Breaking out of maximum security at Fox River was the easy part. Now, Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) must fight to survive inside Sona, a hellish Panamanian prison where the only rule is brutal violence and the only way out is in a body bag. So, with time running out, Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) scrambles desperately to free his brother along with the only man who can deliver Lincoln's captive son from the sinister clutches of The Company. Packed with intense action and white-knuckle plot twists, Season Three is Prison Break's most explosive yet, and this time, there's no way out!
Poor Michael Scofield had a taste of freedom, but found himself back in jail at the end of the second season, this time in Panama. How on earth will he get himself out of this place without the luxury of years to plan his escape? There's only one thing to do, and that's watch the 13 episodes on this 4-disc set:
Disc 3 (2:54:40)
Boxed In (43:58)
Dirt Map (43:58)
Under and Out (43:32)
Hell or High Water (43:12)
Disc 4 (43:45)
The Art of the Deal (43:45)
Video
The set contains a very nice Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1) transfer; not surprising since it's a new series. The third season is a mixture of scenes; dreary, disgusting prison scenes mixed with bright, colorful shots of Panama City and the lush tropical jungle surrounding it. I didn't notice any major problems with the transfer (there's very little grain, and no dust or debris). The "play all" option introduced in season 2 is back, and the chapter placed immediately following the opening is also present on each episode.
Audio
The English Dolby Digital 5.1 track provides some nice rear speaker action, usually for ambient sounds, with the front main speakers, and center speaker, getting most of the action. The dialog was easy to understand, and the music sounds great. There are English, French and Spanish subtitles, as well as closed captions.
Season 3: Orientacion (16:58)
Cast members talk about their characters in season 3. I enjoyed the end of the featurette where they talk about the real prison that Sona is based on, and the set that was created for the show.
Break Out Episode (13:25)
A look at the "break out" episode in season 3, including interviews with the cast and crew discussing some of the scenes in the episode.
Director's Takes (39:57)
Wow, lots of great content in this section. Directors Kevin Hooks, Bobby Roth, Milan Chevlov, Mike Switzer, Karen Gaviola, Garry Brown, Vince Misiano, Greg Yaitanes and Nelson McCormick host these behind-the-scenes looks at the episodes.
Between Takes (6:06)
The audio on this is encoded incorrectly so some dialog is heard from all the speakers instead of just the center speaker. The cast members give us a look at what they do between takes on the set.
The Unit: Force Majeure (44:28)
An episode from the second season of The Unit, an excellent series. I would think the pilot episode would have been a better choice though, because then people wouldn't feel like they're walking into a show half-way through, and may be more inclined to buy the first season.
Summary
I enjoyed this season, and I think a lot of that had to do with it being a partial season due to the writers' strike. I said in my review of season 1 that the show would be better if it were 13 episodes, and I think this season proves I was right. We're not jerked around as much as the previous seasons, and the story flowed a lot better. I doubt it'll happen, but I'd prefer to see season 4 be 13 episodes as well.
The set, while not being as loaded as some in the past, is a fairly decent release. The audio and video is good, and the extras are entertaining, though I have a feeling many of the features have been seen elsewhere (on the Fox channel perhaps?). I was surprised there weren't any commentary tracks at all; season 2 had 10 of them.
While watching season 3, and the bonus material, I became interested in the Brazilian prison used as the basis of the prison in season 3. Carandiru Prison was in operation from 1956 until 2002 when most of the prison was demolished. In 1992 there was a bloody massacre, and over 100 prisoners died in a revolution when guards stormed the prison in an attempt to regain control. The events were told in a 2003 movie named after the prison Carandiru, and now I'm interested in tracking down a copy (it's distributed by Sony Pictures Classics).
Prison Break season 3 entertained me for fewer episodes than the previous seasons, but I thought the quality of the show was much better.
