Prison Break

10 Best Episodes of Prison Break - Season 1

Due to a political conspiracy, an innocent man is sent to death row and his only hope is his brother, who makes it his mission to deliberately get himself sent to the same prison in order to break the both of them out, from the inside out.

Written by Sophie and last updated on feb 04, 2023.

PS: The following content contains spoilers!

PPS: I will admit that parts of this page was written with the help of AI - it makes my work so much easier to not start from a blank page!

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Prison Break - S1E2

#15 - Allen (Season 1 - Episode 2)

Michael Scofield and Fernando Sucre (Amaury Nolasco) face a lockdown in order for the guards to search cells for contraband, where they're about to throw away a knife, but were stopped by Bellick (Wade Williams), who sends Sucre to SHU. Warden Pope (Stacy Keach) calls off the search for Michael's cell, but Bellick feels determined to, and sneaks into his cell when the prisoners are away, and finds the name "Allen Schweitzer". Bellick runs the name on the database, only to find no one matching it. Meanwhile, Sucre urges Stolte to let him call Maricruz (Camille Guaty), but is refused. Veronica (Robin Tunney) investigates who is framing Lincoln Burrows. She finds a tape, where she sees Lincoln shoot Terrence Steadman dead. Lincoln claims that he is being framed, stating the man was already dead and Lincoln never pulled the trigger. She attempts to talk to Crab Simmonds (Tab Baker), who didn't testify in his case, only to find out that he was killed of an apparent drug overdose. She is contacted by Leticia Barris (Adina Porter), Crab's girlfriend, but as they meet, she is spooked as Kellerman (Paul Adelstein) and Hale (Danny McCarthy) are watching. Back in Fox River, Michael attempts to get to a bolt from a bleacher belonging to T-Bag (Robert Knepper), but is stopped. He doesn't want Scofield on the bleacher unless he will join in the racist battle between the whites and blacks, but he declines. On his second attempt, T-Bag's gang take the bolt off him, so eventually, he decides to join in to get at the bolt. However, C-Note (Rockmond Dunbar) sees this, and when he confronts Scofield regarding the PUGNAc, he refuses to give the pills. Soon, everyone comes out of their cell for count, when the riot starts. Michael decides to get the bolt back from T-Bag's cellmate (Brian Hamman), and does so after a struggle. C-Note sees this and stabs the cellmate several times; the wounded man dies in Michael's arms. T-Bag believes Michael killed the cellmate, and plans to get ba

The episode was rated 7.94 from 2114 votes.

Prison Break - S1E12

#14 - Odd Man Out (Season 1 - Episode 12)

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C-Note overhears Michael and Lincoln discussing that there are too many fugitives for available time and they share the information with the group telling that one shall be left behind. T-Bag feels threatened and calls his cousin James Bagwell, disclosing the escape plan and asking James to call the Warden Pope in case T-Bag does not contact him later. Abruzzi asks his outside man to kidnap James, but things go wrong and the mobster kills James and his five years old son Jimmy. Abruzzi feels guilty for the death of the child and feels the need of God's forgiveness, but T-Bag betrays Abruzzi like Judas. Meanwhile Veronica and LJ bring Nick to the hospital and while in surgery, LJ escapes to see the funeral of his mother. Daniel Hale sees the teenager in the cemetery but he does not arrest him; later he tells his wife that they should move to West and gives an anonymous call to Veronica scheduling a meeting in the Highland Cafe. Maricruz tells Sucre that she is pregnant but she will marry Hector. Captain Bellick presses David to rat Michael telling everything he says. Michael tests the escape plan and informs the group that they are ready to go that night, but Lincoln was sent to solitary confinement protecting his brother.

The episode was rated 7.97 from 1629 votes.

Prison Break - S1E18

#13 - Bluff (Season 1 - Episode 18)

Improvising a new plan, Michael seeks out an acquaintance who may hold the key to his escape plan. In gen pop, the other members of the P.I. crew learn that the guards are auctioning Michael's cell to the highest bidder. Lincoln and Sucre devise a scheme to get Michael returned to gen pop. Veronica informs Lincoln that L.J will be tried for his mother's murder, and Lincoln desires to see his son.

The episode was rated 7.97 from 1498 votes.

Prison Break - S1E8

#12 - The Old Head (Season 1 - Episode 8)

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Michael finds out a storage room, fundamental to the escape because it is the only building directly over the pipes, has been converted into a break room for the guards, and the team must find a way to set it on fire so that Abruzzi can get them assigned to PI work there. They have to convince Westmoreland, who is a trustee (and thus has access to the break room freely), to help them burn it down. Michael approaches him with his cat (who ran away during the riots), but he refuses to help. Meanwhile, Bellick starts an investigation into Bob's death, and upon hearing rumors that he died outside of Westmoreland's cell, he goes to question him. Westmoreland doesn't say anything, afraid of being considered a "snitch". Bellick tells him that if he doesn't get an answer before he leaves the cell, their friendship is over. Westmoreland still doesn't cooperate, and Bellick pets Marilyn, saying "...nice cat." A while later, Westmoreland returns to his cell and finds Marilyn dead on his bunk, and spots Bellick looking down on his cell from the second level. The next day, when Westmoreland goes to deliver the coffee to the break room, he looks at a pack of Bellick's cigarettes and his lighter. Meanwhile, while Michael and Lincoln do PI work, a fire erupts in the break room. Michael approaches Westmoreland and thanks him, but Westmoreland responds with "I didn't do it for you." The group begins by breaking through a drain in the floor and enlarging the hole so that they can fit through it.

The episode was rated 7.97 from 1710 votes.

Prison Break - S1E15

#11 - By the Skin and the Teeth (Season 1 - Episode 15)

Michael's plan to escape has failed. While Lincoln is strapped to the electric chair, he sees an oddly familiar face in the crowd. Is there one last hope to save Lincoln's life, or has his journey reached an end?

The episode was rated 7.99 from 1530 votes.

Prison Break - S1E19

#10 - The Key (Season 1 - Episode 19)

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After the crash, Kellerman tries to suffocate Lincoln, but he is saved in the last moment by a stranger. Sucre leaves the solitary confinement and Michael tells to his partners that he has completed the map, but he needs the key of the infirmary. Abruzzi is back to Fox River, apparently converted in a religious man. Warden Pope sends Captain Bellick to find Lincoln before notifying the authorities. Nick tries to convince Veronica that they are losing time checking the calls of Quinn's cell phone. Michael kisses Sara and asks her to wait for him. Tweener is in trouble with Avocado and he castrates the abuser. Lincoln sees that the stranger is actually his father, and he explains that he worked for the powerful Company, and Lincoln is a victim of a big plot against him. He had leaked information of EcoField and they used Lincoln to force him to show off. Michaels asks for help to Nika. Veronica finds many calls from Montana. The Vice-President tells her brother that he is alive just because of her, and he replies that he does not understand how they have not killed her yet. Abruzzi meets T-Bag and asks him to forget everything, and they seal truce. Nika seeks out Sara and tells her life and how Michael helped her, but she actually steals Sara's key. A guy sees the Mustang in a junkyard where Aldo and Lincoln are hidden, but Kellerman bugs the conversation and goes to the spot. However, the police arrive and Captain Bellick arrests Lincoln, saving him from Kellerman. Sara seeks her key and recalls her meeting with Nika Volek; she calls maintenance service to replace the lock. Nick works for Abruzzi. Michael invites David and he betrays the plan to Captain Bellick. Lincoln is back to Fox River under 24 hours surveillance.

The episode was rated 8.00 from 1492 votes.

Prison Break - S1E5

#9 - English, Fitz or Percy (Season 1 - Episode 5)

Michael Scofield tells the team in his escape plan, now consisting of Sucre (Amaury Nolasco), Lincoln (Dominic Purcell), and John Abruzzi (Peter Stormare), that they have to take out either English, Fitz or Percy, the three names on his forearm from the tattoo. Meanwhile, Secret Service Agent Kellerman (Paul Adelstein) and Hale pay a visit to Warden Pope regarding Scofield's transfer. Pope denies the request, where the agents proceed in blackmailing him concerning the affair he had from Toledo, and threaten to tell his wife about this. Pope tells the agents that his wife already knows about the affair, but the agents know he did not tell her the whole truth. She knows nothing of the son he had there. Michael returns to his cell to find Pope, who tells him that some higher power wants him transferred out of Fox River. Michael plans to take the advice from Charles Westmoreland and get a transfer block letter, telling Pope he has sinusitis, to keep him in at least a month yet. However, Kellerman and Hale continue blackmailing him, and tells him to drop the paperwork, which he reluctantly does. Nick Savrinn and Veronica Donovan continue to try to find legal grounds to exonerate Lincoln. From the copy of the videotape of the murder, an expert believes that the gunshot sound was faked, but needs the original. However, they find it was destroyed in a "freak accident". When they return to Veronica's home, they find the copy has been stolen, and she suspects Nick may be involved. Michael tells Abruzzi to get him a key to the warden's office. Abruzzi does this by melting toothbrushes into a stolen mold. Towards the end of the day, Michael, while constructing the model of the Taj Mahal, tells Pope that the structure will collapse if he does not remain there to hold the piece as the glue sets. Warden Pope leaves for the day and Michael immediately uses the replica key to leave the office through the back door and reach the roof. However, during count, Bellick realises a miss

The episode was rated 8.02 from 1773 votes.

Prison Break - S1E1

#8 - Pilot (Season 1 - Episode 1)

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Michael Scofield is imprisoned in Fox River State Penitentiary. He finds his brother, Lincoln Burrows, who is a death row prisoner, and tells him that he is going to break them both out of the prison.

The episode was rated 8.02 from 2690 votes.

Prison Break - S1E13

#7 - End of the Tunnel (Season 1 - Episode 13)

The escape is about to go through when the team hits a stainless steel snag, while Veronica is just a moment too late to get all the information she needs to prove Lincoln's innocence.

The episode was rated 8.04 from 1609 votes.

Prison Break - S1E20

#6 - Tonight (Season 1 - Episode 20)

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Westmoreland uses Bellick to plug a hole in the escape plan, which forces Michael to move up the breakout timetable. A fearful Tweener pledges his loyalty to Michael and in return may get out of jail for free; Michael feels that he has no choice but to involve Sara in the plan and must betray his father figure; and Veronica finds her life in jeopardy from her closest ally, who has a surprising connection to a Fox River inmate.

The episode was rated 8.05 from 1527 votes.

Prison Break - S1E14

#5 - The Rat (Season 1 - Episode 14)

With the pipe to the infirmary replaced and Lincoln's life hanging in the balance, Michael must rethink his plan to escape and save his brother's life. A fellow inmate may hold the key to preventing Lincoln's execution.

The episode was rated 8.09 from 1581 votes.

Prison Break - S1E7

#4 - Riots, Drills and the Devil (2) (Season 1 - Episode 7)

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Turk misleads Lincoln, by sending him into a secluded area, where he attempts to kill him. However, after the two men struggle, Lincoln pushes Turk over the edge, where he soon dies. Back in Michael's and Sucre's cell, T-Bag is keeping an eye on CO Hudson, who knows of the escape plan. Abruzzi enters the hole and helps Sucre with breaking down the wall. Sucre, a devout Roman Catholic, struggles with drilling through a depiction of the devil. Also adding to the dilemma is the fact that gas pipes lie behind the wall, and that drilling in the wrong place may cause a fatal explosion. However, together they are eventually both able to drill strategically placed holes and manages to break it down to see the pipe on the other side. Sara is still trapped in the room, where the rioters almost break through, and try to set fire to it, where Michael manages to arrive through the vents and rescues her from them. However, the rioters follow her and Michael, who try to evade them. Sara asks how Michael knows about the pipes and he replies by saying that he has had PI duties to clean up toxic mold in the pipes. Soon, Michael is able to knock out one of the leading inmates and rush to an exit. However, when they arrive, a sniper, sent by Govorner Tancredi, who is adamant to do what it takes to rescue his daughter, aims at him. Michael quickly ducks as the pursuing inmates are fired at and Sara reunites with her father. Veronica and Nick arrive in Washington D. C. and receive the address from the placed phone call, a payphone. The payphone is next to the building of the company the Vice President uses. The phone rings and Veronica answers it. The caller tells them that they are dead. In a panic, Veronica and Nick run away from the payphone. Michael returns to gen-pop and reunites with Lincoln before heavily armed SORT teams invade the prison and force the inmates back to their cells. In Michael's cell, the team discuss what to do with Hudson. Michael, Lincoln and Sucre want to

The episode was rated 8.15 from 1753 votes.

Prison Break - S1E6

#3 - Riots, Drills and the Devil (1) (Season 1 - Episode 6)

Since Scofield's transfer was cancelled, the woman in Montana tells Kellerman to take care of Burrows quickly. He has an informant call an inmate in Fox River to kill Lincoln. The only form of identification of the inmate is an elastic bracelet. Veronica (Robin Tunney) avoids Nick Savrinn, until she realises that he is trying to help her all along, when he hears that the anonymous phone call to arrest Lincoln came from Washington D.C. Meanwhile, Michael (Wentworth Miller) realizes that to complete a digging job inside the walls to some pipes, he needs to spend a good block of time there, which has been proving difficult as he has to keep coming back to his cell to make count. After explaining this to Sucre (Amaury Nolasco), he is told that the only time count doesn't take place is during a lockdown. Michael manages to disable the prison's air conditioning. T-Bag (Robert Knepper) returns from the infirmary, where he is given a new cell mate, Seth. Since the A/C is off, the inmates suffer in the heat, leading T-Bag to start a fight with Geary, who then initiates a lockdown while some of the prisoners are out of their cells. The prisoners riot and break into the prison cell control room, in which T-Bag opens all the cells and then finds a set of keys, giving him and the rioters access to the entire prison. When news of the riot reaches the sick bay, the prisoners there also riot. After taking out the guard, they trap Dr. Tancredi (Sarah Wayne Callies) in the adjacent room. Michael uses a tracing of a devil from his tattoo to provide the coordinates (calculated using Hooke's law, also referred in this episode as hooker's law) needed to collapse part of the wall. This is vital to his escape plan as the wall prevents the team from entering a pipe that will take them to the infirmary. Meanwhile, after Lincoln is ambushed by T-Bag and his men, he holds new CO Bob Hudson hostage, who tries to escape, but T-Bag takes him to Michael's cell, where he learns of the escape pla

The episode was rated 8.18 from 1779 votes.

Prison Break - S1E22

#2 - Flight (Season 1 - Episode 22)

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As the escape continues, lives are lost and Pope and Bellick do everything in their power to capture the convicts.

The episode was rated 8.28 from 1549 votes.

Prison Break - S1E21

#1 - Go (Season 1 - Episode 21)

The team start the escape from the hole in Scofield's cell.

The episode was rated 8.33 from 1534 votes.

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