Breaking Bad: The Murder Twins, part 3
Oct. 31st, 2024 09:59 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
canyonwalkerI've been writing about the arc of "The Murder Twins", a fictional pair of hit-men brothers who appear across a subplot in Breaking Bad's season 3. After being introduced as creepy killers in S3E1 and then being interrupted from murdering someone in S3E2 they're back again for two extended scenes in S3E3 and then pop up again in S3E6.
Their first scene in S3E3 is another cold-open flashback. Tortuga, a cartel enforcer who's also a DEA informant, played by character actor Danny Trejo, is drinking at a bar. We know it's a flashback because we know he was killed in S2E7. Mexican Cartel boss Juan Bolsa surprises Tortuga with a visit, saying he's brought him a birthday gift. He leads Tortuga to the back room, where there's a desert tortoise. Tortuga is touched; his chosen name, tortuga, is Spanish for turtle. But then he sees Bolsa write "HOLA DEA" on the tortoise's shell. Just as he realizes his duplicity has been discovered, the Murder Twins appear behind him, grab him, and cut his head off with a machete. (This method of death may be an intentional Hollywood joke. Trejo has played at least one memorable movie hit-man characters whose name was Machete and another whose name was Navajas— Spanish for knives.)
Later in the episode the Murder Twins attend a meeting with US cartel boss Gus Fring outside Albuquerque. But first they steal a minivan from a wheelchair-bound woman at the old folks' home and use it to transport Uncle Hector. Mexican boss Juan Bolsa has crossed into the US to attend this meeting, as well.
The Murder Twins continue their creepy act of not speaking. Bolsa speaks for them. (They''re his employees anyway.) They are avenging the death of Tuco Salamanca, their cousin. Victor was the US gang boss who kidnapped Walt and Jesse early in S2. Bolsa and the Murder Twins believe, incorrectly, that Walt betrayed Tuco and killed him. (In fact the DEA decided to round up Tuco's gang after finding two gang members dead, one of whom Tuco killed; and DEA agent Hank killed Tuco in a shootout.)
Gus refuses permission to kill Walt. Bolsa insists it's the Twins' right as family to avenge blood. Gus refuses again, stating that Walt currently is important to his business, and reminds them all that while Bolsa runs business in Mexico, he (Gus) is the boss in the US. Bolsa says that the Twins will wait— but not long.
The Murder Twins lay low for a few episodes before appearing again in S3E6. They come to one of Gus's Pollos Hermanos restaurants and sit there, menacingly. Yes, the Murder Twins are so creepy they're menacing just sitting there! Gus tries to ignore them, not dignifying their threat with a response, but they're creeping out his employees and customers. He tells them he will meet them at sunset.
At sunset the three men meet in the desert outside town. The Twins speak, as no one is there to speak for them, but only barely. Gus tells them while Walt is still off limits because he's a crucial business partner, the man who shot their uncle is DEA agent Hank Schrader (Walt's brother-in-law). The Twins object that government agents are off limits. Gus reminds them that that rule is from their boss in Mexico, and Gus is the boss in the US. He allows it.
This is setting up an interesting showdown.
Their first scene in S3E3 is another cold-open flashback. Tortuga, a cartel enforcer who's also a DEA informant, played by character actor Danny Trejo, is drinking at a bar. We know it's a flashback because we know he was killed in S2E7. Mexican Cartel boss Juan Bolsa surprises Tortuga with a visit, saying he's brought him a birthday gift. He leads Tortuga to the back room, where there's a desert tortoise. Tortuga is touched; his chosen name, tortuga, is Spanish for turtle. But then he sees Bolsa write "HOLA DEA" on the tortoise's shell. Just as he realizes his duplicity has been discovered, the Murder Twins appear behind him, grab him, and cut his head off with a machete. (This method of death may be an intentional Hollywood joke. Trejo has played at least one memorable movie hit-man characters whose name was Machete and another whose name was Navajas— Spanish for knives.)
Later in the episode the Murder Twins attend a meeting with US cartel boss Gus Fring outside Albuquerque. But first they steal a minivan from a wheelchair-bound woman at the old folks' home and use it to transport Uncle Hector. Mexican boss Juan Bolsa has crossed into the US to attend this meeting, as well.
The Murder Twins continue their creepy act of not speaking. Bolsa speaks for them. (They''re his employees anyway.) They are avenging the death of Tuco Salamanca, their cousin. Victor was the US gang boss who kidnapped Walt and Jesse early in S2. Bolsa and the Murder Twins believe, incorrectly, that Walt betrayed Tuco and killed him. (In fact the DEA decided to round up Tuco's gang after finding two gang members dead, one of whom Tuco killed; and DEA agent Hank killed Tuco in a shootout.)
Gus refuses permission to kill Walt. Bolsa insists it's the Twins' right as family to avenge blood. Gus refuses again, stating that Walt currently is important to his business, and reminds them all that while Bolsa runs business in Mexico, he (Gus) is the boss in the US. Bolsa says that the Twins will wait— but not long.
The Murder Twins lay low for a few episodes before appearing again in S3E6. They come to one of Gus's Pollos Hermanos restaurants and sit there, menacingly. Yes, the Murder Twins are so creepy they're menacing just sitting there! Gus tries to ignore them, not dignifying their threat with a response, but they're creeping out his employees and customers. He tells them he will meet them at sunset.
At sunset the three men meet in the desert outside town. The Twins speak, as no one is there to speak for them, but only barely. Gus tells them while Walt is still off limits because he's a crucial business partner, the man who shot their uncle is DEA agent Hank Schrader (Walt's brother-in-law). The Twins object that government agents are off limits. Gus reminds them that that rule is from their boss in Mexico, and Gus is the boss in the US. He allows it.
This is setting up an interesting showdown.
