By Jose Gonzalez
Warning: Spoilers follow.
This past Sunday, the penultimate episode of Breaking Bad, "Granite State," seemed to set the stage for tying up of all the loose ends from the past five years in the finale of AMC's hit TV show. Well, almost every loose end is accounted for.
Where the hell is Huell?
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Huell Babineaux, sizeable bodyguard (and pickpocket-on-demand) for shifty lawyer Saul Goodman, might be scarce, but Lavell Crawford, the comedian who plays him, is easy to find. Crawford will be performing four shows at Stand Up Live on Friday, September 27, and Saturday, September 28, just before one of the best television series to ever air takes its final bow.
The last we saw Huell was in a supposed safehouse set up by DEA agents Hank Schrader and Steven Gomez. The Heisenberg-hunting soldiers in the Albuquerque drug war convince Huell, with the help of a mocked up photo of a brains-blasted Jesse Pinkman, that he's next on Walter White's hitlist. Goodman's trusty right-hand man spilled the beans on White's stash of $80,000,000 and is implored to stay at the DEA-surveiled domicile until Hank and Gomie return. Problem is, Uncle Jack and the Nazis end up wasting them both in the desert of To'hajillee. Who unwatches the watched man?
Breaking Bad fans' deep concern for the beloved character of few words is shown in their GIFs, their speculation on his current limbo state, and what they think would be the perfect ending to it all.
Prior to his adoption into pop culture history with his introduction in the fourth season of Breaking Bad, comedy fans recognized Lavell Crawford from nearly two decades of work on the road, bit parts in TV and film roles, and making the rounds of the Def Comedy Jam, BET's Comic View, and Comedy Central. Crawford's delves into a Midwestern mix (he hails from St. Louis, Missouri) of drawing from personal anecdotes of growing up, financial hardship, and observations on the daily life of a big man with an immediately affable and charismatic style that's in sharp contrast to Huell's reserved demeanor. The dude is straight up funny, equally able to get laughs from a roll of the eyes as he is from a detailed story.
Prior to Breaking Bad, Crawford's most prominent time in the spotlight of mainstream television was in the fifth season of NBC's comedy competition Last Comic Standing in 2007. Beating out other prominent comics such as Amy Schumer and Doug Benson, Crawford made it to the end, ultimately coming in second to Jon Reep.
That Lavell Crawford made it to the finale of one TV show might bode well for him to pop up one last time in Breaking Bad. If you'd rather not leave it to chance, your best bet is to cop tickets to his stint at Stand Up Live this weekend.
Crawford performs at Stand Up Live at 7:30 and 10:15 p.m. Friday and 7 and 10 on Saturday. Tickets are $25, and there's a two-drink minimum. Visit www.standuplive.com.