Chaos

Another show that chronicles the collapse of bureucracy, like 24: Chaos. The show takes place in the CIA: a new recruit joins a tightly-knit team, and we see bureucratic office politics, risk averseness of the old order. 24 showed the collapse of the system using serious acting, action and irony [1], Chaos does it with all of the above, plus comedy.

This exchange between new recruit and his office buddy displays the spirit of the show:

OB: Here is your PC. It comes with Windows 97 installed.

NR: You are kidding me right?

OB: You are familiar with the IRS, US Postal Service, FEMA. What do they all have in common?

NR: They’re government-run agencies?

OB: As is the CIA. And when was the last time you walked in the Post Office and shouted “my God I stepped into the future!”.

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[1] The irony of 24 actually was the superhumanness of Jack Bauer. He succeeded in his missions, but his almost superhuman abilities were signalled something else: It took that much more personal effort to cover the shortcomings of the system, and since that kind of ability being a near impossibility in the real world, we conclude that things are not fine. Examples of dysfunction is shown at all levels: in one scene, senator X tells Jack Bauer “son, let the system work / help you”. The man is promptly killed in the next scene, by a terorist.

The message is clear. TARFU, and FUBAR.