WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.779 Welcome back to The Deep Dive. Today, we're doing 00:00:02.779 --> 00:00:04.459 something a little different. We aren't just 00:00:04.459 --> 00:00:06.440 looking at a story. We're actually transporting 00:00:06.440 --> 00:00:10.119 you back to a very specific, kind of a very tactile 00:00:10.119 --> 00:00:13.179 moment in television history. I want you to close 00:00:13.179 --> 00:00:17.219 your eyes and picture the date. May 30, 2010. 00:00:17.579 --> 00:00:20.460 Oh, wow. Yeah. A very different world back then. 00:00:20.719 --> 00:00:22.780 Completely. I mean, the iPad had literally just 00:00:22.780 --> 00:00:24.760 been released a month prior. People were still 00:00:24.760 --> 00:00:26.539 sort of figuring out if it was just a big iPhone. 00:00:26.800 --> 00:00:29.719 Right, right. And Lost had finished its final 00:00:29.719 --> 00:00:32.500 season exactly one week earlier, so it left the 00:00:32.500 --> 00:00:35.679 entire cultural conversation in this state of 00:00:35.679 --> 00:00:38.520 absolute confusion and debate. Which is funny 00:00:38.520 --> 00:00:41.200 because amidst all that noise, on a Sunday night 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:44.640 on AMC, a show called Breaking Bad was just quietly 00:00:44.640 --> 00:00:46.759 airing the eleventh episode of its third season. 00:00:46.960 --> 00:00:49.240 Exactly. It creates such a vivid snapshot, when 00:00:49.240 --> 00:00:51.539 you put it that way. Because Breaking Bad wasn't 00:00:51.539 --> 00:00:54.049 the juggernaut yet, was it? No. Oh, it wasn't 00:00:54.049 --> 00:00:55.490 the show that everyone and their grandmother 00:00:55.490 --> 00:01:00.049 was watching. It was still that gritty cult favorite 00:01:00.049 --> 00:01:02.070 that people whispered about at water coolers. 00:01:02.350 --> 00:01:04.049 Right. It was still earning its stripes. And 00:01:04.049 --> 00:01:06.170 the episode we're looking at today is titled 00:01:06.170 --> 00:01:09.189 Abikyu. Abikyu. It's a title that sounds beautiful, 00:01:09.349 --> 00:01:11.849 almost mystical. It rolls off the tongue. But 00:01:11.849 --> 00:01:14.290 as we're going to find out, the content of this 00:01:14.290 --> 00:01:18.230 hour of television is incredibly heavy. It's 00:01:18.230 --> 00:01:20.010 really deceptive. Yeah, we're talking about a 00:01:20.010 --> 00:01:23.560 pivotal moment where The stakes shift dramatically. 00:01:24.540 --> 00:01:26.420 For a long time, basically the first two and 00:01:26.420 --> 00:01:28.840 a half seasons really breaking bad was about 00:01:28.840 --> 00:01:32.680 physical survival. It was about. surviving lung 00:01:32.680 --> 00:01:35.959 cancer, surviving crazy volatile drug dealers 00:01:35.959 --> 00:01:38.739 like Tuco Salamanca or the cousins with the axe. 00:01:38.859 --> 00:01:42.620 It was visceral danger. But here in Ebikyu, the 00:01:42.620 --> 00:01:44.920 stakes shift to moral survival. Which is often 00:01:44.920 --> 00:01:47.420 much harder to secure than physical safety. I 00:01:47.420 --> 00:01:49.219 mean, you can wear a bulletproof vest, but you 00:01:49.219 --> 00:01:51.400 can't wear a vest to protect your soul from erosion. 00:01:51.480 --> 00:01:53.859 That's a great way to put it. And just so you 00:01:53.859 --> 00:01:56.599 all know where we're pulling from today, we are 00:01:56.599 --> 00:01:59.760 basing today's deep dive on a massive stack of 00:01:59.760 --> 00:02:02.579 production notes, plot summaries, and critical 00:02:02.579 --> 00:02:05.400 reception data. We've combed through Wikipedia, 00:02:05.659 --> 00:02:07.859 obviously, but we're also pulling deep cuts from 00:02:07.859 --> 00:02:12.080 IGN, the AV Club, The Ringer, and Vulture, looking 00:02:12.080 --> 00:02:14.620 at reviews from the exact time it aired, plus 00:02:14.620 --> 00:02:17.289 retrospective rankings. And our mission today 00:02:17.289 --> 00:02:19.969 is to unpack how this specific episode serves 00:02:19.969 --> 00:02:22.050 as a massive pivot point for two of the main 00:02:22.050 --> 00:02:24.530 characters. We're looking at Skyler White, who 00:02:24.530 --> 00:02:26.710 is integrating herself into the criminal enterprise 00:02:26.710 --> 00:02:29.069 in a way we just haven't seen before. Yeah, she's 00:02:29.069 --> 00:02:31.289 not just a victim anymore. Exactly. And we're 00:02:31.289 --> 00:02:33.789 also looking at Jesse Pinkman, who is about to 00:02:33.789 --> 00:02:36.169 run headfirst into a brick wall of consequences. 00:02:36.270 --> 00:02:38.289 It's really a study in ripple effects. You know, 00:02:38.349 --> 00:02:40.770 we often think of our actions as isolated events. 00:02:41.069 --> 00:02:43.370 We live in the moment. Especially in a show like 00:02:43.370 --> 00:02:46.069 this, characters justify things by saying, I 00:02:46.069 --> 00:02:48.669 did what I had to do in that specific second. 00:02:49.050 --> 00:02:52.879 But Abikoo argues that nothing is isolated. The 00:02:52.879 --> 00:02:55.159 universe of Breaking Bad is a closed system. 00:02:55.719 --> 00:02:57.719 Past actions, specifically regarding the death 00:02:57.719 --> 00:03:00.400 of a character named Combo from way back, are 00:03:00.400 --> 00:03:02.280 coming back to haunt the present. And before 00:03:02.280 --> 00:03:04.319 we get into the heavy stuff, the drug dealing 00:03:04.319 --> 00:03:07.020 and the money laundering, I have to say, I am 00:03:07.020 --> 00:03:09.219 incredibly excited about the opening of this 00:03:09.219 --> 00:03:12.539 episode. Because we get a flashback. And not 00:03:12.539 --> 00:03:14.680 just any flashback, but the return of a character 00:03:14.680 --> 00:03:17.259 that I think we all missed dearly. Oh, it serves 00:03:17.259 --> 00:03:19.199 such a crucial narrative function. It's not just 00:03:19.199 --> 00:03:22.300 fan service, it's really a thematic key. Let's 00:03:22.300 --> 00:03:24.060 not waste any time. Let's dive right into the 00:03:24.060 --> 00:03:25.819 prologue. OK, let's unpack this. The episode 00:03:25.819 --> 00:03:28.039 is titled Abiquu. For those of us who aren't 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:30.800 geography buffs or art history majors, what are 00:03:30.800 --> 00:03:33.099 we actually looking at here? Why this name? So 00:03:33.099 --> 00:03:35.719 the title refers to Abiquu, New Mexico. It's 00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:38.599 a small census designated place in Rio Arriba 00:03:38.599 --> 00:03:41.879 County. It's remote. It's dusty. But it is famous 00:03:41.879 --> 00:03:45.360 globally for one specific reason. Georgia O 'Keeffe. 00:03:45.659 --> 00:03:47.580 The legendary modernist painter had a home and 00:03:47.580 --> 00:03:51.050 a studio there. In the art world, Bikuyu is synonymous 00:03:51.050 --> 00:03:53.370 with these sweeping, stark desert landscapes 00:03:53.370 --> 00:03:56.449 and a certain kind of artistic purity. It represents 00:03:56.449 --> 00:03:58.610 clarity. And that's exactly where we find ourselves 00:03:58.610 --> 00:04:00.830 in the cold open. And I really want to talk about 00:04:00.830 --> 00:04:03.409 the visuals here because it is jarring. Usually, 00:04:03.629 --> 00:04:06.069 Breaking Bad is yellow filters, gritty textures, 00:04:06.389 --> 00:04:09.270 shaky handheld cameras in the desert, or these 00:04:09.270 --> 00:04:13.129 dark, claustrophobic labs. Here. It's pristine. 00:04:13.370 --> 00:04:15.870 It's clinical, but in a beautiful way. We are 00:04:15.870 --> 00:04:17.949 in the Georgia O 'Keeffe Museum. The walls are 00:04:17.949 --> 00:04:20.410 stark white. The lighting is soft and diffused. 00:04:20.550 --> 00:04:22.990 It's quiet. Yeah, no hum of ventilation fans, 00:04:23.149 --> 00:04:26.310 no gunfire, just peace. And standing there, we 00:04:26.310 --> 00:04:28.910 see Jesse Pinkman. But it's not the Jesse we 00:04:28.910 --> 00:04:30.689 know from season three with the buzz cut and 00:04:30.689 --> 00:04:33.490 the sunken eyes. He looks cleaner. Yeah. Lighter. 00:04:33.529 --> 00:04:35.709 And he's with Jane Margolis. Played by the incredible 00:04:35.709 --> 00:04:38.149 Kristen Ritter. Seeing her again is a shock to 00:04:38.149 --> 00:04:39.790 the system for you as a viewer because we know 00:04:39.790 --> 00:04:41.970 her fate. We watched her die in season two. We 00:04:41.970 --> 00:04:45.149 watched Walt watch her die. Right. So immediately 00:04:45.149 --> 00:04:48.629 this scene is drenched in dramatic irony. We 00:04:48.629 --> 00:04:50.990 are looking at a ghost. It's a flashback to a 00:04:50.990 --> 00:04:53.790 better time. But because we know the ending, 00:04:54.029 --> 00:04:57.930 it's tinged with this overwhelming sadness. They're 00:04:57.930 --> 00:04:59.709 standing in front of a specific painting. It's 00:04:59.709 --> 00:05:02.050 called My Last Door. And I love the dialogue 00:05:02.050 --> 00:05:04.829 here because it feels so natural, yet so loaded. 00:05:05.189 --> 00:05:06.910 They're debating the meaning of the painting. 00:05:07.529 --> 00:05:09.769 Jesse is trying to be deep, maybe trying to impress 00:05:09.769 --> 00:05:11.990 her. A little bit. He's trying to engage with 00:05:11.990 --> 00:05:14.949 her world. The writers, John Sheeban and Thomas 00:05:14.949 --> 00:05:17.329 Schnauss, are using this conversation to really 00:05:17.329 --> 00:05:19.089 set the thematic table for the whole episode. 00:05:19.889 --> 00:05:21.670 Jesse looks at the painting, which is abstract, 00:05:22.110 --> 00:05:24.149 a dark rectangle against a lighter background, 00:05:24.370 --> 00:05:26.970 and he's struggling with it. He asked, why would 00:05:26.970 --> 00:05:29.189 she paint a door over and over again? It's a 00:05:29.189 --> 00:05:31.430 fair question. I mean, in Jane's answer, this 00:05:31.430 --> 00:05:33.250 is the line that defines the episode for me. 00:05:33.410 --> 00:05:36.069 What is her take on it? She says, it's not the 00:05:36.069 --> 00:05:38.629 subject matter. It's the feeling. She concludes 00:05:38.629 --> 00:05:40.350 that O 'Keefe wasn't trying to make some grand 00:05:40.350 --> 00:05:43.129 morbid statement about death or endings. She 00:05:43.129 --> 00:05:44.910 says O 'Keefe was simply trying to make a good 00:05:44.910 --> 00:05:47.910 feeling last. Trying to make a good feeling last? 00:05:48.410 --> 00:05:50.089 I just want to pause on that. That hits me right 00:05:50.089 --> 00:05:52.089 in the chest. It does, doesn't it? Yeah. Think 00:05:52.089 --> 00:05:54.769 about who is saying it. Jane is a recovering 00:05:54.769 --> 00:05:56.850 addict at this point in the timeline. Jessie 00:05:56.850 --> 00:05:59.050 is struggling. When you look at addiction through 00:05:59.050 --> 00:06:02.250 that lens, what is it? Yeah. In its most reductive 00:06:02.250 --> 00:06:05.889 chemical sense, addiction is the desperate, often 00:06:05.889 --> 00:06:09.310 fatal attempt to make a good feeling last, to 00:06:09.310 --> 00:06:11.290 sustain a high that naturally wants to fade. 00:06:11.509 --> 00:06:13.430 It's chasing the dragon. You're trying to freeze 00:06:13.430 --> 00:06:16.420 time in that moment of euphoria. Exactly. But 00:06:16.420 --> 00:06:19.040 it's also broader than drugs. It's about happiness. 00:06:19.420 --> 00:06:22.220 It's about love. They are standing there holding 00:06:22.220 --> 00:06:24.899 hands looking at art. That is a good feeling. 00:06:25.360 --> 00:06:27.540 And the tragedy is that they, and you the viewer 00:06:27.540 --> 00:06:30.740 know, it cannot last. In the Breaking Bad universe, 00:06:31.040 --> 00:06:34.360 entropy is the only law. Things fall apart. Good 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:36.180 feelings are punished. It's almost like the show 00:06:36.180 --> 00:06:38.920 is taunting us. It shows us this alternative 00:06:38.920 --> 00:06:40.800 universe where Jesse could have been a guy who 00:06:40.800 --> 00:06:43.379 goes to museums on weekends. He has the capacity 00:06:43.379 --> 00:06:46.000 for it. He's insightful. He's sensitive. That's 00:06:46.000 --> 00:06:48.540 the heartbreak of Jesse Pinkman. He isn't a thug 00:06:48.540 --> 00:06:51.160 at heart. He's a sensitive soul who got caught 00:06:51.160 --> 00:06:53.319 in the gears of a machine he just doesn't understand. 00:06:53.600 --> 00:06:55.660 He has the capacity to appreciate the door, but 00:06:55.660 --> 00:06:57.759 he keeps walking through the wrong ones. And 00:06:57.759 --> 00:06:59.959 that title, My Last Door, do you think that's 00:06:59.959 --> 00:07:02.899 a metaphor for Jane or for Jesse's innocence? 00:07:03.449 --> 00:07:06.850 Both, really. For Jane, that relationship was 00:07:06.850 --> 00:07:10.050 her last door. She relapsed, and she died. For 00:07:10.050 --> 00:07:12.810 Jesse, this period of time before Combo died, 00:07:12.870 --> 00:07:15.110 before Jane died, before the plane crash, was 00:07:15.110 --> 00:07:16.949 the last time he was truly innocent, or at least 00:07:16.949 --> 00:07:19.750 hopeful. After this, the doors just keep slamming 00:07:19.750 --> 00:07:22.290 shut, one by one, until he's trapped. Speaking 00:07:22.290 --> 00:07:24.370 of being trapped, let's pivot to the other major 00:07:24.370 --> 00:07:27.250 storyline. We have Skylar White. And if Jesse 00:07:27.250 --> 00:07:29.129 is looking at art and thinking about feelings, 00:07:29.329 --> 00:07:31.670 Skylar is looking at a spreadsheet and thinking 00:07:31.670 --> 00:07:34.540 about survival. That is a fantastic contrast. 00:07:35.379 --> 00:07:37.759 While Jessie is in the ethereal world of art, 00:07:38.300 --> 00:07:41.120 Skyler is in the gritty reality of finance. She 00:07:41.120 --> 00:07:43.860 isn't just trapped, though. She is actively redecorating 00:07:43.860 --> 00:07:46.439 the cage. She is undergoing a massive evolution 00:07:46.439 --> 00:07:49.379 in this episode. So the catalyst for this whole 00:07:49.379 --> 00:07:52.139 storyline is Hank Schrader. We know Hank was 00:07:52.139 --> 00:07:54.120 shot in that brutal parking lot attack by the 00:07:54.120 --> 00:07:57.000 cousins. He's alive, but he's in really bad shape. 00:07:57.120 --> 00:08:00.160 He's a man of action who is now bedridden. He's 00:08:00.160 --> 00:08:02.720 emasculated. In his own eyes, he can't use the 00:08:02.720 --> 00:08:05.480 bathroom by himself. He's in pain. And he's lashing 00:08:05.480 --> 00:08:08.100 out at Marie. But the practical issue, the one 00:08:08.100 --> 00:08:11.680 that drives the plot, is the cost. Physical therapy 00:08:11.680 --> 00:08:15.120 isn't cheap, and his insurance is body. So Marie, 00:08:15.139 --> 00:08:17.779 who is desperate, hands the medical bill to Skyler. 00:08:17.899 --> 00:08:20.019 This goes back to a lie Walt told earlier, that 00:08:20.019 --> 00:08:22.360 he has millions from illegal gambling and can 00:08:22.360 --> 00:08:25.300 help out. But here's the problem. Walt tries 00:08:25.300 --> 00:08:28.040 to pay the bill. How does he do it? In the most 00:08:28.040 --> 00:08:31.740 Walt way possible. He brings cash. Right. Dirty, 00:08:31.779 --> 00:08:33.980 meth -scented cash. He's thinking like a low 00:08:33.980 --> 00:08:36.639 -level criminal. Here is money. Problem solved. 00:08:37.000 --> 00:08:39.960 Skyler. Skyler looks at that cash like it's radioactive 00:08:39.960 --> 00:08:42.299 waste. She stops him cold. She uses a word I 00:08:42.299 --> 00:08:44.899 love. Unimpeachable. Unimpeachable. It's such 00:08:44.899 --> 00:08:47.460 a specific, legalistic word. Skyler understands 00:08:47.460 --> 00:08:49.720 something Walt doesn't. Walt thinks the danger 00:08:49.720 --> 00:08:52.320 is getting caught cooking meth. Skyler realizes 00:08:52.320 --> 00:08:54.600 the danger is getting caught spending the money. 00:08:54.789 --> 00:08:58.230 If you pay a DEA agent's medical bills with cash 00:08:58.230 --> 00:09:00.809 that can't be traced to a legitimate source, 00:09:01.350 --> 00:09:04.090 you are begging for an audit, and an audit leads 00:09:04.090 --> 00:09:07.129 to prison. So Walt realizes she's right, and 00:09:07.129 --> 00:09:09.309 he takes her to meet the expert. He takes her 00:09:09.309 --> 00:09:11.929 to Saul Goodman's office. This scene is comedy 00:09:11.929 --> 00:09:14.669 gold, but it's also crucial character development. 00:09:15.029 --> 00:09:16.970 You have the waiting room of hell, essentially. 00:09:17.450 --> 00:09:20.350 Yeah. Walt, the frustrated genius, Saul, the 00:09:20.350 --> 00:09:23.769 sleazy facilitator. And Skyler, the suburban 00:09:23.769 --> 00:09:26.049 mom who is suddenly the smartest person in the 00:09:26.049 --> 00:09:28.350 room. She is completely unimpressed by Saul. 00:09:28.610 --> 00:09:30.730 The production notes actually say she is put 00:09:30.730 --> 00:09:33.129 off by him, which is an understatement. She looks 00:09:33.129 --> 00:09:34.870 at him like he's something she scraped off her 00:09:34.870 --> 00:09:37.750 shoe. But Saul has a plan. He pitches his big 00:09:37.750 --> 00:09:40.549 money laundering scheme. The laser tag facility. 00:09:40.750 --> 00:09:43.029 You're Danny's laser tech. I mean, come on. Skyler 00:09:43.029 --> 00:09:45.590 White running a laser tag joint with the neon 00:09:45.590 --> 00:09:48.090 lights and the fog machines. It's absurd. Saul 00:09:48.090 --> 00:09:51.399 defends it, though. His logic is sound. from 00:09:51.399 --> 00:09:54.860 a criminal 101 perspective. It's a cash business. 00:09:55.080 --> 00:09:58.279 Lots of kids paying with $20 bills. No real inventory 00:09:58.279 --> 00:10:00.500 to track. You can fake the number of games played 00:10:00.500 --> 00:10:03.100 easily. Oh, we had a busy Tuesday, and boom, 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:06.500 you laundered $10 ,000. Ideally, it works. But 00:10:06.500 --> 00:10:08.559 Skylar shuts it down. And this is where it gets 00:10:08.559 --> 00:10:10.700 really interesting. She doesn't just say no. 00:10:10.980 --> 00:10:13.759 She explains why it fails the narrative test. 00:10:13.860 --> 00:10:15.480 Right. She's thinking about the cover story. 00:10:15.980 --> 00:10:19.600 She says it doesn't fit. Why would Walt, a boring 00:10:19.600 --> 00:10:22.639 chemistry teacher, buy a laser tag place, it 00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:25.019 raises eyebrows, it looks weird. And in their 00:10:25.019 --> 00:10:27.500 world, weird gets you caught. So she proposes 00:10:27.500 --> 00:10:30.820 the car wash, the A1A car wash. The very place 00:10:30.820 --> 00:10:33.039 where Walt worked part time in the pilot episode, 00:10:33.340 --> 00:10:35.460 the place where he was humiliated watching his 00:10:35.460 --> 00:10:37.759 own students corvette. Why does she fight for 00:10:37.759 --> 00:10:39.820 this? Is she just trying to punish Walt by buying 00:10:39.820 --> 00:10:42.000 the place he hated? That might be a subconscious 00:10:42.000 --> 00:10:45.100 bonus, sure. But legally and logically, it's 00:10:45.100 --> 00:10:47.379 the superior choice. It's mundane. It's boring. 00:10:47.529 --> 00:10:49.570 It makes sense that a man who worked there would 00:10:49.570 --> 00:10:51.629 buy it. But more importantly, from a laundry 00:10:51.629 --> 00:10:54.690 perspective, Schuyler argues it's safer. Wait, 00:10:54.690 --> 00:10:57.009 walk me through that. Why is a car wash better 00:10:57.009 --> 00:10:59.730 for laundering than laser tag? It's about the 00:10:59.730 --> 00:11:03.929 consumables. Water, soap, wax, you can manipulate 00:11:03.929 --> 00:11:06.950 the usage rates. If you say you washed 100 cars, 00:11:07.649 --> 00:11:09.230 you just need to make sure you quote unquote 00:11:09.230 --> 00:11:12.809 used enough soap for 100 cars. It's a high volume, 00:11:13.049 --> 00:11:15.629 small transaction cash business. just like laser 00:11:15.629 --> 00:11:18.870 tag, but it offers a veneer of respectable middle 00:11:18.870 --> 00:11:21.570 -class boredom that hides the crime perfectly, 00:11:22.009 --> 00:11:24.590 hiding in plain sight. Saul hates it, of course. 00:11:24.769 --> 00:11:26.470 He probably doesn't have a corrupt manager there 00:11:26.470 --> 00:11:29.389 like he does at the laser tag place. But Skylar 00:11:29.389 --> 00:11:31.669 drops the hammer. She offers to manage it herself. 00:11:31.870 --> 00:11:34.179 This is the crossing of the Rubicon. Up until 00:11:34.179 --> 00:11:37.039 now, Skyler has been an accessory after the fact. 00:11:37.120 --> 00:11:39.519 She's been passive now. She has offered to cook 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:41.580 the books. She is offering to commit felonies 00:11:41.580 --> 00:11:43.740 on a daily basis. She says she will be the one 00:11:43.740 --> 00:11:46.019 to sign the checks and fudge the numbers. Walt 00:11:46.019 --> 00:11:48.379 is actually terrified by this. He pushes back. 00:11:48.539 --> 00:11:50.179 He tells her, you can't be involved. You'd be 00:11:50.179 --> 00:11:52.059 liable. He's thinking, if I go down, you stay 00:11:52.059 --> 00:11:54.120 out. And here is the plot twist that changes 00:11:54.120 --> 00:11:57.000 the entire legal landscape of the show. Skyler 00:11:57.000 --> 00:11:59.679 reveals she never filed the divorce papers. Wait. 00:12:00.059 --> 00:12:02.299 If she never filed the papers, then she's been 00:12:02.299 --> 00:12:04.100 holding this card the whole time. Exactly. She 00:12:04.100 --> 00:12:07.399 is still legally his wife. So break down spousal 00:12:07.399 --> 00:12:09.740 privilege for us. Is it a magic wand? Yeah. Can 00:12:09.740 --> 00:12:11.980 they just commit crimes and the law can't touch 00:12:11.980 --> 00:12:15.379 them? It's complex, and Schuyler is banking on 00:12:15.379 --> 00:12:17.879 a specific interpretation. There are two types 00:12:17.879 --> 00:12:21.500 of privilege. One is testimonial privilege, which 00:12:21.500 --> 00:12:24.220 means you can't force a spouse to testify against 00:12:24.220 --> 00:12:27.179 the other in a criminal trial. If they are divorced, 00:12:27.340 --> 00:12:30.620 that protection is largely gone. By staying married, 00:12:30.940 --> 00:12:33.019 she ensures she can't be compelled to take the 00:12:33.019 --> 00:12:34.799 stand and destroy him. But there's a catch, right? 00:12:34.919 --> 00:12:36.799 If there are partners in crime? Correct. That's 00:12:36.799 --> 00:12:39.120 the crime fraud exception. If the spouses are 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:41.460 co -conspirators in a joint criminal enterprise, 00:12:41.799 --> 00:12:44.220 the privilege doesn't necessarily apply to communications 00:12:44.220 --> 00:12:47.740 made to further that crime. However, Skyler is 00:12:47.740 --> 00:12:49.820 betting that the marriage adds a massive layer 00:12:49.820 --> 00:12:52.519 of obfuscation. It makes the prosecution's job 00:12:52.519 --> 00:12:54.960 much, much harder. She's using their marriage 00:12:54.960 --> 00:12:58.139 as a legal shield. It's so cold. It's so calculated. 00:12:58.240 --> 00:13:00.799 She's becoming... CFO of Heisenberg Inc. She 00:13:00.799 --> 00:13:02.740 is. And frankly, she's better at it than Walt. 00:13:03.159 --> 00:13:06.259 Walt is impulsive. Schuyler is strategic. She's 00:13:06.259 --> 00:13:08.159 looking at the long game. She's breaking bad, 00:13:08.159 --> 00:13:11.000 but in a corporate boardroom kind of way. While 00:13:11.000 --> 00:13:13.000 Schuyler is securing the domestic front and the 00:13:13.000 --> 00:13:15.299 financial front, Walt has to deal with the upper 00:13:15.299 --> 00:13:18.340 management. We get a scene that is just dripping 00:13:18.340 --> 00:13:21.279 with tension. Gus Fring invites Walt to his home 00:13:21.279 --> 00:13:25.120 for dinner. This scene is a master class in atmosphere. 00:13:25.820 --> 00:13:28.649 Think about where we usually see Gus. the fluorescent 00:13:28.649 --> 00:13:31.549 lights of Los Polos Hermanos, the industrial 00:13:31.549 --> 00:13:34.250 steel of the super lab or the barren desert. 00:13:34.549 --> 00:13:37.929 Here, we are in a warm, beautifully lit Spanish 00:13:37.929 --> 00:13:40.710 -style home. It's civilized. There's art on the 00:13:40.710 --> 00:13:42.649 walls. There are vegetables being chopped. It 00:13:42.649 --> 00:13:44.970 feels like a cooking show. But the silence is 00:13:44.970 --> 00:13:47.149 deafening. Did you notice the sound design? Yes. 00:13:47.269 --> 00:13:49.210 The knife hitting the cutting board. Chop, chop. 00:13:49.210 --> 00:13:51.870 It's rhythmic, but it feels violent. Gus is making 00:13:51.870 --> 00:13:54.590 paella, a traditional Chilean dish. Actually, 00:13:54.629 --> 00:13:56.409 it's Spanish, but he claims it is a specialty. 00:13:56.590 --> 00:13:58.830 Why paella? Is there a significance to the food? 00:13:59.169 --> 00:14:01.830 Paella is a communal dish. It's meant to be shared 00:14:01.830 --> 00:14:04.490 from a big pan with family and friends. It represents 00:14:04.490 --> 00:14:07.769 community. But here, it's just these two men 00:14:07.769 --> 00:14:11.570 eating it in a rigid, formal way. It highlights 00:14:11.570 --> 00:14:13.750 the isolation. They are pretending to be friends, 00:14:13.909 --> 00:14:15.809 pretending to be colleagues, but they're both 00:14:15.809 --> 00:14:18.230 sharks. Gus plays the gracious host, but then 00:14:18.230 --> 00:14:20.289 he drops the mask just a little bit. He shares 00:14:20.289 --> 00:14:22.960 a regret. He tells Walt that in his early days, 00:14:22.980 --> 00:14:25.700 he didn't have a mentor. That's a rare moment 00:14:25.700 --> 00:14:29.120 of vulnerability from Gus. Or is it? That's always 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:31.899 the question with Frank. Is he being human? Or 00:14:31.899 --> 00:14:34.720 is the human suit just being adjusted to manipulate 00:14:34.720 --> 00:14:37.100 Walt? He follows it up with advice. He says, 00:14:37.399 --> 00:14:39.500 I made mistakes. You don't have to. And then 00:14:39.500 --> 00:14:41.740 the line that chills me, never make the same 00:14:41.740 --> 00:14:44.320 mistake twice. Never make the same mistake twice. 00:14:44.379 --> 00:14:46.799 We have to parse that. What is the mistake? On 00:14:46.799 --> 00:14:48.720 the surface, maybe he means don't trust the wrong 00:14:48.720 --> 00:14:51.379 people. But in context, he's talking about Jesse, 00:14:51.500 --> 00:14:55.059 isn't he? 100%. Gus views Jesse Pinkman as a 00:14:55.059 --> 00:14:58.279 liability. Jesse is an addict. He's emotional. 00:14:58.639 --> 00:15:02.000 He's volatile. Everything Gus is not. Gus is 00:15:02.000 --> 00:15:04.440 looking at Walt's loyalty to Jesse as a weakness. 00:15:05.080 --> 00:15:07.279 He's essentially saying, I learned the hard way 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:09.399 that you cut dead weight. Why haven't you learned 00:15:09.399 --> 00:15:11.860 that yet? It's a threat wrapped in a mentorship 00:15:11.860 --> 00:15:15.009 anecdote. That is Gus Fring's superpower. He 00:15:15.009 --> 00:15:17.210 can threaten to kill your entire family while 00:15:17.210 --> 00:15:19.750 handing you a glass of wine and smiling. He is 00:15:19.750 --> 00:15:21.629 cementing their professional relationship, but 00:15:21.629 --> 00:15:23.750 he's also drawing a line in the sand. He's saying 00:15:23.750 --> 00:15:27.230 you are smart, Walt. Be smart like me. Ditch 00:15:27.230 --> 00:15:29.750 the kid. And the irony is while Gus is warning 00:15:29.750 --> 00:15:32.769 Walt that Jesse is a liability, Jesse is out 00:15:32.769 --> 00:15:34.870 there proving him right, but also proving him 00:15:34.870 --> 00:15:37.230 wrong. It's complicated. Let's move to segment 00:15:37.230 --> 00:15:39.320 four. Jesse's descent. This is where the episode 00:15:39.320 --> 00:15:41.340 gets really dark. We know Jesse's been skimming 00:15:41.340 --> 00:15:43.600 meth from the lab. He's stealing the excess product. 00:15:43.700 --> 00:15:46.519 Which is dumb. Walt warns him. He says, stop 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:48.500 stealing. We make millions. Why risk it for a 00:15:48.500 --> 00:15:51.779 few thousand? But Jesse is stubborn. He teams 00:15:51.779 --> 00:15:54.759 up with Badger and Skinny Pete. The Rosencrantz 00:15:54.759 --> 00:15:57.379 and Guildenstern of the meth world. Usually they're 00:15:57.379 --> 00:16:00.639 the comic relief. But the plan Jesse has for 00:16:00.639 --> 00:16:04.080 them is repulsive. He wants to sell the stolen 00:16:04.080 --> 00:16:06.740 blue meth to recovering addicts at narcotics 00:16:06.740 --> 00:16:09.370 anonymous meetings. It's a new low. Yeah. It 00:16:09.370 --> 00:16:11.529 really is. N .A. is a sanctuary. It's a place 00:16:11.529 --> 00:16:13.730 where people are at their most vulnerable, trying 00:16:13.730 --> 00:16:16.110 to save their own lives. To go in there as a 00:16:16.110 --> 00:16:19.149 predator, it's morally bankrupt. And what's fascinating 00:16:19.149 --> 00:16:21.929 is that even Badger and Skinny Pete, who are 00:16:21.929 --> 00:16:24.889 career criminals who have been to prison, they 00:16:24.889 --> 00:16:28.190 are uncomfortable. They hesitate. They say, I 00:16:28.190 --> 00:16:30.549 don't know, man, this feels wrong. It's bad karma. 00:16:30.850 --> 00:16:32.649 When Skinny Pete is the moral compass of the 00:16:32.649 --> 00:16:35.970 room, you know you have lost your way. But Jesse. 00:16:36.169 --> 00:16:38.549 He's on a war path. He calls them out. He wants 00:16:38.549 --> 00:16:41.190 to prove how easy it is. He's cynical. He thinks, 00:16:41.190 --> 00:16:43.929 we're all just addicts anyway. Why pretend? So 00:16:43.929 --> 00:16:46.389 he targets a newcomer, a young woman named Andrea 00:16:46.389 --> 00:16:48.769 Cantillo, played by Emily Rios. She's at the 00:16:48.769 --> 00:16:51.049 meeting. She's struggling. And Jesse swoops in. 00:16:51.210 --> 00:16:53.730 He starts the seduction. Not just romantic, but 00:16:53.730 --> 00:16:56.490 chemical. He's grooming her to buy. But then 00:16:56.490 --> 00:16:58.409 the complication happens. Right. He goes to her 00:16:58.409 --> 00:17:01.529 house. And he discovers she has a son, Brock. 00:17:01.850 --> 00:17:05.519 Brock is played by Ian Passata. Seeing the kid 00:17:05.519 --> 00:17:08.200 changes the entire chemical equation in Jesse's 00:17:08.200 --> 00:17:10.440 brain. We know this about Jesse from the beginning. 00:17:10.799 --> 00:17:13.299 He has a soft spot for children, the little boy 00:17:13.299 --> 00:17:15.720 in the crack house in season two, his own little 00:17:15.720 --> 00:17:19.519 brother. Jesse sees children as the only innocent 00:17:19.519 --> 00:17:22.640 things in a guilty world. So when Andrea actually 00:17:22.640 --> 00:17:24.460 suggests they use meth, which is heartbreaking, 00:17:24.759 --> 00:17:28.220 seeing a mother Backslide, Jesse declines. He 00:17:28.220 --> 00:17:31.220 stops. He has a code. I'm a bad guy, but I'm 00:17:31.220 --> 00:17:33.079 not getting a mom high with her kid in the next 00:17:33.079 --> 00:17:36.680 room bad. But he stays. He talks to her. And 00:17:36.680 --> 00:17:39.299 the rabbit hole goes deeper. Andrea mentions 00:17:39.299 --> 00:17:41.720 her younger brother, Tomas. Tomas is 11 years 00:17:41.720 --> 00:17:44.299 old. 11. And Andrea's terrified because he's 00:17:44.299 --> 00:17:46.299 getting mixed up with the local gangs. She tells 00:17:46.299 --> 00:17:48.559 Jesse a story. She says Tomas had to do something 00:17:48.559 --> 00:17:50.700 terrible for his initiation. She says he killed 00:17:50.700 --> 00:17:52.680 a rival dealer. And as she's telling this story, 00:17:52.720 --> 00:17:54.579 you can see it on Aaron Paul's face. The gears 00:17:54.579 --> 00:17:56.599 are turning. It's a moment of realization that 00:17:56.599 --> 00:17:59.000 hits like a physical blow. She describes the 00:17:59.000 --> 00:18:00.960 killing. They gave him a gun. They told him to 00:18:00.960 --> 00:18:03.539 wait on the corner. A guy on a bike showed up. 00:18:04.279 --> 00:18:07.440 And he shot him. Wait, a guy on a bike? Shot 00:18:07.440 --> 00:18:10.420 by a kid. That sounds familiar. It should. This 00:18:10.420 --> 00:18:12.440 is the callback to end all callbacks. We have 00:18:12.440 --> 00:18:14.900 to rewind to season two, the episode Mandala. 00:18:15.660 --> 00:18:17.859 Combo, Jesse's friend, was selling meth on a 00:18:17.859 --> 00:18:21.099 new corner. A kid on a bicycle circled him. We 00:18:21.099 --> 00:18:23.599 watched that kid pull a gun and shoot Combo dead. 00:18:24.019 --> 00:18:27.039 And now, sitting in this living room, Jesse realizes 00:18:27.039 --> 00:18:31.079 that kid is Tomas. This woman's brother killed 00:18:31.079 --> 00:18:32.859 his best friend. Talk about a ripple effect. 00:18:32.980 --> 00:18:34.799 It connects everything. Combo's death wasn't 00:18:34.799 --> 00:18:37.200 random. It was ordered. And the system that ordered 00:18:37.200 --> 00:18:39.599 it, the system that uses 11 -year -old boys as 00:18:39.599 --> 00:18:42.259 hitmen, is the same system Jesse is working for. 00:18:42.440 --> 00:18:44.559 That is the aha moment, but it's a nightmare. 00:18:44.700 --> 00:18:47.119 It forces Jesse to confront his own complicity. 00:18:47.460 --> 00:18:49.759 He isn't just an outlaw rebel. He is part of 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:51.880 a machine that grinds up children. Exactly. He 00:18:51.880 --> 00:18:54.119 can't just be the bad guy selling at NA anymore. 00:18:54.259 --> 00:18:56.460 That fantasy is over. Now he is face -to -face 00:18:56.460 --> 00:18:58.700 with the victimizer, who is also a victim, that's 00:18:58.700 --> 00:19:01.779 Tomas, and the grieving family, Andrea. So what 00:19:01.779 --> 00:19:04.519 does he do? This leads us to the climax. A lesser 00:19:04.519 --> 00:19:07.920 show might have Jesse storm out or cry, but Jesse 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:10.480 goes into detective mode. He goes to the corner, 00:19:10.640 --> 00:19:12.759 the specific street corner, where Combo died. 00:19:13.480 --> 00:19:17.200 And there he is. Tomas. Describe this scene for 00:19:17.200 --> 00:19:19.599 us. It's very quiet, isn't it? It's silent. There's 00:19:19.599 --> 00:19:21.900 no music at first. Just the ambient street noise. 00:19:22.339 --> 00:19:24.420 Jesse approaches the kid. The kid is just a kid. 00:19:24.619 --> 00:19:26.519 He's sitting on his bike. He looks bored. But 00:19:26.519 --> 00:19:29.720 his eyes, they're dead. Jesse tests him. He asked 00:19:29.720 --> 00:19:32.460 to buy. It's a test to confirm the reality. When 00:19:32.460 --> 00:19:34.339 the transaction happens, the truth is sealed. 00:19:34.839 --> 00:19:36.880 This isn't a misunderstanding. This 11 -year 00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:39.799 -old is a soldier. And then Jesse looks up, and 00:19:39.799 --> 00:19:43.240 he sees the car. The handlers. The adult dealers. 00:19:43.779 --> 00:19:46.779 Two men in a car watching, supervising. They 00:19:46.779 --> 00:19:48.579 are the ones pulling the strings. They are the 00:19:48.579 --> 00:19:50.720 ones who gave the order to kill Combo. This source 00:19:50.720 --> 00:19:53.299 material describes Jesse walking away quietly, 00:19:53.380 --> 00:19:55.480 but enraged. I think that's perfect. He doesn't 00:19:55.480 --> 00:19:57.420 scream. He doesn't pull a gun right there. He 00:19:57.420 --> 00:20:00.259 walks away. That silence is louder than any scream. 00:20:00.519 --> 00:20:02.779 Jesse is usually a loud character. Yo, bitch, 00:20:02.779 --> 00:20:06.000 and all that. But here, he is seething with a 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:10.140 cold, focused fury. He has found a purpose. It's 00:20:10.140 --> 00:20:12.519 not about money anymore. It's about vengeance. 00:20:12.819 --> 00:20:16.339 It sets the stage for a war. Jesse isn't just 00:20:16.339 --> 00:20:19.200 a cook anymore. He's a missile locked onto a 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:22.119 target. and he's gonna drag Walt and Gus and 00:20:22.119 --> 00:20:24.359 everyone else into the blast radius. Let's take 00:20:24.359 --> 00:20:26.579 a step back from the story for a second and look 00:20:26.579 --> 00:20:29.240 at the craft. Because this episode is beautifully 00:20:29.240 --> 00:20:31.539 made. We mentioned the director earlier, Michelle 00:20:31.539 --> 00:20:34.259 McLaren. A legend in the Breaking Bad canon. 00:20:35.259 --> 00:20:38.240 She directed One Minute, The Parking Lot Shootout. 00:20:38.559 --> 00:20:41.920 She directed Salude later on. She's known for 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:44.519 her cinematic eye. She loves wide shots that 00:20:44.519 --> 00:20:46.420 make the characters look small in their environment. 00:20:46.660 --> 00:20:48.980 Which fits perfectly here. Jessie in the museum, 00:20:49.259 --> 00:20:51.599 small against the art. Jessie on the corner, 00:20:51.799 --> 00:20:54.079 small against the street. Skyler in the office, 00:20:54.279 --> 00:20:56.519 small against the legal system. She is a master 00:20:56.519 --> 00:20:58.730 of tension. She knows how to hold a shot just 00:20:58.730 --> 00:21:01.250 a few seconds longer than comfortable. The dinner 00:21:01.250 --> 00:21:03.930 scene with Gus is all McLaren. The way she frames 00:21:03.930 --> 00:21:06.329 them at opposite ends of the table or the closeups 00:21:06.329 --> 00:21:08.569 on their mouths as they eat, it creates this 00:21:08.569 --> 00:21:11.609 subconscious anxiety in the viewer. And visually, 00:21:11.849 --> 00:21:13.970 the cinematography by Michael Slovis, we talked 00:21:13.970 --> 00:21:16.190 about the White Museum, but the lighting in Gus's 00:21:16.190 --> 00:21:19.410 house, it's warm, almost inviting, which makes 00:21:19.410 --> 00:21:22.529 the threat scarier. It's the contrast. Breaking 00:21:22.529 --> 00:21:25.859 Bad is a show about duality. High contrast lighting 00:21:25.859 --> 00:21:28.380 for high contrast morality. Now let's talk numbers. 00:21:28.819 --> 00:21:32.619 This episode aired May 30, 2010. Viewership was 00:21:32.619 --> 00:21:36.519 1 .32 million. Which sounds tiny. Yeah. Especially 00:21:36.519 --> 00:21:38.480 today, or compared to the 10 million they got 00:21:38.480 --> 00:21:40.380 for the finale. But you have to remember the 00:21:40.380 --> 00:21:44.819 context. AMC was still building this brand. And 00:21:44.819 --> 00:21:46.359 interestingly, this was an increase from the 00:21:46.359 --> 00:21:49.160 previous episode. The infamous fly episode. The 00:21:49.160 --> 00:21:51.380 bottle episode where they chase a fly for 45 00:21:51.380 --> 00:21:54.519 minutes. They got 1 .20 million. It was polarizing. 00:21:54.640 --> 00:21:56.819 Some people hated it. So seeing the numbers go 00:21:56.819 --> 00:21:58.640 up for epic queers suggests the audience came 00:21:58.640 --> 00:22:00.240 back. They didn't abandon the show. They were 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:02.380 hooked. What did the critics say at the time? 00:22:02.460 --> 00:22:04.180 Because now we call it a masterpiece, but was 00:22:04.180 --> 00:22:07.779 it praise then? It was. Seth Emerton from IGN 00:22:07.779 --> 00:22:11.329 gave it an 8 .9 out of 10. That's a stellar score. 00:22:11.730 --> 00:22:14.930 He specifically praised the amazing story arcs. 00:22:14.990 --> 00:22:17.309 He noted that Breaking Bad respects its audience. 00:22:18.029 --> 00:22:19.990 It brings back things like the combo shooting 00:22:19.990 --> 00:22:22.450 and expects you to remember. It doesn't hold 00:22:22.450 --> 00:22:24.190 your hand with flashbacks every five seconds 00:22:24.190 --> 00:22:26.289 explaining what's happening. And the AV club, 00:22:26.450 --> 00:22:28.289 Donna Bowman is one of the best reviewers out 00:22:28.289 --> 00:22:31.069 there. She gave an A -. She wrote something really 00:22:31.069 --> 00:22:33.470 insightful. She said the show is moving quickly 00:22:33.470 --> 00:22:35.569 through its starting premises. She meant that 00:22:35.569 --> 00:22:38.250 the writers aren't stalling. A lesser show would 00:22:38.250 --> 00:22:40.470 have milked Skyler's indecision for a whole season. 00:22:40.930 --> 00:22:43.170 Here, she decides to join the business in one 00:22:43.170 --> 00:22:46.049 episode. Jesse finds the killer in one episode. 00:22:46.450 --> 00:22:48.349 They burn through plot because they trust they 00:22:48.349 --> 00:22:51.609 can always invent more. But when we look at retrospective 00:22:51.609 --> 00:22:54.589 rankings lists made years later, Abiquiu often 00:22:54.589 --> 00:22:57.670 sits in the middle. The Ringer ranked it 49th. 00:22:57.789 --> 00:23:00.910 Vulture 42nd. Why isn't it top 10? Because it's 00:23:00.910 --> 00:23:03.730 a bridge episode. It's structural. It's the steel 00:23:03.730 --> 00:23:06.230 beams, not the fireworks. You can't have the 00:23:06.230 --> 00:23:08.970 explosive finale of season three, full measure, 00:23:09.609 --> 00:23:12.170 without the setup of Epiqui. But on its own, 00:23:12.190 --> 00:23:14.410 it doesn't have the I am the one who knocks speech 00:23:14.410 --> 00:23:17.069 or the train heist. It's the workhorse episode. 00:23:17.250 --> 00:23:18.809 Because of heavy lifting, so the other episodes 00:23:18.809 --> 00:23:21.890 can fly. Exactly. Without this foundation, the 00:23:21.890 --> 00:23:23.970 rest of the season collapses. So as we wrap up 00:23:23.970 --> 00:23:25.950 this deep dive, let's try to synthesize all of 00:23:25.950 --> 00:23:29.710 this. What is the core takeaway of Epiqui? We 00:23:29.710 --> 00:23:32.279 started with fart. The desire to make a good 00:23:32.279 --> 00:23:35.400 feeling last. We moved to business, Skyler, using 00:23:35.400 --> 00:23:38.420 spousal privilege to launder money. We saw power 00:23:38.420 --> 00:23:41.480 Gus Fring's dinner diplomacy. And we ended with 00:23:41.480 --> 00:23:43.519 tragedy Jessie discovering the interconnected 00:23:43.519 --> 00:23:45.779 web of death. It feels like the walls are closing 00:23:45.779 --> 00:23:48.519 in. They are. The theme is consequences. You 00:23:48.519 --> 00:23:50.980 cannot escape your past. Skyler can't escape 00:23:50.980 --> 00:23:53.039 the fact she married Walt, so she doubles down. 00:23:53.480 --> 00:23:55.859 Gus can't escape his mistake of trusting volatile 00:23:55.859 --> 00:23:59.170 people. And Jessie... Jesse can't escape the 00:23:59.170 --> 00:24:01.250 violence of his trade, even when he tries to 00:24:01.250 --> 00:24:03.650 find solace in art or a new relationship. It 00:24:03.650 --> 00:24:05.509 brings me back to that painting one last time. 00:24:05.890 --> 00:24:09.269 My last door. If Jane was right and the goal 00:24:09.269 --> 00:24:12.349 is to make a good feeling last time, was Jesse 00:24:12.349 --> 00:24:15.450 doing the opposite in this episode? That is the 00:24:15.450 --> 00:24:17.890 provocative thought for the day. By seeking out 00:24:17.890 --> 00:24:20.589 the killers, by peeling back the layers of Andrea's 00:24:20.589 --> 00:24:23.490 life, by going to that corner, Jesse is actively 00:24:23.490 --> 00:24:26.309 destroying any chance of a good feeling. He is 00:24:26.309 --> 00:24:28.789 punishing himself. He feels he doesn't deserve 00:24:28.789 --> 00:24:31.589 the museum. He doesn't deserve the girl. He feels 00:24:31.589 --> 00:24:34.329 he belongs on that corner in the dirt with the 00:24:34.329 --> 00:24:36.430 blood. He's closing the door on his own happiness. 00:24:36.670 --> 00:24:38.730 Because he believes his penance is to suffer. 00:24:39.009 --> 00:24:42.410 Wow. That is incredibly heavy. But that is why 00:24:42.410 --> 00:24:44.609 we watch. That is why this show stands the test 00:24:44.609 --> 00:24:47.569 of time. It explores the darkest corners of the 00:24:47.569 --> 00:24:49.710 human heart. It stares right into the abyss, 00:24:50.049 --> 00:24:52.700 and usually the abyss stares back. Thank you 00:24:52.700 --> 00:24:54.519 for listening to this deep dive into Breaking 00:24:54.519 --> 00:24:56.700 Bad's A B Crew. It might not be the flashiest 00:24:56.700 --> 00:24:58.700 episode, but I think we've proven it's one of 00:24:58.700 --> 00:25:00.819 the most essential. Absolutely. It's the pivot 00:25:00.819 --> 00:25:03.140 point on which the whole series turns. We'll 00:25:03.140 --> 00:25:05.859 see you next time for another deep dive. Until 00:25:05.859 --> 00:25:08.279 then, tread lightly. Goodbye, everyone.