So this Sunday night after the Super Bowl, FOX brings back “24” as “24: Legacy.” I enjoyed the first episode quite a lot. In fact, it was the best drama pilot I saw last May (in my humble opinion).
With legendary shows like “24,” we are always a decision or two away from going down a different path.
I thought I would share with you a decision that we had to make about the final episode of the first season.
This is from a piece I did on the conclusion of the series for my blog, Revenge of the Masked Scheduler:
As the season was winding down we faced a pivotal decision … whether or not to have Nina Myers (the first in a long line of CTU moles) kill Jack’s wife Teri in the final episode of the season. As would be expected there were differing opinions. This show broke so many rules, how can we not end it in an unexpected and shocking way? Will fans of the show come back next season if we do not give them a satisfying upbeat ending?
RELATED: Eric Carter is the best thing to happen to ’24’ since Jack Bauer
Remember, “24” in its first season was, at its center, a family drama about Jack looking for his kidnapped daughter Kim. We shot two endings. We were in the scheduling room when [programming EVP] David Nevins said we needed to make a decision and lock the final episode. David, [network head] Gail (Berman) and I looked at the alternatives. I believe we went around the building and found some fans of the show and let them look at the alternatives. It was decided that, in the spirit of the show, Teri Bauer would be killed. I think that was the most pivotal decision in the history of “24.”
I remember the night of the finale watching the episode at home with the Masked Wife. She was a huge fan of the show and she never wanted to know what was going to happen. I had no idea how she would react, but I respect her TV instincts (an excellent picker of hits on all the networks). The scene came on and I’m waiting for the explosion of outrage. She shed some tears, looked at me and said “Well that’s the show.” Jack was on his path and we had a hit on our hands.
I won’t say how my colleagues voted, but the vote was two to one and I voted “kill.” You can read the full post at maskedscheduler.com.