A few questions about PRISON BREAK (1 Viewer)

[Mark Silver]

Figured it out.....


The producers chose not to lock up Patricia Wettig to a contract. She is now going to another show and has no current plans to reappear on Prison Break.

The other recast is that of the guy who is Lincoln is supposed to have killed (I forget his name). They are using a different actor then the one they used in last year's season finale. This is not as big a deal because if memory serves, they showed his body, but not his face.

As for writing themselves into a corner, the closing shot of the season had 30 cops and helicopter within 200 yards of these guys. In my mind there better be a really good explanation for how they get away.

 

[JeremyErwin]

They didn't lock the vice president
into a contract? Damn. I really liked the political machinations

 

[Kev_S]

I have to agree, very much like 24 Prison Break has no bad or boring episodes to me, each one seemed remarkably consistent. I got through my DVD set in about 4 days. I guess when your watching on a week to week basis it may be possible to get frustrated.

Roll on season 2, I think I'm going to wait for the DVD set though...the cliff hangers would be too much for me!

 

[Jonny P]

I'm through the first 5 eps and and am really loving this show.

As I said before, I watched the first few episodes last fall and liked it, but sometimes the cliffhanger shows can be frustrating when you have to wait each week.

I'll definitely be TiVo'ing this show this during season 2.

 

[Sylvia*ST]

Prison Break S1 has aged well and I'm enjoying watching the DVDs. I have to say I think the commentary tracks are among the very best ever for a contemporary show--interesting, not much backslapping, and interesting insights to both actors and their characters. Outstanding.

 

[Lou Sytsma]

Where is his head at, at the end of the first season? Is Michael still oblivious to the damage he has caused or does he feel any remorse at all?

 

[jeff lam]

I just watched the last episode on DVD last night both my wife and I were glued to the TV during this series. We found ourselves wanting the watch the next episode even though we knew we couldn't. Outstanding series! I love shows like this though where there is much involved in the behind the plan like Oceans Eleven.

 

[LizH]

The problem I have is this:

• If bank robbery is a FEDERAL crime, what are they doing serving time in a STATE prison?
  
• What are the odds that the two brothers would be sent to the same institution? Would that not raise red flags somewhere?

All of these uncanny coincidences seem a little outlandish for my taste. :frowning:

 

[TravisR]

If you have problems with that then you definitely don't want to watch the show.

 

[MikeMO]

This is arguably the ONLY show I can think of where I can just sit down and thoroughly enjoy it from start to finish without getting upset about realism, plot holes, etc. In that way, it reminds me of when I watched shows as a kid, and if it entertained me, I was immersed.

Conversely, while I love 24, when it deviates into the "ridiculous" it truly bothers me.

I think this is why...24 is a show that originally set itself up to be utterly real. What was happening on the show was serious, interesting, and fairly believable at the get-go of season one. They kept re-interating that it was "all in realtime," and we had split screens and the entire premise of the show to help carry that realistic concept. So when we go from that, to Kim Bauer encountering countless psycho's, or the main character going from mere mortal to superhero over the course of seasons, or characters getting to and from places in L.A in 10 minutes, it takes me out of the show and bothers me.

On the other hand, Prison Break sets up it's "world" from the get-go. You know it's far from a true reality. It's so out there that while you watch the show because you love the concept, you know it's far fetched. So for me, knowing that, I can just get into it all the more. It's not a conscious thing for me, either, but when I think about it, I think thats why the things that bother others about Prison Break don't affect me at all.

 

[Greg_S_H]

It was set up early on that nobody knew they were brothers. The warden didn't know, and I'm pretty sure the conspirators didn't know, either.

 

[Andrew Bunk]

I loved S1 on DVD and tore through it rather fast, but I have already stopped watching S2. The show seems very weak to me now.

I'll probably give it another go on DVD next year, but for now color me disappointed.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Yeah, Season Two is extremely weak.

I'm just barely hanging in there. You can see that this
will be the last season for the show (though it wasn't intended to be).

 

[WillG]

I'm almost done with the first season. While it is a good show and it has kept me watching, I don't think I can say I have connected with it in the same way "24" or "Lost"

I think the main reasons are this: The whole plan is too "chaos theory." The plan depends on so many intracate things that have to go right at the exact right time that I don't see how anyone would put themselves in that situation and really expect to succeed. His plan involves too many completely unpredictable components. Pretty much The blueprints in his tattoos
were the only sure thing he had to work with. Other than that how did he expect he would be able to Have unattended access to the warden's office, especially when he didn't know that the warden was building a replica of the Taj Mahal and that his Structural engineering skills would be called on. Obtain the right size screw to fashion into the tool he used to unbolt his toilet from the wall. Obtain the medicine to alter his insulin levels so that he could keep getting into the infirmary for shots. Get onto to the PI crew that worked the break room above "Route 66" and so forth.
I suppose in all fairness the show depicted not everything going to plan and them having to improvise, but still, it seems that Scofield's chances for success relied more on dumb luck than meticulous planning. I guess elaborate plots where pretty much everything has to go right at the exact time for them to work is the thing that stretches credibility for me. It's the same kind of thing that has bothered me about movies like "The Game" and "Matchstich Men" (Although I did enjoy those films)

The other thing, is the characters. For me, there isn't really anyone to care about all that much. I find Michael Scofield to be a pretty bland character and the rest of the people he is breaking out are Cons (even Lincoln has a minor criminal background IIRC). Am I supposed to be rooting for T-Bag to successfully escape here? As usual for this type of story, the guards are pretty much all scumbags as well. Also the chiched Evil Republicans
thing isn't exactly endearing me either. The one "good" character (Besides Robin Tunney's character, I suppose), Sarah the doctor, we find out is an ex junkie, theif who is working in the prison because, as is strongly implied, was the only place she could get work as a Doctor
.

I guess it's compelling enough to keep at it, but I don't think it will ever crack the barrier to become one of my favorites. I've tried to avoid being real nitpicky, but maybe I am.

 

[LizH]

I'm surprised they let that slip through...


After all, this IS FOX we're talking about here.

 

[Rob P S]

I enjoyed the first season but decided to leave well enough alone and not bother with the second season.

 

[Greg_S_H]

:rolleyes

If that even made sense, the two divisions have nothing to do with one another.

 

[Qui-Gon John]

I have a problem with Season One and the timing and the weather. IIRC, originally Lincoln was supposed to be executed on May 11, (and Michael was supposed to finish Pope's Taj Mahal by June). Meaning Michael went into prison probably around late March. Yet it was so frickin hot when he killed the AC. And more than that, for all the first dozen episodes or so, the cons were always in the yard often just wearing a t-shirt, no over shirt or coveralls.

Then later, by Lincoln's execution, it was snowing and when they escape, a week or more later, Haywire wont take off his coveralls because "he'll freeze to death". Also, Sara is shown near the lake wearing a very heavey coat and scarf. This is only Chicago, not Alaska or northern Canada.

 

[oscar_merkx]

Hi folks

Finally got the chance to watch Season 1 completely.

I only managed to watch the last 3 episodes of S 1 and was hooked enough to watch S 2 as well.

Just watched the first 13 episodes in two days.

It is that compulsive viewing indeed.

I always thought that T-Bag was the all time scumbag on this show.

Now I am not so sure anymore, Kellerman is just as bad.

Will keep you posted for the remaining episodes

 

[Greg_S_H]

You're saying you originally watched the end of S1 and went on to watch S2 live? Did you continue to S3? The reason I ask is, I continue to enjoy Prison Break, but I have to assume the first season is the best (have to assume since I haven't watched it since it aired). I'm just wondering if that's what you're discovering.