Prison Break, first airing in 2005, follows Michael Scofield, a structural engineer and improvisational genius, who gets himself in Fox River Prison in order to rescue his brother, petty criminal Lincoln Burrows, from the electric chair, set up for a crime he didn't commit. Along the way, he has to contend with malicious prison guards, heinous criminals and a shadowy organisation that has infiltrated all levels of government, testing his breakout plan at every turn - will both he and his brother escape alive, and at what cost to themselves, their families and the world outside the prison walls?
I think the core of this show is very strong - a likeable genius having to manoeuvre a world of lies, deceit, crime and death in order to rescue a loved one, and seeing how his plan develops and adapts throughout the season is a slow yet satisfying process. The colourful characters he must contend with in the prison also bolsters the quality of the show, from loveable rogues like Sucre and C-Note, to downright nefarious villains like T-bag, and everything in between, adding an ensemble of compelling and well-acted characters to the solid premise.
Problems arise, however, in some of the subplots, namely those involving the mysterious organisation responsible for Lincoln's incarceration, which detract from the main characters and the events playing out within the prison, which are by far the most compelling aspects. The reasons are understandable - Burrows is innocent and condemned to death, so there is a mystery involving who framed him and why. However, that isn't the draw of the show, the prison and the breakout plan is, so when the conspiracy plot gets pushed to the front, it gets tedious and overblown, an issue that only increases with each passing season. Each season is also five to ten episodes too long, feeling dragged out by the time it wraps up.
The quality also seems to dip drastically with each season - the first is well structured and acted (although it goes about six episodes too long), while the second loses that structure in favour of tense but often chaotic character work, creating an enjoyable but muddy watch. The third season attempts to outdo the tension of the first season in a new setting, with at best mixed results as awkward retcons and plot contrivances become more rampant, and the fourth season loses every ounce of tension and logic that the first few had, essentially becoming a long, low budget spy thriller with ridiculous soap opera twists throughout - relating very little to a prison break or life on the run. Following this is The Final Break, a laughable special meant to conclude the series, with reused sets, terrible acting and a tiny budget.
The series was picked up again several years later for a fifth season, flying in the face of the previous ending in almost every way, but with a new sense of mystery and cinematography. It is ambitious and has high production value, and while not perfect by any means, it is leagues ahead of season 4 - almost as silly, but far more fun.
When I look back on the series, I see two great seasons, a third with squandered potential and two duds, which is a shame considering the strong premise and characters that first lifted the show to great heights. It seems as if the show never intended to go on as long as it did, with a single arc planned out and the rest improvised on the spot. You can enjoy it in an ironic way, but sadly not much more. The show on the whole gets a six out of ten, but the first two seasons would get a strong eight.
6 OUT OF 10
SPOILER SECTION
Season 1
Season one was very satisfying, as you see the plan unfold over a long span of episodes, coming together at the end for a thrilling breakout episode. Supporting characters like Warden Pope are excellently played, making for a heart-breaking betrayal toward the end. Some characters like Westmoreland and However, you can see where the show gets split up, as there is a failed escape attempt that backpedals a lot of the momentum, leaving six or seven extra episodes which could have been condensed. From what I understand, this was where the show originally concluded pending renewal, so you can understand the production limitations, but it does take you out of the narrative. Standout moments include the riot, the initial confrontations with Abruzzi and T-Bag, the breakout and the ditching of Haywire, Tweener and T-Bag outside the prison walls.
Season 2
The story with Veronica uncovering the conspiracy is incredibly tedious, but what's worse is that both she and Nick Savrinn die in consecutive episodes, making the long and tiresome plot ultimately irrelevant and without payoff. LJ, Lincoln's son, also becomes narrative deadweight, usually needing rescuing every dozen episodes.
The same can be said for Abruzzi, who dies toward the start of the second season. It establishes Mahone as a force to be reckoned with, but again it makes a long set up plot go down the drain.
Mahone is a great antagonist for season 2, showing the escalating stakes of the FBI getting involved and the desperation of the Company. He rivals Michael in his intellect and manages to take out several members of the Fox River Eight with his ruthless streak, being perhaps the best performed character, and while season 2 becomes chaotic and fragmented with each of the escapees setting out to achieve their goals while on the run, he is the one that keeps it focused and in perspective.
Season 3
Season three has a very strong premise, which is why it is one of the most disappointing. Michael was forced by the company into Sona, a deadly Panamanian prison where the criminals have taken over inside, and a military force shoots any who attempt to escape, and is tasked to break out a prisoner with information vital to the Company. Meanwhile, Lincoln facilitates the escape from outside and the communication with the company via new villain Gretchen, as well as attempting to rescue Sara and LJ. Sara's death is a contrived means of letting the actress go, and Gretchen is an unlikeable villain nowhere near as ominous as season one Kellerman or compelling as season two. This is where soap - opera style storytelling begins to emerge, from flat dialogue and cringeworthy deaths and romances. Inside Sona misses a lot of opportunities, namely lacking a gradual plan forming (it really forms in just a few episodes toward the end) and compelling new characters to join the breakout. This also marks Bellick becoming a complete joke rather than a brash but ultimately quite sad prison warden, and T-Bag becoming more of a lackey to more powerful players rather than a dangerous and unpredictable monster in his own right.
Season 4
Right from the start, season four is terrible. Whistler (and until later, Gretchen) is killed off immediately after betraying the company (which means season three was all for nothing), Sara returns, apparently having escaped Gretchen, and the characters are brought together to form a sort of spy team to take down the company, led by FBI agent Don Self, a ridiculous character with an even sillier name. Michael, now suffering from a terminal illness, Sara, now pregnant and Mahone losing his son to a company assassin, all point to a badly written soap opera, and the show had strayed so far from its initial premise I strongly considered stopping it. The only highlight is a multiple episode arc involving a heist to steal the Scylla device from General Krantz - another villain ruined by bad writing, which felt much more like the early show.
It went completely off the rails when Lincoln joined the company to get Scylla back, Michael's mother being a new villain wanting to start a war, and Michael and Lincoln not being related by blood. So much and yet so little is crammed into this season I can barely scratch the surface, but it concludes with everyone getting exonerated for their crimes (even though they were at the end of season two), and Michael dying in a time jump as everyone has a happy ending, save Don Self who is stuck in a vegetative state for the rest of his life and T-Bag, who is sent back to Fox River. The Final Break special retcons Michael's death into a heroic rescue of Sara from prison as the imprisoned General Krantz has a bounty out for her, but it is done on a shoestring budget, reuses sets from season four and it is clear all the actors are checked out, making it lazy rather than satisfying.
Season five has Michael's death retconned as a coverup, as he is recruited by blackmail by a rogue CIA operative to break specific people out of prisons across the world, until he is framed as a terrorist and stuck in a prison in war-torn Yemen. It is a story that reunites, however briefly, many of the season one characters, and the production value allows for things to look and sound genuine, from a country under siege to missiles, boat raids, weapons and explosions. The villains are very, very silly, as are much of the new supporting cast, but as a greatest hits series to conclude the show, it makes for a far more enjoyable watch than the overdone and bloated season four. So, while contrived, I'm glad it ended here rather than on season four.
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