Thursday, May 28, 2009

Rate of Exchange/Killing Your Number Recaps

During my sick days, I guess I forgot to post these. I know they don't matter now, as a lot of people have now seen The Final Break, but I like to be thorough! Besides, how do I know someone doesn't want to see this? Warning: this is a long post since it contains two full recaps!

EPISODE 421 "Rate of Exchange"
Airdate: 2009-05-15


Michael insists to Mahone that he's going to find a way to save both Lincoln and Sara. Mahone persuades him to go after Linc first. Meanwhile, Christina contemptuously calls Linc "the dumb one" and is sickened that Michael cares for him so much. Michael calls and says he'll give her Scylla; just meet him at a shipping yard in 45 minutes. Elsewhere, General Krantz tells Sara that if she'd just left the infirmary door locked back at Fox River, her father and so many others would still be alive, and now none of it will have been worth it. Michael's sure to return Scylla because his heart always betrays his better judgment. Sara parries that that's true - because if Michael had used his better judgment, he's have killed Krantz the night he stole Scylla. Krantz, enraged, leaves her with T-Bag... who, leering, turns out his pocket and makes Sara fondle it.



At the shipping yard, as Michael prepares a box of homemade explosives, Mahone tries to persuade him to simply give Scylla to Christina in order to save everyone - including Pam, LJ and Sofia. Michael won't countenance any deals. Christina arrives; Linc's in the Range Rover with Downey, cuffed. She demands Scylla and walks towards Michael... but stops short of the tripwire he's set up. Michael tries to goad her into coming closer, she instead she orders her henchman to kill Michael. The henchman trips the wire and is blown to pieces. Christina gets away and holes up in an abandoned office. She tells Linc he won't live long enough to be an uncle. Linc is thrown by this, and Christina realizes that Sara still hasn't told anybody that she's pregnant.

Downey tells Chrisina that Prime Minister Banerjee is calling, wanting to know why he hasn't gotten the Scylla technology yet. Christina tells Linc that Michael's got ten minutes. Meanwhile, Krantz calls Michael. Michael says that every Fed and cop in town is looking for him, and it's impeding his return; if he's caught, Scylla will be locked away as evidence. Krantz gives him an hour, or he'll turn T-Bag loose on Sara. T-Bag gloats to Sara that when this is over, Krantz will employ him. Sara tells him there's no way that'll happen; Krantz will have him killed along with the rest of them... but if he helps her escape and get back to Michael, the slate will be wiped clean. T-Bag says that that slate will never be clean... as if he doesn't come back soon, it'll get a lot dirtier. Michael calls Christina, demanding to talk to Linc. Linc tells him that Sara's pregnant and exhorts him to go after Sara; Linc's willing to die knowing that he did something to pay Michael back. Christina grabs the phone away and hangs it up.

Self wakes up in the hospital, where a pair of FBI agents question him as to Michael and Linc's whereabouts, and begin to torture him when he won't talk; since he's impeding an investigation into an act of terrorism, he has no legal protection. Self finally says he doesn't know where they are, but he can find out. He demands immunity.

In Chicago, Sucre, still spooked by every police car he sees, is tailed by somebody. He is chased into an alleyway, turns to fight, and realizes who his pursuer is... it's C-Note. The two talk in a diner. They're both home and happy with their children. C-Note claims that he was looking for Sucre because the case against Mahone fell apart, so the Feds reneged on his deal and were gonna send him back to Fox River. He needs to know how to get a hold of Michael and Linc. Sucre is suspicious of his motives and nearly leaves, but C-Note insists that he's trying to help. The brothers are in trouble, and will only get out of it if Sucre helps him find them. Sucre doesn't want to risk losing his family again, but C-Note says that with the menial jobs he has to work because he's afraid of being arrested, he's not going to be able to support his family for very long. C-Note's sure the guy who contacted him is a player. He wants to get some device into the right hands by finding Michael and Linc, and then he'll get their records clean. He takes Sucre to meet the man. We don't see his face, but we do see his hands... and he's wearing a ring, a familiar ring with an eagle on it.

As Michael checks the Scylla briefcase, Mahone asks him how they can save Pam as well, but Michael doesn't have a plan. He tells Mahone that if there's anything he needs to do to save Pam, he should just do it. Elsewhere, Christina cruelly taunts Linc, telling him he's stupid and she never cared for him because he's not really her son. She's further enraged when Banerjee leaves the country, no longer trusting that Christina will deliver Scylla. Linc's just cost her three quarters of a billion dollars. She's about to shoot Linc when Mahone calls, offering her Scylla in return for protection for his family, and Linc's release as well. He owes Linc. Meanwhile, Michael calls Krantz, who wants to make the exchange at a parking lot in twenty minutes; Scylla for Sara. As Michael hangs up, we see Mahone put down a newly-purchased duplicate of the Scylla briefcase; Michael doesn't seem to have noticed the switch, and takes the empty case. Krantz leaves with Ralph; he's planning on killing Michael. He leaves Sara behind for T-Bag to do as he pleases.

Mahone meets with Christina. He wants her to make the call to have her people protect Pam before he hands over Scylla, but she insists he hand it over first. Downey tells Pam that a mole in the FBI has reported that two agents are talking to Self, who is getting immunity. Christina thinks he's a threat. Meanwhile, Self calls Michael, but Michael won't talk, and simply says that the whole thing will be over soon before hanging up. The FBI agents are asked by a doctor to leave the room... but it's not a doctor. It's Downey, who drugs Self via his IV and holds him down as he begins to twitch.

Michael leaves the Scylla briefcase at the parking lot. Krantz and Ralph arrive and find that the briefcase is empty. Michael seems to be hiding, and he uncoils a rope. Back at the loft, T-Bag prepares to rape Sara. Sara realizes that one of the bars she's cuffed to is loose, and to buy time, begins taunting T-Bag, telling him that his medical records at Fox River indicate that he's impotent. Just as an enraged T-Bag is finally about to attack, she gets a bar free and swings it at him, but T-Bag quickly overpowers her. Just as he begins to unzip his pants, he's smashed over the head by Michael, who we find wasn't at the parking lot when Krantz got there; he was scaling the loft to enter through he window. Michael's about to smash T-Bag's skull in with the bar, but Sara's terrified cries bring him back to his senses. The two embrace.

Christina takes Scylla from the briefcase Mahone gave her. Mahone again asks her to make the call to protect Pam, but she says she needs to make sure it works first and locks him in the side room with Linc. He tells Linc that he's there to save him. Meanwhile, we see that Michael also seems to have Scylla. In flashback, we again see Michael tell Mahone that if there's anything he needs to do to save Pam, he should just do it. And then we see what happened directly afterwards: Michael finally came up with a plan. Christina prides herself on being able to read Michael's every move... but she won't be able to predict Mahone's actions. He removes Scylla's guts and replaces them with explosives. Michael's still got Scylla's interior. He knew Krantz would never honor the arrangement. Both Scyllas, the ones given to Krantz and to Christina, are actually bombs. Back in the present moment, as Sara and Michael plan to start their lives anew, Mahone drags a weak and groggy Linc to the far side of the side room and asks if he's ready to get out of there. In the next room, Downey finds he isn't getting a connection to Scylla. Christina realizes that Michael has tricked her. And we see the red blinking light of the bomb inside the Scylla case.

EPISODE 422 "Killing Your Number"
Airdate: 2009-05-15
MUSIC: Lay It Down Slow" - Spiritualized


Michael and Sara talk about the ordinary life they're going to lead when this is all over. Mahone calls and says that the bomb meant to take out Christina didn't go off. Michael tells him he'll have to trigger it manually. Christina enters and demands to know why they can't access Scylla. Mahone pretends ignorance. Christina orders Downey to kill him just as Mahone finds the manual switch on the bomb. The beeping of the bomb distracts Downey just long enough for Mahone to overpower him and escape with Linc. Moments later, there is a tremendous blast that knocks Downey and Christina down. Outside, Michael's just arrived with Sara. Sara wants to get Linc to a hospital, but Linc says that'd mean jail. Michael regards a big hole in the building where Christina was, but we see inside that Downey's body shielded Christina from the blast. Her finger begins to twitch.

At the loft, Krantz is about to kill T-Bag for his many failures when a phone rings. It's Sara's; she accidentally left it behind. T-Bag is allowed to answer the phone and finds Sucre on the other end. Sucre asks where Michael and Lincoln are; T-Bag says their mother has them. He's got an idea of where, but he's scared to talk on the phone. They arrange a meeting in the park in an hour. Krantz reluctantly sends T-Bag out with an operative. T-Bag meets with Sucre and points out the operative to him, telling him he's walked into a trap. Sucre, smirking, demands Sara's phone. T-Bag looks up again and sees that the operative is dead. A moment later, C-Note shows himself. They take T-Bag hostage. C-Note reports back to his mysterious employer that he's got Sara's phone; there are a lot of calls to one number. It must be Michael.

Michael decides the best thing to do is destroy Scylla; Krantz will have them killed no matter what they do. Suddenly, Michael's phone rings, and on the other end... is Kellerman. Not dead after all, he was freed by a group trying to bring down the Company, the group founded by Michael's father. He tells Michael to get Scylla to a U.N. attach? at 5pm at the footbridge in Declan Plaza. Michael tells him to stop Krantz from pursuing their families. Kellerman agrees, and says when Scylla is delivered, all their slates will be wiped clean. Michael doesn't know whether to believe him. Kellerman says that Scylla can change the world for the better; he doesn't need to trust Kellerman, he just needs to trust the U.N. Sara says that Linc's out of time; she needs a needle, syringe and chest tube right now. At the loft, Krantz and Ralph realize T-Bag is either captured or dead. They get a ping off of Linc's cell phone; Ralph and another operative head to the location. Elsewhere, Sucre and C-Note interrogate T-Bag. They want Krantz's location. T-Bag won't talk. They string T-Bag upside-down and tell him his eyeballs will burst. He's still not talking, still clinging to the idea of becoming a respected "gentleman" in the Company's employ, but the treatment is getting to him.

At the hospital, the FBI agents interrogating Self check his files and see that Mahone's involved. Self's nearly comatose and his brain is quickly wasting away, but he can move his hand and write... but the only message he'll write is "F.U." Meanwhile, Sara arrives at the hospital with Mahone in tow. She grabs a doctor's lab coat and slips into a supply closet. When a nurse is about to go in, Mahone distracts her by asking questions... and attracts the attention of the one of the FBI agents. In the car, Linc tells Michael if he has to leave him, he should. Michael says not a chance, they're brothers. Linc says that's not what Christina said. Michael says she was just messing with their minds... and even if it's true, it doesn't change anything. Sara emerges from the supply closet to find Mahone being arrested. He nods to her to leave and she hightails it back to the car. Sara gives Linc an injection that will only last for a while. Michael says they have to leave Mahone, but once they deliver Scylla to Kellerman, it'll buy Mahone his immunity. Suddenly, the passenger window explodes and shatters, shot by a Company operative. At the driver-side window is Ralph, who takes them all back to Krantz. Michael claims not to have Scylla. Krantz turns on a TV which shows a live feed of Sofia being held at gunpoint and demands Scylla again. Meanwhile, Mahone is interrogated. He insists that he and the others have been set up, but the FBI aren't listening. They just want the location of Michael and Linc. At the loft, the stalemate is broken by the arrival of Sucre and C-Note; T-Bag must have finally talked. They shoot Ralph and hold Krantz at gunpoint before he even knows what's happening. Michael orders Krantz to have Sofia released, and he does so. Michael's about to kill Krantz. Linc eggs him on, but Sara and Sucre talk him out of it. Krantz is cuffed to the banister and left behind. Michael asks C-Note why he trusts Kellerman; C-Note admits that Kellerman's the only option they've got. As they bundle into the car, police sirens wail. They're nearly trapped, until Sucre uses his own car to cut the police off. He is arrested as Michael, Sara, Linc and C-Note get away.

Christina and her men track Michael down via his cell phone. She shoots C-Note in the legs and nearly walks off with Scylla, but pulls a gun on her. He hesitates to pull the trigger for a moment, but Christina goads him and he fires... but the gun just clicks. Jammed. Christina prepares to shoot him, telling him he was born a Scofield but will die a Burrows. Suddenly, two shots ring out; Sara has shot Christina dead at the moment she fired at Michael. Her shot went wild and struck Michael in the shoulder. Sara takes Linc and C-Note to the hospital while Michael delivers Scylla to Kellerman. As Sucre stays as tight-lipped under FBI interrogation as Mahone was, Michael goes to the rendezvous point... where he is taken hostage at gunpoint. However, it transpires that these are Kellerman's men. He just wanted to make sure Michael wasn't followed. In an office building, Kellerman tries to boot up Scylla for Solomon Okella, the man from the U.N., but it doesn't work. Michael's withholding a piece. He wants proof that the Okella's legitimate. Okella's ready to walk away. Tired and beaten, Michael says he doesn't want to run anymore. He gives up the missing piece, and Scylla boots up. Okella's satisfied. So's Kellerman, who says it's over - Michael did it.

Krantz finally frees himself from the handcuffs, only to be arrested by a team of cops who have just arrived. Not long after, Michael, a healthy Linc who's gotten the treatment he needs, Mahone, Sucre, Sara and C-Note are seated around a table with Kellerman, who presents them all with statements to sign. They all sign and are free at last, and Kellerman confirms that all their loved onces are safe as well, but there's one final piece of business to take care of. T-Bag wants exoneration for his help. Kellerman leaves it up to them. Michael and Linc approach T-Bag, who is being held in the hallway. He begs for mercy and forgiveness. Linc says they took a vote and he's in luck... T-Bag gets a stick of gum for the ride back to prison.

Later, a jubilant Michael and Sara walk along the beach. Michael says he's going to be a hands-on dad. They're both happy. Suddenly, Sara stops short. Michael has a nosebleed. They both pale, knowing what this could mean. Michael insists he's fine. They hold each other tightly.

Four years later. Mahone mails a birthday card to Pam, then kisses and walks off hand in hand with Felicia Lang. In Chicago, a happy Sucre is playing with his little girl and tells her he'll be back in two days, while C-Note, working for UPS, luxuriates in his freedom and normal life. In Central America, Linc and Sofia live happily together. LJ's in school. They hug goodbye and Sofia tells him to get home safe. In a convalescent home in Chicago, a brain-dead Don Self stares out the window and drools. On death row, General Krantz is led to the electric chair. In Washington, Kellerman is now a crusading Congressman, well-loved by the press... but not by Danny Hale's widow, who arrives to spit in his face in front of the press photographers. And in Fox River, T-Bag hears an inmate talk about "the captivity of negativity." He's reading a book about GATE. Saddened at the reminder of the white-collar life he nearly had, he tells the inmate firmly that he never wants to see that book again. The inmates fear him; he's a leader among prisoners once again... and a young boy in his entourage is holding his pocket. And at a street fair in Central America, we see that Sara has a small, pendant-shaped scar on her shoulder in the shape of a snake. She calls to Michael that it's time to go... but the Michael she's speaking to is a child. Her child, Michael Jr. She says it's time to go see Daddy. They arrive at a cemetery, where they meet up with Linc, Sucre and Mahone. Michael Jr. puts flowers on a headstone... while Linc leaves an origami crane. Everyone pays their respects. As they leave, we see the inscription on the headstone:


Michael J. Scofield
September 8, 1974 - November 4, 2005
Husband, Father, Brother, Uncle, Friend
"Be the change you want to see in the world."

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