Customer Reviews

24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU

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3 star:		(1)
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"24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU," is a fictional work-based upon Fox's critically-acclaimed drama series "24."

BACKGROUND:

For those unfamiliar with 24 (shame on you!!!), the plot is basically about a government agent named Jack Bauer who is assigned to a mission to protect a Presidential candidate, Senator David Palmer, from an assassination attempt. In the midst of his assignment, Bauer finds himself drawn into a very deep, and very personal plot that traces its roots to a failed mission he was assigned to a few years previous. The men he was sent to take out are out to exact revenge on both he and David Palmer, the man who authorized the mission.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

"24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU," basically picks up where the 1st Season leaves off as Jack and his CTU comrades testify before a special House sub-committee assigned to ascertain the truth about the events that took place on the day of the California Presidential-primary. The book recounts in great detail the events the took place that day (as seen on the show). Beyond that though, the book also goes even deeper into the story chronicling the events of Operation Nightfall (Jack's failed mission that led to the Drazen assassination plot) as well as the events that took place immediately in the aftermath of Season One. Aside from testimony from Jack and Tony Almeida the book also includes numerous character profiles (many taken from the 24 website and many seen for the first time in the book) plus other records such as autopsy reports, news statements, police statements and other official records.

THE COMPLETE PICTURE (?????)

This book is definitely the perfect companion to the first season. It definitely answers many of the lingering questions that viewers may have had after watching the first season (such as why did Gaines try to kill Nina if they were on the same side?). The books also stands alone from Season Two. Reading this book will not give you any particular insight into the events of Season 2. However, I can say this though, after reading this book you do come to realize one thing. Well two things actually:

1. The plot in 24 against Jack and Palmer runs VERY deep, more than you'll ever know from watching BOTH Seasons 1 and 2.

2. The writers of the show are probably the best writing team there is on television today

I'm very much looking forward to seeing how the plot thread lines connect even more in Season 3.

Tick, tick, tick, tick...

Total Read Time: 8 hours, spread across three evenings

Must Read (for fans of the show)

The first season of "24" was a ground-breaking achievement. Not only did define a whole new storytelling theme (the real time plot developments of the day each hour in each episode), but it also provided some of the most compelling action and drama to make network television. The story of Counter-Terrorist Unit (CTU) agent Jack Bauer and his day-long quest to prevent the assassination of presidential candidate David Palmer (and protect the lives of his wife and daughter) are well known. The effects and consequences of the events that came from this day are also relatively well known to fans of the series. One can't help but think that there was more to the story of the first season than just what was shown on screen. Thanks to Marc Cerasini, "24: Findings at CTU" provides the `rest of the story'.

While it has become commonplace to provide sourcebooks for various popular TV shows, Cerasini departs from the regular canned diet of character bios and episode guides and provides and unique look at the events of "24". "Findings at CTU" provides the `declassified' documents of the Congressional investigation into the events the day of the California presidential primary. Personal backgrounds of the main characters come to the forefront, but so do the personal histories of the smallest bit players. We find out more about Ira Gaines and Jamey Farrell. We find out how Palmer's own staffer became intimately involved with one of his assassins. Greater background is given to the mission that Jack went on and Palmer authorized to kill Victor Drazen, which led to Drazen seeking revenge against the two.

The wealth of information available in "Findings at CTU" is considerable. Admittedly, if one breaks it down to its basest elements, this is still an episode guide with character biographies. Yet, the format and depth of the information provided takes it well beyond the conventional sourcebook.

I had a lot of questions when I saw the season finale of 24 (first season). I thought that a lot of things didn't make sense, but this book helps you understand. The book is written as if it were real. Jack Bauer is being interrogated by the Congress and they ask details of the events of season one. Each chapter starts with something similar to the show: "The following testimony by federal agent Jack Bauer covers the events that ocurred between 12:00am and 1:00am on the day of the California presidential primary". EAch chapter covers the same events of season one, told by Jack Bauer himself.

The book has articles from (fake) newspapers that covered the events of season one. You find out more about Sherry and David Palmer divorce, you find out more about details of "Operation Nightfall", you find out more about Nina Myer's actions, etc. Buy this book only if you are a big, big fan of the show.

Twenty-Four was first out of the gate with innovative plots, innovative camera shots, innovative scripts - and, it was all done supremely well.
This series appeals to people who see the possibilities of cinema as literature; there's a LOT that was going on behind the scenes, and a LOT of questions were raised by the series.
To those who do not function at that level, it was still a great series, one that kept unfolding with greater depth, breadth, and complexity.
This book is so damn useful - VERY well written, good detail, in a fast, easy to use style that fills in all of the blanks the show left in place.
Just buy it, THEN get the Series 1 DVD's.
All will be revealed.

Though I had watched the first season of "24" on TV, I made sure to watch all 24 episodes straight through on DVD before I read this book. I'm very glad that I did; this book answered many of the questions I had about events in the first season without sounding too contrived. I would not recommend this book to anyone who has not watched the show, obviously. But if you saw all or most of Season One, then I would highly recommend this book. Most of the attempts at humor fall far short (perhaps intentionally), but the wealth of information contained in this book offsets the bad jokes.

As the follow up top last year's much acclaimed hit-series "24", "24: The House Subcommittee's Findings at CTU" is a great companion to hooked-on watchers. As an avid "24" viewer I found many loose-ends and things that never made sense (i.e. Whatever happened to Mandy? and What was Jack's Operation Nightfall all about?). The book explains them through a "report" filed by the House of Representatives. Supposively, after "24" took place Jack Bauer and Tony Almeida, among others, were subpoenaed to speak at an investigation regarding the events that day. Jack recounts the entire day in his point-of-view. It is very interesting but what surprized me was that Nina Meyers and George Mason never spoke. Besides that I recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a fun read.

I was somewhat skeptical about this book since it's a fictional title about a fictional show, but being such a huge fan of 24, I had to take the plunge. I am so glad I did! The book is basically a fictional account of what happened in the year and a half between the first and second seasons. It is presented as a transcript of a Grand Jury trial in which Jack and many of the key characters testified. There is also a lengthy section in which Jack and otherts give their accounts of everything that occured in those first 24 hours. This is a perfect episode recap for those many fans who got into the show during the second season and need to be caught up and don't want to bother watching the entire first season (although it's out on DVD and is some of the best TV I have ever seen). I would recomend this book to all but those who are expecting the typical promotional companion book: YOU WON"T BE GETTING IT!

Anyone who enjoys this show will love this book. The book is about Jacks testimony about the events of that day as well as detailed information on all the key players. This book goes into detail the mission he lost all his men in 2 years prior to the California presidential primary. It even tells you what was on Alexis Drazens personal PDA. I highly recommend it if you are a fan of 24.

In my opinion, 24 is the best show on TV right now. It is suspenseful and keeps your interest all through the show. There are also surprise twists throughtout the show. When I watched the first episode, I didn't think that I would watch anymore of it, but I soon realized that after you watch one episode, YOU ARE HOOKED!! If you watch this show...believe me....you won't regret it!!

24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU is an excellent book. It basically explains what happens in the 18 months between season one and season two. You'll want the DVD in order to say "Oh yeah, it DOES fit."

It has some flaws, but not enough to get demoted a star. Buy this and the DVD today!