The BEST seasons of 24
Every season of 24 ever, ranked from best to worst by thousands of votes from fans of the show. The best seasons of 24!
"24" is a TV thriller presented in "real time" with each minute of airtime that corresponds to a minute in the lives of the characters. "24" employs fast-paced and complex stories, and often contains unexpected plot twists. Though each day's events typically revolve around thwarting an impending terrorist attack, each season is made up of various interwoven story threads. These may run for just one hour, but more usually run over several hours. These typically involve investigations of leads on terrorists, tracking suspects, and averting attacks. The exact objective of the day evolves over the course of the season as the antagonists adapt, contingencies arise, and larger scale operations unfold.
#1 - Season 5
First Aired 1/16/2006
The fifth season is set 18 months after season four. Former Counter Terrorist Unit agent Jack Bauer begins the season, working as a day-to-day laborer at an oil refinery under the alias "Frank Flynn" in Mojave, California. On a monumental day in Charles Logan's presidency, an anti-terrorism treaty with Russian President Yuri Suvarov is about to be signed when events take a tragic turn.
#2 - Season 4
First Aired 1/10/2005
The fourth season is set 18 months after season three. Jack is now working for Secretary of Defense James Heller after being fired by CTU due to his heroin addiction. As the day begins, he gets caught up in an elaborate terrorist plot which involves James Heller and his daughter Audrey Raines.
#3 - Season 2
First Aired 10/30/2002
The second season is set 18 months after season one. The season's main plot follows the work of now-U.S. President David Palmer and agent Jack Bauer to stop terrorists from detonating a nuclear bomb in Los Angeles. Introduced into the situation is Kate Warner, a woman who ends up getting vital information related to CTU's mission.
#4 - Season 1
First Aired 11/7/2001
Counter-terrorism agent Jack Bauer attempts to stop the assassination of United States Senator David Palmer on the day of the California presidential primary, while those spearheading the assassination plot stop at nothing to exact revenge on Bauer and Palmer.
#5 - Season 3
First Aired 10/29/2003
The third season is set 3 years after season two. It takes place primarily in Los Angeles but also in northern Mexico when Jack Bauer meets a family of drug dealers. Throughout the day, Jack Bauer and President David Palmer attempt to stop the release of a deadly virus by Stephen Saunders – a former government agent.
#6 - Season 7
First Aired 1/12/2009
The seventh season takes place 46 months after season six and two months after 24: Redemption. Jack Bauer is on trial for alleged crimes he committed while working for CTU. Senator Blaine Mayer has disbanded CTU and strengthened the policies of Allison Taylor's administration against torture. Bauer is brought into another counter-terrorist operation when FBI agent Renee Walker interrupts the hearing to tell him about an imminent threat.
#7 - Live Another Day
First Aired 5/6/2014
Four years after the events of Day 8, Jack Bauer remains a federal fugitive. Meanwhile, amid growing concerns over the use of US military drones in combat, President James Heller pays a historic visit to London to negotiate a treaty to continue their basing on British soil. Having heard rumors of an imminent attack against Heller, Bauer resurfaces in the city, where he is apprehended by the CIA and forcibly recruited into joining their investigation, with the promise of amnesty in return for his co-operation. As forces within the White House conspire against him, Bauer realizes that the complexity of the plot extends beyond a presidential assassination, and that the consequences of a successful attack will alter the course of history. With the help of a disgraced CIA agent and a hacker collective preaching free information, he must confront an unseen enemy whose personal vendetta threatens to push the world to the brink of war.
#8 - Season 8
First Aired 1/18/2010
Set 18 months after season 7, the story arc involves Jack Bauer contending with assassination threats made during a peace conference between President of the United States Allison Taylor and President Omar Hassan of the fictional Islamic Republic of Kamistan (IRK). The season is set in New York City, with CTU's New York City Office having been re-activated,
#9 - Season 6
First Aired 1/15/2007
The sixth season is set 20 months after season five. Over the last 11 weeks before Day 6, the United States has been targeted coast-to-coast in a series of suicide bombings. A man named Abu Fayed agrees to give the U.S. the location of Hamri Al-Assad, the supposed terrorist mastermind of these attacks, in exchange for former CTU Agent Jack Bauer with whom he has a personal grudge.