# Breaking Bad 5.09 "Blood Money" 8/11/2013 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 11, 2013, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973 "2013-08-11T22:21:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/21 "2013-08-12T03:26:43Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > As I recall ‘this season’ opened with his 53rd birthday with the big bushy beard at the Denny’s and then they went back and showed his 52nd. I might be somewhat off on that, but we should be not too long (say, a few days or weeks or even the same day) after his 53rd birthday, but his 52nd I think kicked off the season…right? The Denny’s scene was his 52nd birthday, then later we go back to the 51st. The birthdays seen on the show are the 50th, the 51st and the 52nd. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/22 "2013-08-12T03:28:14Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > He had ME convinced. I really had to think about whether or not Mike was still alive. Then he called Jesse ‘son’ and I remembered how much he manipulated him in the past. Jesse isn’t manipulated now. He knows Walt is lying about Mike. Now he’s wondering about all the other times Walt has promised he didn’t do shit. And if Walt is really that cold, could he be responsible for other people he knows dying suddenly. He is still afraid of Walt, but he is finished believing him. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/23 "2013-08-12T03:31:44Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I assume the DEA ransacked it and/or the bank repo’d it and it’s fallen into disrepair. I think it’s safe to assume that the DEA/FBI/police searched the house. Carol clearly knew how dangerous Walt was, so presumably the news about him has already broken. ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/24 "2013-08-12T03:48:20Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I think it’s safe to assume that the DEA/FBI/police searched the house. Carol clearly knew how dangerous Walt was, so presumably the news about him has already broken. Either that or she thought he was dead. ---
**Author:** ![standingwave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@standingwave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/standingwave)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/25 "2013-08-12T04:01:58Z")
> [@cmyk](#): > > That was single-handedly the funniest and greatest pot-inspired Star Trek discussion of all time. To continue along the Star Trek theme… _"Hank, his eyes uncovered!_" ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/26 "2013-08-12T04:15:33Z")
The GPS tracker seems like a bone-headed move on Hank’s part. He must have known that if Walt happened to find it, the \*merde \*would shortly be approaching the \*ventilateur \*with a certain swiftness. ---
**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 12, 2013, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/27 "2013-08-12T04:25:46Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > The GPS tracker seems like a bone-headed move on Hank’s part. He must have known that if Walt happened to find it, the \*merde \*would shortly be approaching the \*ventilateur \*with a certain swiftness. That’s a good point. I’d chalk that up to a plot device to kick off the season. Especially considering it was completely unnecessary (and would have proven nothing since Walt’s out of the game). ---
**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:** [August 12, 2013, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/28 "2013-08-12T04:30:56Z")
> [@LVBoPeep](#): > > Either that or she thought he was dead. I imagine that there has been a man hunt for him for months and she thought that he was in hiding far away. Clearly the the story has broken given that the house is a burnt out shell and there is Heisenberg graffiti inside. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > That’s a good point. I’d chalk that up to a plot device to kick off the season. Especially considering it was completely unnecessary (and would have proven nothing since Walt’s out of the game). He doesn’t know that Walt is out of the game. ---
**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 12, 2013, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/29 "2013-08-12T04:38:01Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > He doesn’t know that Walt is out of the game. What I meant was, it could really only be a plot device to force a confrontation between them. If Walt hadn’t found it, it would have come up empty. HE doesn’t know Walt’s out of the game, WE do. IOW, it would have been a dead end and with only 8 episodes left, Hank isn’t likely to follow any dead ends. There just isn’t time for that. Basically, “In show” Hank was stupid to put that there because if Walt got suspicious that’s the first thing he’s going to look for. He knows Hank tracks people that way (especially when he’s bored and working on his own). From the POV of the writers, the knew it was useless, they just needed something quick, easy and dramatic to drop in to kick start the season with. Also, you can’t technically shoot too many plot holes in it. Hank’s good, but is he good enough to not use the same trick on Walt that he did on Gus. Actually, if he called Walt out on swerving into traffic, then, yeah, he should have been that smart. Maybe he did it on purpose in order to draw Walt in. That would be something unexpected, but I don’t think we’ll ever hear about the GPS again. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/30 "2013-08-12T05:23:56Z")
Actually, the whole confrontation felt a bit rushed to me. Love what they’re doing with the flash-forwards, though. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/31 "2013-08-12T05:24:20Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > I just think it’s bullshit Walt checked for the book while he was puking. It would have made more sense if he noticed it missing because he was periodically reading it while shitting. But that quasi-eidetic thing is one of Walt’s superpowers. Remember how he merely glanced at several pieces of a broken dinner plate randomly jumbled in a trash pail and almost immediately realized that a piece was missing? I could never do that in a million years. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/32 "2013-08-12T05:32:07Z")
Really, this episode should have been called “Hello, Carol”. For some reason, Jesse was annoying the shit out of me in this one. Little too whiny. ---
**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 12, 2013, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/33 "2013-08-12T05:36:52Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > But that quasi-eidetic thing is one of Walt’s superpowers. Remember how he merely glanced at several pieces of a broken dinner plate randomly jumbled in a trash pail and almost immediately realized that a piece was missing? I could never do that in a million years. It’s funny, that’s true, he’s got that and I think if you look back you’d find some other instances which would lead you to the conclusion that if you took a book from his house he’d probably notice within 24 hours. OTOH, if he knew it was in the bathroom, and he has this photographic memory…why was he looking behind the headboard in his bedroom for it. I was almost waiting for him to say “Hank was in the bathroom, the book is gone, it says WW, he asked me about WW, he’s got Gale’s book, he’s matching the handwriting, let’s go NOW NOW NOW” It’s too bad they didn’t start setting that up earlier just so people didn’t think it was forced. The WW thing has been around for a long time now. Maybe if they just had the Leaves Of Grass book floating around in the house here and there or even if they showed it in the bathroom, just a quick glance, at his condo. Just to establish it. Lastly. On one of the podcasts, I remember they were talking about his car and Vince was asking how they got it that color. Kelley (or someone else in the room) mentioned that they wanted to find the drabbest, dullest car they could, so the got an Aztec and then had it painted matte tan (or whatever color that was). In today’s episode, I noticed that Walt was wearing that color almost the entire time. Khakis ans some sort of tan shirt and sweater vest. Sort of a return to the drab teacher life that the matte tan Aztec represented. ---
**Author:** ![Washoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecae2f/32.png) [@Washoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Washoe)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/34 "2013-08-12T05:53:33Z")
It _was_ established. There was a scene in (I think) season three that showed Walt relaxing at the condo after work, thumbing through the book and smiling. What stymies me is why Walt kept it around. The fact that he knew it incriminated him shoots down the theory we were floating around last year that the pages were stuck together and Walt didn’t know that Gale had inscribed it. Keeping the book must have somehow stroked his narcissistic self-gloating; he kept it as a “souvenir” of having been responsible for Gale’s death. Perhaps he didn’t panic when he discovered it missing because he knows there is no physical evidence tying him to the blue meth. ---
**Author:** ![PSXer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/48db29/32.png) [@PSXer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PSXer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/35 "2013-08-12T05:57:53Z")
I didn’t like that Star Trek scene. The replicator killing you is the oldest most cliched conversation they could have had And Kirk’s Enterprise doesn’t have a food replicator. Badger’s gotta edit his script ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/36 "2013-08-12T06:03:41Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > It’s too bad they didn’t start setting that up earlier just so people didn’t think it was forced. The WW thing has been around for a long time now. Maybe if they just had the Leaves Of Grass book floating around in the house here and there or even if they showed it in the bathroom, just a quick glance, at his condo. Just to establish it. We actually see the book at least twice before Hank’s “oh shit” moment. Walt is seen reading the book way back in season 3, episode 6 (“Sunset”), about halfway through the episode (as \*\*Washoe \*\*said). It is then seen again in season 5, episode 3 (“Hazard Pay”), when Walt is unpacking his stuff in the beginning. Especially the second time around it’s clearly hinted at that the book is significant in some way, by the way the camera dwells on it for a bit. Edit: The episode “Sunset” is also where Gale is quoting Whitman to Walt in the superlab, so the book’s connection to Gale is also established. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/37 "2013-08-12T06:19:28Z")
About the flashforward: it seems the govt. seized the house. Wouldn’t they have checked behind the light socket? But moreover, Walt left the ricin there and had to come back for it. So he’ll have to leave suddenly and won’t take it with him? Or he forgets it? It’s hilarious how screwed Walt is. Even if he ricin’d Hank and whacked Jesse he has Lydia crawling up his ass. Maybe he could just kill her too, but Madrigal guys might start showing up if he went that route. And Skyler seems to be settled now, but you get the feeling she could turn state’s evidence at the drop of a hat. And Hank is screwed because if he busts Walt his career is over. Walt might even be able to implicate him as an accomplice and they’d end up in the same jail cell. My prediction is if Walt dies he kills himself with the ricin, maybe dying as he’s taken into custody. He goes out on his own terms. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/38 "2013-08-12T06:23:53Z")
Nice, it looks like my theory leading into the final season is going to play out: They’ve been talking about that ricin since season 1, it’s come up constantly, gets passed around, and once was a red herring with Brock, but we have yet to actually see anybody use it to kill anyone…and what does Walter go for right at the start of the new episode? One way or another, this show WILL end with someone eating that ricin! ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/39 "2013-08-12T06:31:19Z")
> [@fusoya](#): > > this show WILL end with someone eating that ricin! The final episode. Walt, Jessie, Skyler, Hank and God knows who else are all dead. Marie adopts the kids. The final shot is baby Holly sitting in the kitchen by herself, playing with the vial of ricin. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/40 "2013-08-12T06:43:48Z")
> [@PSXer](#): > > I didn’t like that Star Trek scene. The replicator killing you is the oldest most cliched conversation they could have had > > And Kirk’s Enterprise doesn’t have a food replicator. Badger’s gotta edit his script They were talking about the transporter, which Kirk’s crew most definitely had. I liked the moment when Walt pulled the Gus Fring maneuver with the under-knee puking-towel. But of course Gus did it deliberately with great grace and elegance. Kinda symbolizes the whole Walt v. Gus relationship. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973.md?page=3)