At long last Breaking Bad has returned, and the beginning of its final act is everything fans could have hoped for.
After teasing viewers with an eleven-month wait and a cliffhanger that would make J.J. Abrams fluorescent green with envy, the second half of season five picks up right where the first half ended: Hank Schrader’s revelation that Walt White is Heisenberg.
The majority of the episode does exactly what we have come to expect from Breaking Bad. We witness the subtle transformation of Heisenberg as Walt has, for all intent and purposes, ceased to be “himself,” whatever that might mean. Meanwhile, Jesse Pinkman’s disillusionment with his actions, his newfound wealth, and Walt’s manipulation has him careening further into an emotional wreck. Everyone else, naturally, is caught in the middle even if they aren’t aware of it.
What makes these changes so powerful is the way in which the writers give the viewer clues—little details that we might consciously miss—without ever spelling anything out. This episode, in particular, is teeming with parallels between Heisenberg and Gus Fring. From the way Walt speaks to Lydia at the carwash to the way he discreetly throws up in the bathroom, everything he does is progressively reminiscent of his old mentor’s quirks and personality. For good reason, ever since the episode aired, fans have spent hours discussing the various allusions and self-references. And every passing minute sees ten new grand, all-encompassing theories pop up.
Nevertheless, these are details and storylines that have been a part of Breaking Bad from the beginning, so watching the episode, despite it being familiarly brilliant, felt like business as usual. That seems to be one disadvantage of watching a show as consistent as Breaking Bad. Fans become immune to just how good it is.
It’s not until the last scene that it dawned on me that the show truly is back in full force. Finally, Hank confronts Heisenberg in what will certainly become one of the defining scenes of this season, if not the entire series. Both Bryan Cranston (Heisenberg) and Dean Norris (Hank) are an absolute joy to watch and their chemistry is impeccable. Norris channeling Hank’s rage coupled with confusion and fear is something we haven’t seen enough of yet, and it elevates the already climactic encounter to another level entirely. Cranston, however, pulls off a performance the likes of which we haven’t seen since the pivotal “I am the one who knocks” monologue in season four. He successfully channels Heisenberg pretending to be the Walt White Hank thinks he knows, while effortlessly easing into his malevolent alter ego. You can pinpoint the very second, mid-sentence, when Heisenberg stops pretending to be Walt and delivers the chilling closing lines.
The episode effectively sets the stage for an all-out confrontation between Heisenberg and Hank. Unfortunately, we didn’t see enough of Jesse this time. Although he was characteristically competent in the scenes he was in, he wasn’t given the chance to shine and was, understandably, overshadowed by the other, more pressing, subplot. Hopefully, there will be more of him in the next few weeks because, let’s face it, he’s the last character most of us still root for without feeling inordinately guilty afterwards.
It’s not easy for a show to build a reputation as strong as Breaking Bad’s, leave the fans hanging, and then, to top it all off, actually deliver. There are only seven episodes left and judging from this one, I will be spending the next few months blabbering about it nonstop to everyone who will (and won’t) listen. I apologize in advance.