I’m so happy Breaking Bad is back, and so sad that there’s only 7 episodes left. Sunday's Season "5b" premiere was pretty great. Recap/review/commentary after jump.
We start with White Manor in shambles. Walt (with a full head of hair and a beard) breaks in to retrieve his ricin supply. HEiSENBERG, in bright yellow spray paint across the wood paneling. I read way too deeply into every choice of color made in the show, so I feel the bright yellow is significant, but I'm not sure how yet. What's with the hole cut in the floor in the kitchen? It seems like at some point Heisenberg is found out and The Man seizes the house to scour for evidence, but you'd think if they were cutting holes in the floor they'd also take off the outlet plates, and maybe not make it so easy for punk skateboarders to break in and shred the pool. After he gets his vial of ricin he returns to his rolling arsenal, where his nice neighbor, Carol, seems terrified to see him. Does she know what a monster he is? Does she think he's dead, and she's seeing a ghost? She drops her groceries, and three oranges tumble out and roll away (feeding into the color conspiracy).
And then, we pick right back up where we left off, which made me very happy. Can you imagine what was going through Hank's head when he read the inscription in Leaves of Grass at the end of last season? I’m sure it would be utterly unbelievable. I imagine Hank running through every detail of the Heisenberg case, trying to find a way for it to not make sense. Remember within the first few episodes of season 1 when he finds the respirator from Mr.White’s chemistry lab in the desert? How many times was he this close to cracking the case wide open without even knowing it? His panic attack on the drive home seems well deserved.
Jesse is a guilt ridden sad-sack, who couldn't even be bothered to listen to one of the best pieces of Trek fan fiction I’ve ever heard. He tried to give the blood money to Mike’s granddaughter and the family of the boy was murdered after witnessing their train heist, only to have Walt intercept it from good ol’ Saul and bring it back. He ends up driving through what I assume to be the poor side of town and tossing banded wads of cash on doorsteps. What a great guy.
And how about that final scene the garage? When that garage door went down my heart skipped a beat. I expected a confrontation to come much further into this final season, so I couldn't believe it was happening so soon. Dean Norris as Hank really killed it in this scene. Emmy consideration reel material for sure.
One of things that makes Breaking Bad so compelling is not knowing who to root for. Walt is practically a super villain at this point, but there’s something so satisfying as seeing someone so meek grow into such a powerful entity. Hank has always rubbed me the wrong way, but he’s also the one doing The Right Thing in trying to bring down Heisenberg. And of course Jesse. I guess there’s no question that everyone is rooting for Jesse. But what is going to put him on top? Where can he go? How can he redeem himself? Will he help Hank bring down Heisenberg?
Who are you rooting for?
I agree, the inevitable confrontation between Walter and Hank coming so soon was a bit of a shock. The show went to its last commercial around 50+ minutes in, so I didn't think it was possible that they'd wedge something so meaty into the last few minutes. It was great, though.
ReplyDeleteRooting interest is definitely one of the big quandaries of the show, perhaps even more so than in The Sopranos. The irony is that the only character who has not been morally compromised is Hank, who is at best an annoying blowhard (even Hank's wife was a kleptomaniac, remember). You could make the argument for Walter's son as morally clean, but you could also argue that ship sailed when he accepted the "dirty money" Dodge Challenger.
Cody, I am curious if you have any predictions for how the show ends? How about odds on who lives and dies by the end?
One more observation: due to the big promotional blitz and long mid-season hiatus, it appears that everyone who cared to catch up with Breaking Bad has done so.
ReplyDeleteCheck out the numbers on the episode-by-episode Wikipedia page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Breaking_Bad_episodes#Season_5_.282012.E2.80.9313.29
For the first 4 seasons, Breaking Bad was more of a critical darling than an actual hit, averaging around 1.5 to 2 million viewers per episode. The first half of the fifth season bumped that up to around 2.5 million per episode, but never rose around 3 million. Last Sunday's episode had 5.91 million viewers.
The Sunday episode was also directed by Bryan Cranston, only his 3rd directorial credit on the show (all of them season premieres, interestingly).
Do you think that Walter Jr. knew the Challenger came from dirty money though? Actually, I’d be curious as to how much he’s aware of. I always hear people saying kids are aware of much more than their parents give them credit for. I mean he has to think something is happening, right?
ReplyDeleteYou’re right though, Hank is really the only Lawfully Good (to put it in DnD terms) guy on the show. He was so unlikeable for the longest time. I think I only came around to him after he was attacked by the Salamanca twins in the parking lot. At this point I feel like I’m rooting for him most, maybe.
The uptick in numbers is pretty interesting. I only started watching live at the beginning of Season 5, myself. I wonder if there was any change in when they released the first half of season 5 to Netflix streaming in order to get everyone caught up. Seems like a good strategy.
I should’ve mentioned Cranston’s direction of this ep. The scenes that bookended the ep, the tour through the dilapidated house and the stand-off in the garage, were both top-notch. I also found it interesting that Rian Johnson, (director of Looper & Brick) is set to direct the third to last episode, titled “Ozymandias.” (Okay, upon further research it turns out he’s directed twice before, once being the outstanding “Fly” from season 3.
More on predictions/deaths to come...
Finally got to watch this episode. Jesse trying to give back to the lives that they wrecked is definitely heartbreaking. I don't know what's in store for him but I hope he finds some peace.
ReplyDeleteWhile I find Hank to be kinda douchebaggy, I do consider him Lawful Good and really the only character with solid morals. Honestly his douchiness is only an exterior he puts up for The Guys at work. Ultimately I think he's okay. When he was collecting minerals, I thought that was the real Hank. But yeah -- totally badass for him to confront Walter.
Walter, he keeps thinking he's got power and that he can muscle people, when all the while the only power he's had was because he was valuable. Now that he's no longer valuable, he's just a fairly weak middle-aged man. Sure he has money -- and can put hits on people or acquire M60s or brew poisons -- but in gamer terms, he is Squishy.
Anyhow, Cody had a great prediction for how the series will end. Two of my predictions:
1. Walter does suicide by cop and Jesse gets away free.
2. Walter's ricin winds up killing the wrong person. Perhaps someone in his family. Perhaps himself?