Sympathetic?

I have a hard time rooting for or remotely caring about some of these people, for example the guys in tonight's Mexican Prison Escape. They did no back stories/setup to drum up any emotion, but leapt rather quickly to prison as the focus is on their escape (attempt? Am anout to change the channel.) It's been on for about 35 minutes and I'm rooting for, instead, abysmal failure. Ha, they just broke a sewer line!

But in other episodes they manage to make the perps sympathetic somehow; they have a "good" reason for desperately needing the money, are "forced" into smuggling by an overbearing boyfriend, etc. I'm also cooler with pot than other drugs, I admit. I do also feel for a naïve teenager who gets a life sentence. I've seen an episode or two which at the end revealed that the interview was taking place in the prison.

Just wondered how others felt.

If you're interested in this show you might want to check out the movie Brokedown Palace (Claire Danes & Kate Beckinsale; set in Thailand.) I know Midnight Express probably comes to most people's minds immediately, but I don't think the former is nearly as well known, so thought I'd mention it.