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BREAKING BAD


Jay

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You know what I think would be a fun fan edit? Taking the entire show and recutting it to be about Hank. Basically, you'd cut almost all the scenes that Hank is not a part of. So in this fan edit, he'd be the main character in a show where he is attempting to take down a crystal meth ring. Walt would just be his brother in law that visits sometime, the viewer would have no idea that he is Heisenberg, until Hank finds out / if Hank finds out.

Hank is an awesome character - and one that grew on me really. I dunno exactly when it happened, but at some point I came to really really enjoy his character more than any others. Probably once they got past the PTSD storyline (one of the weaker storylines they've done on the show, I think) is when I grew to really like him. Though the stuff with the geodes was pretty funny.

Anybody else think this would work, and would be a fascinating fan edit? It would probably end up like a 13 episode complete story or so.

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Yeah, at first you're thinking he's this secondary annoying character and that he'll be stereotyped a lot. But there's more to him. He's one of the elements that really surprised me about the show.

Anyway, that's how much time we still have to wait for the final eight.

Karol

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Oh no I was the opposite, Karol. At first I thought she was lovely, on the eye and in her person. She was a little overbearing with Walter's cancer, but the way they wrote her and her portrayal I thought it was quite beautiful, her deeply caring nature. She ached with worry for her husband and her family unit, and I found that very endearing and attractive. Gorgeous lady.

Then she fucked her boss and I went right off her. That, and she just looks quite old now.

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It's interesting to see how her relationship with Walter changed. It's now exactly the opposite of what we saw in the first season. I am heartbroken for her now.

Karol

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Skyler gained a lot of weight in between seasons somewhere - either between 2 and 3 or between 3 and 4, I forget. It was such a noticable gain, I thought it would be a plot point on the show, but it goes completely unmentioned. I guess the actress just gained weight (did she have a baby in real life maybe?) and they tried to pretend nothing changed on the show.

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I actually really like Skyler and never really understood the hate towards her. Then

when she started the affair, I was pretty turned off to her. But then when she started helping Walt out again, I really liked the sense of humour and her character.

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Most shows would have made Skyler an innocent victim of Walt's crimes and would have you feeling bad for her all the time, but they really made her quite multi-dimensional, she's honestly quite a bitch at times.

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Well, it's not exactly a first either - Carmela Soprano was no shrinking violet and proved in time to be a formidable match for her husband, which was quite the achievement given what he got up to.

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Sopranos was amazing for the first 3 seasons. If they chose only the best material from seasons 4-6 and condensed that down into a tight 4th and 5th season, it would be an almost flawless 5 season epic. Instead there is a lottttt of padding and bizarre storylines towards the end. But all that being stead, still overall worth it for sure.

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Season 3 was the weakest, I thought. But compared to everything else at the time, still brilliant. I disagree about the padding - there were LOADS of riveting storylines throughout, some more intricate than others, almost always satisfying. The last season, with its ever looming threat of war and the fight for survival solidified it, securing its status as legendary television programming.

And dat ending...

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I haven't seen it in a long time (I got into it just before Season 4 aired, and watched Seasons 4-6 live) so I don't remember a lot of the details. Someday I'd like to watch it again

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Most shows would have made Skyler an innocent victim of Walt's crimes and would have you feeling bad for her all the time, but they really made her quite multi-dimensional, she's honestly quite a bitch at times.

It's what I liked about the character. She wasn't some two dimensional sob story. There was more to her than that.

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Pretty cool interview with EP and Director Michelle MacLaren, who talks about some of the locations in Albuquerque they used to stand in for other places

WARNING! Don't read if you're not caught up through all 8 episodes of season 5!!!

http://blogs.amctv.com/breaking-bad/2013/04/michelle-maclaren-interview.php

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**Can't use spoiler tags in mobile view, so beware**

My girlfriend started season 5 last night and getting up this morning she almost immediately mentioned the weirdness of Walter's abrupt change in character since the end of season 4; she too found it quite jarring and unbelievable. If we'd have left it a year like everyone else had to at the time we may not have noticed, but going straight in in a matter of days reveals a significant and unusual flaw in tne writing.

Walter's sudden fall into complete evil is unnatural. At once we have gone from rooting for him to almost the complete opposite. At what point did he suddenly become this unreasonable, sinister dick? When Saul tells him he's "done", Walter, in a very strange - hugely out of character moment - walks around his desk, gets in his face and whispers in reply "you're done when I say you're done." That was bullshit! Intimidation was NEVER Walter's style, EVER.

I'm not saying I reject the direction the character is going and the long gestating arc reaching its completion, not at all, this was always on the cards, it's been a long time coming - just not quite long enough. I am just disappointed with the glaringly odd lack of delicacy and precision in the handling of his descent into evil in the time between 4 and 5. It wasn't anywhere near subtle enough, plain and simple. They needed deeper characterisation and more in the way of motivation, another episode or two in which to imply a steeper slide rather than the immediate vertical drop we got. What a shame; the show was nigh on technically perfect up until that point.

Anyway, I watched the train episode last night, it was good stuff. Despite the earlier problems I've sort found myself able to overlook and put aside those misgivings and get on with enjoying the show on its unexpected new terms.

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I think it was well planned and long coming. Not sure what you're talking about. He got the big guy and now he thinks he's invincible. It's as plausible as you can get.

Karol

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In earlier seasons Walter did those things out of absolute necessity, it was always a defensive strategy. Now he all of a sudden he's the master of the offensive strategy and employs the up close and personal routine like he's been been doing it for years. The change wasn't subtle enough for my own beliefs. I'd have been more satisfied with it if they'd studied the psychological, motivational elements over a longer period of time.

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He always had a burning ambition, but was setback by circumstances. On every front imaginable. He's killed a man, then he left a girl die, he schemed to murder someone else and was manipulating Jessie. He even poisoned a kid to achieve his goal. His excuses were no longer valid two seasons ago. He's doing everything because of his own ego. The only reason he didn't go all "evil" is because there was always someone above him. For me, he's turned long time ago, now everyone can see it.

Karol

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I'm not disagreeing with that. That is all very much the intention and the case. My problem is with the timescale and detailing in the time between 4 and 5. It wasn't sufficient enough, resulting in my jarred reaction to it.

The main difference I can discern between my own view and yours is that you believe Walter White was always evil, right from the start. I do not.

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There is absolutely no difference between using spoiler tags on desktop vs mobile. In both cases you put the text you want blocked in between [ spoiler] [ /spoiler]

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Didn't ever pay attention to the code of spoiler tags, cheers for the info. I'll have to enter it into my copy/paste clipboard app, because typing that shit out on a phone is a pain in the arse.

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I watched all 5 seasons of Breaking Bad in roughly the same amount of time you are (we didn't allow ourselves to watch more than one episode in a day so each one could sink in) and I didn't think Season 5 Walt was out of character either. He earned that scene with Saul.

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Oh sorry about the spoiler thing, Jason. Didn't realize we're not all up to date. Or should I say: didn't think about it at all.

Karol

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I watched all 5 seasons of Breaking Bad in roughly the same amount of time you are (we didn't allow ourselves to watch more than one episode in a day so each one could sink in) and I didn't think Season 5 Walt was out of character either. He earned that scene with Saul.

I didn't think it was abrupt either. We saw signs of Walt's character destination in season 5 all throughout the series. It was the final manifestation of his burning ambition. He wasn't always evil, but he has been turning to the dark side for quite a while.

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I didn't think it was abrupt either. We saw signs of Walt's character destination in season 5 all throughout the series. It was the final manifestation of his burning ambition. He wasn't always evil, but he has been turning to the dark side for quite a while.

I just entered this thread accidentaly and read this post and I'm disappointed at the apparent route of the show. Although I can't say much more than that without seeing it.

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Yea, it's like the opposite of watching a Game of Thrones episode

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This is pretty funny and it was clear a lot of work was put into it: LEGO Breaking Bad

(SPOILERS - do NOT watch if you have not seen through the end of SEASON 3)

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I'm surprised nobody has made a Breaking Badsville mobile app, in which you manage and expand a huge isometrical drug empire, starting with a simple van in the desert through to a large fast food chain distribution system - which then use to visit other players territory and either do business or sabotage their labs. In-app purchases would get you barrels of methylamine quicker than freebie players, just for the brainless morons who like to piss money down the drain on virtual currency.

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

We watched the season 2 finale last weekend, but have been two busy this weekend to begin the next season. I'm chomping at the bit to see what happens next.

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You're heading into the absolutely GREAT stuff now! Each season will be better than the last!

Though, they never do anything as elaborately planned-out as the "737 Down Over ABQ" flashforwards of Season 2.

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