Reid About It

Well, it's safe to say the odds have been raised on 24.

Since the announcement this season will be the show's last, two episodes have given us two big character deaths, and two straight "silent clock" endings.

The lovely, yet-possibly-crazy Renee bit the big one this week, shot dead in a post-coital sheet wrap while preparing to unveil the next big bad guy.

Two things happened in this episode that rarely occur on the show. Jack was hungry and thirsty. You almost never see him eat, possibly because they'd have to explain how he goes to the bathroom.

One of the other quirks of the show is that thanks to the omnipresent timing, we know now how long it takes Jack to have sex. From first kiss to afterglow was right about twenty-eight minutes, if you're scoring at home.

By the way, not counting his time in the Chinese prison, everyone Jack's ever slept with on the show is either dead or mentally incapacitated. That's not a good sign. If Jack's got eyes for you, good luck, you're not long for the world.

Also, if Jack yells "Stay with me" at you, you're a goner. Hope you enjoy your SAG card while it lasts.

For a show so bad early on in the season, 24 has certainly flipped the script for the second half of the final year. There's always that moment over the course of the 24 episodes when the enemy turns, when the first plotline we were following abruptly ends and the second, more dangerous bad guys are revealed. 24 has done that nicely this year.

It's also gone back to the basics. It's about Jack. When it comes down to it, we don't really care about Renee, or the other CTU agents, or Freddie Prinze Junior. If Jack's not involved, we're not paying attention.

Now, however, Jack is invested. And he's angry.

And yeah, we're watching again.

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Reid Kerr is wondering whether Keifer Sutherland is a movie star, or just a guy who made some movies and now has a really good TV role.