TNMC

This site’s design is only visible in a graphical browser that supports web standards, but its content is accessible to any browser or Internet device.

4:00 pm to 5:00 pm
Written By: Michael Chernushin
Directed By: Stephen Hopkins

So now I'm faced with a decision. Do I continue to penalize 24 for the lame-ass subplot of amnesia even though everything else is clicking, or do I just wash my hands of it and evaluate the rest of the show? Ah well, we'll get to the amnesia in a bit.

We start out with Kim wandering around in a dazed and confused manner calling for her mother. However since Teri snapped and thinks she killed Kim and thus caused a self induced amnesia, she's not around to answer Kim's calls. Kim walks off in a dejected manner.

Teri is in the car with the stranger who picked her up, and we learn her name is Tanya. They banter for a bit and Tanya points out Teri's wedding ring, making Teri realize that she is married. She doesn't remember any details though. They pass a restaurant that Teri recognizes though, and she has Tanya drop her off as she waits to speak with the manager.

Meanwhile, Jack is prepping Slut for her meeting with Alexis. She's obviously worried, and with good reason. He keeps on reminding her that she doesn't have to do this, but she insists on following through with it. Palmer enters the room and threatens Jack if he lets anything happen to Slut. Jack assures him that nothing will happen.

There's a little bit of technobabble and spy talk as he gives Slut code phrases, a bug to slip into Alexis's wallet, and explains fiber optic camera systems to the aid. He also has a confrontation with Nina, who lets him know that Teri had figured out the truth between Nina and him. This obviously distracts him, but he's all about the job.

Kim has managed to find her way to a payphone and calls the CTU looking for Jack or Nina, both of whom are on the Alexis sting operation now. She tells Tony everything that happened, though she assumes that her mother was actually kidnapped again. When he tells her that he'll send men to pick her up Kim gets a little skittish. She mentions that's what her mother was told before she was kidnapped. Nice little bit of continuity there. She hangs up on Tony and calls Rick (like we didn't see that coming) and quickly blackmails him into helping her.

The manager of the restaurant recognizes Teri right away and informs her of her name. He also mentions a Dr. Philip Parslow with whom Teri has frequented the place with before in the past. This is the first time we've heard that name too. Anybody else think he's the father of Teri's baby? I do. The manager agrees to call Parslow and have him come pick up Teri.

Keith talks to his father and reveals the taped conversation he had with Carl. Palmer is impressed, but then tells Keith to hand the tape recorder over to him. After a bit of hesitation Keith agrees, and gives Palmer the tape.

Alexis finally arrives at the hotel and the sting goes down. Slut pays him a visit, but in a move quite out of character she's not all about the sexing. Apparently she's disgusted by who he is and how he's used her. I tell you if you can't trust strange people you pick up at bars with whom you develop an immediate sexual relationship with, well then who can you trust? So as Alexis keeps sliding in for the kiss, she keeps doing the head tilt and opting for the hug instead. I've actually witnessed women doing this maneuver before in the past, so it's funny to see it televised. Jack and Nina watch the whole breathlessly.

Slut finally manages to get a hold of herself, and kisses Alexis, but refuses to go any further. She wants a drink, which is just an excuse to get him out of the room so she can plant the bug in his wallet. She finds the wallet but drops it on the ground. She grabs it up and slips it into her jacket just as enters the room. Oh, and one other things. Alexis does this really weird thing with a mouth guard device while he's pouring the vodka. Is this some kind of West Coast breath thing that I'm just not aware of? Because I don't quite know what to make of that little maneuver.

He brings her back the vodka and they roll around the bed for a bit as he subtly interrogates her for information on Palmer in between his cheesy pick up lines. Slut is willing to play a bit more, but then asks him to get her a menu so she can slip the wallet back into his jacket. This he does, and then he tells her he loves her.

You can actually hear her mind break, and she begins to get all Fatal Attraction on his ass. Jack tries to call her to get her out of there, but Slut shifts her phone into voice mail. Alexis orders her the food and then comes over to hug her as Jack bursts out of the monitor room. He recognizes that Slut had a knife and in a surprising twist she stabs Alexis in the stomach. He gasps in surprise as Jack bursts into the room and wrestles him to the bed. I was sort of expecting Alexis to stick around a bit and be a more physical threat to Jack, but I guess it's not to be. Slut immediately becomes mournful and Jack has Nina bring a medvac team in stat.

Kim arrives at Rick's house, and is greeted by his hostile girlfriend. You can just see Kim's face drop at the sight of Michelle, but Rick quickly comes out to try and smooth things over. Fat chance with that, but he's determined to try. Play on player.

Parslow shows up at the restaurant and talk to Teri. She asks him if he's her doctor and he laughs her off. Obviously she was seeing this guy at the same time that Jack was seeing Nina. The surprising thing is that Kim didn't evidently know about it.

Palmer bursts into the hotel room, worried about the fate of intern Slut. He believes that she's the one that has been injured. When he finds out that she's actually the one that assaulted Alexis and is in custody, he demands that she be given a lawyer. Slut is in hysterics, she's not quite sure how she stabbed Alexis. It might have something to do with her being a crazy bitch but that's just me.

Jack is pissed off because his one link to the ringleaders of the operation is gone, but then a phone call rings on Alexis's phone. In a desperation move Jack pretends to be Alexis and is given a cryptic message to set up a cryptic meeting. So as one trail dies another one opens.

This was a set up episode, much like most of the past ones have been. But now it seems that everyone is going to be fully into his or her plotlines. Kim is with Rick, Teri is with her suitor, and Jack is on the trail of the Drazen's. Of the three Jack's is obviously the most entertaining, and the more time the show gives to that, the better off it will be. Kim's has the potential to be catty fun, and since she's just a little hotty I have no problem watching. Teri's scenes are cliché and are only interesting in a bad soap opera kind of way. The more time the show devotes to that subplot, the worse off it will be. Hopefully they'll have Terri snap out of this amnesia thing soon though, as the longer it goes the worse the storyline is going to get.

Again I was surprised to see Alexis taken out of the game so early. I pictured a final climactic battle between him and Jack as a climax, but Slut took him out before he could get there. Next week's episode looks like a humdinger though, as the actions gets titled full throttle. And with Lou Diamond and Dennis Hopper on their way, the action should kick up even more.

Episode Rating: 7.5 out of 10

-- Tim "tjarvis" Ritenour would never have chose Teri over Nina.

What do you think? Talk about it on the Forums