24 Iconic Moments That Have Defined 24 So Far

9. Jack Is Abducted By The Chinese (Season 5, Episode 24)

One of the unfortunate by-products of Jack Bauer being lured back out into the field in season five was that this also put him on the radar of the Chinese, who were still mad as Hell about his raid on the Chinese consulate near the end of day four. As season five aired, there was constant fan speculation about the Chinese returning to take Bauer, and this infused the final episode with even more tension than normal, as fans sat on tenterhooks waiting for the consulate's Head of Security Cheng Zhi to show his weaselly face once again. Well, the fans were right, and just when it seemed as though every crisis had been averted, Jack ended up being kidnapped in the final minutes of the episode. We see Jack beaten and bloodied in a room, as Cheng reminds him of everything he apparently did. Jack asks to be killed, but Cheng says he's far too useful for that, as we cut outside the building to reveal Jack's location: on a huge boat, headed for China. While it was expected that Cheng would return to grab Jack, few expected that they'd end up hauling him all the way back to China: after all, how would this affect the real-time aspect of season six? Or would the whole season be set in China? In reality, Jack was arranged to be handed back to the Chinese in the days before season six began, with him stepping off the plane back on US soil just as the season starts.

8. Jack Kills Curtis (Season 6, Episode 4)

Easily one of the most ridiculous and loathed creative decisions in the history of 24 was Curtis Manning's death at the beginning of season six. Much had been made of Curtis' rocky past with Hamri Al-Assad, a terrorist who had killed several of his men when stationed in Iraq. Now helping Jack and granted a pardon for his crimes by President (Wayne) Palmer, this severely agitated Curtis to the point that he took the law into his own hands and decided that Assad should die. Jack tried to talk Curtis down, but to no avail, so he took the drastic decision to shoot him in the neck, killing him pretty much instantly, to the disgust of 24 fans the world over. Considering that many had thought Curtis to be the natural successor to Jack if Kiefer Sutherland ever left the show (and affectionately nicknamed "Blackjack Bauer"), to eliminate him in such a pointless and lame fashion felt like a betrayal of an otherwise brilliant character.