![]() ![]() ![]() Breaking Bad gives itself a lot of chances to fall into clichés. So far, after one episode, they're unsuccessful and Pinkman's one connection nearly murdered both of them, but this is the charm of the show: Walt is in way over his head. And Walt is great at it – an "artist," Pinkman called him, creating solid glass. They strike a deal: Walt uses his chemistry background to create the Meth while Pinkman uses his connections to sell it. But after he takes a walk on a drug bust with his brother-in-law who's a DEA agent (ten bucks says that becomes a source of conflict later), he finds out a former student of his, Jesse Pinkman (who managed to escape the bust), is a dealer. When he's talking about chemistry, when he's holding a gun in his hand, even when he closes the glove compartment in his car, he's Walt. ![]() He's quiet, he's passionate about chemistry and he's a bit of a wreck. And Cranston – Cranston! He delivers in this show. There's no narration or inner monologue, but the great performance by Bryan Cranston (whose Thanksgiving Reunion days are thankfully behind him) and some wonderful directing make such things unnecessary. There isn't much spelled out in this show. Instead of dealing with it (e.g., going to a therapist or talking about it with his wife, whom he doesn't tell), he takes it out on his work at the car wash, curses at his employer and quits, and it's pretty funny in the way that spazzes flipping out are funny. Walt sits there and acknowledges that the doctor told him but can't really come to terms with it. Eventually, he's diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and what should be the explosive turning point for a character just sort of sinks. And in the pilot, it's his 50th birthday and he's suffering a mostly-internalized mid-life crisis. He also works part time at a car wash to earn an extra few bucks, but he and his family still are not doing well financially. Now, he's married with a son (who has palsy) and a baby on the way. He was, at one point, successful enough in the chemistry field to earn an award for being part of a Nobel Prize winning team, but those days are behind him. Walt is not unlike Kersey in his humble beginnings. This is at least one element of what makes Breaking Bad so good. ![]()
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