Breaking Bad: Crazy Handful of Nothin'

"I'm all in."

Walt has made himself into a different person. His principles just went down the drain with the last of his hair. The card game was just Metaphors R Us. It was Hank (the law) versus Walt (the outlaw), and Walt won by bluffing, just the way he did in his high school lab and later in the episode, with Tuco.

Walt still wanted to be a silent partner, but he finally realized that he can't just cook and take in money. When Jesse was cheated and beaten and wound up in the hospital, Walt took over. He's "all in." He understands now that there will always be collateral damage, like Hugo, the kindly but unfortunate janitor. There will always be danger, like Tuco. (Wow. Scary dude. Who puts a cigarette out on his tongue?) There will always be a price to pay. This time, it was Jesse who paid it.

I thought it was interesting that Walt clearly wants to suffer alone, that he felt out of control when he was weak and sick and asked Skyler to leave while he was undergoing chemo. But then, when he was unable to complete a cook, he asked Jesse for help. He's learned to trust Jesse and has even started to care about him.

This was the episode when I realized I liked Jesse, because I hated seeing him beaten like that. He's not just an idiot screw up. He cared about his aunt, the one that died of cancer. He was sharp enough to figure out what was wrong with Walt, and now he understands what is motivating him. Jesse respected Walt's reasons for what he was doing.

Breaking Bad uses a lot of in media res. As Walt was talking about no more bloodshed, that he was going to cook but nothing else, there were flashes forward to him walking away with the bag. This particular form of storytelling is something they do a lot and they do it well.

From the opening shot of the light coming through the bullet holes in the RV, to the explosion at the end with Walt walking away with the bag, this episode was just outstanding. It would work as a season finale. Except there is one more.

Bits:

-- Walt has acquired an alias: Heisenberg. It's a reference to physicist Werner Heisenberg and his uncertainty principle. Which I don't understand because quantum mechanics go right over my head, but the uncertainty principle also has to do with duality. I think.

-- The fulminated mercury looked just like meth. Duality again. Speaking of which, is Walt driving a hybrid?

-- Walt was still talking about energy and change in his class while fighting nausea. And now he's taken a leave of absence.

-- There was something disturbing about Walt paying for chemo with post-dated checks. Is sickness a great big metaphor for evil? Well, of course.

-- When they saw Walt without his hair, Skyler was speechless and looked appalled. But Junior loved it. He said, "Bad ass, Dad," and had no idea how right he was.

And pieces:

-- Jesse still calls Walt "Mr. White."

-- Loved the lighthearted old-time music playing as Jesse was interacting with the dregs of humanity in horrible places of town. Scooby de do be do.

-- Skinny Pete shared a cell with Tuco. Poor Skinny Pete. At least he lived through it.

-- Urine shot. That and the vomiting, yes, let's inject some realism about chemo.

-- Walt now knows that Emilio was a confidential informant.

-- Walt's lying skills are improving. He was careful not to look Hank in the face during the scene in the lab.

-- Along with in media res, I always like the time lapse photography that signals that time is passing. It's occasionally quite striking.

Quotes:

Walt: "That's what we need. A distributor. Do you know anyone like that?"
Jesse: "Yeah, I used to. Until you killed him."
I loved the way Aaron Paul delivered that line.

Hank: "Damn. Chick's got an ass like an onion. Makes me want to cry."

Tuco: "This kicks like a mule with his balls wrapped in duct tape."

Four out of four handfuls of fulminated mercury,

Billie