Last night's episode of Breaking Bad may was among the more mind-blowing of the series. At the moment, the very mention of Jesse Plemons creates a chills-inducing mental picture of Todd standing there, giving that awkward little wave. For all the suspense built up throughout "Dead Freight," those final moments were like a sigh of relief that's immediately followed by a punch to the face. Not cool! And yet… completely amazing. (Spoilers ahead if you haven't seen last night's episode!)
What's fascinating to me about last night's episode was how it started out. I'm not just referring to "Dead Freight's" open, which introduced us to the child who would become a part of the shocking episode conclusion. I'll admit, I'd forgotten all about the tarantula kid up until those last few moments. But Walt's discussion of the plans to kill the train conductor had me contemplating his assessed value of human life these days. Is there any? At this point, he seems willing to disregard the lives of anyone who stands in his way, regardless of whether or not they're involved in the drug making/dealing community. Killing the two innocent men simply because they were witnesses seemed like it would have been another line crossed.
Jesse, on the other hand, has proven to show compassion in the past, and seems to have maintained his own humanity enough to consider alternative options, which is what led them to yet another genius plan, and a much deserved "Yeah bitch!" moment! Of course, they hadn't anticipated the tarantula kid's arrival. Todd took care of that with the pull of the trigger. Kid was a witness. Kid had to die. Never mind that he's a kid.
That brings us to next Sunday's episode: "Buyout"...
Jesse's reaction was immediate. How will Walt react? I hate to say it, but something tells me he's going to swallow this fatality and breath a sigh of relief knowing the situation was handled without spending (wasting) too much time contemplating the matter. After all, he did poison a child to get Jesse's loyalty back, so killing a kid to protect himself from getting caught seems like something he'd at least consider, right? But maybe for the sake of Jesse, he'll pretend to be at least a little bit remorseful. Or maybe not and Jesse will see just how far over the line Walt has gone. The photo above shows Walt and Jesse having a talk. Is Jesse considering walking away from the business? Maybe that's what "Buyout" refers to.
The preview for next week's episode shows the aftermath of the issue, including what appears to be the kid begin buried, and Jesse exploding about Todd being a whack-job. I agree (and I'll never be able to look at Friday Night Lights's Landry quite the same again).
And in this week's preview clip, we have Skylar having a heart to heart with Marie. Sometimes I forget they're sisters.
On one hand, it sounds like Skylar knows that telling Marie about Walt is off the table because her sister would never speak to her again. And on the other hand, admitting that to her sister does seem like the first step toward confessing. Is Skylar going to tell Marie that Walt's a drug kingpin.
Breaking Bad airs Sundays at 10:00 p.m. ET on AMC. Read our full breakdown of "Dead Freight" here.
