"Grilled" is the second episode of the second season of the American television drama series '' Breaking Bad'' and the 9th episode over all. It was written by

George Mastras George Mastras, Jr. (born April 10, 1966) is a Greek American author, screenwriter, director, and television producer. He has worked on all five seasons of the AMC drama ''Breaking Bad''. He won the Pen USA Literary Award in 2009, won a Primeti ...

and directed by

Charles Haid Charles Maurice Haid III (born June 2, 1943) is an American actor and television director, with notable work in both movies and television. He is best known for his portrayal of Officer Andy Renko in ''Hill Street Blues''. Haid was born in San ...

. This episode marks the first appearance of

Mark Margolis Mark Margolis (; born November 26, 1939) is an American actor. He is known for playing Alberto "The Shadow" in '' Scarface'', Antonio Nappa in '' Oz'', and Hector Salamanca in ''Breaking Bad'' and '' Better Call Saul''. His performance in ''Break ...

Hector Salamanca ''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 ...

, and the final appearance of

Raymond Cruz Raymond Cruz (born July 9, 1961) is an American actor, best known for his starring role as Detective Julio Sanchez in the series '' The Closer'' and its spinoff '' Major Crimes'', as well as his recurring role as drug lord Tuco Salamanca in ...

Tuco Salamanca ''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 ...

in ''Breaking Bad''.

Plot

Having been kidnapped by a crazed

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 ...

and Jesse Pinkman are held prisoner in a desert hideout where he takes care of his sick uncle, the mute

. Hector is incapacitated from the neck down and unable to speak, but he can communicate with a desk bell attached to his wheelchair. Tuco explains that Hank Schrader and the

DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic en ...

have rounded up Tuco's entire organization. Unaware of Gonzo's death, Tuco believes that Gonzo has ratted him out. He intends to keep Walt and Jesse in the compound until his cousins arrive at sunset to take them all across the border to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

, where they will cook meth for Tuco 24/7. Hank, meanwhile, takes a bit of time off to look for Walt. Skyler White is sick with worry and has been distributing handbills with Walt's photo.

Marie Schrader Marie Schrader (''née'' Lambert) is a fictional character in the AMC series '' Breaking Bad'' and its spin-off series ''Better Call Saul.'' Portrayed by Betsy Brandt, she is Skyler White's sister, Hank's wife, and Walter White's sister-in- ...

, who believes Jesse is Walt's marijuana dealer, pleads Hank to question Jesse. Unable to find him, Hank talks to Jesse's mother

Diane Pinkman '' 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 ...

. Mrs. Pinkman supplies Hank with information letting him follow the

LoJack LoJack is a stolen vehicle recovery and IoT connected car system that utilizes GPS and cellular technology to locate users' vehicles, view trip history, see battery levels, track speeding, and maintain vehicle health via a native app. Prior to se ...

tracking system in Jesse's car. At the hideout, Walt poisons Tuco's food with the ricin he has prepared, but Hector sees him and knocks the plate off the table. Tuco realizes Walt and Jesse are plotting something and takes them outside, holding a gun to Jesse's head and forcing Walt to confess to the poisoning. With Tuco distracted, Jesse overpowers him and wounds him with his pistol. When they see Hank's vehicle approaching in the distance, Walt and Jesse quickly crawl into hiding, assuming that it's Tuco's cousins. Hank gets into a shootout with the wounded Tuco, whom he kills in self-defense. Hank begins to investigate the scene as Walt and Jesse silently escape.

Production

"Grilled" was written by

and directed by

. It aired on AMC in the United States and Canada on March 15, 2009.

Reception

Seth Amitin, of ''

IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

'', criticized the episode for prolonging Walt and Jesse's entrance into the drug trade. He gave the episode an 8.9/10. In 2019 '' The Ringer'' ranked "Grilled" as the 25th best out of the 62 total ''Breaking Bad'' episodes.

Notes

References

External links

"Grilled"
at the official ''Breaking Bad'' site * {{Breaking Bad episodes 2009 American television episodes Breaking Bad (season 2) episodes