Shall we anticpate the AMC series "Breaking Bad"? I think I may.

feel like hank was being so thorough w/that notebook he def already knew the poem was whitman

he's not a moron
he also knows that walt likes credit for things he does

lol @ the ron paul sticker in gale's notebook.

yeah suddenly his death seems less tragic

nah, it was a perfect little character easter egg. makes perfect sense he'd be a paultard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wugY6HNLOCo

omg

I say the Willie Nelson/pot leaf sticker cancels out the Ron P.

Gale is such a rad dude! A total dork, but w/e. That notebook was so amazing- beautiful handwriting, chinese ideograms sketched in the margins, finely rendered maps of his hiking trips, &c. And his apartment last season, such a nice&cozy place. I would totally hang out with my brother Gale.

The flashback where it reveals that Gale signs his own death certificate by basically insisting that Walt be brought in..so heartbreaking! Hands down the only nice person on this show- open, honest, genuinely curious about the world, kinda serves truth & science.. and they shoot that myan right in his fukken face. Love this show.

thai subtitles are a nice touch

am not too enthused by the nugget saul drops abt the new identity possibility but i wouldve really liked to see what dudes business card wouldve looked like

i dont see walt running or going to the cops, hes too proud

i do think he will kill or otherwise precipitate gus' downfall

he will make gus' head into a turtle bomb

I love when Mike gets to be a badass and kill people

Love how he maintains his world-weary expression as he does it.

absolutely, last night after the ear scene I thought "man he really isn't into this so much any more"

fuck - doesn't Guss have *anybody* else that can kill people for him?!

is there a chance walt will work with the cartel to get rid of his gus problem?

loved the jesse/mike bits, jesse in his new unhinged state is a bit of a badass, he's kind of untouchable through being so bereft of any kind of life or feeling.

also loving the return of hank's confidence/integrity. the scene with him and walt was the perfect mix of plot hurtling forward at the same time as characters are deeply explored, the kind of thing bb does so brilliantly and the thing that makes every episode feel so full.

Today I learned that Jonathan Banks (Mike) played the guy who killed Axel's partner in Beverly Hills Cop, mind blown.

well there was victor...

xpost

walt's speech to saul felt a little off. like he was having trouble convincing himself of it? or cranston having an off day. i wasn't sure.

interesting to see that as skyler's relationship with walt becomes somewhat normalized her old icy mother-knows-best routine gets brought out of the prop closet. such a cutting comment though about how in their "fiction" she doesn't come out looking good at all - "at least you gambled, i'm just the uptight wife who won't cut you any slack". she's well aware that that's how walt sees her too. and it's like an acknowledgement of how her character is perceived by a lot of BB's audience.

There were lots of meta touches in this episode I thought - will have to rewatch to come up with more examples though. I always watch each episode twice anyway.

also loving the return of hank's confidence/integrity. the scene with him and walt was the perfect mix of plot hurtling forward at the same time as characters are deeply explored, the kind of thing bb does so brilliantly and the thing that makes every episode feel so full.

otm! full and satisfying, like a good drama should be

i loved how totally unstable the subtext was in the rehearsal scene. the script "closely parallels the truth" so as they read it they're getting to act out their real feelings about each other. and at the same time, the very fact that they're reading it is a consequence of skyler wanting to wrest back some control of this insane situation. and that move, that control move, activates these old resentful circuits in walt, which then get meshed into their "fiction"! no wonder walt was so out of it at hank's, it's enough to make your head spin.

yea it's that plus being blindsided by the gale info

is there a chance walt will work with the cartel to get rid of his gus problem?

oooohhh if the writers haven't thought of this they should have

wonder where mike is taking jesse, back to rehab?

feel like thatd be gus' best play here

get jesse out of the way/back in his head w/o pissing off walt

Clearly there's some sort of big cartel vs. gus throwdown coming, based on the fridge truck showdown. Maybe it happens while Mike and Jesse are in transit?

The iTunes eps come with a behind the scene short that makes a statement about that but it could be spoilery so I'll only post it on request.

The face Mike made when he realized he'd lost an ear tip is the same face I make when, like, our Internet goes out at work.

I think they're going to hold Jesse hostage, tell Walt they'll shoot him if he doesn't keep cooking. I don't think they care about cleaning him up, just keeping him hidden while keeping Walt on the job. I really don't think this is going to end well for Jesse.

I do think Jesse will sober up, but not in a gentle rehab way. Or they might keep him high so as to keep him quiet. Then whoops overdose! Sorry Walt!

Allllso Walt would be a super supreme dumbass if he got involved with a rival cartel in an attempt to get at Gus. Gus has some standards, for now, about keeping Walt's family out of this but hoo boy I don't know if that's a guarantee with another cartel. And you know Walt will bluster in like a chump and fuck something up with them like he did with Gus. So of course all this means that's exactly what Walt will do.

Or they might keep him high so as to keep him quiet.

that doesn't work so well with meth

Ha, yeah, as Mr. Airport Scanners GET IN YOUR BONES aptly demonstrated.

that doesn't work so well with meth

well in fairness this show isn't really super-realistic about what ppl who're actively tweaking are like

I was thinking last night about how disappointing it is that they essentially play the tweak-card for comedy only at this point.

well if they played it realistically there'd kinda be no show

I think in season one there was at least some pathos to it w/r/t Jesse, but yeah, of course.

I meant "quiet" in the sense that by giving him drugs whoever is in charge of holding him captive can avoid the irritation of listening to him whine for drugs all the time. Not keep him quiet as in docile, quiet as in "meeting his needs." Pizza, dipping sticks, meth, you know. What a man needs to survive.

Video games

oh no, I know, it was just a funny juxtaposition to me if read literally.

I looked into my crystal ball and saw that Walt gets kidnapped by the cartel. But I still think there needs to be some funny business with the carwash first. Then again, it'd be hilarious if they introduced the carwash as another irrelevant character, like the baby (does it have a name?) and Walt, Jr. They'll just toss in a line here and there. "Oh, I stopped by the carwash today and everything seems to be OK."

I've never liked Hank, as such, but I do think he's a deceptively well-written character. He's an ass with issues, but he's a great cop.

Best moment of the show was at the start, when Walt tells Skylar how sorry he is, and she drops down her guard, then realizes he was just practicing his act. That actress, by the way, totally Botoxed the anxiety out of her face. If I were a show runner/producer, and my show hinged on stress and anxiety, I would have it in writing that actors will not get their face frozen mid-show.

OMG, just realized Anna Gunn was Bullock's schoolteacher wife on Deadwood!!! What a difference a bonnet makes.

i was really hoping for rehab but somehow i think that's not gonna be it.

yeah - rehab was sepinwall's first conclusion too, which makes me think that ain't it

I suspect majorly big shit will go down next couple of eps. Every one since the premier has been a major screw-turner.

Best moment of the show was at the start, when Walt tells Skylar how sorry he is, and she drops down her guard, then realizes he was just practicing his act.

That bit was amazing. I actually said "oh, shit." Fucking Walt.

yeah that was my favorite moment as well

this was an excellent episode

such a cutting comment though about how in their "fiction" she doesn't come out looking good at all - "at least you gambled, i'm just the uptight wife who won't cut you any slack". she's well aware that that's how walt sees her too. and it's like an acknowledgement of how her character is perceived by a lot of BB's audience.

― Dark Noises from the Eurozone (Tracer Hand), Monday, August 8, 2011 8:07 PM (Yesterday)

also thought her comment implied how walt jr sees her

That actress, by the way, totally Botoxed the anxiety out of her face. If I were a show runner/producer, and my show hinged on stress and anxiety, I would have it in writing that actors will not get their face frozen mid-show.

noticed this too. looked like she did season too, but it's pretty severe this time. she also looks like she's put on some significant weight since last season, which isn't a big deal or anything, but kind of weird since this season picked up hours after last season's finale.