Prison Break - Season 3 - Complete [2007] - DVD (Dominic Purcell, Wentworth Miller, William Fichtner, Amaury Nolasco, Wade Williams - Dir: Kevin Hooks)

It was always going to be a challenge to move a show whose premise effectively fitted comfortably inside a single series to a third season. And so perhaps inevitably, Prison Break moves the action back to the slammer, this time in Panama. It proves to be a wise choice, as, while plausibility has long since been thrown out of the window, it's a more natural setting for the show.

Prison Break still follows brothers Lincoln and Michael Burrows, but this time there's a far tougher prison that needs to be broken out of. It's a little less claustrophobic than the last one, but more dangerous. And along with the usual terrific supporting cast of characters, the tension, twists and violence that underpin the show are all very much present and correct.

Powering Prison Break forwards, of course, is the pin-up star Wentworth Miller, who owns his role as Michael, and grounds many of the show's extremities. And while it's a shorter season than the first two, this third run still manages to cram in some strong entertainment.

Perhaps season three isn't Prison Break's finest hour, and perhaps the concept has diluted somewhat since the show first began. But this is still really good, assured entertainment, that knows what it wants to do and simply gets on with it. For that alone, it remains a show hard to resist. --Jon Foster

Customer Reviews of Prison Break - Season 3 - Complete [2007]

J. Bennett
Liverpool, England
6th November 2008

a step too far
after the tension created in series 1 and 2, i was hoping a return to the prison escape format would keep it going but this is a step too far. some of the acting by the newer characters is sub-schoolplay level, and has made me seriously consider whether to bother with series 4

rfc
scotland
5th November 2008

prison break
the first 2 seasons of prison break were excellent but a bit disappointed with season 3 all they have done is just copied season 1 but still worth watching and it only has 13 episodes because of the writers strike in america

smyth86
Crawley
15th October 2008

If you're a die hard Prison Break fan
Prison Break was another of the US TV shows to be affected by the writers' strike. For me though, this was a good thing for Prison Break. I think had this been the full 22-24 episodes it would have dragged. This is something that I think series 2 had suffered from.
Series 3 had a tight, edge of your seat, albeit slightly familiar, story line. You always get to the end of an episode and feel you 'have' to watch the next one. This had me finishing the season after only 2 nights!
For any Prison Break fan this is a must. If you were disappointed by series 2, you will probably have your faith restored here.

Rouchie
Yorkshire, UK
28th September 2008

3.5 stars but still good
Prison Break series 1 was one of the most original television series I have seen. Season 2 tended to stretch the imagination a little bit, and so I didn't expect much from series 3. Due to the writer's strike this season is much shorter, but I think this really works in PB's favour. Because we are treated to 22 normal episodes squeezed into just 13 episodes, the action is fast and the plot is constantly evolving at high speed. It makes for very exciting viewing.
For me, William Fichtner (Mahone) and Wade Williams (Bellick) steal the series and both play superb roles, each having their own personal struggles.
Sadly I feel this series falls short because it leaves you asking huge questions from a very early point. For example, my nagging thought was "'The Company' had such influence and power over everything in Series 1, so why couldn't they just get Whistler out by pulling the usual strings?". It was also pretty disappointing to finally realise who's side he was on. Of course getting him out the easy way would make for boring viewing, but you have to wonder whether the plot gets a little too thin in places?
Either way, I did enjoy this series and the fantastic way in which each character evolved in yet a new and fresh direction. Also it was great to see Scofield in the last episode showing his true strengths - I'm looking forward to Series 4...!

Fred Dread
London, England
26th September 2008

Prision Break Series 3 (PART I)
With a series called Prison Break I'm not sure what people think it's going to be about. Anyway I enjoyed it but to say it's the COMPLETE third series is a bit of a joke, hence 3 stars for lying, as it's just over half a series. It's developing another thread but I'm not going to say much more. No spoilers here. I'm of the opinion that the standard of writing is still as high as ever but as it's about Prison Breaks, it's obviously got built-in boundaries. Take it or leave it, I still regard it as superior to most of the tosh on TV.