Breaking Bad: "Open House"

Season 4, Episode 3

La la la, I can't hear you

“For what it’s worth: getting the shit kicked out of you?

I’m not saying it gets any easier…but it kind of does.”

-          Jesse

The f-bomb is usually a word that we associate with shock value, and for good measure, considering how many shows and stand up comics use it as a means to a laughs, without any real context to the words. But used correctly, and a nice, long, drawn out ‘ffffffuuuuuuuuuccccckkkkkk’ can detail heady desperation better than any monologue. This is how I would like to imagine Walt’s f-bomb went when he discovered the new motion-sensor surveillance camera in the lab (I couldn’t tell, as in an Arrested Development-esque move, his mouth was covered up by him flipping the bird). I also like to think the word would have slipped out in a similar manner from Hank’s mouth had he not stopped himself while on the phone with Marie.

The truth is that the people in Walt’s life, and Walt himself, like to imagine that they are in control of their own lives, and they don’t react to kindly when someone tries to take that control away. Of course it doesn’t help that these characters like to fool themselves into thinking they are in control by fabricating the realties in which they live.

Skyler likes to think of herself as a modern-day crime boss. Still smarting from the verbal beating that Bogdan’s verbal thrashing last week, Skyler has doubled down on her resolve to buy up the carwash. The problem is, even though she acts like a tough customer, she’s still not desensitized to the crime world that she’s now voluntarily entered, and that makes things such as buying a carwash, without the use of force or intimidation, much harder. Sure she eventually finds a solution, but her reading lines to an actor through his Bluetooth headset just barely works, and her negotiating tactics are clearly ripped from Hollywood, to the point where even she doesn’t believe in herself. Her overall plan of not getting caught is equally ridiculous, as she insists on making sure that every single detail matches their cover stories, something that is bound to backfire on her eventually.

Marie likes to pretend that she’s a successful middle class woman. Having lost a good deal of her identity due to Hank’s pathetic state and newly found only-for-his-wife misanthropy, Marie has started taking on new personalities by visiting open houses, where she is free to indulge in her weird form of escapism. What more, she’s returned to her thieving ways, the only actions where it ever felt like she had control. I was never a big fan of this subplot back in season one, both because it was unmotivated and misogynistic for the character, and it just felt like something thrown out there to give the two female regulars something to do, but now that we have a better idea of who Marie is, these actions make much more sense, and serve as a nice reflection of her personal struggles.

Hank likes to pretend that he’s anyone but a cripple, and anywhere besides stuck in his bed. He fancies himself a genuine collector of minerals, and watches porn, the ultimate form of male fantasy. He clearly hates that he’s bed-ridden, and he pushes Marie away so that he can justify his bad attitude. But wallowing in self-pity is not enough for him, and it doesn’t take long until he picks up that copy of Gale’s notebook that his cop buddy just dropped off…

Jesse likes to pretend that none of the events in “Box Cutter” actually happened, and he does this by surrounding himself with other people – any other people. His house has turned into a place of vice, where people can get cranked up, fight, fuck, and create some good old fashion property damage. Yet while Jesse seems to get off on silently mocking these sad sacks that now inhabit his domicile, he knows that that distraction won’t work forever, and he’s so desperate for companionship that he reaches out to Walt to go go-karting. Yet that’s a wall that will never come down, as each man has his secrets that he would rather the other didn’t know. Jesse’s so wrapped up in his own troubles that he doesn’t even notice that he’s being watched by Tyrus…

Tonight’s episode was actually a fairly slow one, placing much greater emphasis on characterization than anything else, something that I didn’t think the show could afford after the action-packed nature of last season. (Surprisingly, Walt seemed to take kind of a backseat in tonight’s episode.) But it was still a great one, wringing a surprising amount of tension from slowly winding all of these characters towards their breaking points. Because when that rubber band finally snaps, well somebody’s going to have to feel the pain.

Quotes, Etc:

It might be a bit cheesy, but I’ve always enjoyed the fact that Walt has an overly complicated device to make his morning coffee.

“..And I didn’t retaliate because he’s a much older man.” I don’t think even Skyler believed that claim, Walt.

“I will get peas. I will get ice. Peas and ice, I’m writing it down.”

“Right brain, left brain thing, want to get that balanced.”

“Can Huell use your bathroom…He’ll be quick; it’s a stomach thing.”

“Hey, how about terrorism?”

“I didn’t call him names, I said he was unpleasant.”

“What? I’m Nixon now?”