Had the show not been picked up for the entire season, the first day of 24 would have ended with this episode. Luckily, that didn't happen (could you imagine the series being renamed 13?), although that doesn't mean this wouldn't have been a powerful conclusion.
Picking up from the final minutes of the twelfth hour, bullets keep marking the ground as Jack's showdown with Ira Gaines reaches its final stage with a little help from CTU, who have sent a chopper just in case. In another part of the city, on the other hand, David Palmer has a an animated discussion with Carl Webb regarding what looks a lot like the murder of George Ferragamo, Keith's therapist, discovering the situation is more complicated than he had imagined.
Unusually for a thriller series, this episode takes a few minutes to be a bit preachy. Rest assured, though: the message it is trying to send is not tagged on, but plays a vital role in the dramatic construction. "Part of getting a second chance is taking responsibility for the mess you made in the first place." Jack reminds Rick, the boy who kidnapped is daughter and then helped her escape. That phrase doesn't apply to that young man alone: it is certainly an important lesson for Kim, who snuck out of the house and sort of began the whole sorry deal, but most of all it reflects the personality of Bauer himself, who has consistently reminded us of how he is struggling to keep his family together again. It is all in one simple sentence, one that finds its negative counterpart in the words Carl uses to justify his actions: "Every engine leaves waste. It's the physics of the situation.". In the end, it is always about the same thing: power, and how to use it, something that Palmer realizes way too late (his reaction, a mix of anger and true dignity, should have gotten Haysbert an Emmy). Speaking of power, another priceless moment is the look on Michael Massee's face when his character understands it is all over and leaves the show like few villains can, throwing in the remark "They wanted to make it personal" and thus confirming that everyone's initial thoughts about the assassination plot were dead wrong.
Not a bad ending, after all. Thankfully, ratings and reviews were good enough to ensure the remaining eleven shows got to air.
