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Breaking Bad Round Table: "Face Off"

matt@tvfanatic.com (TV Fanatic Staff) — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 11:48:15 EST

The Breaking Bad season four finale has come and gone, but the images and events from "Face Off" will be remembered and discussed by fans of this AMC smash for many months to come.

So let's get started, shall we? Below, Matt Richenthal and Dan Forcella discuss all that went down, and all that still might go down, in the first-ever edition of the Breaking Bad Round Table...

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What was your favorite scene from the finale?
Matt: The Reservoir Dogs-esque destruction of the super lab by Jesse and Walt. Just great filming all around, with the use of the camera angles, the music and, of course, the final, well-oiled example of these two partners teaming up. Well, possibly final. More on that in question number-four.

Dan: It may have been a bit ridiculous that Gus attempted to walk out of Hector's nursing home room like nothing was wrong, adjusting his tie in the calmest of manners, but that doesn't mean it wasn't absolutely awesome to watch. Sure, I almost laughed at the moment, because it was so unrealistic, but to see the legendary Gustavo Fring go down in all of his Harvey Dent-like mutilation was certainly a highlight for the series.

So, Walt poisoned Brock with that flower. Do you buy the planning, execution and final result of this plan?
Matt: On any other show, I'd follow up on a number of issues: How did Walt slip the poison to Brock? Is it right that the show essentially hid vital information from viewers on purpose, a somewhat manipulative strategy that Breaking Bad has never before employed? (In the past, we've always been privy to Walt's line of thinking.) But why pick at those nits? The actual poisoning positively lines up with Walt's transformation and will hopefully put to rest any lingering questions over whether or not Walter White is a good man at heart. He's not.

Dan: Absolutely. From beginning to end. It's been said over and over that Walt's plans never work out the way he wants, and neither did this one. When Gus didn't go to his car, Walt had to make new plans, but the original one to poison Brock in order to get Jesse on his side still worked. Looking back at "End Times," it is refreshing to see that Walt's plan was finally a genius one. I have so much more respect for his conversation with Jesse, where he had this revelation that "maybe it was Gus?!?!" The acting he was putting forth in that moment was seriously impressive. Walt being able to then make up a new strategy, using Hector, shows that Walt has turned into the One Who Knocks.

Pen a eulogy for Gus.
Matt: Dear departed Gus, you were so much more than a chicken man. When you unclipped that tie and flew the fried-based coop, you gave us all a lesson in business, how to run one efficiently, how to take care of untrustworthy employees, how to scary the living bejesus out of viewers without saying a word. I'm sorry you lost half your face. In honor of your legitimate fast food front, may you rest forever in anywhere from six to 20 pieces.

Dan: Gustavo Fring was one bad dude. We've never met someone as arrogant or ruthless, and yet this same person had the decency to put a towel down on the floor of the Cartel's bathroom before throwing up the poison he gave himself in order to kill dozens of others. Gus' passing came at the perfect time, as his story has been told brilliantly. He was a mastermind at the top of his game who simply ran into the wrong man at the right time.

Where do you envision things picking up on season five?
Matt: Nowhere good for Skyler, that's for sure. I don't see Walt even trying to hide his real self any longer. Will she finally wise up and skip town for good? Or will she grow even more complicit in what I imagine will be a new drug operation headed by her husband?

Dan: That's a great question because I would have been extremely happy with this as a series finale with one caveat: Walt takes out Gus, basks in his glory, and then goes to the doctor to find out the cancer is back. They insinuate that Walt will die within the month. That way, he gets the triumphant victory, but then loses his life almost immediately after. My guess for the final 16 episode would be Walt and Jesse attempt to run the business for a while. Of course, it will fail miserably, but they have to give it a try.

Breaking Bad Finale Concludes Record-Breaking Season

matt@tvfanatic.com (TV Fanatic Staff) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:47:07 EST

Breaking Bad concluded its most-watched season last night with its most-watched finale to date.

Including encores, 2.9 million viewers tuned in to "Face Off," as the installment wrapped up a season that rose 24 percent overall in the coveted 18-40-year old demographic over season three.

Did you tune you watch the incredible, official transformation of Walter White into The Man Who Knocks? What did you think of the finale?

Breaking Bad Season 4 Finale Review: Who Won?

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 06:17:38 EST

Following last week's episode of Breaking Bad, which included Walt's panicked plea to Skyler - "I've made choices. I alone should suffer the consequences of those choices." - I wrote that Heisenberg was dead.

And it's true. Walter White is no longer a man trying to look and act the part of a ruthless, well-reasoned, cold-hearted drug dealer. The fourth season finale of what is making its case to be the greatest show in television history made it clear: Heisenberg really is gone. Gus Fring 2.0 is in his place.

Walt truly is the Man Who Knocks now.

Overall, "Face Off" told a very simple story. It was the story of Walt actually coming up with, and following through with, a careful, intelligent, winning plan.

Throughout four seasons, viewers had seen this chemistry teacher go from an average, no-confident Joe to a ego-maniacal loose canon. He wanted to be tough, he wanted to be the man in charge and he thought the world revolved around his every action. But a lot of that was a farce, as emphasized over these final few heart-pounding episodes, as Jesse rose up the drug operation ranks and Walt grew more and more ostracized.

But that all changed with one explosion. The key ingredient in Walt's evolution has now been added. Walt executed a plan as thought out and diabolical as any Gus could come up with.

It involved putting his neighbor's life at risk. It involved nearly killing an innocent child. And it led to a moment where Walt could finally exhale, look over his town and declare: I won.

Before Walt arrived in the winner's circle, of course, a death as gruesome as any in televised memory gave an entirely different meaning to the title of the finale. No, Gus and Walt didn't really face off here. The former simply lost half of his head.

Vince Gilligan and company didn't even attempt to make Gus' murder a surprise. The death march for this fascinating character began the moment he left his car outside the retirement home, as music played, we zeroed in on his face and it was clear what was about to go down. The goal here wasn't to shock, but first to honor such an engrossing, well-portrayed villain and also to emphasize the rise of Walt as his replacement.

Again, this was a straightforward episode (with one major exception: it skipped over a great deal of Walt's plan - having Saul's bodyguard life Jesse's Ricin cigarette, never revealing how Walt slipped the berries to Brock - something that could understandably bother many viewers who felt this was an example of manipulative, misleading storytelling). It took its time to arrive at that parking garage roof, literally spelling out multiple scenes with Hector to build tension like it often does so well, but the aim of this season was to finally anoint Walt as a winner. In a Charlie Sheen-like sense of the word, of course.

Walt doesn't care about the money, he doesn't care about his family (do you really think his next stop is Hank's house... or to wherever he'll construct a super lab of his own?) and he almost doesn't care that he was nearly a child killer. Walt did seem legitimately relieved Brock will survive, but the fact that he took the step with that deadly flower is all we need to know. (Bravo, meanwhile, to the readers who pointed out from last week's conclusion that Walt was behind Brock's poisoning, especially those who referred to the scene where his gun landed away from his on the terrace, aiming straight at a plant.)

Despite everything, meanwhile, Jesse is as much Walt's student as ever. He still refers to him as "Mr. White," he asked to make sure Gus had to go. I don't know what Walt has in mind next, exactly, but I don't doubt that Jesse will follow him into it.

Breaking Bad is undoubtedly the best show on television. Is it the best ever? Where will it go from here? Will Walt organize a New Mexico cartel of his own? We have awhile to wait and awhile to debate, but does any of that matter right now? I'd prefer to savor the incredible season that just passed - from the acting to the camera work to the storytelling - than begin to worry about the final 16 episodes. Just truly amazing stuff all around.

What did everyone else think?

Breaking Bad Season Finale to Be Crazy Ride, Aaron Paul Teases

matt@tvfanatic.com (TV Fanatic Staff) — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 15:05:33 EST

The tension has been building for weeks on Breaking Bad, as alliances have shifted, plans have been revealed and Walter White has finally realized: I've really screwed up.

How will it all go down on tomorrow night's season four finale? Aaron Paul won't reveal anything specific, of course, but did say in a recent TV Guide interview:

Breaking Bad Promo: Face Off

"You truly haven't seen anything yet. People are going to be screaming and yelling at the television set multiple times and definitely [be] on the edge of their seats. They're going to struggle to hold on. It's definitely a crazy ride."

Paul's Jesse, of course, has been at the center of a power struggle between Walt and Gus all season long. Whose side is he actually on? Neither, the Emmy winner says:

"Jesse is coming into his own and I think he's going to take that stand and show who he truly is. He's not going to be used as a pawn anymore."

Breaking Bad wraps up an incredible season Sunday at 10 p.m. on AMC. Visit TV Fanatic soon after the episode concludes for a complete review.

Breaking Bad Season 4 Finale Preview: Who Poisoned Brock?

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 13:43:54 EST

Breaking Bad set the stage for a pulsating season four finale last night, delivering a tense Walt/Jesse showdown and posing a question that we presume will be answered on next week's "Face Off."

Who poisoned Brock?

Walt convinced Jesse that Gus was behind the dastardly plot, but many readers have proposed the theory that Gus turned around in the parking garage last night because he suspects something is amiss - and Walt is actually to blame for the Ricin incident. Will we get an answer on the fourth season finale?

Tune in. Find out. And get your first look at the episode via the following AMC preview:

Breaking Bad Promo: Face Off

Breaking Bad Review: "End Times"

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 23:00:39 EST

Following the suspenseful conclusions of the previous few episodes - culminating in what may have been the most tense five minutes in television history last week - my expectations were lowered for "End Times."

I felt a bit like a Yankees fan heading into the 1928 season. There was simply no way any cliffhanger could match what we witnessed on "Crawl Space," especially with the season finale a week ago and many shows using a penultimate episode such as this to quietly set the scene for the explosive action to come.

Yet, despite this mindset, I was still disappointed when the final credits rolled. Heck, I was even a bit confused.

Did Gus have a feeling that Walt (or someone) was out there, plotting his murder? Why would he? I understand that a man in his position must be careful at all times, but he's likely walked to a parked car before. Why did he suddenly decide to turn around?

I'll reserve full judgment until we find out where he's headed, but it comes across for now like Breaking Bad is simply dragging out the climactic killing of Gus until the finale. It feels sacrilegious to even hint that Vince Gilligan and company are spinning their wheels and needing to contrive a way to extend this storyline. I don't know of a showrunner I trust more.

And I'll happily devour my words next week if it all comes together, but this was actually the second time on "End Times" when Gus came across as too powerful and all-knowing.

He was really on to the ricin and somehow managed to poison Brock?!? I did what Walt pleaded with Jesse to do (in an incredible scene that ought to have cinched another Emmy for both these actors) and I thought long and hard about it and I still don't see how Gus pulled this one off. Yes, he has cameras inside the lab, and Tyrus is often parked outside Walt's home... but I still can't follow the logic of how he knew about the ricin, lifted it AND poisoned Brock with it.

Gus is a fascinating character - seriously, the show has crafted such a layered backstory for him that you find yourself sympathizing for the man, before being reminded at times such as this that he's a drug dealer and cold-blooded killer - but let's not make him into some kind of psychic comic book villain. It's a rarity, but Breaking Bad asked us to make some leaps in logic to keep things progressing this episode.

Of course, it also provided its typical handful of powerful, quiet character moments. There was Hank in sullen shock as he clicked through photos that supposedly disproved his theory. There was Skyler really needing a smoke and wondering how she and her family ended up here. There was Walt, just staring at his wife and daughter as they pulled out of the driveway, which followed a speech that officially did away with Heisenberg and brought Walt down to a level his ego probably never thought he'd be again.

This is his fault. There was a time when he could have done things differently, but it's too late now. And only he should suffer the consequences. It's impossible to argue with any of that, isn't it? Watching Walt return to basic chemistry in his kitchen - in order to build a bomb for a murder, granted - was also a nice call back to when Mr. White was nothing more than a science teacher.

Overall, not my favorite episode of Breaking Bad, as it mostly served to bring Walt and Jesse back together. But they are on the same side once again now, and I can truly say I have no idea what will result from that on the finale, the promo for which you can view HERE.

Are Consequences Coming for Walter White?

matt@tvfanatic.com (TV Fanatic Staff) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:11:22 EST

Just when you think Breaking Bad cannot top its previous week's conclusion, it airs an episode such as "Crawl Space" that leaves Walter White crying/laughing and viewers in stunned silence when the credits roll.

What can possibly go down on next Sunday's "End Times?"

Look for Walter to scramble to protect his family, while Jesse learns a key piece of information and Hank relies on Gomez for another lead. But will it all be too late? Will consequences finally catch up to Walt, as he warns Sklyer below? View the official trailer now.

Breaking Bad Promo: End Times

Breaking Bad Review: "Crawl Space"

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 23:00:05 EST

What can one even say about a conclusion such as that?

"Crawl Space" would have been yet another classic episode of Breaking Bad if it had simply ended with Walt collapsing in the desert. But then there was the utter panic in Saul's office; the frantic search for the money; the admission from Skyler that it's gone; the bawling; the maniacal laughing; the slow drum beat in the background; the call from Marie; the panning away of the camera to reveal Walt in a makeshift grave.

I said it last week, but what other reaction can one have here except... WOW.

It seems impossible to comprehend that last Sunday night concluded with Gus being rushed to the hospital and here he was more alive and in control than ever before. That's what happens when you take out the head of the cartel.

He taunted Hector, he threatened Walt - the infant daughter truly sold his steady, menacing warning - he made it clear that Jesse really is part of the family. Seriously, both Walt and Skyler could learn something from Gus. This is a man that plans for every conceivable obstacle, preparing a blood supply for each important member of his team while having a fully-briefed, loyal doctor on call.

The contrast with Walt and his reactionary fits of anger couldn't be more stark. Same for Skyler, now that her desperate plot to force Ted to pay the IRS went as wayward as possible. (Between this and her infamous "I f-cked Ted" line, Walt really must be sick of hearing about that guy.)

It's also worth noting, as I have before, the differences in how Gus has treated and molded Jesse. Walt used intimidation and manipulation, while Gus has actually crafted a new chemist and a committed soldier. Ironically, Walt likely cares more about Jesse than Gus ever could - that appeared to be a hint of a legitimately grateful smile on Walt's face when Jesse opened the door to his house - but his hubris and ego get in the way of forging any kind of true father/son bond. And now we see where that has gotten him: pushed away from the only ally he ever had.

Somehow, though, Jesse still won't abandon his first mentor completely. When this series started, could you ever have envisioned Jesse being the show's moral compass? He really is a good guy.

But it all comes back to that incredible ending. It was the stuff of (terrific) season finales. But that doesn't even take place next week. There are two more episodes remaining this season. And then 16 more after that. Something major has to go down because Walt has finally reached his breaking point. There's no Heisenberg any longer, there's simply the realization of all he has wrought on himself and his family. That can't go on for too much longer.

Yet what separates Breaking Bad from almost every other show on TV is that I don't care what happens next. I'm not thinking about next season or next Sunday. I'm just reveling in the fascinating hour I just witnessed, capped by as tense a final five minutes as I can imagine and saying to myself... wow.

Breaking Bad Trailer: "Crawl Space"

matt@tvfanatic.com (TV Fanatic Staff) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:03:02 EST

Breaking Bad has the best kind of challenge ahead of it: Next Sunday, the AMC drama must follow what we deemed to be a perfect episode.

How will it do so? Via an installment titled "Crawl Space," which will focus on Skyler struggling to straighten out Ted and his financial problems; while Walt will actually come face-to-face once more with Gus.

What will go down? We can only imagine. Check out the official preview now:

Crawl Space Promo

Breaking Bad Review: As Good as It Gets

matt@mediavine.com (Matt Richenthal) — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 23:00:41 EST

Wow.

I could respond with that single-word description to pretty much every episode of Breaking Bad, but after watching "Salud" and then not being able to fall asleep afterward, just... wow.

Think about all the show accomplished in just one hour: Jesse concluded the installment as a hero, Gus as a strong-willed leader beyond anything we'd ever seen before and Walt as, dare I write it, a sympathetic figure with father issues.

And these evolutions took place without bashing the viewer over the head with monumental developments or out-of-nowhere twists. The series can do so much by placing its characters into various situations and having them simply talk.

On this episode, we were treated to a fascinating monologue by Walt, an inspired speech by Jesse (my proud smile was even broader than that of Gus and Mike) and a subtitled exchange between Don Eladio and Gus that - due to the history between these two, the performances by the actors, and the build-up of the season - was more suspenseful than any action sequence on any other show could ever be.

But we need to return to Walt for a moment and his stunning admission: "It's all my fault." Yes, this was uttered under heavy medication, but does anyone doubt its honesty? I truly never expected to hear such words from Walt, the guy who believes he's the one who knocks. Has the fight with Jesse, his surrogate son (sorry, Walt Jr.), caused Walt to do a 180?

I doubt it. I can't imagine Heisenberg is a persona of the past this quickly. Still, the brawl and the subsequent, overt anger/pain expressed by Jesse, has clearly had an effect. When was the last time we saw Walt this vulnerable, or as Walt Jr. so aptly put it, this "real?" He's no lovable protagonist now, but Walt has undergone a transformation of some kind at least.

When Gus' employee pulled up and reminded Walt about the job that, for the last year, has turned him into someone who his son does not want to remember, I almost felt bad for Walt. Mere days ago, I couldn't fathom feeling such a way.

And that's what Breaking Bad does so well. It takes you in directions you never imagined you'd go, places you never even realized you were heading until you found yourself watching Jesse and Mike carry a poisoned Gus to a car and actively hoping they'd make it. How did we get here? Earlier this season, Gus was nothing more than the even-keeled boss behind a multi-million dollar meth operation.

He's still that person, but he's also morphed into a man with a past. Did he kill the cartel members purely for business reasons? Or because he's developed a relationship with Jesse akin to the mentor/protege one that Don Elario destroyed many years ago? Probably a little bit of both.

Like Walt, Gus created his own Heisenberg a long time ago. He's just a lot better at it, and the drug boss hat he puts on isn't that of a foolish narcissist. It's of a businessman. That meticulous bathroom scene? With Gus folding each towel and taking precious care to clean up after himself? I doubt that side existed in Mexico. It's been cultivated over the years. It's the habit Gus has perfected in order to succeed in his world of fast food and high stakes drugs. The "real" Gus, however?

Business is not business for him. There was no way he was gonna allow Don Elario to crush his dreams again, especially not with a young, loyal cook by his side.

Just tremendous stuff all around, without me even getting to Skyler and her boneheaded decision to first help Ted, and then let him in on her wealth. No way we've heard the last of that.

This was an example of television at its best, of character evolution and interaction that shocks and fascinates. And it all went down without the show's main character leaving his property or, heck, even putting on pants. Amazing.