Breaking Bad on AMC (6 Viewers)

[Walton Goggins]

Grantland piece with Gilligan, incredible article discussing this episode

Breaking Bad Creator Vince Gilligan on Last Night's Season Premiere

http://www.grantland.com/blog/hollywood-prospectus/post/_/id/30856/breaking-bad-creator-vince-gilligan-on-last-nights-season-premiere

 

[corpcow]

Ok, here's another. Jesse goes to rehab meeting, meets up with a chick, who happens to have a younger brother who was on the streets working a corner. He and this chick become an item, when he learns that this same little brother is the kid who shot his buddy dead a season or two earlier. I mean come on.

You are both getting stuff wrong, missing some of the points of these "coincidences," and calling some things coincidences that aren't far fetched. A couple examples:- Why would someone look in a diaper box before the baby arrived? Doesn't seem far-fetched to me.- Walt sitting next to the dad didn't advance the plot at all. It wasn't necessary, and therefore it's not a "convenient" coincidence. It was a deliberate move to show how all our lives cross. You can dislike that if you want, but that doesn't make it a convenient coincidence.- Why would workers care about two white guys entering the building? There's a ton of people I pass every day around my office and I have no idea what they do. You're assuming people are inherently suspicious and assume there are criminal conspiracies around them in their everyday lives. They do not.- People don't disclose things in real estate offerings all the time, because there's tens of thousands of dollars at stake.. It's stupid to complain about that as a "convenient coincidence."- I don't understand why it's weird that nobody notices the hole in the ceiling. How could they unless they were in the house?I could go on and on with stuff you listed that's either not the much of a coincidence or isn't "convenient" in that it wasn't needed to move the story forward.Like others have said,all the coincidences leading to the plane crash were a little beyond the pale, and I'll give you Hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco as pushing it a bit, too. But those are the only two you listed that push suspension of disbelief at all, IMO. The rest is just standard storytelling stuff; people's lives intersecting, people catching good and bad breaks, people getting away with crimes or getting caught due to circumstances, etc. If you don't like the standard staples of fiction, maybe a mall security tape or sitting on a park bench watching ducks or something is more to your liking?

I was coming to write something similar. Looks, it's fairly improbable that a high school chemistry teach starts cooking meth and becomes a drug lord... but it's not a documentary, and the point is that they've let it unfold in a believable way so you can buy into the story. And yet, you are complaining because they didn't disclose that a house being sold (which in the grand scheme of things wasn't fundamental to the story) was a meth lab at one point? Or that Jesse meets someone in REHAB that has some connection to drugs?

 

[honky kong]

Just for Tanner.... Alan Sepinwall's first BB review of the season; hot off the press!

... Seen-it-all Mike is horrified and shaken that his boss would throw away a trusted employee like Victor just to send a message to these two screw-ups...

That's not why he killed him. He killed him because he was sloppy and let himself be seen at the murder scene.

I couldn't figure out why Gus killed him even though I now remember thinking "Gus is gonna have him killed" when Victor was trying to downplay being seen.

 

[Arizona Ron]

Just finished Season 2 last night. Can't believe I missed this whole thing but I'm slowly catching up. Awesome stuff so far!

 

[Walton Goggins]

Just for Tanner.... Alan Sepinwall's first BB review of the season; hot off the press!

... Seen-it-all Mike is horrified and shaken that his boss would throw away a trusted employee like Victor just to send a message to these two screw-ups...

That's not why he killed him. He killed him because he was sloppy and let himself be seen at the murder scene.

I couldn't figure out why Gus killed him even though I now remember thinking "Gus is gonna have him killed" when Victor was trying to downplay being seen.

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

 

[Carver]

Solid episode.

My only complaint is with Skylar (as someone mentioned above). She makes me cringe. Glad to not have to see "Flynn" last night also. He's even worse.

 

[boubucarow]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

 

[Abraham]

I actually thought killing Victor was more about him trivializing the cook ("it's a recipe") as something that can be repeated by just anyone. If that were true then that means Gus has been making LOTS of bad decisions (overpaying his cooks, tolerating their transgressions). And Gus isn't going to admit if he's making bad decisions.

ETA: What's interesting to me (after thinking about it) is that Walter looks genuinely horrified that perhaps Victor DOES know how to cook. From the aluminum comments to trying to baffle victor with chemistry lingo to Walter nervously rambling on and on to Gus that not just anyone can cook. It almost comes across as if Walter is worried that the recipe can be repeated by someone else. This lends itself to the diner scene where Jessie eats and says that it took Gus years to find Gale. Walter sits there looking like he's about to puke, worried that Gus will try to kill them again soon enough.

Also, I didn't realize it til reading the review that Jessie didn't say a word til the end.

Finally, the Kenny Rogers shirt is probably selling like hot cakes this morning. I'd be willing to bet someone at Cafepress or Zazzle has already whipped up a version that has the size sticker printed on the chest.

 

[Don Quixote]

I actually thought killing Victor was more about him trivializing the cook ("it's a recipe") as something that can be repeated by just anyone. If that were true then that means Gus has been making LOTS of bad decisions (overpaying his cooks, tolerating their transgressions). And Gus isn't going to admit if he's making bad decisions.

Also, I didn't realize it til reading the review that Jessie didn't say a word til the end.

Finally, the Kenny Rogers shirt is probably selling like hot cakes this morning. I'd be willing to bet someone at Cafepress or Zazzle has already whipped up a version that has the size sticker printed on the chest.

He did say "trust us" to Mike when they were disposing of Victor's body. But that was it until the end of the episode.

 

[mr. furley]

The Kenny Rogers t-shirt with the size tape still on was perfect.

killed me also, the final scene with Walt walking down the driveway holding a fistful of pants to keep them from falling down.. the face he made was priceless

 

[mr. furley]

and i thought Mike was going to kill Victor after he said "just another lookie loo".

 

[biggamer3]

The Kenny Rogers t-shirt with the size tape still on was perfect.

killed me also, the final scene with Walt walking down the driveway holding a fistful of pants to keep them from falling down.. the face he made was priceless

someone needs to make a mashup of pants on the ground playing while Walt walks away in that last seen

 

[Abraham]

Just finished Season 2 last night. Can't believe I missed this whole thing but I'm slowly catching up. Awesome stuff so far!

You're not even to the good part yet.

 

[Walton Goggins]

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2011/07/breaking_bads_giancarlo_esposi.html

 

[TobiasFunke]

This was the first episode I watched as a regular TV show- 45 minutes of programming with anticipation beforehand and a weeklong wait to follow- instead of as part of a season I could watch whenever I wanted, including consecutive episodes and whatnot. I think the show is even better this way. As opposed to, say, The Wire, which is like a novel and I think better consumed that way, the anticipation and the knowledge that you can't watch what happens next for another seven days really works well for this show.

 

[Abraham]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

 

[Thunderlips]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

I need some help I missed part of season 3. Why does Gus not just let Walt run the lab with Jessie? Use spoiler tags please so that it will not ruin the fun of others.

 

[boubucarow]

This was the first episode I watched as a regular TV show- 45 minutes of programming with anticipation beforehand and a weeklong wait to follow- instead of as part of a season I could watch whenever I wanted, including consecutive episodes and whatnot. I think the show is even better this way. As opposed to, say, The Wire, which is like a novel and I think better consumed that way, the anticipation and the knowledge that you can't watch what happens next for another seven days really works well for this show.

I agree completely having watched every other show like dominoes. I love to wait for this show.There was one thing that was very apparent last night that I think I didn't get to fully appreciate until I slowed down to appreciating one episode on its own. Like has happened many times in the past, Walt and Jesse were measuring each other up in two areas. At the same time they are assessing how "bad" each other are becoming they are looking for the guilt in doing the bad things. Jesse easily was more bad this episode displayed by his reaction to Gus killing Victor and continuing to his short explanation to Walt in Denny's about their place with Gus. He handled the situation of life and death much more coldly while Walt was begging, bargaining, and whining. Walt in Denny's was trying to pull out the guilt in Jesse only to get that cold response. It is very interesting how each character weaves in and out of control and chaos emotionally.

 

[boubucarow]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

I need some help I missed part of season 3. Why does Gus not just let Walt run the lab with Jessie? Use spoiler tags please so that it will not ruin the fun of others.

You can't trust an addict.

 

[honky kong]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

That's an interesting take. I can see that.

 

[Apple Juice]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

 

[honky kong]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

I read an interview with Gilligan recently and he said that Walt does something this season so bad that pretty much no one will have any sympathy for him. That would seem to fall under that.

 

[Thunderlips]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

I read an interview with Gilligan recently and he said that Walt does something this season so bad that pretty much no one will have any sympathy for him. That would seem to fall under that.

Yeah. Gus talked to Gale about the problems that Walt had (unprofessional in matters other than chemistry). Other that that problem (Jesse)...Walt and Gus are way more in synch than Gus and Gale. IMO, they are also really making Jesse the moral center of the duo. He knows he's a small timer out of his league; gone is that insecure bravado that he used to carry around. If you want Walt to really hit bottom. He has to lose his morality completely.

 

[cmv5]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

I don't know if anybody else brought up this point, but here is my take. Everything is explained in the beginning. The prologue with Gale, where he is explaining that Walt is the premiere chemist. Gale was obviously very accomplished and explained to Gus that Walt made the very best. Gale said he could make a product that was 96% pure but nothing to the level of Walt is capable. Gale's speech appealed to Gus's ego and once persuaded, Gus would only be satisfied providing only the purest meth. This can only happen with Gale apprenticing Walt and perfecting the recipe or from Walt. Once Gale was out of the picture, Gus would only come to one decision. We know, but Walt doesn't know that Gus will never be satisfied with Victor making the recipe so Gus gets to accomplish a few things, he eliminates Victor for being sloppy and being seen (possibly sending a message to Mike) and gets to send a terrifying message to Walt and Jesse that nobody is indispensable (even though Walt kind of is).

 

[Walton Goggins]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

And probably one of the main reasons why Walt has to take Gus out.

 

[Walton Goggins]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gus wants Jesse now and it's clear he doesn't want Walt. Walt knows this and brought up it up to Jesse about what they should do about this while eating at Denny's.I think Jesse is going to get played by both sides and it'll be interesting which side he takes.

 

[Abraham]

I think Jesse is going to get played by both sides and it'll be interesting which side he takes.

This. Awesome - an angle I completely hadn't thought of. My thinking had been that this season would have been Walt vs. Gus for control of Walt. But I agree that it sets up nicely for it to be Walt vs. Gus for control of Jessie.

 

[Walton Goggins]

This was the first episode I watched as a regular TV show- 45 minutes of programming with anticipation beforehand and a weeklong wait to follow- instead of as part of a season I could watch whenever I wanted, including consecutive episodes and whatnot. I think the show is even better this way. As opposed to, say, The Wire, which is like a novel and I think better consumed that way, the anticipation and the knowledge that you can't watch what happens next for another seven days really works well for this show.

I agree completely having watched every other show like dominoes. I love to wait for this show.There was one thing that was very apparent last night that I think I didn't get to fully appreciate until I slowed down to appreciating one episode on its own. Like has happened many times in the past, Walt and Jesse were measuring each other up in two areas. At the same time they are assessing how "bad" each other are becoming they are looking for the guilt in doing the bad things. Jesse easily was more bad this episode displayed by his reaction to Gus killing Victor and continuing to his short explanation to Walt in Denny's about their place with Gus. He handled the situation of life and death much more coldly while Walt was begging, bargaining, and whining. Walt in Denny's was trying to pull out the guilt in Jesse only to get that cold response. It is very interesting how each character weaves in and out of control and chaos emotionally.

You should know that deep down Jesse is not the "breaking bad" person here. With every death you can see it take a huge toll on him whereas Walt has no feelings. This is apparent when Jesse's GF was choking on her vomit while Jesse was passed out and Walt was in the room and just watched her die. This show is also the first where there's a lead character that goes from nice to evil. Gilligan and Cranston in numerous pieces has even said so. Remember Jesse wanted to kill the drug dealers because they killed that kid. If was Walt who killed them only to save Jesse which ultimately only benefits Walt.I think Jesse at Denny was simply telling Walt look after the deal with Gus is crystal clear where we all stand and lets move forward. Walt wants Gus dead because he knows Jesse could end up taking his position.

 

[Walton Goggins]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

I need some help I missed part of season 3. Why does Gus not just let Walt run the lab with Jessie? Use spoiler tags please so that it will not ruin the fun of others.

You can't trust an addict.

Jesse and Walt are 50/50 partners and both run the lab.

 

[Walton Goggins]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

I read an interview with Gilligan recently and he said that Walt does something this season so bad that pretty much no one will have any sympathy for him. That would seem to fall under that.

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

 

[Walton Goggins]

I think Jesse is going to get played by both sides and it'll be interesting which side he takes.

This. Awesome - an angle I completely hadn't thought of. My thinking had been that this season would have been Walt vs. Gus for control of Walt. But I agree that it sets up nicely for it to be Walt vs. Gus for control of Jessie.

That would be great. Jesse is clean and sober now and seems to know exactly after that episode that the deal is regarding them and Gus. Walt is the one who is trying to convince Jesse that someone else will take over them and they will be killed while Jesse actually has this calm demeanor (he was the only one eating / had an appetite whereas Walt was sick because he's worried about losing control) cause he knows Gus won't kill him. Gus HATES Walt. Gus killing Jesse won't destroy Walt or hurt him in any way. This whole mess actually benefits Jesse like never before.Since Gilligan has said Walt will do something that will make him completely evil / unsympathetic I can't see it due to either Jesse or Gus getting killed by Walt since those characters are in the drug biz and that's part of the deal in getting into that line of business. I am thinking Walt's ex wife, son, daughter, SIL or BIL must get killed by Walt because they threaten to expose him / get too close. Walt killing someone in his family will definitely make him seen as completely evil.

 

[KGB]

is this the first season they didnt start by showing how the season was going to end?

IE plane crash

 

[Walton Goggins]

is this the first season they didnt start by showing how the season was going to end?IE plane crash

First episode / first season didn't forecast ending of season 1

 

[Christo]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

 

[honky kong]

Since Gilligan has said Walt will do something that will make him completely evil / unsympathetic I can't see it due to either Jesse or Gus getting killed by Walt since those characters are in the drug biz and that's part of the deal in getting into that line of business. I am thinking Walt's ex wife, son, daughter, SIL or BIL must get killed by Walt because they threaten to expose him / get too close. Walt killing someone in his family will definitely make him seen as completely evil.

That's a good thought.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

 

[Christo]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

 

[5Rings]

This was Gilligan's take on it

The audience has every bit as valid an opinion as I do, but for what it's worth, I think what happened was that Victor made two mistakes: He let himself get seen at the house, and we can tell from the early going that that seems to worry Mike. The other thing is, it's a bit of an affront to Gus that Victor added insult to injury by thinking he could cook Walt's formula. This is a guy, we learned from the teaser, who wants the best. He doesn't want just some well-intentioned schmo who's not a chemist cooking the formula.

That was my take. Not sure if strike one (being seen) was enough. But when he lost his mind thinking he could cook, Gus had no choice.

Who am I to argue against Gilligan....but my take on it expands on his view that it was a message solely for Walt. Gus never wanted Jesse. He always thought he was a loose end. Walt more or less acknowledged that when he told him in last nights episode right before VIctor got slit was that if anything happens to Jesse, Gus doesn't have Walt. I think Gus was trying to tell Walt that if Walt wants to be a "Big Man", he has to be willing to correct mistakes that people under him make ( Victor being seen) by any means. I'm convinced that this season is Jesse's last and he will be done in by Walt.

Gilligan keeps repeating that the story of this show is to show a good man become, willingly, completely bad. Walt either killing or having Jessie killed would certainly bring him fully to the dark side and would be a suitable WTF moment to end this season on.

I don't know if anybody else brought up this point, but here is my take. Everything is explained in the beginning. The prologue with Gale, where he is explaining that Walt is the premiere chemist. Gale was obviously very accomplished and explained to Gus that Walt made the very best. Gale said he could make a product that was 96% pure but nothing to the level of Walt is capable. Gale's speech appealed to Gus's ego and once persuaded, Gus would only be satisfied providing only the purest meth. This can only happen with Gale apprenticing Walt and perfecting the recipe or from Walt. Once Gale was out of the picture, Gus would only come to one decision. We know, but Walt doesn't know that Gus will never be satisfied with Victor making the recipe so Gus gets to accomplish a few things, he eliminates Victor for being sloppy and being seen (possibly sending a message to Mike) and gets to send a terrifying message to Walt and Jesse that nobody is indispensable (even though Walt kind of is).

 

[PlasmaDogPlasma]

A lot of interesting thoughts here, but I'm just not buying Aaron Paul dying before the final season. Also, I don't think Walt killing those two dealers was an act of self interest. Letting Jessie get gunned down there actually would have solved a lot of problems for Walt. To add to that, just before Victor gets offed Walt tells Gus that if he kills Jessie he won't have Walt.

 

[Abraham]

I dont buy that Gus was showing walt that he had to be vicious for this business. Walt had just finished ordering a hit on gale, essentially.

 

[Raider Nation]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

 

[flc735]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

he works for the police, he fights criminals for a living. i have to imagine his job fully insures him for these medical expenses.i cant remember, how did hank end up in the hospital?

 

[Carver]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

he works for the police, he fights criminals for a living. i have to imagine his job fully insures him for these medical expenses.i cant remember, how did hank end up in the hospital?

Uncle Jun popped him in the belly with an old school Tooly.

 

[oukurt]

Just for Tanner.... Alan Sepinwall's first BB review of the season; hot off the press!

... Seen-it-all Mike is horrified and shaken that his boss would throw away a trusted employee like Victor just to send a message to these two screw-ups...

That's not why he killed him. He killed him because he was sloppy and let himself be seen at the murder scene.

Yep that is what I thought as well. So glad this show is back.

 

[Raider Nation]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

he works for the police, he fights criminals for a living. i have to imagine his job fully insures him for these medical expenses.i cant remember, how did hank end up in the hospital?

He got shot by "the cousins" yo.

 

[oukurt]

Grantland piece with Gilligan, incredible article discussing this episodeBreaking Bad Creator Vince Gilligan on Last Night's Season Premierehttp://www.grantland.com/blog/hollywood-prospectus/post/_/id/30856/breaking-bad-creator-vince-gilligan-on-last-nights-season-premiere

thanks for posting. good stuff.

 

[oukurt]

Solid episode. My only complaint is with Skylar (as someone mentioned above). She makes me cringe. Glad to not have to see "Flynn" last night also. He's even worse.

I would enjoy the same fate for her as Dexter's wife got from Trinity. More Saul and Mike, less Skylar please.

 

[5Rings]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

he works for the police, he fights criminals for a living. i have to imagine his job fully insures him for these medical expenses.i cant remember, how did hank end up in the hospital?

Nope.Hank's insurance was only going to cover a few visits per week, not nearly enough for his klepto-wife, who was insisting upon (and rightly so, imho) The Best therapy for her husband.

Since insurance would not cover The Best, Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy) cooked up the gambling story and offered to pay cash.

 

[oukurt]

Just finished Season 2 last night. Can't believe I missed this whole thing but I'm slowly catching up. Awesome stuff so far!

You're not even to the good part yet.

Agreed. Season 3 = $$$