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Season 2, Episode 2
Not only is this show like a night-time soap, it's also a roller coaster ride that ties your stomach in knots and makes you want to close your eyes in fear of what's coming around the next corner.
Last night's ep showed the boys continuing their journey to Mexico via Utah, and although the primary group of 5 (Michael, Linc, Sucre, Abruzzi, & C-Note) split up, they are sure to see each other again down the road. As the brothers part ways with the other 3, Sucre mentions that he wonders what happened to T-Bag. We'll soon get to find out.
It seems that the Hindi vet made a pretty decent plastic surgeon after all, neatly re-attaching T-Bag's severed hand with the skill of, well you get the picture. But instead of thanking the doc and moving on his way, T-Bag shows his true colors by telling the doctor that he will not be leaving the building alive. Chilling, but we always knew how evil he was; now we are seeing it firsthand, outside the walls of Fox River.
Meanwhile Warden Pope (Stacy Keach) and Sgt. Bellick are taking it from the prison review board regarding the escape. Pope is incredul;ous that instead of catching the escapees they are being forced to answer questions about how the inmates got out and who is responsible. Although they all know Dr. Tancredi left the door unlocked, the board has also learned that Bellick was the one who let the inmates work in the guards break room. Did he abet the cons? He vehemently denies it, but the line is drawn.
Agent Mahone is busy trying to pressure Linc's son LJ into giving up his father & uncle's whereabouts as he heads in to court to be sentenced. He even starts off by saying how much he admires his dad and uncle for their planning and carrying out the escape; LJ is unimpressed so Mahone gets to the point: he will cut a deal if LJ gives up the boys. Yeah, sure buddy. When the tactic fails, Mahone promises that LJ is going to be serving a long sentence in an adult facilityin Arizona. Little does he know that Linc & Michael have planned a little detour from their Mexican/Utah vacation- Linc knows that LJ is going to be sentenced, and by impersonating his (deceased) attorney speaks to LJ directly before he heads into the court. He assures his son that he will get him out, and gives him a cryptic message before hanging up: "On the third, look for Otis right". Huh?
As the boys race to spring LJ, T-Bag is busy disposing of the good doctor. Despite his pleas and prayers, T-Bag shows the cold blooded killer he really is by injected a lethal dose of a lethal drug in his arm, and then proceeded to bleach his hair in the sink. Cold and calm, the real T-Bag emerges. Watch out, Abruzzi.
After a former guard testifies that Bellick was bribed into letting the inmates work the guard shack, he promptly gets booted from Fox River. Pope gets off with a suspension, but in his outrage over their treatment of his man, Pope resigns on the spot.
By now LJ is headed to the courtroom, but Mahone surprises him by telling him he knows he spoke to his dad earlier and he will not be seeing the light of day for a long time. As they take the walk to the elevators, LJ glances up and sees the big Otis sign overhead. Ding, lightbulb on- Otis right on 3 (floor). Trouble is, clairvoyant Mahone picks it up too and follows the lead. When they enter the elevator, Michael and Lincoln break in from the top and shove a spray-painted water gun at Mahone and demand LJ's release. That's right, a toy gun!- this show is so into goofing on itself it actually had them use a painted water gun-classic! But in the scuffle, LJ falls back down and the boys are forced to flee without Linc's son in tow. Mission not accomplished.
As all of this is happening our old friend Tweener, or Newbie, has popped back into the picture. He's taken up hiding at a college campus and is looking to hitch a ride to...drumroll please...Utah. and wouldn't you know, he finds a sweet naive college chick that happens to be going that way. So he's aboard for the Utah rendezvous. Anyway, now we get to see the real life of Sgt. Bellick. He heads back to his home in a state of disbelief and disgust-how could they have let him go after all his years of dedicated service. the real kicker is we see that he lives with...drumroll please..HIS MOTHER! If it weren't so funny it'd be sweet. This guy is so pathetic and mean, yet I empathize with him anyway- the mark of a great actor. As I tell y wife about Bellick & T-Bag, you love to hate them. Bellick heads back to his bedroom and pulls out a shotgun, and immediately the heartbeat starts racing: are they gonna knock off 2 key characters in 2 consecutive weeks? After some stomach-turning moments, his mom calls up to him about a $300k rewqard for whoever catches the cons. Tense moment over; a lot of money can cure a lot of pain for a guy like Bellick!
So the ep wraps with LJ headed to Arizona and most everyone else headed to Utah, including T-Bag and Tweener. You know they are all going to meet up again, soon (judging by the previews I'd say next week is soon), and you know that the brothers are going to try and have LJ there with them. The tension is ratcheting up and I know I can't wait to see which way the coaster turns next.
Showing posts with label PRISON BREAK. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PRISON BREAK. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
PRISON BREAK: Otis
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
PRISON BREAK: Manhunt (Season 2 Premiere)
The gritty, fantastic nighttime soap for men made a stunning sophomore season debut....
Well I shouldn't say for men, because I pulled my wife into the world of the Boys from Fox River Penitentiary last season, despite her protests that "it's a dude show", and she is totally hooked now. Part of it has to do with the see-saw plot that "leaves her feeling sick" from the stomach-turning twists. But another (bigger?) part of it has to do with "hot-hot-hottie" star Wenworth Miller as brooding intellectual inmate Michael Scofield, who tattooed the Fox River blueprint on his body to free his wrongly imprisoned brother, the equally hunky Linc(Dominic Purcell). I see you women nodding your heads.
*WARNING:SPOILERS**DON'T READ IF YOU DIDN'T WATCH*
As the boys look for a vehicle, FBI agent Alexander Mahone (William Fichtner) joins the investigation. I must say this is a brilliant piece of casting by the writers; Fichtner is a credible, likable, hard-nosed actor who has proven a capable heavy in roles in The Perfect Storm and Crash. Mahone uses the press to aid his case, and also attempts to get inside the meticulous mind of Scofield. In turn, we get to see some backstory of Michael's character, like how & where he formulated his elaborate plan.
Two of the big cliffhangers from last season do a complete 180 on us:
#1: We learn that Dr. "hot-hot-hottie" Tancredi did not die from her overdose, but is merely in a coma. This invites a whole lot of possibile story lines now, such as her blame for the inmates escape, her pain over Michael's betrayal, and what Michael will do to exonerate her- later in the show she finds one of Michael's trademark paper swans in her purse; written on it are the words "I have a plan to make all this right." I get chills just writing about it.
#2: We are reunited with Veronica at the Montana mountain manse housing the very-much alive Steadman(not Oprah's man). He claims that he has been held prisoner in the house against his will by his sister, bitchy now- President Reynolds. But Veronica doesn't want to hear any of his " I gave up my teeth" sob stories, she just wants to get him out of there so he can clear Linc's name. When Stedman tells her that they are both locked in with no chance of escape, she tries her cell and finds a signal. Even as Stedman holds a gun to her head, her love of Linc is so strong she is willing to risk being shot to see him set free. Daring him to pull the trigger, she calls the cops and waits for their arrival. And they arrive, alright, but not local cops- hired Federal goons whose sole purpose is to keep Stedman on the property. Even if that means shooting an female attorney in the head and heart, and leaving millions of viewers slack-jawed in the process. Now I enjoy a show with balls, and it takes a whole lot of 'em to kill off a central character in the season premiere! I mean didn't they wait till mid-season to kill off the President on 24?! Ballsy, ballsy move, and one that is sure to have major repercussions since Linc was on the other end of the line and heard the whole thing.
The gang picked up a change of clothes (finally, no more prison greys) buried in a graveyard, per Michael's plan, and Michael informs Linc that he has a car waiting nearby. But as they attempt to ditch the others and make a bee-line for the hidden loot Westmoreland buried in Utah, Agent Mahone sniffs them out at the site and chases an incredulous Michael & Co. on foot. This leads to another finish with the cops on their tails and nowhere to run, and we are left to figure out where they will go next, how they will get there, and how many more bodies are going to be left in their wake.
Like I told you it's a soap opera, and all the key ingredients are there:
*Likable villians? A slew of 'em, including T-Bag, Billick, President Reynolds, Tweener, Abruzzi, and Agent Kellerman.
*Lovable heroes? Another bevy of choices starting with Michael & Linc, including Sucre, Dr. Tancredi, the dearly departed Veronica, and Lincoln's son LJ.
*Implausible scenarios? How 'bout a complete prison blueprint tattooed over an entire body, a job I have learned would take about 10 years to execute. Or two brothers being locked up in the same prison and allowed to interact with each other despite one being on death row?
*Exotic locales? Okay, last season we had to settle for cells, the infirmary, the yard and the guard house. Now that they're on the outside, we will get to see numerous fields, airstrips, rural Utah and sunny Mexico. And I'm sure there will be some other interesting locations as well.
Throw in plenty of backstabbing (real & metaphorical), tender romances, f'd up father-son relationships and a murderous female President, and you've got a regular cross between Dynasty and One Life to Live. So just kick back Monday's at 8, grab some popcorn, suspend disbelief for an hour, and get hooked up with some seriously addicting Must Flee TV.
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