Breaking Bad (TV Series) 4 Days Out (2009) User Reviews

The finest example of Breaking Bad's amazing ability to combine drama and comedy

[RicinBeans94 · 10/10 · 23 May 2014]

"A robot?"

'4 Days Out' is a truly excellent episode of television - one of the season's best and indeed one of the series' best. I could pick out almost any particular scene or moment and talk about why it's so good.

It's an endlessly quotable episode, with gems like "Aaah, wiiiiire!" and the aforementioned robot conversation being high points. The high five between Walt and Jesse is another great moment for them - part of what makes this show great is that things that would be ultimately forgettable in another show become some of the best character moments in Breaking Bad.

The acting is top-notch from Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul throughout their time in the desert. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that this episode features some of their best scenes together of the entire series.

Speaking of quality acting, the final scenes are incredible. Walt is told that his tumour has shrunk by 80% - yes, Skyler, that is a lot - and the reactions of his loved ones are perfectly played by Anna Gunn, RJ Mitte, Betsy Brandt and Dean Norris. Then, Walt goes to the bathroom and lashes out, perhaps questioning what it's all been for if he's going to be fine. A moment of true happiness suddenly disappears and it's the perfect ending to the episode.

10/10

My favourite episode

[juliusversteegen · 10/10 · 28 February 2021]

I don't know what it is, but this episode has something special. Its funny but also exciting in a way. Jesse is great in this episode and incredibly funny. The duo cooking and arguing is brilliant and Jesse dumb decisions makes it all incredibly funny. The episode also brings a lot of emotion, especially about Walt and his cancer. And it is heartening to see how the family responds to walt's remission. All in all I think this this is one of the greatest episodes of breaking bad

10/10

Stuck in the desert

[Tweekums · 9/10 · 8 October 2012]

When Walt goes for a scan he is told that the doctor will explain the results at their next appointment in a week's time; he sneaks a look at the scan though and sees a large white area in one of his lungs. He takes this along with his coughing up blood to mean he is getting much worse and will die soon. If he is to leave his family any significant amount of money he will have to sell a lot more methamphetamine. Not wanting to tell Jesse about his worsening condition he tells him that their barrel of methylamine is going off and if they don't use it soon they'll have to steal some more. He tells Skyler he is going to visit his mother before heading deep into the desert with Jesse to do some cooking. The cooking goes well and the make enough to earn them well over $600,000 each! After a celebratory high five they get ready to head off but when Jesse turns the key nothing happens... he'd left it in the ignition and the battery had completely drained. They will have to think of another way to get the RV started again if they don't want to die miles from anywhere in the desert.

This was another fun episode; it is always entertaining to see Walt and Jesse bickering; I love how despite all they have been through the teacher/pupil relationship continues with Jesse continuing to call him Mr. White. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul are really good in their roles; managing to make the viewers care about people who would normally be considered fairly unsympathetic. The situation in the desert provided some funny moments as Jesse kept doing the wrong thing when he tried to help but mainly served to show that despite their ability to make high grade drugs they aren't as professional as they think; if it wasn't for Walt's science they would have died. The final revelation regarding his cancer wasn't too surprising: if it had been as bad as Walt thought he wouldn't have survived to the end of the season!

Finally realised the sheer brilliance of Walter White

[pranayson-829-55352 · 10/10 · 27 October 2013]

After all the hype over BrBa I finally decided to watch it with high expectations. To be honest, it was getting slightly boring.

Until the 9th episode of Season 2: 4 Days Out

Sure the writers could just tell us that Walter White is a genius but I looked for them showing that on screen. Which is why I particularly enjoyed the Meth cooking scenes.

But there wasn't a lot of those scenes. But this episode was the first to really keep me interested throughout.

As the Jess and Walt are stranded after their RV battery dies out, their friendship is tested to the limit. We see the yelling at each other, helping each other and... high-fiving each other.

But it was when they managed to re-ignite the battery due to Walt's intellectual creativity when I finally realised that this is one hell of a show, and for me, it is the best episode SO FAR!!

(At this point I had only watched up to this episode)

AAAH, WIRE!

[caballero-19 · 10/10 · 17 February 2022]

I didn't remember that the last scene of this episode will encapsulate all the sensibility from Breaking Bad.

The big hug of the White-Schroeder family is tremendously emotinal, I didn't cry because sometimes i can't, but oh my God, I did mean to, it has become one of my favorite scenes in television history, and all this without going to the famous violent situations of this brilliant series.

Thanks to Sam Catlin writer of this episode, the humor is the best and the concept of survival works very well in a single location.

Breaking Bad is good at picking problems but much better at solving them.

Heisenberg goes all Mike Tyson on the Paper Towel Dispenser

[richeysj · 10/10 · 15 July 2019]

Was Walt angry at the news that his cancer had responded positively to the treatment because such a good cancer diagnosis equals more cancer treatment bills? More medical bills means more cooking! More cooking means more lying to the family! Am I overthinking? Great episode! Jessie and the ignition key sound! Brilliant!! I guess now they could have just sent their location to Skinny Pete from their iPhones! Church!

A Scientist Comes Forward

[Hitchcoc · 10/10 · 1 May 2018]

Here we have Walter convinced he is going to die very soon and needing lots of money. Saul talks him into going full blast into production. Jesse picks Walter up in that awful van and then causes the battery to die, leaving them stranded in the desert. This is a wonderful tension builder which allows us to see the true scientist at work. There is also some wild anticipation over some tests run before Walter and Jesse go off on their jaunt. Excellent.

Breaking Bad at It's Finest

[wookietower · 10/10 · 3 October 2019]

I always felt that season 2 was when this series really started to take off, and this episode is one of the finest examples of that. We continue to see Walt's attempts to hide his dealings and motivations not only from his wife, but from Jesse as well. The way he manipulates Jesse into cooking with him in this episode, and hides what he is doing from his wife really just adds layers to his character. I felt we still saw part of why Walt was doing all of this (for his family, at least that's what we thought at the time) but by the end of the episode I think it was the real catapult into Walt becoming Heisenberg as he finds out he is in remission and (eventually) will go full bore into the drug business. Just such a great example of storytelling, acting and cinematography within this episode. BB at it's best, because this episode is a shining example of what made this series the best of all-time.

Great Episode!

[g-bodyl · 9/10 · 13 May 2014]

This is the ninth episode of the second season of Breaking Bad and things are beginning to go full steam ahead. The intensity is picking up as well as both the action and the drama. This episode starts well and has a rather surprising, but really good ending. The acting is still impressive and we know as we see Cranston and Paul bantering at each other.

In this episode, "4 Days Out," Walt has a fear that his condition is getting worse since he's been coughing up blood. Walt decides to have a cooking marathon in the desert with Jesse but when the RV doesn't work, Walt must use his knowledge of chemistry to save the day.

Overall, this is a fantastic episode and it only promises a higher level of intensity in future episodes. I'm liking what I see here and I can't wait to see what happens next. I rate this episode 9/10.

My absolute favorite episode

[ikazaplayz · 10/10 · 28 January 2022]

This is the most wholesome and beautiful episode in the entire show. For a moment it felt like things might actually turn out good. Looking back after finishing the show this episode was perfect in so many ways.

4 Days Out (#2.9)

[ComedyFan2010 · 9/10 · 26 December 2013]

Jesse and Walt go to the desert to cook some more meth but the RV battery dies out and they are stuck there, not knowing what to do they stay there for a while until they come up with the idea of making a battery and it works.

Ah I like moments between Walt and Jesse in the deserts. The whole feud about car keys or Jesse demanding Walt to stop whining and do something scientific. And omg, I love his voice when he is guessing what Walt plans to do based on all Jesse's ideas and Jesse says "Robots?". Cute.

Another great moment was Jesse promising Walt that no matter what happens to him, his family will get the money.

I am not sure what I thin about Walt doing such health improvement. I thought the desperation of idea that he will die any time soon was what was driving him to cook meth. But I have faith that the writers have a great idea with it considering that they have done an A list show so far.

Every Show Has A Survival Episode

[TheFearmakers · 7/10 · 15 October 2019]

Almost every serial show, even 'Dallas' way back when, has a survival episode. We're stuck and need to live. This one is fun and funny and edgy and full of suspense but at the same time, on a show that centers on moving the story i.e. All the stories in the giant web of Walter White, it's somewhat of a setback. But still, kickback and entertaining. A time to develop both main characters, Walter and Jesse, by bringing them together, without any help and/or distractions...

It was far better the first time, unpredictable and everything like that, but when you re-watch, re-binge the series it becomes something you just know already...

Again, that's NOT a bad thing. It's a good episode. So stop being babies and up your down-votes.

Sincerely,

Cow House.

Amazing, fun and creative episode!

[and_mikkelsen · 10/10 · 27 March 2023]

Survival episodes never dissapoint! The trend of characters being stranded, trying to get home/surviving has been done equally great in other TV shows such as "Pine Barrens" from The Sopranos or "Bagman" from Better Call Saul!

Nevertheless this an amazing episode with great humor, iconic moments, great montages and some great character work! This really builds upon the relationship between Walt and Jesse as they get to spend a lot of time together and we get some fun and comedic banther!

I love Walts development with his self realization as he reflects on his achievements! The final scene was also great as it says a lot about him!

Another Iconic episode!

Oh sorry, the workstation

[joachimhellqvist · 10/10 · 21 June 2019]

One of the very best episodes of the best series ever made! And one of the best conversations between Walter and Jesse is when Jesse put the carkeys in the ignition switch and the battery died! Oh sorry, the workstation, if you've seen the series you know what i'm talking about. Also the episode when walt is built a battery, and Jesse says-ahh a wire and the right answer should have been copper ... And he also thought that Walter should built a robot 😂

Scientific

[zhyarTheChosen · 10/10 · 3 July 2020]

A love it how scientific it is and even you gonna learn from this

4 episodes out

[Trey_Trebuchet · 9/10 · 8 February 2023]

Some pretty great filmmaking here.

The premise has been done several times. Get two polar opposites stuck together in a single location. Doesn't make it any less compelling. Here we actually learn a bit about both Walter and Jesse. Walter, as terrible of a person as he can be, does seem to hold much regret. He's very aware of what a terrible human being he's been, a terrible father, husband and friend.

Seeing these two try to figure out how to get out of their circumstances was very entertaining. They even get a moment or two where they don't seem to be up each other's throats.

And I will say I didn't think this would end how it did. I've not run in to any major spoilers for this show, so I genuinely don't know where things are going to go. I'm excited and anxious.

In the desert

[TheLittleSongbird · 10/10 · 5 June 2018]

'Breaking Bad' is one of the most popular rated shows on IMDb, is one of those rarities where every season has either been very positively received or near-universally acclaimed critically and where all of my friends have said nothing but great things about.

Very few shows in recent memory had me so hooked from the very start that before the week was over the whole show had been watched, especially when for a lot of shows now airing watching one episode all the way through can be an endeavour. 'Breaking Bad' had that effect on me, and its reputation as one of the best, consistently brilliant and most addictive shows in many years (maybe even ever) is more than deserved in my eyes. Its weakest season is perhaps the first season, understandable as any show's first season is the one where things are still settling.

Actually everything is established remarkably from the very start, but once the writing and characterisation becomes even meatier the show reaches even higher levels.

"4 Days Out" is yet another brilliant episode of a consistently great season, one of the season's best. It is also one of the season's (and perhaps show's) most intense, certainly the most intense episode since "Grilled".

Visually, "4 Days Out" is both stylish and beautiful, with photography and editing that are cinematic quality and put a lot of films today to shame, where there are a lot of visually beautiful ones but also some painfully amateurish looking ones. The music always has the appropriate mood, never too intrusive, never too muted.

The writing in "4 Days Out" is a fine example of how to have a lot of style but also to have a lot of substance. The dialogue throughout is thought-provoking and tense, while also have a darkly wicked sense of humour, nail-biting tension and heart-tugging pathos. The story is texturally rich, intimate, tense and layered, with the pace of it consistently deliberate but taut.

Can't say anything bad about the acting. Bryan Cranston is phenomenal as one of the most fascinating anti-heroes, or even of any kind of character, in either film or television. Aaron Paul has never been better and Anna Gunn is affecting. The characters are compelling in their realism.

Overall, fantastic. 10/10 Bethany Cox

Something different

[Leofwine_draca · 10/10 · 1 January 2021]

Something different from the show, a bottle episode or two-hander in which Walt and Jesse find themselves stranded in the desert. This allows for plenty of suspense, humour and typically strong acting, rounded off by a return to the scientific angle which is my favourite part of this show.

An episode about survival

[bellino-angelo2014 · 9/10 · 22 November 2023]

After the introduction to Saul Goodman and the solving of his first case, Walter White goes doing a CAT scan for seeing the state of his illness a notices a big black hole on a lung, so there is no more hope for him. Having spent most of his money for Saul Walt realizes that he has to cook again so enlists the help of Jesse just when he had to go with his girlfriend Jane to the Georgia O'Keefe museum but Jesse cancels the appointment and follows his former teacher for 4 days in the desert for preparing more meth possible in a single work session. Once in the desert Walt and Jesse cook frantically: after two days they already produced 19 packs of meth. Their happiness is short lived tho when the RV's battery turns off because Jesse left the car's keys in the ignition keeping the battery on for two days. After stopping a fire with water, Jesse and Walter are left alone in the desert far from every communication point and resources. After one day and thanks to his great knowledge in chemistry, Walt manages to create some cells that manage to restart the RV. Once again in town, Walt discovers the results of the CAT scan but finds with great joy that the tumor is in remission but despite the joy of his family Walt has an anger attack in the bathroom.

This was an episode that showed us, once again, that Jesse Pinkman has an heart and that despite some trouble tries to help restart the RV. And the ending was quite unexpected. Among the best episodes of season 2.

The episode that made me fall in love with Breaking Bad

[micahrat · 10/10 · 21 December 2023]

Breaking Bad is a series that starts out really great, but I believe that this is the episode when this series finally becomes a masterpiece. In this episode, Walter White and Jesse Pinkman find themselves stranded in the desert with a broken down RV. This unconventional premise leads to a lot of powerful character moments, not to mention the crucial importance of this episode for the entire plot. The episode is filled with tension and suspense as they try to survive and find their ways back to civilization. Literally everything about this episode is simply magnificent - story, acting, soundtrack, cinematography etc.

An excellent episode of television.

Survivor's instinct

[paullwetzel · 10/10 · 22 February 2024]

With Saul as their lawyer and legal advisor, Walt and Jesse need to spare a bit of their earnings to pay for Saul's services.

Walt crafts another lie and tells Skyler that he will be visiting his mother, while he secretly plans on cooking for four days straight with Jesse.

The two batch up a more than successful cook, but quickly find themselves in the detrimental situation of the RVs battery having run out.

What follows is a gripping and entertaining quarrel of the two fighting for ways to start up the RV with the limited materials that they have and fighting for survival underneath the glazing sun.

I like these episodes a lot that focus only on Walt's and Jesse's relationship and that have a unity of space. You see the characters more for whom they are and it helps them become more dimensional. This can especially be seen in situations where characters seem to have given up hope - in this case, Walt is contemplating whether he has actually been of benefit to his family or whether he has just provided them with lies and fear.

ahhh.... wire

[alexxrzz · 10/10 · 26 May 2021]

The best episode. Honestly better than what is considered "good" here.

Big Stuff Happens, But the Episode Is Still Not Nearly as Good as So Many People Overpraise It

[stillworkingfortheknife · 3 November 2013]

If you think about it, it's entirely logical that so many people love this episode. Simply because most of season two was talking and excluded the enthralling action and drama moments that season one had, and now that we finally get some intensity again, it has to be awesome, right? Well, I don't really think it is. Don't misunderstand me, I like "4 Days Out", especially in comparison to its two subsequent episodes, but it's just not a condign IMDb 9,2 – "The Godfather" has this rating and you can't seriously put this episode on the same level as that movie classic. Now, enough talk about other people's opinions, here's my short review for the ninth episode of Breaking Bad's second season.

Besides a short conversation between Jesse and Jane, a hilarious 30 second appearance by Saul Goodman (waaaaay too short!), and White/Schrader family talk due to some unexpected results from Walt's cancer treatment, "4 Days Out" is entirely focused on a new desert-set meth cooking process by our two protagonists. But since we've seen Walt and Jesse cooking for a couple of times already, spending so much time on this story part wasn't wise. There isn't anything really new about Jesse doing something stupid, Walt insulting him, Jesse cussing back, and the two ending up in a perilous situation. Screenwriter Sam Catlin obviously felt that it was necessary to show that Jesse doesn't have a high IQ as many times as possible, which is just unnecessary. We've seen this from the first episode on and having him making mistakes throughout the whole episode is just stupid if they want audiences to take him seriously as a character. And if that wasn't enough, the title-giving four days out in the desert disappoint with tons of stereotypes – some of them even from the show itself. For example, Walt and Jesse going from bitchy to emotional due to their desperate situation or Walt finally coming up with a solution as they're almost dying. We totally have seen this before, haven't we? Admittedly, watching Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul interact wasn't unentertaining since they're both outstanding actors, but if the writing is bad, it's hard to fully have fun with it.

As this everlasting story arc was finally over, "4 Days Out" surprises with a feel-good ending that I don't like. I just believe that the show is way better off with Walt being in a bad condition and that argument is proved as the next couple of episodes are a serious decline in quality.

Survival

[grantss · 10/10 · 8 September 2022]

Another iconic episode of Breaking Bad. While the meth production is an important aspect of this episode and there's elements of the new relationship with Saul Goodman, this epsiode is about survival.

Walt and Jesse head out into the desert for a marathon meth cooking session. After two days they discover that the battery on the campervan is flat. Soon they are out of water too.

This all makes for an intriguing and interesting episode as we follow Walt adn Jesse as they try all sorts of means to get the campervan started again, generally wthout success.

Very original and a break from the norm of Breaking Bad.