Breaking Bad’s writers have admitted to using Westerns and movies in general as their main inspirations for the series. Unfortunately, and I may be in the minority for this, tonight’s season finale “Full Measure” was too much like a cinematic feature in the sense that the third and final act paled in comparison to the previous two.
The opening scene is clearly a flashback, where Walt is sans glasses and has a decent amount of hair and Skylar is pregnant with Walt Jr. They’re looking at a house that will become their home for the next sixteen years. Skylar in particular is funny, young and cool. Walt scoffs at the place saying it’s a starter house and he’ll make more money for them in no time flat. The conversation with the Realtor implies he used to work at a laboratory that kept its motivations secret.
After the opening credits Walt is alone with his smashed up Aztek. He meets PI Mike in a clear area. Mike says he hasn’t slept in a few days cleaning up Walt’s mess. Gus then pops out of Mike’s car and lectures him that he shouldn’t have compromised the situation for a “worthless junkie.” Walt doesn’t back down, accusing Gus of giving the drug dealers the order to kill the 11-year-old. Gus does not deny it. Gus asks where Jesse is. Walt bluffs and tells him he must be a few time zones away. Mike says he can find him. Walt says it doesn’t matter, Jesse is gone, and that’s what Gus wanted anyway. Walt says Gus can either kill him right there and Jesse ends up dead, or Walt just keeps making them meth for him and they ignore Jesse’s existence. Gus seemingly chooses the latter, but tells Walt he’ll pick his new cooking partner. Walt it should be noted wore what some people in my apartment building would call a “Sinatra hat”, which seemingly put him in character as “Heisenberg: Fucking Drug Dealer Badass.” The next day Walt finds that Gus has rehired Gale as his cooking partner.
PI Mike drives his daughter or granddaughter to her mom. He insists on keeping a few of the balloons they acquired that day for himself. That night he uses the baloons to short out electrical wiring. Mike shoots two goons. The music seems to want us to know this is inspired by seventies movies trying to make Sergio Leone westerns. Mike kills two other dudes and asks an Asian man what is going on exactly. Mike asks if the female secretary can drive. He says yes. Mike shoots him in the hand and says she can drive him to the hospital. This is all ridiculously badass. Shooty McBadass tells the guy he should return his calls more often.
Back at the lab Walt is discouraged when one of Gus’ henchmen keeps monitoring Walt and Gale while they make the meth. Gale is basically a beaten puppy whimpering to Walt that he doesn’t want to be kicked out on the curb again and he’ll do absolutely anything to make sure he isn’t shitcanned ever again. The next scene is Gale at home alone singing along to a CD. He’s kind of cultured but lame. He’s visited by Gus. Gus asks him if he could ever handle things on his own. Gus flat out tells Gale Walt is dying of cancer but doesn’t know how long it will be before he drops dead. Gale says he’d need a few more sessions with Walt to be confident that he can handle things on his own if Waltie suddenly perished. Since he’s looking right at the frightening Gus, he then decides he only needs one more cook. Ohhhhhh fucktards.
Mike approaches Saul Goodman as to Jesse’s whereabouts. Saul gives Mike the typical Saul crap, and Mike in turn threatens his life. Saul gives up the info that Jesse is in Virginia.
Saul drives Walt to the lazer tag locatiion he wanted Walt and Skylar to money launder into in the first place. As they enter we see the henchman Victor who hung out in the lab earlier is in the parking lot. Once inside the place Saul yells at Walt that his car is bugged and he’s being threatened. Jesse appears and Saul leaves the two of them alone. It turns out Walt is no dummy and he knows Gale is supposed to replace him shortly. Jesse asks what they have to do. Walt says he knows. Jesse says they should go to the cops and he can’t believe he’s saying that either. “We had a good run.” Walt wont hear it, he says if he’s the only chemist available he will always stay alive. Jesse tells “Mr. White” that he can’t do it. Walt says he’ll do it. He wants Jesse to distract Victor for an hour while he can get Gale alone to fucking KILL HIM. Walt tasted blood and now he needs a weekly fix apparently. Walt tries to guilt Jesse, saying he saved HIS life, so Jesse should save his own.
AMC tells us there will be a sneak preview Tuesday of Rubicon. It has the guy from The Pacific in it and everyone looks very serious. So it should be good?
Walt is spending quality time with lil’ baby Holly. Jesse calls him and says he found Gale’s home address. Walt admits he’ll go through with it tonight once it gets dark. Jesse again pleads to “Mr. White” not to do it and to go to the police. As Walt is about to get into his car Victor pulls up and tells Walt there was a chemical leak at the lab and to go in the car with him. Uh oh. Mike is there and tells him to kindly go downstairs. Walt pleads for his life. Mike says no. Walt tries to fink out Jesse. Walt calls Jesse to get him to meet him.
Jesse is somewhere sitting against a wall repeatedly on the verge to lighting up meth. Walt tells him he’s at gunpoint and to kill Gale himself. Oh and dip. Jesse runs off with a gun to presumably do it. Walt says to Mike to hold off killing him because Gale’s gonna die and he’ll be fresh out of chefs. Mike motions to Victor to run off to Gale’s.
Jesse shows up and tearfully points his gun at Gale. Gale pleads he doesn’t have to do this. Jesse pulls the trigger.
Season over.
Now, I’ve written before that unless someone is shot in the head, you can never assume that person is dead. Considering we didn’t even SEE Gale when the gun went off, there’s plenty of wiggle room here. And even if Gale dies, Gus can easily hire somebody else from out of town. This ending would have been sufficient if it was any other episode, but certainly not for a season finale where we won’t see a new episode for nine months.
P.S.
No Hank at all in the finale. I guess he was challenging Marie to a handjob rematch?
“Are you asking me if I ordered the murder of a child?” “I would never ask you that.”
According to Vince Gilligan the executive producer
Alan Sepinwall pointed out the irony that the realtor in the flashback assumed Walt was doing something with lasers at his old job and nowadays lasers are a part of his life in a completely unexpected way.
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