Breaking Bad 5.14 Ozymandias

What is there to say that hasn’t already been said,  tweeted or otherwise posted on the internet about “Ozymandias,” the third to last episode of Breaking Bad. I feel like using the words “intense” and “holy shit” come off as rhetoric, as everyone, including myself, seems to have a hard time talking about any episode of Breaking Bad, let alone this episode of Breaking Bad, without using those words.

But holy shit, that was intense.

More after the jump.

Very effective pre-credits flashback. It was a simpler time, When Walt and Jesse just butted heads in the RV, the lies to Skylar were just beginning, and Jesse jumps of rocks and plays with sticks in the desert. I worry about Jesse’s line “Put me into a coma why don’t you?” though.

Then of course we get back to the showdown. I rewatched last week’s episode, to try and understand how anyone could dodge so many bullets. It still seemed unlikely, and it was somewhat confirmed, with Gomez dead and Hank taking one in the leg. Hank is strong and defiant to the end, as Walt is helpless and pleading, and ultimately gives up his money for no reason at all. It seems unlikely Uncle Jack would leave any for Walt, but I guess he needed something to roll through the desert. Maybe that scene was meant to show how money-crazed Walt has become, or provide a little comic relief after the tragedy of Hank and Gomey being thrown into an unmarked grave in the middle of the desert, but I found it a little silly and kind of pointless.

Marie pays a visit to her sister, tells her Walt has been arrested by Hank, and makes her tell Walter Jr. about his father’s business. Tragedy all around, since Marie doesn’t know she’s already a widow and Skylar sees Junior’s worldview completely shattered.

Then Walt comes along and really hammers it home. Poor Junior witnesses a confrontation (with a knife!) between his parents, and ends up coming to his mom’s defense and calling the cops on his dad. Heartbreaking all around, right? A son loses a father, a father feels betrayed by his son, who he convinced himself he was doing all this for in the first place. And then, as if things couldn’t get any worse, he up and takes Holly! Walter is in a full-on asshole mode.

Of course, maybe that’s all part of the plan. I think the internet is in agreement that Walt’s phone call home was part of his plan. He had to have known the cops would be listening in, and by talking so terribly to Skylar, she was made into a victim so little implication would fall to her. I wonder if Skylar could sense that over the phone? How far back do you think he was planning that? Do you think the confrontation at the house was part of it, or he just thought of it while driving with Holly? I’m pretty sure he was acting on pure emotion at the house, but who knows. Ultimately he did the right thing by dropping the baby off at the firehouse, and thank God because that kid’s sad lip was killing me.

And poor Jesse. Chained up and half his face destroyed(!) by beating and who knows what else from Todd. It sounds like he sold out Hank and they know his confession in on a tape at the Schraeder residence. I’m not sure what that means for Marie.

There’s only two episodes left. My ricin in the beer theory has been shattered. My Walt going on a rescue mission to save Jesse seems unlikely, since his confession of watching Jane die seemed to be fueled by hate and spite like we haven’t seen (or is that part of some plan too?)

I don’t know what to think anymore! Time to stop trying to figure it out!

Oh yeah, check this article out. I eat this stuff up.