The series premiere won outstandingly positive reviews from the television critical community . The premiere episode was cited by '' The New York Times '' as a " Critic 's Pick " by Caryn James , who noted that it was " a drama sleek , suspenseful and absorbing enough to overcome its blatant gimmick " . She added that of the 2001 fall season 's new government series that " '' 24 '' is the most daring and promising " and that " Mr. Sutherland is an unexpectedly sympathetic hero " . Ai n't It Cool News gave the premiere episode five stars , saying it features " Loads of edgy , complex , compelling characters . Intricate , unpredictable plotting . Lightning-like pacing . A stellar cast . A near-constant , electric undercurrent of sex . It keeps asking questions you ’ll be dying to see answered . And , perhaps best of all , it feels like no TV show you ’ve ever seen . " '' Time '' magazine praised the series , saying " Forget sleeping through this one -- you wo n't even want to blink . '' 24 '' is the most distinctive , addictive new TV series this season . As an old-fashioned thriller , it 's relentless , tense and deliciously paranoiac , with more twists than a Twizzler . But it 's also boldly different . Most notably , there 's its clever visual signature : picture-in-picture screens that show two , three and even four different scenes simultaneously . " '' Time '' also noted that " The show takes to the next level the trend of serial story ' arcs ' , which began with '80s dramas like '' Hill Street Blues '' and '' Wiseguy '' and which continues on '' The West Wing '' and '' The Sopranos '' . " '' Time '' also praised the performances of Kiefer Sutherland and Dennis Haysbert , saying that " It helps that there 's a strong cast driving the train . Haysbert is commanding , if a tad underutilized in the pilot , as an idealist with a dangerous secret . And Sutherland plays the gravel-voiced Bauer with an assurance that belies his teen-movie-star past ; his overstressed agent is stalwart but weary , a haunted spook . " TV Barn called the first episode " not to be missed " , adding that " Although there really are only two main story lines , each episode has no fewer than six stories to keep track of , full of suspense and action-packed ( without seeming like a big-bang action movie ) . There 's a lot going on in '' 24 '' , but you have to pay attention to truly appreciate it . I predict '' 24 '' will have a lot of viewers ' undivided attention this fall . " Joel Surnow and Robert Cochran won the Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series award at the 54th Primetime Emmy Awards . Stephen Hopkins was also nominated for Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series for his directorial work on this episode . Hopkins was also nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Drama Series at the Directors Guild of America Awards 2001
54th Primetime Emmy Awards
54th Primetime Emmy Awards
12:00 a.m. – 1:00 a.m.