The series finale of 24 is nigh, but how will it all play out? Will Jack Bauer finally get unlimited days of rest after eight 24-hour nightmares? Or will his inherent angst finally be his undoing?

Neither, says Howard Gordon, the show's executive producer and showrunner. "One thing we tried and it didn't work was 'happily ever after,'" he says of the series finale. "It just wasn't within Jack's wheelhouse.

"On the other end of the spectrum, Jack would die," he says. "And in its own way, that's equally unsatisfying. Jack has a far more ambiguous, complex and emotional ending this year."