I’m still having trouble coming to terms with the fact that Tony Almeida is a bad guy. It really hit me when Jack told Chloe that Tony was responsible for the attacks, and she couldn’t believe it.
“The Tony that you knew, he doesn’t exist anymore,” said Jack. “He tried to kill me. He betrayed us all. You, me, and Bill.”
And Chloe said, “I knew he felt bad over Michelle, but …”
Yeah, that’s my thought, too. I mean, here’s a guy who pretty much devoted his life to protecting the country, up until the time his wife was killed in an explosion, a horrible tragedy that was the result of their chosen professions. Was that enough to turn him against everything he once knew was right and honorable?
Now he’s not only involved with terrorists, but a woman who is clearly on the wrong side of the law in a big way. Well, I shouldn’t say “clearly,” because you just never know with this show. But that’s how it appears. Tony said to her, referring to using the canister now rather than turning it over to someone who may take a while to use it, “You finish your enemy off when he’s down. You don’t let them get back up and re-load.”
Maybe I ask too much of my TV characters, but I’d like to think that someone like Tony wouldn’t go so completely wrong. Bad things happen to good people, but it doesn’t necessarily turn those people to the dark side.
I’m also depressed about the fact that Jack is starting to lose it, yelling at Janice that President Palmer recommissioned the CTU servers and if she has a problem with that, she should get out! Of course, he meant to say President Taylor. Chloe is worried, too.
I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this week’s episode of 24.
Clacked by Jane Boursaw 
on Apr 29, 2009 @ 16:00 EST5EDT
The more I think about it, the more it feels like there was a big drop in quality with everything that was produced after the strike. The first 8 episodes of this season were pre-strike and fantastic. But ever since Dubaku’s plot was finished in hour 10, the storylines have felt much more forces and rushed. Redemtion was also post-strike and felt a bit iffy.
Tony’s wife being killed was not due to their (former) professions. The hits were ordered on Tony, Michelle, Chloe and David Palmer solely because they were close to Jack personally. And they were ordered by the legitimate President in office. I can see how a lot of people in the 24 universe would think that was enough to kill the man Tony once was.
However, this episode was the first time I thought maybe Tony was still on the page with Bill’s plan to ferret out the entire conspiracy. That he would kill any number of innocent FBI agents and civilians to bring down the Group members and save the country. He was oddly and blatantly incurious about who the members of Cara’s group were, as if he couldn’t care less. And by pushing them to strike today, Tony increased their risk of exposure, as one Group member pointed out.
Whether Tony is good or evil, I think he’s just playing Cara, and can’t feel anything for any woman after Michelle’s death. And thanks to that relationship, he now knows that there are twelve top-level members of the Group since she trusted him enough to show him her laptop screen. Also, she pushed Alan to nudge the Group in the right direction because of Tony.