The final eight episodes of the hit series "Breaking Bad" got underway on Sunday with a massive surprise.
The last four seasons of the show have featured Dean Norris' DEA Agent Hank chasing after the mysterious meth king "Heisenberg," who is really his brother-in-law Walt (Bryan Cranston). At the end of last year's midseason finale, it appeared that Hank had finally sorted out the entire scheme and there was a great deal of anticipation that the two main characters would eventually face off. However, no one expected that to happen in the first episode of the final season.
"I think that was the biggest surprise of the episode quite frankly," Norris said in an interview with TVGuide.com. "I think both Bryan and I thought we would play cat and mouse a little bit longer, play a little bit of a chess game. That was the big surprise for both of us that the first episode ended with the actual confrontation."
Throughout the episode, Hank spends a chunk of time surveying his files until he finds concrete evidence to support his suspicions.
"That's the kind of cop he is," Norris added about the delay. "He's the kind of cop who needs to know and be absolutely certain. He's almost obsessive-compulsive when it comes to detective work. This case is such a huge thing, he can't just hang it on 'W.W.' That leads him in the right direction, and he tries to put it all together, piece by piece."
Series creator Vince Gillian also told TVGuide.com that the procrastination also had a strong personal reason behind it.
"Hank is in a real tough spot," he said. "It's a horrible, profound betrayal by someone who he loves very much. It's also embarrassing [for] a sworn officer of the law. There are a lot of questions and 'What ifs?' we want you to have."
After Walt discovers that his "Leaves of Grass" book is missing (the key piece of evidence) and eventually connects with other hints to realize that Hank is on his trail. He rushes to Hank's place and confronts him. At that point, Hank punches him in the face and says "It was you! I swear to Christ. I will put you under the jail."
"Picture an important person in your life fundamentally lying to you and making you a fool and going against everything you stand for," Gilligan added about the reaction. "That trumps all, that horrible feeling."
What did you think of the first episode of the final season of "Breaking Bad?"