Monday, September 12, 2011

Breaking Bad: Bug

Gus says he'll do it
Ted returns to Skylar's life
Walt and Jesse fight.

When I saw this week's title of Breaking Bad - Bug, I was instantly excited. Last season's Fly was an amazing episode that took place mostly within the confines of the lab and the acting was stellar. If Bug is like Fly, this was going to be a great episode.

I don't think a Tide pen will help.
Oh crap, the episode opens up with blood. Dripping, dripping, dripping onto Walt's shoe and glasses which lay on the floor. This makes me speculate it's because Walt has a nosebleed from either 1) being punched in the face or 2) because last week he was lying about his diagnosis and he's not actually in remission.

Walt picks up Hank but Walt's uneasy because they are being followed by Tyrus. He doesn't mention it, but Hank can see the discomfort in Walt. He says: "this isn't a spy movie....it's more like Rocky" then proceeds to sing his version of Survivor's Eye of the Tiger. Walt picks up the tracking device from under Gus's car but this time doesn't go inside to pretend to buy some chicken (sad). They speed off.

My exact daily drive.
When Hank looks up Gus's driving history via cool computer stalking technology, he sees that his life is really boring. Gus goes to work and returns home.  Easy explanation is that Gus watches a lot of TV. We know that he's on to Hank's plan and it's really faked evidence. Walt asks, "Is it possible he isn't your guy?" Hank responds, "A guy this clean has got to be dirty." That's not what Dial soap commercials tell me.



When leaving Hank's house Walt stops by Tyrus's car which is parked down the street. He rolls down his window down and calls the cops on him acting as a concerned neighbor. It's a pretty ballsy move - but one that can't be good. Also, Tyrus gives THE best "bitch, please" face.



Jesse's waiting at the lab and Walt drives up. "I guess we better get started, "Walt says. "I already did," Jesse responds. Touche. Walt asks for a cigarette as his not so sly way of asking if he's poisoned Gus yet. Nope, not yet. As Walt pretends to smoke his cigarette, Jesse asks: Don't you have enough cancer already? That's exactly what I thought. Hmmm, interesting.

Walt nosily asks Jesse what he does outside of work, you know, a day in the life. It's very Oprah-ish. Jesse basically blows the question off and Jesse says: "look man, i'll do it....i'll do it."  Walt's frustrated and snaps, "Why does it matter? We're both dead men anyways."

Find out what crazy stuff Skylar does and how Rocky plays into all of this after the JUMP!


Skylar's at work and calls Walt. Junior wants a birthday party and Skylar suggests that they do buy him a car for his birthday - a used one. Not a fancy ass car like the last one. She also mentions that business is good - really good. So good in fact that Walt can possibly stop working his "second job" HA. Subtle. She's close to turning tricks a profit. It's time for an exit strategy. He says he's working on it as he turns to his bedside table and we see his own brand new tracking device. I guess they all know the same private eye/stalker website.

Walt is woken up the next morning by a phone call from Hank. Hank is still obsessing about the case (better than minerals) and starts harping on why Gus only goes to ONE Los Pollos Hermanos site when he owns 13 locations. So he got to investigating and found out that there's a warehouse - a great place to hide illicit activity. The walls around Walt seem to be closing in tighter and tighter. He then comes up with the BEST LIE EVER and [seriously] talks about his explosive diarrhea. YES! He blames Tex-Mex but I wonder since they are in New Mexico, shouldn't they have New Mex-Mex? He manages to convince Hank to wait til his 48 hour diarrhea is gone. While actually pooping his pants [not really], he rushes to call Mike and starts out with, "Don't be angry..." Has a conversation that won't make you angry ever started that way? He explains to Mike that Hank might make a trip out to the warehouse soon to look around. Mike is of course mad and hangs up.

Back at the A1A car wash Skylar is helping invisible customers [no for real]. Her old f-buddy/boss, Ted, shows up and says he really needs to talk to her. I thought he was gonna tell her he just found out he had chlamydia, but turns out he's getting audited [remember how Sklyar was doing some criminal activity by covering up for his scandalous doings early on?] and wants her help. "You want me to un-cook your books?" she asks. "There's gotta be some METH-od," he says [too bad he didn't wink at this point]. Skylar starts to freak out because she knows that along with an audit can come some major investigation including tapping phones and digging into each person involved's life. Oh shit.

Mike's doing a in-depth clean up of the distribution center with a black light using Jesse as a maid. Jesse asks if Gus is going to kill Mr. White's brother in law. I love that he still calls Walt Mr. White. Jesse talks through some angles and in a way tries to put ideas in Mike's head as to why they shouldn't kill Hank and/or Walt. They go outside and the bullets start flying. Jesse is in shock and Mike saves his life.

Blown off head - Jesse in his own game of Rage - Flashbacks

I start freaking out because not only is this all amazing but here comes Gustavo Fring walking straight out into the sniper's range. It reminds me of THIS just multiplied by 12,000 bad-asses and minus 1 Love-Hewitt.

What are you waiting for, huh?!

They went to Jared.
Hanks gets a call. "Tell them- the answer is yes" he says in Espanol. Hmmmm. He refused so much before and now gives in that easily. Winners never quit and quitters never win, Gus. I notice that his office lacks motivational posters.

Walt is brought a new customer at his Meth Cooking and Corpse Disposal service as Hank and Jesse bring in the body of the dude who got shot. Mike tells Walt that if he ever calls the cops on of his guys again, he better have two barrels ready- cause his ass will be grass hydrofluoric acid-ed.

Jesse takes a moment to thank Mike for saving him. This opens up a conversation so he asks why Gus didn't get killed. Since Gus's distribution is so high, the cartel needs him. But Mike, who doesn't like being bothered, tells him that if he has more questions, he should ask Gus himself.

Ted is at his audit and Skylar shows up looking like a big ol' ho and acting like a dingbat to try and help him out.
"Why didn't you dress like this when we
were doing it?"
The money is all there she says and starts to give excuses about the money being electronic payments. Ted looks confused.

"What are your qualifications?" the auditor asks. She answers in not these exact words: I'm a whore, look at my boobs. The auditor gets it now.  This isn't Ocean's 11, but her plan ends up working. Ted and Skylar walk out. He owes $617,000. Skylar best not give him that money or I will find a way to slap her. Seriously.

Jesse shows up at Gus's house with his lucky cigarette in tow. Gus has the lights dimmed and some light jazz playing in the background (shouldn't Mike be jealous?) as he preps a delicious meal. Food first, Gus says, then talking.
He did not serve pimento sandwiches.
After the , Gus begins: "I know you have concerns -" "You mean the dude getting his head blown off?" Jesse interjects. True that. Before Gus will answer anything he has a question:

Can you cook Walter's formula?


Jesse takes offense to this question and his role in their plan. As do I. Even thought it's pretty obvious this was coming, no me gusta! "You kill Mr. White - you're gonna have to kill me too!" "Me three!" I yell in my living room - then quickly knock on wood - just in case. Awww, Jesse cares. Gus recants and says that's not why he's here - he needs to help prevent an all out cartel war. Is Jesse being sent to cook for the cartel? Was Gus's "cooking" of a meal his hint to Jesse? A little quid pro cook?

At Casa Blanca, Skylar can't sleep and heads down to look at her stashes of money under the house. That bitch better not help Ted. I swear.

Walt leaves the lab and we find out what he did with his tracking device. Turns out he wanted to track Jesse. As he's checking the GPS history (which of course shows his date night at Gus's), he gets a call from Jesse: "I really gotta talk to you - it's important. Can you  come over?"

Walt heads over pissssssed off cause of what he just saw on the GPS. Jesse explains that the do indeed want Jesse to go to Mexico (NOOOO!). Walt is suspicious. Jesse says that between the cartel and Hank's investigation, Gus is gonna cave and has to give half of his operation and wants Walt's formula. Jesse is gonna go and teach cartel chemists how to cook the blue meth. Why didn't they trademark it?! Jesse is freaking out about this, "What if all the equipment is in Mexican and not English? If i mess this up - I am dead - all of us. Mr. White, I need your help."

All that Walt can respond is, "So you saw Gus?" "No," Jesse lies. Now I know where the blood is gonna come from and I reallllly want to cover my eyes. But I don't and I'm glad. There are a couple of things about this scene that are amazing: 1) the acting, 2) the fact that it looks like it's on a stage- empty, two actors and the lighting is just perfect [reminds me a little of the movie Dogville].


Through the arguing Walt says he knows that Jesse was at Gus's house for two hours and eighteen minutes. Whaaaat? How on earth did he know that?! Now Jesse knows that Walt doesn't trust him. Then, holy crap Walt and Jesse go at it.  It's so violent but at the same time so very sad - where these two have ended up. I guess Hank's mention of Rocky early on was straight up foreshadowing. Also, in case you love Rocky, AMC has something coming up for you:
Hank will be watching.
After the mutual beat down, Walt gets up and Jesse asks, "Can you walk?" "Yeah," Hank replies. "Then get the fuck out of here and never come back."

Ouch.

In the background a bell tolls, Walt exits stage right, and the episode comes to a close. I feel hollow. [I also pretend that this song is playing in the background so I can cheer up a little.]

This show emotionally drains me but I LOVE it. What's gonna happen to poor fragile Jesse in Mexico. He's still suffering from PTSD as we saw during the shoot out. Part of me wants him to end up like Johnny Depp in the middle of the movie Blow, but I'm scared he'll end up more like Bernie in Weekend at Bernie's. How much trouble is Skylar gonna get into by Ted coming back into her life? I yelled at my tv, "Woman you better!" [thanks, Ray/Red/Rat] -which has no ending, but includes an angry fist shake in the air.

Also I'll probably miss next week's episode because of family time and the Emmy's. Speaking of Emmy's I'm thinking next year Aaron Paul and Giancarlo Esposito will be vying against each other for best supporting actor. Let's throw in Michael Emerson too cause I miss LOST.

What did you think of this episode?

5 comments:

  1. Great review, you crack me up at my desk and people look at me weird. Anyway, I am so over Skyler. Hank needs to stop pushing already and using Walt. Walt, I don't know anymore about. He has no control it seems, though he still can be unpredictable. Jesse, I love but he's murdered a man and I don't thinks he's savable anymore. Mike & Saul need more screen time too! Gus' food, I gotta say, didn't look good either.

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  2. Oh and thanks for the shout out. Woman, thanks!

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  3. Back at the A1A car wash...hilarious. Go Bears!

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  4. The first unbelievable moment of this show was Skyler trying to look "hot" for the IRS guy. Skyler has looked like crap this entire season and her face is getting plastic-y. No one would buy that.

    I'm glad they brought up that Skyler was perfectly fine committing crimes for her sancho, but gives her husband hell for what he does FOR HIS FAMILY.

    Skyler sucks.

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  5. her face isn't plasticky - she's gained a lot of weight.

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