It’s amazing how quickly a pie gets sliced up in the underground drug biz. What turned to be one hell of a pile of money came out to … well, still a shitload of money for a day of work. In the end, as far as this “hazard pay” goes, I have to side with Walter over Mike. If I was Walt, maybe I’d more easily stomach a much smaller piece being doled out to Mike’s “guys,” but that was one hell of a big cut to take. Mike demanding the slice be taken evenly from them all was infuriating to witness, and I can only assume Walt’s ominous message to Jesse about Victor (remember the box cutter episode?) was a bit of foreshadowing of Mike’s fate.
I wonder what Mike would have done had Walter refused to pony up his share. Would he have just packed his bags and men up and walked? Most likely.
While I really like the brilliance of the new cooking locale(s), I can’t help but think the danger is just so much greater than had they set up shop somewhere more static. Firstly, there a higher risk of their equipment and materials being hauled around the state. There’s now a higher risk of a car accident causing one hell of a lot of questions to be asked, for example. The other more obvious issue is the high likelihood that either a homeowner is going to take the risk and come back into the home while the cook is going on, or Walt and Jesse are going to leave something behind they shouldn’t have. Or what happens if a major spill occurs? How’s THAT one going to get cleaned up? One of these things IS going to happen.
One last note: I loved the scene with Walt and his kids watching Scarface, Skyler watching on from behind in horror. To her, Walt is becoming this insane drug kingpin, and what she was watching unleash on-screen is what she fears is how things will end up some day. Man, wouldn’t that be something. …
Clacked by Keith McDuffee 
on Jul 29, 2012 @ 23:24 EST5EDT
The “Scarface” scene felt way too on-the-nose, especially with AMC’s heavy marketing of it’s mob movies on every commercial break.
As far as the brilliance of the cook location, I really don’t see it. As you said, with every new job there are risks that the equipment gets damaged or discovered. Plus, they’re constantly piecing together and taking apart the equipment–that can’t be good for seals and accuracy of sensors and controls. And then there’s the fact that they’re doing all this inside a house infested with bugs badly enough to need extermination! OK, let’s say their little inside tent is airtight and leakproof. What about every time they step out? I wonder if bugs could screw up the process. Or maybe they’ll just hitch a ride on Walt or Jesse when they leave. Ugh. They’re not making enough money to get me to spend days inside an infested house.
Skylar’s character actually works much better in this terrorized state than when she was pushing Walt around and then cheating on him, where she always seemed very unlikable to me. Now I actually have sympathy for her for the first time. And I loved her yelling at Marie to shut up. Too bad Hank couldn’t see that–he must fantasize about doing that himself once in a while (and I like Marie, but boy, is she a talker!)
Seeing them go into the first house, I was wondering if we were going to see Walt bringing bed bugs home. it’s the kind of humor that would totally fit in on this show.