WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.140 Welcome back to The Deep Dive. Today we are focusing 00:00:03.140 --> 00:00:07.620 our lens on a really pivotal, yet I think often 00:00:07.620 --> 00:00:11.099 understated chapter in television history. We 00:00:11.099 --> 00:00:13.519 are cracking open the files on Breaking Bad. 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:17.800 Specifically, we're looking at season four, episode 00:00:17.800 --> 00:00:21.410 three, which is titled Open House. It is a really 00:00:21.410 --> 00:00:23.890 fascinating piece of the puzzle. Usually when 00:00:23.890 --> 00:00:26.210 we talk about Breaking Bad, the gravitational 00:00:26.210 --> 00:00:28.829 center is almost always Walter White. He is the 00:00:28.829 --> 00:00:31.829 sun that this whole chaotic solar system orbits 00:00:31.829 --> 00:00:35.920 around. But Open House is unique. It's a bit 00:00:35.920 --> 00:00:37.840 of an anomaly, because it deliberately shifts 00:00:37.840 --> 00:00:40.200 that gravity. That is exactly what struck me 00:00:40.200 --> 00:00:42.039 upon re -watching this. It feels like the writers 00:00:42.039 --> 00:00:44.179 just decided to take a step back and let the 00:00:44.179 --> 00:00:46.200 supporting cast really drive the car for a while. 00:00:46.320 --> 00:00:48.259 Yeah, exactly. It's almost disorienting at first, 00:00:48.399 --> 00:00:50.780 because you keep waiting for Walt to take charge. 00:00:51.320 --> 00:00:53.359 But instead, we were looking at an episode where 00:00:53.359 --> 00:00:55.719 Skyler and Jesse and Marie are the ones making 00:00:55.719 --> 00:00:58.039 the big moves. Or spiraling out of control, depending 00:00:58.039 --> 00:00:59.679 on how you look at it. Right, exactly, spiraling 00:00:59.679 --> 00:01:02.539 out. And that shift is crucial for the narrative 00:01:02.539 --> 00:01:05.299 architecture of the season. We aren't just watching 00:01:05.299 --> 00:01:07.980 plot points happen here. We are watching actual 00:01:07.980 --> 00:01:10.959 psychological disintegration. We are seeing the 00:01:10.959 --> 00:01:13.180 ripple effects of Walt's choices on the people 00:01:13.180 --> 00:01:15.819 around him. It's the fallout, not the explosion. 00:01:16.260 --> 00:01:18.379 So our mission today for you listening is to 00:01:18.379 --> 00:01:21.640 unpack exactly how this quote unquote quiet episode 00:01:21.640 --> 00:01:24.420 does all that heavy lifting. We are going to 00:01:24.420 --> 00:01:28.540 look at the themes of guilt and the very fragile 00:01:28.540 --> 00:01:31.340 concept of masculinity. Oh, yeah, a good one 00:01:31.340 --> 00:01:34.359 here. And of course, the art of the con. Because 00:01:34.359 --> 00:01:36.019 everyone in this episode seems to be running 00:01:36.019 --> 00:01:38.640 a scam of some sort. They absolutely are. And 00:01:38.640 --> 00:01:40.420 we have a really great stack of sources to help 00:01:40.420 --> 00:01:42.480 us do that today. We'll be pulling from production 00:01:42.480 --> 00:01:44.780 notes and casting details. Including a very famous 00:01:44.780 --> 00:01:46.879 stand -up comedian's involvement. Yes, we will 00:01:46.879 --> 00:01:48.859 definitely get to that. And we're also looking 00:01:48.859 --> 00:01:50.799 at critical reviews from back when the episode 00:01:50.799 --> 00:01:54.120 first aired in 2011 to see how people reacted 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:56.620 in real time. Plus, we have some incredible behind 00:01:56.620 --> 00:01:59.099 the scenes trivia about how certain shots were 00:01:59.099 --> 00:02:01.959 achieved, which I think really changes how you 00:02:01.959 --> 00:02:04.159 view the scenes once you know the magic trick. 00:02:04.799 --> 00:02:06.829 Definitely. So buckle up. Let's start with. the 00:02:06.829 --> 00:02:09.169 white family business, or I guess we should be 00:02:09.169 --> 00:02:11.310 calling it the emerging white family criminal 00:02:11.310 --> 00:02:13.689 enterprise. That is a much more accurate title 00:02:13.689 --> 00:02:15.930 at this point, I think. So the setup here is 00:02:15.930 --> 00:02:18.250 that Walter and Schuyler are trying to buy the 00:02:18.250 --> 00:02:21.849 car wash. This is the Allen One car wash where 00:02:21.849 --> 00:02:24.590 Walt used to work and where he was just constantly 00:02:24.590 --> 00:02:28.830 humiliated by his eyebrows of doom boss Bogdan. 00:02:28.870 --> 00:02:31.889 Right, Bogdan. They need it as a front to launder 00:02:31.889 --> 00:02:35.189 the meth money. But there's a massive snag. Right. 00:02:35.389 --> 00:02:37.289 They sit down with Saul Goodwin to discuss the 00:02:37.289 --> 00:02:40.229 purchase. And it is not going smoothly. Bogdan 00:02:40.229 --> 00:02:42.610 is stubborn. He doesn't like Walt. Not at all. 00:02:42.689 --> 00:02:44.729 And honestly, Walt isn't exactly a charmer in 00:02:44.729 --> 00:02:47.509 these negotiations. But what fascinates me here 00:02:47.509 --> 00:02:50.349 is not the business deal itself. It's the dynamic 00:02:50.349 --> 00:02:52.469 between Schuyler and Walt and how they approach 00:02:52.469 --> 00:02:54.150 it. OK, let's unpack this because this is where 00:02:54.150 --> 00:02:57.270 Schuyler really starts to shine or terrify us. 00:02:57.370 --> 00:02:59.289 A little bit of both. Yeah, depending on your 00:02:59.289 --> 00:03:03.680 perspective. She manipulates Walt into agreeing 00:03:03.680 --> 00:03:06.300 to the purchase, but she doesn't do it by begging. 00:03:06.400 --> 00:03:08.900 She doesn't do it by arguing logic or spreadsheets 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:10.939 or anything like that. No, she uses his own ego 00:03:10.939 --> 00:03:14.639 against him. Exactly. It is a master class in 00:03:14.639 --> 00:03:17.439 psychological manipulation. If you watch her 00:03:17.439 --> 00:03:19.120 body language in that scene where she's pouring 00:03:19.120 --> 00:03:23.000 the wine, it's so subtle. She adopts this slightly 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:25.539 lower status, playing the role of the concerned 00:03:25.539 --> 00:03:28.039 wife just enough to disarm him. Just pouring 00:03:28.039 --> 00:03:29.860 the wine, playing the part. Right, and then she 00:03:29.860 --> 00:03:33.150 drops the bomb. She mentions that Bogdan the 00:03:33.150 --> 00:03:36.150 owner insulted Walt's manhood. That was the key 00:03:36.150 --> 00:03:38.349 right there. She says something along the lines 00:03:38.349 --> 00:03:40.389 of he thinks you're not man enough to run the 00:03:40.389 --> 00:03:43.129 place and you can see the shift in Bryan Cranston's 00:03:43.129 --> 00:03:45.270 face immediately. Like a physical twitch. Yeah, 00:03:45.289 --> 00:03:48.360 it's a trigger. Walt can handle danger, and he 00:03:48.360 --> 00:03:50.539 can handle the cartel, but he cannot handle being 00:03:50.539 --> 00:03:53.219 looked down upon, especially by someone he considers 00:03:53.219 --> 00:03:56.340 inferior like Bogdon. Skyler knows that. She 00:03:56.340 --> 00:03:58.060 knows the quickest way to get Walt to do what 00:03:58.060 --> 00:04:00.639 she wants is to bruise his ego just enough that 00:04:00.639 --> 00:04:03.319 he feels the need to fight back. So true. She 00:04:03.319 --> 00:04:05.599 frames the purchase of the car wash, not just 00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:08.080 as a business decision, but as a way for Walt 00:04:08.080 --> 00:04:10.860 to reclaim his dignity. It's incredible because 00:04:10.860 --> 00:04:14.259 she is essentially wingonizing his toxic masculinity 00:04:14.259 --> 00:04:17.100 against him. She knows he needs to win. And Entertainment 00:04:17.100 --> 00:04:18.879 Weekly actually pointed this out in their review 00:04:18.879 --> 00:04:21.040 at the time. Oh, it did? Yeah, they noted that 00:04:21.040 --> 00:04:23.500 this whole episode is wrestling with the idea 00:04:23.500 --> 00:04:27.360 of masculinity. Skyler is asserting herself in 00:04:27.360 --> 00:04:29.800 Walt's world while Walt is still struggling with 00:04:29.800 --> 00:04:32.399 his status. She's playing 40 chess while he's 00:04:32.399 --> 00:04:34.819 still playing checkers. Exactly. And what's scary 00:04:34.819 --> 00:04:37.000 is how natural she is at it. This isn't a woman 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:39.180 who is hesitant anymore. She sees the board. 00:04:39.079 --> 00:04:42.879 And because Walt is so blinded by his own reflection, 00:04:43.459 --> 00:04:45.720 he doesn't even realize he's being steered. So 00:04:45.720 --> 00:04:47.980 Walt is on board, but Bogdan isn't going to sell 00:04:47.980 --> 00:04:50.939 easily. He wants a ridiculous price, partly just 00:04:50.939 --> 00:04:53.980 to spite Walt. And this is where we get to the 00:04:53.980 --> 00:04:57.180 EPA sting. This is hands down one of my favorite 00:04:57.180 --> 00:04:59.319 sequences in the entire series because it feels 00:04:59.319 --> 00:05:01.720 like a heist movie dropped into the middle of 00:05:01.720 --> 00:05:04.939 a really heavy drama. It is a beautifully elaborate 00:05:04.939 --> 00:05:09.199 con. Skyler devises this plan to lower the price 00:05:09.199 --> 00:05:11.740 of the car wash because she knows they can't 00:05:11.740 --> 00:05:14.680 just offer more money. That would look incredibly 00:05:14.680 --> 00:05:17.259 suspicious to the IRS. Right. They need to explain 00:05:17.259 --> 00:05:18.600 the money. So they have to make the business 00:05:18.600 --> 00:05:20.720 look worthless. They have to destroy its value 00:05:20.720 --> 00:05:23.920 in Bogdan's eyes. Enter the player. We get introduced 00:05:23.920 --> 00:05:26.980 to a character named Patrick Cooby. And for any 00:05:26.980 --> 00:05:29.379 comedy nerds out there, seeing Bill Burr pop 00:05:29.379 --> 00:05:32.699 up on screen was a huge aha moment. Oh, totally. 00:05:32.759 --> 00:05:34.519 I remember watching this and thinking, wait, 00:05:34.720 --> 00:05:37.860 is that the guy from the podcasts? It's a brilliant 00:05:37.860 --> 00:05:40.579 bit of casting. Patrick Kubi is an acquaintance 00:05:40.579 --> 00:05:43.399 of Saul Goodman, basically a fellow con artist 00:05:43.399 --> 00:05:46.560 or fixer. And in this episode, he poses as a 00:05:46.560 --> 00:05:48.639 representative from the US Environmental Protection 00:05:48.639 --> 00:05:52.100 Agency. The setup is just pure comedy gold. He 00:05:52.100 --> 00:05:54.620 goes to the car wash and claims the site is contaminated. 00:05:55.180 --> 00:05:57.519 He's got the clipboard, the jargon, the official 00:05:57.519 --> 00:05:59.959 looking windbreaker, everything. The whole outfit. 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:01.720 He tells Bogdan that the business is going to 00:06:01.720 --> 00:06:04.279 be shut down because of these contaminants. And 00:06:04.279 --> 00:06:07.319 notice his performance here. Bilber isn't playing 00:06:07.319 --> 00:06:09.779 Bilber the comedian. He's playing a character. 00:06:10.110 --> 00:06:12.389 who is playing a character. Right. He's being 00:06:12.389 --> 00:06:15.250 annoying and bureaucratic and officious. He's 00:06:15.250 --> 00:06:17.670 channeling every government inspector nightmare 00:06:17.670 --> 00:06:19.910 that a small business owner has ever had. The 00:06:19.910 --> 00:06:22.389 way he is taking samples of the water and just 00:06:22.389 --> 00:06:24.569 looking at them with that highly skeptical face, 00:06:24.629 --> 00:06:27.750 it's perfect. And speaking of Bilber, there is 00:06:27.750 --> 00:06:30.389 a great nugget of trivia regarding how he got 00:06:30.389 --> 00:06:32.889 the gig. I love this story. Yeah, apparently 00:06:32.889 --> 00:06:35.810 he didn't just... stumble into it or get headhunted 00:06:35.810 --> 00:06:38.389 by an agent, he specifically sought to be on 00:06:38.389 --> 00:06:41.610 the show. Yes, he was a massive fan. He expressed 00:06:41.610 --> 00:06:43.889 interest directly to the casting directors, Sharon 00:06:43.889 --> 00:06:47.209 Bioli and Sherri Thomas. And the creator, Vince 00:06:47.209 --> 00:06:49.709 Gilligan, admitted that the writers were already 00:06:49.709 --> 00:06:52.209 huge fans of his. That's right. Gilligan said, 00:06:52.430 --> 00:06:54.579 quote, We just waste so much time here in the 00:06:54.579 --> 00:06:56.480 writer's room by getting on YouTube and watching 00:06:56.480 --> 00:06:59.120 some of his routines. That is hilarious to picture. 00:06:59.360 --> 00:07:01.180 Just imagine the Breaking Bad writer's room, 00:07:01.500 --> 00:07:03.220 arguably the most intense storytelling engine 00:07:03.220 --> 00:07:05.579 on TV at the time, procrastinating by watching 00:07:05.579 --> 00:07:09.240 Bill Burr rant about population control or sports. 00:07:09.620 --> 00:07:11.639 Right, but it makes sense why the dialogue fits 00:07:11.639 --> 00:07:13.819 him so well, has that very specific rhythm. It 00:07:13.819 --> 00:07:17.019 does, and the con works perfectly. Bogdan is 00:07:17.019 --> 00:07:19.079 terrified of the government crackdown and the 00:07:19.079 --> 00:07:21.579 potential costs of the cleanup. It's a classic 00:07:21.579 --> 00:07:25.160 fear of loss tactic. So the outcome is that Bogdan 00:07:25.160 --> 00:07:28.740 sells the car wash to Skyler and Walt. And get 00:07:28.740 --> 00:07:30.879 this, he sells it for a lower price than Skyler's 00:07:30.879 --> 00:07:33.339 original offer. Amazing. She didn't just get 00:07:33.339 --> 00:07:35.079 the car wash, she absolutely crushed him in the 00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:37.579 negotiation. She beat him into submission without 00:07:37.579 --> 00:07:40.399 ever raising her voice. And that brings us to 00:07:40.399 --> 00:07:42.819 the critical analysis of Skyler's character arc 00:07:42.819 --> 00:07:46.379 here. TV Fanatic had a review that compared Skyler's 00:07:46.379 --> 00:07:48.600 calculated approach to drug dealing, or rather 00:07:48.600 --> 00:07:51.279 money laundering, to Gus Fring's personality. 00:07:51.879 --> 00:07:55.500 Whoa. Comparing Skyler to Gus, that is heavy. 00:07:55.740 --> 00:07:57.600 Gus is the ultimate villain at this point in 00:07:57.600 --> 00:07:59.560 the show. It is heavy, but think about the methodology. 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:02.639 It's cool and calculated and unemotional and 00:08:02.639 --> 00:08:05.339 utterly effective. Gus hides in plain sight, 00:08:05.379 --> 00:08:07.699 and Skyler is learning to do the exact same thing. 00:08:07.860 --> 00:08:09.920 That's a really good point. New York Magazine 00:08:09.920 --> 00:08:11.579 noted this transformation as well, actually. 00:08:11.709 --> 00:08:14.569 They described her shift from concerned wife 00:08:14.569 --> 00:08:18.110 to competent criminal partner. It raises a really 00:08:18.110 --> 00:08:20.089 fascinating question for you listening. Was she 00:08:20.089 --> 00:08:23.189 always this capable? I mean, we spent seasons 00:08:23.189 --> 00:08:26.149 watching her be the victim or the barrier to 00:08:26.149 --> 00:08:28.589 Walt's fun, but was this part of her personality 00:08:28.589 --> 00:08:31.589 just dormant, waiting for the right or maybe 00:08:31.589 --> 00:08:34.870 the wrong circumstances to wake it up? That is 00:08:34.870 --> 00:08:37.370 the ambiguity the show just loves to play with. 00:08:37.509 --> 00:08:39.690 It challenges the whole nature versus nurture 00:08:39.690 --> 00:08:42.269 debate. Did the situation make her this way, 00:08:42.429 --> 00:08:44.529 or did the situation just reveal who she always 00:08:44.529 --> 00:08:46.769 was deep down? It's chilling when you think about 00:08:46.769 --> 00:08:48.789 it, but while the whites are having this massive 00:08:48.789 --> 00:08:51.409 success in their criminal enterprise high fives 00:08:51.409 --> 00:08:55.029 all around, essentially things are looking very, 00:08:55.129 --> 00:08:57.590 very different for Jesse Pinkman. Yeah, we are 00:08:57.590 --> 00:09:00.289 pivoting now to the much darker side of the episode. 00:09:00.409 --> 00:09:02.970 The contrast is just jarring, and it's intentionally 00:09:02.970 --> 00:09:06.629 so. While the Whites are solidifying their future, 00:09:07.110 --> 00:09:09.730 Jesse is spiraling because of his past, specifically 00:09:09.730 --> 00:09:11.590 the murder of Gail Boetticher in the previous 00:09:11.590 --> 00:09:14.940 season finale. The atmosphere at Jesse's house 00:09:14.940 --> 00:09:18.159 is just nightmare fuel. It's not a party, it's 00:09:18.159 --> 00:09:21.019 a distraction. We see continuous drug -fueled 00:09:21.019 --> 00:09:24.240 orgies. The house is becoming completely decrepit. 00:09:24.399 --> 00:09:26.940 There is graffiti on the walls. It's total chaos. 00:09:27.120 --> 00:09:29.519 It's a physical manifestation of his internal 00:09:29.519 --> 00:09:32.440 state. His mind is a mess, so his house is a 00:09:32.440 --> 00:09:35.379 mess. And there is a specific detail in the source 00:09:35.379 --> 00:09:38.320 material that really highlights this self -destructive 00:09:38.320 --> 00:09:41.669 apathy. Jesse is throwing crumpled dollar bills 00:09:41.669 --> 00:09:44.149 at a sleeping man. Right. I remember this scene 00:09:44.149 --> 00:09:47.190 vividly. The guy is passed out and he's wearing 00:09:47.190 --> 00:09:50.230 a dress shirt and tie, but no pants. Oh. Which 00:09:50.230 --> 00:09:52.970 is such a weird, vivid image on its own. Very 00:09:52.970 --> 00:09:55.710 Breaking Bad. Yes. And Jesse's just tossing money 00:09:55.710 --> 00:09:57.490 at him, trying to get it into his open mouth 00:09:57.490 --> 00:10:00.110 like a game of quarters. It's profoundly sad. 00:10:00.190 --> 00:10:02.429 He is literally throwing away the money he killed 00:10:02.429 --> 00:10:03.909 for. The money that was supposed to solve his 00:10:03.909 --> 00:10:05.909 problems is now just trash to him. It has no 00:10:05.909 --> 00:10:07.629 value because the cost of getting it was his 00:10:07.629 --> 00:10:10.720 soul. And here is a fantastic production secret 00:10:10.720 --> 00:10:13.519 about that specific shot. You might think, oh, 00:10:13.740 --> 00:10:16.059 Aaron Paul must have practiced that throw a hundred 00:10:16.059 --> 00:10:18.080 times to get it right. Oh, right, the trivia. 00:10:18.460 --> 00:10:20.480 Yeah, it wasn't Aaron Paul making those shots. 00:10:20.500 --> 00:10:23.340 It was actually the property master, Trina Siappi, 00:10:23.600 --> 00:10:26.480 who was standing off screen. No way. Yes, they 00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:28.720 set up the camera angle so you see Jessie's hand. 00:10:29.159 --> 00:10:32.899 But the actual throw came from Trina. And get 00:10:32.899 --> 00:10:35.580 this, she got the bill into the actor's mouth 00:10:35.580 --> 00:10:38.830 on her second try. That is impressive aim. I 00:10:38.830 --> 00:10:41.950 mean, I couldn't do that. Same. But narratively, 00:10:42.029 --> 00:10:44.429 it emphasizes how disconnected Jesse is. He's 00:10:44.429 --> 00:10:46.690 just going through the motions. And to try and 00:10:46.690 --> 00:10:49.899 escape this constant noise, we see Jesse trying 00:10:49.899 --> 00:10:52.259 to clear his head with go -karts. Ah, the go 00:10:52.259 --> 00:10:54.519 -karts. Those scenes are visually stunning, but 00:10:54.519 --> 00:10:56.440 emotionally, they are just completely empty. 00:10:56.720 --> 00:10:58.600 He's riding around this track totally alone. 00:10:58.759 --> 00:11:00.419 The colors are really bright. The noise of the 00:11:00.419 --> 00:11:02.539 engine is super loud, but his face is just dead. 00:11:02.759 --> 00:11:04.419 And an interesting fact about this plot point, 00:11:04.500 --> 00:11:07.120 it was actually inspired by real life. Really? 00:11:07.279 --> 00:11:09.340 Yeah, Aaron Paul and the crew actually used to 00:11:09.340 --> 00:11:11.960 go kart racing in Albuquerque between filming 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:14.909 as a way to blow off steam. That is a great example 00:11:14.909 --> 00:11:17.809 of art imitating life, but heavily twisted for 00:11:17.809 --> 00:11:20.470 the narrative. In reality, it was fun for the 00:11:20.470 --> 00:11:23.809 cast. It was a way to bond. But in the show, 00:11:23.909 --> 00:11:27.110 they strip away the bonding completely. Jesse 00:11:27.110 --> 00:11:29.409 is doing a fun activity, but because he's alone 00:11:29.409 --> 00:11:31.929 and so traumatized, it becomes just another form 00:11:31.929 --> 00:11:34.610 of noise. A desperate attempt to feel something 00:11:34.610 --> 00:11:36.509 or perhaps to feel nothing at all. And we have 00:11:36.509 --> 00:11:39.049 to talk about the sound of guilt here. The music 00:11:39.049 --> 00:11:41.690 choice for these scenes is incredibly specific. 00:11:41.929 --> 00:11:45.610 The song is If I Had a Heart by Fever Ray. Oh, 00:11:45.649 --> 00:11:47.590 that track is haunting. It is so visceral. It's 00:11:47.590 --> 00:11:50.049 got that throbbing, dark, underwater feel to 00:11:50.049 --> 00:11:52.350 it. The music supervisor, Thomas Golubich, said 00:11:52.350 --> 00:11:55.769 he wanted a muted, loud sort of feel. Ray, he 00:11:55.769 --> 00:11:57.649 mentioned in interviews that he actually tried 00:11:57.649 --> 00:12:00.429 other genres first for the house party scenes. 00:12:00.629 --> 00:12:02.710 Oh, what did they try? They looked at punks. 00:12:03.000 --> 00:12:05.360 They looked at dubstep hip -hop things you would 00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:08.440 normally expect at a meth -fueled party in Albuquerque. 00:12:08.539 --> 00:12:10.820 But they felt too aggressive or too energetic. 00:12:11.279 --> 00:12:14.159 They implied a kind of fun or aggression that 00:12:14.159 --> 00:12:16.580 Jesse simply wasn't feeling. He wanted something 00:12:16.580 --> 00:12:19.279 that delved deeper into Jesse's headspace. And 00:12:19.279 --> 00:12:22.980 if I had a heart, heart captures that perfectly. 00:12:23.100 --> 00:12:25.639 It matches the full heavy darkness of the party. 00:12:26.080 --> 00:12:28.379 It's not a celebration. It's a funeral dirge 00:12:28.379 --> 00:12:31.279 that just never ends. The lyrics themselves... 00:12:31.450 --> 00:12:34.210 If I had a heart, I could love you. They speak 00:12:34.210 --> 00:12:36.570 directly to his feeling of being hollowed out. 00:12:36.690 --> 00:12:39.350 And adding to all that paranoia is the detail 00:12:39.350 --> 00:12:42.259 of Tyra's kit. He's Gus's other henchman, the 00:12:42.259 --> 00:12:44.580 one who took over for Victor. And he's watching 00:12:44.580 --> 00:12:47.080 Jesse from a car outside. Just sitting there. 00:12:47.139 --> 00:12:50.200 Yeah. So even in his chaos, Jesse is being observed. 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:53.620 He's never truly alone, yet he's completely isolated. 00:12:53.879 --> 00:12:56.419 It's a tragic paradox. He surrounds himself with 00:12:56.419 --> 00:12:58.279 people to avoid being alone with his thoughts, 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:00.960 but he's being watched by a predator. Now, speaking 00:13:00.960 --> 00:13:03.179 of acting out to cope with stress, we need to 00:13:03.179 --> 00:13:05.440 talk about Marie Schrader. This is the third 00:13:05.440 --> 00:13:07.460 pillar of the episode. Marie often gets a bad 00:13:07.460 --> 00:13:10.620 rap from fans, but this episode is really essential 00:13:10.620 --> 00:13:13.399 for understanding her psychology. She relapses 00:13:13.399 --> 00:13:15.899 into her kleptomania here. We saw this way back 00:13:15.899 --> 00:13:18.039 in season one with the tiara and the shoes, but 00:13:18.039 --> 00:13:20.340 it is back with a vengeance here in season four. 00:13:20.399 --> 00:13:22.559 And the context is pretty clear. Hank is treating 00:13:22.559 --> 00:13:25.120 her terribly. Well, he's awful to her. He's recovering 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:27.820 from his gunshot wounds. He's bitter. He's angry. 00:13:28.080 --> 00:13:30.840 And he's giving her the cold shoulder constantly. 00:13:31.080 --> 00:13:33.840 He is verbally abusive, frankly. He isolates 00:13:33.840 --> 00:13:37.059 himself with his marils, sorry, his rocks, and 00:13:37.059 --> 00:13:39.820 shuts her out. In her rolls. Right. So she seeks 00:13:39.820 --> 00:13:41.419 a respite. That's actually how Vince Gilligan 00:13:41.419 --> 00:13:43.139 described it. She starts hitting up these real 00:13:43.139 --> 00:13:45.659 estate open houses. But she's not just looking 00:13:45.659 --> 00:13:48.659 around. She was creating these elaborate fake 00:13:48.659 --> 00:13:50.559 backstories for herself. I have to be honest. 00:13:50.600 --> 00:13:52.440 Watching Marie in this episode actually made 00:13:52.440 --> 00:13:54.840 me really uncomfortable. Yeah. Not just because 00:13:54.840 --> 00:13:57.259 of the stealing, but because of the lies. The 00:13:57.259 --> 00:13:59.899 stealing almost felt secondary to the fantasy 00:13:59.899 --> 00:14:02.179 she was spinning. Did you get that vibe? Oh, 00:14:02.179 --> 00:14:04.240 absolutely. The stealing is just the souvenir, 00:14:04.279 --> 00:14:07.179 right? The real drug here is the reinvention. 00:14:07.659 --> 00:14:10.720 When she walks into those open houses, she isn't 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:13.440 Marie Schrader, the wife of a bitter, bedridden 00:14:13.360 --> 00:14:16.840 and DEA agent. She's, well, who were some of 00:14:16.840 --> 00:14:18.559 the people she pretended to be? Let's see, she 00:14:18.559 --> 00:14:21.080 was Tory, I think. And then she was a divorcee 00:14:21.080 --> 00:14:23.779 with a darker backstory at another house. Tory 00:14:23.779 --> 00:14:25.779 Costner, I believe. Yeah. Which is a whole other 00:14:25.779 --> 00:14:28.419 layer of psychology, putting a famous last name 00:14:28.419 --> 00:14:31.539 to imply status or connection. Oh, right, Costner. 00:14:31.840 --> 00:14:33.820 But you're right to feel uncomfortable. It's 00:14:33.820 --> 00:14:36.039 because we're watching someone dissociate in 00:14:36.039 --> 00:14:38.940 real time. It's not just kleptomania in the strict 00:14:38.940 --> 00:14:41.879 medical sense. It's a full -blown identity crisis. 00:14:42.240 --> 00:14:45.360 She is trying on other lives because her current 00:14:45.360 --> 00:14:48.120 life is just unbearable. And while she's there 00:14:48.120 --> 00:14:50.639 in these other lives, she's swiping things, spoons, 00:14:50.919 --> 00:14:53.100 figurines, whatever she can fit in her bag. It 00:14:53.100 --> 00:14:57.039 seems so petty. Like, why risk jail for a spoon? 00:14:57.460 --> 00:15:00.379 It's a control mechanism. Her life at home is 00:15:00.379 --> 00:15:02.539 completely out of control. Hank controls the 00:15:02.539 --> 00:15:04.580 environment, the mood, the television, everything. 00:15:05.259 --> 00:15:07.240 Yeah. Stealing these small items gives her a 00:15:07.240 --> 00:15:10.440 tiny hit of dopamine. A secret sense of agency. 00:15:10.960 --> 00:15:12.799 It's like her saying, I took this. This is mine. 00:15:12.799 --> 00:15:15.259 I have a secret. But like all sprees on this 00:15:15.259 --> 00:15:16.840 show, it eventually comes to an end. She gets 00:15:16.840 --> 00:15:19.519 busted. A realtor, played by guest star Jennifer 00:15:19.519 --> 00:15:22.200 Hasty, by the way, recognizes her from a previous 00:15:22.200 --> 00:15:24.580 open house where things went missing. And this 00:15:24.580 --> 00:15:26.259 leads to the moment where the subplots finally 00:15:26.259 --> 00:15:29.039 collide. Marie is in police custody and she has 00:15:29.039 --> 00:15:31.840 to call Hank. It's her absolute rock bottom moment 00:15:31.840 --> 00:15:34.639 for the season. And Hank, despite being a total 00:15:34.639 --> 00:15:38.340 jerk to her at home, actually steps up. He calls 00:15:38.340 --> 00:15:40.700 in a favor with a detective friend, Tim Roberts. 00:15:41.179 --> 00:15:43.679 Played by Nigel Gibbs. Right. Hank gets Marie 00:15:43.679 --> 00:15:47.019 out of charges. But here's the twist. This isn't 00:15:47.019 --> 00:15:49.740 just a get out of Yale free card. Roberts asks 00:15:49.740 --> 00:15:52.240 for something in return. And not from Marie, 00:15:52.279 --> 00:15:55.059 but from Hank. This is the catalyst. This is 00:15:55.059 --> 00:15:57.480 the moment the entire series pivots and it happens 00:15:57.480 --> 00:16:00.600 almost by accident. Roberts asks for Hank's help 00:16:00.600 --> 00:16:03.360 on a murder case. He hands him a lab notebook 00:16:03.360 --> 00:16:05.879 found at the scene. The Gale Boetticher notebook. 00:16:06.279 --> 00:16:08.600 Exactly. At first, Hank shoves it away. He wants 00:16:08.600 --> 00:16:10.500 absolutely nothing to do with it. He's wallowing 00:16:10.500 --> 00:16:13.580 in his depression. But the episode ends. with 00:16:13.580 --> 00:16:15.419 the strong implication that he begins reading 00:16:15.419 --> 00:16:17.620 it. And that is the moment everything changes. 00:16:17.940 --> 00:16:20.419 Marie's acting out inadvertently brings the investigation 00:16:20.419 --> 00:16:23.320 right back to Walt's doorstep. If she hadn't 00:16:23.320 --> 00:16:25.340 stolen that spoon, if she hadn't gotten caught, 00:16:25.600 --> 00:16:26.980 Hank might never have looked at that notebook. 00:16:27.200 --> 00:16:28.740 He might have just stayed in bed with his minerals 00:16:28.740 --> 00:16:31.659 forever. It is the chaos theory of Breaking Bad. 00:16:32.419 --> 00:16:35.259 A butterfly flaps its wings or Marie steals a 00:16:35.259 --> 00:16:37.620 figurine and the drug empire eventually crumbles. 00:16:38.019 --> 00:16:39.980 It shows how interconnected these characters 00:16:39.980 --> 00:16:42.139 are even when they aren't in the same room. It 00:16:42.139 --> 00:16:45.240 really does. Let's shift gears a bit to the look 00:16:45.240 --> 00:16:47.600 and feel of the episode. We've talked a lot about 00:16:47.600 --> 00:16:50.299 the plot, but the direction here is really distinct. 00:16:50.779 --> 00:16:53.440 This episode was directed by David Slade. Yes, 00:16:53.879 --> 00:16:55.720 and David Slade is a very interesting choice. 00:16:56.059 --> 00:16:58.559 He comes from a background of horror and highly 00:16:58.559 --> 00:17:02.019 stylized films. He did Hard Candy and 30 Days 00:17:02.019 --> 00:17:04.140 of Night. Oh, wow. This was actually his first 00:17:04.140 --> 00:17:06.500 time directing for television. And critics took 00:17:06.500 --> 00:17:09.420 note of his style immediately. Alan Sepinwall, 00:17:09.539 --> 00:17:12.920 a very prominent TV critic, praised the direction, 00:17:13.339 --> 00:17:15.700 specifically the jump shots in Jesse's scenes. 00:17:15.859 --> 00:17:17.920 Those jump cuts really add to that disoriented 00:17:17.920 --> 00:17:19.839 feeling we were talking about earlier. It's jerky. 00:17:19.859 --> 00:17:22.680 It's anxious. But there's another visual technique 00:17:22.680 --> 00:17:24.559 that plays a huge role here that I want to drill 00:17:24.559 --> 00:17:26.339 down on, and that's the surveillance camera. 00:17:26.980 --> 00:17:29.980 Yes. We have this subplot where Walt realizes 00:17:29.980 --> 00:17:32.680 there is a motion detecting camera installed 00:17:32.680 --> 00:17:35.849 in the meth lab. He is furious. He absolutely 00:17:35.849 --> 00:17:37.609 hates being watched. He flips off the camera. 00:17:37.710 --> 00:17:40.069 He stares at it aggressively. Gilligan called 00:17:40.069 --> 00:17:43.390 this brinkmanship and gamesmanship. It's Gus 00:17:43.390 --> 00:17:45.950 Fring's way of messing with Walt's head without 00:17:45.950 --> 00:17:48.650 saying a single word. It's the panopticon effect. 00:17:48.950 --> 00:17:50.910 You behave differently when you know you're being 00:17:50.910 --> 00:17:53.869 watched. There is a very specific visual texture 00:17:53.869 --> 00:17:55.930 in this episode when we see through that camera. 00:17:56.289 --> 00:17:58.250 It happens when Walt looks up at that motion 00:17:58.250 --> 00:18:01.490 detector. The image shifts entirely. It gets 00:18:01.490 --> 00:18:05.420 ugly. It gets grainy. brilliant directorial choice 00:18:05.420 --> 00:18:08.680 by David Slade. Usually on a show of this caliber, 00:18:08.880 --> 00:18:11.839 which is shot on 35 millimeter film, which is 00:18:11.839 --> 00:18:14.059 expensive and beautiful, if they want a security 00:18:14.059 --> 00:18:15.880 camera shot, they film it on the high quality 00:18:15.880 --> 00:18:18.740 cameras and then degrade it later in post -production. 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:20.980 They add digital noise, they desaturate it. But 00:18:20.980 --> 00:18:22.720 that never looks quite right, does it? It always 00:18:22.720 --> 00:18:24.799 looks like a movie version of a security camera. 00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:27.799 Exactly, it feels fake. Oh. So here, they literally 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:30.849 use the lens of the actual prop. They're recording 00:18:30.849 --> 00:18:33.670 onto a cheap digital sensor inside that motion 00:18:33.670 --> 00:18:35.910 detector housing. That's amazing. Yeah, that's 00:18:35.910 --> 00:18:38.009 why you get those pillar box black bars on the 00:18:38.009 --> 00:18:40.829 side. The aspect ratio is completely wrong. The 00:18:40.829 --> 00:18:43.049 dynamic range is crushed. So the blacks are muddy 00:18:43.049 --> 00:18:44.930 and the whites are blown out. It makes the viewer 00:18:44.930 --> 00:18:47.509 feel voyeuristic, like we aren't watching a prestige 00:18:47.509 --> 00:18:50.170 TV show anymore. We're the ones sitting in the 00:18:50.170 --> 00:18:52.529 security room at Paula Sermanos spying on Walt 00:18:52.529 --> 00:18:55.690 right alongside Gus. It implicates us in the 00:18:55.690 --> 00:18:58.720 surveillance. Which... naturally increases the 00:18:58.720 --> 00:19:01.460 tension. We are complicit. It breaks the fourth 00:19:01.460 --> 00:19:04.380 wall of the cinematic quality and drops us directly 00:19:04.380 --> 00:19:07.299 into the gritty reality of the lab. So what does 00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:09.720 this all mean in the grand scheme? Let's look 00:19:09.720 --> 00:19:12.660 at the reception. How did the world react to 00:19:12.660 --> 00:19:16.700 Open House back in 2011? Because this is a slower 00:19:16.700 --> 00:19:19.170 episode to people appreciate it. Well, the numbers 00:19:19.170 --> 00:19:22.289 were solid. It had 1 .7, 4 million viewers. That's 00:19:22.289 --> 00:19:24.849 a 0 .7 rating in the key demographic. Not bad. 00:19:25.029 --> 00:19:28.029 No. For a cable drama in 2011, those are respectable 00:19:28.029 --> 00:19:30.650 numbers, though Breaking Bad was definitely still 00:19:30.650 --> 00:19:32.410 growing its audience at this point. But the reviews 00:19:32.410 --> 00:19:34.849 were a bit of a mixed bag, right? They really 00:19:34.849 --> 00:19:37.390 were. The Los Angeles Times was very high on 00:19:37.390 --> 00:19:39.769 it. Emily St. James called it one of the best 00:19:39.769 --> 00:19:41.829 episodes this show has ever done. High praise. 00:19:42.210 --> 00:19:45.410 Yes. She argued that showing how Walt's actions 00:19:45.410 --> 00:19:48.200 ripple out to others, Skyler, Jessie Marie. made 00:19:48.200 --> 00:19:52.079 the world feel significantly richer. She appreciated 00:19:52.079 --> 00:19:54.960 the break from the constant Walt in Danger plot 00:19:54.960 --> 00:19:57.859 engine. And IGN agreed, calling it a solid improvement 00:19:57.859 --> 00:20:00.920 over the previous two episodes. They really liked 00:20:00.920 --> 00:20:03.359 the comedy relief from Betsy Brandt as Marie 00:20:03.359 --> 00:20:06.099 finding that delicate balance between the funny 00:20:06.099 --> 00:20:09.140 Tory Costner stuff and the really sad reality 00:20:09.140 --> 00:20:11.519 of her marriage. Which is totally valid. Yeah. 00:20:11.720 --> 00:20:14.470 But not everyone was convinced. Slate writers 00:20:14.470 --> 00:20:16.509 felt the Jesse scenes were a bit over the top. 00:20:16.509 --> 00:20:18.390 Oh, interesting. Yeah, they thought the level 00:20:18.390 --> 00:20:20.750 of decrepitude was maybe pushing it too far or 00:20:20.750 --> 00:20:23.150 bordering on melodrama. They felt that the House 00:20:23.150 --> 00:20:25.130 of Horrors trope was just a bit heavy handed. 00:20:25.289 --> 00:20:27.710 I can see that it is extreme. The pizza on the 00:20:27.710 --> 00:20:29.730 roof is one thing, but the house party is a whole 00:20:29.730 --> 00:20:32.529 other level. And they also felt Skyler's concern 00:20:32.529 --> 00:20:35.269 for Walt's safety felt out of character given 00:20:35.269 --> 00:20:37.349 where they were in the relationship at that exact 00:20:37.349 --> 00:20:40.250 moment. They argued she should be more detached. 00:20:40.460 --> 00:20:42.740 But I think the most interesting critical takeaway 00:20:42.740 --> 00:20:44.920 comes from Entertainment Weekly. They focused 00:20:44.920 --> 00:20:47.279 entirely on that theme of masculinity that we 00:20:47.279 --> 00:20:49.339 touched on earlier. Here's where it gets really 00:20:49.339 --> 00:20:52.180 interesting. The script seems to be asking, what 00:20:52.180 --> 00:20:55.660 does it mean to be a strong man? Exactly. Look 00:20:55.660 --> 00:20:58.940 at the men in this episode. You have Walt whose 00:20:58.940 --> 00:21:02.200 manhood is so incredibly fragile that the mere 00:21:02.200 --> 00:21:05.099 mention of an insult by Bogdan Sets him off on 00:21:05.099 --> 00:21:07.539 a path of petty revenge, right? Then you have 00:21:07.539 --> 00:21:10.519 Hank who has lost his physical strength and is 00:21:10.519 --> 00:21:12.640 taking his deep insecurities out on his wife 00:21:12.640 --> 00:21:15.440 just to feel powerful again And you have Jesse 00:21:15.440 --> 00:21:18.740 who is completely numb unable to process his 00:21:18.740 --> 00:21:21.859 emotions and engaging in massive self -destruction 00:21:21.859 --> 00:21:23.940 None of them are strong in the traditional sense. 00:21:23.940 --> 00:21:26.039 They are all entirely broken and then you have 00:21:26.039 --> 00:21:28.859 the women Skylar is the one executing the real 00:21:28.859 --> 00:21:31.359 power plays, negotiating the deals and controlling 00:21:31.359 --> 00:21:34.000 the narrative. Marie is the one taking action 00:21:34.000 --> 00:21:36.720 to escape her reality, albeit very destructively. 00:21:36.980 --> 00:21:39.420 It's a total subversion of the traditional roles. 00:21:40.019 --> 00:21:42.319 The strong men are crumbling or flailing, and 00:21:42.319 --> 00:21:44.539 the women are adapting or at least reacting in 00:21:44.539 --> 00:21:47.440 ways that actually drive the plot forward. Skylar 00:21:47.440 --> 00:21:50.019 is becoming the partner Walt needs, but doesn't 00:21:50.019 --> 00:21:52.450 necessarily want. It's also worth noting that 00:21:52.450 --> 00:21:54.410 the supporting cast really got their moment in 00:21:54.410 --> 00:21:56.369 the sun here. Yeah. Betsy Brant said this was 00:21:56.369 --> 00:21:59.210 her favorite episode of the season to shoot because 00:21:59.210 --> 00:22:00.890 she finally got to do something other than wear 00:22:00.890 --> 00:22:03.230 purple and nag Hank. Yeah, she got to play a 00:22:03.230 --> 00:22:05.849 character within a character. And critics generally 00:22:05.849 --> 00:22:08.190 praise the show for having the confidence to 00:22:08.190 --> 00:22:10.769 put Walt in the background. It proved that Breaking 00:22:10.769 --> 00:22:13.470 Bad wasn't just a Walter White show. It was an 00:22:13.470 --> 00:22:16.589 ensemble piece with deep, complex characters 00:22:16.589 --> 00:22:19.190 across the board. You could spend an hour with 00:22:19.190 --> 00:22:22.369 just Marie and Skyler and still have deeply compelling 00:22:22.369 --> 00:22:25.109 television. Absolutely. It showed the depth of 00:22:25.109 --> 00:22:28.410 the bench. So as we wrap up this deep dive, let's 00:22:28.410 --> 00:22:30.470 summarize what we've uncovered for you. Open 00:22:30.470 --> 00:22:33.049 House isn't just a filler episode or a breather 00:22:33.049 --> 00:22:35.849 between explosions. It's a bridge. It connects 00:22:35.849 --> 00:22:39.210 the dots. It bridges Skyler's transition deeper 00:22:39.210 --> 00:22:41.869 into the criminal world. She's no longer just 00:22:41.869 --> 00:22:44.869 an accomplice. She's an active player, maybe 00:22:44.869 --> 00:22:47.130 even the MVP of the operation at this stage. 00:22:47.630 --> 00:22:49.910 Definitely. And it pushes Jesse further into 00:22:49.910 --> 00:22:52.769 his depression, setting the stage for his volatile, 00:22:53.069 --> 00:22:55.349 unpredictable behavior that will essentially 00:22:55.349 --> 00:22:57.809 define the rest of the season. And inadvertently, 00:22:58.490 --> 00:23:00.690 through Marie's kleptomania, it brings Hank back 00:23:00.690 --> 00:23:03.509 into the game. That notebook is a ticking time 00:23:03.509 --> 00:23:05.250 bomb that has now been placed in the hands of 00:23:05.250 --> 00:23:08.029 the one man who can detonate it. Precisely. The 00:23:08.029 --> 00:23:09.970 pieces are moving into place for the explosive 00:23:09.970 --> 00:23:12.390 conflicts that define the rest of season four. 00:23:13.029 --> 00:23:15.349 The fuse is lit in this episode, even if we don't 00:23:15.349 --> 00:23:17.289 hear the bang yet. Now before we sign off, I 00:23:17.289 --> 00:23:19.009 want to leave you with a provocative thought. 00:23:19.349 --> 00:23:21.750 We talked a lot about Skyler's manipulation of 00:23:21.750 --> 00:23:24.130 Walt and her skill in the con against Bogdan. 00:23:24.650 --> 00:23:26.589 The critics debated if this was too sudden, but 00:23:26.589 --> 00:23:29.750 ask yourself this. Was she arguably always capable 00:23:29.750 --> 00:23:31.930 of this? Did she always have this Machiavellian 00:23:31.930 --> 00:23:34.309 streak and she just lacked the opportunity or 00:23:34.309 --> 00:23:37.029 the necessity to use it until now? It's the age 00:23:37.029 --> 00:23:40.009 -old question of nature versus nurture, or perhaps 00:23:40.009 --> 00:23:43.269 circumstance versus character. Was the Heisenberg 00:23:43.269 --> 00:23:46.529 potential always in Walt? Was the Lady Macbeth 00:23:46.529 --> 00:23:49.130 potential always in Skylar? Something to mull 00:23:49.130 --> 00:23:51.869 over as you rewatch the source material. Thanks 00:23:51.869 --> 00:23:54.089 for joining us on this deep dive into the darker 00:23:54.089 --> 00:23:56.410 corners of Albuquerque. Until next time, keep 00:23:56.410 --> 00:23:57.829 questioning the narrative. See you next time.