"Whatever he became...the sweet, kind, brilliant man that we once knew, long ago...he's gone."- Gretchen Schwartz
We pick up at Saul's vacuum repair guy's store. He pulls his van up, gets out, unlocks his garage, and reveals himself to be...character actor Robert Forster (of Jackie Brown fame). His character is apparently named Ed, so that's what I'll refer to him as for the duration. Anyways, Ed pulls his van into his shop, opens the door, and tells his passenger that they can come out. Saul Goodman removes a few suitcases from the van and steps out. Saul bemusedly comments that he can't believe that Ed actually runs a vacuum repair store, obviously thinking it a clever euphemism. Ed asks him to step up to a blue screen, where he takes a picture for Saul's new Nebraska ID. Ed explains to Saul that since he hasn't had time to set up his new life, Saul will have to stay in the basement for a few days. Ed explains that, unfortunately, Saul will have a bunkmate, whom Saul of course knows is Walt. Saul asks how his former client is holding up. "You be the judge," Ed states flatly, revealing a television with a live feed of Walt, stalking around a small basement room.
Back from the break, we join a shell-shocked Marie, being driven home by a DEA agent, who tells her that they're going to find Hank and Gomez. That they're out there, somewhere. Before he can say anything else, his subordinate gets his attention, revealing a trashed and ransacked Schrader home. The agent orders the driver to call it in and get Marie out of there, and makes his way inside. With a voiceover from Jesse Pinkman's confession, they find nothing but a destroyed camera missing an SD card. We join Jesse's voiceover to see Uncle Jack and his goons watching Jesse's tape and mocking the tears he shed during its recording. Kenny is less amused, having apparently seen it before. He fast forwards to Jesse's recitation of the Drew Sharp murder, and Todd gets visibly nervous. After he recounts Todd's (whose last name is apparently Hellquist) "Opie, dead eye" murder, Jack heads off to kill him. Todd heads him off and asks him not to kill Jesse for "ratting him out", reasoning that they can still get a few cooks out of him. Jack is nonplussed, but eventually falls in the face of Todd's "why not make more" logic. Jack assumes correctly that Todd is doing this for "that Lydia woman," which elicits some more jokes from the crew. "The heart wants what the heart wants," Jack reasons, again coming across very Charlie Manson-like. As they trod off to watch more of Jesse's tape, Jesse himself stares at the picture of Brock and Andrea, eventually grabbing the paper clip from it and fashioning it into a lockpick.
Back at Ed's shop, Saul watches as Walt scribbles frantically on a notepad. Walt asks Saul to make himself useful and give him a list of hitmen, to which Saul is predictably curious. Walt tells him their target is Jack Welker and his crew, to which Saul is apprehensive. He gives Walt some advice: not to leave town. That he's essentially leaving Skyler high and dry, and that without him around, the feds are going to prosecute her to the fullest extent of the law. Walter reasons that his charade at the end of "Ozymandias" is enough to recuse her from blame, but Saul presses on, nailing home the fact that Skyler will almost certainly be RICO'd and all their assets will be frozen. There's almost no way for Walt to get the $11 million Jack left him to his family (after all, if Mike couldn't do it, Walt certainly can't). If Walt stays in the ABQ and faces the music, the feds might go easier on Skyler. Walt angrily states that what he does, he does for his family, and that his family is going to get all of his money. Every last penny. As Ed walks in and tells Saul he's good to go, Walt demands that Saul come with him. Saul is understandably not with this plan, and when Walt states that he's still a part of this, Saul flatly denies. Walt starts to posture up, backing Saul to the wall and reminding him that it's not over until he says it is. Before he can deliver his threat, he starts a coughing fit, falling down on his bed and looking as pathetic as he ever has. "It's over," Saul states flatly, grabbing his bags and leaving without another word.
Back from the break, Skyler gets a thousand yard stare of her own, this on taking place in an office, where she is being accosted by the authorities. She's reasons that they will do everything they can to come after her and the children unless she gives them Walt, but she doesn't have any idea where he is. Very quickly cutting to a night scene outside the White's house, which is under constant surveillance, we see Skyler solemnly smoking on the couch, when Holly's gentle cry arouses her. She goes to check on her baby, only to be accosted by Todd and some of Jack's men in balaclavas. Todd politely asks if anyone else is home, to which Skyler shakes her head no. He asks if when her captor removes his hand, she'll scream, to which Skyler shakes her head no. When released, she says that Flynn is at a friend's house. Todd cuts her off, telling her that he's got a lot of respect for her husband. They know she's been talking to the police, and they're fine with that. He wants to know if she's said anything about Lydia, the woman who came into the car wash. She says no. She swears not to say anything about her, ever. Todd accepts this and leaves, but not before threatening baby Holly if Skyler ever changes her mind. We cut again to Todd, dressed in his Sunday best, waiting to meet his black haired woman in the same diner she used to meet with Heisenberg in. She sits at the table behind him, and when he moves to get up, she objects. Of course Todd blindly accepts the rules Mike Ehrmantraut found so hilarious and paranoid. Jesse gives a report on his mission to the White's house, which "went really good." Lydia is not convinced, despite Todd's assurances, and Lydia tells him that they're going to have to take a break. Todd has product ready to go. 92% pure product. Lydia is confused, and Todd reveals that they've got Jesse. The authorities won't find him. "I just think we work together...good," Todd awkwardly blurts out, now staring directly at Lydia and picking some lint off her jacket.
Cut to a panel of light illuminating a dark barrel of some kind, which Walter White rolls out of, into the blinding, snow covered oasis that is New Hampshire. Ed addresses him as Mr. Lambert and welcomes him to his new home, a tiny shack in the middle of nowhere. After a short break, Mr. Lambert gets a full tour of the facilities, which is stocked with a month's worth of food, a generator that should last the winter, a woodburner, which Walt can cook on, and a small TV with bad reception, and some DVDs (Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium). Ed tells him if there's anything else he needs, to put in on a list, which he'll pick up when he stops by with supplies in a month's time. Walter scoffs, but Ed relates to him the dangers involved by him still keeping up contact, and just how risky this is. There's no phone, internet, satellite, car, or news source of any real kind. Walt says that he has business to conduct, to which Ed states that his business is keeping Walt, now the subject of a nation-wide manhunt, out of custody. Walt asks what's keeping him from walking out the gate, to which Ed freely admits: nothing. There's a small town eight miles away. Ed reiterates that if Walt leaves, he will sever all contact, and Walt will be on his own. Ed gets in his truck and leaves, but not before impressing upon Walt how beautiful the scenery is, and how he might find some solace here, but Walt isn't listening. Almost immediately, he begins removing handfulls of bills from his barrel in preparation for his trek. Eventually, he stops in front of one of his emptied bags, and removes his signature hat. The Heisenberg theme begins in earnest, and the camera cuts to a close up, behind the head view of Walt donning his superhero armor. As he opens the gate and stares down the long, virgin snowed path ahead of him, he has second thoughts. "Tomorrow," he says to himself as he closes the gate.
Back in Jesse's hellhole, he's stacked up everything he can in an attempt to reach the gate. He hears voices, and leaps down, covering his tracks. Todd approaches, removes the tarp, and begins lowering a bucket of Ben and Jerry's, his version of payment for the great batch of meth Jesse cooked up. This one was 96% pure. They sit in silence for a few moments, and when Todd goes to leave, Jesse asks if he can leave the tarp off for the night. "I just want to see the stars," Jesse says in the saddest voice he can muster, and Todd relents. Once Todd leaves, Jesse goes to work, unlocked his cuffs, stacking his escape tower, and stretching with everything he has in an attempt to reach his freedom. After a few tense moments, he musters a mighty vertical leap and grabs ahold of the bars, hanging with one hand for a few seconds. Summoning up everything he has, he inches his way over towards the gate, managing to unlock the bolt after a few tries. Sprinting for his freedom, he fails to notice a camera mounted on one of the corners of the hangar, and when he tries climbing the barbed wire fence, Jack's goons arrive from behind. Defeated, Jesse yells at them to do it, because there's no way he's doing another cook for them. We cut to Todd stalking his way down a darkened street, ringing poor Andrea's door and telling her that he's a friend of Jesse's. Andrea, her interest piqued, asks if Jesse is ok, to which Todd responds that he brought Jesse with him. Todd points out the creepy, unmarked van Jesse is currently gagged and screaming in, and Todd, after checking to see if Brock can see him, pulls out a pistol, tells Andrea it isn't personal, and shoots her in the back of the head. Jesse's world goes numb, and after Jack calms him down, he reminds Jesse that "there's still the kid."
Somehow, we come back from the break to a fully bearded Walter White, staring down the same virgin snow, waiting for Ed to arrive. There have been many tomorrows without an attempt to leave. Walt has a full head of hair, now. They head inside, and Walt begins voraciously reading the Albuquerque news. He can barely read it, so Ed provides a pack of various reading glasses. While he tries them on, Walt asks what's become of Skyler. Ed relays that while there's no court date yet, her public defender has been on TV looking like a deer in the headlights. She's been doing taxi dispatch under her maiden name. Their old house has a fence around it, due to the neighbors' complaints about local kids using it as a tourist attraction. Ed sets up Walt's treatment, saying that it should go better than last time, since he's watched a couple of youtube videos on how to find a vein. Ed gets up to leave, and Walt asks him to stay a little longer, desperate for human contact. He asks for two hours, saying that he'll pay another $10,000. Ed agrees, but only for one hour. He grabs a pack of cards and starts to shuffle. "One of these days, when you come up here, I'll be dead," Walt says, matter of factly, asking if Ed will give the money that's left to Skyler after that happens. "If I said yes, would you believe me?" Ed responds, essentially asking if Walter is willing to lie to himself, the one thing he's done since the day this show started. Walter doesn't respond, and when Ed asks if he wants to cut the deck, he declines. So begins the saddest seven-card stud game in recorded history. Later that night, Walt is stirred awake by a coughing fit. His wedding ring slides off his finger due to the weight loss. He gets up, grabs the rings, and fashions himself into a regular Frodo Baggins with a piece of string. Grabbing the box of Ensure Ed brought for him, he packs it full of money and goes to leave the next morning. Upon reaching the gate, he sees that thehe snow is no longer virgin, having been tread the previous day by Ed's tires. And so Walter White trudges off into the wilderness, determined to leave at least something for his family. That's what this all was for, right?
Suddenly, we're at Flynn's high school, where his name is called over the PA and Principal Carmen, returning gloriously from three seasons in exile, tells him that his Aunt Marie has a very important message from him. On the other end, an unknown woman in a bar tells him to hold on sec, taking some money from Walt, who greets his son and begs him not to hand up or tell anyone. Confused, Flynn agrees. Walt tries to stammer out some sort of apology, saying that he never intended for the thing that happened to happen. Flynn listens, dutifully, and Walt asks him if his friend Louis still lives at the same address. Flynn says yes, and Walt tells him that he's sending Louis a package of $100,000, and that it's for him and his mother and Holly. Breaking down into tears, Walt tells him that he wanted to give them so much more, but this is all he can do. Flynn pauses, and immediately rips into his father, accusing him of killing Hank, calling him an asshole for doing what he did to Skyler. "I don't want anything from you," Flynn roars over Walt's protestations, saying he doesn't give a shit about Walt anymore. Walt pleads with his son to listen, and Flynn asks why he's still alive, why he won't just die already. Flynn hangs up. Walt pauses for a moment, and then inserts a few more coins. He makes another call, this one to the Albuquerque DEA. He asks to speak to the agent in charge of the Walter White case. When asked who is calling, he simply responds "Walter White," essentially giving himself up. He then drops the phone ,walks to the bar and orders a drink.
As he sips what seems to be his last drink as a free man, the bartender begins flipping through stations on the television. Walt's eyes light up as a man's voice talks about science being first. He asks the bartender to go back, eventually landing on the Charlie Rose show, where Gretchen and Elliott Schwartz emerge from the first season and back into the forefront of Walt's mind. Charlie Rose accuses their recent spree of donations to drug abuse treatments centers in the southwest as some sort of publicity recompense for their past association with Walter White. Elliott is glad that this topic was brought up, stating that investing public needs to know that Walter White had "virtually nothing to do with the creation of the company," which perks Walt's disbelief. When Rose asks what, if anything, was Walt's contribution, Gretchen steps in an relays the story of Gray Matter Technologies' name, relaying the old story Walt and Elliott regaled all his rich friends with back in Season 1. "As far as I'm concerned, his contribution begins and ends right there," Elliott states, and Walt clenches his fist. Charlie Rose states that the blue meth is still being encountered, with some reports coming from Europe. He asks, flatly, if Walter White still out there. "No, he's not," Gretchen answers, saying that she can't speak to the Heisenberg persona (which she can, being one of the first people to witness it in action), saying that the brilliant man they once knew is gone, and has been gone for a long time.
Long ago, back when his cancer was his primary threat and his family was his primary concern, the dark depths of Walt's ego, of Heisenberg, was stoked by a perceived slight from Gretchen and Elliot. Now, nearly two years later, when cancer is his only threat and his family wants nothing to do with him, another slight from the two biggest ghosts of Walt's past stoke that same fire into a quiet inferno. As Gretchen continues to talk about the death of Walter White, the show's theme song creeps into the background, for the first time playing in full during something other than the credits. Walt furrows his brow in rage. A squad of sheriffs arrive, guns drawn, no doubt called in by the DEA. They bust into the bar, demanding everyone inside surrender. They pass where Walt sat, at the bar. Only a half empty glass and a tip remain. Walt is gone. Heisenberg is all that's left, and he's no quite done yet. He's got to see a man in a Denny's about an M-60. Some have posited that Walt's targets will be Gretchen and Elliott, but I don't think so. He's still going to after Jack and his crew, but not to protect his family. He's going to back to make sure that everyone knows who he is. That Heisenberg isn't just a name to whisper out of shadows, a cautionary tale to tell your kids. He's going back so that everyone, from Elliott Schwartz to Jack Welker, from Saul Goodman to Carol the neighbor remembers his name.
One more. We've come so far. What's one more?
No comments:
Post a Comment