"Live Free or Die" is the
fifth season premiere episode of the American television drama series ''
Breaking Bad'', the first episode of the first part of the season and the 47th overall episode of the series. Written by series creator
Vince Gilligan
George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and director of AMC's '' Breaking Bad'' (2008– ...
and directed by
Michael Slovis
Michael Slovis is an American cinematographer and television director. He is best known for his cinematography on the AMC series ''Breaking Bad.''
Career
Slovis began his professional career in 1981. For many years, he worked as a camera operato ...
, it originally aired on
AMC
AMC may refer to:
Film and television
* AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain
* AMC Networks, an American entertainment company
** AMC (TV channel)
** AMC+, streaming service
** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company
*** ...
in the United States on July 15, 2012.
The episode is titled after the
official motto of the U.S. state of New Hampshire, seen on a license plate in the opening.
Plot
The episode starts with a
flashforward to
Walter White Walter White most often refers to:
* Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad''
* Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP
Walter White may also refer to:
Fictional characters ...
in a restaurant on his 52nd birthday. He illegally purchases a machine gun from his arms dealer which is hidden inside the trunk of a car.
In the present, Walt disposes of any evidence connecting him to
Gus Fring's killing and
Brock Cantillo's poisoning.
Skyler White tries not to speak to Walt, explaining that she is now scared of him. Walt suddenly remembers the surveillance cameras that Gus installed in the superlab, and realizes that the footage Gus may have collected could incriminate him.
The following day,
Mike Ehrmantraut learns of Gus's death while feeding chickens and drives back to
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
in a rage. He comes across Walt and
Jesse Pinkman and is prepared to kill Walt, but Walt and Jesse convince him that Gus's laptop, which has been seized by police as evidence, needs to be dealt with.
Mike advises that they all leave the city, as the police will inevitably find them in the lab camera footage. Mike and Walt argue over the best option to take until Jesse suggests that they could use a magnet to destroy the laptop and any evidence of their crimes. Together, Jesse and Walt concoct a plan to use an industrial
electromagnet
An electromagnet is a type of magnet in which the magnetic field is produced by an electric current. Electromagnets usually consist of wire wound into a coil. A current through the wire creates a magnetic field which is concentrated in ...
(acquired from Joe at the junk-yard) to destroy the laptop from outside the police building. They pull it off, despite being forced to abandon the truck. As they drive away, Walt defies Mike's doubts that everything is settled.
Meanwhile,
Saul Goodman
James Morgan Jimmy McGill, better known by his business name Saul Goodman, is a character created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and portrayed by Bob Odenkirk in the television franchise ''Breaking Bad''. He appears as a major character i ...
approaches Skyler at the car wash and tells her that
Ted Beneke
''Breaking Bad'' is a neo-Western crime drama franchise created by American filmmaker Vince Gilligan, primarily based on the television series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–13), its prequel/sequel series, ''Better Call Saul'' (2015–22), and its s ...
survived the injury from his encounter with
Kuby and
Huell. Skyler visits Ted in the hospital and finds that he has been fitted with a
halo brace
Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to:
* Halo (optical phenomenon)
* Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head
HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Video games
* ''Halo'' (franch ...
. An intimidated Ted tells her that he will remain silent about what caused his injury. Elsewhere, Walt argues with Saul about the lawyer's failure to inform him about Skyler's bailout to Ted. It is revealed that Huell was told to pickpocket Jesse's
ricin cigarette, which is why Jesse believed it was lost; Saul presents the cigarette to Walt in a plastic bag, remarking that he had no idea Walt was going to poison Brock in the service of killing Gus. Saul tries to end his and Walt's business relationship, but Walt threateningly tells him, "We're done when I say we're done".
Production
In July 2011, series creator
Vince Gilligan
George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and director of AMC's '' Breaking Bad'' (2008– ...
indicated that he intended to conclude ''Breaking Bad'' with the fifth season. In early August 2011, negotiations began over a deal regarding the fifth and possible final season between the network
AMC
AMC may refer to:
Film and television
* AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain
* AMC Networks, an American entertainment company
** AMC (TV channel)
** AMC+, streaming service
** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company
*** ...
and
Sony Pictures Television
Sony Pictures Television Inc. (abbreviated as SPT) is an American television production and distribution studio. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios complex in Culver City, it is a division of Sony Entertainment's unit Sony Pictures Entertainme ...
, the series' production company. AMC proposed a shortened fifth season (six to eight episodes, instead of 13) to cut costs, but the producers declined. Sony then approached other cable networks about possibly picking up the show if a deal could not be made. On August 14, 2011, AMC and ''Breaking Bad''s production team agreed to renew the series for a final 16 episodes.
Filming began for the season on March 26, 2012.
Following a dispute between AMC and
Dish Network that led to Dish's dropping AMC as of July 1, 2012, AMC posted the episode online for streaming. The episode is the shortest in the series, with a runtime of approximately 43 minutes.
Reception
Ratings
"Live Free or Die" was the most watched episode in ''Breaking Bad''s history at the time, with 2.93 million viewers.
Reviews
The episode was praised for the flashforward
cold open
A cold open (also called a teaser sequence) is a narrative technique used in television and films. It is the practice of jumping directly into a story at the beginning of the show before the title sequence or opening credits are shown. In Amer ...
and Cranston's performance. In 2019 ''
The Ringer'' ranked "Live Free or Die" as the 23rd best out of the 62 total ''Breaking Bad'' episodes.
Notes
References
External links
"Live Free or Die"at the official ''Breaking Bad'' site
*
{{Breaking Bad episodes
2012 American television episodes
Breaking Bad (season 5) episodes
Television episodes written by Vince Gilligan