Breaking Bad S5/E15 “Granite State” Review

After last week’s explosive episode; “Ganite State” gives us a chance to catch our breath, to reflex on what has happened to our characters. The calm before the storm if you will.

Walt is now isolated, thousands of miles from home, dying alone, knowing that everything has gone wrong, knowing that his child hates him, knowing that his plan to enrich his family has failed and his powerless to do anything about it. Walter White is alone. His reaped what he sowed now his alone with his barrel of money.

In one last attempt to get though to his family Walt calls Walter Jr. to warn him that a package of money is coming, and Walt Jr. rejects him, asking him why he’s still alive. It’s a sad well performed scene; showcasing how low Walter has fallen, it was all for nothing.

Walter isn’t the only one who’s isolated and alone; we have Jesse locked up by Uncle Jack and his crew, forced to cook meth. He also attempts one last shot at freedom only to have it all fail. The ever so creepy Todd delivers two of the most chilling scene in this episode. Todd puts a bullet in the back of Andrea’s head (poor Brock), to punish Jesse for trying to escape, and earlier in the episode sneaking into Skylar’s apartment to send her a “message”. Like Jesse’s scene trying to escape his cell, Skylar’s conversation with them reveals how well-written they’ve been for bad guys.

As a whole, “Granite State” has everyone living out their own personal Hell. At this point in the series, almost everyone we’ve come to care about in any way has been put into misery that shows no sign of ending. We’ve seen Vince Gilligan run through several could-have-been endings for Walter White. Next week, we get the real one.

Only one left and I’ll say this now; no matter how it all ends this has been some of the best storytelling I have ever witnessed, truly amazing.

When the main musical coda kicked in at the end I got goosebumps. I simultaneously can’t wait and am dreading the finale next week. 9/10