Episode Report Card M. Giant: C | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Unresolved
By M. Giant | Season 6 | Episode 24 | Aired on 05.20.2007
At 5:07:37, Kiefer is walking along next to Doyle's gurney as he's wheeled towards the CTU version of an ambulance. That'll learn Ricky Schroder to act like Kiefer's heir apparent. Doyle apologizes to Kiefer and tells him, "Get the kid, Jack!" Kiefer's like, yeah, that's a good idea, I'll do that. As the doors close on Doyle, Nadia calls Kiefer to tell him that they found the oil rig. Kiefer says he wants to lead the assault team, because Kiefer always has to be in charge of everything, and Nadia has to tell him there isn't going to be one. She already knows about the ordered air strike, which she says will happen in thirty minutes. Surprisingly, Kiefer doesn't ask to lead the air strike. Nadia tells Kiefer that he and Buchanan need to come back to CTU via helicopter for an immediate debrief. After a long pause, Kiefer snaps, "Fine," and hangs up before Nadia can decide to put him back under arrest.
Sensing that something's wrong, Buchanan comes over and asks Kiefer what's up. Kiefer explains about the impending air strike. "No one on that platform is going to survive," he says. Half of his remaining family is about to be incinerated, and of the other half, one wants nothing to do with him and the other wants to talk about his feelings. Brr. Buchanan says he's sorry. Kiefer, of course, is already looking sneakily at the helicopter parked nearby. Buchanan tells him not to even think about it; he'll only get himself killed. Kiefer had a line in last week's previews for this episode where he said he'd rather die trying to do the right thing than live with all the things they've done wrong today, but it's been cut from the actual episode for some reason. Buchanan sympathizes with Kiefer being about to lose his "nephew," but Kiefer cuts that off, saying it's wrong for an "innocent kid" to be written off as "an acceptable loss." Can we stop going on about how "innocent" Josh is already, at least without talking to Marilyn about it? She might have a clearer view of how "innocent" he actually is. In fact, she might even ask CTU if they can fix that tracker in his arm when they get him back. Kiefer tells Buchanan that they've both been ordered back to CTU, but he's going to take the helicopter to the oil rig. "I'll fly," Buchanan says. What? "You prep the weapons." Kiefer looks at Buchanan in surprise, both that Buchanan knows how to pilot a helicopter and that he wants to come along. Buchanan says it's "been a while," but he thinks he can get them there and maybe even back. "I don't want to live with this one either," he explains, which is almost a total non sequitur after that earlier Kiefer line got cut. But James Morrison has to live with his now-nonsensical line staying in there. Ironic.