As the final season reaches its midway point things business is booming for Walt. He meets with Lydia to get the names of Mike's men who are currently in gaol and liable to talk now Mike is no more; she realises that Walt might think she is another loose end to be tied up so proposes a business expansion that will keep her useful; she will use Madrigal's legitimate logistics network to ship Walt's meth to the Czech Republic where demand is high and just as importantly the DEA aren't investigating. It isn't long before Mike's men are all dead and the money is rolling in; so much so that Skyler has no idea how much they have; she just states that it is more than they could spend in ten life times. Perhaps he finally has enough to get 'out' at least he tells Skyler that he is out. Then just as it looks as if Walt and his family are going to get a happy ending Hank picks up a book to browse through while in the lavatory and reads its 'to W.W.' dedication written inside leading to an epiphany about exactly who he has been hunting!
This was a fine episode to precede the mid-season break although I'm glad that I don't have to wait as long to find out what happens next as people watching the original broadcast did. There is a succession of brilliant scenes; Walt's meeting with Lydia where it is clear he would have eliminated her if she hadn't proved her use; the 'prison murder' montage where Mike's men are brutally murdered in the space of two minutes; Skyler talking to Walt about the money; reminiscing with Jesse about their old RV-lab, and finally the final scenes where Walt and family chat normally around the pool before Hank's discovery. These scenes are each very different but also very effective, picking out just two; the prison murders are both brutal and matter of fact made more shocking by the casual way Walt ignores the news as he plays with his young daughter and the final poolside scene where Skyler and Marie and Walt and Hank have overlapping conversations in the way real people do but TV people seldom do. Hank's realisation that Walt is W.W. sets things up perfectly for the final half season; I can't wait to see what happens next.
This was a fine episode to precede the mid-season break although I'm glad that I don't have to wait as long to find out what happens next as people watching the original broadcast did. There is a succession of brilliant scenes; Walt's meeting with Lydia where it is clear he would have eliminated her if she hadn't proved her use; the 'prison murder' montage where Mike's men are brutally murdered in the space of two minutes; Skyler talking to Walt about the money; reminiscing with Jesse about their old RV-lab, and finally the final scenes where Walt and family chat normally around the pool before Hank's discovery. These scenes are each very different but also very effective, picking out just two; the prison murders are both brutal and matter of fact made more shocking by the casual way Walt ignores the news as he plays with his young daughter and the final poolside scene where Skyler and Marie and Walt and Hank have overlapping conversations in the way real people do but TV people seldom do. Hank's realisation that Walt is W.W. sets things up perfectly for the final half season; I can't wait to see what happens next.