Prison Break: The Big Clean Up

So it’s back. And it works like this. Episode 1: Let’s clean up all the shit left behind by the prematurely cut short season 3, set up a new premise to drive the season, and introduce all the old favourites to make sure everyone keeps watching. Dont get me wrong, I really like episode one - it was great to have the show and characters back again. The contrivances to get us to the end of episode one at a point where we have all the drama set up for the rest of the season was a little too much though. Season 3 wasnt that bad, but someone somewhere assumes it was, based on viewing figures Id imagine. So within half hour we’ve supposedly wiped out Gretchen and definitely Whistler, the driving forces behind season 3, and we’ve brought back Sarah, the driving force of Seasons 1 & 2. All evidence of Season 3 is now removed from our minds by the company. It couldnt be more obvious that they are saying to the viewer “Please forget and forgive us for Season 3 and invest in Season 4 again. Thanks” And the thing is, I will. I like the style and the never ending hugely contrived “cliffhangers”. I like the mysterious, but ever so slightly silly “company” stuff. I like dumb-ass Linc going round killing everyone who waves at him, and Sucre harping on about Monte Cruise. In the end Ill watch because I like the characters and thats based on all three seasons that went before. The show is always going to suffer because its orginal idea is now a distant memory, but with stong characters we care about, it can succeed again. I think I just felt a little ‘miffed’ that the time I invested in Season 3 was unceriomoniusly wiped from my mind in an instant.