WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.160 Hello and welcome back to The Deep Dive. Today 00:00:02.160 --> 00:00:04.559 we are turning our attention to a really pivotal 00:00:04.559 --> 00:00:08.080 moment in television history. We are cracking 00:00:08.080 --> 00:00:10.380 open the files on Breaking Bad, specifically 00:00:10.380 --> 00:00:13.080 looking at season three, episode five. Right, 00:00:13.220 --> 00:00:16.839 it's an episode titled Mas. Mas, which is, it's 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:19.000 just a simple word, right? One syllable, Spanish 00:00:19.000 --> 00:00:21.460 for more. But I mean, in the context of this 00:00:21.460 --> 00:00:24.199 specific point in Breaking Bad... that single 00:00:24.199 --> 00:00:26.820 syllable is doing an incredible amount of heavy 00:00:26.820 --> 00:00:28.879 lifting. It's not just about quantity. It's about 00:00:28.879 --> 00:00:31.780 appetite. It is about this point of no return 00:00:31.780 --> 00:00:34.960 where the concept of enough is no longer something 00:00:34.960 --> 00:00:37.060 that exists for these characters. Yeah, that 00:00:37.060 --> 00:00:39.179 is exactly where we are heading today. We're 00:00:39.179 --> 00:00:42.000 cracking open the files on Moz. Yeah. And to 00:00:42.000 --> 00:00:44.240 guide us through this deep dive, we have a stack 00:00:44.240 --> 00:00:47.359 of materials that is honestly, it's a bit intimidating. 00:00:47.460 --> 00:00:49.439 It really is. We've got the original production 00:00:49.439 --> 00:00:51.240 notes. We have critical reviews from back when 00:00:51.240 --> 00:00:53.679 the episode actually aired in 2010 to see how 00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:56.000 the world reacted in real time. And we also had 00:00:56.000 --> 00:00:58.539 some really deep academic essays, specifically 00:00:58.539 --> 00:01:01.380 looking at the psychology of fatherhood and the 00:01:01.380 --> 00:01:03.780 symbolism of violence within the show. It's such 00:01:03.780 --> 00:01:06.569 a pivotal moment. in the series, if you zoom 00:01:06.569 --> 00:01:08.549 out and look at the whole architecture of Breaking 00:01:08.549 --> 00:01:11.390 Bad, this episode is the structural beam that 00:01:11.390 --> 00:01:13.730 supports the rest of the show. This is the exact 00:01:13.730 --> 00:01:16.790 moment the mom -and -pop drug operation fully 00:01:16.790 --> 00:01:19.849 dies and the multinational conglomerate takes 00:01:19.849 --> 00:01:21.950 over. Right, the corporate takeover. Exactly. 00:01:22.549 --> 00:01:25.670 And with that takeover comes this massive demand 00:01:25.670 --> 00:01:31.019 for more. More risk. More lies. More money. and 00:01:31.019 --> 00:01:33.459 crucially more justification for the terrible 00:01:33.459 --> 00:01:36.000 sins they are committing. So our mission today 00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:39.359 for you listening is to figure out why this specific 00:01:39.359 --> 00:01:42.159 hour of television is cited by so many critics 00:01:42.159 --> 00:01:45.030 as the ultimate turning point. We are going to 00:01:45.030 --> 00:01:47.189 dissect the reveal of the super lab, which is 00:01:47.189 --> 00:01:49.329 just a visual feast. We're going to break down 00:01:49.329 --> 00:01:51.549 what I consider to be the most dangerous monologue 00:01:51.549 --> 00:01:53.390 Gus Fring ever delivers. And we're going to look 00:01:53.390 --> 00:01:55.989 at a flashback that completely recontextualizes 00:01:55.989 --> 00:01:58.170 the entire history of the show up to this point. 00:01:58.269 --> 00:01:59.790 And we definitely have to talk about The Rock. 00:01:59.950 --> 00:02:01.329 Oh, we absolutely have to talk about The Rock. 00:02:01.549 --> 00:02:03.730 But let's not get ahead of ourselves here. Let's 00:02:03.730 --> 00:02:05.530 start right where the episode starts. The cold 00:02:05.530 --> 00:02:08.289 open. The flashback sequence. Right. The show 00:02:08.289 --> 00:02:10.330 drops us into a scene that honestly just feels 00:02:10.330 --> 00:02:12.750 wrong immediately. The lighting is different. 00:02:12.810 --> 00:02:15.159 The energy is... entirely different. We are looking 00:02:15.159 --> 00:02:18.020 at the actual origin story of the crystal ship, 00:02:18.520 --> 00:02:21.199 the RV. It's a really brilliant narrative device 00:02:21.199 --> 00:02:23.699 that television sometimes uses to measure distance. 00:02:24.099 --> 00:02:26.240 It asks you, the viewer, do you remember who 00:02:26.240 --> 00:02:29.120 these people used to be? Because the show takes 00:02:29.120 --> 00:02:31.139 us all the way back to the days right before 00:02:31.139 --> 00:02:34.080 the pilot. Walt has just given Jesse his entire 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:38.699 life savings, $7 ,000 to buy an RV. Which knowing 00:02:38.699 --> 00:02:41.530 what we know now is such a ludicrously high -risk 00:02:41.530 --> 00:02:44.990 move. You have Walter White, this buttoned -up, 00:02:45.289 --> 00:02:47.729 high -strung chemistry teacher, handing a literal 00:02:47.729 --> 00:02:50.490 stack of cash to a former student who is, by 00:02:50.490 --> 00:02:52.509 all accounts, a total burnout. Yeah, calling 00:02:52.509 --> 00:02:54.389 him a burnout is probably putting it kindly at 00:02:54.389 --> 00:02:57.669 that stage. And the flashback shows us the immediate 00:02:57.669 --> 00:02:59.870 consequence of that wild decision. Jesse doesn't 00:02:59.870 --> 00:03:02.110 go to a dealership. He doesn't check the classifieds 00:03:02.110 --> 00:03:04.229 in the paper. He takes Walt's retirement money 00:03:04.229 --> 00:03:06.629 and he goes straight to a strip club. It is so 00:03:06.629 --> 00:03:10.169 painful to watch. He is there. with Skinny Pete 00:03:10.169 --> 00:03:12.530 and Combo Ortega. They're popping bottles or 00:03:12.530 --> 00:03:14.650 throwing cash in the air. It's a massive celebration. 00:03:15.090 --> 00:03:16.389 But as you're sitting there watching, you're 00:03:16.389 --> 00:03:19.349 just thinking, that is the nest egg. That is 00:03:19.349 --> 00:03:21.830 the chemo money literally flying through the 00:03:21.830 --> 00:03:24.370 air in a dark club. It really highlights the 00:03:24.370 --> 00:03:26.530 fundamental disconnect between Walt and Jesse 00:03:26.530 --> 00:03:29.289 at this early stage because to Walt, this is 00:03:29.289 --> 00:03:31.870 a desperate life or death investment, but to 00:03:31.870 --> 00:03:34.050 Jesse, it's a windfall. It's just party time. 00:03:34.189 --> 00:03:35.990 Right. And then comes the morning after, the 00:03:35.990 --> 00:03:38.110 inevitable hangover. And the silence of that 00:03:38.110 --> 00:03:40.849 morning is just deafening. Jesse wakes up, the 00:03:40.849 --> 00:03:42.849 adrenaline is completely gone, and the harsh 00:03:42.849 --> 00:03:45.569 reality sets in. He actually counts the money. 00:03:45.919 --> 00:03:49.860 And how much is left? $1 ,400. He blew over $5 00:03:49.860 --> 00:03:54.219 ,000 in one single night. $1 ,400. I mean, you 00:03:54.219 --> 00:03:56.860 cannot buy a recreational vehicle for $1 ,400. 00:03:57.259 --> 00:03:59.620 You can barely buy a used scooter for that kind 00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:02.400 of money. Precisely. And this is exactly where 00:04:02.400 --> 00:04:04.800 the character of Combo becomes so crucial to 00:04:04.800 --> 00:04:08.139 everything. We often think of Combo just as one 00:04:08.139 --> 00:04:11.900 of Jesse's friends, but this scene completely 00:04:11.900 --> 00:04:13.780 cements his importance to the lore of the show. 00:04:13.979 --> 00:04:17.420 He sees that Jesse is in a massive bind. Jesse 00:04:17.420 --> 00:04:19.620 is panicking because he knows Waltz is probably 00:04:19.620 --> 00:04:21.160 going to kill him if he doesn't show up with 00:04:21.160 --> 00:04:24.399 an RV. So Combo just offers a solution. He says, 00:04:24.500 --> 00:04:27.639 I can get you an RV. His mom's RV. It's completely 00:04:27.639 --> 00:04:30.779 absurd. He sells his own mother's RV to Jesse 00:04:30.779 --> 00:04:33.839 for exactly the $1400 Jesse happened to have 00:04:33.839 --> 00:04:35.970 left in his pocket. It's a total bailout. It 00:04:35.970 --> 00:04:37.709 wasn't some calculated business acquisition. 00:04:37.930 --> 00:04:40.189 The iconic crystal ship, the vessel that literally 00:04:40.189 --> 00:04:42.649 launched a drug empire, was acquired simply because 00:04:42.649 --> 00:04:44.829 a kid got way too drunk at a strip club and needed 00:04:44.829 --> 00:04:47.089 to cover his tracks before his angry high school 00:04:47.089 --> 00:04:49.870 teacher found out. But you have to ask why. Show 00:04:49.870 --> 00:04:52.389 us this right now. We're deep into season three. 00:04:52.529 --> 00:04:55.870 The RV is actually about to be destroyed. Why 00:04:55.870 --> 00:04:58.170 do we need to see this highly specific origin 00:04:58.170 --> 00:05:01.370 story right at this exact moment in the narrative? 00:05:01.889 --> 00:05:04.910 Contrast. It is all about contrast. Think about 00:05:04.910 --> 00:05:06.990 exactly where we are heading later in this very 00:05:06.990 --> 00:05:10.089 episode. We are about to see the super lab. We 00:05:10.089 --> 00:05:13.470 are about to see the absolute pinnacle of industrial 00:05:13.470 --> 00:05:17.000 perfection. The writers really want you to feel 00:05:17.000 --> 00:05:19.579 the grit and the total incompetence of the early 00:05:19.579 --> 00:05:22.699 days so that the sleekness of the super lab feels 00:05:22.699 --> 00:05:24.860 even more seductive when we finally get there. 00:05:25.060 --> 00:05:27.220 It's amateur hour versus the big leagues. Exactly 00:05:27.220 --> 00:05:30.319 that. The flashback represents the chaotic, low 00:05:30.319 --> 00:05:32.699 rent, emotional incompetence of the early Walt 00:05:32.699 --> 00:05:35.019 and Jesse partnership. It's incredibly messy. 00:05:35.259 --> 00:05:37.800 It relies entirely on friends doing favors. It 00:05:37.800 --> 00:05:40.519 relies on literal theft from parents. Whereas 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:43.639 Gus Fring relies on systems. Right. And looking 00:05:43.639 --> 00:05:45.360 at... us through the lens of the actual production 00:05:45.360 --> 00:05:47.240 notes we have. They specifically wanted to highlight 00:05:47.240 --> 00:05:49.300 Jesse's innocence here. He is not a killer yet 00:05:49.300 --> 00:05:51.699 in this flashback. He's just a dumb kid making 00:05:51.699 --> 00:05:54.560 really bad choices. And seeing that makes his 00:05:54.560 --> 00:05:56.759 current situation in season three, where he's 00:05:56.759 --> 00:05:58.779 isolated and grieving and trapped in a cartel 00:05:58.779 --> 00:06:01.500 war, feel so much more tragic. It really does. 00:06:02.040 --> 00:06:04.319 You see the ghost of the kid he used to be. Okay, 00:06:04.339 --> 00:06:06.540 so we snap back to the present timeline. The 00:06:06.540 --> 00:06:09.199 amateur hour is completely over. Walt is currently 00:06:09.199 --> 00:06:11.720 retired. He's totally out of the game. He has 00:06:11.720 --> 00:06:15.000 turned down Gus Fring's massive offer. But Gus 00:06:15.000 --> 00:06:17.160 isn't exactly the type of guy who just accepts 00:06:17.160 --> 00:06:19.939 a resignation letter. No, he's not. But Gus is 00:06:19.939 --> 00:06:22.160 also not a brute. And this is what makes him 00:06:22.160 --> 00:06:25.120 such a phenomenally compelling antagonist. He 00:06:25.120 --> 00:06:26.980 doesn't threaten Walt with physical violence. 00:06:27.079 --> 00:06:29.459 He doesn't put a gun to his head. He uses pure 00:06:29.459 --> 00:06:32.399 psychology. We see this perfectly at Los Palos 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:35.269 Hermanos. Walt just storms in. He is furious 00:06:35.269 --> 00:06:37.790 because he figured out that Gus paid Jesse half 00:06:37.790 --> 00:06:39.670 the money for the previous batch of product. 00:06:40.329 --> 00:06:42.810 Walt sees this as a blatant manipulation. And 00:06:42.810 --> 00:06:44.949 the thing is, he's right. It is a manipulation. 00:06:45.089 --> 00:06:47.810 Walt confronts Gus basically saying, I know exactly 00:06:47.810 --> 00:06:49.769 what you're doing. You're trying to lure me back 00:06:49.769 --> 00:06:52.310 into the business by making me jealous of Jesse 00:06:52.310 --> 00:06:54.629 or by appealing to my own ego. And Des doesn't 00:06:54.629 --> 00:06:58.009 even deny it. He just calmly apologizes. He completely 00:06:58.009 --> 00:07:00.920 disarms Walt in an instant. It's a total masterclass 00:07:00.920 --> 00:07:03.379 in negotiation. When someone comes at you with 00:07:03.379 --> 00:07:06.120 really hot anger, you meet them with completely 00:07:06.120 --> 00:07:09.579 cool logic. Gus actually apologizes for the transparency 00:07:09.579 --> 00:07:12.379 of the ploy, and then he seamlessly pivots. He 00:07:12.379 --> 00:07:15.120 just asks for a ride. Take a ride with me. And 00:07:15.120 --> 00:07:17.579 this seemingly innocent ride takes us straight 00:07:17.579 --> 00:07:20.160 to the industrial laundry facility. Lavandaria 00:07:20.160 --> 00:07:22.620 Bidonte. Right. On the outside, it looks like 00:07:22.620 --> 00:07:25.879 a generic industrial laundry. It's loud, it's 00:07:25.879 --> 00:07:28.519 steamy, it's full of workers just washing sheets. 00:07:28.800 --> 00:07:32.779 But then, Gus leads Walt downstairs. He pushes 00:07:32.779 --> 00:07:35.120 a hidden mechanism on one of the massive washing 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:38.079 machines and a secret door just glides open. 00:07:38.420 --> 00:07:41.639 This is the exact moment the entire visual language 00:07:41.639 --> 00:07:43.860 of the show changes forever. They walk right 00:07:43.860 --> 00:07:45.959 into the super lab. Try to describe it for the 00:07:45.959 --> 00:07:47.560 listener who maybe hasn't seen the episode in 00:07:47.560 --> 00:07:49.920 a while because this is a very far cry from the 00:07:49.920 --> 00:07:53.110 cramped sweaty RV out in the desert. It is essentially 00:07:53.110 --> 00:07:56.250 a cathedral of chemistry. It is gleaming stainless 00:07:56.250 --> 00:07:59.550 steel everywhere. It's massive. They have state 00:07:59.550 --> 00:08:02.550 -of -the -art filtration systems, enormous reaction 00:08:02.550 --> 00:08:05.329 vessels, perfectly calibrated piping, and the 00:08:05.329 --> 00:08:07.490 lighting shifts dramatically from that harsh 00:08:07.490 --> 00:08:09.389 yellow of the Albuquerque desert that we're so 00:08:09.389 --> 00:08:12.509 used to to this very cool clinical sterile blue 00:08:12.509 --> 00:08:14.449 and silver. And you can just see the physical 00:08:14.449 --> 00:08:17.670 reaction on Walt's face. He is completely starstruck. 00:08:18.029 --> 00:08:20.730 Yeah. Gus knows his target so well. He knows 00:08:20.730 --> 00:08:23.300 Walt is a man who feels deeply underappreciated 00:08:23.300 --> 00:08:25.800 in his life. He knows Walt truly believes he 00:08:25.800 --> 00:08:29.420 is a genius surrounded by absolute idiots. So 00:08:29.420 --> 00:08:31.579 Gus simply presents him with a workspace that 00:08:31.579 --> 00:08:34.480 implicitly says, I see your genius and I have 00:08:34.480 --> 00:08:37.059 built a temple entirely worthy of it. It's pure 00:08:37.059 --> 00:08:40.620 validation. The RV was honestly an insult to 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:43.259 Walt's actual talent. The super lab is a massive 00:08:43.259 --> 00:08:45.179 high budget tribute to it. Exactly. You see Walt 00:08:45.179 --> 00:08:46.759 actually touching the equipment. He's checking 00:08:46.759 --> 00:08:48.799 the seals on the vats. He's like a master musician 00:08:48.799 --> 00:08:51.559 being handed a priceless Stradivarius violin. 00:08:52.100 --> 00:08:53.679 But and this is a really critical point. He still 00:08:53.679 --> 00:08:56.059 says no. He does. He manages to pull himself 00:08:56.059 --> 00:08:59.080 back from the brink. He tells Gus, I can't do 00:08:59.080 --> 00:09:02.059 this. I've lost my family. I made all these terrible 00:09:02.059 --> 00:09:04.440 decisions for them and now they hate me. If I 00:09:04.440 --> 00:09:07.289 keep doing it, I'm just a criminal. He's trying 00:09:07.289 --> 00:09:09.409 so hard to hold on to that moral high ground. 00:09:09.629 --> 00:09:12.169 He's clinging to the noble father narrative that 00:09:12.169 --> 00:09:14.950 he built for himself. He tells Gus that without 00:09:14.950 --> 00:09:17.830 his family, he has zero justification for cooking 00:09:17.830 --> 00:09:20.889 meth. And this is exactly where Gus Fring delivers 00:09:20.889 --> 00:09:23.570 the psychological checkmate. The speech that 00:09:23.570 --> 00:09:26.389 this entire episode is truly famous for. A man 00:09:26.389 --> 00:09:28.529 provides. Let's really break this speech down 00:09:28.529 --> 00:09:31.129 because the sources we have, specifically the 00:09:31.129 --> 00:09:33.289 academic essay by Susan Johnson on the failure 00:09:33.289 --> 00:09:36.190 of fatherhood, point to this exact moment. as 00:09:36.190 --> 00:09:38.509 the point where Walt's soul truly just leaves 00:09:38.509 --> 00:09:40.889 the building. It is a lethal piece of rhetoric. 00:09:41.350 --> 00:09:42.970 Gus looks at Walt and says, essentially, what 00:09:42.970 --> 00:09:45.350 does a man do, Walker? Yeah. A man provides. 00:09:45.429 --> 00:09:48.269 And then he completely dismantles the idea of 00:09:48.269 --> 00:09:50.570 appreciation. He says, and he does it even when 00:09:50.570 --> 00:09:53.110 he is not appreciated or respected or even loved. 00:09:53.190 --> 00:09:55.690 That specific line chills me every single time 00:09:55.690 --> 00:09:58.110 I hear it, even when he is not loved. Because 00:09:58.110 --> 00:10:00.769 he is directly reframing the painful rejection 00:10:00.769 --> 00:10:03.009 Walt is currently feeling from Skyler and Walter 00:10:03.009 --> 00:10:06.720 Jr. Gus is telling him, that their hatred doesn't 00:10:06.720 --> 00:10:09.179 actually matter. In fact, bearing their hatred 00:10:09.179 --> 00:10:12.399 makes you even more of a man. It turns Walt's 00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:15.320 current suffering into a heroic virtue. He is 00:10:15.320 --> 00:10:18.539 tapping into this very old school, deeply toxic 00:10:18.539 --> 00:10:22.320 idea of traditional masculinity, the stoic silent 00:10:22.320 --> 00:10:25.879 provider. The martyr who willingly carries the 00:10:25.879 --> 00:10:28.399 terrible burden so the family can survive, even 00:10:28.399 --> 00:10:30.519 if the family completely despises him for doing 00:10:30.519 --> 00:10:33.279 it. Precisely. He completely removes the requirement 00:10:33.279 --> 00:10:35.919 for any sort of emotional connection. He tells 00:10:35.919 --> 00:10:38.440 Walt that being a father isn't about being present 00:10:38.440 --> 00:10:41.080 or kind or being a good role model. It is purely 00:10:41.080 --> 00:10:43.460 an economic function. A man provides. If you 00:10:43.460 --> 00:10:45.320 provide, you are a man. If you don't, you are 00:10:45.320 --> 00:10:47.580 nothing. And for Walt, who is currently feeling 00:10:47.580 --> 00:10:49.480 like absolute nothing because his wife has kicked 00:10:49.480 --> 00:10:51.860 him out of the house, this is exactly what he 00:10:51.860 --> 00:10:54.330 desperately needs to do. It is a tailor -made 00:10:54.330 --> 00:10:57.029 permission structure. It is a brilliant trap. 00:10:57.409 --> 00:10:59.490 Gus is essentially saying you don't need their 00:10:59.490 --> 00:11:01.950 permission to be their savior. He completely 00:11:01.950 --> 00:11:05.389 weaponizes Walt's massive ego, what desperately 00:11:05.389 --> 00:11:08.009 needs to feel important. Gus tells him he is 00:11:08.009 --> 00:11:09.809 the most important thing in their lives, whether 00:11:09.809 --> 00:11:11.610 they are smart enough to know it or not. And 00:11:11.610 --> 00:11:14.679 it works beautifully. You can literally see the 00:11:14.679 --> 00:11:17.200 gears turning in Walt's head. He realizes he 00:11:17.200 --> 00:11:19.539 can have his cake and eat it, too. He can be 00:11:19.539 --> 00:11:23.000 the great, untouchable criminal mastermind, and 00:11:23.000 --> 00:11:24.899 he can still tell himself he's a good father. 00:11:25.139 --> 00:11:27.399 Which, as Susan Johnston argues in her essay, 00:11:27.580 --> 00:11:30.240 is the ultimate tragedy of the character. By 00:11:30.240 --> 00:11:32.740 accepting this incredibly narrow definition of 00:11:32.740 --> 00:11:36.100 what a provider is, he fails completely as an 00:11:36.100 --> 00:11:38.659 actual father. He chooses the money over the 00:11:38.659 --> 00:11:40.700 actual people. And I really want to pause on 00:11:40.700 --> 00:11:43.279 that for a second because it is such a psychological 00:11:43.279 --> 00:11:45.919 pivot for the show. Up until this point, Walt 00:11:45.919 --> 00:11:48.600 has been operating under the deep delusion that 00:11:48.600 --> 00:11:50.779 if he just explains everything well enough eventually, 00:11:50.879 --> 00:11:52.659 or if he just makes a big enough pile of money, 00:11:53.100 --> 00:11:55.259 the family will eventually understand and forgive 00:11:55.259 --> 00:11:58.580 him. He genuinely thinks there is a happy reconciliation 00:11:58.580 --> 00:12:00.600 waiting at the end of the rainbow. Right. He 00:12:00.600 --> 00:12:02.639 thinks the terrible ends justify the horrific 00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:05.240 means, but he firmly believes that the ends involve 00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:08.139 a happy family eating breakfast together. Exactly. 00:12:08.490 --> 00:12:11.549 But Gus rips that fantasy away. Gus is telling 00:12:11.549 --> 00:12:13.370 him, forget the breakfast. The breakfast is gone 00:12:13.370 --> 00:12:15.909 forever. The love is gone forever. But you still 00:12:15.909 --> 00:12:19.990 have a very important job to do. It is incredibly 00:12:19.990 --> 00:12:23.210 bleak. But for a massive control freak like Walt, 00:12:23.830 --> 00:12:27.210 it is oddly comforting. It radically simplifies 00:12:27.210 --> 00:12:29.669 the equation for him. He no longer has to worry 00:12:29.669 --> 00:12:31.929 about the messy business of winning Skyler back. 00:12:32.330 --> 00:12:35.149 He just has to worry about the exact yield percentage 00:12:35.149 --> 00:12:38.159 of the meth cook. It brilliantly replaces emotional 00:12:38.159 --> 00:12:40.840 complexity with chemical complexity. And Walt 00:12:40.840 --> 00:12:42.879 is much, much better at chemistry than he is 00:12:42.879 --> 00:12:44.960 at handling human emotion. So he just retreats 00:12:44.960 --> 00:12:47.120 into the lab. He retreats into the work. Speaking 00:12:47.120 --> 00:12:48.860 of the people he is leaving behind out in the 00:12:48.860 --> 00:12:51.759 real world while Walt is getting seduced by gleaming 00:12:51.759 --> 00:12:54.759 stainless steel and toxic philosophy, his actual 00:12:54.759 --> 00:12:57.139 family is completely imploding. We have a segment 00:12:57.139 --> 00:12:59.039 here that we're calling the domestic collapse. 00:12:59.159 --> 00:13:01.039 And it gets really ugly. We have two separate 00:13:01.039 --> 00:13:03.399 threads unraveling simultaneously here, Hank 00:13:03.399 --> 00:13:05.899 and Skyler. Let's start with Hank, Hank Schrader. 00:13:05.980 --> 00:13:08.740 Usually he's the solid rock of the show, the 00:13:08.740 --> 00:13:11.340 loud, boisterous, tough guy who has everything 00:13:11.340 --> 00:13:14.720 figured out. But in Moss, he is absolutely spiraling. 00:13:14.899 --> 00:13:17.240 He is totally obsessed. He is hunting the RV, 00:13:17.440 --> 00:13:19.879 the rolling meth lab. He is essentially like 00:13:19.879 --> 00:13:22.240 Captain Ahab chasing the white whale out in the 00:13:22.240 --> 00:13:25.259 desert. But his investigation is completely stalling 00:13:25.259 --> 00:13:27.460 out. And right on top of that, he gets a massive 00:13:27.460 --> 00:13:29.840 emotional blow at work. Right. He finds out his 00:13:29.840 --> 00:13:31.600 partner, Steve Gomez, is getting transferred. 00:13:31.779 --> 00:13:34.169 He's going El Paso. And we really have to remember 00:13:34.169 --> 00:13:37.950 El Paso is a literal house of horrors for Hank. 00:13:38.330 --> 00:13:41.909 He has severe PTSD from his brief time down there. 00:13:42.230 --> 00:13:44.730 The tortoise scene, the massive explosion that 00:13:44.730 --> 00:13:46.710 trauma is still very, very fresh in his mind. 00:13:46.830 --> 00:13:48.809 Right. He is terrified of El Paso. To him, it 00:13:48.809 --> 00:13:50.730 represents a level of brutal chaos he simply 00:13:50.730 --> 00:13:53.149 cannot control. And now Gomi is going down there 00:13:53.149 --> 00:13:55.929 taking the exact promotion that Hank actively 00:13:55.929 --> 00:13:58.990 avoided. It triggers this really deep, profound 00:13:58.990 --> 00:14:02.090 insecurity. He is losing his anchor at the DEA. 00:14:02.090 --> 00:14:05.190 But instead of talking about his fear, he just 00:14:05.190 --> 00:14:07.610 lashes out at everyone around him. There is that 00:14:07.610 --> 00:14:10.549 really difficult scene with Marie. She is trying 00:14:10.549 --> 00:14:13.730 to be supportive in her own very intense purple 00:14:13.730 --> 00:14:17.389 -clad way, and Hank just aggressively shuts her 00:14:17.389 --> 00:14:20.129 down. Because he feels entirely isolated. He 00:14:20.129 --> 00:14:21.909 actually says something very telling during that 00:14:21.909 --> 00:14:24.230 fight. He says, I'm just doing my job and everyone 00:14:24.230 --> 00:14:26.909 is looking at me like I'm the problem. He's projecting 00:14:26.909 --> 00:14:29.710 his own internal feelings. He feels weak on the 00:14:29.710 --> 00:14:31.690 inside. So he doubles down on the Heisenberg 00:14:31.690 --> 00:14:34.509 case to outwardly prove he's still strong. It's 00:14:34.509 --> 00:14:37.250 incredibly tragic because Hank is actually the 00:14:37.250 --> 00:14:40.009 quote unquote good guy here. He's the only one 00:14:40.009 --> 00:14:42.149 actively trying to stop the flow of dangerous 00:14:42.149 --> 00:14:45.149 drugs into his community. But the narrative framing 00:14:45.149 --> 00:14:47.330 of the show completely puts him in this weird 00:14:47.330 --> 00:14:49.970 box of the antagonist. As viewers, we are naturally 00:14:49.970 --> 00:14:51.850 rooting for Walt to get away with it, so Hank's 00:14:51.850 --> 00:14:53.570 actual competence feels like a direct threat 00:14:53.570 --> 00:14:56.490 to us. That is the real genius of the show's 00:14:56.490 --> 00:14:59.970 perspective. Hank's genuine heroism looks exactly 00:14:59.970 --> 00:15:01.710 like villainy when you are viewing the world 00:15:01.710 --> 00:15:04.029 strictly through Walter White's eyes. And in 00:15:04.029 --> 00:15:06.690 this particular episode, Hank's growing isolation 00:15:06.690 --> 00:15:09.730 perfectly mirrors Walt's isolation. They are 00:15:09.730 --> 00:15:12.230 both stubborn men who feel completely misunderstood 00:15:12.230 --> 00:15:14.629 by their wives, and they are both driven by a 00:15:14.629 --> 00:15:16.539 twisted sense of duty that is actually actively 00:15:16.539 --> 00:15:20.120 destroying them. And then there is Skyler. Skyler 00:15:20.120 --> 00:15:23.100 is on a very different but equally destructive 00:15:23.100 --> 00:15:25.960 journey in this episode. Skyler is actively trying 00:15:25.960 --> 00:15:29.159 to find Moss in her own specific way. She's looking 00:15:29.159 --> 00:15:31.240 for more agency in her life. She is having an 00:15:31.240 --> 00:15:33.840 affair with her boss Ted Benaki. She's deliberately 00:15:33.840 --> 00:15:36.059 trying to hurt Walt, trying to assert some measure 00:15:36.059 --> 00:15:38.600 of control over a life that feels like it's completely 00:15:38.600 --> 00:15:40.580 spinning off its axis. The affair with Ted is 00:15:40.580 --> 00:15:42.990 so interesting to analyze because It's not really 00:15:42.990 --> 00:15:45.970 about love, is it? It feels highly performative. 00:15:46.190 --> 00:15:49.309 It is an act of pure rebellion. It's Skylar breaking 00:15:49.309 --> 00:15:52.830 bad. She has been the dutiful pregnant wife, 00:15:52.970 --> 00:15:56.049 the moral center of the family. And what did 00:15:56.049 --> 00:15:57.750 it get her? It got her nothing but a house full 00:15:57.750 --> 00:16:00.809 of lies. So she decides to just step off the 00:16:00.809 --> 00:16:02.669 moral pedestal. But then she has a conversation 00:16:02.669 --> 00:16:06.049 with your sister, Marie, that changes everything. 00:16:06.429 --> 00:16:09.490 Marie is venting about Hank, about how... dark 00:16:09.490 --> 00:16:12.110 and totally moody he's become lately. And she 00:16:12.110 --> 00:16:14.850 drops this one specific line. She says, death 00:16:14.850 --> 00:16:17.269 changes people. Death changes people. Marie is 00:16:17.269 --> 00:16:20.029 obviously talking about Hank facing extreme cartel 00:16:20.029 --> 00:16:22.429 violence on the border. But Skylar hears it and 00:16:22.429 --> 00:16:24.570 immediately thinks about Walt. She thinks of 00:16:24.570 --> 00:16:26.789 his terminal cancer diagnosis. She thinks about 00:16:26.789 --> 00:16:28.610 the completely different man he has suddenly 00:16:28.610 --> 00:16:30.690 become. And you can see something click in her 00:16:30.690 --> 00:16:32.309 mind. She goes home and she actually looks at 00:16:32.309 --> 00:16:35.590 the money. famous heavy duffel bag full of cash. 00:16:35.950 --> 00:16:37.970 She unzips it, and for the very first time she 00:16:37.970 --> 00:16:40.250 doesn't look at it with pure moral revulsion. 00:16:40.690 --> 00:16:43.289 She looks at it with genuine curiosity. She starts 00:16:43.289 --> 00:16:46.129 to actually weigh the cost. She's standing there 00:16:46.129 --> 00:16:48.350 doing the cold math in her head. She's thinking, 00:16:48.509 --> 00:16:51.090 okay, my husband is a lying monster, but this 00:16:51.090 --> 00:16:54.840 bag... This bag actually contains security. It 00:16:54.840 --> 00:16:57.820 contains Walter Jr.'s college tuition. It contains 00:16:57.820 --> 00:17:00.500 a viable future for her infant daughter. So what 00:17:00.500 --> 00:17:03.139 does she do? She goes to her lawyer. And I really 00:17:03.139 --> 00:17:05.279 love this scene because the divorce lawyer is 00:17:05.279 --> 00:17:07.579 arguably the only person in the entire series 00:17:07.579 --> 00:17:10.779 who seems to be living in the actual real world. 00:17:11.299 --> 00:17:13.900 Everyone else is in this crazy, heightened, dramatic 00:17:13.900 --> 00:17:16.880 reality, but the lawyer is just completely practical. 00:17:17.200 --> 00:17:20.160 The lawyer is the ultimate voice of sanity. Skyler 00:17:20.160 --> 00:17:22.519 sits down and confesses absolutely everything, 00:17:22.819 --> 00:17:25.799 the affair, the meth cooking, the giant bag of 00:17:25.799 --> 00:17:28.359 undocumented cash. She lays it all out on the 00:17:28.359 --> 00:17:30.500 payable. And what is the lawyer's immediate response? 00:17:30.640 --> 00:17:33.099 She says leave now. She looks Skylar dead in 00:17:33.099 --> 00:17:34.880 the eye and says you are a stark raving fool 00:17:34.880 --> 00:17:36.380 if you stay in that house for another minute. 00:17:36.759 --> 00:17:38.819 She breaks down the stark legal reality of the 00:17:38.819 --> 00:17:41.259 situation. Skylar is now officially an accessory 00:17:41.259 --> 00:17:43.660 after the fact. If she spends a single penny 00:17:43.660 --> 00:17:46.039 of that drug money, she is a felon who could 00:17:46.039 --> 00:17:49.059 go to federal prison. It is a massive bucket 00:17:49.059 --> 00:17:52.460 of cold water to the face. The lawyer is basically 00:17:52.460 --> 00:17:55.339 saying you lose the house fine. You lose your 00:17:55.339 --> 00:17:57.920 actual freedom that is infinitely worse. But 00:17:57.920 --> 00:18:01.619 Skylar hesitates. That is the key moment. She 00:18:01.619 --> 00:18:04.559 hesitates. Why does she hesitate? That is the 00:18:04.559 --> 00:18:06.480 fundamental question the show is asking us to 00:18:06.480 --> 00:18:09.920 ponder right there. Is it the pure allure of 00:18:09.920 --> 00:18:12.640 the money? Is it the fear of completely blowing 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:15.930 up the family unit for her teenage son? Or is 00:18:15.930 --> 00:18:18.230 it that on some deep subconscious level, she 00:18:18.230 --> 00:18:20.809 actually enjoys the thrill of the secret? She 00:18:20.809 --> 00:18:23.410 goes back home, maybe ready to negotiate a new 00:18:23.410 --> 00:18:25.930 deal with Walt, maybe ready to find some twisted 00:18:25.930 --> 00:18:27.910 middle ground. I think there's also a huge element 00:18:27.910 --> 00:18:30.089 of complexity regarding her own identity. Yeah. 00:18:30.130 --> 00:18:31.630 Because if she leaves right now, she's just a 00:18:31.630 --> 00:18:33.970 tragic victim. If she stays in, maybe she can 00:18:33.970 --> 00:18:35.789 actually be a player. Maybe she can have some 00:18:35.789 --> 00:18:37.910 real control over the Empire. That is a very, 00:18:37.970 --> 00:18:39.890 very dangerous game to play, as we will obviously 00:18:39.890 --> 00:18:42.089 see in later seasons. But in this exact moment, 00:18:42.130 --> 00:18:43.990 she returns to the house, perhaps completely 00:18:43.990 --> 00:18:46.450 ready to confront - Walt with a brand new proposition. 00:18:46.630 --> 00:18:49.170 But she's to it. She walks in the door and the 00:18:49.170 --> 00:18:52.410 house is completely empty. Walt is gone. He has 00:18:52.410 --> 00:18:54.670 packed all his bags. And he has signed the divorce 00:18:54.670 --> 00:18:58.150 papers. It is such a brutal piece of irony. Just 00:18:58.150 --> 00:19:01.289 as she was possibly opening the door to a reconciliation, 00:19:01.930 --> 00:19:04.109 Walt just slammed it completely shut. He has 00:19:04.109 --> 00:19:07.059 chosen Superlab. He has chosen Gus Fring. He 00:19:07.059 --> 00:19:09.259 has effectively completely abandoned his actual 00:19:09.259 --> 00:19:12.160 family in order to quote unquote provide for 00:19:12.160 --> 00:19:15.960 them. It is the twisted toxic logic of Gus Fring 00:19:15.960 --> 00:19:18.319 coming perfectly full circle in real life. So 00:19:18.319 --> 00:19:20.920 Walt moves out. He moves into his own sterile 00:19:20.920 --> 00:19:24.279 little condo. He is a bachelor once again, but 00:19:24.279 --> 00:19:27.019 he is a very rich bachelor. And this leads us 00:19:27.019 --> 00:19:29.140 directly to the business side of things. The 00:19:29.140 --> 00:19:31.440 deal with Gus is officially done. Walt is back 00:19:31.440 --> 00:19:33.990 in the game. And he has to quickly tie up the 00:19:33.990 --> 00:19:36.710 loose ends, specifically the loose end named 00:19:36.710 --> 00:19:38.809 Jesse Pinkman. This meeting at Saul Goodman's 00:19:38.809 --> 00:19:41.230 office is honestly one of the absolute coldest 00:19:41.230 --> 00:19:43.650 scenes in the entire season. You have Walt, Jesse 00:19:43.650 --> 00:19:46.289 and Saul sitting there. Walt has a massive duffel 00:19:46.289 --> 00:19:48.930 bag of money. It's Jesse's half of the payout 00:19:48.930 --> 00:19:50.910 from the previous cook. Right. Remember, Gus 00:19:50.910 --> 00:19:53.869 originally paid Jesse that money to deliberately 00:19:53.869 --> 00:19:56.829 bait Walt into a reaction. Now Walt is handing 00:19:56.829 --> 00:19:59.650 that exact cash over, but he's absolutely not 00:19:59.650 --> 00:20:02.410 doing it as a partner. He is doing it as a cruel 00:20:02.410 --> 00:20:05.369 severance package. He is firing him point blank. 00:20:05.470 --> 00:20:08.369 It's worse than firing him. He is dismissing 00:20:08.369 --> 00:20:11.029 him from existence. Walt looks at Jesse and tells 00:20:11.029 --> 00:20:13.230 him this is the last money you will ever make 00:20:13.230 --> 00:20:15.789 in this business. He explicitly tells him you 00:20:15.789 --> 00:20:18.460 are absolutely nothing to Gus Fring. You were 00:20:18.460 --> 00:20:20.380 just a pathetic pawn that used to get to me. 00:20:20.759 --> 00:20:23.319 He strips Jesse of every ounce of his dignity. 00:20:23.700 --> 00:20:25.700 He tells him he's utterly worthless, that his 00:20:25.700 --> 00:20:27.900 chemistry talent is totally non -existent, and 00:20:27.900 --> 00:20:30.039 that he is incredibly lucky to be getting a single 00:20:30.039 --> 00:20:32.019 dime from this arrangement. Now think about that 00:20:32.019 --> 00:20:33.900 flashback we discussed at the very top of the 00:20:33.900 --> 00:20:36.599 hour. In that flashback, Walt actually trusted 00:20:36.599 --> 00:20:38.579 Jesse with his entire life savings. There was 00:20:38.579 --> 00:20:41.180 a real bond there, however deeply dysfunctional 00:20:41.180 --> 00:20:44.140 it was. Now Walt just looks at Jesse with pure 00:20:44.140 --> 00:20:47.019 unadulterated contempt. It's the sheer arrogance 00:20:47.019 --> 00:20:50.460 of the new Superlab Walt. Yeah. He truly believes 00:20:50.460 --> 00:20:53.279 he has ascended to a godly level where he no 00:20:53.279 --> 00:20:56.039 longer needs the little street rat. He has Gus 00:20:56.039 --> 00:20:59.059 Fring now. He has a massive professional infrastructure 00:20:59.059 --> 00:21:02.799 backing him. Jesse's just this embarrassing reminder 00:21:02.799 --> 00:21:05.960 from his messy past. And then comes the absolute 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:08.900 salt in the wound. Saul Goodman immediately switches 00:21:08.900 --> 00:21:11.400 sides. Saul. The guy who was supposed to be the 00:21:11.400 --> 00:21:13.829 dedicated neutral party guiding them both. Saul 00:21:13.829 --> 00:21:16.289 simply follows the power and the money. He sees 00:21:16.289 --> 00:21:18.609 that Walt has the mega contract with Gus Fring. 00:21:19.009 --> 00:21:21.509 He immediately pivots his entire focus to Walt 00:21:21.509 --> 00:21:24.190 eagerly discussing complex money laundering schemes 00:21:24.190 --> 00:21:26.910 for the millions Walt is about to rake in. He 00:21:26.910 --> 00:21:29.309 literally, physically turns his back on Jesse 00:21:29.309 --> 00:21:31.210 in the office. So Jesse is just standing there. 00:21:31.230 --> 00:21:32.970 He has a bag with a million and a half dollars 00:21:32.970 --> 00:21:36.289 in it. He is incredibly rich, but he is completely, 00:21:36.289 --> 00:21:39.380 deeply alone. Disrespected by his former mentor, 00:21:39.579 --> 00:21:42.440 used as bait by the kingpin, and completely ignored 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:44.920 by his own lawyer. And all that rage just finally 00:21:44.920 --> 00:21:47.119 boils over. Jesse storms out of the office. He's 00:21:47.119 --> 00:21:49.920 blind with fury. And this leads directly to the 00:21:49.920 --> 00:21:51.640 moment of shocking violence we mentioned earlier, 00:21:51.960 --> 00:21:54.839 the rock. He walks out, picks up a massive jagged 00:21:54.839 --> 00:21:57.539 chunk of concrete from the curb, and he just 00:21:57.539 --> 00:22:00.420 hurls it. Smash. right through the front windshield 00:22:00.420 --> 00:22:03.559 of Walt's car. That poor Pontiac Aztec. It really 00:22:03.559 --> 00:22:05.339 takes a massive beating throughout the run in 00:22:05.339 --> 00:22:07.680 this show. But let's actually look at the essay 00:22:07.680 --> 00:22:11.039 by Stephen Glass titled Better Than Human. Because 00:22:11.039 --> 00:22:14.039 he argues this act isn't just simple street vandalism. 00:22:14.079 --> 00:22:17.500 No, it's highly symbolic destruction. Glass suggests 00:22:17.500 --> 00:22:19.180 in his writing that the windshield physically 00:22:19.180 --> 00:22:21.779 represents the clear barrier Walt constantly 00:22:21.779 --> 00:22:24.559 puts up between himself and the messy real world. 00:22:24.920 --> 00:22:27.160 It represents his clear vision, his supposed 00:22:27.160 --> 00:22:30.720 foresight. Jesse, violent shattering it, is a 00:22:30.720 --> 00:22:32.700 massive statement. It's essentially him saying, 00:22:33.019 --> 00:22:35.440 I see you for who you really are. Exactly. It's 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:37.359 saying you think you're this untouchable corporate 00:22:37.359 --> 00:22:39.460 kingpin now, but you are incredibly fragile. 00:22:39.529 --> 00:22:42.930 It shatters Walt's massive pride. Walt desperately 00:22:42.930 --> 00:22:45.750 wants to be respected more than anything. Jesse's 00:22:45.750 --> 00:22:48.009 act visually prose that to the people who actually 00:22:48.009 --> 00:22:50.569 know him best, he isn't respected at all. He 00:22:50.569 --> 00:22:53.950 is deeply hated. It is a massive crack in the 00:22:53.950 --> 00:22:57.309 whole Heisenberg facade. Walt can have the gleaming 00:22:57.309 --> 00:23:00.390 super lab. He can have the millions of dollars, 00:23:00.390 --> 00:23:04.009 but he cannot have the love of his son. He cannot 00:23:04.009 --> 00:23:06.569 have the loyalty of his wife or the basic respect 00:23:06.569 --> 00:23:09.599 of his partner. And that reality clearly eats 00:23:09.599 --> 00:23:11.880 at him. You can see it on his face as he drives 00:23:11.880 --> 00:23:14.920 away in that shattered car. The wind is violently 00:23:14.920 --> 00:23:17.839 rushing in. The harsh noise of the outside world 00:23:17.839 --> 00:23:20.220 is fully invading his quiet, tightly controlled 00:23:20.220 --> 00:23:22.359 little bubble. He cannot escape the real world 00:23:22.359 --> 00:23:24.339 consequences of how poorly he treats people, 00:23:24.579 --> 00:23:26.079 no matter how much money he makes in the lab. 00:23:26.279 --> 00:23:28.559 It's just a fantastic visual metaphor. Yeah. 00:23:28.619 --> 00:23:31.420 He is actively driving a broken machine, just 00:23:31.420 --> 00:23:33.640 exactly like his life. Precisely. OK, so the 00:23:33.640 --> 00:23:35.839 board is completely reset now. Walt is safely 00:23:35.839 --> 00:23:38.319 in the lab. is alone in the house with the dark 00:23:38.319 --> 00:23:40.920 secret. Jessie is rich and incredibly angry. 00:23:41.500 --> 00:23:43.539 But we cannot forget the ticking clock running 00:23:43.539 --> 00:23:45.859 in the background, the police investigation. 00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:49.140 Right. Segment five here, the noose tightens. 00:23:49.579 --> 00:23:51.160 Hank Schrader really creates all the massive 00:23:51.160 --> 00:23:53.240 suspense in this part of the narrative. While 00:23:53.240 --> 00:23:54.900 everyone else is dealing with high philosophy 00:23:54.900 --> 00:23:57.180 and corporate drug deals, Hank is just doing 00:23:57.180 --> 00:24:00.019 gritty real world police work. Hank Schrader 00:24:00.019 --> 00:24:02.500 may be emotionally isolated. He may be losing 00:24:02.500 --> 00:24:05.799 his partner to El Paso, but he is still a damn 00:24:05.799 --> 00:24:08.500 good detective when he focuses. Really good old 00:24:08.500 --> 00:24:11.000 fashioned shoe leather detective work. We so 00:24:11.000 --> 00:24:12.940 often forget that because of his loud bluster, 00:24:13.839 --> 00:24:17.140 but he meticulously follows the tiny leads. And 00:24:17.140 --> 00:24:19.619 this specific lead brings him straight to Combo's 00:24:19.619 --> 00:24:22.660 mother. Now remind us why Combo's mom. Because 00:24:22.660 --> 00:24:25.740 the RV actually belonged to her legally. When 00:24:25.740 --> 00:24:28.519 Combo sold it to Jessie for that $1 ,400 in the 00:24:28.519 --> 00:24:30.859 opening flashback, obviously nobody filed a formal 00:24:30.859 --> 00:24:33.680 theft report. Hank does the deep digging, tracks 00:24:33.680 --> 00:24:35.819 down the state registration, and he pays her 00:24:35.819 --> 00:24:38.950 a visit. And this scene, it's very brief, but 00:24:38.950 --> 00:24:41.650 it is so deeply human. She is just a nice, grieving 00:24:41.650 --> 00:24:43.750 lady. She invites Hank right into her home. She 00:24:43.750 --> 00:24:46.269 has absolutely no idea her son was a street -level 00:24:46.269 --> 00:24:48.609 drug dealer who died in a brutal gang dispute. 00:24:48.890 --> 00:24:50.910 She just genuinely thinks he was a slightly troubled 00:24:50.910 --> 00:24:53.650 kid. It brilliantly grounds the story in stark 00:24:53.650 --> 00:24:57.049 reality once again. These minor characters combo 00:24:57.049 --> 00:24:59.470 Skinny Pete. They actually have families. They 00:24:59.470 --> 00:25:02.170 have mothers who deeply grieve for them. Hank 00:25:02.170 --> 00:25:04.759 treats her with incredible respect. which adds 00:25:04.759 --> 00:25:07.880 yet another complex layer to Hank. He can be 00:25:07.880 --> 00:25:10.000 an absolute brute in the interrogation room, 00:25:10.140 --> 00:25:12.819 but he can also be incredibly gentle and empathetic 00:25:12.819 --> 00:25:15.559 when the situation actually calls for it. And 00:25:15.559 --> 00:25:18.019 while he is standing there in her house, Hank 00:25:18.019 --> 00:25:21.759 politely asks to see Combo's old bedroom. He 00:25:21.759 --> 00:25:24.059 tells her he wants to look for any possible clues 00:25:24.059 --> 00:25:26.480 about who might have stolen the family RV. And 00:25:26.480 --> 00:25:28.720 that is exactly where he finds the smoking gun. 00:25:28.839 --> 00:25:30.960 What is in the room? It looks like a typical 00:25:30.960 --> 00:25:33.930 messy teenager's room. Posters clutter everywhere, 00:25:34.309 --> 00:25:36.710 but pin casually to the wall is a single photograph. 00:25:36.990 --> 00:25:39.210 And who exactly is in the photo? It is a picture 00:25:39.210 --> 00:25:41.170 of Combo, and standing right next to him with 00:25:41.170 --> 00:25:44.150 a giant grin on his face is Jesse Pickman. At 00:25:44.150 --> 00:25:46.109 the exact same strip club. The same strip club 00:25:46.109 --> 00:25:48.569 from the cold open flashback. The narrative loop 00:25:48.569 --> 00:25:51.799 closes so perfectly right there. That flashback 00:25:51.799 --> 00:25:54.240 at the start of the episode wasn't just fun character 00:25:54.240 --> 00:25:56.920 development or a trip down memory lane. It was 00:25:56.920 --> 00:25:59.140 deliberate evidence planting by the writers. 00:25:59.799 --> 00:26:02.640 That fun night of partying, that purely amateur 00:26:02.640 --> 00:26:06.160 hour moment, directly created the physical evidence 00:26:06.160 --> 00:26:09.220 that is now about to bring down the entire massive 00:26:09.220 --> 00:26:12.039 drug empire. Because now Hank has a direct tangible 00:26:12.039 --> 00:26:14.730 link. He officially knows Combo's family had 00:26:14.730 --> 00:26:17.789 the RV. He now knows for a fact Combo was best 00:26:17.789 --> 00:26:20.470 friends with Jesse Pinkman. Therefore, logically 00:26:20.470 --> 00:26:22.730 Jesse Pinkman must have the rolling meth lab. 00:26:22.950 --> 00:26:24.869 The crosshairs are now officially and firmly 00:26:24.869 --> 00:26:27.190 locked onto Jesse. His anonymity is completely 00:26:27.190 --> 00:26:30.089 gone. Up until this exact moment, Jesse has just 00:26:30.089 --> 00:26:32.589 been some random guy to Hank, maybe a low -level 00:26:32.589 --> 00:26:35.410 local dealer. Now he is officially person of 00:26:35.410 --> 00:26:37.250 interest number one in the massive blue meth 00:26:37.250 --> 00:26:40.349 case. It is just incredible writing. Absolutely 00:26:40.349 --> 00:26:42.190 nothing is wasted. The strip club mattered, the 00:26:42.190 --> 00:26:44.910 $1400 mattered, the fun night out completely 00:26:44.910 --> 00:26:47.410 mattered. It is the ultimate butterfly effect 00:26:47.410 --> 00:26:50.190 in storytelling. A really bad, chaotic decision 00:26:50.190 --> 00:26:52.750 made months ago is coming back to completely 00:26:52.750 --> 00:26:55.609 haunt them. And it brilliantly reinforces that 00:26:55.609 --> 00:26:58.029 core theme of consequences. You can try your 00:26:58.029 --> 00:27:00.390 hardest to bury the past, you can try to become 00:27:00.390 --> 00:27:03.950 a sleek corporate criminal, but the messy amateurish 00:27:03.950 --> 00:27:06.470 past is always right there waiting to be discovered 00:27:06.470 --> 00:27:09.049 in a cheap photograph on a teenager's bedroom. 00:27:09.069 --> 00:27:12.670 So that is the massive narrative arc of Moss. 00:27:13.190 --> 00:27:15.690 It is incredibly dense, it is emotionally heavy, 00:27:16.150 --> 00:27:18.450 but how was it actually received at the time? 00:27:18.589 --> 00:27:21.710 Did people watching in 2010 realize just how 00:27:21.710 --> 00:27:23.789 good this hour of television was? Oh, absolutely, 00:27:23.789 --> 00:27:25.710 they did. The critical reception at the time 00:27:25.710 --> 00:27:28.470 was glowing. Donna Bowman, who wrote for the 00:27:28.470 --> 00:27:30.930 A .V. Club, she's a fantastic recapper of the 00:27:30.930 --> 00:27:33.589 specific era of TV. She gave the episode a straight 00:27:33.589 --> 00:27:35.869 A. She officially called it a clever, touching 00:27:35.869 --> 00:27:38.109 and often jaw dropping turning point for the 00:27:38.109 --> 00:27:39.769 entire series. They're looking at the actual 00:27:39.769 --> 00:27:42.470 numbers. Viewership ticked up significantly. 00:27:42.529 --> 00:27:46.329 They hit 1 .61 million live viewers. Now, I know 00:27:46.329 --> 00:27:48.940 that sounds a bit small by today. massive streaming 00:27:48.940 --> 00:27:52.680 standards, but for AMC back in 2010, that was 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:55.640 real solid momentum. The word of mouth was rapidly 00:27:55.640 --> 00:27:58.660 spreading. People everywhere realized this specific 00:27:58.660 --> 00:28:01.660 season was accelerating towards something incredibly 00:28:01.660 --> 00:28:04.440 dark. And what about Seth Amitin over at IGN? 00:28:04.519 --> 00:28:07.980 He gave it a 9 .9 out of 10, basically a near 00:28:07.980 --> 00:28:10.960 perfect score. He noted that every single solitary 00:28:10.960 --> 00:28:13.380 element from the incredible acting to the precise 00:28:13.380 --> 00:28:15.880 cinematography was just firing on all cylinders. 00:28:16.099 --> 00:28:18.029 It is really hard to argue with that assessment. 00:28:18.490 --> 00:28:20.569 This episode balances the deep character drama 00:28:20.569 --> 00:28:23.430 with the complex plot mechanics just flawlessly. 00:28:23.829 --> 00:28:25.410 You have the high octane visual thrill of the 00:28:25.410 --> 00:28:27.569 super lab reveal, but you also get the quiet 00:28:27.569 --> 00:28:30.190 agonizing desperation of Skyler just talking 00:28:30.190 --> 00:28:32.859 to her divorce lawyer. It also brilliantly sets 00:28:32.859 --> 00:28:35.180 up the central unresolvable conflict for the 00:28:35.180 --> 00:28:37.720 rest of the entire series, the business versus 00:28:37.720 --> 00:28:40.900 the family. Walt truly thinks he has finally 00:28:40.900 --> 00:28:43.640 solved it by physically separating them. Gus 00:28:43.640 --> 00:28:46.079 has completely convinced him he can live in both 00:28:46.079 --> 00:28:49.000 worlds by separating them. But as we all know, 00:28:49.019 --> 00:28:51.460 and as the show repeatedly demonstrates, you 00:28:51.460 --> 00:28:54.059 simply cannot keep those two volatile worlds 00:28:54.059 --> 00:28:57.460 apart forever. They will collide. Which naturally 00:28:57.460 --> 00:28:59.039 brings us right back to the title of the episode 00:28:59.039 --> 00:29:02.059 again, Mazza. It is the ultimate tragedy of the 00:29:02.059 --> 00:29:03.980 human condition depicted in this show. They simply 00:29:03.980 --> 00:29:06.619 always want more. Walt wants more time and more 00:29:06.619 --> 00:29:09.519 money. Jesse wants more basic respect. Skyler 00:29:09.519 --> 00:29:12.000 wants more truth and control. Gus wants more 00:29:12.000 --> 00:29:14.940 territory and power. And that relentless, insatiable 00:29:14.940 --> 00:29:18.200 desire for more is exactly what ultimately destroys 00:29:18.200 --> 00:29:21.140 everything they already have. Precisely. By constantly 00:29:21.140 --> 00:29:23.680 seeking maws, they completely lose enough that 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:26.000 they started with. Think about it. Walt easily 00:29:26.000 --> 00:29:28.420 had enough money to retire early on. He had enough 00:29:28.420 --> 00:29:30.680 to leave his family perfectly secure, but he 00:29:30.680 --> 00:29:33.480 wanted more. And look at what that desire actually 00:29:33.480 --> 00:29:36.460 cost him in the end. He lost his wife. He lost 00:29:36.460 --> 00:29:38.720 his partner's respect. He lost his own peace 00:29:38.720 --> 00:29:41.839 of mind. But hey, he got a really shiny new lab 00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:44.799 out of it. A giant stainless steel tomb. So as 00:29:44.799 --> 00:29:46.940 we start to wrap up this incredibly deep dive, 00:29:47.819 --> 00:29:49.940 what is the one big takeaway you really want 00:29:49.940 --> 00:29:52.990 the listener to hold onto from Moss? For me, 00:29:53.029 --> 00:29:55.190 it is absolutely the manipulation tactics. I 00:29:55.190 --> 00:29:57.349 really want the listener to sit with how smoothly 00:29:57.349 --> 00:29:59.450 and effectively Gus Fring played Walter White. 00:29:59.910 --> 00:30:02.150 He didn't use any force at all. He used a mirror. 00:30:02.529 --> 00:30:05.549 He showed Walt the exact image of the great powerful 00:30:05.549 --> 00:30:08.910 man Walt desperately wanted to be. And Walt willingly 00:30:08.910 --> 00:30:11.829 walked right into the cage just to claim that 00:30:11.829 --> 00:30:13.750 image. It really heavily challenges the whole 00:30:13.750 --> 00:30:16.250 idea of Walt's ultimate agency. We really like 00:30:16.250 --> 00:30:18.450 to think of Heisenberg as this brilliant unstoppable 00:30:18.450 --> 00:30:21.269 force of nature. But in this specific episode, 00:30:21.589 --> 00:30:23.940 he is honestly just a puppet being effortlessly 00:30:23.940 --> 00:30:26.480 danced around by a much smarter, much cooler 00:30:26.480 --> 00:30:29.279 operator. It is deeply humbling for the character. 00:30:29.460 --> 00:30:31.660 It perfectly shows that there is always a much 00:30:31.660 --> 00:30:34.140 bigger fish in the ocean. Walt firmly thought 00:30:34.140 --> 00:30:36.799 he was the apex shark, but he just blindly swam 00:30:36.799 --> 00:30:38.920 right into the whale's mouth. I really want to 00:30:38.920 --> 00:30:40.400 leave our listener with a provocative thought 00:30:40.400 --> 00:30:42.900 to chew on as we close out. We spent a lot of 00:30:42.900 --> 00:30:45.359 time talking about the man provides speech. We 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:47.160 talked at length about the massive super lab. 00:30:47.200 --> 00:30:49.119 Right, we did. So here is the final question 00:30:49.119 --> 00:30:52.700 for you listening. If Gus Fring hadn't explicitly 00:30:52.700 --> 00:30:56.220 appealed to Walt's deep vanity, if he had just 00:30:56.220 --> 00:30:58.539 offered him more money but kept the lab hidden 00:30:58.539 --> 00:31:01.059 in some dirty basement somewhere, would Walt 00:31:01.059 --> 00:31:03.460 have actually said yes to cooking again? That 00:31:03.460 --> 00:31:06.119 is the ultimate question, isn't it? Was it ever 00:31:06.119 --> 00:31:08.880 really about the money, or was it purely about 00:31:08.880 --> 00:31:11.640 the validation? Was Walt actually fully out of 00:31:11.640 --> 00:31:14.220 the game, or was the monster just sleeping inside 00:31:14.220 --> 00:31:16.200 and waiting for someone to finally compliment 00:31:16.200 --> 00:31:18.960 its chemistry skills? I think deep down we all 00:31:18.960 --> 00:31:21.039 know the terrifying answer to that. And that 00:31:21.039 --> 00:31:23.940 is exactly what makes this episode so brilliant. 00:31:24.480 --> 00:31:27.180 The massive capacity for evil wasn't forced upon 00:31:27.180 --> 00:31:29.480 Walter White. It was simply unlocked with the 00:31:29.480 --> 00:31:32.059 right words. On that incredibly cheerful note, 00:31:32.079 --> 00:31:34.720 we're going to wrap it up for today. A huge thank 00:31:34.720 --> 00:31:36.819 you to you, our listener, for sticking with us 00:31:36.819 --> 00:31:38.900 through the shiny super lab and all the domestic 00:31:38.900 --> 00:31:41.480 heartbreak. It has been a real pleasure unpacking 00:31:41.480 --> 00:31:43.799 this with you. If you enjoyed this deep dive, 00:31:44.460 --> 00:31:46.440 please keep the conversation going in your own 00:31:46.440 --> 00:31:49.519 circles. Think about your own version of Moss. 00:31:50.660 --> 00:31:52.839 What is the one thing you are currently chasing 00:31:52.839 --> 00:31:55.480 that might secretly be costing you way too much? 00:31:55.619 --> 00:31:57.279 Tread lightly out there. Until next time.