Episode Report Card M. Giant: A- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Re-Juma-nated
By M. Giant | Season 7 | Episode 12 | Aired on 03.02.2009
At 7:49:06, Aaron and Olivia are out in the open when they spot one of Juma's men in the hallway. Rather than shooting first, Aaron tries diving for some nonexistent cover. They exchange shots, and Juma's soldier dies (only to spawn again elsewhere, no doubt), but Aaron's hit in the right shoulder. Aaron tells Olivia that the shots would have been heard, so it's up to her to send out the signal before someone comes to investigate. He directs her to the adjoining room, where she'll find a flashlight in the bureau. He writes the Morse code for "Code Green" on her hand and sends her on her way. It takes her a while to find the flashlight, but when she does, she hurries to the window. She only gets a few blinks into the message before one of Juma's soldiers grabs her from behind. After being dragged back into the hallway, she shakes her head at Aaron -- who apparently surrendered to the new arrivals without a fight -- before they're both frog-marched back toward the hostage area. Huh, too bad Aaron couldn't walk thirty seconds ago; it might have bought them a little more time if the soldiers hadn't found him lying there in the middle of the hallway. It's 7:50:53, and presumably someone at the command post outside noticed the blinking in the top-floor window and is now running around going, "'Co?' Is there an Agent Co here?
During the commercial break, Kiefer visits the FBI-DC set to let us know that 24 is working on the "climate problem." Thank God.
7:55:22, and Hodges is watching CNB, where the news of the White house invasion is just breaking. And the world's worst and most bored reporter is on the scene. I suspect the entire point of this scene is for Hodges to learn that the Veep is now in charge of whether or not to order an assault. Either that, or to give a producer's girlfriend a speaking part.
Laptop Guy informs Juma that there are cameras in the chandelier over their heads, and even shows him the live feed from that camera on his laptop. I can only assume that the camera isn't connected to anything that records or plays back footage, because if it did, of course the Secret Service would be checking it to see if Taylor made it into the lockdown. Rather than waving at himself on Laptop Guy's monitor, Juma looks over to where Olivia and Aaron are being led in. He whispers, "Get me a chair." Not... the comfy chair?!
Inside the lockdown room, Taylor is pacing around. Kiefer's back in the supply cabinet, so Taylor's the first one to notice that a chair has been positioned in front of the camera outside. "He spotted the cameras," she tells Kiefer. As he joins her to watch, Juma stands behind the chair and has Laptop Guy patch him in on audio. Juma tells her that it's good that she's been watching them. "There's something else I think you should see," he says. And with that, Olivia is brought over to sit in the chair, while Juma produces a giant bush knife. Even Kiefer looks worried now. Juma cups Olivia's chin and threatens, "If you don't open the door, I'm going to cut out your daughter's eyes one by one. And then I'm going to cut out her tongue, and then her head." He's going to cut out her head? "Mom, don't listen!" Olivia screams predictably, until Juma claps a hand over her mouth. Juma admits that Taylor can't be sure he won't kill her anyway. "All you need to know is that I most certainly will kill her if you don't." And he presses the point of the knife against Olivia's cheek. Seriously, is no one outside patched into this? You'd think they'd at least be curious about what's going on in here.