# Breaking Bad 5.04 "Fifty-One" Aug. 5, 2012 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 6, 2012, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576 "2012-08-06T02:10:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Tarwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de0a6/32.png) [@Tarwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarwater)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/81 "2012-08-06T22:20:02Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Enjoying this season just as much as always, so far… but one thing I don’t quite understand. Near the end of last season, Saul was frantically packing up his office ready to bail out and flee. Now he’s back. Do we know what happened? Saul was leaving because Gus had threatened to murder Walt and Walt’s entire family, and as Saul said, “What am I if not family?” He was close enough to Walt that he knew that Gus might see him as a potential loose end. Now, since Gus is dead, there’s really no reason for him to flee. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/82 "2012-08-06T22:27:54Z")
> [@MaxTheVool](#): > > Enjoying this season just as much as always, so far… but one thing I don’t quite understand. Near the end of last season, Saul was frantically packing up his office ready to bail out and flee. Now he’s back. Do we know what happened? Walt won. And this season, Saul’s done when he says he’s done. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/83 "2012-08-06T22:30:26Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > Saul was leaving because Gus had threatened to murder Walt and Walt’s entire family, and as Saul said, “What am I if not family?” He was close enough to Walt that he knew that Gus might see him as a potential loose end. Now, since Gus is dead, there’s really no reason for him to flee. One of my favorite little bits in this show is how much Saul really thinks he’s part of the “gang.” Little comments like “What am I if not family” really just crack me up. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/84 "2012-08-06T22:33:25Z")
> [@mil0](#): > > Hopefully this wonderful little picture hasn’t been posted yet > > [Breaking Bad - Walt's Birthdays (minor spoilers) - Imgur](http://i.imgur.com/jr0dA.jpg) What a nice, 3-year decline. (2 years, actually) My wife mentioned she noticed Walt coughing in the season opener at the diner. Anyone else catch that? ---
**Author:** ![mr.jp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/48db29/32.png) [@mr.jp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mr.jp)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/85 "2012-08-06T22:45:28Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > What a nice, 3-year decline. (2 years, actually) > > My wife mentioned she noticed Walt coughing in the season opener at the diner. Anyone else catch that? Yes. ---
**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:** [August 6, 2012, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/86 "2012-08-06T23:06:51Z")
> [@Push\_You\_Down](#): > > One of my favorite little bits in this show is how much Saul really thinks he’s part of the “gang.” Little comments like “What am I if not family” really just crack me up. Never, ever, forget that Saul is the same slimy weaselly ambulance chaser that he was when we first met him. He’s going to tell anyone anything that they want to hear if it means a couple more billable hours or a few more dollars that he can help move from one side of a table to the other side so that he can take a cut. He’s [almost] always go to do what he can to be everyone’s best friend. Now, granted, in that case, Saul was fearing for his life, but he’s still hardwired to try to fix every situation he runs across to his advantage. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/87 "2012-08-06T23:07:46Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > My wife mentioned she noticed Walt coughing in the season opener at the diner. Anyone else catch that? Yeah, he also took a couple of pills after coughing. It would make perfect sense for Walt to kill Skyler and make it look like a suicide - she’s been depressed, withdrawn, and she removed the kids from the house so they wouldn’t have to find her body after the deed is done. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/88 "2012-08-06T23:09:39Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I should have been more specific. The spousal communication privilege (which belongs to _both_ parties, the person testifying and the person accused, and its survives divorce) would enable Walt to prevent her from testifying about any _communication_ between them. She would only be able to testify regarding her own direct observations. At this point, all she knows about Walt’s business is what he has told her, so she wouldn’t be able to testify about it. Even if she can’t testify, she can tell Hank what she knows. As someone else noted, she doesn’t really know much, but if Hank believes her, tailing Walt to the next cook house, and then tailing the new distribution network is going to bring everything down. They wouldn’t need her testimony in court. ---
**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:** [August 6, 2012, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/89 "2012-08-06T23:09:58Z")
> [@interface2x](#): > > Yeah, he also took a couple of pills after coughing. > > It would make perfect sense for Walt to kill Skyler and make it look like a suicide - she’s been depressed, withdrawn, and she removed the kids from the house so they wouldn’t have to find her body after the deed is done. She also had a ‘breakdown’ in front of Marie (but haven’t we all wanted to say that to Marie) and had another ‘episode’ in front on Marie, Hank and Walt. If she killed herself ‘tonight’, I don’t think anyone would think anything of it. I don’t think that’s the way things will, happen, I’m just saying, it would seem normal with the way things have been progressing with her. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/90 "2012-08-06T23:11:39Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > …Element 50 is tin. A soft, cheap, bendable, non-toxic, **non-metallic,** shiney, friendly metal… err… That should read “non-magnetic.” ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/91 "2012-08-06T23:15:34Z")
Making it look like Skyler killed herself would be Walt’s best option, but as despicable as Walt has become, it seems he really, truly loves Skyler. I can’t see even Heisenberg breaking _that_ bad. Unless it comes to self-defense. Hrmmm… :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![SecretaryofEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SecretaryofEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecretaryofEvil)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/92 "2012-08-06T23:17:12Z")
I liked when Marie says that it seems like much more than a year ago that the events of the series began. I find the issue of the timeline comes up a lot when fans are discussing the show. I have to admit, I find Skyler boring. For example, I understand why she had an affair with Ted, I just found those scenes really boring. Middle aged accountant romance just isn’t as exciting the meth trade. Everyone I talk to in real life agrees with me, but everyone on the internet seems to love Skyler. I know I should feel bad for her, BUT SHE LOOKED UP MONEY LAUNDERING ON WIKIPEDIA! Then she tried to act like she knew more about money laundering than Saul. The laser tag thing was a good idea. It made perfect sense. Scientists love lasers! I have no idea why the wikipedia thing makes me like her less than a bunch of murderers, but it does. Speaking of sympathetic murderers, Mike and Jesse need their own spin-off. ---
**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:** [August 6, 2012, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/93 "2012-08-06T23:17:55Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > Making it look like Skyler killed herself would be Walt’s best option, but as despicable as Walt has become, it seems he really, truly loves Skyler. I can’t see even Heisenberg breaking _that_ bad. > > Unless it comes to self-defense. Hrmmm… :dubious: [South Park]She’s coming right for me[/SP] ---
**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:** [August 6, 2012, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/94 "2012-08-06T23:19:40Z")
> [@Andiethewestie](#): > > Yes. I think her means of getting the kids out of the house made it easy for Walt to kill her and make it look like suicide. It could be too perfect. Unless Hank picks up on the fact that Skyler isn’t going crazy, because it was “her” idea, not Marie’s for the kids to stay with them, along with Walt’s agitation at learning it was Skyler’s idea, rather than genuine concern. This is not random madness on her part, and if Hank is as good at his job as we think he is, he may put the pieces together. He’s in disbelief over her infidelity, but he could easily see Walt doing it, so if Hank suspects it’s fear rather than madness that is prompting Skyler’s actions, Walt could be under suspicion. The more glaring issue that Hank should notice is that Skyler supposedly cheated on Walt, but Walt is not acting upset about it at all, and Skyler is acting like she was the one who was betrayed. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > Okay, but she still doesn’t know anywhere near enough to flip. She doesn’t know when or where or with who or how or who his suppliers or dealers are. It’s not like she can go to the DEA and say “If you let me go on the laundering thing, I’ll tell you everything I know”. OTOH, she’s quite aware of that and made that quite clear last night. If she could flip, she would have brought it up. Hell, she probably wouldn’t have said it, she would have just done it. She would’ve just gone to Hank and pulled the trigger weeks ago. Sure she could flip. She could wear a wire, she could surrender the money and detail the finances and how they were hidden, or she could just fill Hank in enough so that he could put a tail on Walt and see what he’s up to. Unless I see a cite, or a lawyer chimes in convincingly, I don’t think spousal privilege works the way that some people are saying. Skyler can’t be \*forced \*to testify against her husband, but I really don’t think she can be barred from doing so willingly. Plus, even if her testimony \*was \*inadmissible at trial, I don’t think that prevents her from seeking immunity for her cooperation. She would just need to confess her own involvement in laundering money, turn it over, and advise the DEA enough so that they would put a tail on Walt and obtain probable cause on their own. So, even if the assertions of some sort of privileged spousal communications are true, she wouldn’t even have to reveal any privileged communications in order to effectively rat him out. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/95 "2012-08-06T23:19:46Z")
I can see a scenario where skyler does “suicide by Walt”. She tells him outright that she will go to hank the next day and tell him everything and that the only way to stop her is for him to kill her. So he does ---
**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:** [August 6, 2012, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/96 "2012-08-06T23:46:09Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > The more glaring issue that Hank should notice is that Skyler supposedly cheated on Walt, but Walt is not acting upset about it at all, and Skyler is acting like she was the one who was betrayed. Maybe I’m misremembering, but it seems like everyone keeps saying allegedly or supposedly cheats/sleeps with Ted. I’m pretty sure Skyler and Ted did sleep together (after some sort of weird flirting phase). I didn’t think there was a question about it. IFT. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/97 "2012-08-06T23:46:54Z")
She already said she “can’t go to the police”. I really don’t think there will be any kind of angle with Skyler and the cops and/or Hank. Barking up the wrong tree there. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [August 6, 2012, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/98 "2012-08-06T23:54:17Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > She already said she “can’t go to the police”. I really don’t think there will be any kind of angle with Skyler and the cops and/or Hank. Barking up the wrong tree there. if you were scared shitless of your own husband and knew he had murdered several people you’d say that you couldn’t go to the police too. The fear of what skyler might do, whether its commit suicide, goad walter into killing her, run away, or go to the DEA is adding dramatic tension to this season, I don’t see that the writers have ruled out any options so far. It would be strange for them to do so when keeping the ambiguity going is what feeds the whole show. ---
**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:** [August 7, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/99 "2012-08-07T00:08:34Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > Maybe I’m misremembering, but it seems like everyone keeps saying allegedly or supposedly cheats/sleeps with Ted. I’m pretty sure Skyler and Ted did sleep together (after some sort of weird flirting phase). I didn’t think there was a question about it. > IFT. I’m glad you brought this up, because I was meaning to do the same. I have the exact opposite problem as you, but could also be misremembering. The hazy way I remember it was that Skyler and Ted were doing some serious flirting, and they definitely shared a passionate kiss in the office, but that was it. Skyler \*told \*Walt “I fucked Ted” to get some comeuppance, but I don’t remember it ever being clear that she actually did. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2012, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576/100 "2012-08-07T00:17:04Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > The hazy way I remember it was that Skyler and Ted were doing some serious flirting, and they definitely shared a passionate kiss in the office, but that was it. Skyler \*told \*Walt “I fucked Ted” to get some comeuppance, but I don’t remember it ever being clear that she actually did. No they had an affair for some time, we see scenes of Skyler waking up in Ted’s house. Check the wiki listing for episode “green light”. > **[Green Light](https://breakingbad.fandom.com/wiki/Green_Light)** > > "Green Light" is the fourth episode of the third season of Breaking Bad and the twenty-fourth episode altogether. At a desert gas station, Jesse fills up the RV. Realizing that he's short on cash, he tries to charm the cashier girl into taking blue... [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-04-fifty-one-aug-5-2012/630576.md?page=6)