Breaking Bad (2008-2013)
"A high school chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine in order to secure his family's future."
- IMDB
For years and years and years and years and years I've been told this was one of the greatest shows of all time. And now, here I am seeing what all the big fuss is about.
(Ps I wrote my thoughts between seasons as I binged the series. This review was written "live" so to speak as a documentation of my journey.)
Season 1
Of course Season 1 had to act as the origin story to the dynamic duo that is Walter White & Jesse Pinkman. A man facing death at the hands of cancer adds to his already mess of a life by breaking bad in the meth business; and a young man who has already made a string of bad choices and is stuck in the drug dealing business just trying to survive. I'm very excited to see how these two characters develop over time.
Specifically talking about Walter, his story goes deep. He's a soft spoken Chemistry teacher that loves his wife and children. By the end of the season, he lives two lives. And through the beginning of his journey, he learns that when life pushes you around, you push right back. I feel like, as the main protagonist, I'll be gushing about his character development as the series goes on. His story is already promising.
As for the episodes, that Talking Pillow scene in episode 5 provided some great performances by all the cast, and that was the moment I thought "Here we go, the greatest show of all time is about to begin." Really gotta hand it to the cast - Bryan Cranston, Anna Gunn, RJ Mitte, Aaron Paul, Dean Norris, & Betsy Brandt. This season has only seen the tip of the ice burg of what these actors are capable of. Cranston, alone, was phenomenal each episode. His performance, as of this season, is the most addicting part of the show.
Season 2
Season 2 was ingeniously crafted, to say the least. This season saw a rise of tension between Walter and those closest to him. His relationship with Jesse begins to evolve to an interesting relationship where they hate each other but still take a liking to each other through their odd circumstances. Saul is introduced, which I was excited about. For several years "Better call Saul" was the only thing I really knew about Breaking Bad. I'm already ready to see more of him in future episodes.
However, those cold openings at the beginning of the episodes were genius. Those were the well crafted portions of the season that I speak of. These intros were menacing, haunting, and intense. More was revealed as we recognize it to be a crime scene at Walt's house. I spent the whole season theorizing about what was happening, wondering who died & what leads to this. I was convinced it had something to do with Walt's or Jesse's mistakes. The last few episodes of the season, I was on the edge of my seat in suspense watching close for any details that could lead to a crazy climax at the White residence.
Then the plane crash happened. Yes, it was indirectly Walt & Jesse's fault. Walt allowed Jane to die. And though they loved each other, Jesse & Jane were bad influences on each other and their decisions are what lead Jane in such a fragile state. So Jane's dad didn't do his job properly and the planes crashed. When that stupid pink teddy bear dropped in the pool, my jaw dropped. This was not what I expected at all. And for that, I applaud the show for being so cryptic about something so unexpected for a whole season. Genius.
Season 3
Firstly, I have to give a big shoutout to Hank. The first half of the season was all for him - seeing him go down this winding spiral of insanity all the way to the big confrontation with twins. Dean Norris portrayed this journey perfectly and we saw the deepest levels of the character. It was a great arc.
I also want to mention Skylar's arc this season. She finally got fed up with the ocean of Walt's lies. She added it all up together & figured it out. This was such a cool reveal and even more so as she became much more involved in the story rather than just be collateral damage on the side. She is a force to be reckoned with & I'm curious to see how her involvement escalates.
Three whole seasons. And everything changed with the cliffhangers of the last two episodes as "full measures" were taken. These 3 seasons have given us the character development of Walt & Jesse who have been shining examples of Irony.
Walter was introduced as a family loving man with compassion and a balanced moral compass. But he's a villain. At another angle, he could easily be written as the evil antagonist. It's not even just about the hat. The blood on his hands is dripping, creating a deep pool around him. Jesse, on the other hand, sees himself as the bad guy and hates himself for every mistake he makes. But he, not once, laid a hand on anybody. He never took the life of someone, ever, no matter how bad they were. Even when he felt responsible for someone's death, he was always innocent. Always.
But like I said, everything changed. "Half-Measure" saw Walt not only killing two people, but he did it without hesitation or remorse. Whereas before he'd cry and apologize for days and dwell on his actions. He didn't even blink and was completely heartless. "Full Measure" ended on the season finale cliffhanger. A distraught Jesse, who has never killed anyone, looks an innocent man in the eye and puts a bullet in his head. His innocence is gone.
And with that, the season ends. Walt's moral compass is shattered and Jesse is now a killer. Out of all the episodes - This, I believe, is a major turning point in the series. And I'm excited to see what's next.
Season 4
"I'm the one who knocks on the door."
Skylar made a comment in an early episode "I'm protecting the family from the man who is protecting the family." And boy oh boy. That's basically what season 4 was all about. Any other comments or remarks I can possibly make about the season is just overshadowed by Walt. I can go on about Skylar and her growing involvement. I could continue to analyze Jesse and his development. I could write an essay about how Gus was the most compelling and haunting villain ever. But Walter White has become a villain in his own story. I'm still mentally recovering from this as I dwell on that season finale.
This season he became more and more unhinged as he and his family was getting into more danger due to Walt's actions in Season 3. The tables turn and Walt loses control of the situation. When he's down in the crawlspace laughing as Skylar gets the call about Hank being in danger, that was Walt's golden Joker moment. Yes, Gus manipulated Jesse to get him on his side to isolate Walter, but I forget how manipulative Walt can be as well. In the end, Walt had to become the man he most feared to take down his enemy. I honestly have no idea how season 5 will go or how they'd conclude this story. Walter is so far gone on the path of darkness. Where does it go from here? How does it end?
Season 5
Walter White is dead. Heisenberg is here.
This season is so depressing. All the characters are just ravenous, specifically after Hank discovers Walt's secret. The family is positively broken as we reach the point of no return. It's even more heartbreaking knowing Walt was ready to settle down and enjoy is success as a retired villain. But thanks to Jesse, it's not possible. Ironic how the one man that was able to bring him down is the same man that helped him get started in the business to begin with.
Thankfully, all was as well as they could be. Walt died knowing that he not only succeeded, that it wasn't for nothing. He made sure that no loose ends existed. And now, after all the grief he's caused, he can rest now that everything is settled, and everyone is safe. The Heisenberg legacy dies with him. This was as satisfying and conclusive as the ending could get.
Final Thoughts
This show just got better and better as time went on. I would nominate the end of Season 3 to be the turning point of the series. The quality of writing & acting as well as the intensity & emotion of the show just amps up from here. I also like how, when you get to the final season, events of the first two seasons are relevant and come full circle, even if you don't expect it to. So every element & character of the story holds some important significance and it just made for a whole cohesive story.
Hank's story was one I didn't know I'd get so attached to. The character went through so much and you really felt for him as he began to lose himself in the Heisenberg case. Not only did Hank's story have it's own merit, but having Hank as a character in Walt's story was genius. They set up this tension all the way in the pilot when Hank opened Walt's eyes to the meth business. Then we preceded to spend the series wondering when Hank would figure it out. They made it so that this conflict presented a duality support of sorts as we all wanted Hank to succeed while also wanting Walter White to prevail. But I knew it was impossible for Walt to keep up with it forever. A downfall was inevitable. Despite my sadness for Walt, I was very satisfied when it happened.
Jesse is indeed a tragic character who was at the wrong place at the wrong time. He made some bad choices that got him tangled into the drug business, and worse, tangle with Heisenberg. The ironic thing about Jesse is his innocence, at least compared to Walt. By the end of the series, Jesse only kills 3 people, but feels so responsible for many more deaths during his journey, even if he was indirectly responsible at most. We all fell in love with his personality, but as the character developed (and as Aaron Paul gave more phenomenal performances) we wanted nothing more than for Jesse to get a happy ending. Even through all his mistakes, especially in the final season, Jesse deserved that. And I'm glad he was able to get a second chance in the end.
The center of the story was of course the White Family. Outside of Walt himself, there was a lot of focus on Skylar & Walt Jr. Skylar really grew on me as time went on. Given her awareness to Walt's work, we were able to see through her the worst repercussions of Walt's decisions. Anna Gunn portrayed the different levels of the character wonderfully. I think, despite it all, she still loved Walt in the end. I hope her character finds peace. I also adored watching RJ Mitte as Walter Jr., especially when he got to be very emotional. Phenomenal actor! Jr. is such a loveable character. I loved the relationship he had with his dad and I loved how they loved each other.
With so many great characters to follow, Breaking Bad, at the end of the day, is about one thing - the Rise & Fall of Heisenberg. I have a deep obsession with well written characters as complex characters are what I look for the most in any story I experience. The story of Walter White is as good as it gets. Wow..... The journey, the development, the dimension - Walter White is almost incomparable to no other. The cinematography of this show was consistently amazing; but any inner commentary I made on it would always be during a scene when they used shadow to make Walt look more menacing or a camera angle to make Walt look intimidating.
And Bryan Cranston! *sheds a tear* He is definitely one of the greatest actors of his generation. He owned every second he was on screen, even if the focus wasn't him. He seemed so alive in every word of dialogue and perfectly portrayed the dimensions and emotions of his character. The show & other actors were great and all, but I'd literally watch the whole series again just to watch him. His acting was as brilliantly as the writing. And Walter White, I think, should be stapled as one of the most compelling & dynamic characters of all time.
My Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆