24: Legacy - 2:00pm - 3:00pm - Review: "And now: the worst scene in 24 history" + POLL

“They can do a lot of stuff I didn't know they could,” Eric says of CTU part way through “2:00pm - 3:00pm”. As the 207th episode in the 24 universe, long-time fans know exactly what CTU can do. Its abilities include being able to convince a police lieutenant to let Eric have everything he needs despite the former Ranger taking two officers hostage, stealing two million dollars, and blowing a hole in one of the precinct’s walls. This isn’t new; a similar thing happened in season four when Jack robbed a convenience store. It doesn’t, however, make it any less outlandish.

Still, it’s fitting for an episode that is one of the weakest in 24’s run and which features the dumbest, most ludicrously terrible and infuriating scene put on screen by any of those prior 206 episodes. And yes, that includes the cougar.

In the opening two hours, Amira and Harris’s storyline was devoid of any narrative strengths to the point of frivolousness, but it was taken to a new level of incompetence here. Neglecting to move Drew’s body for nearly forty minutes is bad enough; answering the door to another student who subsequently may or may not suspect something is worse. But the words do not exist to describe how atrociously written what followed was: Amira and Harris having to chase after Drew because they didn’t check if he was actually dead - surprise, he wasn’t! - and trying to be secretive about moving him from the middle of an open field where dozens of students are playing. Those three minutes just prior to the third act break was 24 - and television, in general - at its absolute worst.

Legacy, still generally bound by the conventions of the show on which it is based, had little choice but to portray episodes from the side of the terrorists as well as CTU. It provides balance and, in theory, prevents those antagonists from being one-dimensional plot devices rather than actual characters. But there is no benefit from whatever this is because all it suggests is that, aside from Jadalla Bin-Khalid and his close cohorts, Eric’s mission to prevent these attacks should be easy enough to do in his sleep. Despite schooling from her brother, Amira is too inadequate to pull this off, while to call Harris an amateur would be insulting to amateurs; he is as inept as a person can be. Though they almost certainly haven’t done something like this before, their lacking proficiency is tedious and exasperating, and believing that they may be successful in their plan is impossible.

Eric, meanwhile, continued trying to stop Ben from giving the list of sleeper cells to the terrorists. Once he got out of the precinct - within the first act, as was always likely to be the case - he headed for the train station to get the drive. There was far less of Eric for much of this hour than in the previous two, though he did take up the entire final act, and it probably worked against the episode. When he was involved, however, the storytelling was solid: his continued desire to keep Ben safe despite his treachery is both admirable and understandable, while Grimes’s desperation to get the money and use it to start afresh is tragic given the situation and Eric’s assertion that “There are no fresh starts”. The terrorists acquiring the list by the end isn’t surprising, Legacy needing a way to further extend this story, but Eric being hit by a car is a step too far in ridiculousness. (That car was driving at a good speed. At the very least, he’s badly injured, not able to get up within seconds barely more winded than he was previous.)

Corey Hawkins, good as he’s been so far, was visibly breathless in almost every scene here, and while that does, to an extent, make sense from a story perspective, it’s exhausting to watch. At times, it feels like he’s trying to thrust Eric’s desperation on viewers more than is required, and it detracts from everything else that’s happening.

His conversation with Nicole was strong, rightfully continuing to emphasise the love he has for his wife, and providing a certain amount of false hope - suggesting that they can go home “soon” is being a little short-sighted. Establishing their relationship is key to humanising and personalising both characters, and while it’s received far less attention than might be ideal, it’s still there. Perhaps more importantly, it gave Nicole a brief scene not hindered by stupidity nor completely lifeless. Isaac is too weak a character to care about (*) while Aisha and Jerome (Hajji Golightly) deciding that they’re going to betray him is flat-out dull. As a result, “2:00pm - 3:00pm” provides three scenes in which Nicole is suspicious of, and finds out more about, Aisha, but it’s ultimately a slog that culminates in her acquiescing to the demand of giving up her phone, a move that says very little for Nicole’s intelligence.

(*) He’s Nicole’s ex! He's a drug dealer! He’s not really interested in Aisha, his supposed girlfriend! None of these are foundations to build a character upon.

In a surprising move, Donovan’s father, Henry, was revealed as the one who gave up the Rangers’ identities - not surprising because of who it was (though there was an element of that) but because of how soon it was revealed. It makes sense from an outside perspective since it’s tough to believe McRaney would be cast as a background player, but it’s tough as yet to fathom why Henry is doing this. Luis (Daniel Zacapa) noted that the alternative is destroying Donovan’s campaign, but why this would be the case remains a mystery. Selling out Nilaa is necessary to cover for the leak, but what does Henry gain by having terrorists get revenge on six Army Rangers and put in motion a plan to attack the United States?

Plot issues aside, what didn’t help this hour was some very questionable editing. A distinct lack of flow plagued the hour, an abundance of scenes cut with no real coherence or sense that one shot happened directly before the next (*). John Smith, who has received the “Edited By” credit for the first three hours, has made some poor choices thus far, including a scene involving several jump cuts in the premiere that break the real-time concept of the show, and it makes Legacy noticeably more difficult to watch.

(*) This was most obvious as Eric pulled up to meet with Mullins and the other CTU agents: he didn’t write down the details of Aisha’s phone call, nor did he appear to have time to, and he got from his car to standing next to Mullins very quickly.

24: Legacy stalled with “2:00pm - 3:00pm”, focusing its attention on supporting players but failing to make their progression competent, and being generally underwhelming in its overall storytelling. The opening two hours weren’t lacking in problems, but they provided a good base on which to create a season. Hopefully, this is a one-off and not a sign that delivering on that potential is a step too far.

From the CTU Archives (connections to 24’s original run that aren’t referenced above):
• Eric chasing Jadalla through the subway tunnel is almost an exact replica of a mission from 24: The Game titled “Stopping the Metro Attack”.
• Eric being barricaded in a room with hostages is reminiscent of Jack doing a similar thing in Live Another Day.
• The phone call between Eric and Nicole is evocative of Jack and Teri speaking on the phone in early episodes or the penultimate episode of the first season.

Notes:
• Andy and Locke were revealed to have been in a relationship, though Locke broke it off over fears that it would derail his career. What’s illogical here is that when Locke returned to CTU last week, it was he who gave Andy the cold shoulder; while he admits here that he’s been shutting Andy out, it doesn’t track that he’d be so hostile after being the one to end things.
• Meanwhile, Locke isn’t the best field agent: he isn’t exactly the most subtle while watching Eric and Ben. Also, he got shot, but it looked like he had a bulletproof vest on, so he’ll be fine. (Ben too got hit, in the shoulder.)
• The very opening shot throws us right into the action with Mullins questioning Andy. It’s a jarring way to start an episode.
• The “Events occur in real time” voiceover remains. Season one used it for its opening three hours, so chances are that it disappears next week.
• If Mullins went out into the field, who’s in charge at CTU?
• Donovan’s phone screen is lit up when he speaks with Rebecca, which shouldn’t be - especially given that what’s visible looks like a home screen.

What did everyone think of “2:00pm - 3:00pm”? Leave your thoughts in the comments and vote in the poll below!