‘3:00 PM – 4:00 PM’ Plot Summary:
While Senator John Donovan (Jimmy Smits) investigates his campaign manager’s connection to the terrorists and learns of his father’s (Gerald McRaney) secret, Rebecca Ingram (Miranda Otto) and Eric Carter (Corey Hawkins) consider a desperate plan to find the terrorists. Elsewhere, Nicole Carter (Anna Diop) attempts to warn Eric’s brother (Ashley Thomas) and escape.
The latest episode of 24: Legacy may have been more set-up than major plot progression, but there were some signs of improvement. The B plots that have thus far been the show’s greatest weakness received exciting resolutions. Nicole’s stay in Isaac Carter’s camp, which was certainly a poor idea from the beginning, and her conflict with Aisha (Tiffany Hines) thankfully ended on an eventful note that highlighted Nicole’s personality and juxtaposed her methods with those of Eric and Amira (Kathryn Prescott). Nicole may be the Kim Bauer of the series, but at least she isn’t as much a damsel in distress as Kim.
Of course, if Nicole is the show’s requisite loved one in danger, Amira is 24: Legacy’s answer to Dana Walsh (i.e. an incredibly annoying minor villain). While she is still far from likeable, Amira has at least become more sympathetic. Amira enjoyed a good character moment this week as she was forced to decide between having mercy on her ex-boyfriend and remaining committed to her radical cause. Overall, “3:00 PM – 4:00 PM” was full of such moments in which characters were forced to weigh their relationships, values, orders, and opportunities against one another.
Senator John Donovan’s confrontation with his campaign manager and father, Henry, fully captured this narrative consistency and led to this week’s most dramatic scenes. I would have liked to see Henry find a way to keep his son in the dark for a while longer, but the revelation was entertaining nonetheless. 24: Legacy may be a formulaic spin-off that is too reliant on the original series at times, but the fact remains that nothing puts the thrills into a political thriller quite like betrayal. Though John may not be as central to the plot as Eric and Rebecca, his storyline has arguably been the most intriguing over the last two weeks.
With so much time devoted to the B plots and John’s campaign/family drama, Eric and Rebecca took a back seat for much of this episode. However, the two clearly have a big week ahead. Seeing Rebecca and Eric consistently violate protocol and laws has been fun so far, and Eric’s actions at the end of the episode are undoubtedly cause for excitement.
