Top 10 Episodes #7
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Season 1, Episode 6: Crazy Handful of Nothin’
Directed by Bronwen Hughes
Writen by George Mastras
In the traditional Breaking Bad vein, we open up with a great juxtaposition of the beginning versus the ending. Episode 6 of season one introduces Tuco, a big-time drug dealer who doesn’t quite do business in the expected manner. It’s left to Walt to sort it all out and thus we see his physical transformation as he gives birth to his alias Heisenberg (as in the Uncertainty Principle). Bald, desperate and determined, Walt puts his chemistry skills to work, flinging an exploding compound called fulminated mercury in the air, blowing the roof off Tuco’s crib, and walking away with 50 large in a canvas bag.
The episode not only officially makes Walt a rising drug lord in one of the show’s biggest WTF moments, but also offers us the first scene in which we the audience sympathizes for Jesse, who takes a major beating. Jesse is the heart of the show and without him, I’m not convinced it can be a success. His odd chemistry with Walt is what keeps the show lively. Otherwise I’m not sure how much an audience can endure of such an unlikeable protagonist such as Walt. You also have to love the symbolism of that poker game. Hank folds on Walt’s bluff, just like Hank did when he arrested Hugo for Walt’s crime. We quickly get the sense that Walt is always one step ahead, but for how long?
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