Breaking Bad - Season 5 (AMC) (1 Viewer)

[SamT]

By the way this was fun. Watching the episodes week by week and discussing, speculating here. Quite enjoyed it. I'm more used to watch a whole season and all episodes at once. That's how I watched first 4 seasons of Breaking Bad.

Season 4 as I remember had great tension with a big and satisfying ending. I wish I had watched it like this season. Would have been fun to discuss it here.

By the way, was it discussed why Gretchen and Elliot would enter their house and leave the door wide open and no alarm?

 

[ScottH]

By the way this was fun. Watching the episodes week by week and discussing, speculating here. Quite enjoyed it. I'm more used to watch a whole season and all episodes at once. That's how I watched first 4 seasons of Breaking Bad.

Indeed, it's been fun. Some of us have been here since the pilot first aired discussing the show. I was just reading through the season 1 thread and was saddened to see the late Robert Fowkes is the one that started it and was an active participant in the thread. It's a real shame he never got to see the conclusion of this great show.

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/topic/264285-breaking-bad-on-amc-starts-on-12008/

 

[Sam Posten]

Damn, that stings =(

 

[TravisR]

By the way this was fun. Watching the episodes week by week and discussing, speculating here. Quite enjoyed it.

Yep. A big part of the fun of watching a serialized show (be it 24 or The Shield or Lost or Breaking Bad) week to week is talking and speculating about will happen next. I watched the first three seasons of Battlestar Galactica in fairly rapid order and while it was still an exciting, interesting and thought provoking show, I wish I had seen it week to week so I could have had that "Oh man, I can't wait to see what happens next!" conversation with people online or in the real world.

 

[Hanson]

The Netflix strategy of dumping the entire season's worth of original programming is probably the right call, but it does destabilize the weekly net discussion that network and cable programming enjoys. Had Orange is the New Black been on, say, Showtime, the topic would have had way more discussion and pages than it did (I don't even think it made it to page 2).

 

[ScottH]

The Netflix strategy of dumping the entire season's worth of original programming is probably the right call, but it does destabilize the weekly net discussion that network and cable programming enjoys. Had Orange is the New Black been on, say, Showtime, the topic would have had way more discussion and pages than it did (I don't even think it made it to page 2).

Yeah, in my eyes that is the ONLY drawback to binge-watching a show.

 

[SamT]

Just saw the actress who plays Lydia talk in real life. Wow she sounds way different in real life.

 

[Walter C]

Indeed, it's been fun. Some of us have been here since the pilot first aired discussing the show. I was just reading through the season 1 thread and was saddened to see the late Robert Fowkes is the one that started it and was an active participant in the thread. It's a real shame he never got to see the conclusion of this great show.

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/topic/264285-breaking-bad-on-amc-starts-on-12008/

Yeah, it's very sad. I think Mr. Fowkes starting the thread on this show, also played a factor in me checking out this show.

 

[TravisR]

The Netflix strategy of dumping the entire season's worth of original programming is probably the right call, but it does destabilize the weekly net discussion that network and cable programming enjoys. Had Orange is the New Black been on, say, Showtime, the topic would have had way more discussion and pages than it did (I don't even think it made it to page 2).

I'm going off topic but while I realize Netflix is probably making the best decision with the model they have, I think the big drawback of it is that it creates a show that's popular for about a week and a half and then is totally forgotten. Arrested Development was hugely anticipated, it came out, people watched every episode in a row, said it wasn't as good as it used to be and a week later, it was like it never existed. At least with weekly airings, people anticipate seeing the next episode, can evaluate each episode on its own merits (rather than overload on them) and spending a longer period of time with a show helps to create an investment in it.

 

[ScottH]

I'm going off topic but while I realize Netflix is probably making the best decision with the model they have, I think the big drawback of it is that it creates a show that's popular for about a week and a half and then is totally forgotten. Arrested Development was hugely anticipated, it came out, people watched every episode in a row, said it wasn't as good as it used to be and a week later, it was like it never existed. At least with weekly airings, people anticipate seeing the next episode, can evaluate each episode on its own merits (rather than overload on them) and spending a longer period of time with a show helps to create an investment in it.

I think those are valid points. I was more looking at it from a personal viewing standpoint. Meaning for me as a viewer, I would much rather binge watch a show. But your point about not sustaining long-term awareness is very valid from the network perspective.

 

[SamT]

Oliver Stone Slams 'Breaking Bad' Finale Violence

The director of 'Natural Born Killers' derided one of the most universally loved series finales in recent memory for its "ridiculous" violent scenes.

http://www.tvrage.com/news/8187/spoiler-oliver-stone-slams-breaking-bad-finale-violence

 

[TravisR]

I love Oliver Stone but the critiques that he makes are basically being made out of context when you consider that he hasn't "watch[ed] the series very much". It's not luck that Walt parks the car where he does, he has been there before (when he hired Jack and company to kill Jesse is in episode 13[?]) so he knows the basic layout of the building and he's frequently pulled off those kind of MacGyver-esque tricks before. If he put those things into the mix, I think he might have a different view of the scene.

As for the violence, I guess it depends on the viewer but I don't think the violence is shown to be without consequence. One guy out of about ten walks away from the scene and the rest are all wiped out. I guess it's fair to say that it's something of a revenge fantasy rather than being wholly realistic but since it's the climax of the episode, season & series and Walt is killing the Nazis that murdered Hank, I think it's fair to give the audience a moment where they can root for Walt again and see Nazi scum get shot up.

 

[Charlie Campisi]

You're giving him way too much credit, Travis. He took the whole thing out of context. Period. Which begs the question, why would a guy who has been around movie making for so long comment on something without context? Simply to get publicity for himself and his work is the first thing to come to mind. His comments are empty. They aren't thought provoking. Just an empty flame attack that should be forgotten. In fact, I should delete this post.

 

[ScottH]

It's hard to say without hearing him saying the actual words, but it almost sounds to me like there's a jealousy there. Like he's either jealous he's not the one that created the show or he's jealous of all the attention it got.

 

[SamT]

Funny I was watching CSI today, Season 11 Cold Blooded and uncle Jack plays in it. Not only that but another Breaking Bad actor plays in it, Gretchen! So, 2 Breaking Bad actors in one episode. It's a nice Breaking Bad fix!

Update: What are the chances?! On the same day I watched a How I Met Your Mother episode and Badger is in it! Season 5 The Rough Patch.

 

[SamT]

Anthony Hopkins says Bryan Cranston's acting in Breaking Bad is the best he's ever seen.

 

[SamT]

Interesting, I was watching behind the scenes materials and Vince Gilligan said when they introduced that flash-forward with that M60, 16 episodes ago, they didn't know how it was going to be used and on whom?! Uncle Jack didn't exist at that time.

 

[joshEH]

Anthony Hopkins says Bryan Cranston's acting in Breaking Bad is the best he's ever seen.

Pretty freaking awesome. Sir Anthony complimenting you on your acting is like Bruce Lee complimenting your martial arts skills.

 

[SamT]

Walter White and Jesse Pinkman could show up in 'Better Call Saul'We may not have seen the last of Walter White. As Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan prepares for the spinoff series Better Call Saul, he tells The Hollywood Reporter that both Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul, who played Jesse, have expressed an interest in coming onto the new show in a cameo. "The sky is the limit with a prequel," Gilligan tells the Reporter. "You never know who might turn up or when or where." The prequel series is set to star Bob Odenkirk, who will reprise his role as the sleazy and surprisingly successful lawyer Saul Goodman.

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You know what, I'm not sure it's going to work. It may have been better if they did a prequel with Gustavo 'Gus' Fring as the lead.

 

[TravisR]

You know what, I'm not sure it's going to work. It may have been better if they did a prequel with Gustavo 'Gus' Fring as the lead.

I'd love to see Gus again but a whole series about him building or maintaining his meth empire would likely end up covering some similar story territory as Breaking Bad. The great thing abut doing a comedy with Odenkirk/Saul is that it'll be an entirely different show from Breaking Bad.