Words: George Morahan
SPOILER! And lots of ‘em!
Walter White, much like Gus Fring before him, has aspired to a higher form of criminality. He knows that violence comes as a necessary evil in the meth business but there is a more civilised and generally safer way of building empires. He is the soft power.
Lydia is on much the same wavelength, treating Todd's meth as another Madrigal product to be packaged and sold for a lucrative profit. The fact that his meth isn't as pure or blue as Heisenberg's is a problem, though. The blue colouring reinforces their brand much like 'Have an A1 day' reinforces Skyler's brand at A1, but his business partner and Todd's uncles, Jack, doesn't care. It's blue enough for him as he doesn't aspire like the criminals we are used to do. Profit is the only goal, and at any cost as Walter and those closest to him will find out later.
In a normal season, this thirteenth episode would be the season finale, and but for the heart-stopping end it would appear to have wrapped up the series in a more than satisfactory manner, with Walt in handcuffs and his captors, by turn, dumbfounded, delighted and relieved. But 'To'hajiilee' will go down as one of the greatest and most shocking hour’s of Breaking Bad thanks to the distinction between what type of criminal Walter is and the type of criminals Todd's Nazi uncles are.
Jesse, Gomey and Hank regroup after the events of the last episode and set a plan in motion. They start by cornering Huell. With his Jabba the Hutt-like figure, bulbous head and heavy breathing, Huell has always been a character played for laughs - just look at how he is perched on that couch - but he gives up a bit too easily from a man associated with a criminal lawyer like Saul Goodman, and his testimony proves vital in bringing Heisenberg down.
The episode, written by George Mastras (the man responsible for blowing Tortuga's head off a tortoise shell in season three), is incredibly tight and zips along at a break-neck pace. Huell's credibility is a casualty of how rapidly it progresses, even if it's not that big a leap for him to make such a mistake - Huell's hardly a genius after all. What's incredible is that Walt falls for the same trick as his lawyer's laughable bodyguard.
A misleading picture causes them both to play into Hank's hands. In Walter's case it feels justified though. For all his posing as a kingpin, he is a man of great hubris and possesses infinite ability to underestimate those around him. The fact he ends an incriminating rant with the words 'you're too stupid to know it' is not only a delicious irony, but the very essence of Walter White. This whole excursion into meth-making has been a grand experiment in proving his intelligence and belittling those around him while causing greater and more dangerous problems for himself at every turn.
I'm just going to cut to the final 20 minutes, because that's all anyone will ever remember about this episode. Walt gets a picture message suggesting Jesse has gotten to his money and the music kicks in. Strings screech, bass throbs over an industrial beat and the roar of his car’s engine as he rushes to the titular To'hajiilee.
'DON’T YOU TOUCH MY MONEY!' Walt screams down the line at Jesse, like a murderous Mr Krabs chastising a gleeful SpongeBob. Otherwise, he looks speechless; he couldn't find the right words to soothe Jesse's anger and now he cannot muster any at all.
He arrives, runs to the spot where the barrels are buried, muttering 'Bitch!' upon realising he has been duped. Their roles reversed, he takes on Jesse's lexicon. He calls Jack to arrange the hit, but changes his mind upon seeing Hank and Gomey roll up with Jesse.
So many conflicting emotions run across Bryan Cranston's face in one of the most memorable scenes for Walt in the series' run (up there with Jane's death and the end of 'Crawl Space'). He plays it so wonderfully, collapsing behind a rock upon realising that this is where the line is drawn: this is too big an obstacle to overcome and the monstrosity of Walter White stops at killing family.
It's difficult to appreciate this upon first viewing as we all know that Walt does escape Hank's clutches and that Walter White has an uncanny knack for making the 'exact reverse opposite' of what you expect to happen become reality, but here he sits truly defeated as Hank yells 'It's over' in the distance.
Not only does he realise that he has been beaten but that he has been proven wrong about Jesse; there's a palpable heartbreak when he sheds a tear and collects his thoughts. He thought he could count on Jesse to keep his silence if not 'see reason' as he puts it. When they are brought face to face, he spits the word 'coward' with such venom. This was no prideful oversight but an honest show of faith in a young man he thinks of as a son.
Earlier in the episode, when arranging the hit on Jesse, Uncle Jack takes a moment to tease Walter, thinking he lacks the conviction to take care of his own business. 'Jesse is like family to me', he responds, probing deep into Jack's eyes and instantly earning his respect. It is a truthful statement, one of the few Walter has made recently.
The writers give him a whole ad-break to concoct a plan, so it’s difficult to accept this moment for what it is. Even when the handcuffs are slapped on the mind races as to how Walt will get out of this one. The look on Aaron Paul’s face as Jesse watches on is a perfect summation. He looks utterly shocked, his mouth hanging open in disbelief.
The tension is briefly punctured when Walt is read his rights and we are given one last pathetic squabble between the former partners, but then the celebrations go on and Hank savours the moment a little too much. Platitudes and congratulations are piled unstably on top of one another, relief washes over the victors’ faces but blinds them to the danger lurking.
The Nazi hordes roll up and the heart sinks. It’s like the game is won and then the rules change. In the game we had been playing, Walt had been beaten fair and square. This was not a game won by strength and power but by knowledge and ingenuity. It is such a nerve-shredding conclusion, however, making for one of the most frustrating cuts to black in screen history.
They open fire. They are like Mike Ehrmantraut: willing to do what is necessary to ensure their survival, freedom and profit. They saw Walt handcuffed in the back; they had no intention of putting down their arms - no badge was going to change that.
They are a different kind of criminal - the hard power. No half-measures.
As always you can catch the latest episodes of Breaking Bad on netflix.com. Season 5, Episode 14 airs on Monday 16th September.
