...and the Bag's in the River

Season 1, Episode 3, Aired
EDIT

Episode Summary

Walter is left to deal with Krazy-8 alone following an argument with Jesse. After Marie raises concerns that Walt Jr. is smoking cannabis, Hank shows him the dangers of drug use.
9.0
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Superb
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  • Jesse leaves the house while Walt is left to deal with Krazy-8 (it goes without saying there's spoilers here.. but I'll say it anyways)

    9.5
    "Superb"
    There seems to be at least one or two moments per episode of Breaking Bad that comes to define that particular episode and acts as a symbol of growth for Walt or Jesse or other main characters. For this episode, it was both the discussion that Walt and Krazy-8 shared in the middle of the episode and the moment when Walt finally is forced to kill him. Vince Gilligan is so methodical with the way he sets up each and every scene leading up to the ending that when you rewatch it again, you can just sit back and marvel at how each scene connects to the next, how certain scenes that might seem inconsequential in other television shows are actually defining moments here.

    It's difficult for me to figure out what my favorite Bryan Cranston moments are, but I'd say this entire episode is in the top three, at least. It finds Walt getting caught in a lie for the first time, murdering somebody with his own hands for the first time and pondering the morality of his decisions for the first and what will certainly not be the last time. And Aaron Paul has a very understated role in the episode; he grows to be a much more important character over time, but his addiction to meth, coupled with his paranoia, makes him a downward spiral type of TV character that's fascinating to watch, despite how awful he is at times.

    As I mentioned before, Walt gets caught in his first big lie (this time, he tries to claim he was at the car wash place when his wife already knew he had quit.. oops!) The thing that works so well about the show (well, one of many things) is that Bryan Cranston sells every single moment that he's in Walter White's shoes. To go from a comedy show like Malcolm and the Middle to something like this takes an enormous leap from genre to genre, and he does it like nobody else I've ever seen. That scene where he kills Krazy-8 and muters "I'm sorry.." over and over was heart-breaking and you can truly feel how bad he feels about it.

    Maybe I'm overanalyzing tiny little things, but with the show in hiatus until this July, I'm finding these older episodes to be just as exciting, if not more so, than the new ones. That's the sign of a good show.. it doesn't peak because every season is its peak.moreless

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    2 0
  • 103

    8.0
    "Great"
    A really intense episode of the series, I found myself in shock when Walt put those pieces of the plate together, I got enticed in to Walt & Domingo's conversation, and I was I guess almost relieved that Walt was going to let him go, but then when he put the pieces of the plate together, I was in shock.

    This amazing drama has proved itself once again, where was I when this show first came on television? I'm barely catching up in 2010? Big mistake on my part, this is an intense amazing drama, which makes me consider other dramas on AMC.

    This show is not only successful with drama but it is very successful with dark humor which is what I mentioned in my previous review. From Walt & Jesse cleaning up the insides of a person off their floor to a DEA trying to tell Walter Jr. that smoking marijuana is bad and by doing that he confronts a drug addict.

    Then after the most amazing climax that might as well have been on the big screen, we get such a great cliffhanger. Walt is going to tell his wife, cannot wait for the next episode, and I must say, I'm officially hooked on Breaking Bad.moreless

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  • wow

    8.5
    "Great"
    I had heard good things about Breaking Bad, and the first few episodes proved that this show was well worth watching, but this was the episode that really secured my position as a fan of this series.

    When Walt put the pieces to the plate together and realized that one was missing and that he had to kill Domingo, that kind of drama had not been on my TV in quite some time. That is when I knew that Breaking Bad was going to be a very special show, and it has been, earning Emmy wins and constant praise over the years.moreless

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    1 0
  • This sure is a differen show

    8.0
    "Great"
    Surely this is a pretty different show from what we are used to...you see the whole episode..47 minutes long,and you just figure out that actually nothing really happended...i mean..this last 3 episode told walt's 2 or 3 days of life...nothing huge happened that made you jump on your seat,except maybe when you find out that one of the to drug dealers is not dead,but nothing incredible...For some people this could be a reason to stop watching the show,or maybe never start,but after all in some way this is the beauty of braking bad..it deals with the psychological aspect of the character...But probably this few episodes aren't enough to judge...i personally think that the story is setting up for something bigger....we'll just have to wait and see!moreless

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    2 4
  • Best episode yet

    7.5
    "Good"
    So, this episode aired a little while ago (I am aware of this) but now I have been watching it on DVD and I really like it.
    And this episode was no exception. This episode was really tense and dark and the way it challenged the moral dilemma that Walter faced was intriguing. The scene where (Spoiler Ahead) Walter was piecing together the plate was so heartbreaking how he had felt relieved that he may not have to kill this person and then to learn it was all an act... Tense! (End Spoiler)
    This really ramped up where the show was going and I liked it a lot. I hope the next few episodes are just as good.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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  • Trivia

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  • Notes

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    • Original International Air Dates: Czech Republic: January 28, 2011 on Nova Cinema Edit
    • Featured Music: "Without You" by Sasha Dobson Edit
  • Quotes

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    • Walt: Damn Junkie! (takes away Jesse's drugs) Jesse: No, gimme that! Walt: This is going down the toilet. Watch it go! Jesse: No, no. That's worth 40 grand you stupid shit! Walt: It's worth nothing when you smoke it all! Edit
  • Allusions

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    • The titles of this episode and the previous one are an allusion to the line "The cat's in the bag, and the bag's in the river" from the 1957 movie Sweet Smell Of Success. The line refers to a bad deed taken care of. Show's creator Vince Gilligan has said that, for his money, the movie has the most quotable dialogue of any. Edit
    • Hank: I'm Rain Man, counting his toothpicks. Referencing Rain Man (1988), which stars Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise. Edit
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