Thanks for the hu! Getting interesting

Want to see a solid show about a suburban family man turned drug dealer because he had no other choice and loves his family, watch "Breaking Bad". Sadly, it only lasted four episodes and then got replaced. It was never the best thing on tv, not even close, but it was interesting and watchable for sure.

Want to see one of the dumbest shows on prime time television, watch "Breaking Bad". It's still on. It's about a suburban family man turned drug dealer by choice because he hates his family.


Seriously? How the **** are people stupid enough to still be watching this after the season 1 episode where the main character turns down an out from his rich friend???

He could have gotten treatment and security for himself, his disabled son and his pregnant wife and he turned it all down because the guy who offered it to him is ****ing a chick he likes??

Seriously??

No, really??

You idiots are watching this show? You're on board with this main character?? You root for him to succeed?? Why??

This show should be required watching in film school to demonstrate how, no matter what else you do or don't have going for you, there are some decisions so monumentally stupid that if you make them there's no way your story can be redeemed.

I get that they needed a way for him to be able to explain to his fam where the money was coming from, but they did it in the stupidest possible way.

They took a potentially interesting story and ruined it. He no longer needs to be a drug dealer. He is doing it by choice. He is no longer doing it for his family. He made a decision that threatens his family. And all because his friend's wife is a chick he'd like to ****?? Seriously??

How ****ing ******ed are the people that make this show that at no point when they were writing, reading or shooting that episode did no one stop and say "Uh... this is so stupid... it kinda, you know, ruins the whole show".

Sure, providing for his family is his stated motive, and obv it's important to him, but you really can't think of a good reason why a generic middle-aged dude who's probably never done one exciting thing in his life might decide to do something like this when he finds out he's dying?

I mean, yeah the premise is (intentionally) a little far-fetched, but I don't think it's just lazy writing like you seem to be saying.

Nothing lazy about it. It's stupid.

Very, very, very stupid.

And yes, I can imagine he's doing it for a thrill, quite clearly he is. But why do the people who write this show think I'm going to root for a guy who puts a thrill before the security of his young disabled son and pregnant wife?

I'll tell you why because they're stupid. Very, very, very stupid.

For a few episodes he had no real choice. Once he was given an out and turned it down because he wanted the thrill and because the guy who offered it to him has a hotter wife that was it, show over.

Reading this just after reading your great write up of Mad Men makes it hard to believe it was written by the same person.

Written in spoilers b/c it discusses specific season 1 plot lines so do not read if you haven't watched season 1



I'm not sure where all this hate came from for Breaking Bad, but it is another intelligently written show just as good as Mad Men. I have been so impressed with both shows I will pretty much give any show AMC produces in the future a chance even if it doesn't seem like one I would initially enjoy.

I don't know much of the back story of the relationships involved with the rich couple, Walter, and Walter's wife. We know Walter had some feelings for the other woman, and that the three of them (the couples minus Walter's wife) were instrumental in founding a multi-billion dollar company that Walter didn't benefit from.

I gather that Walter wants to take control of his death and remaining life, to be a man, and that taking money from them somehow didn't comport with those goals. His rejection also provided some cover for his money laundering.

I also gather that this plotting was too artificial for you to continuing watching it. I'm glad you were able to get it off your chest.

There are several things I find fascinating about this show and I look forward to enjoying future episodes.

Ok, without re-reading my posts, I should clarify a couple of things.

1) If I said anything about realism I misspoke. My problem with Breaking Bad post ******ation episode isn't that it's unrealistic, it's that it's stupid. Two different things.

2) I agree totally that Walter hated his life pre-cancer/drugs and is getting off on being a dealer. That's fine, and should be part of the show and was part of the show even before his being a dealer went from need to choice.

The problem isn't realism or him getting a rush, it's that he was offered an out and didn't take it for 100% selfish reasons. Once that what happened, you killed your premise.

The reason I was interested in the series up until the ******ed episode half way through the season was that he was sort of an every day family man with nothing left to lose who was saying FTW. It was an interesting if not original concept.

But now that concept is dead. And in the episodes I saw after the ******ation one (didn't make it to the end of the season IIRC but I might be wrong) they kept playing up the same themes, stupidly, as if they hadn't killed them off.

For instance: theme: Walter loves his family. He is doing what he is doing so that he can live on to be a husband/father as long as possible and if he dies tomorrow can at least leave behind a nestegg.

Bull****. That theme is dead. He made a clear choice that threatens his life and threatens his family's financial future (and likely his family's safety too). So that theme is done, gone, using it anymore after he turned down an out is stupid.

Maybe they wanted to kill off that theme so quickly, maybe that was the plan from the get go. Seems kind of dumb, it's a pretty solid theme, but whatever. Maybe I didn't keep watching long enough, maybe the tone changed but I don't think this show has or will take a turn into being the next Sopranos.

But I doubt it, I would bet if I were watching season 2, Walter would still be talking and the story would still be told like Walter is doing what he has to do for his family, like he loves them and is trying to set up a nest egg and ****.

And that's really stupid.

Agree totally, do you see how when you say that and I say: he was offered an out and didn't take it for 100% selfish reasons, we're both saying the same thing.

Agree again. In fact, I believe I mentioned this earlier, it seemed that superficially the whole thing was done so Walter had a cover to explain to his wife how he's getting the treatments. The question remains however, how the **** did no one involved in production not realize you couldn't use this superficial cover without killing the theme of the show?

I agree the original premise changes once he is given an out and doesn't take it. But again, I think it makes the show even more interesting because even though we can see this fundamental change in Walt, He can't see it in himself. I think one of the best parts of the storyline that is developing this season will be Walt's coming to terms with what he is becoming. My guess is he reaches his financial goals he sets in Episode one, but realizes he actually enjoys his new life so much he doesn't want to quit. You can see this change affecting him already in his changing relationship with his wife.

So yes, the original premise has changed, and yes he is being selfish, but it doesn't make the story any less interesting.

I confess I didn't read your whole post. On your last point, I don't think his selflessness and where it lead him (selling meth to create a financial legacy for his family) was ever the theme of the show. So his acting selfishly, to whatever degree, doesn't kill the theme of the show.

I also don't accept that, based upon reasons not yet fully revealed to the viewer, his decision to not accept a gift is rightly construed as 100% selfish. And to whatever extent such may be true it is not a useful characterization of his actions.

You want to make that the air tight logical brief of why this show is a massive fail and why any one who watches it is stupid? Fine. You have my 100% approval on that.

Walt wants more than simply to leave cash for his family. He wants to climb Mt. Everest. Remember the opening of the first episode when he is on his stepmaster and the camera zooms in on the "almost" Nobel Prize? He wants to live life, something he has missed out on for so many years because he took the safe path.

Besides that, I think Walt has always felt that he'd rather not undergo massive amounts of chemotherapy--for quality of life reasons. I can't remember any particular dialogue where this was stated explicitly, but I have just always gotten that feeling. And wasn't this guy offering to pay for all Walt's chemo bills? Maybe he was offering to support Walt's family as well, but I imagine he would do that regardless of whether Walt was okay with it.

I really need to go rewatch the first season because I have forgotten many details.

Walt never seemed to be a selfless character to me. Just one that liked to take the easy route by avoiding confrontation even if it made his relationships totally lifeless. In a way, that's selfish _and_ lazy.

I agree. And a side effect is that he harbours hostility towards the people who've made his decisions for him rather than owning the things he's done as his own decisions.

The theme of the show, stated in the structural center of the pilot, is that his crisis is not a nervous break down or even a need for cash, it is that he is suddenly awake.

Haven't read any responses, but I saw this show for the first time and loved it.

You seemed to put a lot of thought into this considering how blatantly wrong it is. WTF are you talking about? He needs to provide hundreds of thousands of dollars for his family very rapidly dude. I am sure the job he was offered would've paid well. You seem to be asserting that it would pay $70k a week.

So the main character makes good and bad decisions. This fact does not make the show bad.

This is probably my favorite show on TV right now. It's way better than so many shows on hbo/showtime.

Show is amazing. Nits.

Was going to write a long diatribe, but basically my point was this

He wants to leave 700k+ for his family. Even with the best treatment in the world, he'd probably only live a couple of years. He wouldn't be able to spend all of that time working, either. With chemo and all of the meds he would be taking he'd be bedridden a lot of the time. He addressed all of this at his intervention. He said that he didn't want to die that way.

His choices were a) Take the job offer from his friend. He could work and make some money for a short time (nowhere near 700k, LDO), get himself some top notch treatment so that he can live a little longer, and in the end still leave his family basically broke. or b) cook up a batch of meth a week for ten or eleven weeks and take care of putting the kids through college, mortgage, etc.

I think your entire rant is based on the misguided notion that Walt wants to earn a smaller amount of money, say 100k or something. That's not the case. If you hadn't given up on the show so quickly, I think it would make more sense to you now.

I am hopelessly addicted to this show. Best on TV.

Today was the best episode yet imo. Tuco maybe greatest TV villian of all times.

Another good episode - they really keep the suspense up in this show.

The bro-in-law DEA guy is interesting - usually over the top obnoxious guys get outdone by "cooler" characters, but this guy seems good at his job - and was cool under pressure with that last shot that dropped Tuco.

What a great, great episode. My favorite ever so far.

just watched the pilot

wow, so awesome

i will probably watch the rest of season 1 before going to bed

season 2 is money so far....back to back emmy's for Cranston imo...even the Jesse Pinkston actor is pretty convincing