24 is revolutionary show that used to be considered to be one of the best shows in television. Surprisingly, just like Justified, Deadwood or Twin Peaks, it slowly started fading away from the public eye. I guess TV series don't have the same guaranteed timeless popularity that movies have. Anyway, this is one of the first shows that started the golden age of television, and it deserves to be regarded as a great piece of art.

The formula of the show is both it's biggest strength and weakness. The episodes running in real time allowed some incredibly exhilarating moments, but unfortunately you need to add a lot of filler to cover the time, because there are 24 episodes per season. The inability of the show to break away from the formula was certainly it's greatest weakness. Because of the issue of having to fit 24 episodes with content, writers constantly had to come up with sub plots, some infamously bad (I'm looking at you Kim, and at your amnesia, Terry), some really good (Martha Logan was just perfect).

Now, I know, I sound like I'm complaining a lot, but for the amount of restrictions and episodes they had, they did an incredible job. This formula, on paper, only works for a miniseries of sorts, but somehow they managed to really improve upon it and stretch for 5 beautifully crafted seasons.

The directing, the acting, the character development, the themes that surprisingly still hold up. Many people nowadays tend to look at it harshly because of its controversial use of torture and some choices, but it is seriously surprisingly more thematically reach and complex than it seems from an outside perspective. Jack Bauer may do terrible things to achieve some good, but the cost is always incredibly high. One of the best things about this show is definitely the emotional downfall of Jack, who slowly breaks down season by season losing his humanity. It's a really fascinating watch, something that I never thought I'll see in a Fox TV show.

Obviously, I can't ignore one of the most important and best aspects of the show - performance of Kiefer Sutherland. He manages to deliver an absolutely breathtaking performance from start to end, that brings a complex character like Jack Bauer to life. The cast constantly shifts from season to season, and for the most part majority of performances are absolutely solid. Dennis Haysbert, Carlos Bernard, Mary Lynn Rajsjkub

Unfortunately, it ran it's course. As I said before, the formula was really tricky. After phenomenal first 5 seasons, the last three felt a lot like a rehash. They were still quite entertaining, but the energy and uniqueness was gone. Fortunately, at least in my opinion, it ended with great miniseries, Live Another Day. The ending that many didn't like, but I loved, because no matter how depressing it was, it definitely was as fitting.

10 definitely seems like bit too much after all my criticisms, but no art form is perfect, it's the impact of it on an individual that counts. This show pulled all my emotional strings, and I will always remember it fondly. It may not be perfect, but damn it had a heart.