'I am awake' 'What?'

[frelling_tralk]

I'm re-watching Breaking Bad season 1 at the moment, it is nice to go back to those early days and be reminded of how Jesse and Walt made the most hilarious partnership ever in the beginning. I rarely laugh at actual comedies, but I was cracking up at so many different lines ("The cow house..where the cows live!"), and Jesse and Krazy 8's reaction to Walt "being some kind of nudist" :crying with laughter:





And I know Walt is pretty much loathed these days and a lot of people have said they hated him and his ego right from the start, but I found him pretty heartbreaking in the pilot. I thought it did a great job of setting up how disrespected he felt by everyone around him, so that you were wincing right along with him when his boss pushed him around and the kids from his school made fun of him for washing their car. And yeah it was funny in a way too when he was so inept with the gun that he still had the safety on when he was trying to make the big gesture of killing himself before the police got there, but also kind of sad to me. And I know that teaching wasn't his first career choice but still he seemed genuinally into talking about it to the class, only to be disappoined at how switched off everyone was, so I can't help wondering why he didn't teach at college with kids who genuinally wanted to learn. Surely he would have found some satisfaction in that?

Anyways. Everything about the pilot, including the music and cinematography of course, is basically perfection and it's easily one of my top ten episodes of the entire series


And then the second episode becomes so freaking suspenseful (well not that the pilot wasn't!) and horrific, doesn't your heart just almost stop when you hear the movement in the RV and realise that someone is still alive back there! And the rasping breathes that Krazy-8 was taking and his shuffling attempts to get away from Walt, only to end up trapped in the basement, was all so grotesque and horrible. But in a horrible way I was kind of laughing at times too. One minute you feel like you're watching a horror movie when you see Krazy-8 trapped in that dark basement, the next I was cracking up at Walt rolling the toilet paper over. And again with Jesse having to dispose of the body when Skyler suddenly turns up to confront him over selling marijuana to Walt. So much hilarious black comedy in this episode

The episode really did a great job too though of showing how horrific it was for someone to have to confront taking a life for the first time, there was something so sad and pitiful about Walt noticing that Krazy-8 doesn't like eating the crusts :/

And lol I was never one of the people that found Jesse annoying at first, he would crack me up back then with his rather slow responses bless him and his trying out the containers to see if a body would fit in them. Really thought the disposal of the body was at least 50-50 Walt's fault, he couldn't just tell Jesse why it was so important to only use that particular container?? Poor Jesse, Walt really did dump a lot of shit on him from the beginning and never apologised for insisting that the body and Krazy-8 end up in Jesse's house, even though he knew Jesse didn't want to bring that stuff back to his home

And I really think that Anna Gunn is underrated as an actress, she had some hilarious reactions at the breakfast table to Walt and Walt Jr discussing wonder bras, and to Jesse's answerering machine message

Mind you I'm not one of the fans that either really love or really hate Skyler, most of the time she's just kind of there for me. It's not really until much later, with the breakdown of her marriage to Walt and him being such an ass over the situation he put her in, that I started feeling for her more. But I've never felt either extreme love or hate for Skyler, and it does seem like most of fandom does fall into one of those camps these days?


And everything about the third episode is really tragic with Walt starting to bond with Krazy-8 before having to kill someone in cold blood for the first time. Walt does come across as hopelessly deluded, what with checking that Krazy-8 wasn't angry with him and so desperate to come up with any excuse not to have to kill him in cold blood, only to be shocked and ready to kill when he realised the poor guy had kept a jagged edge of plate in case of a chance to escape, when really who wouldn't in his position??? The first time I was watching I was expecting the death to be cleaner with Walt putting something in the food, but it made sense that the first time he killed was just this total moment of desperation and quite brutal to carry out. He was obviously struggling a lot with the concept of taking a life, and his crying "I'm sorry" afterwards seemed very heartfelt as he'd obviously spend the scenes prior to that getting a real human insight into the guy which only made it harder for him

And there's still some funny moments here with Walt and Jesse's slapstick fight or Hank trying to scare Walt Jr straight and asking Marie how he should do that, show him autopsy pictures of a pot overdose LMAO. But that opening with Walt and Jesse cleaning up the body as younger Walt discusses elements that make up the human body with Gretchen :shudders:




(All gifs courtesy of the BB tag on tumblr)


And regarding the special features, it would have been nice to get some commentary on why certain scenes were deleted, the one from the pilot with Hank and Marie was kind of a fun intro that it seemed a shame to lose. But then I love Hank and Marie lol.

Comments

[sueworld2003.livejournal.com]

God I adore Breaking Bad. The whole series so far has been so incredibly good. I can't wait for the last 8 episodes to screen in July. :D

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Same! :D I thought it would be a good idea to have a rewatch before the final 8 episodes air, I can't wait to get stuck into all of the special features too

[sabotabby]

I love that show so much. It's funny, because the pilot did nothing for me but in retrospect it's so amazing. I didn't get hooked until the body went through the floor.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

I was hooked from the opening sequence heh, but yeah definitely the way the next two episodes build up the intensity of how they're going to handle the situation with Krazy-8 is really well-done too. The body falling through was just so disgusting, and all of the debate and the coin flip about who takes care of the body and who kills Krazy-8.

[sabotabby]

I think what did it for me was just how long it goes on. It's so over-the-top horrific that it becomes completely hilarious. And I'm trying to think of the last time I saw a show really deal with the consequences of the heroes having to kill someone.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Lol yes it's hard to explain to someone who never watched the show before just how hilarious it is watching pieces of a decomposing body fall through the ceiling, but it really really is :P And Walt telling Jesse that the acid will eat through ceramic and wood, 'so there's that'

[infinitewhale.livejournal.com]

But that opening with Walt and Jesse cleaning up the body as younger Walt discusses elements that make up the human body with Gretchen :shudders:

Best. Opening. Ever. Next best is Episode 6.

For some reason I still don't hate Walt. Lost sympathy for him, but I still want him to get his act together.

I still like all the characters, though. 'Cept Walt Jr and Hank. Something about Hank just rubs me the wrong way.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

I didn't particularly care for Hank (or Marie for that matter) the first time I started watching BB, but both characters grow on me a lot over the years until they became favourites. I loved that whole storyline they gave Hank later on when he was completely out of his depth after his promotion. And yeah it was a promising idea giving Walt a son with cerebral palsy, but then after the first season they never seemed to know what to do with the character other than pull him out in breakfast scenes to act the part of the obnoxious teen. He did get some good scenes early on, particularly the one at the clothing store when Walt takes revenge at those teenagers for laughing at him,but I can't think of one memorable scene for Walt Jr after the first season quite honestly

I think also that I go easier on Walt than a lot of viewers do definitely, I don't really hate him either so much as hate a lot of the things that he's done and the way he justifies those acts. I suppose it's similar to the two extreme camps with Skyler really, for a lot of viewers there seems to be no middle ground between those who worship present day Walt as a badass and bash anyone (like Skyler) that's perceived to cross him, or those who see him as a total monster with no humanity full stop and seem to to just hate watching him on screen at all these days. Both camps are a bit too extreme for such a complex show

[infinitewhale.livejournal.com]

Hank definitely gets more tolerable later on. My favorite part was right before he got shot and he questioned what kind of guy he actually was, because up to then, he really was kind of bully. Which I wouldn't have a big problem with itself, but the writing pinged me as we're supposed to like him. So One Minute is definitely my favorite Hank episode. Then he gets shot and the aftermath, while real and human, just put me off him.

I've never got the Skyler!hate and you're right. It seems it's either Skyler is 100% right or 100%, same with Walt. She's certainly not right, but like everyone else on the show, they do a great job of presenting things in a human and understandable way.

Walt Jr... I really think the actor bleeds through for me. Mitte annoys me; I can't help it.

Have to ask *the* BrBra question: Fly, yea or nay? :P

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

I see it slightly differently in that I think in the first season Hank was deliberately written as very crass and hard to tolerate, the whole show was very much from Walt's POV back then and you could sympathise with Walt resenting his boorish brother in law for say grabbing the beer out of Walt's hand to give a toast. The first season had Walt being a more badass version of himself very specifically aimed at those that wronged him and the audience were practically encouraged to cheer him on then, even the scene later on in the first season in when Walt manages to bluff Hank at cards kind of comes across as a go Walt kind of moment. I think it's only as the show's gone on that we've gradually seen more layers to Hank to correct our first impressions of him and to show that he does have a good heart, is very good at his job etc. I agree that the aftermath of the shooting was a very difficult time for me to like him though with the way that he was treating Marie :/

With both Jesse and Skyler these days it seems like a lot of viewers are just way too into painting them as 100% victims of Walt when it was actually a lot more complicated than that when you look at how their own choices also led them to where they are today.

And Fly is only my favourite BB episode ever *g*Any episode which consists solely of Walt and Jesse interactions is always bound to have me gripped. I was actually shocked when I found out that a lot of people didn't like it

[infinitewhale.livejournal.com]

Oh, I think we're meant to see that it was all faux-bravado and covering himself. It wasn't really his interactions with Walt that put me off him so much as Wendy and the other minor characters. :-/ I could still get on his train, though.

Definitely agree about Jesse and Sky. I don't see either as victims. They made their choices just as Walt did. It seems some people want people to answer for their decisions, but not if those decisions are a result of something Walt does. Jesse could have walked away in numerous times, but never did, etc.

Fly is awesome, yes. :) It's a like or loathe episode. I can get why people might not like it; it's different and that doesn't go over well sometimes. I just asked because I've never seen anyone dislike that I've ever agreed with. LOL

[silverusagi]

so I can't help wondering why he didn't teach at college with kids who genuinally wanted to learn. Surely he would have found some satisfaction in that?

I have always wondered this. Even though he left Gray Matter, a chemist with his skills surely could have gotten a job doing ANYTHING other than teaching high school?

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

I used to wonder this with half the teachers at my school too lol, some of them seemed to just HATE teaching any student that wasn't interested in their subject, in which case I always questioned why are you bothering with these students in the first place, you would enjoy teaching a college class sooo much more with people actually engaged in what you are teaching them. I really have no idea if there's a huge difference in the qualifications you need for uni or what, but you'd think that Walt could have managed it. It's even brought up in Grey Matter when he's embarrassed to be asked by one of Elliot's friends what university he teachers at

[silverusagi]

I think in the U.S., at least, you need a doctorate to teach college. (Of course, there are adjunct professors. I don't know what the qualifications are for those. A Masters, maybe? Or enough years of experience in that field? But for full time employment, it would be a doctorate, I'd imagine.) But to teach high school, all you need is four years of college. So you're looking at a difference of 4, 6, or 8 years. But you'd think Walt, being the genius that he is, would have more than a Bachelor's of Science. And even if he wasn't qualified to teach college, surely he could have gotten a job doing anything. One of my friend's moms has a chemistry degree, and she used to work at a place that tested water samples. Not exactly stimulating, lol, but not as soul killing as high school.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Hmm maybe he couldn't afford to spend more on college if he had to pay for Walt Junior's medical bills? I can't remember the exact timeline of Walt Jr's birth now though, but another 4 years of college could have been something he simply couldn't afford

And it seemed like Walt went into teaching because it was something he was really interested in, in moments like, "Chemistry is the study of matter" he seems really excited to be sharing this stuff, just disappointed when he looks at how bored and switched-off his classes always are, so I'd imagine that in the beginning he'd thought he could really make a difference and enjoy teaching kids this stuff. Only to get worn down by having a few too many Jesse Pinkman's in his class

[infinitewhale.livejournal.com]

My interpretation from Walt's character at that point was that it just supposed to be a temporary thing that eventually he couldn't or perhaps couldn't bring himself to get out of.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

That makes sense too, in the pillow intervention scene he mentions that he feels like things have just happened to him all his life instead of making choices, so I'd imagine he thought that maybe it would be interesting/convienient to teach high school for a few years without ever thinking that was where he would be 20 years from now. He was supposed to be doing award-winning research and winning the Nobel Peace prize after all!

From what I remember Walt Jr's condition meant that Walt and Skyler were struggling more than they had planned in the early years of marriage, so presumedly Walt had to stick with the teaching in order to gurantee a steady income was coming in.

[infinitewhale.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Skyler being pregnant, a new house and Walt Jr's condition probably all played a role in it.

I also think that mentality is a driving force behind him not taking Eliot's offer and his tenacity with the drug business. He spent his whole life playing it safe and all it got him was debt and cancer so he mentally just said to hell with it all.

[ever-neutral.livejournal.com]

Nah, YANA on Walt. I sympathised with him for most of the first season. And while I dislike him a lot as a person now, his arc is nothing to be sneezed at.

but it made sense that the first time he killed was just this total moment of desperation and quite brutal to carry out. He was obviously struggling a lot with the concept of taking a life, and his crying "I'm sorry" afterwards seemed very heartfelt as he'd obviously spend the scenes prior to that getting a real human insight into the guy which only made it harder for him
This, totally. I like that even as late as S5 you can see him occasionally appreciating the horror of murder, despite being pretty much a full-blown sociopath.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Yeah it's harder to emphasise with Walt these days definitely, ever since the poisoning of Brock really. Yet there are still hints that, even with Mike whom he hated, Walt isn't yet a cold-blooded killer without a care in the world

[falafel-musings.livejournal.com]

Poor Jesse, Walt really did dump a lot of shit on him from the beginning and never apologised for insisting that the body and Krazy-8 end up in Jesse's house, even though he knew Jesse didn't want to bring that stuff back to his home

Even though there is a lighter comic touch to the early Walt/Jesse relationship, the partnership begins with Walt blackmailing Jesse and continues with Walt bullying Jesse into things he doesn't want to do. But we also see that Walt needs to control Jesse. Like Krazy 8 points out, Jesse has a big mouth and that could be Walt's real problem. Walt has to keep Jesse on his side, otherwise there's a risk that Jesse could run to the cops and rat Walt out. Walt must have worried about that possibility at the start. Walt had threatened to turn Jesse in, but after the events of the first three episodes, Jesse had more dirt on Walt. I don't think there's any hint of friendship between Walt & Jesse until 1x6 when Jesse learns about Walt's cancer and Walt feels guilty for getting Jesse beaten up.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Yeah Walt seems to just despise Jesse early on or at least find him very irritating. Episode five is the first time that he sees Jesse in a new light when Jesse knows so much about cancer and it's obvious how close he was to his aunt

[falafel-musings.livejournal.com]

I think Walt just saw Jesse as another slacker student who he had wasted his time teaching. I think Walt warms up slightly to Jesse when the kid starts raving about the quality of his meth and then shows a desire to learn from Walt. Walt can't stay mad at someone who feeds his ego like that.

[frelling-tralk.livejournal.com]

Heh very true , I love the whole teaching mentor thing they had going on with Jesse so focused on watching what Mr White was doing and learning how to cook better meth that way