Anyone into 'BREAKING BAD'? (part 2)

Continued from here:

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/showthread.php?t=179557&page=34

 

So ... how about that Walter White guy?

 

Paul had a girlfriend who became a meth addict, an experience he draws on for the show. "It went from coke and then it escalated to meth. Meth is the one that grabbed, like, nails-deep into her soul and slowly just ripped it out. She was this beautiful being, turned to this hollow shell."

http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/...ranston-and-aaron-paul-20120801#ixzz235IHYWGb

 

What a great show. I was just telling a friend yesterday, "I'm shattered that there's only 12 episodes left! How can they possibly resolve this story in only 12 more hours?"

To me, it's replaced The Sopranos as the best crime TV show in history. Great, great, great show... and it just gets better, as far as I'm concerned. I noticed that the recent episodes are even looking better in terms of cinematography -- I think the budgets are up (or the crew is firing on all cylinders).

 

Interesting, as I'm really enjoying the show less this season. Enjoying it? Very much. But less. The "feel" is different to me in a slightly less good way.

Still can't wait to see it every week, but I'm just a shade disappointed, it doesn't hit me the way that last season did. That is the pinnacle for me, Season Four.

 

I'm a late-comer to this show -- I just power-watched the first four seasons in the last couple of months so I could watch season five in "real time" -- but I don't see a drop-off in quality or drama. The first four new episodes picked up right where they left off, for me anyway.

 

That's exactly what I did. And I feel the same way regarding season 5.

 

Okay. Doesn't mean that I don't.

 

Of course not! We're just expressing opinions here.

 

I know.

To me this season there are things that are just a bit too pat or a bit over the top. For example the laptop magnet thang. To me the way Jesse and Mike started off this season was too pat. This season things seem less organic and flowing than plotted and poked in. Just how I perceive it. Four was da bomb. Five is the cartoon bomb.

 

I believe S4 was already in the can before any decision had been made on S5. That's why the S4 finale seemed in a lot of ways like a series finale.

Once they got 16 more eps to finish things up, Vince and company had to decide how to deal with the loose ends left over from S4. To their credit (IMO) they chose to address stuff like the video surveillance records, and we got a cartoonish caper episode as a result. I wasn't a huge fan of that ep either, but I do appreciate the attention to detail this show continues to exhibit.

In any case, I think the "housekeeping" episodes are over. Better hang on to your hat now!

 

Best line so far

Im protecting our family from the guy who is protecting our family

Skylar White

 

Wow. What an episode.

 

Yep, wow indeed. At first I was thinking we didn't need another "caper" episode (after the magnets), but now I think the whole episode was a bit of a "long con" on the audience. While they hinted at Walt's present-day evil (bugging Hank's office), it was done almost comedically, and while they showed Skyler's misery, that scene ended with a chuckle, too. ("Been burying bodies?" "No, robbing a train.") Then we have the caper itself, which I think was made to draw us back to rooting for "our guys" -- we cheer Jesse for having the great idea, we marvel at Walt for having every single detail covered, and we wait for Mike's grudging respect when it all works out. They pull off the heist, exchange high-fives, and Jesse lets out a cathartic "Yeah, b*itch!!" ...

Spoiler

... and then we see the kid. My stomach dropped, and before I could even wonder what the hell they were going to do, Todd pulls out a gun and drops him dead. Cue new guilt spiral for Jesse...

Anyway, I think the whole episode was a trick to get us kinda liking Walt again, and then punching us in the gut and making us feel guilty for it. He's a BAD guy, there's no way around it, and the show will only get darker from here. No more light-hearted capers, I fear...

 

I sorta figured the kid would return as a witness. Did not expect what would happen at the end though. Great episode.

Jesse again with the big ideas.

 

Somehow I don't think Todd is going to catch a ride back into town with Walt, Mike and Jesse.

 

Great episode. Things appear to be ramping up quickly. Walter's getting nastier by the minute and Skyler seems close to flipping out completely.

 

Todd's shooting of the kid also eliminates the theory that he's an undercover cop. Next week will be good (as usual), but the one after that will drop a huge bomb leaving us all hanging until next year.

 

Yeah, but this one really stabbed him in the heart, didn't it?

 

There are three episodes left in this mini-season.

 

...And kids, that's why motorcycles are dangerous.

 

This show has built up such a reservoir of good will that I'm willing to cut it a huge amount of slack if needed. Still, I was more than a little troubled to be pulled out of the story twice last night by the improbable successes of the bugging of Hank's office and the train heist -- two capers that relied on various unpredictable factors falling perfectly into place.

Nitpickery over, it was still a fun episode, beautifully shot, with one helluva gut punch at the end. Other thoughts:

- Per my earlier post about Hank's (inevitable?) epiphany about Walt, another clue was dropped into his lap this week in the form of Walt's birthday present to himself. Should Hank be intrigued, he's only a few clicks away from learning of its $6K price tag.

- Hank holding Holly: "I'm not giving her back." Marie: "Yeah I know." Me: Hmmmm

 

God, I love this show!

 

I think you're nitpicking too early--the train heist didn't go as smoothly as they thought it would (the end with the kid) and we don't know what ramifications we'll see from the events in THIS episode.

There have been moments that have always stretched credibility in any show or movie--for the most part "Breaking Bad" has come back to those elements and had them pay off in some negative way that has complicated the characters lives.

I think we'll see that as well.

As far as the bug--well it was a plot device to move the narrative forward but I also think at some point it's going to point to Walt and Hank will be there to figure it out.