Shall we anticipate the FIFTH SEASON of the AMC series "Breaking Bad"? I think I may.

loved the sleeves on her blouse, for the record

love that the whole magnet scheme was pointless (hank dismisses gus' laptop as unusable evidence) and actually made things worse by turning up the offshore accounts

This episode is even better the second time. I love the way the scene with the DEA boss is lit, and the way his shirt collar is at least an inch too wide, and his shirt is overstarched and too big for him. It makes him look tiny and shriveled. The metaphor is obvious, but I didn't notice it until the second time I watched.

― cue "White Rabbit" (kenan), Monday, July 23, 2012 7:31 AM (3 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post

also liked the mirroring of the boss complaining about how gus was right under his nose to hank who has walt right under his nose

Yeah, it's maybe one second of a reaction shot from Hank, but it's priceless.

And totally agreeing with Lechera about those sleeves. Truly remarkable sleeves.

Really the whole interrogation scene is fantastic. They know who the guy is, they know he's dirty as the day is long, and they know that "good cop/bad cop" isn't going to work on this guy. So instead they play "smart cop/dumb cop", and they do it so well that they almost fooled me into thinking that Gomez is actually a complete boob. But no. That was planned.

Just finally caught up with the premiere, which was ... OK. Walt's arrogance is off the chart in that one. Looking forward to ep 2, but in terms of total assholes, Walt is currently sort of sub-Vic Mackey. It's not even clear if Walt loves his family, and he more than seems willing to cut them off (or worse) rather than go down with them. Like, even when he "saves' them, or protects them, it seems like one more step in some long game that he's playing.

A+++ episode. I'm slightly breathless from the amount of confidence and versatility this show is displaying right now.

We're not supposed to know exactly how Lydia fits in yet right? Because if we are I must have missed something. I thought maybe she was Gus' wife at first, but that's obviously not right.

I thought it was implied she's a Madrigal exec or connected with the one who killed himself at the beginning? Because she didn't seem the sort who would take the initiative on "cleaning up" the mess, working under someone

but i could just be imagining that

I agree, although did BB show its hand a little too much in letting Mike make such an obvious and uncharacteristic mistake by not killing her? He's supposed to be smarter (and colder) than we are, after all.

Perhaps, a) it's likely she double or triple-dipped on the murder assignments b) Mike is now broke and c) even if he did kill her, good possibility that someone else would come in and finish up the clean-up. If they're back in business, everyone gets to stay alive and rich again, theoretically

it's subtle but I thought she was in the meeting with madrigal and the DEA

http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120723070759/breakingbad/images/3/3e/5x2_Madrigal_board.png

Such a great shot

Anyone else feel a weird sense of injustice at them all getting their assets frozen? We've spent a fair amount of time watching them make that money. Then I remember how they made the money...

Yeah I think the money was Mike's motivation for not killing her.

mike is not completely callous, he saw how much she loved her kid and had second thoughts, now if he had his $2m still who knows

Mike not killing Lydia did seem p forced to me too. His whole deal is supposed to be he's the unsentimental brains of the outfit, but the only people he kills are outside the storyline - Mike poses no threat to you if you might be instrumental to the story. Kinda diminishes his character a bit.

i think mike aspires to be the unsentimental brains but thats not really him, see constantly giving walt advice when he knows it wont do any good

yeah I see that but still - it's like, scary muscleman Mike, plenty of people he's had reason to kill but the only ones who're actually in danger are bit-players

yeah he hasnt killed walt jesse or walts family, but thats a p small group, no one else has killed them either... YET!!!!!

btw re our discussion of mikes value to the walt/jesse partnership, his connection w/the precursors is def worth something

there has to be a better source for methylamine than someone who's trying to kill you

cajun kickass

― diamanda ram dass (Edward III), Monday, July 23, 2012 12:23 AM (15 hours ago) Bookmark

i bought mike not killing her - it would've been really cold if he did, and i would've bought that too. but i think the groundwork's been laid to make it believable that he wouldnt

Oh yeah, wanna add that the cold open had me in stitches.

not many shows where I feel there would be some value in watching an eps a second time immediately after finishing it

it's subtle but I thought she was in the meeting with madrigal and the DEA

― diamanda ram dass (Edward III), Monday, July 23, 2012 3:28 PM (52 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

nice catch

but i think the groundwork's been laid to make it believable that he wouldnt

I think some groundwork had been laid and then they added some quickie last-minute groundwork of showing him with his granddaughter, to make it more plausible that the daughter angle might make him not pull the trigger

theyve shown him w/his granddaughter repeatedly tho, its like one of two things we know abt mike, he has a granddaughter and he used to be a cop

not that that scene wasnt there for a reason but still

you're overlooking the gift that is mike playing hungry hungry hippos

think maybe in the next eps he can work out his differences w/ walt in this manner

ya thats the reason i was talking abt

was mad Mike didn't sing the Hungry Hungry Hippos song tbh

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HPI_HT6yjo

don't think it was just the daughter that caused mike to reconsider, the ep seemed to set up the idea that unless he gets some money (and the other dudes on the list too) then somebody will go to the cops.

ya i agree it was both

even if you look at earlier in the ep a big part of mikes argument abt why to not worry abt the situation is everyone is paid

still find it a bit hard to believe that he'd not only spare someone who tried to kill him, but go into business with her

but yeah I guess if he gets her and all the guys she's worried about back employed again then it changes the situation

xpost that's true

even if you look at earlier in the ep a big part of mikes argument abt why to not worry abt the situation is everyone is paid

i still don't hate walt btw, i know he's meant to be super-evil etc but i still am rooting for him. i sort of assumed this was everyone's position. it's a tv show and i want walt's quest for dominance to succeed.

mike's like I better get some $$$ or I'm gonna have to kill all these fools

still find it a bit hard to believe that he'd not only spare someone who tried to kill him, but go into business with her

― dmr, Monday, July 23, 2012 4:41 PM (53 seconds ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

its a classic machiavellian move, hes got it over her now

was anybody else bothered by the fact there were 2 yellow hippos on mike's game

me

I'm assuming that's some sort of thing like the teddy bear eyeball that will be a recurring motif and by the end of the season we'll have a flashback episode that shows how the two yellow hippos got there

god i hope so

was anybody else bothered by the fact there were 2 yellow hippos on mike's game
me too but i convinced myself that one was lime green and that i was seeing things

is there any sense that hank was actually thinking of walt at all in that long, slightly unsubtle, pause, after the chief talked about gus being right under his nose etc?

i took it as a bit of cruel irony for the enjoyment of the viewer.

glasgow representing in breaking bad

so i guess we're in for more ricin-based hijinks at some point