Sons of Anarchy or Prison Break ?

mrcheez · 23-02-2021 7:46pm #1

Just got Star on Disney Plus and heard both of these are highly rated, so which would be best to start bingeing?

I've also yet to see Lost... though maybe that's one for later

grizzcol2 · 23-02-2021 7:49pm

Sons all day long

Montage of Feck · 23-02-2021 8:04pm

Prison break is pure escapist sillyness from the beginning while SOA is probably the better show overall.
But, there are a few really cheesey Irish plot elements that ruin the shows more serious tone for me and made me give up on it.

mrcheez · 23-02-2021 8:26pm

Montage of Feck wrote: »

Prison break is pure escapist sillyness from the beginning while SOA is probably the better show overall.
But, there are a few really cheesey Irish plot elements that ruin the shows more serious tone for me and made me give up on it.

Ah well I just stuck through all 10 seasons of Walking Dead after bingeing since December so I can overlook a few dodgy elements :pac:

10pennymixup · 23-02-2021 8:31pm

Montage of Feck wrote: »

Prison break is pure escapist sillyness from the beginning while SOA is probably the better show overall.
But, there are a few really cheesey Irish plot elements that ruin the shows more serious tone for me and made me give up on it.

Same here, the "Oirish" thing put me right off and I gave up on it.

The terrible accents, sets that were supposed to be in Ireland but were clearly American. And how ridiculous were the shots of some real Irish bikers cruising around Ireland pretending to be the characters off the show but conveniently never taking off their helmets?

Did the SOA cast ever come to Ireland??

peter4918 · 23-02-2021 9:58pm

For me SOA is the better show overall but does go off the rails a bit. The first season of Prison Break I think is absolute great TV and well worth a watch on its own without going on to watch the other seasons

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 · 23-02-2021 10:00pm

Prison break has one good season and that's the first one.

SOA is watchable but suffers from some awful writing trying to tie up a story.

Both are a waste of time.

Clareman · 23-02-2021 10:01pm

Sons all day long, it's about a season or 2 too long with too much focus on 1 particular character for too much of it but still 1 of the best TV shows of all time in my opinion.

The first season of Prison Break is probably some of the best TV ever made but it lost it's way when it went on for too long in my opinion.

duffman13 · 23-02-2021 10:02pm

Prison break season 1 is up there with my favourite shows of all time, goes a bit mad after that but it's good escapism.

Sons I enjoyed, dark in places but goes downhill quickly towards the end.

I'd go prison break first

Stihl waters · 23-02-2021 10:03pm

Both are fcukin shìt

johng906 · 23-02-2021 10:03pm

SOA, but skip the Ireland season (S3 I think)

The Mighty Quinn · 23-02-2021 10:03pm

Season 1 of Prison Break was very very entertaining TV at the time. I watched the original 4 seasons, and when season 5 came back a decade later I tried that, but it was like a caricature an already cartoonish plot. Nonsense.

SOA, sigh, the Belfast season deserves all the stick it gets. Cringe. Cringe. Cringe. Again, I watched it all. Its as far fetched as prison break is, but it thinks its not.

I'd vote prison break

Notdeco · 23-02-2021 10:04pm

SOA is the better show over all.
Prison Break is good only made better by the character T-Bag

spurshero · 23-02-2021 10:07pm

Prison break was good tv espically season 1 . Got a bit far fetched in later seasons but if nothing else watch season one at least

Buddy Bubs · 23-02-2021 10:08pm

SOA by an absolute mile and its not even great, it is good but not a must watch.

Prison break is absolute nonsense from the start and goes downhill somehow, which is about its only impressive achievement.

Clareman · 23-02-2021 10:11pm

Actually, thinking about it again Op, depends on what you're looking for in a TV show, you mentioned that you're just coming out of 10 series of TWD so having a "Previously On...." type show where you've to keep some kind of eye on things might be hard going to get straight into the Sons, Prison Break by and large brings you through everything, you don't need to use your brain whereas the Sons has a bit more "drama" behind it where you've to keep an eye on a few different sub plots.

Prison Break is probably an easier watch, Sons is probably a better watch

JP Liz V1 · 23-02-2021 11:11pm

They both started well but PB bringing back dead characters was too much imho so SOA for me

StringerBell · 23-02-2021 11:14pm

Prison break had a good season, spread over the entire series and half of that was the first season.

Sons starts really well, then drops off, then recovers a little, till finally by the end you just watching in the hope that everyone dies tbh

So yeah, either or.

fryup · 23-02-2021 11:15pm

were these not shown on terrestrial TV before, channel 5?

Clareman · 23-02-2021 11:18pm

fryup wrote: »

were these not shown on terrestrial TV before, channel 5?

Prison Break was on RTÉ/Network 2 a day or 2 after the states I think, back in the day we used to be fairly up to date with the US stuff

17togo · 23-02-2021 11:18pm

mrcheez wrote: »

Just got Star on Disney Plus and heard both of these are highly rated, so which would be best to start bingeing?

I've also yet to see Lost... though maybe that's one for later

Whatever you do.... Stay the **** away from Lost.... I'm still pissed off i stuck with it to the end!

As with prison break and SOA, PB is a brain dead watch. Not much thinking involved. After the first couple of season it kinda gets stupid.

SOA I though was OK, the acting was kinda **** I thought, and I only stuck with it for about 4 seasons. But other people I know love it.

So to sum up, don't watch lost! ðŸ˜

The Mighty Quinn · 23-02-2021 11:27pm

I accept that.

23-02-2021 11:36pm

Season 3 of SOA, some of it set in Belfast and will make you want to smash your TV, but stick with it season 4 returns to normal and is excellent. It goes on to become a soap opera in the end but it's not a bad watch.

mrcheez · 24-02-2021 12:50am

OK.. so I'll do Season 1 of Prison Break first

Then onto SOA

yabadabado · 24-02-2021 1:27am

Watch the first season of Prison Break and leave it at that.That first season is excellent and then it goes completely to crap.

Rodney Bathgate · 24-02-2021 1:29am

The Unit.

JP Liz V1 · 24-02-2021 1:39am

fryup wrote: »

were these not shown on terrestrial TV before, channel 5?

Both were shown on RTE 2

munster87 · 24-02-2021 1:48am

I really do think that the Irish season of SOA is the worst thing I’ve ever watched!

Penn · 24-02-2021 8:36am

munster87 wrote: »

I really do think that the Irish season of SOA is the worst thing I’ve ever watched!

There's a good start to the season, and the ending of that season is one of the best SOA moments. But yeah season 3 as a whole was an absolute sh*tfest. They pulled it back with seasons 4 and 5 which were great, but after that the show became a complete shambles.

Sugarlumps · 24-02-2021 10:07am

Deleted User wrote: »

soap opera in the end but it's not a bad watch.

This sums it up perfectly for me. The way Jax walks is stupendous.

Penn · 24-02-2021 10:15am

I actually think a lot of Season 2 of Prison Break was pretty good. William Fichtner was a great addition. But you could definitely see it start to go downhill pretty rapidly too.

yourdeadwright · 24-02-2021 10:47am

Iv a very close friend who's lived in the states the past 15 years ,
Any way I was over at his wedding a good few years back when SOA was at its peak and we where chatting about it ,
Like all of us he hated season 3 in Belfast but turns out all his American friends absolutely loved it,

Even on Metacritic ratings per season its the second highest rated season of the 7 , it got a 84 just behind season two which got 86 ,

I guess its a case of ignorance is bliss

fryup · 24-02-2021 10:52am

fryup wrote: »

were these not shown on terrestrial TV before, channel 5?

JP Liz V1 wrote: »

Both were shown on RTE 2

so what's the big deal about star then if half the stuff they're showing was already screened on terrestrial telly?

mrcheez · 24-02-2021 11:55am

fryup wrote: »

so what's the big deal about star then if half the stuff they're showing was already screened on terrestrial telly?

Handy for those who haven't seen em I guess :pac:

The XFiles are on there too, which I religiously watched so gonna have to rewatch them again.

EltonJohn69 · 24-02-2021 11:59am

They should do an extra season of both shows but combine them. Prison break anarchy, have all of the prisoners on motorbikes, revving up their hogs in the cell 24/7, doing hog wheelies/burn outs in the yard. It would be amazing.

stronglikebull · 24-02-2021 1:31pm

Penn wrote: »

I actually think a lot of Season 2 of Prison Break was pretty good. William Fichtner was a great addition. But you could definitely see it start to go downhill pretty rapidly too.

I agree, season 2 wasn't terrible at all. Fitcher was a great addition, though I always thought they could have done more with him. I might go and watch season 1 and 2 of this again now that it's streamable.

Season 3 was crap, and 4 was just dire nonsense. Stop at the end of 2 if you're watching it.

I just finished re-watching SOA on Netflix after Christmas. I had watched it when it originally aired, and had forgotten how monotonous and stupid the story got in the middle. In the end, it went about 2 seasons too long, and as someone else said, you're just waiting for everyone to die. Still enjoyable, and I'd recommend it if you've got 7x13x1hour free.

Keyzer · 24-02-2021 1:33pm

Sons...

Prison Break starts well but descends into complete nonsense.

mrcheez · 15-03-2021 12:35pm

Almost completed Prison Break season 1... enjoying it so far.

It started slow, but by the mid-season it's quite engaging and has me doing the "just one more episode" thing

Thinking about my little-toe still sends shivers up my spine...

De Bhál · 15-03-2021 12:47pm

just watch first two seasons of each - that'd be enough. You ain't missing anything not seeing the rest.
SOA has a spell in Ireland that would hurt you.

awec · 15-03-2021 2:47pm

I would watch Prison Break season 1 and then forget about the rest.

Sons of Anarchy is cringeworthy soap opera mediocrity IMHO.

mrcheez · 15-03-2021 4:08pm

awec wrote: »

Sons of Anarchy is cringeworthy soap opera mediocrity IMHO.

People warned me off Walking Dead but I enjoyed all 11 seasons (up until the point Angela Kang ruined it) so I seem to have a tolerance where others give up

awec · 15-03-2021 4:38pm

mrcheez wrote: »

People warned me off Walking Dead but I enjoyed all 11 seasons (up until the point Angela Kang ruined it) so I seem to have a tolerance where others give up

A lot of people like it. I was surprised at just how bad I thought it was. No redeeming qualities!

But that's just me!

PB season 1 is at least tolerable, even if Wentworth Miller has all the charisma of a bag of soil. PB season 2 is actually watchable, but that's where it ends.

lertsnim · 15-03-2021 4:43pm

Season 1 of Prison Break was something else. Absolutely thrilling television. Pure ****e afterwards.

SOA wasn't exactly stellar but I enjoyed it all the same, though the Irish accents scattered throughout the series were chronic.

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 · 15-03-2021 5:43pm

Do yourself a favour OP and get started on "Better Call Saul" - Finest bit of TV since Breaking Bad...and arguably better.

To me it's a masterpiece.

mrcheez · 15-03-2021 8:02pm

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 wrote: »

Do yourself a favour OP and get started on "Better Call Saul" - Finest bit of TV since Breaking Bad...and arguably better.

To me it's a masterpiece.

Ah I'm trying to maximise my Disney Plus sub... Kodi just isn't as reliable.

Had a hell of a time while watching Walking Dead, sometimes streams would be great, other times just constantly buffering

It's nice to be able to play series by just telling Alexa to play whatever... so Disney Plus is working nicely for bingeing at the mo

The Mighty Quinn · 15-03-2021 8:40pm

MEGA BRO WOLF 5000 wrote: »

Do yourself a favour OP and get started on "Better Call Saul" - Finest bit of TV since Breaking Bad...and arguably better.

To me it's a masterpiece.

While I personally would agree with you, I'd wager most wouldn't.

It is very slow paced. I love it. Really enjoyed it, could be my favourite tv show. But, I think you'd wanna be really into it. It got better and better as the seasons went on and the Chuck story resolved itself.

And yes, it's better than BB to me.

Mules · 15-03-2021 8:41pm

I've never seen soa I loved prison break though.

Ffff221 · 15-03-2021 8:41pm

Prison break season one is one of the best seasons off all time.

B.A._Baracus · 15-03-2021 9:12pm

Give season 2 of prison break a watch. I am at the moment and you'll like it. Still ok. Sure might not be the amazing first season but enjoyment to be had. After season 2 is were it goes down hill.