Sneak Peek into Season 3

[jeepsunday]

24 Premiere Date, New Cast Members
-
DB Woodside (BUFFY's Principal Wood), James Badge Dale
(Lord of the Flies), Agnes Bruckner (Murder by Numbers),
Riley Smith (Gideon's Crossing), and Zachary Quinto
(Down with Love) have joined the cast of 24.
Little is known about the new season - which begins
with a commercial-free episode on October 28th - other
than it will be set three years after last May's season
finale, and that Jack Bauer's daughter Kim will now be
working with her dad at the government's Counter-Terrorism Unit.
http://www.fox.com

[universible]

Oh HELL no....ugh, they need to kill Kim off now...before filming starts! Its not too late!

Uni

[mrdobolina]

Does anyone know if Sarah Wynter's character is back?? I think thats the actresses name....the one who played the blond, semi "love interest" for Jack last year???

[John]

I haven't heard any mention of her this season. I guess we had all the eyebrow-furrowing we could stand.

[technomage500]

She is back as indicated in this article...

New day, new dilemmas for 24's Jack

Joanne Weintraub
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Tuesday, October 28, 2003

TV Preview

24

- - -

Jack Bauer never has a nice day.

And where would 24 be if he did?

In two seasons -- that is, two days of round-the-clock, hour-by-hour action -- Jack (Kiefer Sutherland) has been beaten, betrayed, widowed, tortured, killed and brought back to life. Daughter Kim (Elisha Cuthbert), meanwhile, has survived two separate ordeals that would have strained the credulity of Perils of Pauline fans.

The first day, Jack saved presidential hopeful David Palmer (Dennis Haysbert) from would-be assassins but lost his own wife, Teri (Leslie Hope). The second, he saved Los Angeles from nuke-wielding terrorists but almost lost President Palmer.

This season, Jack and the CTU -- for the 24-impaired, that's the (fictional) federal Counter Terrorist Unit -- must contend with still another grave threat to L.A. Am I the only one who's starting to suspect that the series' Hollywood writers have some sort of death wish?

As always, each of the 24 episodes will play out in real time. What else do you need to know about tonight's premiere? Read on, unless ...

WARNING: All the following facts, gleaned from a preview of the first two episodes sent by Fox to critics, have been released by Fox. Many have appeared on fan websites.

However, if you'd prefer to be completely surprised by the first two hours, stop reading here. Don't say nobody told you.

THE BASICS

1. The action takes place three years after last season's, beginning at 1 a.m. and ending at the same time on the next day.

2. The first episode will be bracketed by Ford commercials but, like last season's opener, will not be interrupted by ads.

3. This year's threat to civilization as we know it comes from a South American drug cartel so evil it makes the one in Traffic look cuddly.

4. The stylistic flourishes that have worked so well for two years remain: the digital countdown; the amplified heartbeat before each fade to black; the sophisticated, suspense-heightening use of the split screen.

RETURNING CAST

5. Yes, President Palmer is back -- for a while, at least.

6. No, all is not well with him.

7. Jack is having a personal crisis in addition to his professional one. Surprise, surprise, huh?

8. The writers have figured out something more sensible to do with Kim this year. Well, a little more sensible.

9. Faithful CTU-ers Michelle (Reiko Aylesworth) and Tony (Carlos Bernard) remain at their posts.

10. Kate Warner (Sarah Wynter) is still Jack's love interest, but she's a recurring character, rather than a regular. Hint, hint.

THE NEW CAST

11. Now that aging hottie Sutherland is pushing 37, the producers thought it was a good idea to get Jack a younger sidekick. He's Chase Edmunds, and he's played by James Badge Dale, 25, who half a lifetime ago starred as one of the marooned kiddies in Lord of the Flies.

12. Estranged first lady Sherry Palmer (Penny Johnson Jerald), a.k.a. Lady Macbeth, is out of the picture for the moment. Replacing her at the side of the Prez is his brother, Wayne (DB Woodside, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), who may have certain, um, Scottish tendencies of his own.

13. The West Wing's chief exec has a doctor wife. 24's President Palmer now has an MD, Anne Packard (Wendy Crewson, Santa Clause 2), who puts the "personal" in "personal physician."

14. The baddest of the new bad guys is Ramon Salazar (Joaquim de Almeida, Kingpin, Falcone), a cruelly handsome drug lord with a perma-sneer and an extensive network of villainous associates, including ...

15. ... his brother Hector (Vincent Laresca, Hollywood Homicide), who sets in motion this year's mortal threat to L.A. by demanding the release of the captured Ramon in exchange for -- well, you'll see.

16. Hector has a girlfriend, Claudia (Vanessa Ferlito, 25th Hour), who's very unhappy with the way he behaves, both toward her and in general. Can you say "plot device"?

17. Riley Smith (Radio, Raising Dad) plays Kyle Singer, a desperate and somewhat clueless young man who doesn't mean to become involved with the Salazars but falls into their clutches anyway.

18. Scheduled for November: the first appearance of bioterrorism expert Nicole Duncan, played by Andrea Thompson, who had a nice thing going as NYPD Blue's Det. Jill Kirkendall until she left for what turned out to be a very brief stint as a news anchor on CNN.

ETC.

19. At press time, a Fox spokeswoman said there were no plans to rerun the season premiere later in the week. But the network frequently airs important episodes twice, so stay tuned for an announcement to that effect.

20. As it did last season, 24 faces competition from CBS's The Guardian and NBC's declining but still viable Frasier.

21. On the ABC front, there's an additional threat from Jim Belushi's flyweight but very popular According to Jim, new in that time slot.

22. Fox has got to be very happy with the series' UPN and WB rivals, the cellar-dwelling Rock Me Baby and One Tree Hill. The WB's smart Smallville, which last season took a bite out of the potential audience for 24, now airs at 8 p.m. ET Wednesdays.

23. Sutherland, one of the show's executive producers as well as its star, recently told TV Guide he "felt very strongly that if you really want to jar the audience, take Jack out."

24. It doesn't happen in the first two episodes.

© Copyright 2003 Edmonton Journal



4 hours to go here.

[mrdobolina]

Thanks for all the info, techno!

I really hope they dont "take Jack out".