Seriously though, it is. Multiple cleanings are insufficient and the gas has soaked in to the point where they would have to remove the carpet entirely if they want to get rid of the smell.
It does lead to Walt coming up with one of his weaker cover stories. Skyler immediately sees through it and wants to know what's going on after they move to a hotel for a couple of days. Even Junior suspects something is up, though he's under the impression that it's Cancer related. On the one hand, given how skilled a liar Walt has become, it was surprising to see, but given the circumstances, I don't think there is a plausible story that would have gotten the job done.
If you were expecting a roaring rampage of revenge, the episode dodges that. While Walt is convinced that Jesse changed his mind and just needs some time to cool down, we later learn that Hank got to Jesse first and managed to talk him out of burning the house down. It seems like plot convenience, but Hank's presence there is explained as he had been tailing Jesse since they let him go. Given the two have a fair amount of disdain for one another, it was interesting to see them forge alliance as both are bent on making sure that Walt gets what's coming to him.
Jesse does offer a video confession detailing the nature of his and Walt's business venture. It's better than nothing, even Gomez admits that it all makes sense, but they still don't have any physical evidence to put Walt away..
Meanwhile, Walt tries to find Jesse. Again, Saul proposes the idea of killing the person who is posing the problem. And again, the ruthless Heisenburg is the one who turns the idea down. It's a bit odd as he had his gun drawn when he first tried to "talk" to Jesse, though Hank notes in a later scene that there is still a loyalty there. How did Walt not get the "Old Yeller" reference? Even if you haven't seen the movie, it's been referenced enough that he still should have picked up on where Saul was going based on context alone. It allows Saul to give a speech that reinforces the title, but I'm not sure how necessary it was. Just the mention would have been enough and given the state Jesse was in, the title made perfect sense even before I hit play on the Netflix player.
It does lead to a nice parallel where Walt chides Saul for using euphemisms, only to get the same lecture from Skyler. It's unclear whether Walt legitimately wasn't using them and his shock at the accusation is genuine or whether he was covering. You could make the argument for either side in all honesty. It makes Walt a much more interesting character to watch now that his angle isn't exactly clear.
The two subplots collide as Hank convinces Jesse to use the situation to setup a sting operation of sorts. Jesse is against it as he is convinced that the DEA is out of its element, but they give it a go anyway. Using a wire was a risky move, if Walt decided to pat Jesse down it would have been over. Luckily, it doesn't get to that point as Jesse finds a new way to torment Walt and claims he has a better way to bring him down. This leads to Walt calling Todd's uncle saying that they require his services, implying that Walt has finally come around to the "put Jesse down for good" plan. Of course, it could be another misdirect, but that's what the next episode is for.
While there was plenty of drama to be seen here, I think that the real strength of the episode comes from the humorous element that makes a comeback here. The dialogue has a lot of dry and dark humor that adds to the episode's enjoyment factor. Even Walt's lie to Skyler about why the house reeks of gasoline is largely played for laughs, making up for the fact that he clearly isn't succeeding.
The episode also delivers a few quieter character moments courtesy of Marie and Junior. The latter's heart to heart with his dad was simple but well done. It looked like even Walt was taken aback by the emotion. We also see Marie talking to a therapist as she tries to deal with her anger. It's good to see that the revelation isn't so easily shaken off. While she notes that she would never do anything violent, she admits that thinking about it feels good.
I also rather liked seeing her interactions with Jesse. It's very brief. She offers him coffee after Hank lets him crash there for a while and he accepts. Both are rather polite to one another but these two had never crossed paths this entire time so it was interesting to see how that played out.
Things are certainly kicking into gear as we get ever closer to the show's final episode. Both sides are setting things into motion so there should be plenty of scheming and plotting to come.
Meanwhile, Walt tries to find Jesse. Again, Saul proposes the idea of killing the person who is posing the problem. And again, the ruthless Heisenburg is the one who turns the idea down. It's a bit odd as he had his gun drawn when he first tried to "talk" to Jesse, though Hank notes in a later scene that there is still a loyalty there. How did Walt not get the "Old Yeller" reference? Even if you haven't seen the movie, it's been referenced enough that he still should have picked up on where Saul was going based on context alone. It allows Saul to give a speech that reinforces the title, but I'm not sure how necessary it was. Just the mention would have been enough and given the state Jesse was in, the title made perfect sense even before I hit play on the Netflix player.
It does lead to a nice parallel where Walt chides Saul for using euphemisms, only to get the same lecture from Skyler. It's unclear whether Walt legitimately wasn't using them and his shock at the accusation is genuine or whether he was covering. You could make the argument for either side in all honesty. It makes Walt a much more interesting character to watch now that his angle isn't exactly clear.
The two subplots collide as Hank convinces Jesse to use the situation to setup a sting operation of sorts. Jesse is against it as he is convinced that the DEA is out of its element, but they give it a go anyway. Using a wire was a risky move, if Walt decided to pat Jesse down it would have been over. Luckily, it doesn't get to that point as Jesse finds a new way to torment Walt and claims he has a better way to bring him down. This leads to Walt calling Todd's uncle saying that they require his services, implying that Walt has finally come around to the "put Jesse down for good" plan. Of course, it could be another misdirect, but that's what the next episode is for.
While there was plenty of drama to be seen here, I think that the real strength of the episode comes from the humorous element that makes a comeback here. The dialogue has a lot of dry and dark humor that adds to the episode's enjoyment factor. Even Walt's lie to Skyler about why the house reeks of gasoline is largely played for laughs, making up for the fact that he clearly isn't succeeding.
The episode also delivers a few quieter character moments courtesy of Marie and Junior. The latter's heart to heart with his dad was simple but well done. It looked like even Walt was taken aback by the emotion. We also see Marie talking to a therapist as she tries to deal with her anger. It's good to see that the revelation isn't so easily shaken off. While she notes that she would never do anything violent, she admits that thinking about it feels good.
I also rather liked seeing her interactions with Jesse. It's very brief. She offers him coffee after Hank lets him crash there for a while and he accepts. Both are rather polite to one another but these two had never crossed paths this entire time so it was interesting to see how that played out.
Things are certainly kicking into gear as we get ever closer to the show's final episode. Both sides are setting things into motion so there should be plenty of scheming and plotting to come.
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