Spoiler Alert: Here’s what happened on the “24: Live Another Day” season finale!
After nine seasons of fighting bad guys and never getting the girl, Jack Bauer finished his “24″ tenure (for now) by repeating history.
While some fans expected Jack Bauer’s death at the end of “24: Live Another Day,” it was another longtime character on the real-time thriller who bit the bullet instead. Audrey Boudreau, Jack’s former flame and the daughter of the President of the United States, was shot and killed, mirroring the season one death of Jack’s wife Teri Bauer.
Audrey’s death sends Bauer into absolute override overdrive, leading him to pull a Drazen against the various Chinese terrorists assisting the legendarily evil Cheng Zhi, the mastermind behind the events of “Live Another Day,” the would-be architect of World War III, and the man who imprisoned and tortured Bauer for over two years. Cheng also tortured Audrey for several years as well, and as the man ultimately responsible for her death, Jack wasn’t walking away without Cheng’s blood on his hands.
Luckily, whatever Jack wants and needs, Jack gets. He kills his way to Cheng, proves to the United States and Chinese governments that Cheng is the man responsible for pitting the two countries against each other, and then proceeds to attain vengeance the only way he knows how — by picking up a nearby samurai sword and beheading Cheng in one deft move. Don’t bother asking why there’s a sword on the boat; it was cool, and cool is all that matters.
But it’s not all cool for Bauer, even after he avenges his star-crossed lover’s death. Minutes later, Jack learns that his longtime colleague Chloe O’Brian has been kidnapped by the Russians, who are willing to let her go if Jack surrenders in 12 hours. They’ve been after Jack for four years, ever since he initiated a killing spree that claimed the lives of two Russian diplomats — corrupt diplomats, but Russian all the same. It’s time for Bauer to own up to his past.
And own up he does. In the final moments of the episode, we flash-forward 12 hours later in the day, with Bauer following through on the deal. He surrenders himself in exchange for Chloe’s safe release. As they cross paths one last time, Jack thanks Chloe for everything, and lets her know that all these years, she really was his best friend. Nobody tell Tony Almeida; he’ll be really bummed out.
The tender moment is short-lived, as Bauer boards a Russian helicopter headed straight for a Moscow prison. But at least Bauer gets one last word in.
“I’ve taken you at your word,” he tells his new captors, “but if you’re lying to me, if anything happens to Chloe or my family, your entire world will come part — and you will never see it coming.”
Big talk coming from a man about to spend the rest of his life in a dark hole in Moscow. Then again, this is Jack Bauer; the only thing more dangerous than his bark is his bite.
What did you think of the “24: Live Another Day” finale? Do you think we’ll see Jack Bauer again?
Josh Wigler
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