tv::24 [sheri p/nina m/marie w/kim b: in order of bitchfactor]

http://www.fox.com/24/ "Ah, what do we do about Kim, Jack Bauer's pneumatic young daughter? In Season 1, Kim's presence was integral to the overall story, as her kidnapping and subsequent misadventures were meant to keep Jack distracted from his goal to save Palmer. But the producers could not have her kidnapped and similarly imperiled again, or 24 would start to look like an Edgar Rice Burroughs serial. Bad enough that the show occasionally relies on such melodramatic conventions as an amnesia subplot (perhaps the low point of Season 1) to keep things rolling, or that every suspect Jack interrogates seems to conveniently die just before revealing a great secret, only leaving a single clue that leads Jack to the next suspect. Unfortunately for those focused on concise storytelling, young, male fans of the show (highly desired by advertisers) frequently singled out Kim's tight outfits as a reason to keep tuning in. So, the producers thought, how do we work Kim into the second season? Kim's story arc, as she runs from an overheated domestic situation to an escape from the police to a loony's basement bomb shelter—and worse (almost getting eaten by the aforementioned cougar)—operates almost as the comedy relief for an otherwise unrelentingly grim litany of violence and political turmoil that fills the other major plotlines. As silly as Kim's escapades are on their own, when placed in context, they are almost necessary to put Jack's solemn mission into sharp relief. Of course, you have to treat Kim's story as droll humor for this to work, which may not be the intentions of the producers. If you don't—well, my wife keeps insisting we fast forward past the Kim scenes, because she gets easily frustrated with the younger Bauer's cluelessness. So I'll leave it up to you to decide whether to laugh at Kim or wring your hands in frustration ..." [www.dvdverdict.com] - ... but i still love it [evdm]