144 replies to this topic

[SultanOfSurreal]

I'll just skip straight to the bullet points on this one. I'm sure I'm speaking for a lot of us here with a few of these:

-More info on Gus's past, why Don Eladio wouldn't kill him, etc. This stuff kind of seems like a certainty, anyway. I have a feeling Walt will come to realize just how badly he really fucked up by killing Gus.
-More info on Madrigal. What their relationship with Gus was, what the company's real nature is. I have a feeling this will be connected to the above, and that Madrigal will be the antagonists in the upcoming season.
-Hank uncovering Walt's secret, of course. This has to happen at some point.
-At least one scene showing Jesse hanging out with Walter Jr. Make it happen, writers.
-On that note, how about a scene where Marie and Saul do some verbal fencing. I think she'd give him a better run for his money than Skyler.

How about you guys?

[Eegah]

More with Jesse's family. The actor playing the kid probably looks way too old now, but it really felt like they were hinting at something there which the show hasn't yet returned to.

[Woodward Ave]

-At least one scene showing Jesse hanging out with Walter Jr. Make it happen, writers.

Would love this too.....Walt Jr needs to tell him the story about drugged up Walt Sr calling him "Jesse".

Hank discovers Walt's secret....what will his reaction be?
Mike returns .... will he join up with Walt or try to pry Jesse away?
I don't want Jesse to find out about the poison plant or Jane, that's heartache heaped upon heartache. I want Walt to suffer in silence.
Would love a new RV ......those were good times.
At the very end, my pipe dream is for both Jesse and Walt to survive....Walt could perhaps go the way of Billy the Kid, who some say "cheated death and survived, despite eyewitness accounts of his slaying".

[thatguy01]

Whatever their interests may have been, Madrigal is going to be running in the other direction in S5. There's a link from the Mexican cartel to Hector Salamanca to Gus Fring to Madrigal. IMO, Madrigal isn't going to be interested in the meth trade in the southwest, if they ever were; they're going to be trying to avoid prison sentences and confiscation.

What they need are scapegoats.

[Neromute]

-More info on Gus's past, why Don Eladio wouldn't kill him, etc. This stuff kind of seems like a certainty, anyway. I have a feeling Walt will come to realize just how badly he really fucked up by killing Gus.
-More info on Madrigal. What their relationship with Gus was, what the company's real nature is. I have a feeling this will be connected to the above, and that Madrigal will be the antagonists in the upcoming season.
-Hank uncovering Walt's secret, of course. This has to happen at some point.
-At least one scene showing Jesse hanging out with Walter Jr. Make it happen, writers.
-On that note, how about a scene where Marie and Saul do some verbal fencing. I think she'd give him a better run for his money than Skyler.

You didn't mention Mike at all. First of all, that guy is going to be a force in his own right and it remains to be seen what his reaction will be if/when he shows up back in New Mexico. Second of all, via a discussion between him and Gus it seems he might actually know about Gus' mysterious past and would be a perfect avenue towards exploring that. I think it's clear that Madrigal is a no good company, just from the way they shut down a call centre like it never existed after Hank phoned in, but right now they are far too vague of an entity to be worth much speculation.

I think the death of Fring and the burning of the laundry is more or less going to win Hanks theory the recognition it deserves within the DEA, that Gus Fring was a drug distributor now seems plainly apparent to all at the DEA.

[Calnert]

- Gus's past, and the consequences of his death coming back to haunt Walt.

- If Walt and Hank do have a stand-off, I like the idea of it being in Mexico - what with Hank's previous trauma associated with the Cartel and all.

- As tortured endings go, the idea of Walt's health rapidly deteriorating while his power increases, culminating in death while Jesse is left alone and perceived as the legendary Heisenberg would make some kind of sense. Essentially, Walt getting away with it through death, his 'perfect moment to die' leaving his wife and kids with a legitimate business and financial solidarity, and Jesse taking the blame for everything (with Hank praised by the DEA for his valiant efforts) would be the tragic irony - Walt is so wrapped up in preserving his Heisenberg legacy, but dies with no reputation to outsiders other than being a gambling addict who runs a carwash.

- On the other hand, all the emphasis on security cameras so far would be a good pay-off. Maybe insurance for Gus in the event of his demise?

- The return of Mike, and which (if any) side he decides to go on.

- Saul surviving through the whole series.

- The return of Walt's former girlfriend and her husband (his former partner). We had the one flashback of Walt and her together, and the 'Fourth of July' story where Walt just left her (not explained why), as well as her being in the carwash when Walt first collapses, so I feel there's more to be explored there.

- More from Saul's 'A-Team', and a resolution to Dead?Ted.

Edited by Calnert, Oct 10, 2011 @ 8:29 PM.

[SultanOfSurreal]

- The return of Walt's former girlfriend and her husband (his former partner). We had the one flashback of Walt and her together, and the 'Fourth of July' story where Walt just left her (not explained why), as well as her being in the carwash when Walt first collapses, so I feel there's more to be explored there.

I've seen speculation elsewhere that Madrigal might be a front for Grey Matter. That would lead to some interesting plots.

[mswyrr]

-Jesse survives without being completely broken

-Time and narrative energy continues to be given to Skyler's story

-Hank learns the truth

[colacentral]

The way I pictured it was that we'd return to Walt and Jesse running their own crew like the midsection of season two, but on a slightly larger scale than that and smaller scale than Gus' operation. Same with some sort of new lab: more high tech than the RV but no super lab. Between Walt, Jesse, Badger, Skinny Pete and Saul's A-Team, plus the added benefit of less competition, they've got some groundwork, and maybe it will take Mike to whip them into shape, plus call in some more able reinforcements.

Obviously then there would be a build of Heisenberg's empire, and the inevitable fall.

However, after reading what Vince Gilligan has said in interviews about what he thinks Mike would have to say about all this, it seems doubtful that Mike would be heading up Walt's team. Maybe he just needs some persuasion? I can also easily see his German name, connection to Madrigal, long and storied past, and the writers desire to bring Gus back through flashback being a hint that Mike will be an adversary. He may be swayed by Jesse though.

I really hope Walt and Jesse survive too. Maybe it would be cheap to go that way but I got such a warm feeling seeing Walt go all Clint Eastwood in this episode that I'd rather the series end on that note than see emotionally draining scenes of my hero Walter White meeting a physical or mental demise. It was nice to get a funny, upbeat episode after a really bleak season... although I realise not every viewer finds the hero poisoning kids that upbeat.

I've seen speculation elsewhere that Madrigal might be a front for Grey Matter. That would lead to some interesting plots.

In theory I feel like I should hate hate hate this idea. Maybe I'm just on a high from the finale but I think I'd actually quite like that twist. Maybe not quite as explicit as that implies, but if there was some connection somehow it would be interesting.

Finally, I think that a really terrible thing for Walt to do would be to kill a lovable character, and another who's close to Jesse: Badger. Back in season two, Saul asked Walt and Jesse "Why not just kill Brandon?" At the time, neither of them could even conceive of doing such a thing, it just wasn't in them. At this point, I think Walt has become embroiled in the criminal world long enough and killed enough people (by my count nine, but it may be more) for it to not be too much of a problem if push came to shove.

Sure, poisoning a kid is bad, but A) he really thought he was getting away with it and that Brock wouldn't die, and B), he thought his family would get murdered. If Walt killed Badger over snitching or whatever I think even I would lose sympathy with him.

Edited by colacentral, Oct 10, 2011 @ 9:17 PM.

[ReadIshmael]

-This is a holdover from my season four wishlist, but: some scenes between Jesse and Skyler, please.
-I hope the Mike/Jesse bond doesn't evaporate because of them killing Gus. I don't need Mike to be an ally to Walt, but I need Mike to care about Jesse.
-No more hurting the people Jesse loves.
-Serious, horrible consequences for Walt.
-I feel like I'm never going to get over my investment in the Walt/Jesse relationship, no mater no toxic it is, without them reaching some kind of (temporary, obviously) place of real peace and relatively open affection between them. You can rip them apart afterward, but if I don't get a simple damn hug between them ever, I'm going to be pissed.
-Redemption for Jesse. If I have to choose between redemption and survival, I choose redemption.

[Tim Thomason]

Finally, I think that a really terrible thing for Walt to do would be to kill a lovable character, and another who's close to Jesse: Badger. Back in season two, Saul asked Walt and Jesse "Why not just kill Brandon?" At the time, neither of them could even conceive of doing such a thing, it just wasn't in them. At this point, I think Walt has become embroiled in the criminal world long enough and killed enough people (by my count nine, but it may be more) for it to not be too much of a problem if push came to shove.

Sure, poisoning a kid is bad, but A) he really thought he was getting away with it and that Brock wouldn't die, and B), he thought his family would get murdered. If Walt killed Badger over snitching or whatever I think even I would lose sympathy with him.

Walt seemed intrigued at the idea of killing ("shanking") Badger back in S2. He looked over at Jesse with a "maybe we should listen to him?" look before Jesse was the one who yelled out "No Killing Badger!" The scary thing is, Walt really hasn't changed *that* much over the past... year...

Walt's kill count:
1. Emilio (phosphene gas)
2. Krazy 8 (garroted with a bike lock)
3. Corner Drug Dealer #1 (slammed with a car)
4. Corner Drug Dealer #2 (shot in the head)
5. Gale Boetticher (by proxy)
6. Hector Salamanca (in concert with Walt)
7. "Gustavo Fring" (by proxy)
8. Tyrus (by proxy)
9. Elevator Goon (probably shot)
10. Goon Watching Over Jesse (shot in the head)

Gus might also blame Victor's death, and the laundry workers' "bus ride" on Walt too, but that's not really Walt's fault directly or via order.

Future of the characters:
* Walt - He has quit the meth business - yet again. Season 5 will see him somehow either get involved (he's low on cash! - and probably has cancer again!) yet again. Knocking out the biggest distributor in the Southwest means Walt has very little options in getting the big bucks like before though.
* Jesse - He'll be low on cash too. And I'm sure Andrea will blame him for Brock's poisoning, since she *knows* he has (/had) a very illegal, dangerous job. They might be splitsville, which will just hurt poor Jesse.
* Skyler - She might be a little uneasy around Walt now that she knows he partially blew up a nursing home. Of course, she's also partially responsible for the (death?) of Ted Beneke, so to each their own.
* Hank - His name will echo in the memory of all those who know about the guys who took down Pablo Escobar. He's got to have serious DEA cred now, will be back to work *very* soon, and will investigate *everything* about Gus. Gus was consorting with a known Cartel operative (16 years in San Quentin). That superlab is almost certainly being dug up by at least the fire department (and soon the DEA alongside Hank's gimp-mobile).
* Walt, Jr. - He'll be estranged from his gambling-addict father who was probably out at some underground casino while Hank's life was threatened. Maybe he'll have that intervention that some have said he'd do.
* Saul - He's back in business (pending Mike-related matters). He'll probably try to get the two pollops back into the saddle again, or more likely he'll just try to stay outta their hairs and hope they stay out of his.
* Mike - Well, he'll certainly be leaving Mexico if the money for his treatment suddenly stops. Remember, Hank had similar gunshot wounds too, and he's still out, so it's possible Mike not yet be in a manageable condition when the show returns (next year :(). He's a world-class PI, so he'll definitely figure out what happened within 60 seconds of arriving in ABQ. Maybe a sit-down with Saul would lead to answers. He's not the kind of guy who likes being out of a job.

[SultanOfSurreal]

Mike - Well, he'll certainly be leaving Mexico if the money for his treatment suddenly stops. Remember, Hank had similar gunshot wounds too, and he's still out, so it's possible Mike not yet be in a manageable condition when the show returns (next year :(). He's a world-class PI, so he'll definitely figure out what happened within 60 seconds of arriving in ABQ. Maybe a sit-down with Saul would lead to answers. He's not the kind of guy who likes being out of a job.

I know Gilligan has said Mike will be none too pleased with the insanity of what went down in his absence, but I still just can't see him being that terribly upset. He was lucky enough to avoid the shrapnel, literally and figuratively, from what Walt did. And it seemed like he was having his own little crisis of conscience over what Gus had been doing ever since he killed Victor. If it wasn't Walt, it would have been the DEA, or the cartel. And Walt was 100% correct even if 100% transparent -- the box cutter incident certainly had to make Mike wonder where he stood in Gus' world.

He totally hates Walt, but I can't envision him being mad enough about Gus to go gunning for him. More likely I see him getting back in town, taking one look at the news, and saying "fuck it, I'm too old for this shit." Walt might have been getting paid a hell of a lot more than he was, but Mike was employed for a lot longer. I'm sure he's got enough to live on for the rest of his days.

Of course, something will probably end up getting him back in the saddle again because these characters have a pathological inability to stay out of trouble. Maybe he'll feel the need to help Jesse out.

Edited by SultanOfSurreal, Oct 10, 2011 @ 11:39 PM.

[iggypop123]

Not story related but i would like AMC to NOT split up the last season and air all 16 episodes next summer. A man can dream?

[thatguy01]

* Jesse - He'll be low on cash too. And I'm sure Andrea will blame him for Brock's poisoning, since she *knows* he has (/had) a very illegal, dangerous job. They might be splitsville, which will just hurt poor Jesse.

Unless Jesse simply gave it all away, he should have a wad of money. He's made about as much as Walt, and hasn't made any big purchases exc his house.

[ikar]

I'm right there with ya, iggypop! Split 8s are only good in poker - not TV!

Also: Curious about Gus' computer/ hard drive, who will find it and how much video was kept on it.

Minor things I wonder about- Los Pollos Hermanos, and if it will still exist. Plus, with his "ricin" interview issues, will Jesse remain a person of interest to government folk with initials (FBI, etc) and how it could affect his movements in S5.

Edited by ikar, Oct 11, 2011 @ 12:06 AM.

[Tim Thomason]

You're right, thatguy. I'm not sure where I got the idea that Jesse would be low on cash. Not only does he not have Ted-related issues, he's probably made some extra money working in the lab by himself these past few (days?).

I bet Gus' computer is especially encrypted or self-destructive. I don't know why, but I don't think he wanted people going through his business if he died via simple heart attack or something. At the very least, one of the goons that wasn't killed or is layed out in Mexico (there has to be some, somewhere), is going to be destroying it. To protect everyone that was involved.

Plus, with his "ricin" interview issues, will Jesse remain a person of interest to government folk with initials (FBI, etc) and how it could affect his movements in S5.

Ricin aside, I'm not sure how Jesse *wouldn't* be a person of interest right now anyway. Along with Badger, he's the only person with any known connection to Heisenberg, and since Hank's theory right now is that Gus is Heisenberg (and he just got a big boost in legitimizing that), then he's got to be looked into next season. Probably by Gomez or one of the other non-Hank characters. Especially with his connections to Tio Salamanca who may be seen as an accomplice in Gus' death ("did Jesse Pinkman order this?").

[EGTuna22]

If there is one, and I can't imagine there won't be, the first scene with Mike and Walt and/or Mike and Jesse will be as awesome and as cool as Sawyer's meeting with Richard Alpert when Sawyer had gone back to the 70s.

[iggypop123]

My guess is Mike comes back isn't' so happy with Walt's actions. Leans towards Jesse since they were close before the Cartel craziness. I wonder if Mike somehow tells him about Jane, i am not sure how much info he has about that event. Jesse does not need much to turn on Walt, before he manipulated him for the Gus plan Jesse was done with anything to do with Walt.
Its tough to figure how season 5 will work since Hank has been duped for a long time but there is no way he cannot be onto Walt with those videos left as evidence by Gus.

[SultanOfSurreal]

You're right, thatguy. I'm not sure where I got the idea that Jesse would be low on cash. Not only does he not have Ted-related issues, he's probably made some extra money working in the lab by himself these past few (days?).

The point's been raised elsewhere that Jesse knows where all of Gus's dead drops are. He might be the only living person besides Mike who knows. Whatever money problems he or Walt are having could be pretty easily solved, at least for the time being, by taking advantage of it.

Of course, I'm sure once Mike has the same idea, it'll only make him angrier once he comes back from Mexico. First his employer gets blown up, then his emergency exit nest egg gets stolen by the punk kid he put his trust in.

I bet Gus' computer is especially encrypted or self-destructive. I don't know why, but I don't think he wanted people going through his business if he died via simple heart attack or something. At the very least, one of the goons that wasn't killed or is layed out in Mexico (there has to be some, somewhere), is going to be destroying it. To protect everyone that was involved.

If having one of Gus's underlings destroy the evidence is the plan, then they'd better have acted fast. By the time 413 ends, Hank and the rest of the DEA have received confirmation that Gus really was involved in some shit. By the time they hear about a mysterious fire at the industrial laundry, every single Los Pollos Hermano franchise is gonna be crawling with cops. As well as the shipping facility, the laundry, Gus's house, and everywhere else Gus was associated with.

[Constantinople]

Vince Gilligan has repeatedly said Breaking Bad is how Mr Chips becomes Scarface. In Scarface (1983), Tony Montana kills his boss and hooks up with a foreign cartel. Hmmm.

In any case, if Walt continues in the meth business, he'd better hook-up with someone. He and Jesse make a good product, but they were terrible at distribution and security (2/3 of their street level dealers were killed or arrested). And until Gus builds up a security apparatus like the one Gus had, it will be a lot easier for someone to kill Walt than it was to kill Gus.

If Mike decides to retire, he's got no reason not to go after Walt. There's no more meth business to protect, and while Mike may not want revenge for Gus, he may want revenge for Victor, Tyrus et al.

[colacentral]

Sorry, I don't know why there's this misconception that Mike knows anything about Jane. It seems like it started on here as someone asking whether he did and it's snowballed into people assuming he does. All he did was get rid of the paraphanelia and coach Jesse on his story. I don't think he even knew who Walt was then, did he?

If the DEA get hold of Gus' laptop, I think the fact that the lab cam will presumably just show static will buy everyone some time. I imagine that Hank will be the one who first sees the last recorded moment, which I guess would be Walt and Jesse wrecking the place.

The question is, without Gus in control of the camera, which direction was it pointed? There's a possibility that Walt and Jesse have got lucky and the only footage of them is in the orange suits and gas masks. We also don't know how far back Gus keeps footage, if at all. I can't imagine that he would want to keep too much recorded footage of his meth lab handy. I imagine it would be deleted daily unless there was something of particular interest to him that he'd need to study.

My two guesses: Hank sees Walt in the lab and hides the evidence until he can wrap his head around it and confront Walt, or Walt and Jesse are the luckiest two guys alive and somehow managed to not show their face on camera due to where it was pointed when Gus left the office.

[HelenBack]

The only relatively safe thing with the cameras would be to have them set up to work in real-time only. If S5 has footage found, I'll be shocked that Gus was so careless in an area that's so easy to plan in advance.

This might be silly or even impossible, but I'd like a Walt/Skyler reconciliation in Season 5.

[thatguy01]

The only relatively safe thing with the cameras would be to have them set up to work in real-time only. If S5 has footage found, I'll be shocked that Gus was so careless in an area that's so easy to plan in advance.

I'd be shocked if Gus had archived evidence for his trial. I wouldn't be surprised if someone else copied the feed.

[Heatrae]

I think Gus's cam on the lab was only real time, maybe the restaurant cam has a recorder in case it's robbed. Loose ends: Gus's car still parked on the 5th floor of the Hospital, Eyewitnesses see Walt, Tyrus and Jesse in the Hospital too.

I rationalize the poisioning incident of Brock that Walt concocted a poison that was either extracted from the Lily of the Valley berry or possibly synthesized a poison that goes inert in 48 hours in a persons system w/0 killing them. Then he injected it into a Milky Way bar and had Saul take it over to Andrea's house that morning along with some "Jesse Bucks" that actually came from Walt this time.

Saul's bodyguard definately puts something in his pocket when he frisks Jesse. i think he too the pack, removed the Ricin cig, and put the pack back in Jesse's car while he was in Goodman's office. You see the Bodyguard closing the blinds as Jesse goes into Saul's office, so Jesse can't see him outside.

[thelephant]

I would like to get away from the meth and cartel stuff completely. Right now, Walt and Jesse think they've gotten away with everything - Walt has a successful business and his remaining money to live off, Jesse has his house and a lot more money to live off, and as far as they know, no one (except perhaps Mike) can connect them to Gus, the cartel, the meth, the bombing etc because they were (mostly) flying under the radar and they've destroyed (they think) all the evidence. In any case, Mike was Gus' employee, he wasn't a blood relation or concerned with honour, reputation etc, so is he likely to go on some sort of revenge kick? I don't think so, unless Walt does something to specifically provoke him. They don't need to cook meth any more, they don't have a huge stash of meth to get rid of, there's no need for them to be in or want to be in the game. They can go back to their ordinary lives, at least for a little while, and deal with other sorts of consequences, like Skylar knowing Walt is a mass-murderer, and Andrea thinking Jesse might be some kind of domestic terrorist.

So what I would like to see season five focus on is the police investigation, and the ABQPD/DEA quite literally piecing all the things we've seen happen over the course of the last four years together and doing something about it. From a criminal perspective, Walt and Jesse have done what they've done to survive, and they've played by criminal rules to do so and been relatively successful. Now I want to see them held accountable by a different set of rules. I don't think that poisoning Brock, barely a character, offscreen, with an easily identifiable and treatable poison is Walt's evil moment. I think that him finding himself in a position where he has to actually contemplate killing Hank to save himself is his evil, Scarface, no-turning-back moment. And I want to see that onscreen

[TVgeek]

I just want Jesse to find out about what Walt did to Jane and Brock, and Hank to find out about Walt. It'd be a huge cheat if the writers didn't go there, i'd be very upset. As long as I get those two storylines i'm sure i'll be extremely happy with everything they throw at us. I would also like a flasback with Mike and Gus and a flashback with Walt conducting his "poison the kid" plan. I would love a Walt/Jesse hug but i'll be happy if Jesse receives a hug from anybody.

[colacentral]

I don't want Jesse to find out about Jane mainly because there's no reason realistically for that to happen. I feel like it was resolved in Fly; that was Walt's one moment to give it away and he got away with it. Brock... maybe. But only if it were to happen organically. I'm happy for it to stay a secret unless they go the direction of Saul turning on Walt or whatever.

Hank has to find out about Walt because that has to be resolved after this many seasons. Before season four started I wouldn't have said that though; I thought that him ending up in a wheelchair and out of the DEA pretty much put him out of action and therefore gave the writers a convenient get out clause in regards to that storyline. That storyline could have been put to bed with Hank's injuries, but they brought it back. Now it's up in the air again so it has to be paid off.

[spoonflipper]

-

At least one scene showing Jesse hanging out with Walter Jr. Make it happen, writers.

Yes! This please!

-I want Walt to become the king pin. Maybe he's able to get Mike on board to become the new drug lord. I never got the impression that Mike was loyal to Gus on any emotional level. He's a pragmatic dude. I think he was just loyal to his employer. Heck, maybe Jesse talks him into joining them.
-I want the main confrontations/battles to be between Walt and Hank and eventually Walt and Jesse.
-Generally I think that Jesse will never find out about Jane; if it was going to happen, it would've happened in 'Fly.' BUT I can
envision a scene, probably toward the end of the series, in which Walt has gone so dark and is so assured of his own power that he confesses Jane/Brock to Jesse with no fear of reprisal, out of a sense of delusion/being mad with his own power. Maybe even because he's decided he was completely justified in his actions.
-As I've probably said several times here, my fantasy ending for Jesse is for him to inform on Walt and walk into the sunset (if possible and if so it's probably a witness protected sunset).
-I want Walt Jr. to find out what's going on or at least have an inkling and be conflicted between his black hat/Walt father and his white hat/Hank father.
-Kinda want Skyler to kill somebody. Maybe.

If we find out more about Gus's past, that's fine. I don't need it.

[Elrhino]

Gus is the "Omar" of this show in that I find him the most riveting character in the series, even if he's in a supporting role. I want to know who(m)ever Don Eladio was scared of angering when he refused to kill Gus at the poolside with Max and during the sniper attack at the warehouse. I'm thinking Gus had friends who haven't yet revealed themselves in the series. Perhaps business investors/partners and or peers in the drug trafficking trade from Chile/Pinochet. I hope they make an appearance in Albuquerque.

Edited by Elrhino, Oct 13, 2011 @ 4:43 PM.

[Beanpurchaser]

-Hank dubs his gimpmobile "The Pequod" and sets off to unravel the mystery of Don Eladio's scorched necklace.

-Gus' American family are taken into custody while Gus' Chilean (and German?) family sharpen their knives.

-Flashbacks revealing the connection between Gus and his doctor and between Mike and Madrigal.

-Flashback of Ninja Walt putting a free sample of his Lily of the Valley extract into Brock's Raisin Berry Crunch while Kuby distracts Andrea with his sword swallowing act (before they became Saul's A-Team, Kuby would entertain crowds with circus tricks while Huell emptied their pockets).

-Return of the Cartel chemist. While everyone else gathers around to watch Don Eladio unwrap his present, he separates himself from the rest of the pack. When they all take a drink, every single other character is lined up so you can see them drinking. The chemist is the only one with his back to the camera.. and to Mike.
http://i.imgur.com/oOcVh.jpg

When everyone else is falling over from poisoning he remains upright far longer than everyone else. The only sign that he's even experiencing any discomfort is that he is slightly slumped forward and has one hand on his stomach. He remains in this position while Mike gets up to garrote Eladio's bodyguard.

He is never shown standing up or falling over. When we get an aerial shot of the poolside, there is only one body that could be his. However, he is lying on his back, his head pointed toward the pool, and a few feet away from his chair. He clearly did not slump to the ground from his chair. Most likely, he laid himself down while Mike and Jesse weren't watching and played dead until they left.
http://i.imgur.com/YaSHL.jpg

After all, somebody has to submit the footage of Jesse cooking up the blue to Mexico's Incriminatingest Home Videos.

-Miguel (fat cartel guy who took Gus to the bathroom) also survives!