Here’s what I’ll say, hopefully without giving away any spoilers. I am consistently impressed at Breaking Bad’s ability to provide satisfying resolution to tense plot points in the short term, while maintaining that same tension over the longer term. A lot of shows will create a tense plot point and then spend the whole god damned season milking it and milking it until finally, at season’s end, it resolves (and of course different points are set up in the mean time). Breaking Bad is not afraid to go, “See this rabbit? I put it in a hat. Now it’s dead.” And you’re like, “Wait. What?” But the rabbit just got here! But it never feels capricious. It’s tight and satisfying.
EDIT TO ADD: And I speculate that the reason BrBa can get away with this is that they have such a fount of good writing that they don’t have to be stingy with the plot. Whereas other shows come up with one good idea and they had damn well better milk it for at least half a season, because that’s how long it’s going to take them to write the next good idea.
Except for the Fly episode. What the fuck was that?
