NOW: with more GRAVITAS~!

WARNING: Major 24 SPOILERS Ahead:



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Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn!

Holy Soul Patch! 24 just rocked Jack Bauer style and barely let up for a second! Okay, the Kim Bauer stuff was a little lame, and the President Logan-his wife-Aaron Pierce thing was kinda, um, odd, but ...

OH MY GOD! Amazing episode! Let's review some highlights:

- first off: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

RIP Edgar Styles - you were many a 24 fan's favorite rotound computer geek, and all I can say is that I'm sorry that you never had your big chance with Chloe. It's just not fair I tell ya! And the big guy's death was just heartbreaking! Running up the stairs, towards the quarantined room, unable to escape the all encompassing nerve toxin floating in the air. He sees the secret love of his life, says her name, and collapses to the ground in a thunderous meeting of CTU hard metal floor and portly tech guy. And even the mighty Jack Bauer could do naught but bow his head in grief - for he too had lost not just a coworker, not just a trusted ally, but, dare I say it - he had lost a friend. Oh Edgar Styles, we hardly knew ye.

- Tony awakens! And he's pissed! Unleash the soul patch fury so that the great Almeda can wreak his unholy vengrance on those bastards who killed Michelle.

- And then Tony gets stuck in a room with Robocop, aka Supreme Heartless Badass Villain Numero Uno! Oh man, that is going to be a Wrestlemania-caliber throwdown. If either one can move that is.

- Kim returns! And she has odd-looking Random Guy with her!

- Jack Bauer shoots Buckaroo Banzai's wife in the kneecap! And Buckaroo doesn't even flinch! He's STILL half-machine, I say. And even Jack can do nothing but yell at Peter Weller in frustration and call him a heartless bastard!

- Sam Gamgee's sister is gunned down! The terrorists take his key card to CTU from her, and once again prove that CTU is possibly the least secure location on earth -- all terrorists, moles, and hired mercenaries welcome!

- Curtis contains the nerve-gas device with mere seconds to spare! Some days, you just can't get rid of a bomb. Could Curtis, whose track record is not too shabby, now be in line for a Tony Almeda -level push to main-eventer?

- Shades of Season 3 and Gaiel as DEADLY TOXIN spreads through ventilation systems!

- Chase reference! Chase reference! That jerk left Kim when the chips were down! Could he be the one-armed man with the master evil plan? Doubtful.

- Robocop says that if he reveals what he knows, it will open a Pandora's box that will put our country in jeapordy! What does he know? Does it involve a mole? Could it be the VICE PRESIDENT is EVIL? Could AARON PIERCE be EVIL? Dammit all, someone here is EVIL and I gotta know WHO.

- Sidenote: That trailer for X-Men 3 was actually pretty sweet. Sure it's just a trailer, but I think this may surprise people by actually being decent, even as its major summer competition, Superman, surprises people by being a steaming pile.

- Next week: Someone will die! Oh man, whenever they say someone's gonna bite it I always think that Tony is a deadman. But no, my prediction for next week is that everyone's favorite D.O.D. liason, Audrey Raines, will make the ultimate sacrifice. Let's face it, her usefulness has pretty much expired, and she seems to be living on borrowed time.

- Damn, this show is just on a roll, providing three straight hours of unbridled entertainment and nonstop INTENSITY, brimming with dramatic tension and yes, GRAVITAS.

My grade: A

Best show on TV right now.