Anyways, now that Walt, Jesse and Mike have a target it is simply a case of how they are going to pull off the train robbery. Although it only carries two passengers, Mike is quite adamant that they would have to be silenced. “There two kinds of heists: Those which are successful and those which leave witnesses,” says Mike, a point which causes more friction between himself and Walt. Luckily, Jesse has an alternative idea which should leave everyone alive at the end.
The plan is to stop the freight train by placing a broken down truck on the tracks and then siphon off only a fraction of the methylamine and replace what they took with water. No one gets hurt and the cooking can continue.
It’s an interesting point in the series for Jesse, the events of the last season have taken their effect and he is now a fully mature and quite intelligent young man, but with misplaced trust in Walt. There will be a time very soon when all this collapses and Jesse realises that his own growth is a result of warped manipulation from the mind of a master criminal. When that moment comes, it’s going to be one of the show’s best.
For now though he is clueless, believing that his partnership is going well and that he is respected and trusted by Walt, even though we know different. The inquisitive Todd from Vamanos Pest is also impressed with Jesse’s plan, although he is perhaps too inquisitive about the meth cooking set up. Whether he wants a further piece of the action or if he’s going to become a thorn in their side is not yet clear but I reckon he could become a significant character and Vamanos Pest may not continue to play nice.
Finally, we get to the train robbery, which is a tense sequence. It’s a brilliant piece of direction and editing as the tension increases as issues with the diversion arise and the job may not be pulled off in time. In the end, of course, they are successful (only just) but one little hiccup occurs.
It turns out a young kid on a mini bike has witnessed the entire operation and Todd turns a gun on the kid, shooting him dead with Jesse, not Walt, protesting.
The transformation of Walt becoming Gus is now complete. He has an empire at his feet, his employees under a tight grip and is no longer afraid to do anything to get what he wants. It’s a chilling moment and an excellent ending to the episode.
All in all, despite the great train robbery, this was a mediocre episode that delivered on providing a grand scope but failed to really make any other impressions. It leaves doors open perhaps for further development but character seemed a little lacking here, and that has always been Breaking Bad‘s strongest attribute.
What did you think of this week’s episode? Let us know in the comments below.