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Prison Break Season 1
At any given time, I typically have a number of TV seasons on DVD on hold at the Carnegie library. Some are latter seasons of shows I've seen and liked. Some are first seasons of show's I've heard about and look interesting enough for whatever reason that I figured I'd give them a try. Most new shows I try in this manner are watchable, a few are disappointing, and some are so fabulously surprising that I end up watching them every waking moment and finishing 22 episodes in three days.
The title is fairly self-explanatory, after all, and thus the main plot should not come as a surprise. It is the subtle wrinkles on this plot—you guessed it, character-driven wrinkles—that make this show truly exceptional. The main protagonist of Prison Break is Michael Scofield, played by Wentworth Miller. He's a structural engineer with a peculiarly genius eye for detail. Upon discovering that his engineering firm built the prison where his brother, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell), is on death row, Scofield gets the plans tattooed onto his upper torso in a cleverly surreptitious design and then gets himself arrested and sentenced to the same prison where his brother is being kept. And thus begins his odyssey to break his brother out of prison. Meanwhile, on the outside, Lincoln's former girlfriend, Veronica Donovan (Robin Tunney)—who is also a lawyer—takes his case in effort to clear his name before the execution, but ends up in the throes of a political conspiracy that goes all the way to the top. This show has so many storytelling strengths that it's tough to pick where to start. The plot-weaving in this story is truly amazing. The writers manage to craft riveting plot twists, constantly throwing new roadblocks in front of Scofield and giving him believable "outs" from his dilemmas. Their true mastery at plot-weaving comes clear at the end of the season where all the plot threads come together, after all the while managing to end every episode on a cliffhanger. If I could figure out how to write plots like this, I'd have already sold a novel.
Prison Break is the perfect balance of plot and character. If you're looking for the television equivalent of a "page turner," then pick up Season 1. 2007-08-03 19:34:20 GMT
Comments (4 total)
Author:Anonymous
Excellent series!!
2007-08-04 17:57:34 GMT
--Saundra Kane
Author:Anonymous
Wow, I had heard critical acclaim of this show but you are the first person I know who has now actually seen it. And no it sounds very intriguing. A guess on the "flashback" episode -it seems this show debuted shortly after Lost and my guess is that the writers didn't use gradual backstory reveals for the characters so as to not be accused of directly copying a narrative structure that is now heavily associated with Lost. I don't have a problem with multiple shows using similar formats but some critics probably do, or the writers do, or...anyway, just a guess.
2007-08-04 20:53:58 GMT
--Roger
Author:Anonymous
That was supposed to be "now it sounds...". The W on my keyboard has performance issues
2007-08-04 21:08:27 GMT
--Roger
Author:Anonymous
I hope you give it a look-see Roger. It really is quite good. There's usually a pretty long line for it at the library, but the wait is worth it.
2007-08-07 23:05:28 GMT
--Sarah |
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