Prison Break’s run comes to an end

So, Fox has opted to not renew Prison Break beyond its current fourth season. The news shouldn't come as a huge surprise to fans of the show, as it was widely speculated that Prison Break would not return next season.

Guardian columnist Charlie Brooker once described Prison Break as "the quintessential artefact of a civilisation sliding into absolute babbling madness", which, on the face of it, might be a fair assessment of the show's high-concept but patently absurd premise (man deliberately gets caught robbing a bank in order to break his innocent brother out of prison). However, the concept soon developed into a much grander storyline involving shadowy conspiracies and the like.

I'm a big fan of serialised dramas, so Prison Break was right up my alley, even if it doesn't touch the likes of 24 or Lost. The show's first year got a surprising amount of mileage out of its gimmicky concept, while the second season saw the show successfully expand into a Fugitive-esque thriller; special nod to the introduction of corrupt FBI agent Alexander Mahone, fascinatingly played by William Fichtner, instantly joining the hallowed echelons of New-Characters-Who-Join-Existing-Shows-And-Who-Fit-In-Oh-So-Bloody-Brilliantly.

The wheels began to fall off during Prison Break's strike-shortened third season. The new, exotic location (Panama) was the equivilant of giving a fresh coat of paint to a rickety old house. It wasn't bad television, but it was very familiar territory.

I haven't seen any of the fourth season yet, but Fox boss Kevin Reilly's comments that the show would be creatively stretched beyond its current season seem perfectly reasonable to me. Then again, I'm still floored that TV's king of gimmicks, 24, is approaching its eighth season.

Another six or so episodes of Prison Break will be filmed before the show is locked up for good.