Each season covers 24 consecutive hours using the real time method of narration, which is emphasized by the display of split screens and a digital clock.

[3] Furthermore, the action component shows Bauer using people on both sides of the law in his attempts to prevent terrorist attacks and bring down those responsible, sometimes at great personal expense.

These attacks include presidential assassination attempts, bomb detonations, bioterrorism, cyberwarfare, as well as conspiracies that involve government and corporate corruption.

To emphasize the real-world flow of events, a clock is prominently displayed on-screen at certain points during the show, and there is regular use of split screens, a technique used to depict multiple scenes occurring simultaneously.

While Bauer does have the utmost respect for most of his colleagues, friends and family members, he always believes himself to know how to provide the best way of saving innocent lives and/or achieving his own sense of justice, often being proven right when taking action.

Counter Terrorist Unit Agent Jack Bauer's objective is to protect presidential candidate Senator David Palmer from an assassination attempt and rescue his own family from those responsible, the Drazen syndicate, led by Serbian war criminal Victor Drazen, and his sons, Alexis and Andre, who seek retribution for Jack and Palmer's involvement with a covert American mission in the Balkans.

Season 2, set 18 months later, begins at 8:00 a.m. Jack must stop a nuclear bomb from detonating in Los Angeles, then assist the now-President Palmer in proving who is responsible for the threat and avoid war between the U.S. and three Middle Eastern countries.

Season 3, set three years later, begins at 1:00 p.m. Jack must infiltrate a Mexican drug cartel led by Ramon and Hector Salazar, to seize a deadly virus being marketed underground.

Later, Jack is forced to choose between those he loves and national security when the Chinese set their sights on sensitive circuitry that could trigger a war between the U.S. and Russia.

Redemption, set three-and-a-half years later, begins at 3:00 p.m. Jack finds himself caught up in a military coup d’état in the fictional African nation of Sangala.

Season 7, set 65 days after the end of Redemption, begins at 8:00 a.m. CTU is disbanded, and Jack is assisted by the FBI and covert operatives when the firewall for America's federal computer infrastructure is breached by the same people responsible for a conflict in Sangala.

She is later blackmailed by Starkwood, a fictional private military company led by its CEO, Jonas Hodges, in an attempt to release biological weapons on U.S. soil.

Jack later seeks retribution for personal losses suffered, including the death of ex-FBI Special Agent Renee Walker, after former President Charles Logan convinces Taylor to cover up these crimes to protect the peace agreement.

[14] They met the next day at the International House of Pancakes in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, to discuss the idea of this action-espionage series that used the format of real time to create dramatic tension with a race against the clock.

Kevin Reilly, President of Entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Company added, "We are extremely proud of this groundbreaking series and will be forever thankful to Kiefer, the producers, the cast and crew for everything they've put into 24 over the years.

[19][20] Immediately prior to 24, series co-creators Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran executive-produced La Femme Nikita for its entire five-year run on USA Network.

Several actors featured in 24, such as Xander Berkeley, Glenn Morshower, Wendy Crewson, Timothy Carhart, Jürgen Prochnow, Tom Everett and Spencer Garrett also appeared in the film Air Force One.

[41] Sutherland described the film production as "exciting" because, "It's going to be a two-hour representation of a 24 hour day, so we were not going to be restrained by the real time aspect of the TV show.

[47][48] At the 2011 Television Critics Association press tour, former showrunner Gordon stated that "conversations are definitely happening" about the film, and that they are just looking for the right script before moving forward.

[59] The following week, Fox officially announced 24: Live Another Day, a limited-run series of twelve episodes that would feature the return of Jack Bauer.

In January 2015, another installment of the franchise was pitched by executive producers Howard Gordon, Evan Katz, Manny Coto and Brian Grazer, which would revolve around a stable of supporting characters rather than Kiefer Sutherland in the lead role.

[71] In January 2016, Fox announced it had ordered a pilot for a spin-off series titled 24: Legacy, which would feature a new cast, with no returning characters except Tony Almeida (Carlos Bernard).

[113] Dennis Haysbert's "commanding" performance as David Palmer was hailed by critics, with some believing the character helped the campaign of Barack Obama.

The frequent use of ticking time bomb scenarios in storylines, as well as the main character, Jack Bauer portraying torture as normal, effective, acceptable and glamorous,[124][125][126] was criticized by human rights activists, military officials, and experts in questioning and interrogation,[127][128] with concerns raised that junior U.S. soldiers were imitating techniques shown on the series.

"[136] Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, during a discussion about terrorism, torture and the law, took offense at a Canadian judge's remark that Canada, "thankfully", did not consider what Jack Bauer would do when setting policy.

The critic went on to say that villain Charles Logan encapsulated all that "Jack and 24 fought against for so long: political corruption and cowardice, narcissism and megalomania, ruthlessness and stupidity.

"[143] One reviewer for BuddyTV said that "I'll remember the legacy of 24 as an action drama that redefined what serialized television can do and provided many shocking twists and turns along the way—the biggest one being the very real impact the show had on American foreign policy.

The series enlivened the country's political discourse in a way few others have, partly because it brought to life the ticking time-bomb threat that haunted the Cheney faction of the American government in the years after 9/11.

This is a masterpiece of episodic storytelling and continues to deal with the bright color issues in America's war on terror with a degree of difficulty that is off today's television charts.

Powerful and involving, with characters who are more fully realized with each season, the show still has viewers on the edge of their seats, both riveted to the action and begging, pleading for a modicum of relief.