SUPERHUMAN: Jack Bauer (Keifer Sutherland) may stretch the laws of reality, but he also gets shit done.

(Warning: this may contain possible spoilers)

In the cold light of objectivity, it’s hard to call 24 a “good” show. If one were to outline the events that’ve transpired so far, it’d sound straight out of the Hollywood hack manual. At times, it seems like the writers have no idea where their storylines are leading to. The plot twists are often as befuddling as they are unexpected and dramatic. The dialogue is littered with awkward reminders of what’s already happened and references to increments of time. And the show’s protagonist pulls off superhuman feats not seen since Stallone and Schwarzenegger ruled the multiplex.

But when you’re actually watching an hour of 24, none of the flaws matters. The show is pure escapist entertainment. The sheer ridiculousness of the plot, the simplistic caricatures of fanatical evildoers and stubborn bureaucrats, the convenient way CTU agents can catch unbelievable breaks or bungle an apprehension to fit the real-time structure, the constant utterances of “DAMMIT” — it all just adds to the fun. Jack Bauer, Keifer Sutherland’s iconic anti-hero, may stretch the boundaries of plausibility at times, but there’s still something appealingly badass about his ability to simply get shit done.

The fifth season has been hailed in some circles as the show’s best. That’s an exaggeration — the first still packs the most impact and human drama — but Season Five did come closer to providing a consistently enjoyable experience compared with seasons two through four.

Season Two was dragged down by the writers’ cluelessness with regards to Kim Bauer (Elisha Cuthbert), Jack’s daughter, as they tried make her less of a one-note damsel in distress. Her subplot got gradually more annoying, as she escaped her abusive employer, a loner in the woods, a convenience store holdup, and, most infamously, a mountain lion encounter. Season Three featured some juicy new wrinkles, like Jack’s attempt to kick the heroin habit he developed while deep undercover, but ultimately fell victim to the cramming of too many side plots for one season to handle. That goes double for Season Four, which featured a dizzying progression of events that were all part of the terrorists’ one central plan: the stealing of a nuclear warhead.

Season Five improved by sticking to one main storyline — the delusional President Logan’s attempt to secretly use nerve gas on a US city in order to get approval to use the US military to attack a Russian separatist group and secure his oil interests in the Middle East. Everything that happened that season was related to that in some way, be it the deaths of such series stalwarts as President Palmer and Tony Almeida or Bauer’s tearful reconciliation with his estranged girlfriend, Audrey Raines. The focus was refreshing, and the show’s usual dialogue and plausibility issues were much easier to overlook. Plus Chloe O’Brian, the antisocial CTU hacker played by Mary Lynn Rajskub, evolved into a crucial member of the series. She’s the only character capable of providing what could be termed as “intentional comic relief,” and her response to Edgar’s death proved one of the show’s most touching moments yet.

The fifth season ended with Jack going back to China (long story) in the custody of a shadowy organization. The writers could’ve turned the first few episodes of Season Six, which opens this Sunday, January 14 at 8 pm as part of a two-night, four-hour event, into Jack’s daring escape. As cool as that may have been, it appears that the sixth season will not revolve around Jack’s escape from China: based on the trailer that appeared on Fox and the internet back in November, it looks like the US government retrieves Bauer to help foil an attack on several major cities. But that same trailer also makes several references to Jack “sacrificing” himself as part of his efforts, so there could be a grim air to the proceedings. Published reports have also confirmed that Jack’s father (played by James Cromwell) will appear. Logic would suggest that this would be part of a Bauer “making amends” process, but since when has this show followed logic?

At this juncture, given the show’s rediscovered ability to maintain a focused storyline and introduce compelling new characters, it’s safe to give it the benefit of the doubt. That said, it could also be another trip back to some well-worn territory. When you strip away the circumstances of Jack’s appearance, doesn’t it just come down to another day with CTU Los Angeles? With Sutherland signed on for at least two more seasons after six, and a feature-length film in the works, what else can the show do? How many more ways to imperil the US can the writers come up with? How many new horrible misfortunes can befall Jack Bauer? Did the public airing of Sutherland’s contract kill some of the drama, since viewers know he won’t ever die for real on the show?

And does any of that even matter? The show embraces its ridiculousness, and as a result, it may have become immune to creative stagnation.