'Breaking Bad': BABY COMING!

It’s finally happening. Everything. Skyler’s in labor and Walt’s racing toward a giant drug deal that could net him and Jesse $1.2 million. And that’s when the door closed, “Breaking Bad” cutting to a painful black on Sunday night. Until next week, ladies and gents. My, oh, my does it appear that we could be in for a doozy of a final two episodes.

All this -- and much, much more -- occurred only a week after we spent a whole show basically fixing a water heater and some rotting wood. See how the writers set us up? It’s borderline cruelty, but it makes for such great stop-and-go television.

As for next week, who knows? Will this baby actually pop out? At this point, the mere idea of Skyler (Anna Gunn) without the baby bump seems almost inconceivable. And secondly, could this drug deal actually go down smoothly? Note the exit Walt (Bryan Cranston) is supposed to take off the freeway: Exit 13. That can’t be good. And let us use this opportunity to recall yet another classic Saul Goodman quote, though seeing it in print doesn’t in any way do justice to the masterful way Bob Odenkirk actually delivered it to our drug-dealing duo.

“Look, let’s start with some tough love, all right? Ready for this? Here goes. You two suck at peddling meth. Period.”

Lucky for them, though, Saul is beginning to resemble a Walmart; he isn’t fancy, but he’s got everything you need. In this case, he happens to also know a kingpin of a dealer who may buy up all 38 pounds of the blue stuff. Well, sort of. “Let’s just say I know a guy who knows a guy. Who knows another guy.”

Some thoughts about Sunday’s episode, after the jump:

Favorite moment: The conversation between Walt and Gus (Giancarlo Esposito) was epic once it finally arrived, though I will admit that when the Pollos Hermanos manager first came by the table where Walt and Jesse sat, awaiting their kingpin, I called it. “That’s the guy,” I said, because nothing on this show is ever wasted, and so when they cut to the store manager asking Walt if everything was to their satisfaction, I knew there had to be a reason. So the payoff of his eventual reveal didn’t work for me, but the conversation that followed between Gus and Walt was electric, Gus telling Walt that he should never, ever be in business with a drug addict. “Forget he exists,” Walt said.

And speaking of …: Jesse is going down and taking Jane with him. Aaron Paul has been superb this season, bringing a vulnerability to Jesse’s character that makes his dark descent all the more tragic. Watching him tie that chord around his arm was so, so painful, because as an audience we’ve come to feel so protective of the guy, have we not? Though I have to say that the visual of his heroin high -- Jesse floating up from his bed -- was one of the coolest images we’ve seen. Kudos to two people here: director of photography Michael Slovis for creating yet another great visual, and also to music supervisor Thomas Golubic for selecting another great song to enhance the moment. The tune: “Enchanted” by the Platters. However, here is your Show Tracker Fun Fact for today: To get into the right mindset for the floating shot, Aaron Paul actually listened to Frank Sinatra’s “Fly Me To The Moon” as the cameras rolled.

This is random, but …: Every time I see Skyler’s Jeep Grand Wagoneer, I think to myself: how perfect of a car choice is that for her, for the White family? It just evokes this feeling of family, of safety, of suburbia. While someone like Skyler’s sister, Marie, drives around in her fancy new Beetle, Skyler has the wood-paneled Wagoneer. It’s a car stuck in the past. Kind of like the Whites.

And about that past: Skyler continues to warm up to Beneke. That birthday serenade was just … awkward. Kind of hot, yes, but awkward. This continues to be a very uncomfortable road.

And finally, the beginning: While I saw the fast-food-manager-as-the-kingpin reveal coming, I was absolutely shocked -- and horrified -- at the opening teaser with the kid pulling out the gun and killing Jesse’s distributor. With that long follow of the boy riding the bicycle through the streets, I figured he was just there to up the ante, to make an already dangerous situation seem to us even more dangerous with a kid around. I had no idea that the kid was the danger. Just plain horrifying, the look on the boy's face as he fired away. Innocence lost.

-- Josh Gajewski

Comments

[Ryan]

The body bags have got to be Jesse and Jane, right?!?!

[Eddie]

ooh ... good call Ryan

my guess is the body bags are a result of an perfectly easy to explain explosion due to Walt's tinkering under the house, remember he was about to buy some paint ... plus they made it a point to tell us what type of water heater he bought ...

this show is without a doubt the best on tv right now, the writers are like magicians, they show you the set-up but you're still surprised when they do the reveal

[ScotsmansKilt]

Walt's complaint about taking "one step forward and two steps back" sums-up my growing frustration with this series. Move the plot FORWARD, already!

[clintonwatch]

Right on John! You have hit the nail on the head.
Consider: Vince Gilligan presented a graphic look at contemporary American society. The methamphtamine addicts, Tuco Salamance the local wholesaler, the street level methamphetamine pushers and the violence and corruption that is part of the illegal drug trade. And the enormous quantities of cash that is involved in the illicit narcotics business.
And how about the very sophisticated drug lawyer, Saul Goodman?

I particularly liked the portrayal of the Los Pallis Hermanos restaurant chain proprietor, Gus Fring. Sixteen cash and carry Mexican restaurants. What a great way to launder drug money!

I wonder if the average viewer is aware how close Gilligan's plot is to much of contemporary American life. Especially, the clean businessmen who operate under the radar with their narco trade and money laundering. And these businessmen’s friends and neighbors just think these major drug distributors are just hard working, clever businessmen. God, how stupid we are!
How many handgun deaths, drive by shootings, episodes of gang violence, runaways, cases of prostitution, under the influence (auto) accidents, contract murders, HIV and hepatitis C infections and long term, drug related, imprisonments are the result of the tons of cocaine, methamphetamine and black tar heroine imported into this country, under the protection of our national leaders?

The only people that Gilligan left out were those at the very top of the drug prohibition cabal. That would be Bush 41 and Bill and Hillary Clinton. And the Clinton puppet Barack Obama. To learn more about these drug lords search: Clinton+Bush+Mena

Is this a great country or what?