jon voight

(S07E12) "Madame President, right now your life is a priority whether you like it ot not." - Jack

That wasn't as gripping as I thought it would be. After all the set-up in last night's first hour, I assumed there'd be a lot more pay-off. Instead... it was more set-up.

Yes, the taking of the White House was exciting and I loved how we got to see more of Agent Pierce in action, but overall I'm left wanting more and we just didn't get it.

(S07E11) "I can pull the trigger 128 more times before this battery dies." - Jack

Jack Bauer doing what Jack Bauer does best - torturing one to save many. It only seems appropriate that we heard Jack drop that line in tonight's first hour, immediately following a conversation between Senator Mayer and the President about how the United States shouldn't condone torture. Mayer doesn't. Allison is on the fence. And Jack ... well, we know where he stands.

The entire debate about torture and "how far do you go to save lives" has been at the forefront of this season since the opening minutes as Jack sat in front of the Senate sub-committee at the beginning of the day. Now it's been thrust right back in our faces, and Blaine's, too, as he's now been put in the unique position to witness Jack doing the exact thing he's trying to prosecute him for.

(S07E10) "...but this ain't over yet." - Tony

Just like in the middle of season three, the game has changed. One threat down, and one(?) to go. Last night's episode of 24 did a great job of wrapping up the first half of the season without leaving too many unresolved issues. For the most part, it's a clean break and things seem ready to reboot with next week's back-to-back episodes.

(S07E09) "Whatever it takes, I want that son of a bitch found." - President Taylor

I'm not trying to suggest that this season of 24 has been bad so far (the hiatus alone made it better than it arguably is), but this was truly the first really great episode of Day 7. The plot is progressing much faster than it was, some more familiar faces returned, moles were revealed, Chloe ran a diagnostic check (!), and minor characters that had little purpose to this point have been thrown right into the fire. It was vintage 24.

Tick, tock, tick, tock - it's been a while, but Jack is back and all is right with the world. Well... technically not all is right and that's why Jack is back but you get what I'm saying. After waiting over a year for a new season of 24 (fans around the world have been heard uttering Bauer-esque quips like "son of a bitch" for months now), the moment has finally arrived - the two night, four hour premiere kicks off this Sunday, January 11th, at 8PM ET on FOX. I've screened the first four hours of the season and trust me - the wait for Bauer's return was well worth it.

As if you haven't heard it enough from all of us here at TV Squad, one of the best perks by far of the TV critic biz is getting to see episodes before they air. DVD screeners are always pouring into the TV Squad HQ for just about everything - usually all the shows nobody wants to, or ever will, watch.

But when one of the big ones comes in the mail, it's always exciting. Especially since the networks typically go all out when it comes to the press kits for those trademark shows. These are always more than just a DVD. Sometimes the extra bonuses are good and sometimes they're bad - I still have no use for my incredibly dull Prison Break pocket knife.

Even still, whether the press kits are loaded with junk or not, it's a thrill to open them up. Last week, I found an interesting package on my doorstep. Take a look after the jump for pictures of what I found inside.

"They want me back in Washington, they can come and get me." - Jack

It's been a year and a half since we last saw Jack Bauer, staring out into the ocean and contemplating who knows what after saying good-bye to a comatose Audrey (Kim Raver). The time has gone by much faster for Jack though. In an attempt to find himself and figure out his true calling, Bauer has been wandering the world for three years. Wayne Palmer never re-gained the presidency following his memory lapse in season six and Noah Daniels (Powers Booth) finished out Palmer's first term only to lose a re-election bid to Allison Taylor (Cherry Jones). 24: Redemption (airs this Sunday, 11/23, on FOX at 8PM ET) finds Bauer in the fictional African country of Sangala on the day of Taylor's inauguration with everything to lose and nothing to gain.

It's been a long time coming, but 24 is finally coming back. After a mediocre sixth season, followed by endless news about the re-invigorated season seven, it all got pushed aside. Kiefer Sutherland went to jail. Production was delayed. Oh right... and don't forget the WGA Strike. I hear that played a role, too.

FOX has announced that as with seasons past, 24 will return with a two-night, four-hour premiere on Sunday, January 11th, and Monday, January 12th. Plus, there's the two-hour movie Redemption airing later this month on Sunday, November 23rd. That's a lot of 24 to look forward to.

If you aren't excited yet, wait'll you see what Jack does to Tony "the clock wasn't silent" Almeida in the latest trailer for Day 7.

Over the last months, we've been updating you on 24: Redemption, the two-hour Season 7 prequel movie FOX will air on November 23. It's time for another update! So if your aim is to stay spoiler-free about Jack Bauer's trip to the fictional African country of Sangala, then it's time to click elsewhere on TV Squad's site as you are about to enter a spoiler zone!

Spoilers coming up!

Oscar-winner Jon Voight, father of a certain actress called Angelina Jolie, will return to the small screen this fall. The actor, who recently appeared in movies such as National Treasure and Transformers, was cast in an important role on FOX's hit series 24.

The 69-year-old actor may be best known for his movies but he is no stranger to TV. He appeared in a handful of made-for-TV movies, in mini-series such as the 1993 Return to Lonesome Dove in which he played lead character Capt. Woodrow F. Call, and in series like Gunsmoke for example.

Slight spoilers after the jump!

Have you noticed lately that the new faces cropping up on TV series in starring roles are often actors you've never seen before -- or if you have, it was in a supporting role of a feature or a foreign TV show? Think about it, Lee Pace as the Pie Man on Pushing Daisies, Jonny Lee Miller on Eli Stone, Nikolaj Coster-Waldau in New Amsterdam, Michelle Ryan in Bionic Woman, all of these leads are relatively new faces. That's one way to cast series. Another is for big stars to take to TV, if not for the first time, than for a return.

In an interesting article at IGN.com, blogger Travis Fickett points out that there used to be a line of demarcation between the worlds of acting: film actors vs. television actors. But nowadays the stars are going back and forth a lot more fluidly.

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According to IGN Filmforce, the cast list is shaping up for the live-action Transformers movies. Stars including Michael Clarke Duncan, Jon Voight, Josh Duhamel, Bernie Mac, Tyrese, John Turturro (wha?) and others have reportedly signed on to the project, which will be directed by Michael Bay (Armageddon, Pearl Harbor).

I still don't understand how they're going to do a live-action version of cars and airplanes turning into robots.

[Via The Hollywood News]