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[PizzaFace]

I'm 4 episodes into a re-watch with my flatmate (first time for him), and I've noticed a few (very general) things:

- Jesse's depression isn't as prevalent as I remember it

- Walt turns into a massive dickhead much earlier than I remember

- Skyler is more annoying than I remember

 

[Thaedolus]

Or this where he straights up admits he was being an asshole and selfish
Breaking Bad - Walt 'I Did It For Me. I Liked It'

Yeah, but to the people thinking he just said that at the end to spare Skylar, the show telegraphed his evil far sooner than that. Refusing Gretchen and Eilliot's assistance and turning to a life of murder and crime showed what a narcissistic cunt Walt was at heart, right down to enduring a life as a high school chemistry teacher when he could've asked them years ago for a better position. His life is established very early on as a self-imposed exile of mediocrity and humiliation all because of his ego. It's set up like he's an everyday man down on his luck who we root for but the brilliance of it is his situation is entirely of his own making cause he's a cunt underneath the genial exterior

 

[Fancy Clown]

I think they contextualize Walt's actions and act as a thematic tether. His original goal was to provide for his family, so it's interesting to see how much he fucks his family up over the course of the show. It also adds a more grounded element as the show gets pulpier and pulpier. Some of the early Marie stuff is bad, but honestly thought her and Skyler added to the show once it found its groove.

 

[SomTervo]

I literally never found Skylar annoying. I think she's a solid, realistic character. Everything she says and does is totally believable,. Imagine everything from her POV: she's not being annoying because "that's how she is", she's being rude/annoying to Walt because Walt is being completely neglectful and very absent.

I'm 4 episodes into a re-watch with my flatmate (first time for him), and I've noticed a few (very general) things:

- Jesse's depression isn't as prevalent as I remember it

- Walt turns into a massive dickhead much earlier than I remember

- Skyler is more annoying than I remember

Yeah when I rewatched it I was surprised that Jesse's depression only really goes ham much later than I remembered, like in season 4.

 

[caliph95]

I honestly probably me being contrarian at times and reacting to the Skylar hate never found her annoying. Though that could be me just not finding her as bad as people think which made not hate her as a result

 

[SomTervo]

Walt Jr is such an asshole. Probably the worst character. Your dad is working hard for you and you shun him and shit on him? Dick.

No way, man.

You spend your whole life thinking your dad is this sound, wholesome, all-round great guy who'd do anything for you.

You find out he pretty much got involved in a drug empire, throwing you and your mother (who is pregnant) in 95% risk of jeopardy, along with your whole extended family, while propagating organised crime on an insane level.

No way. Walt Jr was totally justified.

 

[caliph95]

No way, man.

You spend your whole life thinking your dad is this sound, wholesome, all-round great guy who'd do anything for you.

You find out he pretty much got involved in a drug empire, throwing you and your mother (who is pregnant) in 95% risk of jeopardy, along with your whole extended family, while propagating organised crime on an insane level.

No way. Walt Jr was totally justified.

IIRC Also find out that he was involved in the death of your Uncle who was like your idol

 

[Betty]

I literally never found Skylar annoying. I think she's a solid, realistic character. Everything she says and does is totally believable,. Imagine everything from her POV: she's not being annoying because "that's how she is", she's being rude/annoying to Walt because Walt is being completely neglectful and very absent.

She's rude to everyone though, all the time, for no reason. It's non stop.

At the start you feel sorry for Skylar because Marie is atrocious to her, honestly the things her sister blurts out around people only to act like she has no idea how it affects Skylar makes you loathe Marie.

But then Skylar just constantly treats every person she comes into contact with like shit, she talks to everyone like they're idiotic garbage, and she has this never-ending irritated streak that only escalates.

After Walt moves out and they slowly get back together she actually became really likeable though, and I did move to her side slightly in the later seasons.

But man, those early episodes are tough, she's so unlikable.

 

[GitarooMan]

But that's the truth. Walt was just a good guy who wanted to provide for his family, but when he was done and tried to get out of the business, something always forced him back in. Walt was the real victim of the story.

Ha ha wow, I guess I'm not surprised, but it's still stunning to see that people actually believe this.

 

[NoblesseOblige]

IHis original goal was to provide for his family, so it's interesting to see how much he fucks his family up over the course of the show.

His goal was always to stroke his own ego. If all he wanted to do was provide for his family then he would have accepted the early job and gift offered to him by Gretchen and Elliot. But it was too too much of a hit to his fragile ego for him to accept that.

 

[waveuponwave]

It's a pity we didn't get more of Grethen and Elliot, their dynamic with Walt was always really interesting and whatever humiliation he felt towards them really lies at the core of his character

That final scene with them was great though. The irony of Walt using them to get his drug money to Walt Jr, money they would have given him anyway out of friendship... perfect. Oh Walt you sad pathetic cunt

 

[Professor Renegade]

It's almost like a real family, OP

 

[DudeWithNoName]

I rewatched BB recently and fast forwarded through most of the family scenes. It is indeed slow and painful to watch.

 

[Skellig Gra]

I could definitely have done without Marie, she brings very little to the table. Skylar is a necessary foil for Walt.

 

[Maintenance]

Shut your pie hole.

Never, I'll die before saying that Winona was a good character.

 

[The Salt Life]

It's why I can't watch the show, I can't get past Skylar, Marie the son. I tried several times, can't fuck with it.

(Jessie is equally as annoying, Hank seems like the only good character outside of Walt)

 

[The Greek Freak]

It was for me until the last season where the reactions became comical at times.

The scene every tv writer loved in I think "ozzymandias" was so fucking cringeworthy and probably the worst sequence in the show's history involving the principal cast.

I could definitely have done without Marie, she brings very little to the table. Skylar is a necessary foil for Walt.

I love Marie.

Skylar and Walt are two pieces of crap that were too dumb to leave each other, but from a viewer's perspective at least Walt was interesting and entertaining. Skylar was just boring and annoying.

We started our BB rewatch this week and my wife is fast forwarding every time Skylar is on screen while mockingly copying her "nonononononononono" garbage scene..

 

[y2dvd]

I never understood the Skylar hate. The affair sucked but other than that, her grievances to Walt's action were totally justified.

 

[The Greek Freak]

I never understood the Skylar hate. The affair sucked but other than that, her grievances to Walt's action were totally justified.

It's not that people think Walt was some great guy and great husband or something crazy like that.

It's that every scene with Skylar involved is usually the worst acted and least interesting scene in the episode. Even if she was a nice person or whatever, she's dumb and boring.

Her actress just couldn't do anything but drag down scenes where she couldn't hang.

 

[lastflowers]

All of Marie's plotlines suck but I think Skylar is mostly fine. There are definitely parts with her when I was thinking, "can we just get back to the drugs, please?" but at least most of her scenes are related back to Walt in some way.

Marie's kleptomania plotline was so fucking bad.

For as much as people laud Breaking Bad, there are still some really terrible parts in the first couple seasons.

yep. I had to stomach through the first two seasons to finally see what everyone raved about (this was during the final season IIRC)

 

[Zen_Arcade]

Skyler is alright, but the son and Skylers sister were just unbearable. You could cut out like 90% of the scenes with the son in that show and you wouldn't lose anything.

 

[Fancy Clown]

His goal was always to stroke his own ego. If all he wanted to do was provide for his family then he would have accepted the early job and gift offered to him by Gretchen and Elliot. But it was too too much of a hit to his fragile ego for him to accept that.

Yeah, that's true. But the family thing was his justification for doing it, and even that fell apart. I think of some level he did want to provide for his family too, but yeah his ego certainly wouldn't let him do it in a sensible way and he very quickly lost any pretense of protecting them.

 

[Bounceounce]

It's not that people think Walt was some great guy and great husband or something crazy like that.

It's that every scene with Skylar involved is usually the worst acted and least interesting scene in the episode. Even if she was a nice person or whatever, she's dumb and boring.

Her actress just couldn't do anything but drag down scenes where she couldn't hang.

😂 at Anna Gunn being a bad actress, and lol @scenes like Walt calling her bluff with the police calling in early season 3, I fucked Ted, I am the one who knocks, their awkward dinner's, pretty much every scene in season. 5A and more being badly acted or boring.

When Skyler told Walt she's waiting for the cancer to come back>>>>>>>>>

Glad she got that Emmy.

It's a pity we didn't get more of Grethen and Elliot, their dynamic with Walt was always really interesting and whatever humiliation he felt towards them really lies at the core of his character

That final scene with them was great though. The irony of Walt using them to get his drug money to Walt Jr, money they would have given him anyway out of friendship... perfect. Oh Walt you sad pathetic cunt

Walt abandoned Gretchen on the 4th of July while visiting her home because he was insecure about her parents wealth.

His goal was always to stroke his own ego. If all he wanted to do was provide for his family then he would have accepted the early job and gift offered to him by Gretchen and Elliot. But it was too too much of a hit to his fragile ego for him to accept that.

In episode one when Jesse asks him why he's doing this he said because he feels alive or awake or something along those lines, I always took him literally at that and disregarded his family motives, especially after the Gray Matter thing.

 

[Coriolanus]

I just skipped most of the family bits. Show didn't seem to lose anything.

 

[Bounceounce]

I just skipped most of the family bits. Show didn't seem to lose anything.

gah

 

[Lothar]

Skyler is alright, but the son and Skylers sister were just unbearable. You could cut out like 90% of the scenes with the son in that show and you wouldn't lose anything.

What scenes of the Walt Jr do you not like? When I think of him, I can only remember good scenes. Making a website for his dad, his Dad being kicked out of the house and him not being told why or understanding, his dad having a conversation where he breaks down and cries to him and Walt Jr appreciates it for his dad opening up to him, the time he's upset when Hank was in the hospital, the part where he finds out the truth, telling his dad to leave them alone on the phone. He's very well acted and easy to empathize with.

 

[mxgt]

I don't think I found Skylar annoying even one time. The way she acts is justified because Walt is a piece of shit person.

 

[PedroPanache]

In retrospect I have mixed feelings about the finale. I loved it at the time, but having seen it again with a little distance, it's almost as if Walter White completely seduced and corrupted the writing staff and whispered into Vince Gilligan's ear exactly how he wanted to go out. The writers obliged and wrote the last episode as some twisted Make-A-Wish Foundation episode where Walter had demanded he "Go Out Like A Boss."

 

[Maebe]

I despised Walt and was glad when characters give him shit. I don't see what Walt Jr or Skyler need to be "redeemed" for.

 

[Bounceounce]

I never understood the Skylar hate. The affair sucked but other than that, her grievances to Walt's action were totally justified.

Her affair was justified and I cheered out loud and fist pumped when she said "I fucked Ted."
God I get happy just remembering how I felt then.

 

[Garjon]

I am absolutely baffled by some of the responses in this thread. Do you think you're watching Scarface or something? The entire show is a critique of the mafia/criminal overlord fantasy. The family are the only ones living in the real world. While I don't think Walt Jr's acting in the early episodes is pretty good, he improves later on and the rest of the 'family' actors do their roles superbly - they're a middle class family run by an incredibly bitter father who pushes his ire and angst onto everybody around and then deludes himself into thinking that he is always in the right. Walter White is a very bad person from the moment he agrees to start making crystal meth for money rather than accept the help from his estranged friends and every action he takes only pushes him further down the abyss. Every 'cringey' moment the family makes is a reflection of him and his appalling behaviour.

The kleptomania storyline is garbage, though it only lasts a few episodes to be fair.

 

[Bounceounce]

I'm being too hard on Walt in this thread, he clearly cares for others even though his ego gets in the way a lot of the time, and his moments of clarity are incredibly sympathetic, plus you can't help but feel for him whenever Cranston goes through one of his breakdowns.
Walt's a person, not just a theme or one note monster (no matter how much he repulsed me at times).

 

[waveuponwave]

Walt abandoned Gretchen on the 4th of July while visiting her home because he was insecure about her parents wealth.

I know, read that, it just feels like something that should have been explored in the show, not just hinted at in interviews

 

[caliph95]

I am absolutely baffled by some of the responses in this thread. Do you think you're watching Scarface or something? The entire show is a critique of the mafia/criminal overlord fantasy. The family are the only ones living in the real world. While I don't think Walt Jr's acting in the early episodes is pretty good, he improves later on and the rest of the 'family' actors do their roles superbly - they're a middle class family run by an incredibly bitter father who pushes his ire and angst onto everybody around and then deludes himself into thinking that he is always in the right. Walter White is a very bad person from the moment he agrees to start making crystal meth for money rather than accept the help from his estranged friends and every action he takes only pushes him further down the abyss. Every 'cringey' moment the family makes is a reflection of him and his appalling behaviour.

The kleptomania storyline is garbage, though it only lasts a few episodes to be fair.

Not saying it necessarily applies to gaf but it's funny BB inherits the scarface problem, where people idolises the main character in a story about their downfall.

 

[PizzaFace]

I don't think I found Skylar annoying even one time. The way she acts is justified because Walt is a piece of shit person.

I refuse to believe anyone didn't find her annoying in that "Happy Birthday Mr Beneke" scene

 

[dead souls]

Her affair was justified and I cheered out loud and fist pumped when she said "I fucked Ted."
God I get happy just remembering how I felt then.

Yep. Definitely one of the most memorable lines in television history.

 

[Bounceounce]

I know, read that, it just feels like something that should have been explored in the show, not just hinted at in interviews

It was kind of sort of said during Gretchen's convo with Walt in Season 2, but there was too much whispering and Walt kept cutting her off so she couldn't get it all out.
I prefer Walt's past being a mystery though, especially his childhood/dynamics with his parents.
The hints that he was estranged from his mother, the hints towards poverty or however not wealthy they were, and the story he told Junior about his father dying/degrading in the hospital were enough for me.
It makes Walt better for some reason, at least to me.

 

[Thaedolus]

I know, read that, it just feels like something that should have been explored in the show, not just hinted at in interviews

Gretchen literally says this in the show doesn't she? It's only the reason which is heavily implied

 

[shadowsdarknes]

Considering how awful Walt is, creating a character like Skyler who the audience can empathize with shouldn't be hard. Yet she's massively disliked.
It can't all be sexism.

 

[Bounceounce]

Considering how awful Walt is, creating a character like Skyler who the audience can empathize with shouldn't be hard. Yet she's massively disliked.
It can't all be sexism.

People didn't think Walt was awful though.

 

[PizzaFace]

Considering how awful Walt is, creating a character like Skyler who the audience can empathize with shouldn't be hard. Yet she's massively disliked.
It can't all be sexism.

She just isn't likeable, what would you like about her? Hank is likeable, Marie is likeable, Andrea is likeable etc

I'm not convinced Skyley was ever supposed to be likeable

 

[mxgt]

Considering how awful Walt is, creating a character like Skyler who the audience can empathize with shouldn't be hard. Yet she's massively disliked.
It can't all be sexism.

You have people in this thread arguing that things that are clearly Walts fault, are Skylar's fault instead.

The defence force for Walter White and his actions has no limits.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

Been awhile since one of these popped up, huh.

The whole of Breaking Bad is excruciating. Like, "excruciating" is often the primary feeling it's aiming to evoke.

The family life aspect is simply a different flavor of excruciating than the meth lab, or the rehab, etc.

 

[waveuponwave]

In retrospect I have mixed feelings about the finale. I loved it at the time, but having seen it again with a little distance, it's almost as if Walter White completely seduced and corrupted the writing staff and whispered into Vince Gilligan's ear exactly how he wanted to go out. The writers obliged and wrote the last episode as some twisted Make-A-Wish Foundation episode where Walter had demanded he "Go Out Like A Boss."

Pretty much how I feel. Walt got off way too easy, letting him go out as some kind of twisted hero against the Neo Nazis after all that he did, why?

What still bothers me is that we never got any real closure for Jesse. Seeing him finally stand up to Walter was awesome, but his life is pretty much completely fucked and the show didn't even bother to hint at what he will do now. For me he was he real hero of the show, he deserved a real Goodbye

 

[Christhor]

lmfao

No he wasn't, not in the slightest

Except he could've gotten money and provided for his family even without getting into drug trade. But he chose not to. That's the whole point of the show. It was his choice and the consequences all along.

While it's his downfall i wouldn't call him the victim since a big thing is how his prode fucked him over many times, the people around him were victims. Remember he wouldn't accept donations and assistance that could helped with the bills due to his family and could have gotten out before it got worse but decided nah i liked the power.

Um. It's a pretty clear thread in the show's narrative that Walt genuinely begins to enjoy it, live for it even, to the detriment of everyone (except Walt Jr). That's the whole significance of

Spoiler

his death, smiling at the meth lab,

at the end.

Shit quality but this scene disproves any notion of this (assuming we aren't all getting trolled by this hilarious post)

https://youtu.be/0iHWiculHtI

Ha ha wow, I guess I'm not surprised, but it's still stunning to see that people actually believe this.

Skylar, there's rot. Why would someone who doesn't care for his family do something about rot? He'd just let it kill them if he was a bad guy.

 

[ebullientprism]

Yep. I am right with you OP. It was genuinely boring and brought the whole show to a screeching halt.

The show is at its most entertaining when its about Walt and crime.

 

[Zen_Arcade]

What scenes of the Walt Jr do you not like? When I think of him, I can only remember good scenes. Making a website for his dad, his Dad being kicked out of the house and him not being told why or understanding, his dad having a conversation where he breaks down and cries to him and Walt Jr appreciates it for his dad opening up to him, the time he's upset when Hank was in the hospital, the part where he finds out the truth, telling his dad to leave them alone on the phone. He's very well acted and easy to empathize with.

I just remember there being a long stretch where damn near every Walt Jr. scene was just him being confused or clueless about what was going on with his Dad. Which isn't an unreasonable position to put him in, but it felt like it was the same scene over and over.

After he found out the truth about Walt he was alright, but for a long time it felt like his scenes in the show were just to remind you that he was still a character.

 

[jett]

When I first started watching the show, I binged the first four seasons. Never really noticed the awfulness of the family drama then.

Except when I watched the fifth season live. Maybe it's more annoying to sit through non-Walter/Jesse scenes when you're waiting a week for each episode. The family stuff is definitely the low point of the show.

 

[Lothar]

Pretty much how I feel. Walt got off way too easy, letting him go out as some kind of twisted hero against the Neo Nazis after all that he did, why?

What still bothers me is that we never got any real closure for Jesse. Seeing him finally stand up to Walter was awesome, but his life is pretty much completely fucked and the show didn't even bother to hint at what he will do now. For me he was he real hero of the show, he deserved a real Goodbye

That's what Better Call Saul is for.

The end was perfect of Walt getting to redeem himself a little. The writers didn't forget that Walt was not an all bad all evil person. He was a mixed person. When the show was started, he was likable. The end should have not been just Walt getting punished and it being cathartic for the audience. That would have been boring. It should make the audience feel conflicted emotions as the characters around Walt also feel conflicted.

 

[Servbot24]

Skyler subplot is fine. Marie's though goes basically to nowhere.

I don't think stories have to exist for the purpose of going places.