First off, the TV GUIDE Channel is reairing two Prison Break specials from last season in the next few days to get a jump on Monday's premiere. They are: Prison Break Unlocked on Thurs, 8/17 from 8-9 pm CST or Sat, 8/19 from midnight to 1 am CST, and Infanity: Prison Break on Friday, 8/18 from 6-7 pm CST.
They're both typical TV GUIDE Channel fluff, but they do offer a glimpse at the actors as well as the challenges of filming at a real (although "retired") prison. And Robert "T-Bag" Knepper has a great moment in one of those shows when he offers his pocket to Lisa Joyner. It's worth watching both just for that moment.
And, as we all know, the season premiere is on Monday, Aug 21 at 7pm CST, right? Just a few more days...
...Unless you're one of the luckiest S.O.B.s alive like me and have already seen it.
The coolest thing was in my mailbox this afternoon: 8 screeners of FOX fall shows. I've watched four of them already, but the one I was just nuts about getting is, of course: Prison Break.
Now: I will be giving my impressions in non-spoiler form (if you've seen the first season-- or at least the finale). If you don't want any inkling of what's going on, stop reading. But I promise not to ruin anything. Okay, I'll hit "enter" a few times just to give everyone a chance to pull out if they want.
The guys who escaped are still on the run-- duh. But, as always, Schofield's got a plan. The problem is: the Fox River Pen crew led by Bellick is hell-bent on getting them back. The dude is nuts. I fully expect Bellick to resign from the prison as the guys cross the state line, because he's fired up. Not only were there escapees on his watch, but he was beaten by them. It's personal. I'm glad Wade Williams is getting a chance to tear it up. I've been a fan since he played the bad-ass priest on Bernie Mac.
But there's another player in the chase: FBI agent Alexander Mahone (played by William Fichtner), who looks to be nearly as brilliant as Schofield is. He may be behind right now, but it seems inevitable that as soon as the guys cross the state line and the escapees fall under his jurisdiction, he'll pull out all the stops. Schofield had to battle circumstances and luck last season; this season looks like it'll be a battle of brains.
And, while a number of new avenues were explored, there were also a number of "loose ends" left dangling last season that are tied up or redirected in this first episode. And it didn't even touch on a few minor characters (yes, we'll learn the fate of Dr. Sarah in the first ep-- the producers aren't that cruel).
For those who are worried: the tattoos play a large part in the season opener.
And, as can be expected with this show: the last five minutes were intense for two reasons. Neither of which I'll go into here.
I was pumped for the premiere before, but now I'm in a full-on frenzy for this new season to begin. And because I watched a screener, I know what I'll see on Monday will be even better (because the colors and sound will be touched up and the "stock footage" cutaways will be stock footage and not a screen saying "stock footage").
Along with the screener DVD, there was a TV GUIDE article about the new season that was already (mostly) on tvguide.com, but it was fun to revisit. Highlights include:
Wentworth Miller says Schofield will not be the leader out of the pen. The escapees will not have a unified agenda, so they don't feel the need to follow his lead as much as they needed to in the prison. Linc will take over more of the leadership because the street is Lincoln's forte.
Creator/Exec producer Paul Scheuring said 95% of the season will be shot on location, so we can expect lots of outdoor scenes. He also said the gang will split up at times and come together at others (they all know that Westmoreland hid money in Utah, for example).
Okay, your mission is: spread the word that the new season starts on Monday. While the show is now out of the prison, the show's vibe is still intact. And, just like last year, I have no idea what will or could happen this season.
There are not many shows that can surprise me like this one does.
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