The '24' finale is a tour de force for Kiefer Sutherland as Agent Jack Bauer. (Fox)

By TOM JICHA

24‘s place in pop culture far exceeds its middle-of-the-pack ratings. People who have never watched a real-time minute know who Jack Bauer is and what he represents.

Jack is an old-fashioned, unambiguous American hero, a patriot willing to kill or be killed on behalf of his country. Whether you are a radical Islamist terrorist or a popular president of the United States, you take on America, you take on Jack Bauer. And Jack doesn’t lose.

This is what tonight’s two-hour wrapup emphasizes for the last time on TV. As finales go, it is one of the most satisfying in years.
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Kiefer Sutherland is ready to get back to work on “24″ after recovering from outpatient surgery.

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The 43-year-old actor underwent surgery last week after a cyst near his kidney ruptured, according to the Los Angeles Times. Production on his hit TV show had stopped for two weeks to give the actor time to recover. Now, he’s scheduled to return to the set of “24″ next week. “Kiefer’s been cleared to return to work, and we resume production March 1,” a FOX spokesperson said.
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NEW YORK (AP) — Production of the Fox network thriller “24″ has been temporarily shut down so that star and executive producer Kiefer (KEE’-fur) Sutherland can undergo surgery.

Shooting is expected to resume next week with Sutherland’s return. Twentieth Century Fox Television would not comment on the nature of Sutherland’s ailment, referring to it only as “a medical procedure.” The Los Angeles Times first reported the production halt and says Sutherland suffered from a ruptured cyst.

About six more weeks of production time remains for the season. Fox says no disruption is expected in airing the episodes.

Sutherland plays counter-terrorist hero Jack Bauer on the series. The show is now in its eighth season.

Hold on to your hats, Jack Bauer fans. The television and film divisions of Fox are teaming up to deliver a big-screen version of 24.

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Although it is in the very early stages, the film version of the high-octane drama will reportedly take Bauer on an action-laden field mission to Europe. According to Variety, the producers of 24 had discussed a feature-length project in the past, but hadn’t been given the green light until now.
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Twenty-one years after coming to the United States, Shohreh Aghdashloo has her first leading role in an American movie.

She left Tehran before the 1979 revolution, studied international relations in England, came to the States to tour with a political play and has remained in Los Angeles for 21 years, doing bit parts in movies and sitcoms and hitting the big time as Ben Kingsley’s wife in House of Sand and Fog, which won her an Oscar nomination in 2004 and a spot on the TV series 24 as a wealthy housewife who is also a terrorist. Read the full story

Will Sackhoff sack Jack on the new season of 24?

Looks like Jack Bauer won’t be the only badass on 24 next season

EW.com is reporting that Battlestar Galactica’s Katee Sackhoff will join the cast for Jack’s next very long — and bad — day.

Anyone familiar with Katee knows she’s no stranger in the butt-kicking department. She’ll fit right in on Fox’s throat grabbing thrill ride. Best known for her role as Captain Kara “Starbuck” Thrace on Battlestar, Katee also turned heads as a rogue cyborg on NBC’s short-lived Bionic Woman.

EW.com says Katee will play Dana Walsh, a top-notch data analyst in CTU’s New York office who’s having a thing with a fellow agent (Freddie Prinze, Jr.).

I had the pleasure of chatting with Katee in 2007 when I named her one of TV’s hottest stars. 24’s producers obviously agree. Here’s what Katee had to say during our chat.

Hottest feature: “I have no idea. Maybe it’s that I’m humble. I don’t know. I guess maybe my lips. I think I’m blessed with never having to get them injected with fat from my a–, or something. I can’t say they’re as amazing as Angelina’s, but I’d definitely say they’re better than most.”

What makes someone hot: “The hottest thing about my boyfriend is that he’s always happy, and that’s amazing. Someone who consistently sees the glass half-full all the time and can have fun anywhere is extremely sexy.”

Hottest on-screen moment: “Probably from Battlestar Galactica. It was a sex scene that involved a lot of paint. I had white paint in places . . . well, thank God it was water-based. It was very interesting to have handprints all over your body. It was messy and unpredictable, and that’s what made it hot.”

Jack finally puts his gun down

As far as 24 season finales go, it’s hard to top the sight of Teri dying in Jack’s arms as the screen fades to black and the clock ticks for the final time. It’s hard to top the sight of Jack, standing on a cliff, staring off into the abyss, silently debating if he should hurl himself in the Pacific Ocean below. It’s hard to top the sight of Jack trapped on a slow boat to China, knowing nothing but hell (and a lot of whippings) await him upon his destination.

Last night, another long day finally ended for our gravelly-voiced hero with him in a coma and dying from exposure to a lethal pathogen, his teary-eyed daughter, Kim, sitting by his side, agreeing to a risky stem cell research procedure because she’s not ready to let her daddy go.

Zzzzzzzz….

I’m sorry, I dozed off there for a second. What was I writing? Oh, yes, 24’s final scene. That ending would’ve packed more of an emotional wallop if we didn’t already know that Jack will indeed be back for Day 8 – if Kiefer Sutherland can stay out of legal trouble long enough, that is. As much as the writers desperately tried squeezing life and death stakes out of those last minutes, the bottom line is there weren’t any.

Jack lives. He’ll be back to save the world. Again.

OK, I guess you could say we don’t know Kim’s fate. She could die. But the show isn’t about Kim. It’s about Jack. So, after a rock ‘em, sock ‘em season, 24 ends with a disappointing whimper. That doesn’t mean the finale was awful. It wasn’t. There were some truly dramatic moments, like when President Taylor decides to send her scheming daughter to jail after learning she put a hit out on Jonas Hodges. Mother or commander-in-chief? Clearly, Taylor opts to keep her commander-in-chief hat on while ripping her family apart even further. You got the sense her marriage will never be the same considering First Dude (I almost forgot about him) wanted to cover-up Olivia’s actions, forgetting that she tried to have someone killed. It wasn’t like Olivia stole the family car and took it for a joyride. I’m glad that up-to-no-good hussy got her just desserts.

I also loved watching the maturation of Kim. I initially cringed when she came back. But Kim is more mature than she was a few seasons back. She’s married. She’s a mom. She knows how to use a pen as a weapon just like her daddy. It was fun watching her slip into Jack Bauer mode as she chased one of Tony’s slimy operatives (in heels!) and through the airport as bullets flew all around her like wind-whipped raindrops. Daddy would’ve been proud.

My favorite new character of the season was Renee, a Fed who started out despising Jack’s take-no-prisoners approach to world saving, but who, as the day ended, wound up becoming a carbon copy of the man whose methods she once detested. We don’t know yet, but it sure looked like Renee was either ready to ice or slap around Alan Wilson, the shadowy figure behind the day’s terrorist attacks and the deaths of President Palmer and Michelle, Tony’s wife.

Ah, Tony’s wife. That brings me to one of the finale’s biggest missteps. I’m talking about the ridiculous motivation the writers gave Tony for turning more evil than Darth Vader. So, we’re supposed to believe that good guy/bad guy/good guy again/bad guy now/good guy for the moment Tony was willing to kill thousands of innocent people just because he wanted to avenge the death of Michelle and unborn child? Talk about a major league stretch. Sure, Tony has every right to be miffed at the government. But it just didn’t ring true that he would go through such extreme methods to exact his revenge. It would’ve made more sense to me if Tony’s political and world view became as extreme as the men and women he was working with and for. Still, it was nice hearing The Whispery One finally raise his voice above a late night DJ’s sexy growl.

After a season full of improbable plot twists, shocking deaths, fierce gun battles, screeching car chases, brutal torture scenes, snippy catfights, shocking deaths (oh, I said that already), at last Jack gets to lie down and close his eyes. OK, so he’s, like, in a coma and isn’t exactly taking a nap. Still, he looks at peace. He sure needs the rest.

And so do I. It’s been another wild ride.

See you in January!

When can I finally put this gun down and take a nap?

Only two more hours to go.

As good as 24 has been this season, all those improbable plot twists, fierce gun battles and squealing car chases wear you down after four months. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to hop off the 24 ride and catch my breath. I’m sure Jack will understand. After all, he needs some rest, too.

Here’s last night’s recap…

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Kiefer Sutherland was charged with misdemeanor assault Thursday for allegedly head-butting a fashion designer at a Manhattan nightclub.

The star of Fox television’s “24″ reported to a lower Manhattan police station in a Lincoln Town Car alongside his lawyers, but he did not speak to reporters.

Sutherland, 42, was interviewed by investigators, given a ticket, ordered to appear in court June 22 and released on his own recognizance. The minor charge is akin to a speeding ticket.
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Who am I gonna shoot next?

How many terrorist attacks can one man handle while battling the nasty effects of a deadly pathogen? The answer: Plenty, dammit! We’re talkin’ Jack Bauer, after all!

Now on to the not-so-happy re-cap…

Jack needs a sick day: But there is no sick time when it’s your job to save the world. Again. Poor Jack is really starting to lose it. Seizures. Memory loss. Bad case of the sweats. All that makes saving the world mighty tough. But a nice little shot from that cute doctor gave Jack the get-up-and-go to, well, get up and go to do what he needs to do.

First thing Jack does is tell Renee to put out an APB on Tony. Renee can’t believe The Whispery One is responsible for Moss Man’s death. And Jack is feeling pretty guilty about the recent turn of events since he’s the one who vouches for Tony to Renee and the president. Jack isn’t normally a bad judge of character, but he blew it this time.

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