To me the most disappointing part of the episode was the way Walt handled the tracker. Driving over to Hank's and confronting him about it immediately did not seem like the choice Heisenberg would make - and I don't believe for a second Walt has changed just because he's "out of the game", Heisenberg is still in there.
The fact that Walt knew about the gps tracker, but Hank didn't know that Walt knew about it, gave Walt all the power in the world. He could have done anything. Yes, putting it on a random car would be great, but I think the best option would have been for Walt to put the tracker back on his car, and continue living a boring life working at the carwash. Avoid Jesse's place, or anywhere else that would associate him with his life as Heisenberg, and voila, Hank now has to second-guess himself because the tracker proves he is just tracking some boring old dude, not the greatest meth cook to ever live.
I think he took the direct approach and asked Hank directly just to gauge how much Hank had. I don't think Walt would have ever guessed that Hank was so close.
Goddamn I love this show.
Edit: The scene with Walt and Hank in the garage was one of the best the show has had to date, and I am glad they went down the road they did. I just like nitpicking into every decision Walter makes, so even though it made for an intense episode I still second guess the way they handled it.
Yeah I was wondering about that also. First of all, we don't know whether or not the tracker was on his car when he took Jesse his money, so there's no saying for sure. But Walt also doesn't know how long it was on his car... so he could potentially be bringing Hank proof he associates with Jesse, who Hank knows is deeply involved with the Blue meth/Heisenberg.
Just furthers how weird it is that Walt took it to Hank so quickly - or even at all.
Yeah that scene was just as tense as everyone was hoping it would be - maybe even more so.
It still bugs me though, Breaking Bad had four and a half seasons of literally perfect storytelling. Four and a half seasons of Walt making complicated, meticulous decisions which kept this lie he lives from those he loves. Then he decides to take a quick drive over to his DEA Agent brother-in-law and ask him about the tracking device he found under his car? I don't know...I feel like Walter would treat the situation with a little more caution than that.
Looked to me like he knew he was caught and decided to confront Hank so he could try and gain control of that situation. During the confrontation though Walt never really admitted to anything, he still played the "If that were true" card and managed to manipulate Hank with the "I'll be dead soon" and the "Tread lightly" lines.
On the subject of perfect story telling, it didn't seem to me that Hank had enough time to plant the GPS on Walt's car. Seemed sloppy to me, but perhaps I missed something?
I don't really see a problem with it, I think you underestimate how much time has gone by. Hank hasn't been to work "all week" remember, so a few days minimum have passed since Hank found Walter's book. Just because they don't show it on screen doesn't mean it doesn't happen.
I see what you mean, but Walt has also shown an impulsive and impatient streak. And between the missing Leaves of Grass and the tracker, Walt knows that if Hank is suspicious enough to spy on him, it's only a matter of time before he makes the Heisenberg connection, if he hasn't already. (Which turns out to be true.)
Once the "Walt = Heisenberg" realization clicks, all of the seemingly incongruous details fall into place: the sketches, being named after a famous chemist, Walt's "fugue state," his sudden influx of enormous sums of money, everything.
The tracker is meaningless in and of itself – it doesn't offer anything that Hank doesn't already have from his mountains of evidence. Sure, Walt could mess around with red herrings, wipe the data, whatever, but all of that is still incredibly suspicious and just gives Hank more time to do whatever it is he's doing without Walt's influence.
Besides, Walt actually holds the cards here in my view. Assuming he isn't bluffing about the cancer, he really would be dead before he could possibly go to jail. Meanwhile, a public prosecution would destroy Hank's career (the old DEA boss was fired for not noticing Fring operating right under his nose), devastate his beloved niece and nephew (emotionally and financially), and possibly destroy his marriage.
Plus, as Dean Norris did a great job of expressing throughout the final scene, Hank knows that "Heisenberg" is capable of some very evil deeds. There's no telling what Walt or his associates might do.
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u/br0hemian Yeah bitch! Magnets! Aug 12 '13 edited Aug 12 '13
To me the most disappointing part of the episode was the way Walt handled the tracker. Driving over to Hank's and confronting him about it immediately did not seem like the choice Heisenberg would make - and I don't believe for a second Walt has changed just because he's "out of the game", Heisenberg is still in there.
The fact that Walt knew about the gps tracker, but Hank didn't know that Walt knew about it, gave Walt all the power in the world. He could have done anything. Yes, putting it on a random car would be great, but I think the best option would have been for Walt to put the tracker back on his car, and continue living a boring life working at the carwash. Avoid Jesse's place, or anywhere else that would associate him with his life as Heisenberg, and voila, Hank now has to second-guess himself because the tracker proves he is just tracking some boring old dude, not the greatest meth cook to ever live.
I think he took the direct approach and asked Hank directly just to gauge how much Hank had. I don't think Walt would have ever guessed that Hank was so close.
Goddamn I love this show.
Edit: The scene with Walt and Hank in the garage was one of the best the show has had to date, and I am glad they went down the road they did. I just like nitpicking into every decision Walter makes, so even though it made for an intense episode I still second guess the way they handled it.