Best scenes from last night's episode:

- The "shut-yo-face-stupid-mexican-chemist-i-da-boss" Jessie scene
The facial expressions on Gus and what's-his-name's face shows that they're really seeing something in Jessie and will probably keep him around, as he thinks on his toes with excellent effect. As with the digging scene in a previous episode, Jessie, once he begins feeling like he's a part of something, does better and better and gets further off the meth binge. His arc seems to be on an upturn, and after his previous demise, it's nice to see him doing well and seeing his confidence return, and his employers having confidence in him as well, even though some of this helpful rage is obviously stemming from his still unresolved issues with killing the apprentice chemist.

- The epic Gus > the Cartel scene.
I love the way this scene single-handedly transforms Gus from somewhat of a villain, into a hero and gets you rooting for his team. The fact that they fought to keep Jessie, who we all surely see as a good guy in the context of the show, pretty much unites them at this point. And Jessie returns the favor for Gus and the henchman, putting him in even higher status in terms of the group.

I get the feeling that in coming episodes/seasons, this is going to put Jessie and Walt at odds, especially with their falling out, and Jessie being pretty much accepted by the very people who Walt fears will destroy him, making the next rivalry between the two main characters that used to be united, and playing with the alliances the audiences have formed so far.

Should be interesting!

Haha I like to express my feeling to the nth degree.

But, that last scene... holy Shiitake! That was stone cold, even by Breaking Bad standards. (Speaking of which, one of my friends is going to watch the whole series to be caught up by the time of the finale. He texted me saying how crazy the bathtub scene in episode 2 is. All I could tell him was just wait... :laughing:)

But where do Jesse's loyalties lie? Yeah sure he saved Gus and Mike, and he Ali-ed Walt. But if Mike and Gus are gone, does that mean Jesse will defer to Walt, or will he fight a power struggle with him?

I also feel like Saul is going to be a major player in the near future.

Think of the choice Walt has to make: let Hank find out the deal, and be found out. Or, save Gus from Hank, knowing Gus wants him dead.

And... Skyler, I.M.B.F.O.B.T.

Three more episodes..... so awesome and so sad.

^ I have a feeling Jesse won't just fall back under Walt's control so easily. I think it had all been adding up, ever since Walt convinced him shoot Gale B, for which he now suffers traumatically.
If Gus and Mike leave the picture for whatever reason, Walt is going to have to make a pretty sincere effort at convincing Jesse to become his ally again. I mean, Walt always used Jesse as a means to ensure his own safety first, and I think Jesse is going to start getting the sense that Gus prioritizes him more...
Even if that turns out to be false, I think Jesse is going to at least be the one fooled by the gesture of friendship from Gus. Walt obviously isn't, and he's serving as a source of tension, putting Jesse in the middle of a struggle between Gus, "the boss", and Walt, "Heisenberg".

At the very least, I think that's going to be a major element in future shows, at least up until the finale.

Who knows what's going to happen with Hank, though. He was close before and failed, but now... I somehow don't think it will be the same outcome.

Wow! That was a crazy episode!

So is Ted Beneke dead? That scene was a bit out of left field. The guys who came to take care of it were hilarious though.

Holy perpendicular lava f*ck balls of justice, Batman.

No, he saw through the threats because the one guy slipped up a bit. They never actually showed it in the episode, but I think they were implying at the very end that Skyler was successfully blackmailed by Beneke (which is why she didn't have the money left).

I'm getting kinda pissed at the writers, because there's this prevailing hint that Skyler is supposed to be the calm, well-reasoned center to Walt's chaotic life, but for what it's worth she's still getting outmaneuvered by incompetent bumbles like Beneke.

Now I'm starting to wonder....was all this business Gus has done with the cartel just a foil for base revenge? Until now, it didn't make sense for him to kill the hombre cook early in season five.

Yeah but I'm talking about how he tripped over the carpet and hit his head.

Because near the end Saul sounded all apologetic to Walt cause he thought Walt was coming to him all angry about the Ted Beneke situation, as if Ted had died. I think the writers left it ambiguous on purpose...

Ok, prediction time!

You're not saying that...

****.

I re-watched it and remembered that I forgot about that scene earlier. The whole "Gus is going to kill Walt's family as soon as Jesse lets him" sort of eclipsed it.