A long day comes to an end. . .

Well, tonight was the big night. The "24" season finale. And unlike Sunday's episode of Alias, this finale delivered the goods.

24's probably best known because of it's gimmicky structure. . . 24 episodes that chronicle an entire day as Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) tries to thwart a terrorist attack. This season started and ended with the threat of a mechanized virus, but not without a few surprising, devastating twists along the way. And, as you know from reading this site, the past 10 episodes or so have been racked with tension, surprises, and cliffhangers. So I had to know how the day was going to end for Jack Bauer.

24 is notorious for it's cliffhanger finales. Probably nothing could top Season 1's last second shocker of traitor Nina Meyers shooting Jack's wife and leaving the season with Jack cradling her in his arms. But Season 2's closeout of having President Palmer collapse after an assassination attempt was also a shocker (albeit it never really was explained this season.) So I think everyone went in expecting a cliffhanger.

The big shocker is that they didn't close the season out that way this year. Instead, they opted for a more emotional ending that brought closure to some of the story threads and yet left some of us asking big questions.

That's not to say that tonight's finale didn't deliver the suspense. I never would have anticipated Gael's wife shooting Saunders just as he's about to reveal his accomplice. And the chase through the crowded Middle School and the sacrifice Chase makes to save the day were both nail-biters. In fact, I was shocked out of my seat when Jack grabbed the axe and chopped off Chase's arm.

But it was the emotional endings that really surprised me. President Palmer's sorrow at finding out about Sherry's death, and his anger at his brother finally getting released when another coverup was suggested (although personally, I would have liked to see Palmer deck the little schemer.) Tony and Michelle's heartbreaking embrace before Tony was led away into custody to await his punishment for treason. Chase's conversation with Jack about quitting feild ops to settle down with Kim and Jack's determination to stay with him even as the virus's clock ticked down. Palmer's conversation with Jack as he revealed he wouldn't seek re-election. And I was shocked at the final moments, as Jack sat in his car and just broke down in tears. Until he got the call from CTU calling him back to work, I was worried that he was going to shoot himself.

So, a superb end to the season, even if there were a couple nagging questions (how did Kim get to the hospital so fast? Why didn't Jack as Palmer to pardon Tony?) But it sets things up for next season. So, come January 2005, my Monday nights will be booked because if Day 3 was this great, I can't wait to see what's in store for Day 4.

C-Dubbs