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A man who would pick a pun would pick a pocket says Stephen Maturin in one of Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin novels. Well that's certainly one opinion. I, however, am a sucker for a good pun. Face Off is the title of this episode. Nice, Mr. Gilligan, very nice indeed.
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I liked the season finale a lot. Was it good enough to redeem a somewhat slow and patchy season? Did it make up for the creaking plot and the logic problems of the last two or three episodes? Actually, yes I think maybe it did. This episode was up there with the very best of season 1. We forget sometimes how clever Mr. White is. Neurotic, impulsive, emotional but very smart. And we also shouldn't forget that although Walter White got a degree in chemistry from the University of New Mexico a cancer diagnosis has given him a Ph.D. in advanced badassery.
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The writing in Face Off was crisp, the directing taut, the acting spot on, the element of surprise, well, surprising and it ended with a nice Norah Jones/Danger Mouse song that I wasn't expecting either.
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I'd really love them to end Breaking Bad at this point. I know that they won't but I wish they would. We don't really need to know how every little thing goes down and ending the entire series here would send the cast and the audience out on a high (no pun intended).
22 comments:
Yeah, I waited with baited (bated??) breath on Monday night for the *ahem* cough-torrents-cough to come flying through the interwebs for this one and wham bam thank you m'am I was in BB heaven....
Indeed it was a tautly written script with some nice tight editing and a few interesting teasers, especially with the poisoning subplot.
I agree it could well have ended this season with Walt pronouncing victory after the hilariously ghoulish Woo reference dropped in (Gus straightening his tie before hitting the deck), but Gilligan is onto a good thing I figure and audiences will lap up S 5 to be sure.
To keep going after such an explosive denouement will be a hard slog for the writers, so they will need to do some intricate and careful work to keep the momentum flowing, otherwise it could fall into a heap. Much like Sons of Anarchy (ugghhh...shocking)
My questions are what of Mike the bodyguard? Was that resolved? Did J and Walt really patch things up? Has the DEA closed the case? Maybe I am just fussy hehe
It will be interesting to see.
Oh I spotted a continuity blooper. When J is first being interviewed over the ricin idea Mr Baldy is on the left side of the table. When they return to the scene he is on the right. Maybe they just had a tea break though and forgot where they were sitting originally.
Dan
Nice catch on the continuity.
I imagine S5 will be all about Mike's return from Mexico.
Unfortunately they'll think that the only way to end Walter White's arc will be to kill him or allow him to die of cancer. I dont think we need to see that but it'll be hard to resist.
Yeah, I have just checked out a few msg boards and the like and I agree, the arc of W's cancer is not yet resolved. Death by the big C or death by meth lords yet to reveal themselves from the nice Mexican meth lab that J worked in?? Or possibly J finding that lily of the valley plant in Walts yard, which was alluded to in the previous episode and....nah plain silly.
Unnecessary and kind of car crash viewing, but knowing it will be out there sometime next year will indeed be a hard one to resist.
Dan
I know people like the loose ends tidied up but sometimes its better if they arent. I think this would be a great place to end the show.
Look at Battlestar Galactica. It would have been so much better if it had finished with Season 3 with a really downbeat conclusion instead of the awfulness of S 4.
One of the best endings I've seen of a TV show was the British 70s scifi programme Blake's 7. In the final episode the entire crew were killed and the bad guys won. It was completely shocking - especially for a kid - but totally consistent with that universe. With Breaking Bad it would be shocking if Walt didn't die of cancer and everything worked out fine, but they wont go that route.
Apparently the 5th season is going to be the last. I'm just pleased its finishing and not getting cancelled like quite a few decent american shows.
Re: Dan
Sons of Anarchy did get really bad in series 2 and 3. They allowed characters/ plot lines no time breath. The fourth season has started far better then the previous two.
Tim
Its good that they're not going to drag it out forever like they are, apparently, going to do with Mad Men.
Cancelling isnt always a bad thing. If they'd cancelled Lost at the end of season 1 I think it would have had a better legacy.
Here's that Dangermouse, Norah Jones song for anyone that's interested:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3yAx2uCoHs
I thought it was an excellent ending.Loved the final shot of the Lily of the Valley plant in Walt's yard. I have enjoyed this whole season, I think it has been almost as good as season 1.
The only part I have really not liked throughout the whole four seasons has been the ending of season two.
I was convinced Mike was going to make an appearance at the end of this episode too, right up to the end, so I'm guessing you're right that it will be a big part of Season 5.
Conor
I cant go along with that. I thought the first few episodes were slow and when they tried to spice things up they made a few missteps: for example Mike as an unkillable Superman and I cringed with embarrassment during the poisoning scene at the hacienda.
HOWEVER, as has been pointed out to me on the blog before I am critiquing Breaking Bad by its own high standards and you'll get no argument from that Sunday's ep was utterly brilliant.
Saw it, and like the rest of you, thought it was great. I really haven't thought anything before it this season has been on the same level, so I do fault them for that. They were capable of more tightly written scripts all the way through but basically just put it all in the big payoff.
I have to say that the actors who played Gus and Hector Salamanca should both get a lot of kudos. Gus for gravitas and Hector for pulling off a very challenging role.
I don't agree that Season 5 has to go to any obvious place. Jesse could still kill Walt. His son could find out what kind of man his dad is. Hank and Walt could have the final confrontation. Really, it could be great.
But I do hope the season will build in a more dynamic way than this one did.
Seana
I wonder if you can get an Emmy award for a look. The look Hector gave Gus just before he pressed the bell was absolutely amazing.
Incredible. Never seen the like.
And the woman who did the board should get a little something too. Well, actually, it would have to be a kind of duet award.
Cancelling a series when im engrossed IS a terrible, naughty thing. Im starting to think Americans havent got any good taste, or they are spoilt by having sooo many decent tv programmes. I have a list as long as my arm of brilliant US dramas that i got so into and they were cancelled.Why does this happen?
Three cheers for the Book Depository, It's only a few months before your book is in my hot little hands. Of course, now I have to read "Falling Glass." Am I addicted to bokks? Noooo...
Sorry, wrong blog.I'm stii lappy about the book...
Lil
I think you'll like FG. I hope so anyway.
Frankie
Its a dog eat dog world. If they dont hit the ratings targets by the mid point of season 1 then they are killed. If there's a big name attached they might wait to kill them after season 1 has ended but the series will still die.
Here's a question: Do you have any doubts that Walt would be capable of the floral ploy, which I'll try not to mention in detail in case someone is scrolling through. I ask because I actually was a bit hazy on how this part of the story came about and was doing some research. Came across this YouTube, which lays it all out. I find it interesting because I actually did not see the gun spinning scene for some reason, and that fills in a few holes. In any case, I don't think Walt would kill a child, but I certainly think he'd be capable of this. He was, after all, capable of sending an elderly lady into a house that he wouldn't have dreamed of entering himself. I think there is still a line he wouldn't cross, but I am not precisely sure where it is.
Seana
I dont think Walt meant to kill him. I suspect that he refined the dose so that he would get very sick but not actually die. By act or omission he's been responsible for a lot of deaths now. Probably more than Gus.
I'm sure he didn't mean to kill him, but I think he didn't mind exploiting him in the situation. I liked what the little YouTube flick said about his relation to Jesse in this regard at the end.
Seana
I dont think Saul would have allowed himself to get involved.
It's a fair point, but the YouTube guy thinks otherwise. And I think the extensive pat down by his bodyguard does make it one possible scenario. I don't understand the psyche of Saul enough to guess.
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