24

What a difference a day makes. Winner of an Emmy Award for outstanding writing, this groundbreaking series rocks around the clock as federal agent Jack Bauer (Emmy nominee and Golden Globe-winner Kiefer Sutherland in a career-reviving role) races to foil an assassination attempt on an African-American presidential candidate, a plot which will embroil (not always convincingly) Bauer's estranged wife and daughter. The gimmick here is that each episode unfolds in real-time over the course of a single hour. Those who couldn't make time for this series' original run or subsequent marathons will appreciate the opportunity to view it at their own pace, not to mention the fact that in light of the stunning plot twist in the penultimate episode, a repeat watch of the series allows viewers to trace how the groundwork was laid for the shocking payoff. Kudos go to Penny Johnson Jerald (a dramatic departure from The Larry Sanders Show) as the candidate's ambitious wife, who makes Hillary Clinton and Lady Macbeth look like June Cleaver. And even with his outrageous accent, Dennis Hopper is always a welcome villain. Aside from an "alternate ending" and a short "introduction" by Sutherland oddly placed at the end of the series, the set is extra-less. Recommended. (K. Lee Benson)