Tick…tock…tick…tock…

Well folks, it’s official.  The Jack Bauer Power Hour is BACK.

(WARNING: Minor spoiler from Season 8 follows, for those of you who haven’t seen it yet.)

Fox chairman Kevin Reilly has announced that 24 will return in Summer 2014, although not quite as fans would expect.  Last we saw Jack, we watched over Chloe’s shoulder as he bade us farewell over the video feed from a predator drone before he ducked into the shadows to hide once again from an ungrateful world. While the camera faded to black on the small screen, fans were briefly teased with the prospect of a no holds barred feature film aimed at continuing the tragic saga of America’s favorite counter-terrorist agent, but to the relief of those who wondered how anyone could dream of trying to cram the show’s revolutionary real-time 24 hour intensity into the mere 2-3 hours that’s standard for the silver screen, the trail on that lead went cold fast.

In a move all too fitting for the trailblazing series, however, this news came with a twist.  Instead of its trademark two dozen episodes that catalog each hour of a single chaotic day, the revival may end up feeling more like watching a season of modern-day Doctor Who, for showrunner Howard Gordon has only 12 episodes in mind for 24: Live Another Day.

“[Jack] has evolved through the years, and this new and exciting event series format is perfect to tell the next chapter of his story and continue to reflect how the world is changing. Fans can rest assured that the Jack they know and love will be back,” promised Gordon in today’s release.

Will cutting a typical season in half and marketing it as a miniseries bring us back to the edge of our seats without the threat of another snoozefest like Kim being chased by a cougar slowing things down, or would Jack have been better off staying under the radar for good?

 Sound off in the comments below!