# Breaking Bad 5.02 "Madrigal" 7/22/2012 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 23, 2012, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089 "2012-07-23T00:09:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/21 "2012-07-23T03:44:53Z")
Madrigal does lots of things, including restaurant chains. They owned the Los Polos Hermanos chain. If you’ll recall that’s how Hank originally connected Los Polos Hermanos to both Gale and the laundry. Of course no one believed him at the time. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/22 "2012-07-23T03:48:42Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > That final scene, my God. Walt is an irredeemable scumbag now. Between that scene and his manipulation of Jesse, this episode put him full tilt into evil narcissistic villain territory. His treatment of Skyler was the crossing of the Rubicon, I think. No sympathy for the guy anymore. Also, notice that he kept the ricin/Chekhov’s gun just in case he needs it for future use. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/23 "2012-07-23T03:55:04Z")
When Saul gave Walt the bag, wasn’t there two cigarettes in it? Does anyone still have that episode on it, that was bugging me even then and I never went and checked it again. I thought Walt only made Jesse one. ETA, nevermind, it’s online, there was only one in there and a bit of a shadow that made it look like two. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/24 "2012-07-23T03:56:00Z")
Oh wait, upon watching the encore episode, I just noticed that the mystery lady was at the meeting with the Madrigal execs and the police. Didn’t notice her there before. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/25 "2012-07-23T03:57:17Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > When Saul gave Walt the bag, wasn’t there two cigarettes in it? > Does anyone still have that episode on it, that was bugging me even then and I never went and checked it again. I thought Walt only made Jesse one. No, it was just one. I think there was a glare or reflection on the bag in that scene, which also gave me trouble initially identifying it as a cigarette. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/26 "2012-07-23T03:59:58Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > No, it was just one. I think there was a glare or reflection on the bag in that scene, which also gave me trouble initially identifying it as a cigarette. Part of the problem is that they have him smoking what’s clearly supposed to look like Parliments. But, when the show started 4 years ago they probably weren’t expecting to have them in a baggie, if they did that they probably would have chosen something with a natural filter so it didn’t just look like a white stick in a bag. ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/27 "2012-07-23T04:09:48Z")
Random thought: I loved Mike’s facial reaction, that only we get to see, after he learns he’s just lost 2 million dollars. Say, did Hank’s partner have a goatee last season? (That being only a few days ago, fictionally speaking.) Seems to me he didn’t, but I’m probably misremembering. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/28 "2012-07-23T04:20:12Z")
> [@Bytegeist](#): > > Random thought: I loved Mike’s facial reaction, that only we get to see, after he learns he’s just lost 2 million dollars. I’m hoping he was smart enough to know that whether he clammed up or spoke every single word he knew about every single thing the cops wanted to hear about…that money was gone as soon as the found it. He wasn’t getting it back. Hank and his assistant know they won’t be able to crack Mike and probably won’t bother with him much any more. He’s an ex-cop and knows the game. Any lawyer will be able to explain why Gus needed so much muscle to do the job that Mike ‘officially’ did, and I’d guess his official payroll was probably something closer to 75K or so. As for the CCW, all he would have to say is that he helped out with night security at the distribution centers (maybe the had people stealing copper or ammonia). ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/29 "2012-07-23T04:24:59Z")
> [@Bytegeist](#): > > Say, did Hank’s partner have a goatee last season? (That being only a few days ago, fictionally speaking.) Seems to me he didn’t, but I’m probably misremembering. Yes. In the episode where Hank first let’s the DEA know what he learned about Fring is the first time we see the facial hair (Hank gives him a hard time about it). ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/30 "2012-07-23T04:46:37Z")
> [@Bytegeist](#): > > Random thought: I loved Mike’s facial reaction, that only we get to see, after he learns he’s just lost 2 million dollars. Yeah, the only thing that would have made that scene - and his reaction - better, would have been if they had mentioned to him that they only stumbled on the bank account info after someone tried to destroy the data on a laptop and they had to go through and review all the other evidence. THAT would have been hilarious! ETA: And a bonus would have been if they mentioned the laptop had been encrypted and they had no way to retrieve the data. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/31 "2012-07-23T04:48:35Z")
This show has officially crossed a line into utter tastelessness. Franch dressing? Really? I’m trying to figure out the economics here. The car wash cost around $800K IIRC, and then Ted Beneke’s IRS problem was around $700K, and let’s assume Walt and Hank’s medical bills were in the $300,000 range, that adds up to $1.8 million and then the various bribes and expenditures and Walt Jr.'s cars would make it up to around $2.25 million. No idea how much is condo would be, assuming that he bought instead of rented it. He earned $600,000 for his first deal with Gus and then $500K per month thereafter, but I’m not sure how many months that was. Any idea how much money he earned over the course of the show? > [@Joey\_P](#): > > The only thing I can think of with that is that the writers were trying to show that the people on Gus’ payroll are so loyal to him that even after Gus is dead, they would sooner kill themselves then talk. Not just loyalty; they’ve been outed as criminals and they’re going to prison, with best case scenario that they might emerge one day old and penniless, so not a lot to lose by killing themselves. I did think the parallel twixt Gus’s coat hanging (whiche he also did in the episode where he killed his henchman with a boxcutter) was interesting, though. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/32 "2012-07-23T04:51:33Z")
So are there no more boxes of cash hidden around the desert? Or am I remembering wrong? Didn’t Mike take Jesse to some money hiding places last season? I feel bad for Mike that he’s been drawn back in. As far as I can remember, he didn’t kill anyone who ::Omar speakin’:: wasn’t in the game. I don’t know why I’m sympathetic to Mike but not to Walt. They’re both doing what they do for family and Mike gets off on getting over, just like Walt. But I like Mike and I don’t like Walt. Mike doesn’t lie to himself, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Andiethewestie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ba9def/32.png) [@Andiethewestie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andiethewestie)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/33 "2012-07-23T04:56:16Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Oh wait, upon watching the encore episode, I just noticed that the mystery lady was at the meeting with the Madrigal execs and the police. Didn’t notice her there before. Yes she was there. I wonder about her child, my guess likely Gus or possibly Shuyler is the daddy. This would make her hyper sensitive and willing to kill with even more intense hysteria than what she already demonstrated with Mike. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/34 "2012-07-23T05:19:45Z")
I doubt Lydia was related to or had any official connection to Gus, other than in the way half of Albuquerque did (pics of shaking hands with him at booster meetings and the like). She was too eager to make sure nobody could trace her to him. And she’d rather her daughter find her dead body alone in the house than think her mommy left her. This is a woman with serious issues, and judging by the skill with which she camouflaged herself in the diner (talking out loud to Mike who was behind her, calling him “Duane” in front of a waitress who she didn’t even consider might know his name), etc., I’m going to guess she didn’t grow up in whatever passes for the hood in whatever city she grew up in. The actress playing the waitress did a good job of progressing from friendly/professional to “bitch would you leave!” in stages. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/35 "2012-07-23T05:28:19Z")
How did Mike know that Walt needed that particular chemical? Did Sal tell him or is he just savvy enough to figure it out in his own? It seems that Lydia was in on the chemical procurement part of the empire. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/36 "2012-07-23T05:59:18Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I doubt Lydia was related to or had any official connection to Gus, other than in the way half of Albuquerque did (pics of shaking hands with him at booster meetings and the like). She was too eager to make sure nobody could trace her to him. Just because she didn’t want to be directly traced to Gus (They both have connections through Madrigal) doesn’t mean that they didn’t have a relationship and she wasn’t the mother of his child. > [@](#): > > And she’d rather her daughter find her dead body alone in the house than think her mommy left her. Could be that she’s already had to tell her daughter that her daddy left them out of the blue, so she couldn’t fathom her daughter growing up thinking both parents had abandoned her. I don’t think Gus is \*definitely \*the father, but it’s still a distinct possibility. > [@hajario](#): > > How did Mike know that Walt needed that particular chemical? Did Sal tell him or is he just savvy enough to figure it out in his own? It seems that Lydia was in on the chemical procurement part of the empire. Walt told him they needed the precursor, and Mike was familiar enough with the operation to know that methylamine was what they used, it being the most difficult ingredient to acquire. ---
**Author:** ![wedgehed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8edcca/32.png) [@wedgehed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wedgehed)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/37 "2012-07-23T06:26:05Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Just because she didn’t want to be directly traced to Gus (They both have connections through Madrigal) doesn’t mean that they didn’t have a relationship and she wasn’t the mother of his child. Am I wrong in thinking that Gus was gay? I got the impression that his murdered partner was more than just a partner in crime. Did anyone else detect a light bulb begin to flicker over Hank’s head when his former supervisor was lamenting not seeing what was right in front of him? ---
**Author:** ![jrepka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee59a6/32.png) [@jrepka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrepka)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/38 "2012-07-23T06:42:21Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > I don’t think Gus is \*definitely \*the father, but it’s still a distinct possibility. It’s been hinted at pretty strongly that Gus might have been gay. Not that there’s anything wrong with that… ---
**Author:** ![jrepka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee59a6/32.png) [@jrepka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrepka)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/39 "2012-07-23T07:02:10Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > I’m trying to figure out the economics here. The car wash cost around $800K IIRC, and then Ted Beneke’s IRS problem was around $700K, and let’s assume Walt and Hank’s medical bills were in the $300,000 range, that adds up to $1.8 million and then the various bribes and expenditures and Walt Jr.'s cars would make it up to around $2.25 million. No idea how much is condo would be, assuming that he bought instead of rented it. > > He earned $600,000 for his first deal with Gus and then $500K per month thereafter, but I’m not sure how many months that was. Any idea how much money he earned over the course of the show? I think his final negotiated deal with Gus was $15 million per year, or about $1.25 million per month. The time that has passed on the show is very short though – according to [vulture.com](http://vulture.com) Walter accepted Gus’ contract about six months after he started cooking, and I think that he worked for Gus for about 5-6 months. So figure he earned somewhere between 3-4 million, assuming payments were coming in regularly at the end, when he and Gus were not getting along so well… ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2012, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089/40 "2012-07-23T07:16:17Z")
Walt split half his earnings with Jesse. So it does seem like he should have more money, but maybe it’s plausible that he doesn’t. Jesse was very careless with his money, but you’d think he still has a million+ packed away. Best line of the show was Hank saying that his partner jumped to the conclusion that this 10 year old girl was the muscle behind Gus’ operation. The scene before last - Mike with that girl - I thought was going to be darker and more brutal than is typical for even this show. I assumed he was going to kill her, and I thought it was rather bleak, the way they discussed how the daughter would find out about her. I’m actually sort of dissapointed that she lived - I thought it would be a good opportunity since this season really should be about how dark things can get. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-02-madrigal-7-22-2012/629089.md?page=3)