24- Season 8.2 5pm: The Bronx is Up and The Bauer is Down - Part 2

Welcome back for a new season of 24. Scroll down for the recap of the first hour and then comeback and read this one.

5 pm

The second hour of the premiere has Jack and Cole heading back to CTU, where they have discovered that someone has been hacking into the UN security computers. The evidence all points to Meredith Reed, the reporter that has just gained access to President Hassan. I realize we need a nickname for Hassan, and “Slumdog” is just too obvious, so I am going to go with the Bugs Bunny reference and call him Hassan Chop. (See http://www.hassanchop.com/)

While CTU scrambles to find Miss Reed with facial recognition software, Chloe points out that the trail to this suspect was a little too obvious. But CTU Director “Bubba” Hastings does not want to hear it. While his agents swarm and capture Reed at the UN, he gets Chloe out of the way by sending her to debrief Jack. Jack sees merit to the photos Chloe finds of a suspicious character coming and going from Reed’s apartment right around the time her laptop would have been tampered with. But to her surprise, Jack wants nothing to do with the case. Kim is on her way to pick him and he just wants to get on with his life. That’s when Chloe calls him out on all the favors she’s done for him in the past. It’s awesome. How many times has she risked her job and broken the law to help him? But still, Jack says no.

Meanwhile, Hassan Chop and Madame President continue their negotiations. We learn that Hassan has had an affair with Reed, because he’s been living in a loveless marriage that is only still intact for show. Perhaps we should be calling Hassan “Bubba” instead of Hastings, because this sounds a lot like another President I know.

Reed is taken back to CTU and hooked up to their fancy equipment… like what seems to be an electronic bible that can tell if you are lying when you place your hand on it. And when they question her, they can in fact tell that she is lying. Unfortunately, she is lying about her affair, not a plot to kill Hassan Chop.

While all this is happening, also learn that while Dana Walsh is not what she seems. While she may appear to be a fancy, CTU agent with lots of gadgets, she’s still just Jenny from the Block. She gets a call from Kevin, some redneck, ex-con who knows her real identity and also has some kind of dirt on her. My guess is that this is the set-up for a blackmail scenario that will inevitably cause Dana to betray CTU.

Kim comes to CTU to pick up Jack, who thanks to CTUs open layout, has overheard Cole confronting Hastings about not sending enough agents to the roof. When Jack sees Kim, he finds out that she has talked to Chloe and she also does not want him to leave. She convinces Jack to stay, but she also wisely heads for the airport. God knows if she sticks around she’ll end up as a hostage or stuck in a bear trap, fending off mountain lions. So Jack heads back into CTU. As he passes through the threshold the background music switches from soft and emotional to the heroic Jack Bauer theme. It’s 5:37 and Jackie Boy is officially back in the game.

Naturally, the first thing Jack and Chloe do is break the rules. Chloe hacks into the drone computer system to see if she can get additional pictures from Reed’s apartment. They are able to zoom in on the suspect’s taxi cab and Jack now has a trail to follow. So naturally, Chloe helps him break into the armory so he can fill the Jack Sack with an arsenal. But Arlo discovers Chloe’s handiwork and Jack is busted by Hastings and Cole.

Across town, the bad guy shows up at a young couple’s apartment. The woman calls him Mike Farmer, and it turns out that he is a cop on security detail at the UN. The apartment is his partner’s. He asks his partner if he will switch shifts with him. When his partner refuses because of a prior commitment for his kid, Farrmer drops his fake American accent and pulls a gun. He ties up and shoots the wife in the leg, forcing his partner to call and switch shifts with him. Now he has access to Hassan Chop.

Back in the armory, Hastings is about to have Jack taken into custody when Jack plays the “P” card. He says that if Hastings doesn’t let him go, he’ll tell his pal, the President, about how Hastings did not send enough agents to the rooftop rendezvous. Hastings relents and let’s Jack fill his sack and go investigate his suspect. Cole, observing the entire exchange, is visibly aroused and now obviously has a man-crush on Jack.

Over at the UN, the talks continue. Hassan Chop’s brother, who has never been happy with all of the compromises being made in the negotiations, gets a phone call. It’s Mike Farmer. OMG, Hassan’s brother is helping the bad guy. He is the inside man.

Tonight, we’ll see if Farmer can get to Hassan. And another old friend returns. This one is cute as a button, tough as nails and looks a little like Lindsay Lohan.

See you in a little while.
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