We actually DON'T think the show was drawing a parallel between video games and real-life violence. It was just that Jesse was reminded of killing Gale because the video game involved shooting, and he chose to keep being reminded by continuing to play. It's not social commentary on video games making people violent in real life. It's not saying, "It's the same thing as real killing!" It's just showing us Jesse's conflicted, tormented little mind.
Walt is such a spoiled brat, but we actually thought it was funny when he blew up the car and got his lawyer to clean it up. Walt has finally figured out that he needs to get someone to kill Gus for him, but the threat of Mike makes the job too much for a normal, gun-wielding hit man. So the big twist for us this week is that Walt got Jesse to agree to poison Gus with ricin for him. Jesse failed, and Mike commended Jesse on his loyalty, which is what Gus supposedly sees in Jesse.
People like to live up to expectations (or down to them). The words you speak over people can act as a prophecy- a blessing or a curse. If you tell someone that they are loyal, they are going to be loyal to you, usually. So we wonder if Jesse will see himself as loyal to Walt or to Mike, in the future. Mike also gave Jesse a gun and told him that he would teach Jesse to shoot it. That’s some trust there.
The most emotional scene was the scene where Jesse went back to his addiction group, told them that he killed a dog for no reason (really meaning Gale), and also told them that he has really been going to group in order to sell meth. One woman was upset with him for killing the dog. Jesse remarked, “Maybe she’s right,” when the group leader asked her to stop judging. Jesse threw the groups advice to accept himself and the excuses (drugs made you do it) out the window, yelled at the group, and forced the group leader to tell him that he was not ok with one of Jesse’s actions. This scene made us very uncomfortably, and we almost didn’t want to watch it. The acting and tension were superb, as usual.
As much as morality is out of style in entertainment, Breaking Bad is a gritty, bloody, tragic morality tale. This week focused on judgment. Should you judge yourself when you feel that you deserve it? Does “self-acceptance” really work? Or does it just make you lower your standards and compromise in order to like yourself more than the average person would? Way to bring this stuff up, show. Jesse wants karma. He wants justice in the world. We could argue that Jesse is one of the most justice-minded characters on the show. He is infuriated when things don't go fairly, and he doesn't like to let bad guys get away with things like killing kids. Walt, on the other hand, is fine with things being unfair, as long as he is getting his due and staying safe.
With Jesse's confession scene, the show is asking, "Do people crave judgment and boundaries?" Do people have an insatiable sense of shame? Was Jesse’s wearing of a Jesus shirt intentional because of the themes of this episode? (To which we answer: Everything this show does is intentional.) Does it mean that humans crave consequences and truth along with their grace? When you really, really do something wrong and realize it, does all the trendy self-esteem stuff fail to be powerful enough to pull you out of the hole? Shockingly, this show said "no" to that last question. It's harder than that and more complicated. There will be no easy fixes on Breaking Bad for problems of the soul.
The eeriest part of the episode was Gus seeing Walt Jr. at his restaurant and offering him a job. That would drive Walt crazy! We hope it happens. The big twist of the episode (that has been a long time coming) was Hank proving to the DEA that there is a connection between Gale and Gus. Hank’s absolutely correct in guessing that Pollos is a front for a huge drug ring. We never thought that Hank would find Gus instead of Walter. Things are heating up. This was a great episode and we can’t wait for next week.
Walt is such a spoiled brat, but we actually thought it was funny when he blew up the car and got his lawyer to clean it up. Walt has finally figured out that he needs to get someone to kill Gus for him, but the threat of Mike makes the job too much for a normal, gun-wielding hit man. So the big twist for us this week is that Walt got Jesse to agree to poison Gus with ricin for him. Jesse failed, and Mike commended Jesse on his loyalty, which is what Gus supposedly sees in Jesse.
People like to live up to expectations (or down to them). The words you speak over people can act as a prophecy- a blessing or a curse. If you tell someone that they are loyal, they are going to be loyal to you, usually. So we wonder if Jesse will see himself as loyal to Walt or to Mike, in the future. Mike also gave Jesse a gun and told him that he would teach Jesse to shoot it. That’s some trust there.
The most emotional scene was the scene where Jesse went back to his addiction group, told them that he killed a dog for no reason (really meaning Gale), and also told them that he has really been going to group in order to sell meth. One woman was upset with him for killing the dog. Jesse remarked, “Maybe she’s right,” when the group leader asked her to stop judging. Jesse threw the groups advice to accept himself and the excuses (drugs made you do it) out the window, yelled at the group, and forced the group leader to tell him that he was not ok with one of Jesse’s actions. This scene made us very uncomfortably, and we almost didn’t want to watch it. The acting and tension were superb, as usual.
As much as morality is out of style in entertainment, Breaking Bad is a gritty, bloody, tragic morality tale. This week focused on judgment. Should you judge yourself when you feel that you deserve it? Does “self-acceptance” really work? Or does it just make you lower your standards and compromise in order to like yourself more than the average person would? Way to bring this stuff up, show. Jesse wants karma. He wants justice in the world. We could argue that Jesse is one of the most justice-minded characters on the show. He is infuriated when things don't go fairly, and he doesn't like to let bad guys get away with things like killing kids. Walt, on the other hand, is fine with things being unfair, as long as he is getting his due and staying safe.
With Jesse's confession scene, the show is asking, "Do people crave judgment and boundaries?" Do people have an insatiable sense of shame? Was Jesse’s wearing of a Jesus shirt intentional because of the themes of this episode? (To which we answer: Everything this show does is intentional.) Does it mean that humans crave consequences and truth along with their grace? When you really, really do something wrong and realize it, does all the trendy self-esteem stuff fail to be powerful enough to pull you out of the hole? Shockingly, this show said "no" to that last question. It's harder than that and more complicated. There will be no easy fixes on Breaking Bad for problems of the soul.
The eeriest part of the episode was Gus seeing Walt Jr. at his restaurant and offering him a job. That would drive Walt crazy! We hope it happens. The big twist of the episode (that has been a long time coming) was Hank proving to the DEA that there is a connection between Gale and Gus. Hank’s absolutely correct in guessing that Pollos is a front for a huge drug ring. We never thought that Hank would find Gus instead of Walter. Things are heating up. This was a great episode and we can’t wait for next week.
Episode Grade: A
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