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Someone who has never watched breaking bad or BCS. Order?

B

Bowler

Member
Edit: CBS was auto corrected from BCS better call Saul. Don't know how to edit that.

Is that even possible?

Not me obviously, but had a dinner party and met someone who has never watched the shows... ever. I know I was like you live under a rock?

Anyways he is sitting right next to me so to dig deeper I asked him what is his favorite 5 shows. His answer surprised me:

Sopranos
Downtown Abby
Twin peaks
Justified
The shield

That answer is a good one, not what I expected for someone that has never really heard about BB and BCS

So my question is what order do you think he should watch the shows in. I dug into some of the story line and he is now intrigued but I'm at a roadblock as to order. Indeed BCS is not over yet but this season is truly shaping up to be a real prequel to bb, and really starting to hold it's own. But obviously it's not done yet. What say you gaf?
 
Honestly? I'd wait til BCS is over, watch that, then BB.

BCS essentially sets up the pins and BB knocks them down.

It's rather meh seeing a character in BCS pose a threat and know how they die in BB.
 
I've never really watched them either.

I watched the first couple episodes of Breaking Bad because I was a fan of Brian Cranston, when it came out, and I thought it was so depressing that I didn't continue watching it. Plus, at the time, AMC wasn't known for good TV or really any TV. AMC was still a channel that played old John Wayne movies or would occassionally run a Godfather marathon, it wasn't known for having good serialized TV (yet).

So being a fan of Cranston, I watched the first 2 or 3 episodes and was so depressed by it I just gave up on it. And then like 3 seasons later it was huge shit, but I was too behind and I wasn't watching a lot of TV then.

So I've never seen:
- Breaking Bad (or BCS)
- Lost
- 24
- Walking Dead

Or like... most shows.

I've seen the Sopranos, The Wire, Rome, and basically any major good show that came out between 2002 - 2007... Kinda my prime time for watching shows. After 2007 or 2008, I never really followed another show really closely, except maybe Game of Thrones, but I've even lost interest in that. I like short run shows that are over in a season... True Detective and Stranger Things were perfect for me because I thought both would be one season shows.

But... someone having never heard of breaking bad... Unless you're like 16 or younger I don't know how that's possible or unless you're just very tapped out from everything entertainment related.
 
Release order. BB is incredible. Really ramps up in seasons 2 and 3.

BCS is possibly a better show than BB (which is saying a LOT since BB is up there with the all time greatest shows) but you'll really appreciate all of the connecting details and character cameos if you watch BB first.
 
Just like books, watch/read them in order of release. If you watch them chronologically, some references you won't get.
 
I've never watched BB. Never even heard of the 2nd one. No interest in starting either one. Too many great shows out there. I'm ready for another season of Westworld and Stranger Things.
 
The Albatross said:
I've never really watched them either.

I watched the first couple episodes of Breaking Bad because I was a fan of Brian Cranston, when it came out, and I thought it was so depressing that I didn't continue watching it.
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The first few episodes are not really characteristic of the show. It's not a depressing show. It's more of a fun thrilling show. There's depressing parts but also a ton of fun parts.

Watch the Better Call Saul and 4 Days Out episodes from season 2 if you want to check out what it's really like. They're similar to the Pine Barrens episode from Sopranos in that they work as a stand alone.

Being a fan of Bryan Cranston and not watching BB is crazy.
 
lifeexpectancy said:
I only did because OP said his friend must have been living under a rock not to have seen them. Wanted to demonstrate that it isnt THAT uncommon. Almost none of my work acquaintances have seen BB either.
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Yeah okay my bad for taking your response out of context.

You say you have no interest in watching either show because there are too many great shows out there, have you ever thought about trying to watch BB? Seems a lot of people quickly dismiss it because of the subject matter it covers (drugs), is that the case for you as well?

30yearsofhurt said:
The end of the first episode of BCS will not have the same impact if you haven't watched BB.
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I think you mean the beginning, right?
 
Better call Saul is such a drag. I watched two seasons and got bored to tears. I say this as someone who throughly enjoyed the Breaking Bad.
 
I'm only 9 episodes into Better Call Saul S1 but I still say release order is the way to go.

I feel like the whole points of BCS are the callbacks PLUS the completely original content that you'll appreciate a bit more once the universe from Breaking Bad is established.
 
Better Call Saul is better than Breaking Bad, but you should watch Breaking Bad first

neither would be in my top five, but they're both still extremely good
 
Watch Breaking Bad. Immediately. All of it.


Then just watch Breaking Bad again because god damn it's the best drama ever made, and Better Call Saul is boring.
 
chillybright said:
Better call Saul is such a drag. I watched two seasons and got bored to tears. I say this as someone who throughly enjoyed the Breaking Bad.
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Wiped89 said:
Better Call Saul is boring.
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k2gCikl.gif

Kadin said:
I think you mean the beginning, right?
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The first episode ends
with Tuco showing up, which won't really mean anything if you don't know how insane the guy is.
 
GARlockSpiral said:
Honestly? I'd wait til BCS is over, watch that, then BB.

BCS essentially sets up the pins and BB knocks them down.

It's rather meh seeing a character in BCS pose a threat and know how they die in BB.
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No.

Better Call Saul was created with an audience that knows Breaking Bad in mind. While they also deliberately write the series to be enjoyable and engaging to entirely new viewers (and are quite successful in this), BCS has extra layers meant to illuminate events and characters in Breaking Bad after the fact. Thus, you'll gain much more added depth from watching Breaking Bad first, then Saul, than you will vice versa. Build-ups to moments like Gus's reveal have far less weight when you don't understand what they mean, and will later undermine Gus's initial appearance and development in Breaking Bad if you choose to watch that second, as you will already have a clear idea of who he is and what is motivations are. Likewise, this also negatively impacts the experience of Better Call Saul's depiction of Gus. Now, his motivations are being established quite quickly, and thus might be less interesting to a first time viewer. More importantly though, first time viewers will miss the extra details that help illuminate Breaking Bad's Gus, as well as the elements that require Breaking Bad to understand.

And that's just one example with one character who only popped up three seasons in. Then you have the entirety of Mike's story, which has become a full half of the show. Viewing that in chronological order for the first order will greatly change how you learn about who Mike is, and I'd argue that change is a negative one. The arc is more interesting in its proper flashback order. And then of course there's the title character himself. Better Call Saul is about how Jimmy became the man he was in Breaking Bad. While Better Call Saul helps establish this same arc via the flash-forward prologues in each season, it's not quite the same as knowing how fucked things got in his dealings with Walt and wondering just how exactly he got to the slimy criminal with a tendency to suggest some... pretty extreme solutions.

Generally speaking this is the rule for most prequels, as they are effectively sequels set in an earlier time period. It can be fun to watch/read/play in chronological order after consuming all pieces in release order, but rarely, if ever, is that the best order for a first viewing.
 
The people calling Better Call Saul boring are the ones expecting it to be the same thing as Breaking Bad.

It's a law drama first and foremost. The crime serial takes a backseat for most of it (so far at least).
 
Master_Of_Illusion said:
The people calling Better Call Saul boring are the ones expecting it to be the same thing as Breaking Bad.

It's a law drama first and foremost. The crime serial takes a backseat for most of it (so far at least).
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Better Call Saul is no more boring than the "low-key" episodes of Breaking Bad, honestly.
 
WhiteRabbitEXE said:
No.
Generally speaking this is the rule for most prequels, as they are effectively sequels set in an earlier time period. It can be fun to watch/read/play in chronological order after consuming all pieces in release order, but rarely, if ever, is that the best order for a first viewing.
Click to expand...

I sense a Breaking Bad / Better Call Saul season machete order brewing...
 
I gave up on Breaking Bad midway through season 2. I just couldn't stand Walt or Jesse or anyone else in the show other than Hank.
 
Master_Of_Illusion said:
The people calling Better Call Saul boring are the ones expecting it to be the same thing as Breaking Bad.

It's a law drama first and foremost. The crime serial takes a backseat for most of it (so far at least).
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Yes it's a different show and that's fair enough. But the pace really is far too slow. And I say this as a huge fan of Bob Odenkirk - Saul is one of my favourite characters in BB.

But the show feels so needlessly stretched out. In Season 1 there is a whole episode dedicated to Jimmy playing bingo with old people. Coming from BB it's almost laughably dull in places.

I feel like if series 1 and 2 were combined into one, with a quicker pace and a bit less intricate detail (eg an hour of bingo) it would be much better for it.

Season 3 is starting to improve but this is how series 2 should have been. Too late now.


It's too drawn out.
 
I like better call Saul a lot, but I can't imagine being interested enough to watch it if I hadn't seen breaking bad.

Breaking bad was one of the best tv shows of all time in my opinion. Don't sit on this too much longer. I watched a random episode the other day and was reminded just how great it was. 5 star television.
 
There is a scene in BCS, where a fly flies past the camera for a fraction of a second. If you've seen BB already, you'll be like holy shit!, whereas if you haven't, you probably won't even see it.
 
Wiped89 said:
Yes it's a different show and that's fair enough. But the pace really is far too slow. And I say this as a huge fan of Bob Odenkirk - Saul is one of my favourite characters in BB.

But the show feels so needlessly stretched out. In Season 1 there is a whole episode dedicated to Jimmy playing bingo with old people. Coming from BB it's almost laughably dull in places.

I feel like if series 1 and 2 were combined into one, with a quicker pace and a bit less intricate detail (eg an hour of bingo) it would be much better for it.

Season 3 is starting to improve but this is how series 2 should have been. Too late now.


It's too drawn out.
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I agree with this..it feels a bit drawn out. Especially when you compare it to BB. Unlike BB they had have an actual "end" timeline they have to meet, so they have to draw it out as long as AMC renews seasons.
 
I don't think Better Call Saul is boring. It is an excellent show. But I'm not on board with those who think it is better than Breaking Bad.

My main criticism of the show is Chuck. I find Chuck centered episodes to be a drag. The whole electricity allergy shit got old fast. Great performance by Michael McKean but that isn't doesn't change the fact that I want the character written off the show already.
 
Wiped89 said:
But the show feels so needlessly stretched out. In Season 1 there is a whole episode dedicated to Jimmy playing bingo with old people. Coming from BB it's almost laughably dull in places.
Click to expand...
See, I don't really mind that scene. It emphasized Jimmy's pure dedication to the elderly.

You could make the argument that the show already achieved that level of characterization with prior scenes but I don't know. I don't think they overstretched it. The show just has no problem giving itself room to chill out.
 
rhino4evr said:
I agree with this..it feels a bit drawn out. Especially when you compare it to BB. Unlike BB they had have an actual "end" timeline they have to meet, so they have to draw it out as long as AMC renews seasons.
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I don't at all believe that will be a concern. They'll be able to end it on their own terms. If anything, the worry would be premature cancelation rather than artificial extension, since the ratings aren't exactly phenomenal, but very few people believe AMC would up and pull the plug, unless of course the ratings got cataclysmic.
 
Master_Of_Illusion said:
I'm ashamed to admit I've not seen The Wire either. Gotta get on that.
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I only started The Wire a couple of months ago and finished just recently. It's EASILY as good as people say (especially Season 1) but there's no need to rush into it. Watch it when you're in the mood for a show about cops and drug wars and be prepared for an experience that focuses on great characters above all.
 
WhiteRabbitEXE said:
I don't at all believe that will be a concern. They'll be able to end it on their own terms. If anything, the worry would be premature cancelation rather than artificial extension, since the ratings aren't exactly phenomenal, but very few people believe AMC would up and pull the plug, unless of course the ratings got cataclysmic.
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In a world where Mr. Robot gets 700,000 viewers an episode and still gets renewed, I think we're safe.
 
Wiped89 said:
In Season 1 there is a whole episode dedicated to Jimmy playing bingo with old people. Coming from BB it's almost laughably dull in places.
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If that's really what you got out of the episode, then yeah, the show definitely isn't for you.

Master_Of_Illusion said:
In a world where Mr. Robot gets 700,000 viewers an episode and still gets renewed, I think we're safe.
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Exactly. The numbers would have to be impossibly low, and I think AMC will give it a ton of leeway considering the creators, its status as a prequel to one of the best television shows ever, and the fact that the show itself is quite acclaimed.
 
Better Call Saul may not be over for a couple or more years from now. Just watch BB and keep up with Saul. Apparently they're playing with doing part of it as a sequel
 
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