Posted on 09/16/2013 6:36:37 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
Twenty three minutes into Episode 514, entitled “Ozymandias” after a Shelley poem, Breaking Bad made television history. Except that most fans didn’t notice. They were instead ready to cry, scream, vomit, or hurl a waffle iron at the plasma TV, or some combination of the above.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
“I clicked past and stopped to look at a scene just for the sake of noting it.”
And in that one sentence you have laid bare your ignorance of the subject matter. You know little to nothing about the show. Watching one episode every now and then again might give you that impression. Watching the show start to finish leaves you with another entirely.
“The scene was the wife in a rental space with a pile of cash under a tarp, and telling the husband she didn’t know what else to do with it.
Now, if you’re telling me a 15-year old boy would not be affected by that...”
A 15-year old boy might be affected by that. If, however, that same 15-year old boy had watched what a death sentence that same pile of money has turned into in ensuing episodes it might have affected him in other ways. It’s called context. Look it up. You will be a better person for it.
“Otherwise, it’s a multi-year soap opera that induces quite a few young people to entertain the notion that, while they may “eventually” pay the price, they can live a pretty cool life for a few years while they distribute drugs”
Again, if you actually knew the show you would know what a path to destruction the drug world presents for the young people involved. Destruction. Total destruction. It drags on the heart.
“I’ve personally known people who felt sure they would not live to an old age, so that justified them doing all sorts of wrong things. When we’re young, we don’t think that far ahead (well, most of us). Many people will gladly trade their future for what they want now.”
Oh, so you’re the one. The only person in America who knows people involved in the drug trade or associated results. You know the only kids who have given up their future for a period of momentary glory derived from quick money?
Good God Almighty. Get over yourself.
“Young people that are teetering on going bad themselves don’t sit and think about the directing, the cinematography, the character development, etc., they simply think wow, what a cool show, the teacher made meth.”
No, they don’t. Not by themselves. At least most of them. But, BUT, I would not let my own kids idly sit and watch something like “Breaking Bad.” It’s too much for them to process and understand without someone else there to gauge and understand their reaction to it. It’s not a Saturday morning cartoon show and no one has made it out to be that. It is a serious adult piece. It is, however, a fantastic bit of story-telling of despair, pain, and wrong-doing that if you are doing your bit as a parent can be used to demonstrate a moral point. And it does that by the ton.
“Breaking Bad” is not pop culture. It’s about as far from it as you can get. Again, knowing the subject matter upon which you speak is a huge benefit. It teaches the moral pitfalls of doing the wrong things for the right reasons. It teaches that evil, no matter how well intentioned, precludes evil in return. It teaches that there is no “little white lie”....all lies are bad and will return to bight you in the end.
This show is about an otherwise good guy who decides to cut some corners in an attempt to make a quick gain in order to benefit his family and how it ultimately costs him everything in return. Love, life, faith. All gone because of bad decisions.
bump deserving
Thanks for the ping to the very interesting thread (scrolling through posts). I haven’t watched tv programs in a long, long (most of my life) time (very busy throughout the years working, reading and hanging out with family and friends).
I don’t watch shows that have followed the trend of making losers somehow be cool and edgy, it just feeds the gangster mentality. AMC lost me several years ago with these stupid shows (Sons of Anarchy and Hell on Wheels), not playing good movies and the same ones over and over, and extending 2 hour movies to 3 to cram in more commercials (which are usually for their loser “best show on tv”) lineup.
Maybe this character should repent and find Christ and counsel all his loser buddies. That would be a good show.
You're good bad - I'm interested now...
Are you by chance commenting on Game of Thrones? I watched two episodes the other night and was SHOCKED that anyone would ever recommend such a perverted show.
Thanks for the ping... I suspect the show’s a cultural influence or reflecting one - or both...
I love the 24 hour clock premise, but that Jack Bauer is always under such pressure. How does he do it?
Perfect analysis of the call and perfect description of the complete conversion from Walter White to Heisenberg. (There’s no way that van is going to make him disappear).
The writer apparently hasn’t seen The Shield. It also had a beginning, a middle, and a clearly pre-determined end.
Shane may be my all time favorite character.
Methinks the lady doth protest too much.
I read where one FReeper was giving credit to Saul Goodman. Sure he’s a sleazy shyster lawyer. But at least he’s honest and upfront about it. He doesn’t hide the fact he’s scummy.
(Looking forward to the Saul Goodman TV spinoff)
SOA is on FX, not AMC.
If 515 and 516 are 48 minutes of blank screens, it will still have the best ending ever; that’s how good 514 was.
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You got a point there. If we didn’t know about the M50 in the trunk and Walt with hair returning to his home and that stuff...
The scene with Walt riding off in the van (with his barrel of millions!) to his new identity would be THE perfect series ending.
Saul’s getting his own show?
Freaky...LOL
Did you know that a large number of BB actors are retreads from Seinfeld?
http://bullettmedia.com/article/the-cast-of-breaking-bad-all-appeared-on-seinfeld/
BB is in essence a 60 episode anti-drug public service announcement, IMHO.
No.
If you read that in context, it’s the utter monotony of his over-usage of the word...bitch!
LOL
It’s become the suffixation of everything he says.
Pure self parody.
Bitch!
;D
I could be wrong, but thee has never been nudity of any kind on Breaking Bad.
And very, very little sex.
Where can you you see Season 1?
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