Generally as a rule, my wife and I watch little TV… per se. We catch the news in the morning until our little girl wakes up then we change it to "The Wiggles." But when it comes to most TV shows, once I started this reviewing gig, we didn't allow ourselves to get caught up on any shows that were currently airing. Even with our Dish system, and the ability to 'record' shows, we didn’t want to bother with all the commercials. But even more annoying are all the little ads that pop up on the bottom of the screen WHILE you’re watching show. Whatever marketing 'genius' came up with those little annoyances should be taken out and shot. So instead, we opt to wait until the shows we're interested in (and occasionally those were not) to come out on DVD, that way we can watch them at our convenience without all the commercial breaks and scrolling garbage. Plus, of course we get all the extra bells and whistles that come with most DVD releases.

We are patient enough to do this with even the 'hottest' shows like "Lost," “24” or "Prison Break."

The premise of the 1st season of "Prison Break" was certainly an interesting one. It surrounded two brothers, Lincoln (Dominic Purcell) and Michael (Wentworth Miller), the former having been sent to prison for murdering the brother of the Vice-President. Of course, all clues led to Lincoln's innocence with an attorney working hard to clear his name. But this wasn't enough for Michael. Realizing that his brother had little time, being condemned to death and all, he got himself arrested and put into the same prison. To what end you might ask? (Go ahead… ask…) Well, it seemed that Michael was one of the structural engineers responsible for designing the prison and had a plan to break them both out.

Ok, admittedly it sounded a little trite. After all, how could Michael be sure he'd go to the same prison? Still, as is the case with some of the better shows on TV, you needed to suspend believability a little bit and just enjoy the stories as they unfolded. After all, it IS fiction. I will say, after watching all of the 1st season when it was originally released on DVD, that I could see why audiences were so caught up in it. Believability aside, "Prison Break" was peopled with quite an eclectic cast of characters for Michael & Lincoln to play off of as the plan came together. And I thought the concept of Michael's full upper body tattoo containing a hidden map of the prison to be a stroke of genius. In many ways the tattoo became almost as much a character as the actors.

I did have to agree with some of my friends that it felt like the series wouldn't last more than one season because you could only draw out the escape plan so long. How could you possibly have them in prison for several years, still trying to get out? But, the creators ran with it, and (spoiler ahead) made the best decision they could have. The 2nd season followed the escapees as they attempted to keep from getting caught and sent back. In some ways the series was re-invented and gave the writers an opportunity to create an almost completely new show. But the question then begged, how long can they be on the lam? After all, this wasn't "The Fugitive." Unfortunately, the 3rd season was rather a weak one, in part more due to the writer’s strike and shortage of episodes. I wasn’t sure they could bring it back for a 4th season, but they did.

The plot plays out at the boys fight the good fight against the bad guys who plotted against them from the beginning. I can’t get into too much of the storyline as it is so complex, and anything I say would probably be a really terrible spoiler. What really shocked me was the Series Finale, which is incredibly shocking. Any chance of the series continuing from here goes down the drain.

Fox is releasing the 4th season this month in a 6-disc set, complete with all 22 episodes and a fair handful of extra features. There are commentaries on 10 of the episodes from various members of the cast and crew and three full featurettes focusing on everything from the production process behind a particular scene to a look at the final episode.

"Prison Break" came back from its lackluster 3rd season with a bang. It’s almost too bad there won’t be a 5th.

Episodes:
Scylla Breaking and Entering
Shut Down
Eagles and Angels
Safe and Sound
Blow Out
Five the Hard Way
The Price
Greatness Achieved
The Legend
Quiet Riot
Selfless
Deal or No Deal
Just Business
Going Under
The Sunshine State
The Mother Lode
VS
S.O.B.
Cowboys and Indians
Rates of Exchange
Killing Your Number

Starring: Wentworth Miller, Dominic Purcell
Extras: Audio Commentaries on Selected Episodes; “The Plan, The Execution and The Bullett” Featurette; “Fade Out: The Final Episode Featurette”
Specifications: Widescreen (1.78:1), Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: Fox
Release Date: 6/2/2009
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website: http://www.foxtvdvd.com

We'll give Prison Break: Season 4 an A.