Prison Break - Season 3 - Review
December 4, 2007 by Nikki Katz
Cult Spy offers you an alternative rundown of this year’s action in Sona prison… I have to admit that I agree with a good majority it! Especially the Best Moment, although I actually liked the acting when Michael learned that Sara was dead. We finally got to see some raw emotion out of him this season, instead of the MacGyver-like drive to get out of prison.
Anyway - here is their take on the rest of Season 3. Please share your best/worst moments below!
Most Endless Source of Morbid FascinationSurely this has to go to Scofield’s sweat patch. Festooned upon his grey sweatshirt, the patch regularly fluctuates in size between scenes and has taken on a life of its own. Surely this soaking mass deserves its own agent and trade union? Perhaps it should join the writers and take strike action, given the lack of recognition it currently receives. Besides, if Lechero can smuggle phones and hookers into prison, can’t he manage one can of anti-perspirant deodorant for his new buddy?
Best New Character
Susan, without a shadow of a doubt. Possessing the power to make a man’s testes retract in fear, she’s a straight-talking mercenary who is not afraid to go through with her threats. She beheaded Sara Tancredi and was about to do the same to LJ before the young chump’s father called. Her back story is intriguing too, with flashbacks harking back to her time as a captive subjected to brutal rape and torture. It will be interesting to find out the true nature of her dealings with Whistler.
Best Moment
There’s a temptation here to give it to the moment Sara Tancredi’s head was discovered in a box. No, not because of the sheer dramatic impact of the moment, of which there was very little - particularly if you’ve seen a film called Se7en. Instead, it was because it finally drew a line under the character after the increasingly frustrating attempts to show us she was alive - using body doubles and stand ins. Sarah Wayne Callies wasn’t going to reprise the role, so the sooner Schofield’s love interest was dispatched the better, because she was dead wood.
However, the ending to episode six was such a jubilant moment when Schofield, learning of his loved one’s death, grabbed the crow’s foot and challenged Whistler to a fight to the death. A sudden twist and reversal of our expectations, it worked a treat - even though we knew there would be some contrived way out of it.
Worst Moment
Sofia pulling the gun on Lincoln Burrows on the beach. The twist had been so clearly signposted due to various shots of Sofia looking very devious and calculating in the scenes leading up to it. This killed any dramatic impact. Then, before you can scream “bring back John Abruzzi’, the pair were back on the same side again. What a pointless waste of time, just for a cheap thrill.
Most Redundant Plot Function
The character of Andrew Tyge entered Sona in the fifth episode, was given plenty of airtime and pointed out that he recognised Whistler under another guise. Then he was killed. Cheers for turning up dude. Bearing in mind that Whistler lived down a hole in the prison, communicated with his girlfriend via bird watching books and was wanted by The Company, we already had the impression that there might be more to him than meets the eye.
Most Underused CharacterThis is a three-way tie between Mahone, T-Bag and Brad Bellick. All three were so crucial to the enjoyment of the last season, with their own unique traits and pantomime villain status. But once ensconced within the walls of Sona, they all lost their potency and Prison Break failed to find any appealing supporting characters to rival them. Still, at least we could wallow in Bellick’s perpetual suffering.
The ‘Please, No More!’ Award
We’ve had enough shots of Michael Scofield brooding and/or sulking. It might have worked over the first two seasons, but it has become too tiresome now and seems to constitute about 27.4% of each episode. It seems that Wentworth Miller has gone down the Joey Tribbiani route of ‘sniff the fart’ acting.
“bring back John Abruzzi’
I say it every day.
oh, i love this post! i so agree with it! specially the part where they’re underusing bellick and tbag! i absolutely definitely say amen to that!
susan, ehmm .. i mean gretchen ‘best new character’? i don’t think so ..
she’s very good and her story is indeed very intruiging, but 2 me whistler/mc fadden/gary miller is the best new character.
he really, how do you say, “convinced” me
PRSN BRK - I agree. I’m not a huge fan of Susan B. Of course it may be just be Jodi that I’m not a fan of, but who knows! The character seems very one-dimensional for what could be a VERY dimensional character.
i think most the new characters make this show crappy AKA sofia, whistler and susan!!!! they all suck!!! im getting really sick of danay garcias lack of acting, and im sick of the character full stop. her storyline- oh wait, SHE DOESNT EVEN HAVE A STORYLINE. and susan… well she just really irritates me, and i keep saying this: BRING BACK SARA AND THIS SHOW WOULD BE A WHOLE LOT BETTER!!!
I agree, I don’t really like any of the new characters and I miss Sara too. I also think that they aren’t really using the characters, like Suce and Mahone that we love from last year. And T-bag who we love to hate could play a a much larger part.
Danay aka Sophia has stumbled over her lines in several episodes. As for Wentworth constantly brooding, well then lets get some meatier dialogue going …hint hint writers..yea it is all about the action,but I miss Mahone’s lines from season two.
havent you had enough of whinning about asking sara to come back???? sigh….
Unfortunately I have to disagree on just about every point.
Susan as best new character…HELL NO!! Even if she hadn’t killed my fav person on the show, the girl seems in way over her head and a complete mess. Also the background story doesn’t make me fell anything different towards her. Even if she says she didn’t kill Sara, I hope Michael kills her soon.
Best moment is defiantly NOT Sara’s head in a box. That scene just disgraced an amazing show. Though Michael’s reaction to the news was ok, I still had a problem with the sappy music. Also to use Sara’s death as tool in the escape is just so unlike Michael. Two thumbs way down!!
I do agree that the whole thing with Andrew Tyge was pointless, but at this point in season 3 I think just about everything that’s happens is just BLAH.
For underused character I’m going to have to say all the character’s from season 1 & 2. TPTB need to give them all something better to working with.
The one thing I will admit that I’m not sick of…is watching Michael brood. He is too good looking to complain too much. Lol!
Sorry, I know I’m being harsh. But this is the way I’ve felt this entire season and I just had to put it out there. Bring back Sara and the PB we use to love!! This “re-invention” sucks!!
I’m wish Ashley 100%!
Sadly I don’t even know why I watch this show anymore.
I tried to watch eposodes from season 1 and 2 again recently..but i felt like everything that was there is useless knowing where they are today..i just could not watch! It`s like i wanted to tell them - hey, guys, be cautious, don`t do this, it will not take a good end in a while!
It seems to me that Season 3 has made every good thing into nothing…
i so hate the fact that Sara’s dead, but the body double in season 3 just annoyed the crap out of me, and i really hate seeing her…
forgot to add, this show lost its plot!!!
Its whole point in the beginning was to exonerate Linc, now he’s free and i wish the show wud just frigging end already!! the characters are all going through hell, and i cant watch the first 2 seasons without comparing them with how *unamusing* season 3 is.
i even 4got about andrew tyge (!!) so what was it exactly with him (??)
question - was he a member from the Company?
answer - (i guess) we’ll never find out
question - why was michael being so easy about the “tyge recognizing whistler, calling him mc fadden, asking him if he was in Nice, in ‘97, with the Ambassador”?
answer - .. THERE IS NO ANSWER ..(??) :-S :-S
Nikki, can you please get people to sign this petition?
C’Mon people, support the writers of your favorite show and sign the petition !
http://www.petitiononline.com/WGA/petition.html
JUST DO IT ¡¡
xx - PRSN BRK
i already did, i’m #61139 ;-D
why you’re all being so negative? I’ve watched some episodes from season 3 on the internet and ”bang and burn” was actually pretty damn good! and as I have and read and watched what wentworth and dominic have said about the season( in their opinion the best yet) then I’m not worried too much. season 2 seemed boring, too, at the beginning, but it took a nice turn in the middle
so be ready for that to happen again when michael break out of sona.
of course, what I can’t forgive, is the death of sara and that stupid bodydouble - yak!
but all in all - I’m positive, that the show will turn out nice, it has to, because I want season 4 :D:D:D
I agree with this mini review.
I agree with kk, why are you all so negative and keep complaining about the show? If you think season 3 is so bad, so stop watching. For me season 2 is the most boring, season 3 is way better. Aren’t we all big fan of this show, so let’s just enjoy it.
kk, you’re SSSOOO right !! if PB is “so bad and keeps getting worse and worse”, (according to these nagging “fans”), then why don’t all of you switch over 2 another show ? ? ?
and what PERTH said about PB not having a story no more … i mean … “HOW CAN YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT??”
really, how can you guys call yourself “fans” .. ??
you give the word “fan” a whole other meaning .. AND NOT IN A POSITIVE WAY .. {not at all}
sorri if i was a lil vague in my comment..
of course i’m not sayin that PB doesn’t have a story anymore, what i meant is that after all they worked for in the first and second season, you’d think they wud deserve a new life at least.
I’m just feeling sorry for the characters that’s all, and i’m kinda hoping for…closure in the show, b4 things get any worse and the only person surviving is LJ or something.
Tat’s all.
*I’m still a fan.
Just because you criticize the show doesn’t mean that you’re no longer a fan.
I no longer watch the show, but I’ve seen a few episodes this season, and truly this is way below season one standards. It remains to be seen if it will be better than season two, but at this point last year, i wasn’t complaining. Of course, Sara still being there had a lot to do with it. But this is a completely foreign show now, and the characters which made season one (Sucre, T-bag) and two (Mahone) special are mere parts of the scenery now. The new characters are given the most exposure (not necessarily plot, mind you because I don’t see any as far as Sofia and Lechero are concerned), it seems as though they’re forcing these new guys to the viewer. The problem is, none of the new characters are charismatic enough to gain fan following. It doesn’t help that Chris Vance, Danay Garcia and especially Jodi Lyn are all lacking in acting chops.
will you guys (only the ones who are complaining over and over again), please just stop reflectingon the past Seasons ? ? what i’m reading is this; “well, in the 1st Season bla bla bla …”
“..bla bla bla, and in the 2nd Season”
i mean; this is the 3rd Season already ..
there is absolutely NOTHING - i mean ‘NOTHING’ - 2 compare, so why is it that you keep giving examples of “How This and That Was Back Then..” and - with all respect to Sara - “When Sara Was Still Alive” ??
Why on earth should we stop reflecting on past seasons? When it was seasons 1 and 2 which made us fans of the show in the first place?
Of course we think back on the good times, when we couldn’t wait for a new episode and watched on the edge of our seats.
For many fans all this is gone (and not just because of Sara), and we can’t just pretend this “reinvention” is something seperate from what we watched for 2 whole seasons!
Just like we showered the writers with compliments and admiration when they managed to glue us to the screen, we have every right to voice our disappointment with the mere shadow of PB that they have been serving us this year.
Listen guys I know what you all mean. This season hasnt been as exciting as the last ones but hey, we are still watcing arent we. And think about it. Maybe season 4 could be about them getting captured by the goverment and that they escape from a torture prison camp or something. Thats different and I would definatly watch it. What you lot reckon?
Most of the people here are talking crap.
1.- The actress who plays sara wasn’t really a great actress. Check out the last episodes of season two when wentworth and sarah are toguether and you’ll see they didn’t have any chemistry.
2.- I already watch the entire season 3 and it was EXCELLENT. Sometimes people hang too much at the past and they dont have an open mind to accept new things. There are so many aspects that made PB great, not only Mahone, T bag and Bellick. This time the producers developed new aspects of michael’s character and they focus on michael cleverness again (like season 1) Susan b was a magnetic villain with a strong precense and Whistler was completly unpredictable. Besides, dont forget this season was only ten episodes.
The pace was fast, the writing and the plot twists were clever and very well written.
Watching the last episodes i felt like when i watched the best episodes of 24. Same rush.
Season 1 = season 3 > season 2(still great)
Now….crucify me.