24- Season 7: 10 pm – Down with the Sickness

10 pm

Tonight we pick up at the home of the recently departed That Seventies Senator, where Boss Moss and his crew survey the crime scene. It looks like Jack has killed his nemesis, but Boss Moss has watched too much CSI to be that easily misled. The bullets are from a weapon that Jack could not have had access to in such a short time. And it appears that someone fled the scene through the back door in a hail of bullets. He calls Agent Lohan, who follows typical 24 protocol and refuses to give up any information... until asked twice. She confirms that Jack is pursuing the Starkwood Company, the firm behind all of the Juma regime’s antics, and that Quinn was trying to frame and kill Jack.

Meanwhile, Ethan, the Chief of Staff, resigns his post in order to protect Madam’s President’s administration because of his role in Bauer’s escape and alleged murders of Burnett and the Senator. Ethan and Olivia chat as he packs up his desk. He apologizes for accusing her of leaking the story to the press but warns her that unchecked ambition is a dangerous thing. But what’s more dangerous is an ambitious woman with good looks, unlimited access to the President and the affections of a prominent news reporter. Olivia has all three, and we learn she did in fact leak the story to the press. And even worse, she led the reporter on with the promise of a date, which will never happen. So not only has she undermined her mother’s administration and backstabbed the Chief of Staff, but she’s also a tease.

Olivia doesn’t keep her promises. This girl was born to be in politics.

Oh, we also see that the First Hubby is alive and is expected to make a full recovery, even though it has not even been 24 hours since he was drugged, dropped from a balcony and shot in the chest. This freaking guy is recovering faster than you or I would from having our wisdom teeth out.

Anyway, Jack and Tony meet up and head for the Port of Alexandria where the Starkwood guys are going to be picking up their biological weapon. Tony brings their black X-Men costumes and they suit up for action. When they get there they find Karl, the night watchman who happens to have a wife at home, pregnant with twins. Naturally, J & T subdue him and tie him up. Finally, Karl reveals that the bad guys are on their way there to pick up a container. He had agreed to let them in because he thought they were smuggling electronics or something. He had no idea they were terrorists and he needed the money.

Now, a few of you give me grief for my frequent Star Trek references over the years, but in this case I am totally justified because Karl is played by the guy who played Trip in the latest UPN series Star Trek: Enterprise. So when he agrees to play along and let the bad guys onto the grounds, we know he’s toast… just like the many other Star Trek “red shirts” we've seen on this show. Especially when Jack promises him that he’s got his back. Tony confirms it as soon as Karl heads out to open the gate. As a matter of fact, he was dead the moment he agreed to cooperate with Starkwood. Karl leads the bad guys to the container with the bio-weapon and one of the goons takes him to a deserted spot, claiming to pay him, but we know he’s going to get wacked. Jack wants to save him but Tony warns that the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few and that it’s more important to track the bio-weapon than to save the Maytag Repairman. But at the last second, Jack picks off Karl’s would-be assassin and a fire fight breaks out. The bad guys manage to load the container onto a flatbed and the trucks heads for the exit. Jack gives chase while poor Tony gets stuck covering him. Through it all, Karl lives. We should have known… he was a main character on a Star Trek show, not a nameless lackey. That must have been what saved him. That… and Jack’s phaser set to “kill”, that is. You see, unlike Olivia, Jack keeps his promises.

Indiana Bauer jumps onto the truck and manages to commandeer it. Meanwhile, Tony is surrounded and captured by the Starkwood boys. Jacks sense of honor may have saved Karl, but it just might get Tony killed. It’s about now that Tony wishes Scotty could beam him the hell out of there. Jack picked a heck of a time to go soft, he thinks to himself.

A little too late, Jack calls Boss Moss and tells him to send a team to the port to back up Tony and to send another team to meet up with him. Unfortunately, Jack notices a leak in the container and has to go in and close the valve. If you have ever dropped anything in a toilet bowl, you have some idea of what Jack felt as he reached for that knob to stop the leak. He tries to do it as quick as he can, but he knows he’s going to get some yuckiness on his hand no matter what.

Then the bad guys pull up with a truck and a chopper and open fire on Jack, who scoots into the woods. They keep him pinned down while they take back the bio-weapon. Jack calls Boss Moss and tells him to send his guys to the nearest Starwood facility. He also mentions that he has been exposed to the bio-agent.

Maybe Tony had a point when he said they should sacrifice Karl so they could just follow the truck to its final destination.

Next week, Jon Voight prepares for battle and will probably be very mean to Tony. And we may get a glimpse of “Little Jack” next week, because the CDC is going to strip down Agent Bauer to his birthday suit in order to decontaminate him. Unless this show, filmed in real-time, is just being a clock-tease... kind of like Olivia.

Questions? Comments? Feedback? Drop me a line at jack@backinjack.com or post a comment below.