Breaking Bad

[©brad]

I don't think it felt like a series finale at all.  

You don't think so? Jesse and Walt basically got rid of all the people who could finger point and implement them. They successfully got Hank off their back. There is no evidence that they were ever in the business. They destroyed the lab and everything that was linked to them. They could easily retire and go back to their normal lives and nobody would ever know what they had been up to the last couple years. If they wanted, that sounds like a series finale to me. I'm glad it isn't, but I do wonder if they did that intentionally, not knowing if there would be another season. Breaking Bad Insiders, let us know if they say anything about that.

Yes they didn't know if they would be picked up for a 5th season so they planned the finale to also work as a series finale if need be. You can read about it here.

[Stefen]

I don't think it felt like a series finale at all.  

You don't think so? Jesse and Walt basically got rid of all the people who could finger point and implement them. They successfully got Hank off their back. There is no evidence that they were ever in the business. They destroyed the lab and everything that was linked to them. They could easily retire and go back to their normal lives and nobody would ever know what they had been up to the last couple years. If they wanted, that sounds like a series finale to me. I'm glad it isn't, but I do wonder if they did that intentionally, not knowing if there would be another season. Breaking Bad Insiders, let us know if they say anything about that.

Yes they didn't know if they would be picked up for a 5th season so they planned the finale to also work as a series finale if need be. You can read about it here.

[RegularKarate]

I can see how that works as a series finale, but I'm crazy glad it isn't.  I would have felt cheated.

It feels like everything was a temporary solution to longer term trouble.

[squints]

That was a great last episode. Walt, you evil mother fucker. It could work as the series finale because, well, he's completed his bad breaking cycle right? But i feel, if they had one more season they could drive the point home even more and it could end in beautiful perfect tragedy. But no more than one more season.

Who else, for a second, thought "Oh Shit! Gus made it out alive!" then... pan....GAH! HALF A FACE!

I thought the first few minutes of the episode had some really funny moments. Specifically thinking of when he calls his neighbor and walt goes "Yes, cats are.... listen listen."


"I won."

[O.]

Here's an inside look at "Face Off."

Also, I found this list of loose ends for the next season.

• Mike is recovering in Mexico. What will he do?
• The Cartel was afraid to kill Gus. Walt may find out why.
• Jesse is on tape with Gus somewhere in a mexican meth lab.
• Hanks' investigation was just flatly dead-ended.
• Skylar may finally realize just how deep Walt has gone.
• Ted is dead, but did anyone even tell Skylar yet?
• Walt has done enough bad things to Jesse to get killed if Jesse finds out.
• Two major drug networks have collapsed, Gus' and the Cartel's. The power vacuums will result in new players fighting for control, though they may not give a damn about Walt or Jesse at all. The entire Salamaca family is dead, as is Gus, so there is no one to come looking for blood from the Cartel.

For the next two seasons, my heart tells me Jesse will bond with Brock and whats-her-face more and more, settle into a more docile lifestyle while Walt will probably become more awful and all of the bad things he did to Jesse will start unraveling before the two clash.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Haven't read any of the recent posts in this thread... just wanted to say that us downloaders got screwed over last night. The episode wasn't uploaded until late late last night. So I have to wait until tonight. Bah.

In searching for a download I've already been accidentally exposed to a few spoilers, namely that Walt and Jesse team up with Saul, and there's apparently an image of Tyrus with a syringe. Bah. Also my sister called a couple days ago to tell me she saw an interview with Cranston, who he said the final image will "make you cringe" and that it zooms in on an object. Bah!

I hate spoilers.

[squints]

the copy i got from BTjunkie was legit?

https://twitter.com/#!/MattMitovich/status/123148434046853120

Tonight's episode runs 68 minutes !!! That's like 20 or 15 minutes more !!!

this worked out, with commercials to be about an extra 5 min.

[Jeremy Blackman]

I usually avoid torrents, especially when they are too new to have enough reviews.

[squints]

Well here's my review, THIS is legit.

[Stefen]

Haven't read any of the recent posts in this thread... just wanted to say that us downloaders got screwed over last night. The episode wasn't uploaded until late late last night. So I have to wait until tonight. Bah.

In searching for a download I've already been accidentally exposed to a few spoilers, namely that Walt and Jesse team up with Saul, and there's apparently an image of Tyrus with a syringe. Bah. Also my sister called a couple days ago to tell me she saw an interview with Cranston, who he said the final image will "make you cringe" and that it zooms in on an object. Bah!

I hate spoilers.

I KNOW. It's usually posted on rlslog.net 10-15 minutes after it airs, but last night it wasn't put up until 2am. I stayed away from Twitter, xixax and any other site that could have ruined it for me. I was livid.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Man, that phone call that ended the episode was just perfect. "I won"... flawless. That exchange between Skylar and Walt was so cathartic, too, for some reason. I couldn't help but rewatch the last 3 minutes twice after I finished the episode.

It was exceptionally well written (loved all of Saul's dialogue) and just wonderfully executed all around... it's obvious that everyone brought their A game to this episode. I think the whole thing was just about right. I was for some reason imagining that the showdown between Walt and Gus would be the climactic end of the episode, but it arrived just where it should have. The climax for me was the last 9 minutes. That was much more thrilling than Gus's death (which we knew was coming).

Gus's cartoonish death did kind of break the fourth wall for me. I guess I would have preferred to see his head rolling out the door or something like that (cartoonish, but still somewhat realistic). I did, however, absolutely love the way he died. Tio playing such a crucial role there was so perfect that I wonder why we didn't see it coming. Also, how fitting was that to end it all with the bell ringing? So perfect.

Thanks to my sister's ninja-spoiler, I did expect to see the zoom in on the plant at the end (which did indeed make me cringe), but it was still beautiful. In retrospect I have no idea why I doubted that Walt could have poisoned Brock.

I think Walt started getting serious at this chess game immediately after Jesse knocked some sense into him. So happy that he's back on top of things. It was agonizing to watch him floundering and pathetic for so much of this season.

Interesting that Vince teased that Mike could be the next villain. I'm not sure I totally buy that. Mike is the guy who's just doing his job. Walt and Jesse haven't particularly done anything to harm him except deprive him of a paycheck, which he can surely get elsewhere. That interview happened before Season 5 writing even started, so I'll take it with a grain of salt.

Isn't it more likely that what's left of the cartel (or some other cartel) would go after Walt and Jesse for the formula? Or something like that? Either way, I think we can assume that, although Walt has won this (long) battle, he'll get into more trouble fairly quickly. Maybe Jesse finds the plant. Anything could happen. I just hope they come up with something great, and I hope that Walt, now that he's gone full Heisenberg, goes even further.

Yeah, those are plenty of interesting loose ends. Here's another one: How much evidence did Gus leave behind, in his home, in his various buildings, and especially in his freaking laptop? We can't expect Hank to give up now, can we? Fring was all but implicated (in Hank's mind, and in reality) by this recent event. I'm sure Hank is eager to find survivors who may be connected. And remember he has the gimpmobile.

Whatever happens, I still think my "Jesse as protagonist vs. Walt as antagonist" final season theory could come to fruition. That would be spectacular.

I'd like to see more about the car wash. Seems like it should play a larger role in Season 5.

Looks like the podcast is up.

[Jeremy Blackman]

Podcast highlights:

Vince had the idea for the way Gus would die way back in Season 3. They wrote "DING BOOM" on a card and kept it around.

I know this is incredibly obvious by now, but Vince describes Gus's hatred for Hector as being "the chink in his armor." Every villain has a weakness. And they definitely meant to play a "long game" (as they call it) with the Gus/Hector story... which from the beginning was meant to lead to DING BOOM. Vince also confirmed that Gus used Walt and Hank to get the cousins killed, specifically to get them out of the way so he could kill Hector.

[polkablues]

I thought the first few minutes of the episode had some really funny moments. Specifically thinking of when he calls his neighbor and walt goes "Yes, cats are.... listen listen."

That and when Saul's secretary was trying to bribe him, and Walt gets right up in her face like he's about to threaten her, then just grumbles, "I'll be right back," and dives back out the broken door. Plus him taking a ridiculous amount of time to figure out that she was asking for a bribe.


I also enjoyed this, from the bestweekever.tv recap:



EDIT: And here is a link to my favorite feature on AV Club, where the show creator analyzes their past season episode by episode: http://www.avclub.com/articles/vince-gilligan-walks-us-through-season-four-of-bre,63013/

[Jeremy Blackman]

EDIT: And here is a link to my favorite feature on AV Club, where the show creator analyzes their past season episode by episode: http://www.avclub.com/articles/vince-gilligan-walks-us-through-season-four-of-bre,63013/

I've been wanting to read that since yesterday. I might save it for a special occasion.

AV Club is the best.

[O.]

He didn't even 'let' her OD, he just straight up killed her. Shoving her over in order to try and wake up Jesse and she begins to vomit and go all John Bonham on everybody.