I thought last night's was a nice improvement on the pace of things. It felt more like the old school 24 that we all love.
As for Jack/Renee, I actually love that story line. He taught her all of the loose canon stuff that she's doing. I think he's met his match. However....since we know that Jack is ultimately a character that cannot know happiness, I'm fairly sure that somewhere this season, Renee is going to die. Or, be tied to everything in the background, and then die. Either way, I think she's a gonner!
Cole/Dana? Yep, pretty annoyed by that one too. And I agree with another poster who said they didn't like the actress. There's something about her that I find really irritating. I'm not a fan. I hope that comes to a close soon, but after last night, looks like we might have more in store (trying not to drop spoilers!).