(Season 7, Episode 2 – “10:00 AM – 11:00 AM” & “11:00 AM – 12:00 PM” – Season Premiere, Part 2)

“You’re running out of time. You don’t have a better option.” – Jack to Larry, when Renee tries to convince Larry to let Jack talk to Tony

Well! I just KNEW that Tony Almeida wasn’t a bad guy, and it turns out I was right. I was whooting! when — amidst Jack’s choke-hold on him — Tony managed to eke out the words “deep sky” and then Jack calls the number and it turns out to be none other than Bill Buchanan!

Partly what I love about this is that we’re all in on the inside story. Even if you didn’t know what “deep sky” meant, you had a feeling that it was some code from back in the day when they were partners. And we know what Jack went through losing Teri way back in season one, and for Tony to bring that up (”Every second you help the government, you’re spitting on Teri’s grave!”) … well, he knew that would get Jack up close and personal so he could give him the code words. I really love it when Jack gets a half-an-inch from somebody’s face with his steely eyes and grimace.

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(Season 7, Episode 1 – “8:00 AM – 9:00 AM” and “9:00 AM – 10:00 AM” – Season Premiere)

“What happened to you? What the hell happened to you?” Jack to Tony

How nice to have Jack back. And he has a kick-ass female partner, to boot.

But first, he’s being grilled by a grand jury for working over all those poor terrorists and using “extreme interrogation methods.” Plus, Jack took the fall for all of CTU’s mistakes, so that’s figuring into it, too. But he doesn’t regret it. He tells Senator Mayer (Kurtwood Smith, the dad from That ’70s Show): ”Please, do not sit there with that smug look on your face and expect me to regret the decisions that I have made. Because, sir, the truth is, I don’t.”

And without further adieu, an FBI agent strides into the room with a subpoena for Jack. Apparently, he’s needed. Of course he is! Because he has to save the world –- AGAIN! And then the stupid government will do more bad stuff to him. For saving the country. AGAIN! It seems like one of these days they’ll realize there wouldn’t even be a country without Jack’s “extreme interrogation methods.”

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8:00p/7:00 Central

• For those who don’t know, Chowder is an animated series on Cartoon Network that premiered as the #1 new show on the network about a year ago. Now, as its second season is under way, it’s time for the first ever half hour Chowder Holiday special. That’s followed by The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack
• Meanwhile, BBC America is taking us inside the Dragon’s Den for more invention madness. Discovery takes us into the world of timber on How Stuff Works, while TruTV looks at more Speeders.
• At 8:15p/7:15 Central, the NFL Network offers up another Thursday spectacle with the Raiders (3-9) taking on the Chargers (4-8). Talk about an amazing and relevant match-up! In fact, fifteen minutes later, you can flip over to HBO for the season finale of De La Hoya/Pacquiao 24/7.
• A list item leads Randy and Earl into the wild to find an old friend who’s living there on NBC’s My Name is Earl. Then, on Kath & Kim, Kath gets drawn into the world of life coach, and guest star, Maya Rudolph when wedding planning stress gets to be too much.
• It’s the fallout of Randy’s ouster on the one-week delayed Survivor: Gabon. I know it was on last week, but clip shows don’t count! Ugly Betty teams up with Amanda for an article for Mode’s website on ABC.
• It’s repeats for FOX and The CW with Kitchen Nightmares and Smallville, the latter featuring Clarks’ first day at the Daily Planet. MyNetwork TV goes with Driving Miss Daisy.

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6:00p/5:00 Central

• Who knew? A new reality competition show! This time it’s E! getting in on the fun with Party Monsters: Cabo. This new show, premiering on a special night and time to ensure no one can find its regular time slot (Tuesdays at 10/9), features nine party planners competing to throw the ultimate A-list shindig.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• While NBC kicks off another Football Night in America and ABC settles down with some more of America’s Funniest Home Videos, CNN’s Anderson Cooper sits down with Olympic medalist Michael Phelps before goldfish America forgets who he is on CBS’s 60 Minutes.

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7:00p/6:00 Central

• Tonight, learn the true story of how a nuclear facility was almost robbed of weapons grade uranium straight from the mouth of the man who thwarted the attempt and nearly died in the effort on CBS’s 60 Minutes.
• NBC, meanwhile, preps you for tonight’s NFL match-up with Football Night in America. But most of us will be watching the 2008 American Music Awards Red Carpet Live! special on ABC, won’t we?
• FOX throws up an hour of King of the Hill repeats, first offering the recent installment where Bobby is treated like he’s “special,” following with the residents of Arlen fighting the construction of a “McMansion.”
• The CW is scrapping that whole failed Sunday night lineup plan, but tonight you can catch one last week of reruns of those shows you didn’t watch the first time around. Next week the new Sunday night is anchored around a major movie, and features repeats of the first seasons of Everybody Hates Chris, The Game, The Drew Carey Show and Jericho, surprisingly enough.

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MTV

5:00p/4:00 Central

• Hey, The CW’s 4Real is M.I.A. tonight. Get it? Because they feature hip-hop artist M.I.A. heading to Liberia to meet the woman who founded a youth organization trying to bring some hope and happiness to the embattled children of the region.

7:00p/6:00 Central

• While CBS is bringing you President-Elect Obama’s first interview since he won the election on a new 60 Minutes, NBC is kicking off another Football Night in America.

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MTV

8:00p/7:00 Central

• FOX offers up a two-fer with Kitchen Nightmares, while CBS’s Survivor: Gabon offers up a merge (maybe) and a reality show twist. The NFL offers a special Thursday night game at 8:15p/7:15 Central with NFL: Broncos at Browns on the NFL Network.
• Ugly Betty tries really hard to get the attention of her neighbor on ABC, while on The CW’s Smallville, Kara returns when Clark and Lois wind up in the Phantom Zone.
• NBC’s “Must See” Thursday starts with My Name is Earl with Jane Seymour guesting as herself. Then, on Kath & Kim has Kim convincing Kath that she knows nothing about her fiance.

9:00p/8:00 Central

• NBC’s comedies continue with The Office. Tonight, the team is shocked by the results of the annual customer survey. On 30 Rock, Oprah Winfrey guests.
• FOX is back with another Kitchen Nightmares, while reality is all new with BBC America’s Dragon’s Den, Discovery’s Destroyed in Seconds, History’s Ancient Discoveries and Spike TV’s TNA: Impact!
• The doctors of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy get competitive when a solo surgery is up for grabs. Alternately, on The CW’s Supernatural the boys find a wishing well that really works. Or, Grissom turns to Lady Heather for help on CBS’s CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.

10:00p/9:00 Central

• 50 Cent, who’s managed to parlay his street background and rap success into a megamillion dollar business enterprise, offers up the opportunity to get a $100,000 investment from him into someone’s vision on MTV’s 50 Cent: The Money and the Power.
• BET’s American Gangster looks at Cornell Jones while VH1’s Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew keeps trying to help Jeff Conaway.
• Other reality includes new installments of TLC’s LA Ink, Bravo’s Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style and Sundance’s Iconoclasts with Bill Maher and Clive Davis.
• The team of CBS’s Eleventh Hour faces a positive viral outbreak, while Sam faces a potential race riot on Life on Mars, over on ABC.
• NBC’s ER moves on without creator Michael Crichton, who may not have been actively involved but it was still his baby.
• FX offers up a new It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, followed by Testees. At the half hour Comedy Central is all new with The Sarah Silverman Program.

11:00p/10:00 Central

• HBO keeps heading toward fight night with a new Calzaghe/Jones 24/7.