‘Breaking Bad’ Retro Recap: ‘End Times’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Whenever our lives are spiraling out of control, we fall back on two key foundations to get ourselves righted again. Specifically, our friends and our family. For they are what ground us, and they often give us great guidance as to how we should proceed in life and their wisdom and love tend to make the chaos palatable just long enough… for us to take control of our lives once again. Which leaves us thankful and secure in the knowledge that we do indeed have a support net to fall back upon if life decides to throw another curve ball our way. And we are so secure in that knowledge, that we don’t even bother to wonder what life might look like, if that support network wasn’t present for us. But it wouldn’t hurt us to do so, just so we are prepared in the event we find ourselves in a situation where we are on our own and one fine way to explore such matters… is through fiction.

For storytelling always knows how to cut to the chase and explore our concerns in the raw and it just so happens that the next episode of Breaking Bad explores that scenario in great detail. For when we catch up with everyone in ‘End Times’, the situation is incredibly grim. For the majority of  theWhite family and the Schrader family are being carefully tucked away at the Schrader home with DEA agents surrounding them over the threat imposed upon Hank, and that more or less puts Walter in the worst-case scenario. For he knows that if he sits in with his family, that Gus will come calling and more bloodshed will come into play and that motivates him to lay low and isolate and brace for the worst and well, it’s a good thing that he does, since Gus immediately blames him for the DEA arriving at the laundromat. In fact, he’s so angry about it… that he opts to partake in a revenge scheme, one involving Jesse.

Because sadly, Jesse gets a phone call from Andrea that young Brock has come down ill out of the blue and once Jesse gets a look at him in the hospital and realizes that the Ricin might have come into play… he immediately finds Walter and has it out with him yet again and that’s precisely when the thematic exploration gets underway. Because at this point, Walt has no hope, no direction or safety net. He’s simply alone and that leads to some scary scenes, the kind where it genuinely seems as though he will perish in this situation because of his lack of a plan and lack of resources, making it seem as though a lack of a safety net is nothing short of devastating. But once he realizes that Gus likely did this to get Jesse to do his dirty work, a more positive lesson comes into play. In that, when the chips are down in this manner, and we have no hope of cavalry coming and no support network to fall back upon… we can either accept the hand we are dealt… or fight back and take control and find a way out of the mess we are in.

Of course, Walter opts to go that latter route and that allows for he and Jesse to come up with a scheme of their own. One that involves getting dear Gus out into the open and in a vulnerable place so that he can be dealt with accordingly and the best way to make that happen… is to not cook Blue Sky. That way Gus will be concerned about the financial side of his new empire, and it should draw him out to address the matter personally and wouldn’t you know it? The plan works to a tee. For Jesse stands pat in the hospital and refuses to go near the lab until he knows that Brock is okay and that brings Fring down to meet with Jesse and figure out a plan and timetable to return the operation to glory. Which in turn gives Walter time to plant a homemade bomb on Gus’ car and sadly, just when it seems as though this mess is finally going to end… Gus opts for a different mode of transportation, leaving Walter in a tough place, since now he has to figure out a new way to get to Gus.

If anything, this was a tense but satisfying tale for certain. Tense because of the entire situation between Walter and Gus, since there was a genuine air of danger surrounding this whole mess, especially after Gus made it clear that he’ll kill anyone to get what he wants, but it was satisfying simply because… Walt finally took control. Because for most of this season… he’s been Gus’ whipping boy and unable to do anything but react. So, to see him here, fighting to stay alive and fighting to take control is a wonderful thing and it does leave one eager to continue the journey to see if Walt is victorious in his uprising. Thankfully, it won’t be long before we find out how that fight ends. For the season four finale awaits us and it will undoubtedly be free of the deeper meaning or real-world scenarios present here… so that the story can focus on a showdown for the ages. One where Gustavo Fring and Walter White… settle their differences once and for all. Until next time.  

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