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Alas, poor Bellick. The remaining members of Team Scylla and T-Bag eulogize him throughout the episode which, while quite sweet, is also a little irritating because where was the love when the guy was alive? However, that is the only activity they have in common; this is one of those episodes where everyone gets scattered to the four winds.
In one direction: Michael has another seizure, so Dr. Sara bundles him off to the hospital for a quickie MRI. Dr. Sara sheepishly admits that she's posing as his wife, but since Michael doesn't run off screaming, it appears he's okay with deeper commitment. Also, it's unclear to me why she even thought this would be an issue. The man went to Sona for her, for God's sake. At this point, marriage would be a cakewalk for these two. Michael and Dr. Sara leave when a few cops arrive, despite some nice doctor being all, "Look, the cops aren't here for you, I know who you are, and all I really care about is treating you." We learn that Michael has a really rare kind of brain tumor, and he needs surgery tomorrow or else he could die. Too bad he needs two days to fix up this Scylla dilemma.
In another direction: Prior to Michael's collapse, he figured out that the creator of the Scylla complex/bunker inserted his initials into the blueprint. The guy's name is David Baker, and Mahone -- who is looking about 50% less crazy than in past episodes, so perhaps there is something to the cathartic nature of homicide -- tracks him down to his elegant modernist pad. Unfortunately, because the One World Conspiracy is having problems moving Scylla, they also decide to track down David Baker, so it gets a little awkward. Baker's grabbed, but Mahone escapes, courtesy of a little help from Mrs. Baker. He has a key to the schematic Michael's been using, so that errand was productive.
In yet another direction: Lincoln and Sucre now have to wend their way through the tunnels leading to Scylla, and Sucre ends up stepping on a pressure-sensitive explosive that's set to blow if he steps off it again. After Michael figures out that disarming the submerged mine will set off an alarm system, Mahone sprints to the trouble spot to warn Gretchen of this (she's trying to disarm the mine), and after some nail-biting, Sucre's eased off the mine in one piece.
Finally, this show throws us for a loop in a good way: we learn that dishy Trisha is, in fact, a Homeland Security agent who's been working with Don Self. I sort of feel bad for making fun of her nonstop now.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!We open at Team Scylla HQ. Everyone's sitting around the table, silently grieving. Or, in Sucre's case, flashing back to two episodes ago when Bellick so presciently requested that Sucre call Ma Bellick if anything should happen to her boy. So Sucre speaks up to ask Don Self where Bellick's body is. Amazingly, it was A) retrieved, B) without anyone tipping off the press as to the corpse circulating through the city's water supply, and C) promptly stashed away in a secret place, presumably to the thousands upon thousands of Swiss Army knives that the TSA confiscates at airport security gates, and directly below the Ark of the Covenant.
The prospect of Bellick's mortal remains moldering to the Swiss Army knives and the Ark of the Covenant sets everyone off. Mahone tartly reminds Don Self that he had promised they'd be returned to -of-kin (why he's adamant about this, I don't know. Does he think Pam wants matching father-son urns on her mantel?) and Don Self replies that no, what he promised is that their remains would be given a decent funeral. He then gets huffy over how hard his job is right now, and then the job gets much harder because now he has to do it with the irate Sucre's hands wrapped around his throat. Mahone breaks it up, and Sucre gives vent to his full feelings at the top of his lungs, in Spanish. When Sucre calms down a little, he manages to remember his English and he says, "[Bellick's] got a mother, you know." Mahone is still blocking Don Self and Sucre from each other, and he says, "If you want Scylla -- and I assume you still do -- Brad Bellick's body goes home to his mother." Don Self finally promises to take care of the body. Then he adds, "You guys need to get out of mourning. We need to get back to work. And Fernando, my friend, let me tell you something. If you ever put your hands on me again, I promise you, there's going to be two bodies in the fridge." Michael finally cuts off the bluster by saying that he needs to see the missing pages Gretchen still has. And that is how he and Don Self end up driving to some parking garage.
Gretchen comes sashaying over with, "I heard you were dead." Michael wants to know who told her that, and she deadpans, "A little bird" as she hands over the missing bird book pages. Then she breaks the news that the One World Conspiracy will be moving Scylla to a bunker in Pennsylvania the very day. Michael comments, "For an ex-employee, you sure seem to know about current [One World Conspiracy] business." Gretchen smoothly lies, "Don't get paranoid. I'm keeping one ear to the ground for your benefit, which is a really good reason to work with me, not against me." She does not add, "And I'm keeping the other ear pressed to the withered, Vicks-smelling chest of General Von Baldy." And for that I'm grateful -- nobody needs to see that ickiness.
We cut to General Von Baldy watching people in bunny suits working in a clean room while Lisa fills him in on all the details in the tone of voice people usually employ when elaborating on what kind of underwear they've put on (or taken off) in anticipation of a hot date. General Von Baldy muses, "Perhaps we should call in David Baker, just to be safe." Lisa hastily says, "That won't be necessary. We can do this all in-house, and Scylla will be gone by morning." The general gives her a significant look as the soundtrack blares ominously.
Back at Team Scylla HQ, Sucre dolefully notes that he's got to call Ma Bellick. Linc volunteers to take over the chore, but Sucre declines the offer. Mahone is going through the surprising amount of stuff Bellick amassed during his brief tenure as a Team Scylla member. Seriously -- he'd been back from Sona for what -- a day? -- before being apprehended again. When did Bellick have the time to amass a whole giant duffel bag's worth of stuff? Did he use Roland's computer to hit LL Bean when the team wasn't pulling off capers? Mahone notes with mild surprise, "He kept a badge from the police benefit." Sucre shares, "When he was a CO at Fox River, he failed the test to get into the academy five times." Mahone tucks away the badge in his pocket for later.
Then everyone's downstairs, because Michael's taken the formerly missing pages of the bird book and assembled a full map of the basement where Scylla is being kept. He frowns that the map's too simple -- there's something there he's not seeing. "The symbols, they don't make any sense. And the letters ... there's just something wrong," Michael says. He seizes on three of the letters -- C, M and E. After repeating them a few times, Michael realizes the message is "See me." Dr. Sara scans the map and notes, "These letters don't make any sense if you think of them as symbols, but they do if you think of them literally." "Apparently, the symbols in the map spell D-O-U-C-M-E, or "Do you see me?" Then Michael writes out the other symbols he has on the map -- B, A, K, E, R, D, A, V, 1, D. Hello, David Baker. Sucre, bless him, asks who besides Michael and Mahone would even think of something like that: "I mean, what's the point?" Michael doesn't know -- but he figures it's probably a good idea to find David Baker and ask. Oh, that poor weird genius has no idea what's about to hit him.
Over at GATE, Trisha is bringing T-Bag his coffee just the way he likes it -- one sugar, two creams -- and I am sort of amazed that he doesn't think to check it for poison. (Also, I'm amazed that people still have to bring coffee for random higher-ups in the office. It's so quaint! Like typing pools and people who think it's okay to sexually harass their underlings.) T-Bag has been repairing a watch, but he stops to check out the dossier on Gretchen that Trisha's fingerprints yielded. We learn that Gretchen Louise Morgan was born at the end of March in 1977 (she's an Aries, like Hitler!), has a sister living in Riverside, her dad's deceased, she's an Iraq war veteran and an award-winning equestrienne. I pray we get an episode where Gretchen's riding to someone's rescue. Trisha -- whose neckline has crept even higher in this episode, leading me to wonder why crime seems to have brought on a case of the modesty -- notes that there's nothing overtly linking Gretchen to the Chinese mob. T-Bag asks, "No mention of any of our friends?" Trisha says, "No. I checked -- no Scofield, no Burrows, no Whistler." At that last name, T-Bag's head comes up and he asks, "Whistler? How do you know that name?" Trisha bluffs, "James Whistler? I heard Scofield mention him one day." T-Bag quizzes her: what day? In what context? Trisha claims she doesn't remember, then asks, in seeming innocence, "What's the big deal? Who is he?" T-Bag, who is thoroughly spooked, replies, "Nobody."
Back at Team Scylla HQ, Dr. Sara's found the David Baker they're looking for -- he's apparently a do-gooder who now designs low-income housing -- and she heads off to print out a map to David and Elaine Baker's house. Don Self begins hectoring the team about getting the sixth card ("Really?" Linc replies, in total deadpan) and Michael is talking about what further obstacles await in the basement. He makes work assignments -- he and Dr. Sara will handle Baker while everyone else gets to the basement to see what fresh hell -- I mean, surprise -- awaits. But before anyone can get anywhere, Michael collapses.
When he comes to, Dr. Sara's like, "Hospital. Now." When Don Self tells her not to freak out, Dr. Sara snaps, "This is my decision and not yours. We're going to the hospital." Don Self reasonably requests to know why his criminal fugitive planning genius needs medical attention, but nobody bothers to fill him in. Mahone assures Michael he'll handle the David Baker errand. Dang, Mahone -- you kill one psychopathic hitman and it does wonders for your peace of mind. Seriously -- no more twitchy behavior, haunted looks, or agonized monologues. Mahone's killed a man and it's soothed all his demons and apparently eliminated his many narcotic addictions. Let us hope that other rehab programs do not seize on the homicide-as-healing course of detox.
Meanwhile, T-Bag is nervous enough about Trisha to start nosing around as to her employment history at GATE. It turns out she only preceded T-Bag by a week, and he asks White for Trisha's application. White's like, "No problem! Confidentiality, schmonfidentiality! Also, today around noon, we need you to wow our new franchisees from Idaho. Give us some of that Cole Pfeiffer magic." T-Bag pales beneath his bronzer, then heads off to panic until noon. Unfortunately, he can't even cross that off his list because Gretchen has just waylaid him.
Once they're inside the office, Gretchen tells him, "I didn't want you to be the last to know: Scylla is moving." She explains why this isn't cause for panic: "Have you ever heard of noodling?" "I don't believe so," T-Bag says. Gretchen asks dryly, "Well, then, what kind of hillbilly are you, really? I'll explain it to you." T-Bag actually smiles at that as Gretchen launches into her speech: "Noodling is when a foolhardy bastard swims to the bottom of a muddy river bed, and he sticks his hand down into the deepest, darkest hole. He's looking for a prize catfish. Now, sometimes, the catfish does live there. And the noodler pulls it out with his bare hand, and drags it ashore. But sometimes, he reaches in that hole, and he finds a snapping turtle. It bites his hand clean off." We cut to T-Bag wincing and fondling his prosthetic. He concludes that Scofield is being set up as Gretchen's noodler. She continues, "If he reaches into the [One World Conspiracy] hole and he finds Scylla, we take it, and sell Scylla to [the stabby guy] Fang. If he gets a turtle? Well ... [smacks T-Bag's prosthetic] Not our hand."
Their little moment is interrupted as Trisha announces the arrival of "the contractors," i.e. Linc and Sucre. Linc isn't too pleased to see Gretchen, but T-Bag tells him to keep it down. So Linc takes that as his cue to shout, "We need some help." I love contrary Linc. T-Bag snaps that he's providing his services white-collar style, then asks, "Where's Pretty and the fat man?" Sucre replies, "Bellick's dead." T-Bag looks startled to hear this, but Sucre warns him against making any jokes about the dead. Then this may be the one time I'm relieved that Sucre's entirely fictional because honestly, this moping about over Bellick has me baffled. Does nobody seem to remember how he spent nearly every episode leading up to the one in which he died? The man was a craven, corrupt, cat-murdering loser for much of the series run. That Sucre's not cackling over this being karmic payback for Bellick's little "I kidnapped and buried your girlfriend" stunt is baffling to me. That T-Bag is busy looking distraught over this -- instead of being relieved that the guy who tied him to a chair and tortured him -- is baffling to me. I get that everyone's going to miss Wade Williams, but missing the actor and missing the cowardly little greedhead he played are two completely different things.
And now, this week's plotline that can be summed up in one paragraph. And it centers on our protagonist, Michael. Dr. Sara explains that her "husband" is having these headaches and fits, and as an internist, she's terribly concerned. The admitting doctor's all, "Does he have insurance?" and even when Dr. Sara can't answer directly, she's all, "That's okay -- just fill this out and we'll immediately tend to you with a vast number of expensive tests." Then "Kevin Freeling" tells the admitting attendant that yes, his mother suffered from epilepsy, [something I didn't catch] and neurological disorders, and we go to Dr. Sara, having a mild freakout. When they're waiting for Michael to have an MRI, Dr. Sara flashes back to that excruciatingly awkward moment when Bellick asked her out at their 12-step meeting, then comments, "I never thought the guys would be so sad for Brad Bellick." You and me both, sister. Michael mentions that a lot of things have changed since Fox River, and Dr. Sara gives him a look like Oh? Is there something you're trying to say here? She says, "You know you can't control this, right?" and Michael smiles as he says, "That's funny, I was just about to tell you the same thing." Dr. Sara pats his shoulder as she reassures him that they can handle nearly anything, so long as they know what they're up against. Michael asks, "What if I don't want to know?" Well, too bad -- the doctors are all going to tell you anyway. But first, Dr. Sara admits that "I needed to have access to your test results, so I told the triage nurse that I was your wife." NOT THAT I'M HINTING FOR A RING seems to be the subtext here. Michael is not at all upset about that. And really, it's a silly detail, given that their level of commitment to one another has included things like going on the lam and/or taking the murder rap for one another. Marriage is a cakewalk after all that. Then a Dr. Malden comes by to ask that Michael be checked in for the night, so they can keep him under observation. But Michael's all, "Oh, I don't think so," on account of him being a wanted man and all. And when the cops show up -- for something completely unrelated -- it spooks him and Dr. Sara enough to where they decide to leave. Dr. Malden pleads with them to stay, saying, "I'm not stupid. I know who you are. I'm not going to turn you in. My concern is for what's going on with your health." Michael thanks him, but he figures Dr. Malden can call Dr. Sara later with the news.
Then we get back to the rest of the episode, and to One World Conspiracy HQ, where Howard Scuderi (aka "Can't Get It Up Guy" from Las Vegas) is all, "And whyfor are we moving Scylla again, please to tell?" General Von Baldy gives him the crazy eyes as he explains, "Scylla's security is the foundation of this entire organization. Howard protests that moving Scylla could compromise the timeline for Operation Take Over The World, but General Von Baldy assures him this isn't the case. Just then, Lisa enters and breaks the news that "dismantling the security around Scylla is a bit tricky. It may take longer than we thought." General Von Baldy gives Lisa the stinkeye as he says, "I can make this happen right now. [picks up the phone] Go get David Baker."
We cut to Mahone at Baker's front door, or rather at the big glass wall that contains Baker's glass door. Baker, it should be noted, lives in one of those beautiful modernist houses that dot the hills of Los Angeles and get featured in any movie Michael Mann sets in the city. They are the kinds of places where neither clutter nor human fingerprints are allowed to mar any surface. Yet somehow, Mahone manages to bluff his way past Elaine with the line "Are you familiar with a project called Scylla?" Within seconds, Elaine has bypassed the secondary security system (David Baker's pissy, nasal protest of "I'm working!"), and Mahone's bluffing about being with the One World Conspiracy and needing to ask about the original design. David Baker grouses about not remembering much of the project and resumes building his model of some futuristic compound. Mahone shrugs and begins looking at the work.
Back at GATE -- or, more precisely, below GATE -- Linc and Sucre are back at the pipe where Bellick died. Sucre explains, "You know, Bellick saved my life. Back when we were in [Sona], T-Bag went nuts ... he lit Sona on fire, he told everyone to run. 'They can't shoot us all,' he said. It was a stampede, bro. I was down, I was trampled, I couldn't get up, I couldn't breathe ... but then somebody pulled me back on my feet. It was Bellick. He saved my life." Well, sure, but before that, he did quite a number on you, and don't you forget it.
The guys shimmy through the sleeve then continue to previously-unexplored territory. They're in a big concrete chamber with smooth walls, and the smooth floor is punctuated by inset circles of metal. Sucre's like, "We have to blow up this wall?" and Linc predictably grunts an inquiry as to whether Sucre's got a better idea. As a matter of fact, he might -- why not blow everything up? Here, he'll selflessly step on this MINE embedded in the floor.
David Baker tells Mahone that his life goal is to build an autonomous, self-sustaining city, "a community living entirely in harmony." Mahone asks how close David is to making that a reality, and the mad city planner replies, "Well, that's a matter of opinion. People look at something like this and they think it's impossible. In reality, it could happen tomorrow." Yes, but that would probably require the One World Conspiracy reinventing itself as the One World Nonprofit, and the odds of that happening are ... actually quite good, given this show's pioneering work in implausible plot developments. "This won't just serve the rich," Baker adds, and Mahone's eyes narrow as he draws a bead on Baker's demons. Baker notices, and asks, "How long have you been working for them?" "Too long. I came in in 1994," Mahone replies. Baker grumbles about how he's temperamentally unsuited for day jobs -- "I like to finish a job and move on, put it in the past." Mahone asks, "Do you always leave your name behind, instead of the correct specifications?" Nope -- Scylla was special. Mahone bluffs about the blueprints and we establish that Baker included a legend with the blueprints. Mahone lies about reading that, and Baker concludes, "You're not [One World Conspiracy]." Cut to Mahone quietly freaking out.
Then we cut back to Sucre not-so-quietly freaking out. Linc tells him to be calm, and Sucre points out at the top of his lungs, "Calm? You just said I'm standing on top of a bomb!" Then he asks, more quietly, "You think Gretchen set us up?" That gives Linc an idea, and he races off.
Speaking of bombs, guess what T-Bag's doing as he prepares for his meeting? Gretchen rolls her eyes at the GATE talking points and asks if people actually buy this nonsense. Alas, we don't find out, because Linc picks that moment to come in and grab Gretchen for emergency bomb squad duties. T-Bag's left alone in his office, whispering, "GATE allows us to find the pathway ..."
"... to personal freedom!" he finishes exultantly in front of the new franchisees. Going by how they're all reacting, I'm guessing each of them is considering their back-up career plans. T-Bag realizes he's whiffing and begins riffing: "I'm going to tell you a better story about captivity than the regular spiel. Years back, I was providing volunteer leadership in a local penitentiary. I worked with the head guard, a big, burly bull named Brad. Mean as the devil -- all the prisoners were afraid of him, even the murderers. Then one day, Brad said to me, 'Cole, I want you to get out of here. I want you to get out of here right now, 'cause I can tell you're a man who loves freedom.' I said, 'Well, what about you, Brad?' He says, 'Oh, yeah, I'm going to be free, someday. When I retire.' I recently got the news that he had passed away. And where was he? Still in that prison. Still in the captivity of negativity! [chokes back a sob] [has a flashback to an inexplicably mirthful Bellick in his police get-up] Old Brad. As my pappy used to say, 'Stand by, your glasses steady, and drink to your comrades' eyes. Here's a toast to the dead already. And hurrah for the to die.'" Well, insofar as eulogies go, it's not a bad one, if filled with tremendous lies. But I suppose that's better than "He fed me tobacco until I pooped, so I framed him for murder later."
We cut to Mahone pointing out that once you lay down with the One World Conspiracy, you have, metaphorically speaking, a case of the crabs that lingers for life. Baker's in denial that this will ever happen to him, and Mahone is all, "Unless you have led a blameless life with no human attachments whatsoever, the One World Conspiracy is coming for you, chump. Also, isn't your conscience bothered by their murder and mayhem?" Baker's answer to that last question: "No." But the eavesdropping Elaine seems to think otherwise. Mahone also shrewdly figures out that deep down inside, Baker wishes he had never taken the Scylla gig, and that's why he does all the do-gooder work. Baker's like, "This is all in the past, la la la la la," but the two black armored cars that have just pulled up and the disgorged mess of Conspiracy stooges would seem to argue otherwise.
Gretchen and Linc are back, and Sucre greets her with, "You knew about this, didn't you?" Gretchen protests, "First of all, I have no idea why the [One World Conspiracy] would want to put an explosive device of any kind underneath their own building." "Under the courtyard!" Sucre clarifies. "And honestly, I had no idea that any of this was even here," Gretchen continues. She then hunkers down and identifies the mines as JZ-33 anti-personnel blast mines. "What's beeping?" she then asks. "It beeps," Sucre says, trying to sound calm and failing. Gretchen adds more details: "Your weight is evenly distributed across the pressure plate, and you haven't engaged the firing pin. You can't move an inch." Linc wants to know what Gretchen's idea is. She snaps, "My idea is that he moves an inch. That way I can get to the hole and I can dismantle the firing pin. Right now, he's standing on it; I can't do anything." Sucre is not into this whole moving-an-inch thing, and he babbles at Linc in Spanish for a plan B. Linc irritably shouts, "What?" Can't you imagine how well he was getting along in Panama with the natives? Just picture every business transaction punctuated by a human rhino shouting, "WHAT?" over and over. Sucre uses his English: "Call your brother, please!" Awww! Sucre wants a chance to say goodbye to the great bromantic love of his life!
Then we're off to Don Self's office, when who should open the door but the dishy Trisha. Don Self asks if he can help her, and Trisha shuts the door before answering, "Uh ... I messed up. Today, I was working with Bagwell. He's been compliant as hell. I wanted to make him happy, so I talked to him about Gretchen Morgan and I slipped up. I mentioned Whistler." Don Self rolls his eyes in exasperation, and Trisha defends herself with, "This one is tough, I am telling you. Bagwell, Gretchen Morgan, they're thugs. I have been face down with a gun to the back of my head more than once." Don Self sighs and says, "You're a good agent, we could reassign you ..." And HOLY COW, I did not see that one coming at all! Yet it's not an incomprehensibly stupid plot twist! It actually makes sense. So congratulations, writers -- you've pulled this plot caper off. Anyway, the upshot is that Trisha's a plucky little agent. She'll be dead before Thanksgiving, I would bet on it.
Mahone is still listening to David Baker's self-justifying blather when he gets a call from Linc. Because reception in the house is so bad, Mahone steps outside, just in time to notice the suited conspiracy goons securing the house's perimeter. He hangs up on Linc, then tells David Baker to try and hide. Baker is shocked -- shocked! -- that the conspiracy goons actually came for him. Mahone is considerably less so. Baker says derisively, "You think you can stop them? I know all about you. I've known for six months, ever since someone stole those plans from the [One World Conspiracy]. It will never work. You won't get past the first wall." Mahone asks, "What's going to stop me? The minefield?" David Baker looks torn between arguing with Mahone over the integrity of his design, quizzing him for how he knew about the minefield, and trying to remain in hiding. Anyway, Mahone makes a narrow escape, and the conspiracy stooges bundle David Baker off to disarm Scylla security. As a bonus for the escape: after Mahone's made it down to his car, Elaine zooms by and gives him an alternate, goon-free route back down the hill. She also hands over the legend to the blueprint with, "He won't help you. That will. Now, go." Mahone does not argue.
Sucre's begging Linc to go call Michael again. Gretchen asks, "What, exactly, will Michael know about this? It's not exactly within his realm of expertise." Sucre protests, "I just want to hear his sultry tones one more time before I die." Oh, he does not. Gretchen tells the guys to 'nad up and let her work, pointing out, "I am doing you guys a massive favor here. If that thing blows while I'm working on it, he loses a leg. I lose a face." That proves to be a persuasive argument for the boys, and they let Gretchen attempt to disarm the bomb.
Michael and Mahone don't know that, but they're able to compartmentalize and revisit the blueprints back at Team Scylla HQ. First, they tell us what we already know is there -- a line of JZ-33 landmines buried 80 mm underground, 70 feet from the outer wall -- and then move to what we don't. "It says 'manual override only. All conventional attempts to deactivate the mines will arm the Scylla alarms.' This isn't just a landmine. This is an alarm." Cut to Mahone looking alarmed.
Then we're back to Gretchen, who's about to go setting off the Scylla alarms with her deft defusing skills. Mahone runs in to save the day, shouting, "Stop! Stop! Don't move! Don't move! Don't move! You can't dismantle the landmine without setting off the alarm." Sucre quavers, "So I either set off the alarm or blow up and die." Mahone finds the manual override, and turns off the power long enough for Sucre to step off. He's got a 20-second window, but Sucre is frozen in place and panicking. Mahone finally loses patience and yells, "Nobody's going to die today! Step off!" Sucre looks to Linc; he quietly orders Sucre to step off. He does, finally, and -- nothing happens. Everyone relaxes in relief, then stops to look at the wall. We get a shot of what lays behind it -- a black column on a glass stand, looking like a collaboration between Stanley Kubrick and Jonathan Ives.
Back at Team Scylla HQ, a couple of anonymous federal stooges pull up with a big black van. Don Self guides them inside a garage. We cut to Linc and Michael chit-chatting about Michael's medical follies, and Michael apologizes for not being there for Lincoln during the whole Sucre-stepped-on-a-mine thing. Are we going to see Michael's apology to Sucre too? A good bromance requires routine communication. Linc sighs, then shares his plan: "What Gretchen did for Sucre makes me think we could use her. I asked her for the sixth key." Apparently, Gretchen assented to this. There's a gloomy little silence and then Don Self comes into the main meeting area. He's got Bellick's body, and he's about to ship it off to Mrs. Bellick. For some reason, everyone on Team Scylla wants to see the body.
So off we go to a loading dock, where two black-suited feds open the van and slide out the coffin -- it must be on rollers, because I know from personal experience that those suckers are heavy even before the body's inside -- and then they pop open the lid. And this is where I had to pause the episode and inquire to the universe: "Really? REALLY?" Because as any viewer of the last episode knows, Brad was standing directly in front of a heavy pipe when he met a wall of water; there's no way his cranium wouldn't have caved in. And as any good viewer of CSI knows, any body that's been rushed along a sewer at high speeds is likely going to have any and all sticky-outty parts completely scrubbed away as the corpse is pushed alongside the walls, over debris, etc. Finally, as anyone who watched any of the Katrina footage on the news should remember: when a body's been submerged in water, it bloats. So what Team Scylla should be seeing is a bloated blob of protoplasm. And then Don Self can be like, "Hey, nobody made you check out the horror show." What Team Scylla does see is a serene-looking man in perfect condition. Either this is a miracle and the entire episode's flashback strategy has been to soften us up for Bellick's canonization in the Catholic church, or the writers on this show have decided that anyone who's still watching has no intelligence left to insult.
So we have a long moment where everyone is silent, and then Mahone reaches into his pocket to retrieve the badge that he found earlier. Once he places it on Bellick's perfectly-preserved chest, Sucre comments that Mrs. Bellick will appreciate the gesture. Linc closes the coffin, and we see that Dr. Sara and Sucre both have walked off to compose themselves. Which, oh which, will Michael rush to comfort first? Answer: neither. The scene ends with Sucre finally calling Bellick's mom.
T-Bag's wrapping up another exhausting day of white-collar fraud when White comes in and complements "Cole" on his sales-fu at the meeting, adding how admirable it is that T-Bag volunteered with a bunch of criminals. "We're all the same, really," T-Bag says, with surprising humility and dignity. (Oh, Robert Knepper, some day you will get a role worthy of your talent.) Anyway, White hands over the folder with Trisha's application and takes off. T-Bag scans Trisha's application and immediately calls her presumed prior employer. The number goes straight to Don Self, who answers with "Hello?" and we cut to T-Bag on the other end, his features illuminated by the giant light bulb that just went off over his head. All of you who had bet on Trisha adding to the season four body count can start thinking ahead to how you'd like to spend your winnings.
We then transition to Dr. Sara on the phone. She's not enjoying the conversation. Michael's oblivious, because he's holding a briefing with the remainder of Team Scylla. He explains, "As we all learned the hard way, there's an electric alarm around the perimeter of the foundation. Unfortunately, that is Scylla's most primitive line of defense. The wall itself is fortified with steel fiber. The good news is, on the inside, there are no cameras. The [One World Conspiracy] doesn't want any visual evidence that Scylla exists. The bad news is that there are both weight and microphonic sensors ... that will alert [One World Conspiracy] security to the presence of any living, breathing human being that weighs more than two pounds. Um, as far as I can tell ..." We cut to Dr. Sara briskly wiping tears away, then move back to Michael, who is saying, "The first challenge is getting around that wall, and then we can worry about crossing the floor." "Without touching it?" Sucre asks. Yes. "In silence?" Mahone helpfully clarifies. Yes. Fortunately for Team Scylla, there's quite a body count associated with all the members from the prior three seasons, so perhaps the move will be to conduct a séance, channel the spirits of, say, Aldo Burrows and Paul Kellerman, then have them hit the One World Conspiracy with a little poltergeist action. The conspiracy stooges don't seem like the type to keep mediums on tap.
Anyhoodle, Michael assures them he's already working on it, but he gets distracted by Dr. Sara looking all distraught on the stairs. And that tells him everything he needs to know about his medical prognosis. Michael turns back to the table and assures everyone, "Brad didn't die in vain. We can make this work." Then Michael goes to get the bad news from Dr. Sara. She tells him, "You have a hypothalamus hamartoma. It's really rare. You were probably born with it. Um. Things have changed. It's been growing, which is probably why you've been experiencing your symptoms. And the doctor feels that you need surgery." Michael looks back at the table and, in keeping with the fine traditions of this show, decides it's not worth sharing mission-critical information that could come in handy later. "Two days -- that's what I need," he says. Dr. Sara corrects him: "Tomorrow. Otherwise, you could die and there's no alternative." The episode ends with a close-up on Michael's face as his big brain scrambles to come up with a timeline that can accommodate both the Scylla break-in and his delicate brain surgery. I look forward to seeing how he does it; it'll be a template for the generation of GTD disciples.