Breaking Bad Round Table: "Fifty-One"

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Happy birthday to Walt! Happy birthday to Walt! Happy birthday to this egomaniacal drug overlord! Happy birthday to Walt!

Indeed, Walter White turned another year older on the aptly titled Breaking Bad episode "Fifty-One." But the occasion was anything but celebratory for all involved.

Come along with TV Fanatic staff members Matt Richenthal, Dan Forcella and Lisa Palmer now as we break down another tremendous installment of the best show on television...

What was your favorite scene from the episode?
Matt: It's gotta be Skyler's singular line of telling Walt that she was waiting for his cancer to come back. I audibly gasped. This is a man so self-centered and self-deceptive that he truly believed his wife wanted him back in her bed. Until she told him she really wanted him in the ground.

Dan: Walt and Walt Jr. fighting over the bacon was my favorite moment from the hour. You don't mess with Flynn and his breakfast, but apparently Heisenberg takes bacon now and asks questions later.

Lisa: I loved watching Skyler turn her back on Walter at his birthday party. That shot of him talking about making it through cancer and how tough his last year was - all with the viewer and Skyler knowing how deeply his lies go - was quite striking.

Will Mike kill Lydia?
Matt: No. He just needed an excuse to leave the room and go practice Hungry Hungry Hippos so he can seek revenge where it really counts.

Dan: Oh yeah! He might kill her twice. Honestly, how often does Walter White get his way? Well, sure, there was that time he blew Gus Fring's face off, but pretty soon it's all going to come crumbling down. That all starts with Mike killing Lydia.

Lisa: I'm not so sure. He stopped himself once before because of his emotions, but maybe her uselessness now outweighs his emotional ties.

Do you have any long-term advice for Skyler?
Matt: GO TO THE POLICE! You've laundered some money. Big deal. Your husband is a murderous kingpin in the drug world. I'm sure you can work out a deal for immunity if you turn evidence against him.

Dan: Continue to attempt suicide, but drown yourself in the pool when your friends and family aren't all around watching you do it. Seriously, if Skyler continues like this for the rest of the summer, I'm going to go crazy. I can't stand her.

Lisa: Step up. And take action. And get your kids out of the line of fire. Someone in the family is going to die before this show is over. My friends and I are betting on Junior. I'm pretty sure the boarding school conversation will come back to haunt both of them. 

Is there any chance Jesse is working undercover against Walt?
Matt: I mentioned this possibility in my review, so I need to say yes. But I highly doubt it. Breaking Bad doesn't typically rely on shock or awe. It's more of a very slow, fascinating boil in which character machinations and decisions meld together to move the story along. Outing Jesse as a mole - who would he even be working with? Hank somehow? - would be the sort of "A-ha! Gotcha!" moment that a series of this caliber need not rely on.

Dan: Certainly. There's always a chance. If it were true, however, I would be very upset. I'm loving the bromance between Walt and Jesse, and if that goes down the tubes again, it will be difficult to take.

Lisa: I doubt it, but I do love a great surprise!

Matt Richenthal is the Editor in Chief of TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter and on Google+.

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