Spoilers for the episode and series follows
Another Sunday has come and gone, and we are closer than ever to the finale! That's readily apparent in this episode, as the pieces are being set up big time to get knocked down in spectacular fashion. There wasn't really a single standout great moment in this episode, unlike the other three, but it is detrimental to the storyline, as Jesse teams up with Hank, Walt asks another favor of Todd's uncle, and Skyler is condoning murder to keep this family together. It was a pretty good episode, and while not my favorite, it delivered some strong moments in it's own right.
Immediately picking up after Jesse's failed arson attempt, Walt decides to come up with a story about how gas got all in the house, which is completely unable to convince anyone, and decides to bring the family to a hotel while the gas problem is being worked out. I've come to notice how bad Walt is at lying to his own family, but how credible he seems lying to anyone else. It's kind of amusing to see Skyler instantly shoot down his fake stories. But, for once, Walt actually told Skyler the complete truth about the gas in their house, saying that he believes that Jesse is the culprit. Then, we learn that Skyler wants this gig to work out REALLY badly, telling Walt to just kill him and be done with it. This isn't the first time Skyler has gotten extreme at keeping her family safe, but it's interesting that she clearly values her potential safety over another person's life, and isn't afraid to make that clear.
Meanwhile, we learn what stopped the arson. I, personally, had never begun to think that maybe someone else stops Jesse, and that it would be something he finds out, but that is clearly not the case here. Hank busting in on him just as he's about to light the place up was coincidental to say the least, but led to a completely out of nowhere team up between him and Jesse. I'm digging the structure of this episode, and how it "Pulp Fiction-ed" the events. I didn't really expect that from this show, but it pulled it off with grace. But anyways, Hank and Jesse teaming up to take down Walt is interesting, as it makes me wonder if Jesse would have talked if he knew about Brock earlier. Also, I'm getting a little Vic Mackey vibe from Hank, as it looks like he could potentially go around the law to stop Walt.
Unlike past episodes that kind of focused on a pair of characters driving the episode, this one gave all the major players a little time in the spotlight. Even Marie, with her confession that she's clearly thought about poisoning Walt. But this approach means that there isn't really time in a 45 minute episode to have a truly great character moment and focus on all the main characters evenly. But, that doesn't stop it from having an awesome ending, as Walt asks a favor of Todd's uncle after Jesse gets cold feet about meeting him. And while it was a little humorous that the guy Jesse thought was Walt's thug was just a random dude, it shows how paranoid both these characters are at this stage, and both are taking there own paths toward getting out of this situation. Overall, this episode was a good palate cleanser, and has me anticipating the final four even more now knowing what could potentially happen.
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