With this episode, BE has raised the bar for montages. I have re-watched the Willie handing Nucky a near identical cig case scene in the car half-a-dozen times. Does anyone need stronger symbolism that Willie is the closest human to Nucky - in kinship and friend-wise and is being groomed for Nucky's line of…

Your comment is about to be collapsed. May you enjoy a life filled with Marie.

A+ from me. If not the best ep of the two seasons, it's certainly the best I can remember. Note, we watched a show w/o (with little) of Jim's love stumbles.A tougher Jim is a better Jim if we must have much Jim.

The flash forward in episode 9 shows Walt entering his boarded up, abandoned house. But if you look closely, nothing outside/inside is burnt.

Thank you for criticizing this critic. No wit or insight - just a seeming whine that Walt is an evil manipulator. This para is pure crap b/c it was obvious to me that Walt was truly frantic after Saul's warning call and was rushing to head off what Jesse was about to do:
"…if we’re not cackling about the poetic justice…

If Tony Soprano can kill Chrissy Moltisanti, Walt can take out Jesse. And if Pinkman's foolery before isn't enough, taking the feud to Walt's family is a line crossing betrayal. You don't mess with Walt's family, especially when it's all WW has to save, thinking himself about to be dead, and all…

Loved the ep, except I am really not crazy about the Jesse - Ricin/pack-of-smokes turn of events. In any criminal drugs enterprise of this magnitude, Jesse would have been killed if not for his knowledge, then certainly his unstable, cop-attracting behavior. Saul instead of suggesting Hank be "sent to Belize" would…

Yes, you're right. I knew I was out on a limb there criticizing the feeding esp. when I have not read the actual TB books. But back to Jason, Sookie certainly longed for Jason. So she gets him back more normal but allows him to fall under the spell or fall for Violet?? This would be a catalyst for Sookie to make up…

The reindeer naming was painful! After glossing quickly past OccupyWallStreet, we get Genoa??
And what of Jim? He reminds me of John Krasinski with none of the charming parts. After he finally gets Hallie into the hotel alone, he sees - but rather than avoid  Maggie in the bar - he greets her?? Too bad Hallie didn't go…

Tell me about. I threw in the avatar just to remind the 'kids' of one of the horrors of the '90s.

Disagree. Hank was talking about his career being over without HARD EVIDENCE! Hank is still clearly going after Walt. He ain't dropping it. Even with hard evidence, the scandal is there and Hank becomes the idiot with the greatest dope pusher riding around with him. Hank does not get out of it simply by proving Walt…

TY, Lolajane!

Glaring Omission: Alcide's hair!  Dude, your jock haircut is so uninteresting. 
Welcome Omission: The wolf pack! We get Alcide without the kidnap-and-kidnap again scenes.

B/c we expect them to act?

Uh, no. Mayor in a small town makes diddly. So much so, that they typically have regular jobs. Bar owners make cash money. No pesky W-2 forms telling the feds what you made.

As usual, I'm enjoying reading other comments here - it's what makes this place - and brings me up to what I missed. So who thinks Eric Northman is dead? We only saw - in that lovingly composed penis reveal snow scene - that Eric began burning. Surely Eric could tunnel himself under a snowbank faster than us humans -…

To me, allowing vampires to feed on humans without making them vampires is an unacceptable change to vampire mythology. Assuming we can accept that cheapening of the myth (to make it easier on true blood writers?), Jason  went along with Violet in the prison to avoid being devoured - that makes sense. But why would he…

They can keep their red castle and EYE-ron chair too!

Lydia's shoes were red on the underside - all the better to step in bloody corpse drippings - and still not clash with her ensemble.

Fring wasn't part of Hank's family. Again, it would bring suspicion on Hank's squeaky clean hero image.