Jack Bauer on a Plane: 24, Prisonbreak, and more!

24:

Well 24 was back once again this week with another edge of your seat installment. Let's get right down to it ...

- Awesome stuff with Jack on the plane, him going NINJA on the air marshall sitting next to him was an insta-classic nugget of Jack-attack.

- Chloe with the DOUBLE TAZER-SHOT OF DOOM in the hotel bar. What looked to be another groan-inducing 24 subplot was quickly turned into a brief but hilarious moment of comic relief.

- If anyone brought the GRAVITAS this week, it was Bill Buchanan, sporting the UNDERSHIRT.

- Don't those pilots know what happens when you piss off Jack? He SHAKES YOUR PLANE AROUND.

- You've gotta love the sheer political incorrectness of having Jack HIJACK A PLANE, ward off rebellious passengers, and force an emergency landing, oh yeah - AND prompt the President to order the plane to be SHOT DOWN in the interest of protecting his own agenda --all in the SAME WEEK that United 93 is released in theaters.

- When is Novick finally just going to up and give Prez. Logan the ol' what-for?

- Speaking of which, unintentially hilarious moment when Mrs. Logan asks Mike something like "Is there anything else ...?" and Mike kind of looks at her semi-lustfully, gulps, and says "Yes ...".

- No further insight into the SECRET CABAL OF BLUETOOTH-SPORTING PREPPIES this week ... hmm are they being set up as the Big Bads of Season 6?

- Overall, an excellent episode this week as we've come to expect from this always-intense show. Sorry, haters, but 24 at this point is more than just a TV show -- it's an experience. Nay, a way of life even.

My grade: A

PRISONBREAK:

Damn -- AWESOME EP this week! The sheer over-the-top intensity as the inmates prepared for their escape was mind-boggling, and every character got their moment to shine. But the character moments, and even the closing montage never seemed annoying or forced - instead everything reached its logical climactic moment of truth after months and months of build-up. Ya just gotta love Scofield entering the Warden's office in the closing minutes, trademark smirk intact, demanding for his aid in the impending prison break. Just awesome stuff here - I think I even enjoyed Prisonbreak more than 24 this week, it was that intense. My grade: A

OTHER TV STUFF:

- Finally caught last week's SMALLVILLE, and it was, in fact, one of the better episodes of the season. Clark, for once, was pitted against a rather cool villain, and got to play hero rather than chump. The Lex-Lana-Clark stuff was actually handled well, and Lois was great and Erica Durance has really, um, come to embody that character (in more way than one, fellas). Let's just say the ante is upped a bit for big-screen Lois, Kate Bosworth, come June. Good stuff here, glad to see this show on the rebound after a few weeks of disappointing installments. My grade: A -

- On last week's THE OFFICE. Finally, a new episode. I have to say though, this show, which was enjoying a creative peak earlier in the season, is now becoming a tale of two shows. We have the hilarious, random bits of oddball humor from Dwight and Michael, and we have the increasingly cheesy, out-of-place flirtations between Jim and Pam. Now of course, many of my female friends just love the doomed not-quite-tomance between the two office-mates, but that's almost the problem. The whole thing seems like its been played up to satisfy some market research or somethign rather than being a natural part of the show. Any fan of the superlative British Office knows that the poignancy of Tim and Dawn was ALL in the SUBTLE moments - the little glances, the awkward hellos, etc. Jim and Pam is anything but subtle lately, and it's really annoying in my book and is really throwing this show off its game. Still, as long as we get classic bits of dialogue each week from Dwight, and as long as we get Steve Carell bringing the funny, this is one of TV's only current must-see comedies. The whole drug-testing plotline this week was just side-splittingly hilarious. That's why I watch the show. So focus on the humor, and evolve the subplots subtlely and naturally. But yeah "My father's name was Dwright Schrute. His father's name was Dwight Schrute. HIS father's name was Dwighd Schrude. Amish." = hilarious. My grade: B+

- Huge props to STEPHEN COLBERT. I've always been a fan, but I have a newfound appreciation for the man after he delivered a biting keynote speech at the White House Correspondents' Dinner this past weekend (check out YouTube if you've not yet seen it!). With Bush sitting mere feet away, Colbert stuck to his cocky, far-right wing character, which is of course one giant satire of the whole conservative talk show host thing. So basically, Colbert proceeds to ruthlessly mock the president, the press, and everyone in between with all of them right there up close and personal. Sure, some of his jokes bomberd and he appeared to be, justifiably, a bit nervous, but Colbert stuck to his guns and showed a lot of balls in mocking prez not really known for his sense of self-deprecating humor, especially when it comes to his policies. Sure, those Correspondents' dinners are always basically a roast to the president, but this was a pretty unique meeting of pop culture's number one conservative satirist with or ocuntry's number one conservative figurehead. Pretty interesting, and once again, props to Colbert.

- JOEY STYLES! Best RAW promo in a long while delivered last night by the voice of ECW, as the geeky voice of the E-C-Dub purist told it like it was. Too bad it was the one bright spot in a consistently lackluster program of late. But still, hardcore, extreme, and worthy of one of Joey's trademark "OH MY GOD!'s."

- Watch Veronica Mars tonight, dammit all!

OTHER STUFF:

- Congrats to the Clippers, moving to the second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in 30 years! Their team is looking pretty stacked lately, and if the hated Lakers DO manage to make it an LA-LA series, I will eagerly anticipate the Clips delivering a humility-inducing beat-down to the second best team in LA. But, until that series is confirmed: GO SUNS!

- Forgot to mention that this weekend, at the Improv, one of the openers was none other than former SINGLED-OUT host Chris Hardwick. So THAT's what he's been up to all this time ...

- Some new SUPERMAN footage is up on the net, part of an international soft drink ad. Oddly, this is the best footage from the movie I've yet seen ,with some sweet but brief footage of Supes flying around and saving a plane. Hmm, the jury's still out on this one ...

- They are making a new Red Sonjia movie? Hmm, the original kicks ass though!

- I understand why United 93 didn't tear up the box office, but losing to RV?!?! Wow that says something right there. What it say I'm not sure, but it can't be good. Seriously though, I think good word of mouth will give 93 some longevity at the box office - it's not exactly one where people are rushing out to see it opening weekend.

- Okay, may Jack be with you. And remember, if you ever need to disarm an air marshall on a small, crowded plane without being seen - a quick elbow-strike to the back of the head should do just fine. See, you learn something new from 24 every week. Amazing, innit?.