Buftex Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 (edited) I am not a fan of the son character...he annoys me for some reason...I love the Jesse character..I really find myself rooting for him...I cannot wait for season 4. I absolutely love the show....could use some gratuitous nudity though If I have one complaint, throughout the series, we get to see a little too much of Cranstons' ass...funny, I have only seen "Malcolm in the Middle" (his other best known show) and he is normally half naked in that too...and then, one night, I am flipping stations, and come across a rerun of "King Of Queens" and the hilarity ensues as the Kings (Kevin James) is annoyed that his new neighbor built an above ground pool, which he and the wife can see while they are eating dinner...and the neighbor likes to walk around on the deck in his speedos...who plays the neighbor? You guessed it, Bryan Cranston! WTF...like he has something in his contract that says he must walk around in his skivees for a minimum number of scenes... I think the son is great...AJ is right, they don't milk his handicap, and the actor himself actually has cerebral palsy. How often does that happen on television? I like AJs observation. One of my oldest, and best friends has cerebral palsy. And you know, sometimes I feel bad, because I forget he has it. He used me as a job reference once (I was his boss years ago) and they asked me what sort of affect his cerebral palsy had on his work...and honestly, I laughed out loud, because I never think of him as having it. He uses the caines/braces and has some issues with walking, but he never lets it keep him from anything. The son on Breaking Bad reminds me of him, quite a bit...even looks like him. The only time I really remember them using his condition in a storyline was in either the first or second one, where the kids in the store are making fun of Walt Jr, and Walt Sr gets a previously unnoticed spine, and puts them in their place...it was a great scene, I think, more than anything, to show how much Walt loves his family, but has a difficult time standing up for himself...he overcompensates, big-time! Edited May 11, 2011 by Buftex
UConn James Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 If I have one complaint, throughout the series, we get to see a little too much of Cranstons' ass...funny, I have only seen "Malcolm in the Middle" (his other best known show) and he is normally half naked in that too...and then, one night, I am flipping stations, and come across a rerun of "King Of Queens" and the hilarity ensues as the Kings (Kevin James) is annoyed that his new neighbor built an above ground pool, which he and the wife can see while they are eating dinner...and the neighbor likes to walk around on the deck in his speedos...who plays the neighbor? You guessed it, Bryan Cranston! WTF...like he has something in his contract that says he must walk around in his skivees for a minimum number of scenes... I think the son is great...AJ is right, they don't milk his handicap, and the actor himself actually has cerebral palsy. How often does that happen on television? I like AJs observation. One of my oldest, and best friends has cerebral palsy. And you know, sometimes I feel bad, because I forget he has it. He used me as a job reference once (I was his boss years ago) and they asked me what sort of affect his cerebral palsy had on his work...and honestly, I laughed out loud, because I never think of him as having it. He uses the caines/braces and has some issues with walking, but he never lets it keep him from anything. The son on Breaking Bad reminds me of him, quite a bit...even looks like him. The only time I really remember them using his condition in a storyline was in either the first or second one, where the kids in the store are making fun of Walt Jr, and Walt Sr gets a previously unnoticed spine, and puts them in their place...it was a great scene, I think, more than anything, to show how much Walt loves his family, but has a difficult time standing up for himself...he overcompensates, big-time! There is a bit of comedic value to grown man in his underwear, tho.... At least it's not as often (or as grotesque) as Dennis Franz in NYPD Blue. The versions I saw were edited, so I do send a thank you shoutout to whoever had the diligence to blot out BC's ass. There's also a side that comes out as the series progresses of Walter just not caring anymore. Pinning it all on the lung cancer would probably miss the mark, b/c his anger has built up for a long time, with no vent --- from apparently being axed at the company he/his work helped found (I really hope they get more into that in flashbacks) that led him to have to switch from chemistry practice to theory/teaching uninterested teens and from having a son with a disability who has had to endure the stigma of being different. The 'not caring anymore' led Walt to, as you write, overcompensate and finally burst on the guy in the clothing store, overcompensate and not only cook meth, but to prove to himself (and some others) that he is a brilliant chemist, overcompensate and have his whole family man role just crumble. It's going to be something to see if this whole S3 finale stuff with the 11-year-old changes him as much as I think it has/will. As for the actor who plays Walter Jr./Flynn, he has a mild case of CP and has had to work on accentuating it for this character. I think it's awesome that in a teevee world where relatively few people have been portrayed with mental & physical handicaps --- and them being defined by the handicap --- that Walter Jr. is a pretty normal kid, notwithstanding.
ajzepp Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 Holy CRAP! It's like 3:30am and I just finished watching ep2 of Season 2. That was one of the BEST episodes of television I've ever seen in my life! I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and the time FLEW by! Wow...this show is ridiculously good!
jangalang Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 If you're looking for episode by episode analysis and lots of viewer feedback, check out AV Club. AV CLUB - Breaking Bad It's fun to see the insights from other viewers.
UConn James Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 If you're looking for episode by episode analysis and lots of viewer feedback, check out AV Club. AV CLUB - Breaking Bad It's fun to see the insights from other viewers. The 'Television Without Pity' forums are very good as well. I haven't spent any time there since "The West Wing" ended, but it looks like the same format and level of contributors.
UConn James Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 (edited) If you're looking for episode by episode analysis and lots of viewer feedback, check out AV Club. AV CLUB - Breaking Bad It's fun to see the insights from other viewers. I would add that the analysis lines of "Full Measures," vis. "Gale's final definition as collateral damage" and "someone who is merely in the way" is something that is at least debatable. SPOILER ALERT: In his discussion with Gus, it was highly intimated that Gale needed to learn every detail of the "cooking recipe" as soon as possible so that Gus could have Walter and Jesse killed. Gale played along --- 'I could do it in, say, four cooks..... Two? Oh, OK. One cook.' Right there, he went from "collateral damage" who made a perfect cup of coffee and recited Whitman, to an active player in a double murder plot. That part cemented my thought that Walter wanted Gale out originally, not b/c he was so head-over-heels or cared about Jesse, or to keep Jesse from potentially giving up "Heisenberg" to the police/DEA if/when he got caught cooking and selling his own product, as Badger did. No, Walter's vision was a little longer- (or is it shorter-?) term than that. Once Gale knew the recipe, the $3M man wouldn't be needed anymore. It's like the story of an old press operator my father knew. This guy was the only one in the plant who knew exactly how it ran. When he was a young kid first starting out, an old guy who was about to retire showed him everything and told him never to show or tell this to anyone else. So when our guy got to retirement, two weeks out, he did the same thing with another young kid starting out, whom he got along with. Being the only one who knows a formula is valuable. Gale may have been something of a shrinking violet when it came to personally-doled violence, but he was definitely a conspirator, under threat of force from Gus or not. Edited May 11, 2011 by UConn James
KD in CA Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 That part cemented my thought that Walter wanted Gale out originally, not b/c he was so head-over-heels or cared about Jesse, or to keep Jesse from potentially giving up "Heisenberg" to the police/DEA if/when he got caught cooking and selling his own product, as Badger did. No, Walter's vision was a little longer- (or is it shorter-?) term than that. Once Gale knew the recipe, the $3M man wouldn't be needed anymore. I never thought there was any question this was the case.
UConn James Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 I never thought there was any question this was the case. I was a little unsure about his reasoning for the initial 'I can't work with you Gale. <Was it because I put the setting at 8.5? blah blah blah...> I can't explain it. I just can't work with you.' I had partly pegged it to Walter's ultimate control freak nature (see: the "Fly" episode), his pride at being the best and wanting the credit for his product, and in his interest of silencing Jesse by putting him to work. I hadn't connected that dot at that point. Then again, I watched most of these marathon-like from midnights-4 a.m. so the contemplation time wasn't really there.
HopsGuy Posted May 11, 2011 Posted May 11, 2011 I never thought there was any question this was the case. Gale's demise is cosmic karma for destroying the credibility of The Baltimore Sun ("The Wire"), and marrying his grad student Mel ("Flight of the Conchords"). Jeeze, that dude is everywhere.
ajzepp Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 Really enjoying season 2 so far...another really interesting aspect to the story is the ongoing discussion/argument/posturing between Walt and Jesse pertaining to which of them needs the other more, lol. Walt will allow the criminal element within to rear its head, confidently spouting off to Jesse about how insignificant Jesse is and how Heisenberg is the MAN. Then just recently, after getting the RV issue all squared away, you have the roles reversed with Jesse laying down the law with regard to how the distribution side of things will run. Walt begins to realize he has no clue about that aspect of the game, and for the most part gives in. Awesome!! The women on this show are really starting to get annoying, though...I was really diggin' his wife, but this passive aggressive crap she's pullin' after the faux amnesia incident is a bit much.
jangalang Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 I never thought there was any question this was the case. Agree. On a side note, Gail's apartment decor was visually stunning. That's one of the reasons I love the show. The details in the camera shots (light/dark, background objects, etc.) are done perfectly.
UConn James Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 Really enjoying season 2 so far...another really interesting aspect to the story is the ongoing discussion/argument/posturing between Walt and Jesse pertaining to which of them needs the other more, lol. Walt will allow the criminal element within to rear its head, confidently spouting off to Jesse about how insignificant Jesse is and how Heisenberg is the MAN. Then just recently, after getting the RV issue all squared away, you have the roles reversed with Jesse laying down the law with regard to how the distribution side of things will run. Walt begins to realize he has no clue about that aspect of the game, and for the most part gives in. Awesome!! The women on this show are really starting to get annoying, though...I was really diggin' his wife, but this passive aggressive crap she's pullin' after the faux amnesia incident is a bit much. Wait until you get to IFT.... Such a small detail, but they have great titles. They mean next to nothing when you go into an ep, and then by the end, they usually sum it all up perfectly (often have a double-entendre or chemistry term link), and give an immediate recollection of what happened, or a crucial part/monologue of the ep. For instance, "Half Measures" and Mike the Cleaner's story.
ajzepp Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 Wait until you get to IFT.... Such a small detail, but they have great titles. They mean next to nothing when you go into an ep, and then by the end, they usually sum it all up perfectly (often have a double-entendre or chemistry term link), and give an immediate recollection of what happened, or a crucial part/monologue of the ep. For instance, "Half Measures" and Mike the Cleaner's story. Cool, I honestly haven't even been paying attention to the titles...will have to change that
HopsGuy Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 You guys notice how often Walt is shot from below through water or glass? That has to be a fore-shadowing of something, right?
Pine Barrens Mafia Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 Ever watch the Tudors? BBCAmerica is replaying them all from season 1
UConn James Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 You guys notice how often Walt is shot from below through water or glass? That has to be a fore-shadowing of something, right? There are a number of upward camera shots like that through the series. Through a pot of boiling water, through toilet water, a crash clean-up person in through the pool.... It's done for a lot of characters, iirc. Like the use of time-lapse shots, I would peg it more to cinematography method rather than an interpretive point.
Buftex Posted May 12, 2011 Posted May 12, 2011 There are a number of upward camera shots like that through the series. Through a pot of boiling water, through toilet water, a crash clean-up person in through the pool.... It's done for a lot of characters, iirc. Like the use of time-lapse shots, I would peg it more to cinematography method rather than an interpretive point. The one that always stood out, was the openining shot, of one of the first season episodes, where Jesse and Walt are cleaning up the reamains of the bathtub guy...really gross...but very effective.
ajzepp Posted May 14, 2011 Posted May 14, 2011 The one that always stood out, was the openining shot, of one of the first season episodes, where Jesse and Walt are cleaning up the reamains of the bathtub guy...really gross...but very effective. The bath tub scene was the one that hooked me on the show, lol... Just finished up S2...pulled a bit of an all-nighter, cause I just had to see what was going to happen next! About to download S3 from Amazon Just when I thought I couldn't enjoy the show any more than I already was, Bob Odenkirk shows up to play Saul Goodman
ajzepp Posted May 15, 2011 Posted May 15, 2011 I'm four episodes into S3 and....WTF??? lol This show continues to be some of the most entertaining tv I've ever seen, but WOW is it stressing me out! I can't believe how fugged up everything is right now...it's almost affecting me on an emotional level, and I think my blood pressure goes up more with every single episode lol. I've tried to see things from Skylar's perspective once she sort of figured things out, but I just can't do it...Walt deserved better, regardless of his Machiavellian tendencies. This show is NUTS!
The Poojer Posted May 15, 2011 Author Posted May 15, 2011 i was the same way when i watched all 3 seasons over the course of a couple weeks...it really gets its hooks into you, its an amazing show, and the fact that you are rooting for someone to succeed in something that is very bad is very confusing. I just started on season 2 of Dexter and while i don't think its close to breaking bad, it is very good, and its very similar that the main character that you can't believe you root for. I'm four episodes into S3 and....WTF??? lol This show continues to be some of the most entertaining tv I've ever seen, but WOW is it stressing me out! I can't believe how fugged up everything is right now...it's almost affecting me on an emotional level, and I think my blood pressure goes up more with every single episode lol. I've tried to see things from Skylar's perspective once she sort of figured things out, but I just can't do it...Walt deserved better, regardless of his Machiavellian tendencies. This show is NUTS!
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