# 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:** 4
**Author:** ![newcomer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e5b9ba/32.png) [@newcomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/newcomer)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/61 "2013-08-12T14:36:50Z")
What a good feeling to be able to say “the wait was worth it”! If I had to summarize the episode in one word – intense. > [@Washoe](#): > > 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. Oh, man… that was one of Walt’s defining moments. If I recall correctly, he even started feeling for the guy trying to figure out, in earnest, how to deal with it and let him live. And then he sees what the world he’s in is really like and acts. Later on, the way I see it, that characteristic became his method – simply, outsmart the other guy (e.g. Gus – well, he had to outsmart him TWICE). ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/62 "2013-08-12T14:47:06Z")
Yeah, but if you remember from the GPS tracker they used on Gus, the device has to be recovered to get the data off. I don’t think it transmits data in real time. So Hank has no idea what Walt has been up to now. ---
**Author:** ![Tarwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de0a6/32.png) [@Tarwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarwater)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/63 "2013-08-12T14:53:49Z")
Speaking of the GPS tracker, I love how the scene between Lydia and Walt mirrored the S4 scene between Walt and Gus when Hank was trying to place the tracking device on Gus’ vehicle. Walt captures the exact tone of strained courtesy Gus had during the encounter. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/64 "2013-08-12T16:28:56Z")
> **['Breaking Bad': Is This How It Ends?](https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/news/breaking-bad-ends-150100032.html)** > > Has the Internet cracked "Breaking Bad"? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/65 "2013-08-12T16:38:48Z")
> [@USCDiver](#): > > Yeah, but if you remember from the GPS tracker they used on Gus, the device has to be recovered to get the data off. I don’t think it transmits data in real time. So Hank has no idea what Walt has been up to now. Oh - really good point! Major complaint: no breakfast scenes. ---
**Author:** ![Orr\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ee59a6/32.png) [@Orr\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Orr_G)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/66 "2013-08-12T16:55:40Z")
> [@LurkerInNJ](#): > > ['Breaking Bad': Is This How It Ends?](http://tv.yahoo.com/news/breaking-bad-ends-150100032.html) I saw something on Reddit today that referenced this theory. It included this picture: [[SPOILER SPECULATION] So if Walt takes something from everyone he kills... what does this mean? - Imgur](http://i.imgur.com/BHg4vzA.jpg) It’s not the exact same jacket, but, I thought it was an interesting possibility. Another clever poster noticed, vis-a-vis the ricin discussion, that Badger sure was mentioning Chekhov quite a bit… I love when there are things like that to notice about a show. I just wish I was sharp enough to catch them all by myself. ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/67 "2013-08-12T17:02:04Z")
> [@ekweizn](#): > > Between his two conversations with Hank, Walt did drive to Jesse’s house with the GPS on his car. Especially with Jesse throwing $10,000 bricks out of his car, I have a feeling Jesse and Hank will be having a conversation soon. > [@Joey\_P](#): > > Good point, but Hank didn’t retrieve the GPS so it’s sort of moot. When he planted the GPS on on Fring’s car he specifically mentioned that he has to get it back and download the data to his computer. Walt specifically mentioned that it looked just like the one they planted on Gus’ car. Presumably without the device, he’s not going to get the data back. I’m sure Walt is smart enough not to give it back to him if he drove to Jesse’s house with it on his car. Nice catch. I had forgotten that Walt had to retrieve the one that Hank had him leave on Gus’s car. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/68 "2013-08-12T17:13:02Z")
Poor Carol with those damn kids skateboarding next door and making a racket…and the fact that the psychopath she had been unknowingly living next door to decided to just show up. And she dropped some groceries, major pain in the ass. ---
**Author:** ![ekweizn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7c8e57/32.png) [@ekweizn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekweizn)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/69 "2013-08-12T17:17:36Z")
Looking over those scenes with Walt/Hank bugging Gus’s car reminded me of the later sequence where Walt bugged Jesse’s car. When Jesse denied seeing Gus (and failed to slip him the ricin), Walt confronted him with the tracking device, and the scene ended with Jesse beating Walt repeatedly. Interesting parallels. ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/70 "2013-08-12T17:42:01Z")
> [@Tarwater](#): > > Speaking of the GPS tracker, I love how the scene between Lydia and Walt mirrored the S4 scene between Walt and Gus when Hank was trying to place the tracking device on Gus’ vehicle. Walt captures the exact tone of strained courtesy Gus had during the encounter. Between that and the towel he laid in front of the toilet as he was vomiting, I saw further credence being lent to the aforementioned theory that is making **Bob Ducca** an internet celebrity 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/71 "2013-08-12T17:52:32Z")
For your viewing pleasure. [Badger’s Star Trek Script Animated](http://video.vulture.com/video/Breaking-Bad-Star-Trek-Scene-An). ---
**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, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/72 "2013-08-12T18:02:49Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#): > > It’s still a little unclear though how Walt ended up being in a dead-end job as a High School science teacher. From his story of meeting Skyler, he was still doing lab work at that point and from comments Skyler has made she had concerns he was exposed to chemicals back when he worked in a lab that may have contributed to his getting cancer. So somewhere in between him and Skyler getting married and the start of Season 1 Walt left professional chemistry work and became a relatively low income High School teacher who has to work at a car wash to make extra money. It’s probably as simple as Skyler insisting on moving back to Albuquerque to be near her family after they got married. There being no call for research chemists in the area, he resorted to teaching high school. Although he could have made twice as much money at the local community college. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/73 "2013-08-12T18:06:31Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > I mean, Walt is smart enough to live within his means for the rest of his life, but he could at least afford a new Honda or Toyota. His shiny new gun was delivered in that car - it’s safer to leave it in the trunk, and just drive the car around, than it is to try and move the gun. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/74 "2013-08-12T18:15:20Z")
I think Jesse is either going to flip, or Walt is going to have to. . .clean up a loose end. Or both. He’s spiraling into depression and has to expunge his guilt somehow. And giving away all his money isn’t going to provide that for him. ---
**Author:** ![DoctorJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctorj/32/2904_2.png) [@DoctorJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DoctorJ)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/75 "2013-08-12T18:15:35Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > 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. I think it’s more of a reminder of the respect he had from Gale. Sure, he made a lot of money and had plenty of fans among meth users, but Gale’s regard for Walt as a genuine chemistry genius was exactly the sort of respect he’d been missing for years (Gale being no slouch himself). The lady on Talking Bad suggested that we were about six months out from the flash-forward events, and Gilligan didn’t correct her, so I think that’s plausible. Given the state of the house in the FF, I think the bottom line is that whatever happens is going to happen very fast. The Saul Goodman spinoff really needs to also feature Badger and Skinny Pete. ---
**Author:** ![Dante](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dante/32/9673_2.png) [@Dante](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dante)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/76 "2013-08-12T18:21:33Z")
> [@DoctorJ](#): > > The Saul Goodman spinoff really needs to also feature Badger and Skinny Pete. And Huell. Driving around in a van solving mysteries. ---
**Author:** ![Stephe96](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Stephe96](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stephe96)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/77 "2013-08-12T18:28:24Z")
I’m I the only one who thought Hank had been poisoned when he crashed the car? I know Walt retrieved the ricin in the flash-forward, but still… ---
**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, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/78 "2013-08-12T18:34:53Z")
> [@Stephe96](#): > > I’m I the only one who thought Hank had been poisoned when he crashed the car? I know Walt retrieved the ricin in the flash-forward, but still… He was having a panic attack. It’s been established in the past that he has them. Also, there was no reason for Walt to poison him at that point. He didn’t know Hank was on to him until later that night (or whenever he noticed the book missing). ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/79 "2013-08-12T18:51:25Z")
> [@LurkerInNJ](#): > > ['Breaking Bad': Is This How It Ends?](http://tv.yahoo.com/news/breaking-bad-ends-150100032.html) Hey, wow… yeah, I saw that when it was on Buzzfeed (another poster here started a separate thread, which quickly sank like a rock) and I saw that get a lot of attention on Reddit and in some other areas. Kind of crazy, right? I totally stole the theory though, so I feel bad having my username connected to it for that reason. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2013, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973/80 "2013-08-12T18:56:40Z")
> [@Washoe](#): > > 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. I just rewatched the episode with that scene yesterday afternoon. It was episode 2 of this current season, and Walt runs across it when unpacking things as he moves back into the house. At that time he puts it in a place of easy access on his little nightstand (it was put within easy reach, but some other books he pulls out get stacked in a lower cabinet.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-bad-5-09-blood-money-8-11-2013/665973.md?page=5)