24 Season Six
Starring Kiefer Sutherland, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Gregory Itzin, DB Woodside, William Devane
20th Century Fox
Available now

I’ve been a of 24 since day one, but I’ve never really gone back and re-watched any of the seasons, even when they’re on TV. So I was more than happy to check out the season 6 DVD set when it was offered up for review by the GoD headquarters. That said, season 6 was not my favorite season, but there were enough decent moments to keep me watching. The rule for me with the show is when the story is focused on lead hero Jack Bauer (Keifer Sutherland), I’m entertained, but I drift off to sleep when the show focuses on the incompetents working for CTU. I’ve always said that when a crisis hits, the last place you want to be is the Los Angeles branch of the Counter Terrorism Unit, whether it’s bombs, or chemical attacks, or the “interesting” personal drama of the CTU workers. And make sure you bring a priest if you need to go the medical office in the building. All that aside, 24 is one of the most influential shows of recent years, and if you’ve never given it a try, watch a season, sit back and enjoy the carnage.

Season 6 sees Jack Bauer return from 2 years in a Chinese prison. He’s brought back to sacrifice himself in an effort to catch a terrorist who’s been springing attacks on US soil. Of course, things don’t go so easy and Jack is back in action to put the danger to rest through any means necessary, which means throat biting, torture, and lots of gunfire. He’s aided in his endeavors by the fork and spoon operators at CTU, including perpetual wet blanket Chloe (Mary Lynn Rajskub), could-be counter agent Nadia (Marisol Nichols), and the double shot of d-bags Morris (Carlo Rota) and Milo (Eric Balfour). The season does feature some great guest stars in Peter MacNicol as a scheming cabinet member and Powers Boothe as a cut throat Vice-President. The first four episodes are reason enough to check out this season, as there are plenty of action scenes and a very big plot twist at the end of episode 4 that will leave you breathless. The rest of the season contains plenty of twists and turns, and to go into more detail would spoil the thing the series is most known for, which are its surprises. Season six is also one of the more thought provoking seasons, raising questions of what people are will to trade their freedom for, and what one man is willing to do to protect those freedoms.

For fans of the show, there are plenty of extras to check out in this set. There are commentaries from various cast and crew on 11 of the episodes, along with a host of deleted scenes. There’s a bonus disc containing a wide range of featurettes (on make-up, writing, explosions, and technology), webcast diaries, mobisodes, and a preview of season 7, which is very interesting to see in light of the writers strike. There’s also some more deleted scenes, and DVD-ROM links to more content online. All in all, there’s plenty to keep the fan entertained.

So, if you’ve never seen the show before, there’s plenty of time to catch up on seasons one though six. With the writer’s strike setting season 7 back till 2009, there’s no reason not to go back and watch them. There’s a reason so many people enjoy this show, from its action scenes, to its enjoyable characters, to it’s never miss a minute hook 24 has been one of my favorite shows for 6 years, and while the wait may be long, I’m sure I’ll sit down to the season 7 premier with anticipation for another great season. Here’s hoping the creators are putting the extra time to good use and finding new ways to surprise the viewers. That’s what we’re all looking for.