Breaking bad, you watching it?

[Kete]

When I realized that the trigger was in the bell, I knew that Gus was going to die.  You can't have a set up that cool without following through.

I'm surprised how they wrapped up so many loose ends.  I wonder if they weren't sure if they would have a 5th season.

[eegah]

Awesome! But I do have a couple of questions:


When did Walt get the ricin?
Was Gus's "appropriate response" just to kidnap Jesse (since it wasn't to poison the kid)?

Walt used that plant in his backyard.

I know that! But he still stole the ricin from Jesse to make him think he, and then Gus, did it. Or, at least, someone took it from Jesse.

[Bob]

So, the cartel is gone, the old school cartel is gone, Gus is gone, the meth lab is destroyed...... however, nature hates a vacuum, so I assuming that people will step in to replace the dead cartel members and will want someone to take over Gus's  distribution network.   Mike is still around too.   

I do know that if Jesse ever finds out what Walt did to his girl friend and the kid, he will go nuts.   But I do not see how he ever finds out unless Walt tells him.   

My guess is both Walt and Jesse get brought back into the lab, either from the cartel pressure or just the need for money.    I don't see Hank just giving up on things either.

Then again, who know?

[Thrifty]

Awesome! But I do have a couple of questions:


When did Walt get the ricin?
Was Gus's "appropriate response" just to kidnap Jesse (since it wasn't to poison the kid)?

Walt used that plant in his backyard.

I know that! But he still stole the ricin from Jesse to make him think he, and then Gus, did it. Or, at least, someone took it from Jesse.

The closeup of the plant in Walt's back yard might have just been a red herring.  It's possible that Brock's poisoning was truly just an accident.

[Thrifty]

Skylar: What happened?
Walt: ....I won.

[eegah]

Awesome! But I do have a couple of questions:


When did Walt get the ricin?
Was Gus's "appropriate response" just to kidnap Jesse (since it wasn't to poison the kid)?

Walt used that plant in his backyard.

I know that! But he still stole the ricin from Jesse to make him think he, and then Gus, did it. Or, at least, someone took it from Jesse.

The closeup of the plant in Walt's back yard might have just been a red herring.  It's possible that Brock's poisoning was truly just an accident.

Possible, but I doubt it. The plant looked like he had just bought it.

That still doesn't answer the question about how the ricin was removed from Jesse's possession. And my other question about Gus's weird "appropriate response" is still open. Any thoughts?

[Bob]

Possible, but I doubt it. The plant looked like he had just bought it.

That still doesn't answer the question about how the ricin was removed from Jesse's possession. And my other question about Gus's weird "appropriate response" is still open. Any thoughts?

Yeah, the plant looked pretty new to me.  If Walt did not do it, then it would be a pretty big coincidence and would set up an interesting story if Jessie ever say the plant in Walts yard.   Of course, maybe Mike planted that there and he did the poisening?   I doubt Walt would notice a new plant in the yard, and even if he did, he would not pay attention to the name of it.   I could see Mike doing something like that knowing what it would force Jessie and Walt to do.

Of course, that also begs the question of how the Ricin ended up missing.   Mike could have broken in at night and taken it..... Walt could have to.   His house did not see that secure.

[D.B. Barnes]

It was a good finale. However, I didn't think it quite equaled the intensity level of the previous two episodes. Granted, the climactic scene was amazing. I knew Gus was a dead man as soon as he insisted on killing Hector himself. I had a feeling Gus was going to go down since the last episode. Carrying out this chess match for much longer might get a bit stale, and now that he's dead, the unknown factor is off the charts. This didn't spoil the power of the scene, though. I loved the music when Gus is walking into the senior home; what a mood!

I'm not altogether sure how to feel about the Gus reveal. Given the power of the blast, I was shocked to see him just calmly walk out the room, and as a result, I wasn't surprised by the reveal. As a matter of fact, I thought it was somewhat comical. I'm not sure if they intended that, given the intense drama leading up the blast, but it struck me as a bit of Sam Raimi-esque moment of slapstick horror. I actually laughed.

Can't wait to see where they go with things. This is going to a serious off-season jones!

[iv3rdawG]

[D.B. Barnes]

Thank you!

Powerful stuff. It seriously gives me chills and it was just perfect for the scene. The vocals make it even more powerful, although it's no wonder they didn't include them. Talk about a spoiler!

I'll have to check out more of their tunes.

[eegah]

It was a good finale. However, I didn't think it quite equaled the intensity level of the previous two episodes.

Agreed

I'm not altogether sure how to feel about the Gus reveal. Given the power of the blast, I was shocked to see him just calmly walk out the room, and as a result, I wasn't surprised by the reveal. As a matter of fact, I thought it was somewhat comical. I'm not sure if they intended that, given the intense drama leading up the blast, but it struck me as a bit of Sam Raimi-esque moment of slapstick horror. I actually laughed.

Yeah, that was the only thing that kind of bothered me about the episode. I keep trying to convince myself that it wasn't bizarre and unrealistic, but I can't.

On another note, it was nice to see the humor element return in spades in the second half of the season. It has kind of disappeared at times during the series. To me, that is the real strength of the show.

[Bob]

I am sure there are stories that emergency response people can tell of injury and blast victims behaving just like that.......running on instinct until they just give out.

[goflyblind]

Possible, but I doubt it. The plant looked like he had just bought it.

That still doesn't answer the question about how the ricin was removed from Jesse's possession. And my other question about Gus's weird "appropriate response" is still open. Any thoughts?

Yeah, the plant looked pretty new to me.  If Walt did not do it, then it would be a pretty big coincidence and would set up an interesting story if Jessie ever say the plant in Walts yard.   Of course, maybe Mike planted that there and he did the poisening?   I doubt Walt would notice a new plant in the yard, and even if he did, he would not pay attention to the name of it.   I could see Mike doing something like that knowing what it would force Jessie and Walt to do.

Of course, that also begs the question of how the Ricin ended up missing.   Mike could have broken in at night and taken it..... Walt could have to.   His house did not see that secure.

walt poisoned the kid: http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/09/vince-gilligan-of-breaking-bad-talks-about-ending-the-season-and-the-series/

[D.B. Barnes]

I am sure there are stories that emergency response people can tell of injury and blast victims behaving just like that.......running on instinct until they just give out.

That's probably very true. Some strange shit can happen when people are in total shock. I guess it struck me as a bit too over-the-top, though. I mean, half his face was blown clean off and it didn't even effect his signature perfect posture and dignified manner. I don't know anything about bombs, but given the force of the blast and his proximity, I wouldn't think there would be any chance in hell that he could manage to walk out of that room, looking at first like he wasn't even harmed. Seems as if he would've been much more fucked up than he was. I could be wrong; that's just what I took away from it.

[Thrifty]

Been thinking about the next season, and here's  what may happen.  I'll forego the spoiler tags because if someone is reading this and hasn't figured it out from all the previous spoilers, they kinda deserve to be spoilered.

Gus and Don Eladio and his cartel dead, and that creates a massive vacuum and dries up the supply of crystal meth in the American Southwest.  Somebody will step in to fill that void. 

The fire department will put out the fire in the lab, which will of course uncover it and vindicate Hank.  The laundry, Pollos Hermanos, and all of Gus's business will come under scrutiny.  Surviving managers of these businesses (especially the laundry) will be investigated.  This will happen, though I'm not sure I can see it making a good story.

Walt now owns a car wash, a paid off condo and house (I think he paid those off; I could be wrong) but after Skylar paid off Ted's IRS bill, and Walt bribed Saul's secretary, the man is broke.  He's also still got lung cancer, presumably, which is not fully cured but rather still in remission.  I'm thinking that Walt is going to go back to cooking crystal meth to support his family and pay his medical bills.  Without worrying about Gus, Walt will have to worry about staying one step ahead of Hank instead.