05.30 Prison Break
Prison Break. Season 4, Episode 7. "Five The Hard Way" The Vegas storyline was a bit naff, but - in all other respects - this was an episode that blew me away. And, towards the end, the Vegas storyline actually became very enjoyable. It was great to see Jude Ciccolella but, like Stacy Haiduk before him, he was totally underused as a guest star. Besides... there is no tension to be had here anymore. We know that Linc and the gang are going to get the card/info. So showing it, after seven episodes, it almost boring. Towards the end, however, things got funny with Sucre having to step up and go undercover. As a gay man. That was funny. Otherwise nothing of much interest happened in Vegas.
Back in LA however the show delivered some of it's best-ever material. Don Self is under threat and - following advice from Alex - he takes the fight to the attacker. What an amazing scene that was! Michael Rapaport gave a great performance as a very-nervous Self managing to find the strength to fight his corner while in deep and way over his head. Great to see stuff like that. A hero in a show like this who isn't all bad-ass and cool. Just terrified and brave. I like him.
But the episode belonged to Gretchen and T-Bag. Now working as a lethal team and - in this episode - responsible for two the show's best-ever scenes: T-Bag threatens Trishanne (the receptionist) and Gretchen kills Blauner (the idiot who hounded T-Bag). Riveting, dark and dangerous. Exactly the way we want Prison Break to be. Exactly the way we want it's 'heroes' to be.
Speaking of heroes: Alex Mahone continues to be the absolute best thing about this show. Fun though it may have been for William Fichtner to play a drugged-out Mahone during Season Three it was no real fun for us in watching a guy we loved suffering. Plus he wasn't 'cool' anymore like he was back in Season Two. Well those days are gone and Alex Mahone is frakkin' cool again. His escape from T-Bag's trap was worthy of Jack Bauer and his later appearance (to rescue Michael) was bad-ass cool. I love the bond that exists between Alex and Michael: two very, very smart men capable of communicating is very clever ways. A lethal team, in their own way...
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Tue, Oct 7, 08 - Prison Break
