S03E12: 'Hell Or High Water'

In what may well turn out to be the penultimate ever episode of Prison Break, it's a joy to see the beleaguered series recapture its former glories. A winning blend of clever plotting, fast-paced action and barking mad twists, 'Hell Or High Water' finally sees Scofield emerge from his Sona sojourn.

The locations are used to good effect, giving the episode a visual scope that has been lacking of late. The chase through the jungle and subsequent trek beneath the water are very well staged, bristling full of tension and a slight hope that the annoying McGrady might not make it out alive. A rather poignant moment occurred out of the blue too, with Mahone's desire to preserve the crumpled photo of his son being utterly rejected by the increasingly brutish Burrows.

Crucially though, this was where the plan finally came together, as Mr T would so aptly put it. The boom-box and diving equipment grabbed by Burrows several episodes ago were given their big pay off, alongside the tracking watch given to Whistler by Susan. They were all very effectively deployed as narrative devices mainly because they'd been log forgotten about by most ardent viewers.

The plot contrivances were as compulsively crazy as ever, particularly with the manner in which Scofield and his escapees managed to totally avoid detection and make it out of Sona by rolling under a series of strategically placed jeeps. Were they all lined up neatly for Evil Kneivel to make a daring jump over them?

In a season where the show hit a procession of lows, it's great that the interest can be quickly revived through better quality writing and direction. The series finale unexpectedly has a lot to live up to now.