TV: 24 (TV series): Your rankings

[alko]

Is it worth to watch after so many years? Never saw a single episode.

Click to read more...

 

[Blueblood9]

Is it worth to watch after so many years? Never saw a single episode.

Absolutely the 1st 3 seasons are some of the best TV ive seen. it dips after season 3 but in my opinion the last 2 seasons pick up again.

and so your self a favor NO spoilers

 

[John Price]

3 4 5 were awesome

1 2 okay

6 7 8 meh

 

[alko]

It is ok, when i see the seasons not in particular order? Do they have any relationships?

 

[LeafalCrusader]

Seasons 1-5 is some of my favourite tv ever! 6-8 were very meh though.

 

[John Price]

It is ok, when i see the seasons not in particular order? Do they have any relationships?

Yes

Watch in order or it won't make sense

 

[Mimsy]

It is ok, when i see the seasons not in particular order? Do they have any relationships?

While I haven't watched the series since it originally aired (and forget a lot of story lines), I know that order matters for the fates of certain characters, both regular and recurring. There are character arcs that stretch across seasons. However, each season offers a complete story that wraps at the end of its 24-episode run. You can mostly begin anywhere and get a self-contained, reasonably satisfying story. As others here have noted, some seasons are better than others. By skipping seasons, you will miss important details regarding relationships among central and recurring characters.

 

[Brodeur]

Whole series is a blur for me now, but like the others have said the first few seasons were fun. I randomly started watching it mid-season 4 if I recall correctly. Enjoyed it enough and started back with season 1 and caught up before season 5. As others said, avoid typing in a character name into a search engine otherwise you'll probably get a spoiler (I did that while I was catching up).

I think we're spoiled by the amount of good TV in the last decade, so 24 might not hold up well to more recent shows but at the time it felt like something a bit different.

It seemed like they shot a good chunk of the show in my hometown, so there are a few references which I always enjoyed.

Spoiler link:

Spoiler

Santa Clarita

 

[Do Make Say Think]

Seasons 1, 2 and 5 are solid

Season 3 is good

Seasons 4, 6 and beyond are bad

 

[John Price]

Seasons 1, 2 and 5 are solid

Season 3 is good

Seasons 4, 6 and beyond are bad

I agree beyond 6 gets hazy but 4 was good.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

The first few seasons were some of the best action TV i've ever seen and I'd rank 24 as probably a top 3 fav show of all time for me. Some of those twists were mindblowing. Every ep early on you were on the edge of your seat.

I only thought it went downhill badly the last 2 seasons. I enjoyed almost the entire series.

 

[the squared circle]

First five seasons were absolutely incredible.

 

[SniperHF]

It is ok, when i see the seasons not in particular order? Do they have any relationships?

You can understand any season individually, BUT some reveals and events will have WAY less punch and effectiveness/intrigue if you do not start at the beginning.

Do not binge watch 24 IMO, it ruins it a bit and some of the recycled tropes will grate on you more. By binge I mean watch like 3-4 episodes in a sitting.

 

[Kupo]

My ex-wife and I watched it and immediately got hooked - to the point where we binged over the weekend, and called out of work Mon+Tues.

5 straight days of 24.

One of the better memories of my marriage.

 

[ArchAngel55]

Yes. Just rewatched all of them last month.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

You can understand any season individually, BUT some reveals and events will have WAY less punch and effectiveness/intrigue if you do not start at the beginning.

Do not binge watch 24 IMO, it ruins it a bit and some of the recycled tropes will grate on you more. By binge I mean watch like 3-4 episodes in a sitting.

Completely disagree. One of the best shows to binge and i hate binge watching shows.

 

[blueandgoldguy]

First 3 seasons were great. I thought season 4 and 5 did not quite meet those expectations. I seem to remember suspension of disbelief became more difficult at that point...OK it is 24 so a certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required but season 4 and beyond required a whole other level. I seem to remember 7 and 8 being far beyond the realm of comprehension as Jack appeared to become a Marvel superhero before our eyes.

I noticed people here seem to be forgetting seasons 9 (2014) and 10 (2017). Both were streamlined to 12 episodes which kept the storylines taut and did away with some unnecessary filler. Season 9 (which took place in England) was actually quite good and appeared to a return to form at least at the level of season 4-5 and possibly as good as the first 3 seasons. Season 10 introduced a new main character and the quality was on the level with the seasons 7 and 8 unfortunately. Weak writing! How many times can the lead go against the orders of CTU in 12 episodes!?

The show was fairly revolutionary for its time as there were few, if any, serialized evening dramas on tv at the time back in 2001, especially the main networks. Producers back then, thought it would be ratings suicide to have a drama that did not have self-contained episodes with a tidy beginning, middle and an end, within the allotted 1-hour time frame. After its first season, 24 consistently achieved ratings that would put in the top-20 - 40 shows on tv. 24 along with Lost proved the serialized concept could attract the eyeballs of the public on a weekly basis...and here we are, less than 20 years later and it appears serialized shows are the norm.

Shout out to David Palmer - one of my most favorite supporting characters on tv ever!

 

[LeafalCrusader]

First 3 seasons were great. I thought season 4 and 5 did not quite meet those expectations. I seem to remember suspension of disbelief became more difficult at that point...OK it is 24 so a certain amount of suspension of disbelief is required but season 4 and beyond required a whole other level. I seem to remember 7 and 8 being far beyond the realm of comprehension as Jack appeared to become a Marvel superhero before our eyes.

I noticed people here seem to be forgetting seasons 9 (2014) and 10 (2017). Both were streamlined to 12 episodes which kept the storylines taut and did away with some unnecessary filler. Season 14 (which took place in England) was actually quite good and appeared to a return to form at least at the level of season 4-5 and possibly as good as the first 3 seasons. Season 10 introduced a new main character and the quality was on the level with the seasons 7 and 8 unfortunately. Weak writing! How many times can the lead go against the orders of CTU in 12 episodes!?

The show was fairly revolutionary for its time as there were few, if any, serialized evening dramas on tv at the time back in 2001, especially the main networks. Producers back then, thought it would be ratings suicide to have a drama that did not have self-contained episodes with a tidy beginning, middle and an end, within the allotted 1-hour time frame. After its first season, 24 consistently achieved ratings that would put in the top-20 - 40 shows on tv. 24 along with Lost proved the serialized concept could attract the eyeballs of the public on a weekly basis...and here we are, less than 20 years later and it appears serialized shows are the norm.

Shout out to David Palmer - one of my most favorite supporting characters on tv ever!

Season 5 was probably the best season IMO. Charles Logan was the best villain on the show. I never recall being on the edge of my seat quite like that season before.

Live another day was quite good too. The 12 hour format worked quite well in that it limited their ability to go off into too many subplots like they like to do to fill out the 24 season run. It was a return to form in a lot of ways after seasons 6-8.

Their spinoff Legacy was bland boring and forgettable.

 

[GlassesJacketShirt]

I remember being late to the 24 party and only got into it around Season 4. My parents and I bought season one by recommendation and watched it in two sittings. We then watched season 2 and 3 in similar binges during the Christmas break.

It's a very tense show that stood out greatly for its time, and I hazard to guess that it probably does hold up pretty darn well today. Can't say that for many network television shows. Seasons 1-5 and the first few episodes of 6 are where it's at.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

Is 24 on any of the streaming services for free?

Last time I checked it wasn’t and I had to buy the seasons.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

Is 24 on any of the streaming services for free?

Last time I checked it wasn’t and I had to buy the seasons.

First 9 seasons are on Hulu.

 

[Hollywood Cannon]

First 9 seasons are on Hulu.

f*** yes. I haven’t looked in forever.

 

[blueandgoldguy]

Oh yeah, some of the feats pulled off by the villains in later seasons were equally ludicrous. Anyone remember how they infiltrated the White House that one season...season 6 or 7 I think lol. I don't want to give too much away for the OP who may watch at some point.

 

[reckoning]

I loved the first two seasons. After that, the storylines got progressively more ridiculous considering the 24-hour format (if somebody has been tortured and waterboarded, they shouldn't be back working at their desk a few hours later), and some plot devices kept getting recycled (there's always a mole at CTU, there's always a character who looks like they're a bad guy but turns out to be a good guy, there's always an authority figure trying to hold back Jack, etc.), but it was still entertaining and watchable.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

Because of this thread it got me craving Jack and 24 again and i got my gf to watch the first season with me.

I didn’t remember much going in aside from the big twist at the end but man what a ride again!

We start season 2 tonight!