrey. Jack puts down his gun and is taken back to Holding.

At the White House, Tom informs Daniels the Russians are moving a large number of troops towards a US base in Central Asia. Lisa shows up. Tom leaves. Daniels tells Lisa about the leak, and plays a recorded phone call Bishop made to his Russian contact just minutes earlier. Then he confronts Lisa about her relationship with Bishop. Hurt and angry, Daniels orders Lisa to return to Bishop and pretend nothing has happened to see what she can find out. OK, so you got all that? Daniels was sleeping with Lisa, who's sleeping with Bishop, who is figuratively in bed with the Russians.

Back at CTU, Ricky tells Nadia that Bloomfield turned out to be an old copper company. He says copper particles were found on Audrey's clothing, so that is probably where Cheng was holding her. Meanwhile Audrey's father, Secretary Heller, comes to see her and says he's made arrangements to take her away from CTU. He then pays a visit to Holding to see Jack. Heller blames Jack for what happened to Audrey and warns him to never go around her again.

And that may very well have been the least climatic ending in television history...

The good:
Ricky. I'm sorry, but it's true. He was a highlight of this episode, standing up to Nadia and the doctor, then uncuffing Jack to let him try and get thru to Audrey.

Lisa sleeping with the enemy, most likely assuring we'll never have to see anymore heavy petting between her and Daniels.

The bad:
Virtually no action at all, again. No helicopter crashes. No explosions. No Jack taking out the bad guys. I mean, the most action-packed scenes involved cutting open a door with a blowtorch and Jack punching out a doctor. Even the barely interesting storyline of the sub-circuit board got a bit more lame, as the Chinese discovered it was damaged.

The Chloe/Morris saga. Seriously, is anyone on the edge of their seat wondering what will happen between Chloe and Morris next week?

Best Quote:
Ricky to Nadia: "Well that's what Buchanan would have done!" Booyah! Suck on that, Nadia!

Master of the Obvious:
"You're cursed, Jack. Everything you touch, one way or another, ends up dead." Boy, you can't get anything past that William Devane.

Did you know...
Eric Balfour, who plays Milo on 24, got his start on Kids Incorporated, a children's television series which aired form 1984 to 1996 on the Disney Channel and in syndication. Other former Kids Inc. cast members include Jennifer Love Hewitt, Fergie, and Martika (best known for her 1989 hit "Toy Soldiers.")

Did you know, part deux...
KGB stands for Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti. Thus the abbreviation.

Prediction:
In a shocking season-ending twist, Pierce makes another return, teaming with Jack and Ricky to reunite Chloe and Morris.

Questions:
What is up with all the broken and seemingly pointless storylines this season? They brought Martha and Charles Logan back just so she could stab him in the neck? Will we ever see them again?

What happened to the show that used to be non-stop suspense and action every single week?

"She kept saying, I've never really done this kind of things before, have you? Third rate romance, low rent rendezvous..."