The Movie Journal

Breaking Bad: Season 2, Episode 4 "Down" Sometimes the best episodes in a series do not include big set pieces or a ton of explosions, but they include tense, psychological drama. It is a testament to Breaking Bad that it is able to pull off these kind of episodes so easily. These episodes in lesser dramas can be tedious, but this show does enough to catch the interest of the mass audience. After the intensity of the earlier episodes featuring Tuco, we see the aftermath of the kidnapping and how Walt, Jesse, and Skylar are affected in different ways. Since we are talking about the aftermath of the kidnapping, once thing I instantly noticed is the mood of the episode. We seem to be reaching into grimmer territory with each episode. This episode is sad to watch to see how the lives of Walt and particularly Jesse were destroyed. I knew we would be into a grim episode with that cold open, where we see a guy in a hazmat suit scooping a burnt teddy bear out of which would...

Breaking Bad: Season 2, Episode 3 "Bit by a Dead Bee" After the powerful second episode in Breaking Bad, the story calms down a little bit in a sense. This episode is all about making excuses and how Walt derived a plan to keep what happened in the desert a secret from his family. The episode has a little more comedy added to the story, which I found completely grateful after the searing intensity of the previous episode. Despite that, I was still on the edge of my seat for the entire episode because of some questions I had. How will Walt make an excuse plausible enough for his family and professionals looking over him? Will Jesse get away clean or will Hank break him down? Was Hank’s shooting of Tuco justifiable? All these questions were answered somewhat here, but there were some good twists that is worth every moment. In this episode, “Bit by a Dead Bee,” Walt and Jesse now have to return home after escaping the clutches of Tuco. Walt comes up with an incredible ...