The key difference between “The Liar” and the two previous episodes is that there was an attempt to flesh out some of Michael’s current cellmates. It wasn’t entirely successful, but at least they tried. One of the reasons that the new crew seems so remote is that it’s an open question as to whether Michael really cares about them. Sure, Michael saved Sid from the extremists, but it didn’t exactly seem to be an act of compassion. And when one of his team would have been left behind, Michael didn’t seem to be all that concerned.
What is apparent is that Whip bought into the idea of being Michael’s partner and surrogate brother, which is why he felt so threatened by the most recent turn of events. Right now, Prison Break has a bit of a villain problem. It’s really hard to take any of the antagonists seriously, from the cartoonish Abu Ramal to the inept agents chasing Sara around back in America. This episode also suggests that Paul Kellerman may be one of the key players in the new conspiracy, even though that flies in the face of his previous characterization on the show.