24 - Season 3 (2001)

In this concept drama each season takes place within one 24 hour period. Jack Bauer is the head of an elite team of CIA agents who uncover an assassination plot targeting Presidential nominee David Palmer. Meanwhile Jack's strained marriage to his wife Teri is pushed to the brink by the sudden disappearance of their troubled teenage daughter. What will the next 24 hours hold?Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 024543442950 Manufacturer No: 2244295 Product Description

More Weird Pricing

Rating based on the pricing of the slim pack version, not on the show iteself.

Season 3 (Slim Pack) = $53.99
Season 3 (Non-slim Pack? ) = $34.99

So what makes the slim pack worth an extra $19.00. There's no mention I can see of any extras. The same weird pricing existed on Season 2.

Buyer Beware

(Prices current as of the date of this posting)
June 19, 2008

Best 24

Season 3 of 24 focuses on a threat of a virus being released into the city of Los Angeles as well as other major population centers. As usual, Jack Bauer is on the scene to stop the bad guys. Because so much of the entertainment value of the show comes from the twists and turns of the plot, I won't reveal many of the specifics but there two major story arcs that should be familiar to those who have watched the first two seasons. First, there is Jack and the other CTU agents who are racing against time to stop the terrorists from releasing the virus. Then there is President David Palmer and his administration that are fighting various potential scandals at the same time they deal with the virus.

The first thing that a viewer notices about this season is that the pace starts off a bit more slowly. It's not dull by any means, but it is definitely less frenetic out of the starting gate. The good part of this is that the writers have also eliminated the flaws that were evident in the last third of the first two seasons. This season is the first that felt like the story had been thought through to the very end with solid pacing throughout leading to a good climax in the last episode. I found this a welcome change from earlier seasons where it seemed that all the good ideas were used up early and increasingly preposterous ideas ruined the story at the time when it should have been building to the big finale.

Jack's character is generally much more under control than we have seen previously. He is still willing to go further than most men would, but he no longer seems to be driven by constant rage or a death wish. I found this change a welcome one. Kim Bauer is also improved as the amount of time she spends as a prisoner/hostage is radically reduced and she even proves useful at times in her new role as a CTU computer analyst. The performances of the villains were quite good, especially Joaquim de Almeida as Ramon Salazar. He brings a combination of charm and ruthlessness that is just right to make him a bad guy you love to hate.

The biggest low point of the season was the soap opera swirling around David Palmer's presidency. This is a man who was shown to be very principled in the first season, but since then he has consistently done the wrong or immoral thing any time he's been faced with a tough choice. His judgment is so consistently poor that I found myself no longer pulling for him and hoping that he would be brought down by the scandal of his own actions. It's a shame, because Dennis Haysbert has terrific presence and the writers did not need to insert all this cheap melodrama into the story.

I've only watched the first three seasons so far, but this is clearly the best one to date. The story holds together much better from beginning to end, and a lot of the worst plot contrivances that plagued the first two seasons have been done away with. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a thrill ride television series. There are many twists and turns and it makes for quite a breathtaking experience. December 2, 2007

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