Director: Milan Cheylov
Cast: Robert Wisdom (Lechero), Dominic Purcell (Lincoln Burrows), Wade Williams (Brad Bellick), Robert Knepper (Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell), Wentworth Miller (Michael Scofield), Chris Vance (James Whistler), William Fichtner (Alexander Mahone), Jodi Lyn O'Keefe (Susan B. Anthony), Amaury Nolasco (Fernando Sucre), Danay Garcia (Sofia Lugo) & Marshall Allman (LJ Burrows)
Michael tries to get in touch with Sara, but the only phone is in Lechero's quarters, so he has to rely on T-Bag's help. Meanwhile, Mahone battles his addiction..."One thing you should know about my brother, he's very stubborn.
You want him to fetch, you throw him a bone."
-- Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell)
This episode exists to test parameters and develop areas beyond the plan to free Whistler (Chris Vance). Now that we have a grip on season 3's ultimate aim, Call Waiting tests how far boundaries can be pushed, with Linc using a polaroid of Sara and LJ to trace their whereabouts and mount a one-man rescue...
Writer Zack Estrin engages in a plot of involving tenuous clues and unlikely forethought. Sara has managed to indicate her whereabouts by pointing at words on the newspaper she held in said photo, meaning Linc's soon hot-on-the-heels of the sinister Company.
You have to suspend disbelief, but it's all written with enough loose plausibility to keep you invested. It's a great idea to have Linc (Dominic Purcell) involved in his own story, taking an active role in rescuring his family instead of acting as a messenger between the Company and Sona.
Inside the prison, despite Michael solving Sona's water problem last week, it hasn't bought him the expected leeway with Lechero (Robert Wisdom). This is great from a dramatic standpoint, as a misstep would be made if Michael got cosy with Lechero by episode 2. But Call Waiting makes it clear Michael's still on the outside of Lechero's inner circle.
That's not the case for T-Bag (Robert Knepper), who's wormed his way into Lechero's affections with a can-do attitude and some bad jokes. His almost immediate rise up the food chain doesn't ring true, but it's tempered by the fact Lechero's men hate T-Bag. Knepper himself is always a delight, no matter how disappointing or implausible the plots he's given.
Michael threatens to reveal T-Bag's crimes to the other inmates, unless he helps him get hold of Lechero's phone, to call kidnapped Sara. T-Bag, aware religious Panamanians won't take kindly to having a paedophile in their midst, reluctantly agrees. This development is believable, but will Michael always use the same threat to manage T-Bag now?
Mahone (William Fichtner) gets a chance to shine, as his lack of medication begins to take a toll on his health. His nerves aren't helped by "good news" his day in court is scheduled for next year! Fichtner's a great actor, but Mahone's brilliance in season 2 stemmed from the fact he was an intelligent, conflicted family man, forced to work for the bad guys. Now, he's beaten, depressed and stripped of that ambiguity. I really hope he begins to develop his own storyline quickly.
Call Waiting is mainly undone by silly plot moments -- from bald Lechero having a haircut, to the whole episode hanging on the charging of a cell phone. Admittedly, they manage to milk tension from just stealing a phone, but it's ultimately as frivolous as it sounds.
The show also has a nasty habit of including boring plots for its supporting cast. Here, Sucre (Amaury Nolasco) meets up with Linc, leaves after realizing the $5 million season 2 macguffin has vanished, and is later found in a drunken stupor. He's a needless distraction. Then Bellick (Wade Williams) spends another episode shuffling around, searching for decent shoes to wear. He even offers his body to a local hairdresser (gay, natch) in return for some footwear!
One irritation is the absence of Sarah Wayne Callies as Sara Tancredi. Her character is involved in the plot -- but because the actress hasn't returned for season 3, the makers are forced to use a look-alike in a polaroid, a sound-alike for a phone call, and hide her face behind a mop of hair. It's disappointing for fans that Sara is being treated this way, but it perhaps answers the Se7en-style question posed at the end...
8 October 2007
Sky One, 10.00 pm
