At the start of the series, Bauer is already a highly proficient agent with an "ends justify the means" approach. This means that he will usually threaten, disregard and lie to anyone who refuses to cooperate with him. Throughout the series, the plot elements contain both a political thriller and serial drama, with each episode normally ending on a cliffhanger. Furthermore, the action component shows Bauer using people on both sides of the law in his attempts to prevent terrorist attacks and bring down those responsible, sometimes at great personal expense. These attacks include presidential assassination attempts, bomb detonations, bioterrorism, cyberwarfare, as well as conspiracies that involve government and corporate corruption.
At the start of the series, Bauer is already a highly proficient agent with an "ends justify the means" approach. This means that he will usually threaten, disregard and lie to anyone who refuses to cooperate with him. Throughout the series, the plot elements contain both a political thriller and serial drama, with each episode normally ending on a cliffhanger. Furthermore, the action component shows Bauer using people on both sides of the law in his attempts to prevent terrorist attacks and bring down those responsible, sometimes at great personal expense. These attacks include presidential assassination attempts, bomb detonations, bioterrorism, cyberwarfare, as well as conspiracies that involve government and corporate corruption.