Prison Break/Michael Scofield

Michael Scofield
Prison Break
Actors	Wentworth Miller Dylan Minnette (flashbacks)
First Appearance	1x01 - Pilot
Series Billing	Billed
Notable Episodes	1x17 - J-Cat

Basic Information

Michael Scofield is one of the two main characters of Prison Break, along with his brother Lincoln Burrows. Michael arrives in Fox River State Penitentiary at the beginning of the series, following a conviction for armed robbery of a local bank. He purposely staged the robbery in order to get himself thrown into the same maximum security facility as his brother, in order to break him out. Lincoln is on death row, wrongly framed for a crime he didn't commit, the murder of Terrence Steadman, brother of Caroline Reynolds, the Vice President of the United States. We learn the murder was a set-up, by "The Company", a highly mysterious organisation hidden within the deepest levels of government, who will stop at nothing to protect its secrets.

Michael has been diagnosed with two mental conditions, the first being 'Low Latent Inhibition', meaning his brain processes the information and detail that normal brains tend to ignore. In simple terms, this means he takes in information of every aspect of things in detail and, if coupled with a high IQ, this condition basically makes him a creative genius. He also has the undying need to help everyone around him as best he can, especially the ones he loves. He unexpectedly finds love in the form of the prison doctor, Sara Tancredi and a father figure he never had, in the prison warden Henry Pope. We discover Michael has full torso tattoo on his body of the blueprints of Fox River in order to help his breakout and plan to perfection. The tattoo not only consists of details of the escape, but also of how to stay out. His cleverly mastered plan which has many elements, involves a number of significant (and often dangerous) persons along the way, who will help him achieve this goal. This eventually proves to be more difficult than he anticipated thanks to the efforts of corrupt FBI agent, Alexander Mahone, who for reasons of his own, is hot on the trail.

Character History

• Mother: Christina Rose Scofield - died from liver cancer when he was young
• Father: Aldo Burrows - abandoned the family before Michael was born
• Spent most of his childhood in foster care and was suffered much physical abuse from his foster parents.
• Went to Loyola University and became a structural engineer.
• Married a Czech girl, Nika Volek, so she could get a green card.
• Suffers from Low Latent Inhibition - a condition where the person's brain is so open to incoming stimuli it can't shut out information. The Low Latent Inhibition combined with Michael's high IQ resulted in creative genius. Assessments by his psychiatrist reveal that Michael had feelings of low self-worth, describing him as a "rescuer", being very attuned to the suffering of others, he was often more concerned with their welfare than his own.

Quotes

• Michael: Preparation can only take you so far. After that, you've got to take a few leaps of faith.

• Michael: (to Lincoln) Just have a little faith.

• Michael: (to Haywire) Hello, roomie.

• Michael: (to Lincoln) I'm not here on vacation, trust me.

• Michael: (to T-Bag) You and I may be stuck together in this little dance, but I call the shots. First shot...that kid out there – you don’t touch him, ever. Do we understand each other?

• Michael: (to Lincoln) Lincoln, we have a problem.

• Michael: (to Sara) I’ll make you a bet. When I get out of here, alive, I’ll take you to dinner. (pause) Lunch. Cup of coffee.

Bellick: Dont catch a sniffle

LJ: You love that man