**SPOILERS HEREIN!**
Six episodes doesn’t seem like a very much time to wrap
everything up, but apparently it’s enough for the show to jerk us around some
more.
Todd (Jesse Plemons) and his Nazi counterparts appear before the credits like harbingers of death, then aren’t even mentioned again in the episode. Walt’s (Bryan Cranston) major bargaining chip, that being paying for Hank’s (Dean Norris) physical therapy, has been played, but Hank’s oncoming recourse is as ambiguous as it was after last episode. And we know Jesse’s (Aaron Paul) actions after realizing just how far his former teacher’s manipulation went won’t likely end in flames; the flash forward at the beginning of “Blood Money” showed that the Whites’ home didn’t burn down. But Jesse’s capability in this state of mind is still unpredictable.
Oh, and speaking of that flash forward, I still haven’t discerned a single clue about what series of events could have led to that.
Not a single question is answered, no plotline resolved or even hinting at what directions they’ll take. Just infuriating. And yet in spite of my anger at the show for playing us like this, it just makes me want to see next week’s episode even more. The writers know exactly what they’re doing, and they do it very well.
But aside from just yanking our chain, there are two sequences that open up new levels about the characters. One is Walt’s video “confession” naming Hank as a drug lord holding him hostage to cook meth. The immediate reaction would be that Walt has reached a new low, that he now no longer cares if he smears or harms his family to protect himself (it’s getting harder and harder to remember that he originally got into this for his family, isn’t it?).
But…he hasn’t harmed Hank or framed him yet, as far as we know. Since “tread lightly” didn’t deter Hank, this might be another attempt to get him to back off with just a warning, and Walt's putting off using violence against his own family as long as he can. Then again, that very idea sounds like a cop-out rationalization that a criminal would use to justify their actions, and just thinking that way makes me feel as dirty as Walt. These are my favorite scenes to watch Cranston as an actor. For all the heinous acts he commits, he never seems more evil than when he’s smugly, calmly playing innocent.
The other scene was the one in the desert, where Walt and Saul (Bob Odenkirk) try to convince Jesse to go into hiding. This is not a great moment of acting on Cranston’s part, I must say. Walt is way too obvious in his attempt at manipulation, like he’s so used to getting Jesse to do what he wants that he’s not even trying. But in their awkward hug after Jesse calls him on his manipulation (which, by the way, made me laugh pretty hard), I did detect a little sadness in Walt’s eyes. Not from remorse, but because he actually does kind of care for Jesse, and he’ll be forced to kill him if he refuses to cooperate. It’s as much a final goodbye hug as it is a last ditch attempt to sway Jesse.
Jesse does comply, eventually. Not as a favor, not because he has no choice if he wants to live, but because he doesn’t have any real reason to stay in Albuquerque. This makes me wonder exactly how long Jesse has known Walt’s been controlling him, and was just going along with it because his life had so little meaning that doing whatever Walt wanted seemed as good as any action to him. It’s kind of sad, and Paul emits this extreme desperation so painfully believably.
But Jesse has one thing: a moral line. Specifically, not harming any children. And now that he knows his partner crossed that line in season 4, I don’t think Walt’s going to be able to manipulate his way out of this. Maybe I was wrong about “Hank vs. Walt” being the main battle that brings Walt down; maybe it’s going to be Jesse’s doing.
Or maybe the show’s just messing with us. Again!
Todd (Jesse Plemons) and his Nazi counterparts appear before the credits like harbingers of death, then aren’t even mentioned again in the episode. Walt’s (Bryan Cranston) major bargaining chip, that being paying for Hank’s (Dean Norris) physical therapy, has been played, but Hank’s oncoming recourse is as ambiguous as it was after last episode. And we know Jesse’s (Aaron Paul) actions after realizing just how far his former teacher’s manipulation went won’t likely end in flames; the flash forward at the beginning of “Blood Money” showed that the Whites’ home didn’t burn down. But Jesse’s capability in this state of mind is still unpredictable.
Oh, and speaking of that flash forward, I still haven’t discerned a single clue about what series of events could have led to that.
Not a single question is answered, no plotline resolved or even hinting at what directions they’ll take. Just infuriating. And yet in spite of my anger at the show for playing us like this, it just makes me want to see next week’s episode even more. The writers know exactly what they’re doing, and they do it very well.
But aside from just yanking our chain, there are two sequences that open up new levels about the characters. One is Walt’s video “confession” naming Hank as a drug lord holding him hostage to cook meth. The immediate reaction would be that Walt has reached a new low, that he now no longer cares if he smears or harms his family to protect himself (it’s getting harder and harder to remember that he originally got into this for his family, isn’t it?).
But…he hasn’t harmed Hank or framed him yet, as far as we know. Since “tread lightly” didn’t deter Hank, this might be another attempt to get him to back off with just a warning, and Walt's putting off using violence against his own family as long as he can. Then again, that very idea sounds like a cop-out rationalization that a criminal would use to justify their actions, and just thinking that way makes me feel as dirty as Walt. These are my favorite scenes to watch Cranston as an actor. For all the heinous acts he commits, he never seems more evil than when he’s smugly, calmly playing innocent.
The other scene was the one in the desert, where Walt and Saul (Bob Odenkirk) try to convince Jesse to go into hiding. This is not a great moment of acting on Cranston’s part, I must say. Walt is way too obvious in his attempt at manipulation, like he’s so used to getting Jesse to do what he wants that he’s not even trying. But in their awkward hug after Jesse calls him on his manipulation (which, by the way, made me laugh pretty hard), I did detect a little sadness in Walt’s eyes. Not from remorse, but because he actually does kind of care for Jesse, and he’ll be forced to kill him if he refuses to cooperate. It’s as much a final goodbye hug as it is a last ditch attempt to sway Jesse.
Jesse does comply, eventually. Not as a favor, not because he has no choice if he wants to live, but because he doesn’t have any real reason to stay in Albuquerque. This makes me wonder exactly how long Jesse has known Walt’s been controlling him, and was just going along with it because his life had so little meaning that doing whatever Walt wanted seemed as good as any action to him. It’s kind of sad, and Paul emits this extreme desperation so painfully believably.
But Jesse has one thing: a moral line. Specifically, not harming any children. And now that he knows his partner crossed that line in season 4, I don’t think Walt’s going to be able to manipulate his way out of this. Maybe I was wrong about “Hank vs. Walt” being the main battle that brings Walt down; maybe it’s going to be Jesse’s doing.
Or maybe the show’s just messing with us. Again!
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