‘Breaking Bad’ Retro Recap: ‘Peekaboo’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

There are a great many reasons as to why Breaking Bad continues to endure as a modern American classic crime drama. But of those many reasons, one that stands out above all else, is the sheer fact that this series was as versatile as they come. For not only could it be a tense thriller, one complete with appropriate action and big moments, but it could also be a powerful drama. One where we were able to gain proper insight into the character (or characters) motivation(s) in that moment or this series could simply slide into dark and twisted territory. The kind that would captivate us in a manner that can only be described as morbid curiosity. But what was truly impressive about this series, is that sometimes, the show would place some or all of those elements into a single episode, as evidenced by the next chapter in Walter White’s tragic journey.

For ‘Peekaboo’ is a tale that featured a dark and twisted storyline, alongside a character centric one and let’s talk about the latter of those two first… since it helped to give us deeper insight into why Walter opted to turn his back on the everyday world and dedicate himself to a life of crime, something that came about by way of a return to normalcy for Walter. Because with his cancer in remission, the time had arrived for Walter to return to work, and while it seems as though his being back on the job would be the last place to offer up an appropriate exploration into Walter’s desire to turn to a life of crime, it was the little things present in this segment that set the stage for the answer in question. Because Walter let some odd anger seep through whilst teaching, the kind that spoke to something unresolved and angry that he was holding back, and that didn’t come out until a surprise dropped into his family’s lap.

For Gretchen and Skyler had the chance to talk, which in turn left Walter worried that Gretchen would reveal the truth about the payments she and Elliott weren’t sending their way. A possibility that motivated Walter to have dinner with her to explain his reasons for telling this kind of lie and that’s when the motivation came out. Because despite Gretchen’s kindness and attempts to get Walter to accept their money, he refused. Simply because they denied him his cut in the first place from Gray Matter and that made it clear, that Walt is a man who genuinely believes that the world has failed him. That despite being good and doing all the right things, the system and people and everything about modern America, failed him, for not rewarding him for doing as he was told and now is his chance to get even and become stinking rich, all by doing things his way. Which is a motivation that the show has hinted at but didn’t truly reveal until this moment.

Yet while all of that was fascinating and powerful in its own right, we mentioned that this was a hybrid tale. One that featured some ugly moments and Jesse was the one that dealt with all of that. Because while Walter was firing off his disdain for the world, Mister Pinkman was hunting for the meth heads that stole from his boy. And that led to some wild moments at their home, the kind where Jesse had to play babysitter to their starving son before they got home. Which in turn led to more jaw-dropping moments, since Jesse took a physical beating from Spooge (yeah, that’s his name) and his darling wife and he eventually watched that very wife murder Spooge in an awful manner… by dropping an ATM machine on his head and well, this really was one incredible segment of the story when all is said and done. Since it showed off the darker side of the drug trade in a frank and dynamic manner and thankfully, writers J. Robert and Vince Gilligan, found a way to end this one on a semi-happy note.

Because Jesse did eventually call 911 and left the phone off the hook, so the police could rescue that young boy from a rough and unfulfilling life, and he also got all the money in the ATM machine and well, that really is the best way to bring a fascinating and sometimes angry episode to a close. One that switched back and forth between both storylines seamlessly and offered up compelling moments from beginning to end and really, this episode does a fine job of reinforcing the show's versatile nature and of course… this simple story still compels the viewer to continue this journey. Since now we know for certain, that Walt has some deep-rooted anger that he’s ready to unleash upon the world and we are curious to see how that will play out, and also because, we need to know how Jesse is going to deal with the fact, that he watched a dude’s head explode right in front of him. Until next time.

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