Season 7 Spoiler Teaser Trailer - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0KtyHCuAtA)

Coming off season five, 24 was on a roll. Even after so many incredible seasons, the fifth installment of this franchise was one of the best the show and seen thus far and dominated the EmmyÕs with 12 nominations including a win for best dramatic series, and best actor in Keifer Sutherland.

What a difference a year can make. It is almost as if the writers strike happened last year with the way this season went.  So after a massively disappointing 6^th installment, which included both new highs (the four hour premiere was perfect) and lows (repeated storylines) for the show, the pressure is on the writers to make the show addicting and fresh as it has always been.

So how are they going to do that? For a show that has been to so many places and woven so many twists, what does the 7^th season of 24 need to again be considered the most addictive thing that isnÕt crack? IÕll break it down for you.

First and foremost:

STOP REPEATING STORYLINES

How many times can you bomb CTU? I mean the terrorists in season 6 snuck through the sewer to get into the building. Are you fucking kidding me? Talk about lazy ass writing. It is a great thing they are getting rid of CTU in season 7, and even though I love the place, it has been the most attacked governmental building of all time. YouÕd think they would have beefed up security after season 2. Repeated storylines helped doom season 6 to the lackluster land of mediocrity. Here is what needs to be avoided in season 7:

The Mole/Fake Mole

It has been done to death, and I canÕt see how they can conceivably pull off another believable traitor-esque situation. It seems there has been a mole in every season, along with the Gael version of a mole, where he turns out to be working with Jack all along (see Season 3). This should not be a problem to eliminate, especially considering the fact Jack Bauer should be on his own.

Stupid Sub-Plots

Kim Bauer had a few (remember the Cougar), to Erin DriscolÕs daughter that we didnÕt give a shit about (I was glad when she killed herself), the writers cannot inject time-fillers that just eat up clock in between action scenes. They need to go back and examine on what made seasons 1, 2, and 5 so perfect. DonÕt write in bullshit filler subplots because all it does is anger the fans. IÕd like to punch the writer in the face whose idea it was to have Chloe baby-sit ChaseÕs baby at CTU. The baby subplot was ridiculous and belonged in Days of Our Lives not 24. 

The Power Trip

This also has been done to death. From George Mason (R.I.P), to Noah Daniels (Powers Boothe) in season 6, newly appointed people go on massive power trips throwing logic out the window and make personal vendettas a priority. Making irrational decisions after being appointed to new position makes little sense to me. This again should be easy to take out of this upcoming season since Jack should not be working for a governmental agency.

Over-throwing the President

This needs to stop. From secret congressional hearings, assassination attempts, bombings, and shooting down Air Force One (which was awesome!), this territory has been completely covered. The president needs to be left alone. If I was the president I would love Jack Bauer, but man, you got to keep your distance. Friendship with Jack Bauer when you are the president has led to some really bad situations.

Important Governmental Aid Being Manipulated

Again, this has been done a few times. From David PalmerÕs idiot assistant, NoahÕs manipulation skills, to the pussy ass fighter jet pilot, weaker minded individuals should not be employed by a garbage truck company, let alone the higher branches of our government.

The Important Person/Witness get Assassinated

You know how this goes. That mysterious person is finally found and caught, moments away from safety or helicopter rescue, only to be sniped/killed/poisoned minutes after being in JackÕs custody.

Side Characters Who Have Relatives In Peril

Enough with a sick aunt or a crazy daughter already, we donÕt care about side characterÕs families. If they were important, they would make them a main character. If after 13 episodes in and some side characterÕs mom is sick then fuck em. I donÕt care about your mother because the story doesnÕt care enough about you. Understand?

Bad CGI

This really only has happened a few times on the show (most notably, the fall Marwan takes out of a building in season 4), but for a show that has a pretty large budget in TV standards, they need to avoid the pitfalls on making that mistake. 99% of the time, the stunts are awesome, but occasionally it will look just too damn cheesy. The last one I can think of happened in season 5 where they shot down the missile near the finale and the explosion looked like something I made in Photoshop.

Stop leaving potential storylines unexplored

Whatever happened to the people that Nina Myers worked for overseas in season one? How exactly were they connected with the DrazensÕ that were so hell bent on killing Jack in every which way? The writers need to stop leaving certain storylines unanswered. Much like how season 6 never really addressed the fact that JackÕs family was basically a bunch of terrorists, they need to stop presenting ideas and never fully running with them or addressing them. Make a choice, stick to it, and ride it to the end. You cannot present 8 story paths and touch on a little bit of each.

There are other cities besides Los Angeles

Seriously, stop attacking the same city already. There are tons of cities that have potential, and in season 5 they seriously went out of their way for that missile to try and hit LA. Come on people, pick a new city. Los Angeles needs a break in the world of Jack Bauer.

For a show that has been on as long as 24 has, it is difficult to stay at the top of their game without running into previous patterns. Here are a few possible ideas on what could make the 7^th season rock. So trying to run with the previously established notion created in the trailer, here they are:

WARNING!!  The following does contain spoilers about season 7 found in the trailer at the beginning of this column. Do not read ahead if you havenÕt watched it.

There needs to be a tragic ending this season. Season 5 killed nearly every character we knew, and there really is only Chloe and Buchanon left. Does Fox have the balls to end the show this season with Jack dying in the final episode? Probably not since KeiferÕs contract extends past this year, but I would love to see a dark ending to the season, something we have not had since season 2.

There needs to be a HUGE twist. So we get it, we have to swallow the idea that Tony Almeida somehow faked his death, is angry at the world, and now has turned heel and wants money or something from the government that will help ease his pain. But the Tony turned terrorist twist canÕt be the only one. In the end, will Jack have what it takes to kill his best friend? He did shoot Curtis down in the absolutely shocking four-hour season six premiere, but this is Tony, a friend and colleague from day 1 that has saved his life on more than on occasion. The battle between them has to be of epic proportions. What would make Jack kill Tony? Maybe Tony kills Kim, as that would be an uber-evil move, especially for Tony. If they donÕt add a dynamic into this picture that IÕm not seeing, it would be like that scene from Point Break all over again where Jack lets Tony escape. Can Jack kill Tony?

Film a huge car chase scene. There hasnÕt been any epic Ronin or Bourne Supremacy style car chases for this action series and I think it is time for one. Can you imagine Jack Bauer behind the wheel of a super sleek sports car going 200 in a massive shootout with cars crashing all over the place. Yeah, that would rock.

Bauer needs to be on his own. Limit the calling to Chloe or whomever to get him out of a tight jam. We known he needs some help from time to time, but I want to see Jack fly solo, especially with CTU out of the picture. Jack being Jack with no one to say he is breaking protocol.

Up the ante with the torture scenes. I want more painful, sadistic and creative ways to hurt people. One of my personal favorites is when he is torturing Sayid-Ali in season 2 and what appears to be a live feed via satellite of AliÕs family. It then shows his son being executed. Not! The pretend game of I kill your family was absolutely brutal to watch. I can still hear Jack screaming ÔTELL ME WHERE THE BOMB ISÕ. The torture scenes need to be improved in a big way.

What if Jack has nothing to live for? If Kim somehow manages to die in this season, really, what would Jack have left? The end of season 6 cemented the fact that Jack will never ever be again involved romantically. His love life is dead, his wife is dead, he family is dead, can you imagine how insane Jack Bauer would be if Kim died? I think that would make for a crazy situation that would throw his logic out the window and heÕd do something really fuckinÕ stupid. Again, you would have to add something to make something, and that would involve killing his daughter. I am not sure the writers would do this though, but maybe they are saving that as a way to end this show. If the government was somehow accidentally responsible for his daughterÕs death, that is really the only way I can see Jack killing the person responsible no matter what the cost, even his own life.

Set a goal, and stick to it. After Bauer killed Fayed in season 6, it seemed to deflate, as they then tried to incorporate that plot, the Chinese, and BauerÕs dad into the final stretch of the season. It was too much. If it is Jack vs Tony, keep it that way until the finale. Sure you can have pieces to get you there, but buildup is key. When you achieve that goal with 18 episodes, what the hell are you going to do with the last 6 episodes? You canÕt throw in some last second subplot for it and have that be the focal point for the finale. Pace the season properly, and have the Jack vs Tony showdown end with the finale.

Explore new avenues. Encrypted key cards, EMPÕs, security camera footage, this has been done before. The outline of the plot from the season 7 trailer does remind one of Live Free or Die Hard, but there still are plenty of fresh angles to work with. If I can think of new avenues for the plot to move towards, IÕd hope the writers can.

People are now expecting the unexpected because that is what the show is known for. You are always guessing and second guessing who could be bad or what will happen next. They need a Sixth Sense-ian trick to get the audience to watch where they point their wand, and have the truth somewhere hidden. It is going to be hard to do this after 144 episodes, but for this season to work, they better have something special up there sleeve.

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Read Tony's previous Rant on The Writer's Strike here.
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