TV Week: Survivors and 24: Redemption

As in the '70s original, a virulent new strain of 'flu decimates the world's population, forcing a disparate group of people together to survive the post-apocalyptic world that follows -- empty streets, deserted motorways, chirping of birds. It sounds like heaven. Until you notice the dead bodies. The scenario is old, familiar, even comforting in a disquieting way. Humans have always had a weird fascination with their own demise, and Survivors taps into recent fears of bird 'flu and gets the jump on 2012's significance to the Mayan calendar (i.e, that's where it ends).

After a promising feature-length start (30 minutes of pre-apocalyptic tension and chaos, 30-minutes of post-apocalyptic disbelief and struggle, 30-minutes to get the incongruent characters together), the second episode wasn't quite as neat. This is probably down to the one significant drawback most end-of-the-world stories face: once The End comes, everything else can seem like an unwanted epilogue. With no chance of a magical reset button (we hope), it's basically a survivalist drama on a huge scale, relying on its characters and "what if?" scenario to hold your attention.

With no obvious antagonists to grapple with (like bloodthirsty zombies or man-eating Triffid plants), Survivors was always a more realistic take on the sub-genre. Already we've seen gawky thugs brandishing guns, asserting their masculinity on those clinging to moral values that can't be enforced by the law anymore. This remains an interesting place to explore the human condition, despite being a story audiences have seen many, many times before (I Am Legend, Dawn Of The Dead, to name but two). And at least a few of the characters have connected well (Joseph's good guy, Beesley's bad boy). The presence of creepy scientists quarantined in a secret laboratory (who appear to have released the virus on purpose) was also a welcome layer under the surface. TUESDAYS, BBC1, 9PM.

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Fans of Jack Bauer have had it tough in recent years. The awful sixth season of 24 was condemned as trash even by diehard fans, and then the seventh season was postponed because of the US writers' strike. 24: REDEMPTION, marketed as a reward for fans' patience and loyalty, was a feature-length special set between seasons 6 and next January's season 7.

Here, we found Jack living in the fictional African nation of Sangala, having walked the Earth for many years, like Caine in Kung Fu. He's helping an old Special Forces friend called Carl Benton (Robert Carlyle) with his African orphanage, as it comes under attack from Sangala rebels who want to recruit and brainwash children into becoming soldiers, to overthrow the government. Of course, they didn't bank on the presence of one-man army Jack Bauer -- a Rambo for our times, only with a bigger death toll to his credit. Cue the explosions, gunfire, leg strangulations, machete burns, chest stabbings, chopper attacks and dynamite flinging. In real-time, naturally, as Jack and Carl try to shepherd the kids to the US Embassy for evacuation by helicopter...

Enjoyable guff, particularly for fans anxious for another dose of Bauer power, but Redemption was a big disappointment considering its huge potential. The action doesn't kick-in 'till the 40-minute mark (a deathly slow trundle by 24 standards), there's never any sense of threat to Jack's life (he's a live-action, indestructible Action Man -- whose facial burn heals within seconds), Carlyle is wasted in what should have been a memorable role as Jack's Irish counterpart, it lifts several ideas and visuals from the movie Blood Diamond, and a US-based subplot (where a female President is about to be sworn into office as the Sangala coup escalates) was distracting, and only existed to lay groundwork for season 7.

Still, Kiefer Sutherland gets a few opportunities to shine (although his shtick of tearing up through a face of grizzled constipation is getting old), a few of the action sequences were fun, and 24 newbies Cherry Jones (President-elect Taylor) and John Voight (a villainous government string-puller) put in small, but compelling performances. There's certainly enough evidence to boost your confidence that season 7 will be a return to form, but this Africa-set preamble lacked the crazy, frenetic, high-octane delirium 24 used to deliver in spades. SUNDAY, SKY1, 10PM.