Breaking Bad on AMC (1 Viewer)

[SmoovySmoov]

Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy)

That scene where she is trying to break into Walt's, I could only think about how huge she has gotten. She looked like an Amazon woman.

 

[Carver]

Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy)

That scene where she is trying to break into Walt's, I could only think about how huge she has gotten. She looked like an Amazon woman.

That and she always has her mouth open... "Doesnt that make sense Walt? ""Im ####### Ted. ""He likes to be called Flynn. "

 

[oukurt]

It hadn't occurred to me that Gus may try to groom Jessie and kill walt.

Both Jessie and Walt have killed to save the other. No way one would betray the other at this stage of the game. Gus is smart enough to realize this. I don't see this happening.

 

[TobiasFunke]

I don't hate Skyler as much as others seem to. I don't mind the family scenes at all in small doses, and I liked it when she got involved and tried to talk Walt into buying the car wash instead of the laser tag thing. Her stuff in the Season 4 episode was pretty pointless, but that's only one episode.

I also don't mind that she's on the somewhat heavy side. She's a chemistry teacher's wife; if she was hot it would be distractingly unrealistic. Kind of like when Dexter's wife got all tanned and toned and added a fake rack. It was nice eye candy, but it totally didn't fit her character or the character's station in life.

 

[corpcow]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

Potentially, very significant. When I was sick a couple of years ago, I had outpatient surgery, 4 rounds of chemotherapy (also outpatient), and a longer surgery with a 6 day hospital stay. My medical bills (at least as it was billed to the insurance company) was over $550k. (Seriously). I had another surgery the following year it was something like $20k just for the "facility fees". Moreover, I didn't have any physical therapy which I know can sometimes be the most expensive part of all of this. My uncle had to have extensive therapy a couple of years back and it was an absurd number.Each of those bills are probably $30-50k

 

[mr. furley]

Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy)

That scene where she is trying to break into Walt's, I could only think about how huge she has gotten. She looked like an Amazon woman.

That and she always has her mouth open... "Doesnt that make sense Walt? ""Im ####### Ted. ""He likes to be called Flynn. "

 

[Daywalker]

Could see Walt killing Jesse. The scene at Denny's was jarring for Walt. Perhaps Jesse get's back on the pipe and becomes to much of a liability to the operation. Or Walt is ordered to kill Jesse because he is dipping into the lab supply.

 

[adrenaline]

 

[honky kong]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

Potentially, very significant. When I was sick a couple of years ago, I had outpatient surgery, 4 rounds of chemotherapy (also outpatient), and a longer surgery with a 6 day hospital stay. My medical bills (at least as it was billed to the insurance company) was over $550k. (Seriously). I had another surgery the following year it was something like $20k just for the "facility fees". Moreover, I didn't have any physical therapy which I know can sometimes be the most expensive part of all of this. My uncle had to have extensive therapy a couple of years back and it was an absurd number.Each of those bills are probably $30-50k

Jesus

 

[⚡DEADHEAD⚡]

You are both getting stuff wrong, missing some of the points of these "coincidences," and calling some things coincidences that aren't far fetched. A couple examples:- Why would someone look in a diaper box before the baby arrived? Doesn't seem far-fetched to me.- Walt sitting next to the dad didn't advance the plot at all. It wasn't necessary, and therefore it's not a "convenient" coincidence. It was a deliberate move to show how all our lives cross. You can dislike that if you want, but that doesn't make it a convenient coincidence.- Why would workers care about two white guys entering the building? There's a ton of people I pass every day around my office and I have no idea what they do. You're assuming people are inherently suspicious and assume there are criminal conspiracies around them in their everyday lives. They do not.- People don't disclose things in real estate offerings all the time, because there's tens of thousands of dollars at stake.. It's stupid to complain about that as a "convenient coincidence."- I don't understand why it's weird that nobody notices the hole in the ceiling. How could they unless they were in the house?I could go on and on with stuff you listed that's either not the much of a coincidence or isn't "convenient" in that it wasn't needed to move the story forward.Like others have said,all the coincidences leading to the plane crash were a little beyond the pale, and I'll give you Hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco as pushing it a bit, too. But those are the only two you listed that push suspension of disbelief at all, IMO. The rest is just standard storytelling stuff; people's lives intersecting, people catching good and bad breaks, people getting away with crimes or getting caught due to circumstances, etc. If you don't like the standard staples of fiction, maybe a mall security tape or sitting on a park bench watching ducks or something is more to your liking?

Oh please. Think these things through man. 1. What is a diaper box doing in the house half-empty if there's no baby? I get a boatload of diapers delivered every two weeks and i know that each box is packed tight. Yes, the baby wasn't born yet, but then how does one explain the half-empty box.2. Why would workers care about two white guys entering the facility, guys who then push some button on a car-size piece of machinery, only to see it then rise enough that the guys can slip behind it and disappear for hours on end. No, nothing strange there.3. You didn't touch the issue with Jesse's girlfriend. These things aren't a big deal - really minor even - and the show is fantastic, but if you don't think there aren't improbable story lines, convenient coincidences, and other oddities, you're crazy.

 

[wildbill]

I've watched the season premiere twice now and it exceeded my expectations. And after the way last season ended, my expectations were very high. If they keep it up for another twelve episodes it will be very hard to argue against Klosterman's position that it's the best show of the past ten years.

 

[Daywalker]

You are both getting stuff wrong, missing some of the points of these "coincidences," and calling some things coincidences that aren't far fetched. A couple examples:- Why would someone look in a diaper box before the baby arrived? Doesn't seem far-fetched to me.- Walt sitting next to the dad didn't advance the plot at all. It wasn't necessary, and therefore it's not a "convenient" coincidence. It was a deliberate move to show how all our lives cross. You can dislike that if you want, but that doesn't make it a convenient coincidence.- Why would workers care about two white guys entering the building? There's a ton of people I pass every day around my office and I have no idea what they do. You're assuming people are inherently suspicious and assume there are criminal conspiracies around them in their everyday lives. They do not.- People don't disclose things in real estate offerings all the time, because there's tens of thousands of dollars at stake.. It's stupid to complain about that as a "convenient coincidence."- I don't understand why it's weird that nobody notices the hole in the ceiling. How could they unless they were in the house?I could go on and on with stuff you listed that's either not the much of a coincidence or isn't "convenient" in that it wasn't needed to move the story forward.Like others have said,all the coincidences leading to the plane crash were a little beyond the pale, and I'll give you Hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco as pushing it a bit, too. But those are the only two you listed that push suspension of disbelief at all, IMO. The rest is just standard storytelling stuff; people's lives intersecting, people catching good and bad breaks, people getting away with crimes or getting caught due to circumstances, etc. If you don't like the standard staples of fiction, maybe a mall security tape or sitting on a park bench watching ducks or something is more to your liking?

Oh please. Think these things through man. 1. What is a diaper box doing in the house half-empty if there's no baby? I get a boatload of diapers delivered every two weeks and i know that each box is packed tight. Yes, the baby wasn't born yet, but then how does one explain the half-empty box.2. Why would workers care about two white guys entering the facility, guys who then push some button on a car-size piece of machinery, only to see it then rise enough that the guys can slip behind it and disappear for hours on end. No, nothing strange there.3. You didn't touch the issue with Jesse's girlfriend. These things aren't a big deal - really minor even - and the show is fantastic, but if you don't think there aren't improbable story lines, convenient coincidences, and other oddities, you're crazy.

I always look at television as crazy things happen in the world. They do and these are their stories. Reminds me of that scene in "Adaptation" with Brian Kenney lecturing Cage's character.Suspension of disbelief is ok as long as it is necessary. Where storytellers lose it is when they ask you to believe something incredible when their was a much easier way to get from point A to B. It's lazy storytelling. Breaking Bad is not perfect but they do a terrific job. Like the episode where Walt and Jesse are stuck in the RV and Sal calls into a car-accident involving Hank's wife. That is believable and well thought out.

 

[flc735]

How much are we to assume Hank's "ever-increasing" medical bills are? Roughly...

he works for the police, he fights criminals for a living. i have to imagine his job fully insures him for these medical expenses.i cant remember, how did hank end up in the hospital?

Nope.Hank's insurance was only going to cover a few visits per week, not nearly enough for his klepto-wife, who was insisting upon (and rightly so, imho) The Best therapy for her husband.

Since insurance would not cover The Best, Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy) cooked up the gambling story and offered to pay cash.

ok, that was just a guess. dont they have money though? wasn't the original plan for them to help pay for hanks expenses from the start?again, not sure. sped through 3 seasons about a year ago

 

[Thunderlips]

You are both getting stuff wrong, missing some of the points of these "coincidences," and calling some things coincidences that aren't far fetched. A couple examples:- Why would someone look in a diaper box before the baby arrived? Doesn't seem far-fetched to me.- Walt sitting next to the dad didn't advance the plot at all. It wasn't necessary, and therefore it's not a "convenient" coincidence. It was a deliberate move to show how all our lives cross. You can dislike that if you want, but that doesn't make it a convenient coincidence.- Why would workers care about two white guys entering the building? There's a ton of people I pass every day around my office and I have no idea what they do. You're assuming people are inherently suspicious and assume there are criminal conspiracies around them in their everyday lives. They do not.- People don't disclose things in real estate offerings all the time, because there's tens of thousands of dollars at stake.. It's stupid to complain about that as a "convenient coincidence."- I don't understand why it's weird that nobody notices the hole in the ceiling. How could they unless they were in the house?I could go on and on with stuff you listed that's either not the much of a coincidence or isn't "convenient" in that it wasn't needed to move the story forward.Like others have said,all the coincidences leading to the plane crash were a little beyond the pale, and I'll give you Hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco as pushing it a bit, too. But those are the only two you listed that push suspension of disbelief at all, IMO. The rest is just standard storytelling stuff; people's lives intersecting, people catching good and bad breaks, people getting away with crimes or getting caught due to circumstances, etc. If you don't like the standard staples of fiction, maybe a mall security tape or sitting on a park bench watching ducks or something is more to your liking?

Oh please. Think these things through man. 1. What is a diaper box doing in the house half-empty if there's no baby? I get a boatload of diapers delivered every two weeks and i know that each box is packed tight. Yes, the baby wasn't born yet, but then how does one explain the half-empty box.2. Why would workers care about two white guys entering the facility, guys who then push some button on a car-size piece of machinery, only to see it then rise enough that the guys can slip behind it and disappear for hours on end. No, nothing strange there.3. You didn't touch the issue with Jesse's girlfriend. These things aren't a big deal - really minor even - and the show is fantastic, but if you don't think there aren't improbable story lines, convenient coincidences, and other oddities, you're crazy.

As far as number two goes....who's to say that the workers there don't have some knowledge as to what goes on? We accept the reality in The Wire in which people in the hood "don't snitch". Why is it so hard to believe that Gus has hired like minded people? Organized crime often relies on the inability (whether ir be fear, ethnic loyalty or money) of a civilian population to look the other way.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

 

[TobiasFunke]

You are both getting stuff wrong, missing some of the points of these "coincidences," and calling some things coincidences that aren't far fetched. A couple examples:- Why would someone look in a diaper box before the baby arrived? Doesn't seem far-fetched to me.- Walt sitting next to the dad didn't advance the plot at all. It wasn't necessary, and therefore it's not a "convenient" coincidence. It was a deliberate move to show how all our lives cross. You can dislike that if you want, but that doesn't make it a convenient coincidence.- Why would workers care about two white guys entering the building? There's a ton of people I pass every day around my office and I have no idea what they do. You're assuming people are inherently suspicious and assume there are criminal conspiracies around them in their everyday lives. They do not.- People don't disclose things in real estate offerings all the time, because there's tens of thousands of dollars at stake.. It's stupid to complain about that as a "convenient coincidence."- I don't understand why it's weird that nobody notices the hole in the ceiling. How could they unless they were in the house?I could go on and on with stuff you listed that's either not the much of a coincidence or isn't "convenient" in that it wasn't needed to move the story forward.Like others have said,all the coincidences leading to the plane crash were a little beyond the pale, and I'll give you Hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco as pushing it a bit, too. But those are the only two you listed that push suspension of disbelief at all, IMO. The rest is just standard storytelling stuff; people's lives intersecting, people catching good and bad breaks, people getting away with crimes or getting caught due to circumstances, etc. If you don't like the standard staples of fiction, maybe a mall security tape or sitting on a park bench watching ducks or something is more to your liking?

Oh please. Think these things through man. 1. What is a diaper box doing in the house half-empty if there's no baby? I get a boatload of diapers delivered every two weeks and i know that each box is packed tight. Yes, the baby wasn't born yet, but then how does one explain the half-empty box.2. Why would workers care about two white guys entering the facility, guys who then push some button on a car-size piece of machinery, only to see it then rise enough that the guys can slip behind it and disappear for hours on end. No, nothing strange there.3. You didn't touch the issue with Jesse's girlfriend. These things aren't a big deal - really minor even - and the show is fantastic, but if you don't think there aren't improbable story lines, convenient coincidences, and other oddities, you're crazy.

Of course there are improbable story lines. It's a television show. If there wasn't it wouldn't be a very interesting. Even reality TV shows have to nudge and sometimes script their programming to make it interesting. Yeah, there's a couple things that are convenient coincidences. I admitted that in my post that I thought hank showing up just in time to save them from Tuco pushed the bounds of suspension of disbelief a bit, and so did the plane crash with the debris landing in their neighborhood. So it's not perfect. But instead of asking me about "Jesse's girlfriend" (not sure what that refers to), maybe you should explain all the things that you called "convenient coincidences" or whatever that have been clearly explained as not.As far as the other two things you mentioned:1. I don't have kids so I have no idea what diaper boxes are or what people do with them, but I assume they're a place to keep diapers and that they're not disposable. Walt and Skyler have a kid, why wouldn't they have just saved their baby stuff in the attic and taken it out when they started to convert a room to a nursery? Is that really unreasonable?2. They haven't really bothered to show the guys coming and going from the facility enough for you to draw any conclusions about it. Maybe they only do it once a week? Maybe they arrive and leave at different hours or on different days so different crews are working at the facility each time and there's no pattern? I also think you wildly overestimate the extent to which people notice things around them. Have you ever conducted an illicit transaction in public? Nobody gives a rat's behind. You could meet the same guy in the same place- street corner, train station, restaurant, whatever- 3 or 4 days a week and hand him anything you want and he could hand you a wad of bills in exchange for it, and NOBODY would take notice. People are in their own worlds. Sure, if you're on the lookout for something you notice stuff easily. But if you're not, people just go about your business. I'd bet that people have done drug deals or used drugs or carried weapons or met up with hookers or whatever right in front of your nose many many times without you noticing.

 

[Sabertooth]

I when Hanks wife say "Are you ordering another rock?" And Hank spits back "I'm bidding on minerals."

 

[Apple Juice]

I when Hanks wife say "Are you ordering another rock?" And Hank spits back "I'm bidding on minerals."

I didn't laugh at the time but now I am.

 

[pantherclub]

I love how jessie was just sitting on the stool just looking down but after a while when Gus was behind him he slowly turned his head to see what the hell he was doing.

 

[Sabertooth]

I love how jessie was just sitting on the stool just looking down but after a while when Gus was behind him he slowly turned his head to see what the hell he was doing.

Aaron Paul was awesome in this episode.

 

[SmoovySmoov]

I love how jessie was just sitting on the stool just looking down but after a while when Gus was behind him he slowly turned his head to see what the hell he was doing.

Aaron Paul was awesome in this episode.

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

 

[pantherclub]

I love how jessie was just sitting on the stool just looking down but after a while when Gus was behind him he slowly turned his head to see what the hell he was doing.

Aaron Paul was awesome in this episode.

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

He certainly has developed his skills and his character from the beginning to now.

 

[Charlie Frown]

Skylar (boy has she gotten heavy)

That scene where she is trying to break into Walt's, I could only think about how huge she has gotten. She looked like an Amazon woman.

I just notice how much bigger her boobs were.

 

[biggamer3]

Someone on some review site said that skylar obviously had work done on her face which was distracting since the plot continues from last year. Any one see that she had work done? She looked the same plain face to me

 

[Walton Goggins]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

 

[Walton Goggins]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

I'm willing to bet that this is no longer the case. I am banking on someone in his family dying because Walt does not want to get caught. It was crystal clear Gus will not kill Walt unless someone can clearly replace him. That's why Jesse was at peace during the Denny's scene and Walt was not (couldn't even eat). If Gus really thought Walt cared that much about his family he would use that against him.

Walt wants to run the entire operation and be where Gus is now. Really looking forward to see how all this plays out.

 

[Thunderlips]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

I'm willing to bet that this is no longer the case. I am banking on someone in his family dying because Walt does not want to get caught. It was crystal clear Gus will not kill Walt unless someone can clearly replace him. That's why Jesse was at peace during the Denny's scene and Walt was not (couldn't even eat). If Gus really thought Walt cared that much about his family he would use that against him.

Walt wants to run the entire operation and be where Gus is now. Really looking forward to see how all this plays out.

I got the exact opposite about Jesse....that he at because he didn't understand the severity of his situation. Jesse thinks he's untouchable....but the only reason he is is because of Walt.

 

[Sabertooth]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

I'm willing to bet that this is no longer the case. I am banking on someone in his family dying because Walt does not want to get caught. It was crystal clear Gus will not kill Walt unless someone can clearly replace him. That's why Jesse was at peace during the Denny's scene and Walt was not (couldn't even eat). If Gus really thought Walt cared that much about his family he would use that against him.

Walt wants to run the entire operation and be where Gus is now. Really looking forward to see how all this plays out.

I got the exact opposite about Jesse....that he at because he didn't understand the severity of his situation. Jesse thinks he's untouchable....but the only reason he is is because of Walt.

His expectancy is very known to him. Their lives are both on Walt's cancer clock.

 

[Encyclopedia Brown]

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

I watched the show all at once this past couple of weeks. Paul's portrayal has gotten both more subtle and yet deep. The first season he was so waaaaay over the top with the white homeboy schtick that it seemed almost like parody.I wonder how much of his improvement has to do with being around Cranston (and now Esposito). Those two actors are so brilliant at conveying emotion and thought without having to say a word. Their skill is in their understatement.Some of that had to rub off on Paul.

 

[Apple Juice]

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

I watched the show all at once this past couple of weeks. Paul's portrayal has gotten both more subtle and yet deep. The first season he was so waaaaay over the top with the white homeboy schtick that it seemed almost like parody.I wonder how much of his improvement has to do with being around Cranston (and now Esposito). Those two actors are so brilliant at conveying emotion and thought without having to say a word. Their skill is in their understatement.Some of that had to rub off on Paul.

It's not a stretch to say Paul has improved with experience and his character becoming more complicated. I would say even Cranston has improved. But I agree that Paul's biggest strides have come in expressing himself without saying anything. The first episode was a showcase of that. I couldn't take my eyes off him. His reaction after Gus kills Victor, when all you see is his face--eyes locked in on Gus--was fantastic.Any of the joy and innocence Jesse had has been eradicated. His unconcerned, going through-the-motions-conversation with Walt seemed as much an effect of feeling like he was no longer in danger as not even caring if he was.

 

[Abraham]

Any of the joy and innocence Jesse had has been eradicated. His unconcerned, going through-the-motions-conversation with Walt seemed as much an effect of feeling like he was no longer in danger as not even caring if he was.

0

Agree completely. I think he's resolved to a fate of violence and pain. (copied from a blog): "At least we're all on the same page." And Walt asked, "And what page is that?" Then Jesse imitated himself slitting his own throat and says, "That if I can't kill you, I sure as hell will make you wish you were dead."

 

[Walton Goggins]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

I'm willing to bet that this is no longer the case. I am banking on someone in his family dying because Walt does not want to get caught. It was crystal clear Gus will not kill Walt unless someone can clearly replace him. That's why Jesse was at peace during the Denny's scene and Walt was not (couldn't even eat). If Gus really thought Walt cared that much about his family he would use that against him.

Walt wants to run the entire operation and be where Gus is now. Really looking forward to see how all this plays out.

I got the exact opposite about Jesse....that he at because he didn't understand the severity of his situation. Jesse thinks he's untouchable....but the only reason he is is because of Walt.

Jesse explained it all to Walt while eating pancakes. He seemed crystal clear.

 

[Walton Goggins]

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

I watched the show all at once this past couple of weeks. Paul's portrayal has gotten both more subtle and yet deep. The first season he was so waaaaay over the top with the white homeboy schtick that it seemed almost like parody.I wonder how much of his improvement has to do with being around Cranston (and now Esposito). Those two actors are so brilliant at conveying emotion and thought without having to say a word. Their skill is in their understatement.Some of that had to rub off on Paul.

I think he was supposed to act like that from the beginning. A small time nobody. Now involved in a number of murders and making that kind of money would change a person. If he acted now like in Season 1 I don't think that would work.

 

[Statorama]

Watched it for the first time this weekend. Well acted and very tense.

 

[Christo]

Definitely. I hear people complain about him from time to time, but I think those that have a problem with him just don't like the character. The actor is fantastic.

I watched the show all at once this past couple of weeks. Paul's portrayal has gotten both more subtle and yet deep. The first season he was so waaaaay over the top with the white homeboy schtick that it seemed almost like parody.I wonder how much of his improvement has to do with being around Cranston (and now Esposito). Those two actors are so brilliant at conveying emotion and thought without having to say a word. Their skill is in their understatement.Some of that had to rub off on Paul.

Isn't all white homeboy schtick waaaay over the top?

 

[Walton Goggins]

pretty good (older) piece on Aaron Paul

http://nymag.com/arts/tv/features/64941/

I pictured Jesse as an average-looking guy, you know, a 25-year-old snot that cooks meth. On the spectrum of life, he’s a loser,” says Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan. So when Aaron Paul walked in to audition for the role of Jesse Pinkman in 2007, he had a severe handicap: He was too handsome. That may seem counterintuitive in Hollywood, especially given that the character was part of a new show on the then ratings-starved AMC, but Gilligan was committed to as bleak a vision as you’re likely to find on TV. Still, once Paul started reading his lines, “I knew he was the guy.” It took some persuading—AMC executives were similarly perplexed by his attractiveness—but Gilligan got his way and cast the 30-year-old Idaho native as Jesse, the drug-dealing sidekick to chemistry teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston). “When folks rise to the occasion and make themselves indispensable,” Gilligan says of Paul, “your perception of your own show changes. Funny how that works.”

To the invested audience of Breaking Bad—which premiered its third season last Sunday—what began as a show about Walter White’s journey from cancer victim to unlikely drug lord is now a two-man story. Jesse started as an absurd screwup, his defiant gait and explosive intensity made comical by the laughably oversize clothes and gangsta posturing of a backwater hustler. That began to change in season two, with the spectacularly creepy and heartbreaking “Peekaboo,” an episode centering on Jesse and the neglected child of two junkies. “The location was a sad place, a rundown house that the art department found in Albuquerque,” Paul says of the dingy meth-den set. “The dialogue and the emotions were really intense, especially because I was working with a kid.” It was the first episode that centered on Jesse alone, and the reaction from fans was immediate. “This was a favorite,” says Gilligan. “I think it’s because of the tenderness that Jesse shows toward that little boy. You realized that in an alternate universe, he could actually be a really good dad. Often in TV, you give an episode to a supporting character for practical reasons, because your star is unavailable. That was not the case here. We wrote that episode about Jesse’s mind-set because it was time to do it.”

In person, you might mistake Paul for a freshly scrubbed Boy Scout leader—more like Scott Quittman, the upstanding young husband he plays on Big Love. (It’s a little disconcerting: Paul is now so entwined with Jesse, you find yourself wondering when Quittman will reveal some dark predisposition.) “I’m pretty light, but I’m drawn to the opposite,” says Paul. “Coming from Idaho and moving to L.A., it was impossible to ignore the drug world. And this particular drug, meth, definitely affected people close to me, including a girlfriend,” says Paul. “I saw people morph into something else, and at a certain point, it’s not even their fault anymore.”

Season three begins with Jesse in rehab, following a descent into heroin addiction and his (fictional) girlfriend’s death. He’s off drugs, his clothes fit, and he’s learning to accept himself. Yet oddly, playing Jesse straight “really threw me for a loop,” says Paul. “It was hard to nail him. I had no idea where they were going with this character. He’s so numb and cut off from everything.” Cranston, who considers himself a kind of mentor to his co-star, says the struggle hasn’t dimmed Paul’s enthusiasm. “It was wonderful to see him, for lack of a better term, just sit down in it and swallow this new approach,” says Cranston, who has won two Best Actor Emmys for Breaking Bad (Paul has been nominated once). “I’ll say to him, ‘Can we work on this scene?’ He’s like a little puppy, ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah. What do you want to do?’ And he’s excited about it, genuinely excited about it.”

Turns out good looks weren’t the only hurdle for Paul back in 2007; unbeknownst to him, he was auditioning for a doomed character. “My intention was that at the end of season one, Jesse would die horribly, which would make Walt feel really guilty and force him to question his criminality,” says Gilligan. “But it became clear to me that Aaron Paul was an absolute asset to the show. I’d no more kill him off now than cut off one of my pinkies.”

 

[Walton Goggins]

Aaron Paul discusses this season

http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/07/breaking-bads-aaron-paul-dissects-jesses-mental-state-teases-season-4.html

Zap2it: Last season ended with Jesse shooting at Gale [David Costabile], although we still don't know if he actually shot him. What's his mental state after doing that?

Aaron Paul: I think it was truly a loss of innocence. All last year, Jesse was stating, or trying to convince himself, that he's the bad guy because of all the guilt over Jane's death [at the end of the second season]. He blames himself. ... It's all about self-acceptance and what he learned in rehab, trying to convince himself of that. I think the final scene of last season validated that. He can go to that place, and he is that dark and bad person. He did it out of necessity, but still.

He really was carrying a lot of guilt -- I'm thinking of that scene where Jesse's lying in his house, listening to Jane's voice mail over and over.

Yeah -- it's the last thing he had of her. That was it. When I read that, and then read that all of the sudden the voice mail cuts out ... it was devastating. This show really beats you up at times.

Season 4 starts right after the end of Season 3, correct?

It picks up right where it left off. We start off running. This season is definitely the most intense season thus far, in my opinion.

Thematically, what is the show getting into this season?

I would say the first episode really puts each character in their place: Hank [Dean Norris] and Marie [betsy Brandt], where they're at; Skyler [Anna Gunn], where she's at and how she's dealing with all this. Walt-slash-Heisenberg is [laughs] -- he's all over the place, you know? And Jesse, he's in a very dark place, even darker than last season.

Jesse's really been through a lot, but at least the scenes with his idiot friends last season let you go a little lighter.

Yeah. I love when those guys are here because usually we're just doing such goofy, stupid stuff. It's nice to break away from the balls-to-the-wall intensity. But that's also so much fun.

How does Jesse see those guys now -- does he look down on them a little bit?

I think so. Jesse is morphing into someone different. You could see that last season. When the guys start to really take the [12-step program] seriously, he's like "What are you talking about?" He pretty much wants to slap them in the face: "You're drug dealers, you work for me. Let's do this." But he's slowly separating from everybody. He's becoming kind of a lone gunman. I don't know -- this season is so intense.

We walked through the set today, and Jesse's house isn't looking so great...

No, not at all. ... The house is turning into a wreck. Jesse's life is just ...

Is he doing those kinds of things on purpose, or does he just not care?

I think it's just not caring. It's hard to talk about and not give anything away. But Jesse's messed up. He's messed up inside and out, so he's struggling to keep his bearings.

The flashback scenes in Season 3 worked really well. Are you doing more this season?

Yes. I think it's a very "Breaking Bad" thing to do, which is so great. There are multiple flashbacks.

 

[Tough As Nails]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

He was never really doing it for his family. If he was only concerned about his family, he would have taken the offer from his college buddy/partner. HE wanted to be the one to provide. His ego was apparent right from the start.

 

[Christo]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

He was never really doing it for his family. If he was only concerned about his family, he would have taken the offer from his college buddy/partner. HE wanted to be the one to provide. His ego was apparent right from the start.

Remind us what the terms of his friends offer were.

 

[Major]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

He was never really doing it for his family. If he was only concerned about his family, he would have taken the offer from his college buddy/partner. HE wanted to be the one to provide. His ego was apparent right from the start.

Remind us what the terms of his friends offer were.

Sweet pay package, benefits and great job with former partner's company. Walt's pride effed with his head and he thought of the job offer as charity instead of something he deserved.

 

[Christo]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

He was never really doing it for his family. If he was only concerned about his family, he would have taken the offer from his college buddy/partner. HE wanted to be the one to provide. His ego was apparent right from the start.

Remind us what the terms of his friends offer were.

Sweet pay package, benefits and great job with former partner's company. Walt's pride effed with his head and he thought of the job offer as charity instead of something he deserved.

Okay, I remember that now. But a sweet pay package doesn't really help someone who's getting ready to die.

 

[boubucarow]

Walt needs Jesse. I am thinking it'll have something to do with Walt's family or extended family. Perhaps someone finds out about him and he has to kill them. It would complete the "I am doing this all for my family" BS lie he tells himself and show for good it's not about that.

You haven't already guessed this yet?The whole for the family thing might have been true at first BUT certainly not now.

First, that's not what he said. Second, he's still doing it for his family in many ways. He might not now being dying but the cancer can return. And it's not like he can just go back to being a HS teacher. Gus & Mike know exactly where his family is and have the ability to kill them at any time. His motives might have diversified, but his family is still at the heart of it.

The "I am doing this all for my family" part of the post is not supposed to be a direct quote, but instead conveys how he justifies his actions to himself. At the start of this show I would agree 100% that he was doing this for them, but I think that it is just not the case. Walt is changing almost fundamentally into someone else.

He was never really doing it for his family. If he was only concerned about his family, he would have taken the offer from his college buddy/partner. HE wanted to be the one to provide. His ego was apparent right from the start.

Remind us what the terms of his friends offer were.

Sweet pay package, benefits and great job with former partner's company. Walt's pride effed with his head and he thought of the job offer as charity instead of something he deserved.

Okay, I remember that now. But a sweet pay package doesn't really help someone who's getting ready to die.

A good portion of the prideful reject of the help was that he felt screwed over by his former partner. He felt that now it was a pity party when the partner didn't think twice about him prior. I agree he wanted to be the one to provide but the source of this help made it unacceptable to him. It is impossible to know for sure if he would have accepted a similar offer from another.

 

[wildbill]

Okay, I remember that now. But a sweet pay package doesn't really help someone who's getting ready to die.

His friend Elliot offered Walt the job with the sweet pay package and benefits, but when Walt turned it down Elliot offered to pay for his treatment. Walt's pride wouldn't let him accept it. That was really the point that he started breaking bad. He could have walked away from the drug trade right then, and he chose not to.

 

[Christo]

Okay, I remember that now. But a sweet pay package doesn't really help someone who's getting ready to die.

His friend Elliot offered Walt the job with the sweet pay package and benefits, but when Walt turned it down Elliot offered to pay for his treatment. Walt's pride wouldn't let him accept it. That was really the point that he started breaking bad. He could have walked away from the drug trade right then, and he chose not to.

But at that point he still didn't know the cancer was going to go into remission. He thought he was going to die. And the only way to make enough money to take care of his family after he was gone was the drugs.

 

[Maik Jeaunz]

enjoyed the season opener. they jumped right back into it without a lot of setup. still can't stand Skyler. and Jesse's transformation over the last couple of season has been fun to watch. the end, with him calmly eating his pancakes, shows just how easily stuff rolls off his back now.

 

[boubucarow]

enjoyed the season opener. they jumped right back into it without a lot of setup. still can't stand Skyler. and Jesse's transformation over the last couple of season has been fun to watch. the end, with him calmly eating his pancakes, shows just how easily stuff rolls off his back now.

Not sure if stuffs rolls of his back or if he is just numb now. Maybe there isn't a difference.

 

[Sabertooth]

enjoyed the season opener. they jumped right back into it without a lot of setup. still can't stand Skyler. and Jesse's transformation over the last couple of season has been fun to watch. the end, with him calmly eating his pancakes, shows just how easily stuff rolls off his back now.

Not sure if stuffs rolls of his back or if he is just numb now. Maybe there isn't a difference.

He's resigned to his fate. Once he accepted that he tied his boat to Walt and Walt is dying, he just accepted that is what is going to happen to him as well.

 

[Abraham]

My wife said yesterday, "this show us so depressing. I feel like everyone in the show is going to be dead soon but only after they've suffered a bunch more. "

 

[Major]

Interesting piece about the use of color in Breaking Bad. Still about the bike mounted on Gale's car last season (2nd pic): The Breaking Bad Palette

 

[Cunk]

enjoyed the season opener. they jumped right back into it without a lot of setup. still can't stand Skyler. and Jesse's transformation over the last couple of season has been fun to watch. the end, with him calmly eating his pancakes, shows just how easily stuff rolls off his back now.

Not sure if stuffs rolls of his back or if he is just numb now. Maybe there isn't a difference.

I think now, after finally killing someone, he now a killer. He had his time of contemplation as we saw throughout the show but got through that and came out on the other end comfortable with the fact. I think he'll be a lot more dangerous now. Now that's he's a bonafide "killer". I think he'll embrace the fact.