[SPOILERS] Breaking Bad - Final Season - Final Two Episodes

[Slyfinger]

We did? I thought that suggested that Walt was indeed quite involved in the beginning of Grey Matter. What Elliot and Gretchen said was face-saving BS.

Next week, my friend. What really happened between Gretchen and Walt? Was Elliot creeping with Gretchen on the low? Did Walt hook up with Skyler while still in a relationship? Was Walt's pride so much of an obstacle that the partnership had to end? Or was there some shadier shit going down?

[Jabronius Maximus]

I've posted this before, but here's the fallout. http://blogs.amctv.com/breaking-bad/2009/05/jessica-hecht-interview/

Q: What’s it like have Bryan Cranston curse at you?

A: Oh man, he’s a good actor. But it was easy because Vince Gilligan told us exactly what went down between the characters off screen: We were very much in love and we were to get married. And he came home and met my family, and I come from this really successful, wealthy family, and that knocks him on his side. He couldn’t deal with this inferiority he felt — this lack of connection to privilege. It made him terrified, and he literally just left me, and I was devastated. Walt is fighting his way out of going back to that emotional place, so he says, “F— you.”

Combined with what he said in season 2 when meeting Gretchen, after leaving her he sold his share and left.

[Bridgeburners]

So I'm unclear on a couple of things.

Why did Saul need to GTFO? As far as I knew, no information that Hank & Gomez collected reached anyone but themselves. They didn't even tell their Huell sentry about Huell or his involvement. So who talked about Saul? Was it Skyler? Did Saul leave based on the off chance that Skyler might talk about him and his involvement with Walter?

How does everyone know about Walter's drug involvement? As far as I knew, the investigation was solely over Hank and Gomez going missing. Was that Skyler again?

[BLU-RAY]

Anyone think that maybe stuff won't get wrapped up nicely? Like maybe Walt will ultimately fail with whatever he's getting up to with the M60 and just get caught or gunned down?

IDK, it'll be interesting to see.

[Francis Buck]

They're nailing the shit out of these last episodes. Every one of them has been incredible, and I greatly doubt that will change in the finale.

Robert Forster was fucking perfect for the "eraser" dude. I knew there was supposed to be a guest star for the character, but that was an awesome (and completely unpredictable) choice.

I was totally floored when Andrea was killed -- probably the most shocked I've been this whole season (well, this half of the season, anyway). Hank's death, while crazy, was not especially surprising, given the circumstances. But shit, that was out of nowhere. I really thought her and Brock were outside of the story at this point, aside from motivation for Jesse.

I also have to admit that, even though I wasn't thrilled at the idea of the Neo-Nazis being the main bad guys at the end, Todd has really become a great villain. He's easily the most evil, psychotic fuck in a series filled with evil, psychotic fucks. He makes Walt look like a superhero, and Tuco look like a clown.

And yeah, putting the theme into the end was awesome. Seriously got chills from it.

[Newstar]

Anyone think that maybe stuff won't get wrapped up nicely? Like maybe Walt will ultimately fail with whatever he's getting up to with the M60 and just get caught or gunned down?

IDK, it'll be interesting to see.

Vince did say there will be no loose ends, but I agree that doesn't mean that Walt will be successful in whatever it is he's attempting to do, only that the ending won't be ambiguous.

I think Bryan Cranston or Vince did say that Walt goes out on his own terms, but that doesn't preclude him getting gunned down or caught. It seems that no matter what happens to him from here on out, he'll go out on his own terms, since he seems to have decided to go out with a bang rather than shuffle off quietly to the great beyond from a little cabin in the middle of nowhere.

[Francis Buck]

Anyone think that maybe stuff won't get wrapped up nicely? Like maybe Walt will ultimately fail with whatever he's getting up to with the M60 and just get caught or gunned down?

IDK, it'll be interesting to see.

At this point, I'm not really expecting any kind of reconciliation whatsoever with Walt and his family. The phone call with Junior was the end. Though I do think it's possible that Jesse might get the money to them in the end.

ETA: And I absolutely think he will be dead at the end, though I believe it will "intentional", more or less. I think he knows he's going on what's essentially a suicide mission at the end.

[Independent George]

Why did Saul need to GTFO? As far as I knew, no information that Hank & Gomez collected reached anyone but themselves. They didn't even tell their Huell sentry about Huell or his involvement. So who talked about Saul? Was it Skyler? Did Saul leave based on the off chance that Skyler might talk about him and his involvement with Walter?

As soon as they realized Hank & Gomie were MIA, they were going straight to Huell to find out what Hank wanted him for. Huell knows that Hank was after Heisenberg - the second they tell him that Hank is probably dead. And that's before they even get to Skylar.

Saul saw the writing on the wall and got the hell out of there.

[Aemon Stark]

Saul saw the writing on the wall and got the hell out of there.

I did like his line where his best case scenario involves managing a Cinnabon in Omaha. Now there's a show for you!

[Rockroi]

So, I will express my minority view...

If the show's end is "I have to run to New Mexico to go kill the two people I used to be in business with..." then the final season of Breaking Bad has been pretty poor. Yes, In some ways I admire the show for sticking to its ... guns ... in displaying Walter White's complete meltdown (though ... so stooooooooooopid). He failed at everything he tried to do- he failed at protecting his family, providing for his family,; he failed at avoiding the law. He is a failure.

But at his core, he's still a vindictive, spiteful, petty man who blames others for his shortcomings and that- after all - was what some claimed motivated him from the beginning. So, while his family has disintegrated; 85% of his money is GONE, when he has given up on everything including his desire to provide for his family, Walter White... finds redemption in his desire to go get those he has hated all along (the GRay Matter people). THAT I can take in and of itself.

Also, watching Walter crumple in the cabin and pay a man $10K just to stay with him was incredibly gut wrenching. As others have said- that was incredible.

But I remember when Breaking Bad was about, you know, the characters who we actually spent time with and not 2 characters we have not seen in 3 seasons and the White Supremacists who are the Carlos the Jackal of organized crime outfits.

So, Walt is coming back because he's an asshole? OR bitter? I mean sure, if its just a scam and he REALLY IS going to come back to wipe out the White Supremacists and Gray Matter was just there to motivate him- great. That I can see. But if he is going back to kill two rich assholes who sold him out? I don't care. I am not interested watching an asshole be petty (I can read my own posts for that).

As for the other stuff... once again, the WS are the driving force of the show:

1. They kill Andrea while Jesse watches. Because when a strange man I never met before tells me- a young woman with a young child in the house - that they have my former boyfriend in a truck... down the street - I often step into the cold night credulously staring wantonly into the distance. Don't all attractive women who live in terrible neighborhoods answer a door that way? Now, thankfully, NOBODY saw any of this because its the WS and they dropped in using their super-ninja powers of ... total subtlety... and this causes everyone to ignore them. At all times.

As far as Jesse goes... People who watched Game of Thrones Season 3 had a few common criticisms. One of them was that they were DISGUSTED with the torture scenes involving Theon Greyjoy- and not in a "this-is-so-good-I-find-it-affecting" sort of way - no- gross, stupid, needless and gratuitous. They even said it was "torture porn."

That's basically what I feel towards Jesse's scenes at this point - its torture porn. ITs endless, senseless, nonsensical crimes, horrors and cruelties inflicted on a guy for reasons that seem unclear. EVEN THE WHITE SUPREMACISTS don't want him! They don't need the meth... but ... Todd does because ... Todd likes a girl... OH FUCK!!!! Have we degenerated a story-line because of what some of us would have written in High School? Really? And the WS uncle's reaction is hilariously inane- "He grabs his nephew by the scruff of the neck and basically does the whole "OH SHUCKS!!! YOU OLD SO-AND-SO!!!! If you want to endanger every single last one of us with this damning evidence and this guy to cook meth EVEN THOUGH we are all so FUCKING RICH that nobody in their right mind would continue to cook meth... GO AHEAD!!!!"

I also love that every single member of the WS acts totally in line with every other- they are all cool with taking the money and whatever split there is- nobody complains about anything nor any decision and they are all totally cool with Todd and his desire to continue to cook meth. Just like every crime outfit ever...

s...so....sss...s.s.sstoooooppiddddd....

2. If that were it, it would be yet another episode of how much BReaking Bad has been hijacked by the WS. But it was ruined 15 minutes in. Skyler White is under constant, 24 hour surveillance by the FBI- the FBI is tracking a man linked to the murder of two DEA Agents including na ASAC. They have her covered... unless they use the back screen door... WHAT THE FUCKKKKKK!!!!??? No, really, the FBI has this place so well covered that there are 1) No bugs inside the house (50/50 on that) and 2) that they are not watching the back doors???? How ... STOOOPID is that???

Because the WS are all powerful- they are everywhere, they do everything, they get away with it all because the show is being driven by them. At the expense of the show I was watching until last year. It used to be about Walt and his life and his family... now its "Breaking White Supremacists," They broke into a hard-target's house while the DEA/Fed are watching that house like hawks... unless they use a side door...

Just. Dumb.

I have found the Fall of Walter White to be incredibly cock-eyed- more "Fall" than "Walter White." A haphazard and convenient distillation of what had been a complex story- now its just the WS doing powerful things. They get his money, they terrorize his family, they get his partner, they make him flee; they kill Hank, they get the evidence. They kill the girl, etc etc etc. No difficulties, no consequences, no problems.

They are out of proportion with this story I had been watching and this episode was yet another example of that.

I am playing out the string at this point.

[MagnusPrime]

nice episode. great to see that the fire is still inside of him. emotionally charged as it was it was great during that sequence in the bar to see him grow from a defeated shell of a man to driven once more. Walter has always had this unwarranted inferiority complex that just causes him to go off the rails when it feels slighted.

Lydia is an idiot. telling them they need to kill Skylar is the most sure fire way to ensure that they end up poisoned or blown up.

[Centrist Simon Steele]

Rockrio, All of your post is wrong and I thank you for being COMPLETELY wrong so I don't have to refute any of it on a line by line basis. This episode was as good as any. This season is phenomenal.

[Gertrude]

Holy crap, holy crap! I fucking loved the ending. Walt's own ego fucks him once again. Well, his life was over anyway, it's just now gonna fuck up some other people.

I wasn't truly on board with Walt coming back to save Jesse. After last episode, I could see how they set it up so that Walt might reconsider after some hard self-evaluation. The final destruction of his family I felt put him into a place where he could look back and say, yeah, I see what I did to Jesse and come to an understanding. But now, after this punch by Grey Matter it's all Heisenberg all the time. Along with that, he now knows that the blue meth is still out there, and Jesse is the only one who can cook like him. I am totally on board with him wanting revenge on anybody and everybody who crossed his path at any time.

I love this show because it fleshes out motivations. People don't act without a reason.

[Mark Antony]

"He grabs his nephew by the scruff of the neck and basically does the whole "OH SHUCKS!!! YOU OLD SO-AND-SO!!!! If you want to endanger every single last one of us with this damning evidence and this guy to cook meth EVEN THOUGH we are all so FUCKING RICH that nobody in their right mind would continue to cook meth... GO AHEAD!!!!"

:lol:

[Rockroi]

Rockrio, All of your post is wrong and I thank you for being COMPLETELY wrong so I don't have to refute any of it on a line by line basis. This episode was as good as any. This season is phenomenal.

Yes- I was so obviously wrong that you stated in detail every reason I was wrong. Case. POint.

Look, I am disenfranchised from the show due to the WS. And I can articulate why. I do not think that makes the show bad; its just my opinion on what USED to be a show I really enjoyed. If you disagree, that's fine, but its a waste of time for you to say "Rockroi, you're wrong" and then just state conclusions and opinions without evidence and explanation.

You disagree and I can see why- everyone loves the show and I am in the minority for a reason. Then again, people said Sopranos was "just as good as ever..." towards the end while I was saying otherwise and the consensus now, after the fact, is that the Sopranos went on way too long ....

Just saying.

[Gertrude]

Rockroi - I do agree with you about the WS. They aren't smart enough to do all the shit they do and get away with it. I am willing to go along with them cooking because Todd hearts Lydia, it's much more believable than sneaking into a watched house. Or executing a woman on her front step like it's no big. And yeah - Andrea fell for the stupidest trick ever.

[BLU-RAY]

Rock, it seems kind of a jump to me to say that he's going after Grey Matter - I think if he were going after anyone, it would for sure be the white supremacists. The TV interview was just a catalyst + informed him that Jesse was still alive.

[drawkcabi]

Rockrio, All of your post is wrong and I thank you for being COMPLETELY wrong so I don't have to refute any of it on a line by line basis. This episode was as good as any. This season is phenomenal.

He's not really wrong, he's just being the skeptic at the magic show that's telling everyone how the tricks are done breaking the illusion for everyone and spoiling all the fun :P

[Rockroi]

Rock, it seems kind of a jump to me to say that he's going after Grey Matter - I think if he were going after anyone, it would for sure be the white supremacists. The TV interview was just a catalyst + informed him that Jesse was still alive.

I do want to point out that I said that if Walt was using that as motivation then I can buy all that, 100% and its really good. Vindictiveness and pettiness motivating him to be the monster and save people he has imperiled.

He's not really wrong, he's just being the skeptic at the magic show that's telling everyone how the tricks are done breaking the illusion for everyone and spoiling all the fun

And... GET OFF MY LAWN!!!!!

[Francis Buck]

snip

I honestly don't know how you've gotten this far into the show, and yet, now you're suddenly disappointed in the lack of realism or the suspension of disbelief from the writers. The entire show is incredibly unrealistic. It has been from season one. Literally every single season has had at least one big moment that's totally ridiculous. Virtually nothing in the these last two episodes has displayed the kind of absurdity seen with, say, the plane crash or the twins or the almost hilariously implausible plan to kill Gus at the end of season four.

I've read your posts for a long time in these threads, and it kinda seems like you just enjoy bitching about stuff in general.