What happened to Richards? This Burke guy makes for a lousy interrogator.

What a great episode. I loved that Curtis finally got a chance to do some damage, and loved that Audrey and Jack shared a Tender Moment even though he's in some way responsible for not just her own torture, but the torture of her brother and the torture and death of her husband. But most of all ... loved the look that Chloe gave when she realized "This bitch is CRA-ZY!"

Seriously, could CTU get any whiter?

And where has my President been this whole time? Taking a nap, a crap, or banging Martha?

I vote for a spin-off show: Sayid & Burke starring as "The Torturers".

Someone needs a visit from the South Park Sexual Harrassment Panda.

The actress who plays Chloe has some of the best facial expressions on tv. Her look when Shari revealed her true nuttiness was just great.

I also loved the expression on Chloe's face when Shari began the crazy talk. The only time I've laughed out loud during 24.

I was impressed that Jack didn't even flinch during an explosion that knocked Bierko unconscious (against the police car). He's that much of a badass.

It's amazing to me that Audrey even tried to lie about her connection to Walt Cummings. She couldn't figure out from the detainment and threats of interrogation that they had something on her? I half expected her to slap her forehead and say 'oh THAT blowjob, I completely forgot, there were so many. Er, but all because I missed you, Jack.'

even the music for 24 is the best music on tv.

short of trl, of course.

This episode was great, although I must admit I'm a little disappointed that Audrey wasnt a mole.

Oh no! I've sexually harrassed so many people in the past few years! I hope they don't sue.

I'll put in another vote for Chloe's great expression at Shari's craziness. It reminded me of the episode of Family Guy where Brian goes back to college and the woman sprays him with mace while yelling, "No means no," or something to that effect. Anyway, the music for the sneak attack made me laugh out loud.

I think Jack was being too easy on Audrey and he deserved the stun gun, just like Curtis deserved the sleeper hold for talking about feelings. I was hoping to see Jack zap Audrey with some lamp wire, Audrey screaming, and maybe a "this hurts me more than it hurts you" thrown in for the hell of it.

Two things: I completely forgot that the actress who plays Shari was in Brokeback. I remembered her as the son's lesbian cheerleader girlfriend on Nip/Tuck. Finally, J-Unit, did you mean Nomex instead of Kevlar? I suppose I could see him wanting Kevlar to protect from shrapnel, but I was thinking he'd want Nomex to keep from being burned up, although he can probably block fire with the Hoodie of Infiltration and some duct tape.

Now that Audrey's been locked up, tortured, and released, Curtis is the only CTU character who hasn't been escorted out and locked up in the CTU jail. Think about it, Jack (too many times to count), Chloe, Buchanan, Tony (RIP), and now Audrey. Just another reason working at CTU is a crappy job.

How many holding cells do they have in the CTU detention area? Also is Shari Rothenberg supposed to be Jewish? If so, is she Orthodox and will she work on the Sabath?

I thought the funniest thing was when Bierko ordered ONE guy to set up a perimeter when they reached the gas distribution center. It takes about 100 CTU people to set one up that can't contain anything. The terrorists do it with one.

I, too, wondered two things: how did Palmer get hold of a rifle with night scope, and how in hell did Aaron find him so quickly?

You guys come up with the best titles for 24...Shock to the Heart and Jack's to Blame...Going out in Stiles...I look forward to your recaps every week just to see what the title will be :)

This was one bitchin'episode. I felt like I was in Jack Bauer time-the hour seemed like 10 minutes max. Wham bam and it was over for another week. The body count got a good boost also. J-Unit you had me on the floor with the DeVry caption. So now with the Centox gas gone, what's the next crisis? We'll have to check in with Mr. Henderson. The hell with the NCAA-I want more 24.

indeed, this was 24 as it's truly meant to be. a big part of me really wanted for audrey to turn out to be a dirt-bag traitor, but not even jack's luck with women is THAT bad. the image of audrey getting the dirty sanchez from walt cummings (now THERE'S a pornstar stage name for you) will have to suffice. it was fun to see somebody put the screws to audrey though, and jack's table-throw-to-choke-slam combination was re-play worthy.

funny how no one even bothered to pick up a phone and inform the US secretary of defense that his daughter was implicated in a massive terrorist attack.

i hate to be the type to demand too much from 24 in terms of logic and verisimillitude, but I'm curious: how, exactly, would nerve gas be distributed through gas lines? don't most gas lines connect to open flame, which would render it ineffective? i know that centox is especially nasty stuff, but huffing natural gas isn't exactly good for you either. did bierko have a fleet of operatives breaking into various houses to blow out the pilot lights? bierko had the engineer reduce the pressure in the pipes to maintain the potency of the centox, but aren't those pipes at a high pressure for a reason, i.e. the pressure is required to propel the gas from the tanks into the pipelines?

not trying to be a killjoy; rather, i'm wondering if some chemistry or engineering major out there can explain how bierko's plan would have worked if jack hadn't shown up in his stealth hoodie of infiltration.

nice to see curtis pop a cap into someone for a change. he must have been happy to get out of the office.

so with the centox destroyed, what's the new objective? uncovering robocop and e-vil veep's plan to RULE THE PLANET (BWA-HA-HA!!!)? can't wait to find out.

I would like to know what type of anti-perspirant Audrey was wearing. She went from drenched with sweat to dry in five minutes.

Jack can make it back from the Van Nuys Airport in 5 minutes but can't get to a British/Russian terroist in 4 minutes BY A HELICOPTER???

Audrey makes me steaming mad. I wish Burke would have punched Audrey in the face saying something like "Who does # 2 work for"
Or something like that, but you get my drift.

Also, J Unit....the CTU Salon...mwhahaha....made my day

LOL.

Buchanan sexually harrassing Shari

Chloe getting her rocks off by verbally massaging Miles already bruised ego.

Jack jealous that Burke is about to stick it to (torture) Audrey.

Jack jacking Bierko off in the police car right before the big climax.

Yes this episode was full of it.

With PB and 24 being back-to-back, I find myself watching for real time action on PB like you see on 24. Stuff like, you can't get from underground to your cell in two minutes or how did it get to be the next day already?

And speaking of PB, with these 24 recaps coming up so quickly, sg-dub needs to get on the stick and get the PB ones out just as fast. I'm just saying.

Did anyone notice the "Bourne Identity"-esque flavor of the background music when Bierko was walking into the gas plant?

Also, when did it become OK for the American government to torture people for information? 24 has kind of a distopia thing going on beneath the surface, but they keep glossing over it with the action. We root for a guy who shot an innocent woman in the leg, then tries to prevent torture from happening to his former girlfriend (only after slapping her around for sleeping with another man (after he faked his own death))?

The last season should be Jack, and most of the rest of CTU (that's left alive) standing trial for all of the crimes they've committed in the name of national security. A la Seinfeld's last episode, where they end up in jail for all the anti-social behavior that we laughed at for all those years.

jack - (#16)

The way I have reconciled the plan in my mind is that the nerve gas was mixed with a corrosive agent. Although, given that it took half an hour to eat through the CTU seals, it would probably take a while to eat through the home pipes. By that time people could just wrap duct tape around the pipes and they'd be fine.

Tony A., I had forgotten that the terroritsts set up a perimeter too. Did you notice, though, that CTU penetrated it just as easily as if it were one of their own?

realitytvfor me (#21)
I had the same problem when I watched "Crash." I guess since it was set in LA I kept expecting it to be set in real-time for some reason.

You're welcome to drop by in Amsterdam at any time. I'll round up a few people to give you a complimentary 'invasive interrogation'. Oh, and did you know we get 230 volts from our electric outlets? ;)

No mention of how it only took Chloe 7 minutes to come up with background info on Audrey? Hell, she was even able to fax information to the guy at the hotel where Audrey stayed with Walt within those 7 minutes.

"so with the centox destroyed, what's the new objective? uncovering robocop and e-vil veep's plan to RULE THE PLANET (BWA-HA-HA!!!)? can't wait to find out."

Good question. I'm guessing that you're exactly right, and the domestic angle will be wrapped up over the next nine episodes (a la Season 2). Between Henderson, Gardner, and the rest of the loose ends, it could easily be turned into nine hours. Hell, watching Logan act like an asshat is pretty entertaining for at least five. By the way, I did miss him and the First Lady this episode.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this episode, but I do have a complaint. With the introduction of the Shari character, I think that 24 is trying too hard to hit too many hot topic buttons. For example, in Season 3, the topic of euthanasia was subtly and relevantly brought up at the Chandler Plaza Hotel. Michelle recommended that cyanide capsules be made available, and even the by-the-book Chapelle signed off on it. There was no in-your-face message about it, no implicit endorsement of it (in fact, Gael actually disagreed with Michelle's opinion on it), and no outright statement about it...it was just nicely touched on. Now, we have another hot-button topic - sexual harrassment. Within one episode, it is revealed that a former accuser is clearly off her rocker and could present an administrative danger to those around her. There is no subtlety and no misinterpretation...she's just that damn crazy. Besides being irrelevant, the whole SH topic is just being presented in an in-your-face fashion. Minor complaint. Hey, you know what would have been awesome? If Edgar had survived and started acting like this. Could you see Edgar claiming that Bill sexually harrassed him, and the ensuing befuddled look on Bill's face? Oh, man, the ratings...

What I believe with the gas, the nerve gas has a higher burn rate than natural gas so it travels through with it but when it burns it gets released. I could be totally wrong, though.

Hi J-Unit. I love this site. Excellent job on the recaps for 24. Just wanted to let you know that I think the name of the nerve gas is spelled "syntox". Communication between 2 nerves is via a space between them called a "synapse". And usually nerve gases work by paralyzing neurotransmitters at this site. I don't mean to be critical (or sound like a nerd) and I appreciate all the work you do in making these recaps. You don't even have to post my response. Thanks.

Best line of the episode. Jack to Collette: "He wanted to get inside my head, and it worked. And now I'm.... Upset".

You don't want Jack Bauer upset at you Collette, trust me. I loved the fear in her eyes when he said that and she realized this guy was not going to play by CTU rules to get what he wanted.

Tyson,

Thanks for the correction. I didn't look up the name, so I was just going by what my ears told me. Syntox does make sense now that you mention it.

Hilarious recaps! So many things that I don't catch, makes everything better.

Man that Audrey situation could have been bad; I'm glad it turned out the way it did. It's the only time Jack seems like a normal human being.

J Unit and Tyson

The correct spelling is Sentox. Source: fox.com/24

Good recap.

Great episode!

What is a little explosion to Jack Bauer? He's going to dust it off.

The big question here is about Secretary James Heller. After all, Nathanson was using a DOD code.

I have a question, tought: Walt Cummins and Nathanson didn't want the Sentox Gas to be released on the US. But did Christopher Handerson? So, is this all part of Handerson's plan, or was he as surprised as his co-conspirators? Who else is on the plan? What's the next target? We'll find out.

And yeah, there's no way Miles would've harassed Sheri. Maybe Curtis or Jack, but not Sheri. C'mon, Bill is in greater danger.

Wow, sorry about the posting spree, but the FOX site has some neat research notes on this season:

http://www.fox.com/24/research/

Delance: Thank you. I stand corrected.

J-Unit: your ears are better than mine

The Yak has a good suggestion to boost ratings. However, I think that when Jack was arguing with Karen over interrogating Audrey, if he had thrown a table across the room and did the choke hold thing on Karen that would have REALLY raised ratings!! I really was waiting for that to happen!

My only takes on why the VX in the gas pipes might work to kill 200,000 people are as follows:

1. Because there is the reactive agent in the gas, perhaps it will eat through bushings or gaskets within a house. If you have ever noticed gas pipes that attach to the back of a stove, they are the flexible metal ones. I imagine the acid could eat through that fairly easily.

2. More likely - another poster mentioned burn rate. The bombs they were going to use in "The Rock" were fuel air bombs, which burn at a temperature way higher than normal incindiary bombs. This higher temperature was needed to consume the VX. Simply turning on a gas stove or heater would probably not be hot enough to destroy at least a minimal amount of gas. Also, anyone who has a gas stove can tell you that they do not alway catch fire right away, and you often smell some gas in the air after starting a burner. That would be enough release to kill the user.

VX needs like 1/1000 of a milliliter to be fatal.

End of lesson. lol