hopelessly devoted to deconstructing popular culture and conventional wisdom, one blog at a time

Published Tuesday, March 15, 2005 by seanlmccarthy | E-mail this post

24's MUSLIM SUPERHERO: Really, that's the only place for the finale of my favorite Fox thriller to go -- wouldn't you agree? If you haven't been following 24, here is your recap of this season's day-in-the-life of troubled counterterrorist agent Jack Bauer. First, we find out that Arab Muslims have infiltrated the U.S. years ago to create sleeper cells looking to kill the Defense Secretary and melt down our nuclear reactors. Second, the Arab and Muslim communities complain that Fox is insensitive by portraying their group as terrorists in hiding. Third, Fox trots out Kiefer Sutherland during later episodes for an in-show PSA saying, hey, not ALL Arab Muslims are baddy bads. Then last night's hour finds two nameless brothers holed up in the gun shop they inherited from their father, only to have Jack and Co. rumble through their doors. Turns out -- quelle surprise! -- that the brothers are good ol' Muslim boys not meaning no harm and in fact, as they tell Jack, they're "much angrier about these terrorists" than anyone. Alrighty then. So really, the 24 writers have nothing left to prove in their backpedaling except to write in an Arab American Muslim hero who rides in to save the day from Jack and the USA. Wouldn't you agree? I still love 24. Yes, I do.