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

[SamT]

Indeed if you had to use one word, it would be satisfying. Yes, it was predictable but I don't think you could have done it any other way. Surprises are not necessarily good things. They only work the first time you watch them. A story should be so good and strong to make you want to watch it again. So when you watch a drama a second time, none of the surprises are going to work. So it should stand on its own. Frankly how many of you guys have seen The Sixth Sense a second time? I haven't!

The only part that was both great and unpredictable was the first act. It was great fun. The moment I saw Walt with Gretchen and Elliott, I started laughing. I said "oh boy, the prediction came true. He is going to kill them and I'm going on the forum and say "in your face" naysayers!". I didn't predict at all the thing that was going to happen with them.

The rest was all predictable while you were seeing the episode. You could figure out all the major plot points like minutes before they happen. One thing I was sure days and weeks in advance was for Jesse to live.

One thing I had "problem" with, was Lydia dying. Why? Why Lydia? Why Walt wanted to kill Lydia? She had done nothing to him as I remember. She had done less to Walt than Jesse or any other character. And remember, Walt didn't know she said kill him. Walt did all this plan before Lydia saying anything. So explain to me why Walt wanted her dead? I would have been satisfied if she was caught or ran away or something.

 

[ScottH]

One thing I had "problem" with, was Lydia dying. Why? Why Lydia? Why Walt wanted to kill Lydia? She had done nothing to him as I remember. She had done less to Walt than Jesse or any other character. And remember, Walt didn't know she said kill him. Walt did all this plan before Lydia saying anything. So explain to me why Walt wanted her dead? I would have been satisfied if she was caught or ran away or something.

I think Lydia was a potential threat to Skyler or his children, at least in Walt's eyes. And he was probably right to think that.

 

[SamT]

I think Lydia was a potential threat to Skyler or his children, at least in Walt's eyes. And he was probably right to think that.

I always saw her like Saul Goodman. She was on the business side of deals and she was never directly involved in enforcing things or ordering killings. Remember at the beginning she was easily scared and always afraid.

It was only at the very end the writers tried to make her like a kingpin or Scarface. It's actually her the writers turned into Scarface not Walt.

I think this is a fun trivia point! They actually never turned Walt into Scarface. Scarface would have killed Hank and Jesse. Scarface would have killed that guy who asked for 10 grand just for one hour talking and not accepting the 2 hours talk. At the end Walt had "morals" because otherwise you would never care for him.

 

[Steve Berger]

Haven't noticed any comments, so I wonder if everyone noticed that the Photo ID in the glove compartment of the car Walt steals at the beginning was "Marty Robbins"?

 

[TravisR]

One thing I had "problem" with, was Lydia dying. Why? Why Lydia? Why Walt wanted to kill Lydia? She had done nothing to him as I remember. She had done less to Walt than Jesse or any other character. And remember, Walt didn't know she said kill him. Walt did all this plan before Lydia saying anything. So explain to me why Walt wanted her dead? I would have been satisfied if she was caught or ran away or something.

I think the real world answer is that most people wanted to see that character die. I think the in-universe answer is that, like Scott said, Lydia could present a threat to his family (especially if Walt wipes out all the people cooking meth for her). Beyond that, when Walt poisoned her, he was still under the impression that Jesse, Jack, Todd and Lydia were basically working together. So while Walt's life and family were basically destroyed, the people who had ridden his coattails were all making millions of dollars on his formula.

 

[SamT]

I think the real world answer is that most people wanted to see that character die.

Am I the only one who finds Lydia a little attractive?! (Please don't tell me "no, Todd also liked her!")

 

[TravisR]

Am I the only one who finds Lydia a little attractive?! (Please don't tell me "no, Todd also liked her!")

Me too (she's got a femme fatale thing going on) but I don't know if you want to be in a group with me and Todd.

 

[Sam Posten]

Haven't noticed any comments, so I wonder if everyone noticed that the Photo ID in the glove compartment of the car Walt steals at the beginning was "Marty Robbins"?

That was a cassette tape of the song that plays.
http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/09/30/breaking-bad-finale-marty-robbins-song-el-paso-reveals-secret-behind-felina-title/



It tells your right in the song that a bullet WILL find Walt tomorrow.

One thing other people aren't noting: Walt killed himself, not cancer, not the nazis. Shakespear quite famously called this being hoist by one's own petard:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petard#.22Hoist_with_his_own_petard.22

Gilligan noted this on Talking Bad but I noted it during the episode. I felt soooo smart for once =)

 

[Charlie Campisi]

I think Lydia was a potential threat to Skyler or his children, at least in Walt's eyes. And he was probably right to think that.

Lydia had to die. She was more than a potential threat -- Todd and the Nazis broke into the house and told Skyler to forget she had seen Lydia in the car wash and scared the life out of her. Skyler told Walt. Walt plotted Lydia's death to protect Skyler and the kids.

 

[joshEH]

That was a cassette tape of the song that plays.
http://comicbook.com/blog/2013/09/30/breaking-bad-finale-marty-robbins-song-el-paso-reveals-secret-behind-felina-title/



It tells your right in the song that a bullet WILL find Walt tomorrow.

I was just hoping Walt would also play "Big Iron" next, while fighting a bunch of Deathclaws...

 

[joshEH]

 

[Stephen Brooks]

Ricin dissolved in liquid and ingested probably won't kill you if you get medical attention. Walt actually put Lydia in a tough spot...she can either stay home and chance dying, or she can go to a hospital and say "I have ricin poisoning", which is going to raise a lot of questions. The police and possibly Homeland Security would want to know exactly how that happened, and Lydia is a sniveling coward who doesn't exactly hold up under pressure. I think that's a better revenge than necessarily killing her.

Also remember the Walt was planning to kill Lydia before....he brought the ricin cigarette to one of their meetings and only changed his mind when she pitched the "new distribution channel". He probably was just biding his time and always meant to do it eventually.

 

[SamT]

Ricin dissolved in liquid and ingested probably won't kill you if you get medical attention. Walt actually put Lydia in a tough spot...she can either stay home and chance dying, or she can go to a hospital and say "I have ricin poisoning", which is going to raise a lot of questions. The police and possibly Homeland Security would want to know exactly how that happened, and Lydia is a sniveling coward who doesn't exactly hold up under pressure. I think that's a better revenge than necessarily killing her.

I like that.

I didn't like the end music. They could have gone with something less "upbeat". I loved the end music to the last episode. They should have chose a better music to end the series. Something more powerful and dramatic.

 

[TravisR]

I didn't like the end music. They could have gone with something less "upbeat". I loved the end music to the last episode. They should have chose a better music to end the series. Something more powerful and dramatic.

Walt's death was deserved but the music made it less sad than if he just dropped dead from the gun shot and in an odd way, I found the music gave it a sorta triumphant feeling.

I was surprised by and liked that they went with hopeful or even semi-positive endings for most of the characters. Walt died surrounded by what he loved and while they'll never know, he left his family a boatload of money. I'm not big on imagining what happened after the show ended but while Jesse paid a deep price for his crimes, he can now completely start over (his house must have been RICOed and he has no other money), Skyler and Marie seem to be on the path to reconciliation, Junior will be a millionaire in a few months & can take care of his family and while Lydia could have been treated, I like to think that she died as per Walt's plan.

 

[Joe_H]

Yeah, I think in this 'universe' we're supposed to take Walt at his word from early on, that there is no cure or treatment for ricin poisoning, even if that isn't quite true in the real world.

 

[Hanson]

I haven't gone through this entire thread, but I'm sure most have seen the MythBusters episode dedicated to Breaking Bad. Wherein they busted both the hydroflouric acid dissolving the bathtub as well as the results of the exploding mercury fulminate in Tuco's lair. So the ricin follows on those footsteps.

 

[Quentin]

Did he poison her the day of the ambush or the day before? Even if she's 12 hours from the poisoning, I doubt pumping her stomach is going to help. Her system has absorbed the ricin, and it's over. There is no cure for ricin poisoning.

Ricin dissolved in liquid and ingested probably won't kill you if you get medical attention. Walt actually put Lydia in a tough spot...she can either stay home and chance dying, or she can go to a hospital and say "I have ricin poisoning", which is going to raise a lot of questions. The police and possibly Homeland Security would want to know exactly how that happened, and Lydia is a sniveling coward who doesn't exactly hold up under pressure. I think that's a better revenge than necessarily killing her.

Also remember the Walt was planning to kill Lydia before....he brought the ricin cigarette to one of their meetings and only changed his mind when she pitched the "new distribution channel". He probably was just biding his time and always meant to do it eventually.

 

[joshEH]

The AV Club's Leonard Pierce, who sort of implied he wasn't a fan of the finale, tweeted: "Hey guys, remember when Ozymandias killed all his enemies, and left a ton of treasure to his family and everyone remembered him forever?"


To which someone replied, "But he did do all those things."

The thing I really liked about Uncle Jack getting Jesse out of his hole was that Jack took soooooo much offense at being called a "liar." It was an odd counterbalance to all the lies Walter just threw out there for so long. Here was this vile Aryan henchman who has no qualms about murder, torture, etc., but calling him a "liar"?

THAT was one just one step too far, even for him. While, for Walt, the lies just became ingrained in his character. It just hammers home how bad Walter became, and what the first step in Breaking Bad was -- the lies. It's why, at the beginning of "Ozymandias," the cold-open was Walter's very first lie.

As scummy and evil as Jack was, he didn't want his fucked-up sense of honor to be challenged, so he was offended that (A) Walt was accusing him of going back on their deal by partnering with Jesse, and (B) the idea that he would ever be on a 50/50-footing with that crying little pussy Pinkman.

 

[joshEH]

I love that Jonathan Banks is just sitting there, the only one with a beer, looking like he just doesn't give a fuck.

Likely intentional. Nonetheless awesome.


Also:

 

[joshEH]