[Spoilers] Breaking Bad - The whole thing felt kinda shady, y'know, morality-wise?

[AndrewBaelish]

Well, it's over. Finally watched it.

Upon re-watch, I'm much more impressed. At first I was just like "... eh." So I get where people are coming from who didn't like it. But damn. After thinking it over, I wouldn't want the show to end any other way.

[Howdyphillip]

Disown her.

A funny thing about finales is that the perception of them certainly changes with time. For instance, The Sopranos finale was torn apart by critics and audiences alike upon first airing. People felt cheated and disappointed by the open ending. Now it's considered a television classic and a stroke of genius. On the contrary, Lost's finale was met with generally positive acclaim back in 2010 (doesn't it feel like Lost ended much longer ago, BTW?), but now it's used as an example of sloppy endings. Breaking Bad's finale was obviously a smash hit (9.9 on IMDb speaks for itself), but I wonder what legacy it will have five or ten years down the road.

No, that is not even remotely true. I remember firmly wiping my eyes from bawling at the ending of LOST and then going on the internet to read the thousands of reviews slamming it. It was work to find people who felt similar to me.

[Alex.]

Also I'd like to say his moment of "truth" where he told Skylar he did it for himself was just a lie. He always did it for his family. Last night Walt finally realized Skylar would never buy that from him, so he took some truths (good at it, liked it) and turned those into selfish reasons because that would placate her.

No way, man. He absolutely did it for himself. I'm not sure what part of Bryan Cranston's face you got your interpretation from, but I can't go with it.

Phillip - I really enjoyed the LOST finale as well. I've never been sure which parts didn't make sense to people.

[WTFSalami]

Of course Walt was going to tie up his loose ends, it's what he does.

[The Monkey]

Can't believe nobody brought this up yet... Why did Walt leave his watch on the pay phone at the gas station? WHY? :D

The continuity thing, as others have said. Also, I think the watch was really high-end, so it didn't really match Walt's hobo-look,

[Reposado]

No way, man. He absolutely did it for himself. I'm not sure what part of Bryan Cranston's face you got your interpretation from, but I can't go with it.

Phillip - I really enjoyed the LOST finale as well. I've never been sure which parts didn't make sense to people.

not that it didnt make sense. it just wasnt what they wanted.

philip is right. the reaction was largely negative. but i think theyre wrong. whatever you can say about narrative acts, mistakes made along the way. the finale was a damn good hour of television that was above all significant. and really, there was no way of wrapping it that would have answered the questions satisfactorily

[DaveSumm]

not that it didnt make sense. it just wasnt what they wanted.

philip is right. the reaction was largely negative. but i think theyre wrong. whatever you can say about narrative acts, mistakes made along the way. the finale was a damn good hour of television that was above all significant. and really, there was no way of wrapping it that would have answered the questions satisfactorily

Deduct the people who thought they were all dead all along, then deduct the people who thought it was possible (or desirable) to answer every last thing in an hour, and I think what you're left with was fairly positive. People loaded their complaints for the whole show onto the finale when I think it was a great episode.

[Howdyphillip]

I am really glad to come here and read the dissent from some of our members like Relic, Bronn, and Epione. (sorry if I left anyone out). Although I stand in disagreement and feel like the finale was the perfect ending to the perfect story, it is always nice to hear other points of views. I can even see how some people say that Walt deserved to get his come-upons more than what the writers chose to end his story on.

I, however, was served more than a full plate of that for the last couple of episodes, and looking back, since Heisenberg was discovered by Hank, Walt's consequences have been what this show has focused on. Walt paid his price by losing everything. As a matter of fact, I can think of nothing that would be more horrifying to me than to spend months in a cabin with nothing but ten million dollars that is absolutely useless while I slowly die of cancer all the while knowing that everyone I love is either dead or hates me. The finale was just about allowing him to die with a bit of dignity. Walter White deserved both.

As far as being far fetched, it stayed in the parameters of what the writers had been telling the entire series. Just as always, there was an active part in the writing that asked the viewer to stretch the limit of believability. For me, that was the construction of a remote control robot. That is a very different science than what we have been shown Walt to be a genius in. To me, it was like taking a brilliant surgeon and having him figure out on the fly how to send a rocket into space.

I had that thought passing in my head, as well as many others, but was actively able to dismiss it because it fit in the realm of other things that I have been asked to disbelieve in for the sake of the story. It became a seamless transition because the writing has been brilliantly consistent. There was someone upthread that compared the ending to an Eddings story rather than a Martin. (Sorry I missed who that was). I vehemently disagree.

This story, as well as ASoIF, is so enjoyable because it focused on people. If Mr. Martin can end his story on this kind of note, I for one would be enormously happy. Neither story is about good vs evil. The closest we came to that was this year in Breaking Bad with the White Supremacists, and even they had clearly defined motivations and made decisions on a human level. In ASoIF, we have similar characters that serve the same purpose in the narrative. In each story, all of the characters are nuanced, and all of them have complex motivations that are expertly crafted.

This nuance was told with the story of White and Pinkman's relationship at the very end. Walter was getting Jesse in the room to kill him. After seeing what had become of him, he had the very human change of heart and instead saved him and lost his own life in the process. To me, there is nothing "happy" about that, but it is very human and for that reason allows me to connect to Walt one final time.

There are villains, and there are heroes in Breaking Bad and have been for the entire run of the show... They are just the same characters.

[Howdyphillip]

I don't know if this has been posted here yet, but

DANCE BITCH

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKUL7OikASU

I am extremely mad at you right now for having me listen to that music... Jeesh Mandy, why didn't you just shove a hot poker in my ear holes :eek: :stunned: :love:

[Independent George]

Neither story is about good vs evil. The closest we came to that was this year in Breaking Bad with the White Supremacists, and even they had clearly defined motivations and made decisions on a human level.

I have to disagree here - I thought the story was very much about good and evil, and how the choices we make reflect that regardless of our intentions. No, Walter was neither inherently nor purely evil, but there quickly came a point where that was irrelevant because the evil he committed corrupted everything around him regardless of his intent.

[7V3N]

Can't believe nobody brought this up yet... Why did Walt leave his watch on the pay phone at the gas station? WHY? :D

I thought it meant time no longer mattered. He no longer needed to go on a schedule; instead, he was thinking, "Get the job done, no matter what it takes."

ETA: Also, it might have something to do with how Jesse gave him the watch for a birthday present.

[Grey Words]

The continuity thing, as others have said. Also, I think the watch was really high-end, so it didn't really match Walt's hobo-look,

I thought it meant time no longer mattered. He no longer needed to go on a schedule; instead, he was thinking, "Get the job done, no matter what it takes."

ETA: Also, it might have something to do with how Jesse gave him the watch for a birthday present

Both of your thoughts apply and VG explained it as a continuity issue, but for me the watch abandonment was symbolic of Walt acknowledging that his time as Heisenberg had run out. and that he was starting the process of letting go.

[The Monkey]

Both of your thoughts apply and VG explained it as a continuity issue, but for me the watch abandonment was symbolic of Walt acknowledging that his time as Heisenberg had run out. and that he was starting the process of letting go.

Or simply, "time's up" (since the face of the watch faced up). I don't know.

Just rewatched the episode, like a previous poster I thought it was much better the second time. Truly a masterful ending to a magnificent show.

[SpaceChampion]

Just as always, there was an active part in the writing that asked the viewer to stretch the limit of believability. For me, that was the construction of a remote control robot. That is a very different science than what we have been shown Walt to be a genius in. To me, it was like taking a brilliant surgeon and having him figure out on the fly how to send a rocket into space.

Whoa, the mechanism was no where near the complexity of constructing a robot, as no electronics required beyond that contained in the garage door opener's radio. Not to take anything away from Walter White, but it probably takes me longer to type this out than it takes to think up how to do it.

1. Pivot point to mount the machine gun on and let it freely rotate. An office chair wheel caster would suffice.

2. Garage opener motor to rotate the arms that converts rotation to side to side motion to pivot the gun angle.

3. Garage opener remote to radio the garage door opener.

4. Attach the cable of the garage opener to tighten the gun's trigger, and simultaneous release springs that pop open the hood of the car. The one mechanism triggers both.

5. Another spring to raise the gun mount.

He probably didn't even have to buy anything, just scavenged it from his house.

[Olvyr]

 

That reminds me. On the subject of color. Any idea why Hank and Gomez were wearing matching green and brown right before their deaths? I noticed because the camera seemed to be making such a big deal of their clothes.

 

I can't believe there's anyone that hates Walt Jr. That's like hating Badger!

On the subject of colr, here's another one from a couple episodes back: When Todd and Lydia discuss the color of Todd's Meth, which didn't turn out blue, he hands her a cup of tea which says "These colors don't run". I immediately thought it was done deliberately.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Whoa, the mechanism was no where near the complexity of constructing a robot, as no electronics required beyond that contained in the garage door opener's radio. Not to take anything away from Walter White, but it probably takes me longer to type this out than it takes to think up how to do it.

1. Pivot point to mount the machine gun on and let it freely rotate. An office chair wheel caster would suffice.

2. Garage opener motor to rotate the arms that converts rotation to side to side motion to pivot the gun angle.

3. Garage opener remote to radio the garage door opener.

4. Attach the cable of the garage opener to tighten the gun's trigger, and simultaneous release springs that pop open the hood of the car. The one mechanism triggers both.

5. Another spring to raise the gun mount.

He probably didn't even have to buy anything, just scavenged it from his house.

While I admire your mechanical aptitude, I disagree that the robogun would be an easy thing for the average person to design and build. The process you described above would be next to impossible to adequately conceive of, let alone implement, for someone without at least a modicum of talent in engineering and/or mechanics. You're talking maybe 1 in 100 adults.

Not that the slight outlandishness of the robogun detracted from my enjoyment of the episode...it enhanced it, really.

[Jabronius Maximus]

Lol wrong thread...

[Independent George]

While I admire your mechanical aptitude, I disagree that the robogun would be an easy thing for the average person to design and build. The process you described above would be next to impossible to adequately conceive of, let alone implement, for someone without at least a modicum of talent in engineering and/or mechanics. You're talking maybe 1 in 100 adults.

Walt isn't an average person, though. The question is whether Walt was a chemist, or a chemical engineer?

I ask because most engineering programs start with basic mechanics in Year 1 before branching out into the various specialties. While a theoretical chemist probably wouldn't have the aptitude, no matter how smart he was, I could believe a chemical engineer might remember enough of freshman mechanics to build it.

[Littlefingers In The Air]

I changed my mind about the best part of the finale: the best part now is that Badfinger is getting a lot of recognition for being an underrated group.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Walt isn't an average person, though. The question is whether Walt was a chemist, or a chemical engineer?

I ask because most engineering programs start with basic mechanics in Year 1 before branching out into the various specialties. While a theoretical chemist probably wouldn't have the aptitude, no matter how smart he was, I could believe a chemical engineer might remember enough of freshman mechanics to build it.

You make a valid point; I hadn't considered that Walt might have an engineering background. It would make sense considering all the contraptions he employed during the show's run.

I changed my mind about the best part of the finale: the best part now is that Badfinger is getting a lot of recognition for being an underrated group.

That is one hell of a song and was the perfect complementary piece for the closing shot.