CtuAgents

(S08E13) Jack Bauer may be the star of '24,' but this week it was Ladies' Night -- or maybe the expression should be Ladies' Hour in this case. Regardless, it was the fairer sex that did the ass-kicking and the ass-saving this week. More impressively, this was accomplished without a single appearance by President Allison Taylor.

Luckily, I'm far enough away that the EMP that took down CTU didn't impact my systems, though our regular reviewer, Mike Moody, didn't fare so well. While he works to recover his systems and get back online, I agreed to pinch-hit and see how CTU handled their own electronic crisis.

If last week's episode was the best episode of the season so far, this week just knocked it back to number two. I'll even forgive that we got one of the oldest and most tired '24' cliches ever in play again, because everything else was just so damned good!

If you happen to be walking around Times Square on Tuesday at about 3:00 pm, and you see a number of CTU agents meandering about, don't panic. These agents aren't in the area because of an imminent threat to New York City. They're walking around to pass out souvenirs from FOX's 24 and to direct you to the big screen overlooking 43rd Street and Seventh Avenue.

This is where you will see super-duper agent Jack Bauer in an extended trailer previewing the sixth season of 24, which begins in January. Don't worry if you run in fear from the CTU agents and miss the trailer. You will still be able to see it at the website 24trailer.com.

Oh, and remember that the season premiere of 24 will be a 4-hour event that spans two nights . . . January 14th and 15th. Jonathan Toomey has more information on the premiere in his post, as well as information as to who has been added to the cast.