Episode Report Card Sobell: A | 2 USERS: A+ YOU GRADE IT He is a man of constant smirking
By Sobell | Season 1 | Episode 1 | Aired on 08.28.2005
Some time later, as he's chilling on his bunk, Michael's reverie is interrupted by a CO who hands over a PI card. Within seconds, he's off painting walls. Abruzzi snuggles up to him and whispers sweet nothings like, "Kudos, Fish. You got spine." Linc watches the whole exchange with trepidation.
The two walk over to the counter where they're turning in their dropcloths, and Linc says too-casually, "I saw Veronica come in yesterday. Still engaged to that guy?" Michael nods. Linc says, "Could have been me." Michael grumbles, "If you hadn't been self-destructive." Linc says, "You think I meant to knock up Lisa? I was just being stupid. Hurt. Shouldn't have pushed her away, though." Michael replies, "You pushed everyone away." Yeah, this is all very sensitive and moving, but now I'm all confused about the timeline here: both Michael and Veronica look to be about my age (early thirties), so unless Linc knocked up Lisa while Veronica was at school, there's no way L.J. should be in his teens yet. Or maybe both Michael and Veronica are older. Youthful-looking, immature-seeming, older people.
Anyway. Linc is busy feeling sorry for himself and he storms off, Michael trailing in his wake, while Abruzzi and some henchman watch them go. Hench wants to know why Abruzzi hired him, and Abruzzi replies, "Keep your friends close...and your enemies closer." Gosh, it's easy to see how the state had a hard time pinning anything on this crafty, original thinker.
We return to the brothers as they prepare to strip off their jumpsuits and rejoin the prison population. Linc asks if Michael meant what he said earlier, and Michael snarks, "I'm not here on vacation, trust me." Lincoln says, in what is becoming a depressingly typical (for him) monotone, "Getting out these walls, that's just the beginning. You're going to need money." Michael looks over at Westmoreland, and says, "I'll have it." Lincoln presses, "And people on the outside. People that can help you disappear." Michael looks over at Abruzzi and says, "I've already got 'em -- they just don't know it yet." Linc says, "Look, whatever you got going on, fill me in, 'cause I'm in the dark here."
Michael leans forth and disgorges a bolus of exposition: "Chaparal Associates got the contract to retrofit this place in '99 -- a $4 million contract. Head partner couldn't crack it. So he subcontracted out, on a sort of under-the-table basis, to a former associate. That guy was a partner in my firm. We basically ghost-wrote the whole plan. Crossed the Ts, dotted the Is, grouted the tiles." Linc sits there for about a minute until what Michael's said sinks in: "You've seen the blueprint."