Somewhere around the fourth ridiculous death match in that dirt yard of the Panamanian jail, I gave up on “Prison Break” last season.
Among the endless sweating, a convoluted plot line that made the first two seasons look sensible and Sara’s head in a box (ahem), it became too laborious to follow.
Besides, I had “The Big Bang Theory” and “The New Adventures of Old Christine” tapped for TiVo on Monday nights.
But, having seen tonight’s two-hour season four premiere of Fox’s “Prison Break,” I’ve gotta say…they’ve hooked me,
The Sona prison is history (burned to the ground by the derelicts running the joint), so our tortured hero, Michael Scofield, is finally roaming around like a real person, first in L.A., then Chicago (which is still really L.A.).
Michael (Wentworth Miller) looks older, tired, beefier – and why wouldn’t he after living in that slum of a prison? No way anyone got any rest in that place. Plus, the evil Company, the mysterious group who kidnapped Linc’s son, LJ, has supposedly beheaded his beloved Sara Tandcredi, so Michael is now fueled solely by revenge.
Oh, let’s just get this out of the way, since it really isn’t a spoiler for anyone with a computer or access to a magazine or eyes to see the picture next to this review: The head in the box last season? Not Sara. Linc’s excuse for incorrectly informing his brother that the love of his life was a headless corpse (“Uhhhh….it was dark in the room and I didn’t want to get grossed out and touch the head,” is basically how it goes) is laughable and almost Bobby Ewing quality.
But, whatever. Sarah Wayne Callies, the actress who plays Sara, apparently made nice with the producers over her contract (the reason she was written out of the show last year) and Michael can make goo goo eyes at her again. Except, strangely, when the two are finally reunited, there isn’t much of an emotional payoff.
Perhaps you’ve also heard that some major/recurring characters get whacked in these return episodes. Tis true.
One is disposed of so quickly, it actually is briefly shocking, while the other two meet the kind of demise we’re better off not knowing details about. Let’s just say that Alex Mahone (William Fichtner) has new reasons to pop pills – and understandably so.
The source of the killings is The Company’s creepy/quiet henchman, Wyatt, who is determined to find Michael, Linc and Sara; the official “story” is that they’ve been sent to a Supermax prison, but c’mon, like these icy murderers are going to fall for that? Michael even endures the excruciating removal of his full body tattoo (and without a sedative—he’s such a man!) to make himself less conspicuous. Again, as if that makes hiding from People Who Know Everything any easier?
It appears that the thrust of this season will focus on Michael, Linc, Alex and, believe it or not, the ever-grubby Bellick, working with Homeland Security (the always welcome Michael Rappaport joins the cast as a government agent who is an ally for the gang) to bring down The Company.
Also in the mix, of course, is T-Bag, who is separated from the group, but in possession of an item that is crucial to Michael’s crew. A scene with one of TV’s oiliest, yet somehow likeable creeps, as he sits sucking on sunflower seeds is grotesque in so many ways. But the kicker of the night is when T-Bag is asked, “What? You eat some bad Mexican?”
You’ll never look at a taco the same way again.
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