What a great show. Unbelievable how they NEVER leave a stone un-turned in the history of the show.
I didn't want to believe Gekko, because I thought that the Walt turning Hank in storyline just wouldn't work. Yet, there were elements that made PERFECT sense. Most notably, the 177k medical bills. That has been hanging out there for a couple years, just waiting to get used. There was no chance we were getting to the end of this series without it playing a part.
We all were a little nervous about Walt turning in Hank, just because it seemed a bit gimmicky. So instead, the "confession" is only used as a threat to keep Hank backed off. Ultimate Heisenberg. Hank knows the medical bills did him in, and he really doesn't have a move.
At the same time, the ricin/poisoning story is what ultimately does in Jesse. The amazing thing is that I really thought it was possible Jesse might be getting in that van. I also thought it was possible he was going to get stabbed in the back in the desert. But as chilling as either of those things would have been, Breaking Bad paid off again, and all it took was Jesse getting pick-pocketed by Huell to make him realize that, just as he had suspected, Huell had pickpocketed him a few months back, and Walt had lied to him.
Let's face it, Jesse was on the edge with Walt already. He wanted to turn him in to Hank, but he hated Hank. He had a golden opportunity right then to confess, put Walt away and possibly get off lightly. He then went off on Walt in the desert, but didn't quite go through with it, probably because a part of him wanted to believe that Walt cared for him. But the pick-pocketing was the final straw. He realized he was being played the whole time. Of course, all that being said, Walt in some weird way does care for Jesse. But far less than he cares for himself, as he's a complete sociopath at this point.
So here we are, 5 episodes left, and all the cards are on the table. I wouldn't be surprised if Walt and Jesse fight to the death in the next episode, and I wouldn't be surprised if Jesse gives Hank the lifeline that puts Hank back in business. In either case, I think it's obvious that Saul is about to make another Hoover vacuum call and Walt is about to get into a red minivan and head to the east coast.
What I'm still clueless about is what makes Walt come back, and how Lydia/Todd and the crew fit into this.
GREAT episode. Can't decide if it's better than episode 1 or not. Who cares. They are both great.