'Breaking Bad' Mid-Season Premiere Review/Recap (SPOILERS)

Breaking Bad opens, as I noted in a previous post several hours ago, with one of those infamous Breaking Bad teasers.  And as always, Vince Gilligan and crew DO NOT disappoint.  We only have 8... no, now 7 episodes left of the series and there's much to do or tell.

The White residence is fenced off, abandoned. 

Walter breaks in, looking through the derelict of a house.  Heisenberg is written on one of the interior walls.  Doors torn off hinges.  In the rest of the house graffiti decorates the walls.  Walter is there to collect his ricin cigarette that he's hidden in an outlet in past times.

He comes out of the house, see's his neighbor, and says "Hello Carol."  She's freaked and drops her grocery bag.

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Did you notice the M60 in the trunk?  That's the gun he bought in the first teaser scene of Breaking Bad's season five.

We come back to the now, the present.  It's been a month since Walt has claimed to be out of the business.

Hank comes out of the bathroom and is shocked.  This is right after his revelation of who Walt really is.  After Walt sees Hank off, he turns to Carrol and says hi.  She replies all cheery, in stark contrast from the teaser.

Hank has a panic attack while driving home.  (His first was after shooting Tuco.)  All this time, right under his nose. 

Meanwhile, Hank is acting all normal and making suggestions on how to run his car wash.
Lydia visits the car wash, bitching about the quality of the product to Walt, while he's behind the cash register.

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While Walt is pretending (or maybe not) to Sky that he's out of the business, Hank has a boatload of paperwork delivered to his home and is now going through everything with a new eye, looking for that WW connection.  Just one.  But he can't seem to find anything.

Let's check in on Jesse... bored out of his skull while his boys, Badger, talk about a fantasy episode of Star Trek...

Jesse brings a shit load of cash to Saul, asking him to distribute the money to Mike's family.  Saul doesn't think it's a good idea.  Saul thinks Mike bailed out of town.  Saul tells Jesse he'll do it, but then Saul calls Walt.  (While Walt is on his Chemo drip.)

Walt shows up at Jesse's house with the money, demanding an explanation.  (Seriously Walt?)

Jesse doesn't like what the money represents.  He's always had a good character streak at his core, and that character is trying to do the right think now.

Jesse calls Walter on the idea that he killed Mike, and Walt, as smooth as silk, denies killing him and says Mike must be out there laying low.  Jesse pretends to go along with the farce, to Walt, but it looks like he does know better.

Later that night at dinner, Walt has a nausea attack, rushes to the bathroom to take his Dolasetron.  (Is he hiding his chemotherapy from the family?  Well, Sky did say all she had for options was to wait.  Wait for the cancer to come back.)  But while puking, Walt notices his book, Blades of Grass, missing from the bathroom.  He looks around, and it seems he starts to put it together... Hank getting sick after being in the bathroom.  Looking around, Walt finds a GPS tracking device on his car.

Yep Mr. Walter White, the gig just might up you mass murdering bastard!!!

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Jesse is out, sleeping in his car and he ends up giving a homelss guy a wad of money.  Really... a wad.

Then, he gets a "brilliant" idea.  Since he isn't allowed to give the money away, he drives through a impoverished neighborhood and starts tossing wads of money into everyone's yards.

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Walt visits Hank... Walt is being his sanctimonious self.  And Hank can't seem to really look Walt in the eyes easily.

Then Walt calls him on the tracker he found, just like the one they used when tracking Gus.  Then Hank clocks Walt and pretty much shows his hand.  Walt continues to smoothly lie through it all.  Then tells Hank that probably in six months, he'll be dead and there will be no one to prosecute.  Then he threatens Hank, suggesting he tread carefully.

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Thoughts on the mid-season premiere of Breaking Bad

Wow... Walter has done what he always does.  Justify his violence, manages to smoothly deflect his guilt with some innocent veneer, while threatening those who are on his trail.

Hank now knows who Heisenberg is and it disgusts him.  He's come clean to Walt, and the game is afoot between the wolf and the rabbit.  But which one is which?  How much damage will be done to their family with this pursuit?  Who will Walt threaten to try and keep Hank at bay?

And I can't help but wonder what Jesse's Robin Hood routine will do for the investigation?

See ya at next week's ep.

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