"The wire", "The person of interest" and "The Americans" are my 10s. So 24 is a 5. The stories are very interesting, and that is where the 5 points are won. But to stretch 24 episode each season, it makes me feel it is watered down. Also some of the characters are so flawed, both the writing and the performance. I finished season 1 without skipping anything, but Teri and Kim annoyed me to my limit. I was happy to see Teri was killed at the end of the season 1. That is writers' issue to make them so.... On the other hand, the performances of these two characters are so poor. Multiple scenes when they are crying their hearts out, there is not a single drop of tears! Three episodes into season 2, I started to skip any scene that has Kim in there. Her character is so unbelievably annoying and irrelevant. Skipping everything of her does not hurt the story line at all. A new addition of season 2 is Marie, whose performance is just bad especially after she is shot. OMG, who cast her? Sherry Palmer is another one. I am tolerating her because she is in the middle of the plot....... All these make me wonder - do those writers of this show know any normal women in their lives or they are just hurt so badly by some women in their lives?