Editor’s Note: For eight weeks, WarriorsWorld’s Jesse Taylor will speak to Harrison Barnes about each episode of their favorite current TV show, Breaking Bad, as it completes its fifth and final season. This installment covers Season 5-B Episode 4: Rabid Dog. WARNING: These are episode reviews, so there will be SPOILERS …
Jesse: Walking through the episode, it starts with Walt coming home shortly after last week’s installment left off when Jesse was about to burn down the house. Seeing Saul’s car out front and knowing Jesse was driving it, Walt pulls out a gun, goes around back and carefully inspects his home. Did you expect Jesse to still be there?
Harrison: With this show, you never know what to expect. Walt gets there and the gas can was just sitting in that one specific spot. It was interesting and intense to see Walt going through the house and then to find that Jesse is no longer there.
Making up a story to Skylar and Walt Jr. about the gas that’s been splashed all over his carpet begins a string of lies Walt tells throughout this episode. Give Walt time and he can come up with a good story. But on the fly, at least this time, he wasn’t so good.
That was probably one of the worst storytelling sequences I’ve ever heard. When Junior figures it out, you know it’s bad. And Walt can never just be 100 percent honest with Skylar, despite everything she knows at this point.
Starting with Saul, and later with Skylar, Walt genuinely seems to want to protect Jesse’s life. At a time other key people want Jesse killed.
Saul describing killing off Jesse with an Old Yeller story was hilarious. It was this awkward way of meandering around his point that was really just the worst analogy possible.
I was so surprised by Skylar’s frank approach. “What’s one more?” That’s where Walt’s true feelings came out. He really doesn’t want to kill Jesse. He really cares about him. He still doesn’t believe Jesse would want to hurt him. He’s being delusional about the situation.
Skylar seems immune to all the bad that’s going on. Or in denial. As long as her family is safe. So much so, she doesn’t even react to Walt saying Jesse was mad at him for something Walt did.
Even though she knows it’s something that has to be serious. It’s not Walt saying, “Oh, he’s mad because I forgot to call him back. … Oh, I forgot to pay him for the last cook.” It’s more like, “Oh, there was a death. … We had to take a different route with the business and took out this gang.” There are no small misunderstandings at this point.
Which reminds me of the darkness that was so prevalent throughout the show. Whether it was dark clothes worn by the characters, or everything and everyone being cast in shadows. It’s like they are warning us about the darkness that is coming. Or how everyone is under a dark cloud.
I wrote a note about this as well. Last episode it was there, too. There was a scene where Walt came into the car wash to talk to Skylar. She was dressed in a creamish, white color and sitting in the light. But you could barely see Walt in the shadows as he was talking to her.
And now, even Marie switched from her purple clothes to black attire. And Jesse takes black coffee. Walt and the questionable dad waiting for his daughter at the end were both dressed in black.
Except Marie’s purple luggage. It’s crazy. Her obsession with purple.
But man, she has gone off the deep end. Rambling to her psychiatrist about killing, poisoning Walt. She’s got this hell-bent approach about death and it’s weird to see her like that. She’s always been the calm, light-hearted supportive person. She’s all about death now.
If she weren’t so aggressive and always pushing, Hank would have given up on the case by now. Especially after seeing Walt’s video.
To catch us up on what happened with Jesse and the gas, we get a flash back that shows Hank stopped him from doing it. Were you surprised Jesse was ready and willing to burn down Walt’s house if Hank didn’t stop him?
It was kind of odd. Of all the people I figured would possibly stop Jesse, I didn’t think it would be Hank coming though that door. I thought maybe Saul, Walt Junior, or even a mailman or neighbor.
How bad do you feel for Junior now? He gets manipulated by his dad once again.
I think Junior is going to play some kind of important role at the end. Either with Walt getting caught or Walt having to get back into the business. Because they keep bringing Junior in at these random points in time. Walt just keeps manipulating him and maybe he’ll use that to get Junior to help him down the road. Either that or Junior will turn on him for taking advantage of that trust so much.
What did you think about the Jesse confession scene?
He said enough where it could place Walt as the key guy behind everything. But they also said there isn’t enough evidence.
I also thought it was interesting how Jesse is scared to meet with Walt, but Hank realizes that Walt really does care about Jesse and won’t hurt him. Jesse is in complete denial about that, but I think it’s true. Walt has always cared about him and protected him. Even while he’s also ruined a lot of things around Jesse’s life.
But just when you think Hank might actually care about Jesse too, as soon as Jesse leaves the room, he tells Gomez how he doesn’t care about this junkie and whether he dies. Hank doesn’t care about Jesse whatsoever.
We’ve talked the last few episodes about how desperate Hank has been. But now, he’s got his swagger back a bit. He’s throwing out racial jokes at Gomey like the old days with the Pancho Villa/Salma Hayek line.
Yeah, he’s kind of got his mojo back. But it’s also poor thinking on his part to put everything into Jesse and expect things to work out great. Jesse’s a loose canon. He’s been depressed, pissed, crying, trying to burn a house down. He’s all over the place.
So what are you thinking near the end as Jesse is walking up to talk with Walt?
I expected him to go through with it and talk to Walt. But if he would have sat down to speak with him, I was thinking he probably would have taken the wire off at some point. I felt that they were actually going to get a chance to hash things out.
But when he saw that guy, he got paranoid. And he flipped. Telling Walt on the phone, “I’m going to get you where you live.” Which I think means he’s going to try to go after Walt’s family. Family is what gets Walt’s entire attention. It’s not the same as going after Walt’s money or his business operation.
If Jesse does go after Walt Junior or Skylar, it’s going to be a slippery slope that is not going to end well.
But what do you think Jesse meant when he told Hank, “There’s a better way” and smiles a little?
I don’t think Jesse’s plan includes Hank necessarily. It will be interesting to see what Jesse’s next move is and how Hank feels about it, because Jesse has this crazed look in his eyes. He’s not even concerned about the DEA or doing anything proper and right.
The show ends after Walt calls Todd to tell him he has another job for his uncle. Do you think that’s it – Walt has finally given up on Jesse?
A lot of people probably think that hit is for Jesse. I think that hit is for Hank, actually. I really don’t think Walt would put a hit out on Jesse. Walt is a smart guy and is always thinking several steps ahead. He knows that Jesse doesn’t usually operate the way he did when he made that call. He’s probably already figured out there was more behind that.
Any other predictions for Sunday’s new episode?
I think Skylar is going to take a more proactive role. I’m wondering when she is going to finally have enough of Walt – finally step up and make something happen.
The first three episodes had a lot of fire. This last one was setting the stage for things to come. Now, somebody else has to come out and make a play, and I think it’s going to be Skylar.