24 certainly keeps you guessing - i was not a fan of the early episodes in this season - the characters were all new, and the established characters notably absent - but as the season progressed our old favourites came back - and things improved hugely.
24 Season 7 really did live up to the billing of the 'best season of 24'.
One of the most interesting twists - the role of an Imam as Jack Bauer is apparently on his deathbed. The Imam visits Jack at Jack's request and is the person who Jack seeks some sort of solace and intercessionary forgiveness from. Its a wonderful scene - beautifully done. There is no evidence that Jack actually converts to islam during this scene but it is clear he chooses his last moments to be spent with the Imam.
This scene - not surprisingly - has caused a lot of controversy. Some people feel that 24 has become too 'politically correct' and has become a 'diversity fest' - maybe this includes the fact that it had a black President of the US and in Season 7 a female President. The blogs i've read and comments by visitors are upset at 24 seeming to go 'too far' to be sympathetic to the Muslim community.
I absolutely loved the role of the Imam in this season - initially suspicion falls on one of his followers wrongly and later on he is the one closest to Jack as Jack faces death - in fact he is the last person to talk to him before Jack enters a coma.
What does Season 8 hold? Could Jack Bauer appear in Season 8 as a Muslim?
I'm not sure if America is ready for that - but it would be a wonderful story. It would add depth to his character and allow a positive image of Islam to be portrayed to a massive audience.
Is America ready for this? Probably not in the current climate - but with 24 always pushing the boundaries - this could well be a possibility.
What do the people in the blog world say? Here's a sample:
Blog Post 1:
"Now the final episode depicts Jack Bauer as looking up to the Muslim imam as, evidently, the only religious person he could think of to talk to during his last few breaths on earth. I guess the producers (and Kiefer Sutherland, the actor who portrays Jack Bauer, is one of the producers of 24) have now decided to carry their political correctness to the extreme.
Why did the producers of 24 ever feel the need to please and pacify the Muslim community in the first place? Do they honestly think that the viewers don't know what they're trying to do? Why not have Jack Bauer call in his family Christian pastor, for example? Maybe Jack Bauer has always been an atheist.
Don't get me wrong. I'm glad that Jack Bauer chose to talk to someone with some kind of spiritual authority, and I would like to mention that the actor who portrays the Muslim imam does so with just the right spiritual touch.
It's just disturbing that while the praise of the virtues of a Muslim imam are portrayed, the possibility of a Christian pastor's ability to give counsel are completely ignored, especially in light of the fact that 24 has many conservative viewers who might also happen to be Christians. 24 fans are wondering if Jack Bauer has now converted to Islam.
I think the producers of 24 should, in the future, focus on their original purpose for this show, and excellent writing, rather than being so overly concerned about being politically correct. After all, it wasn't political correctness that made this show popular in the first place."
Comment on this Blog Post
"Now I am not only sorry that I watched it - I am Mad As Hell. The stinking POLITICAL CORRECTNESS, rampant MULTICULTURALISM and ISLAMIC IMAM ASS-KISSING that has crept into this - formerly great - series along with Jannet Garofoolo (a bad comedian and crap ANTI-AMERICAN actress) - is flatly RANK and betrays the true Far Left spirit that is motivating the producers and driving this show - hopefully into BANKRUPTCY.
The Imam bit was the last straw for me and - as I read the internet - hundreds of thousands of other former "fans." Do these producers and writers forget that it was Radical Islam that powered the terrorists who murdered 3000+ of our American Brothers and Sisters on September 11, 2001?
I believe that Americans are SICK AND TIRED of being PUT UPON with the political PROPAGANDA that tries to pass as "entertainment." As a Behavioral Scientist and former student of Propaganda I can tell you that the "formula" goes like this: "Tell them 90 percent of what they want to hear and they will BUY the 10 percent that YOU want them to believe."
Sorry 24 America is onto you. Let's hope that your sponsors junk you and your sleazy attempt to propagandize Americans dies along with the Imam loving Jack Bower and.
I - for one - will be contacting them and voicing my extreme displeasure toward your program. I can only hope that everyone else who is as DISGUSTED WITH YOU as I am will DO THE SAME.
One very FUNNY thing is that the Leftists don't like you and we Conservatives are tuning you out. Guess you know what that means - or do you even CARE?
Aidios you scuzball Leftists."
Another Comment on the same post:
"It didn't bother me one bit - it is just entertainment. I do think it was a way to apologize to those Muslim's that complained (or more precisely the political correctness movement) - that part I didn't agree with, but I personally did get two things from this part of the show -
1. That we can find God in the most unsuspecting places.
2. That everyone must pray for and reconcile with our enemies in some form or another.
Jack didn't recite the Shahaada (I think that is what you call it - the equivalent of the apostles creed) and Jack wasn't around Pastors"
Arif's View
Looks like 24 has a very vocal debate on it's hands here - just the sort of hype you need at the end of one season to get people interested in the next!
I'm already trying to find out when Season 8 will be on so i guess it's working!
What an interesting development it would be if Jack Bauer - America's most famous hero of recent years - was to find spirituality and religion through Islam.
Hi,
I'm from Malaysia and my country's TV station just finished showing the season 7 last Sunday (8 November 2009).
Why an imam? Simple. Because he yelled at this imam a few hours before. If it's a pastor then the pastor never appeared anywhere or anytime during Day 7 or any other seasons of the series.
Posted by: Serious Shepherd | November 09, 2009 at 09:53 AM