Current Events > Breaking Bad is THE master of story telling and cinematography

(+) Yeah! (+)

I honestly dont understand how anyone could call this show bad. Camera work alone is probably one of the best in the media world.

Im rewatching it for the 2nd time and its just mind blowing. The foreshadowing that happens in previous seasons to terrible things is so subtle but insane to see on a rewatch. Its really damn neat.

People dont actually think this show is bad right? Best show ever made IMO. Such a great western.
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I agree. I really enjoyed all the finer details and the casting was pretty incredible too. Not just the mainstay characters, even the most bit actor that would say like one line in one episode was top notch. Beautifully crafted show.
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Better Call Saul is just that but much better. They found their grove with BB and now they just knocked BCS out of the park.
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@Scotty_Rogers

EDIT: Damn, warned again.
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Probably the second worst show I ever watched
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I loved it but not really for the cinematography
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LightningAce11 posted...

Better Call Saul is just that but much better. They found their grove with BB and now they just knocked BCS out of the park.

I would agree. Breaking Bad has the better premise and is inherently more interesting due to that but BCS is made by a well oiled machine and is better in more subtle ways
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Ultima Dragon posted...

I agree. I really enjoyed all the finer details and the casting was pretty incredible too. Not just the mainstay characters, even the most bit actor that would say like one line in one episode was top notch. Beautifully crafted show.

Yep. I love the attention to detail Vince Gillian has to this show. Its so damn intricate.

LightningAce11 posted...

Better Call Saul is just that but much better. They found their grove with BB and now they just knocked BCS out of the park.

BCS took a season to find its groove actually IMO. But Id say season 3 rivals any season of BB, or maybe even surpasses them.
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As far as cinematography goes, I don't think a television show has topped BB. As far as shows overall, I still think The Wire is better but the margin is very slim.
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The problem with BB is you can only ever enjoy it once.
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TheCurseX2 posted...

The problem with BB is you can only ever enjoy it once.

Nah honestly a rewatch is JUST as good. Maybe even better because you notice more.
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mew4ever posted...

As far as cinematography goes, I don't think a television show has topped BB. As far as shows overall, I still think The Wire is better but the margin is very slim.

The Wire is damn good, but inconsistent. Season 2 just isnt that good..
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TheCurseX2 posted...

The problem with BB is you can only ever enjoy it once.

I can say this for a lot of media tbh. It's just not the same once you know the twists, have experienced the emotional rollercoaster, etc.

I haven't caught more than an episode of BB here and there since the finale, so I think enough time has passed that it would be good to experience it all again.
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Shit, now I want to rewatch both shows again.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4LhXycJ7rI" data-time="
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Vicious_Dios posted...

Shit, now I want to rewatch both shows again.

Do it!!! If you havent at all, you wont regret it.
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Honestly Better Call Saul is better imo. Just not nearly as sensationalized.

Cranston is obviously amazing though. And the meth storyline in itself was so genius.
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Ultima Dragon posted...

TheCurseX2 posted...

The problem with BB is you can only ever enjoy it once.

I can say this for a lot of media tbh. It's just not the same once you know the twists, have experienced the emotional rollercoaster, etc.

I haven't caught more than an episode of BB here and there since the finale, so I think enough time has passed that it would be good to experience it all again.

The main thing about BB is a lot of the show is rooted in "holy shit" moments. For a first time view/binge session, it's easily top shelf television and better than a majority of movies. But I imagine trying to watch it again after six months or a year, maybe even two is a bit tough to get properly invested in.

I will say that BCS is better when it comes to multiple viewings. The brotherly relationship between Jimmy and Chuck is in my eyes way better than Walter/Jesse.
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MFBKBass5 posted...

Vicious_Dios posted...

Shit, now I want to rewatch both shows again.

Do it!!! If you havent at all, you wont regret it.

It's a huge timesink, though. Not only that, I have an extensive backlog of shows and movies that I've yet to see.
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Vicious_Dios posted...

MFBKBass5 posted...

Vicious_Dios posted...

Shit, now I want to rewatch both shows again.

Do it!!! If you havent at all, you wont regret it.

It's a huge timesink, though. Not only that, I have an extensive backlog of shows and movies that I've yet to see.

Hell yeah its worth it. Man. The Jesse storyline is my favorite part of the entire show. The transformation they make him go through is honestly awe inspiring. The feels they make you having seeing how tragic his story is...
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Muffinz0rz posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4LhXycJ7rI" data-time="

Ha! That's hilarious just thanks to some of the posts in this topic.

Corman321 posted...

Muffinz0rz posted...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4LhXycJ7rI" data-time="

Ha! That's hilarious just thanks to some of the posts in this topic.

Hahahaha I dont normally like family guy but that was spot on
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Also. Watching Walters demise is just so damn painful. They show early on how terrible of a person he is. But then the shit he does...god damn. Brutal. Savage.
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The leftovers is arugably the best TV around on all those points. It's hit or miss on the story for people (it's top three for me) but all the other points it takes almost everything including BB no question.
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Zeeak4444 posted...

The leftovers is arugably the best TV around on all those points. It's hit or miss on the story for people (it's top three for me) but all the other points it takes almost everything including BB no question.

I LOVE The Leftovers, and honestly I think story might be better than breaking bad, but the cinematography of BB plus the story makes me put it a bit ahead.

But damn. The Leftovers makes you have so many damn feels. That karaoke scene. Oof. Gets me every time.
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Breaking Bad episode in a nutshell:
Watch as Walt is tested and pushed to a new limit while Jesse looks conflicted. Is he enough of an asshole to rise to the challenge?

Yes
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Still midway through season 4 and have been for like 3 months now. Just need to power through the end. It was/is super good, Im just not motivated to do it.
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MFBKBass5 posted...

Zeeak4444 posted...

The leftovers is arugably the best TV around on all those points. It's hit or miss on the story for people (it's top three for me) but all the other points it takes almost everything including BB no question.

I LOVE The Leftovers, and honestly I think story might be better than breaking bad, but the cinematography of BB plus the story makes me put it a bit ahead.

But damn. The Leftovers makes you have so many damn feels. That karaoke scene. Oof. Gets me every time.

I honestly expected hostility when I said that lol I'm really happy to find another fan of it. Viewership was so low for it and I totally get why it's not everybodies cup of tea but ya it's a hard hard fight between those for me. I guess the ending is what makes me so biased towards it (even though season 1 has my favorite scenes bar S3E6 which is gut wrenching). Who thing is crazy, one of the few times I see why the critics raved even though fan opinion was incredibly divisive.

Cheers mate, "we're still here".
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The ending of Leftovers was so ****ing fantastic and beautiful. Honestly such a perfect ending to a beautiful and emotional show.
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I don't think it's bad, but it wasn't really my thing. The fifth season, in particular, was really contrived and almost cartoonish. Probably the biggest mark against it isn't even it's fault; it's the fact that a certain part of the fanbase is so rapidly devoted that they have deified a rather disgusting character and will spite hot venom at anyone who has any sort of criticism.

MFBKBass5 posted...

The ending of Leftovers was so ****ing fantastic and beautiful. Honestly such a perfect ending to a beautiful and emotional show.

Agreed. I just ran through it again recently and it's almost painfully obvious that it was just a love story from the start now. A beautiful one at that filled with tragic and broken characters. Almost a grittiness rarely seen in American television. Glad you liked it as much too! Didn't mean to change the topic or anything but it's hard not to gush lol.
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Dash_Harber posted...

I don't think it's bad, but it wasn't really my thing. The fifth season, in particular, was really contrived and almost cartoonish. Probably the biggest mark against it isn't even it's fault; it's the fact that a certain part of the fanbase is so rapidly devoted that they have deified a rather disgusting character and will spite hot venom at anyone who has any sort of criticism.

So the only thing wrong with the show is the fact other people are saying you should like it?

I guess you should just like it and become one of them people.
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MFBKBass5 posted...

So the only thing wrong with the show is the fact other people are saying you should like it?

Did you not read my post? I said that was the worst part about it, but I also listed some other things I didn't like about it very clearly. I'll say it again, though, the last season stretched out the story and took the characters to cartoonish proportions. I'd also point out that every character is so unlikable at the end that it's hard to care what happens to any of them. Some of the later plot points came off as really contrived, too.

Again, though, I said it was good, just not perfect, at least for me.

Conflict posted...

Dash_Harber posted...

I don't think it's bad, but it wasn't really my thing. The fifth season, in particular, was really contrived and almost cartoonish. Probably the biggest mark against it isn't even it's fault; it's the fact that a certain part of the fanbase is so rapidly devoted that they have deified a rather disgusting character and will spite hot venom at anyone who has any sort of criticism.

I think it's just more of an attachment-to-the-main-protagonist sort of thing

But there are a lot of idiots claiming Skyler is a legitimate worse character than Walt which makes no sense on any type of level

Yeah, that's definitely weird, but you are probably right. The same thing happened with Tony Soprano, who was just as disgusting as a person.

After last season I can safely say Better Call Saul has passed Breaking Bad to become the second best show to air on AMC
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SuperExcitebike posted...

After last season I can safely say Better Call Saul has passed Breaking Bad to become the second best show to air on AMC

Season 3 was just SO damn well done. Its crazy. Sauls character is fantastic.
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TC must be high. The show devolved as it progressed away from a character study into a flashy, what's going to happen next story with little of the substance the show initially promised. And the fifth season was so literal it's unwatchable. I watched the first season three times. The fifth season alone makes me want to avoid seeing the series ever again. It had some cool moments in later seasons but very little that was actually stimulating.

Conflict posted...

masterbarf posted...

TC must be high. The show devolved as it progressed away from a character study into a flashy, what's going to happen next story with little of the substance the show initially promised. And the fifth season was so literal it's unwatchable. I watched the first season three times. The fifth season alone makes me want to avoid seeing the series ever again. It had some cool moments in later seasons but very little that was actually stimulating.

Lol what in the fuck

What's wrong? Can't read?

By the end we were all watching Bryan Cranston making the best out of terrible writing. Though the show fell off before that.

I'm not the biggest fan, I thought it got pretty silly and contrived
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It bugs me just how little love Better Call Saul gets, since I thought it was just as good as BB from the beginning, if not moreso.
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Conflict posted...

If the fifth season makes you never want to see the series ever again then you obviously don't like drama shows in general. It had some of the strongest moments in the entire show

The fifth season was so literal and unnatural in how it went about answering questions and resolving plot points, it's just hard to watch.

I like drama a lot. But drama has to go beyond flashiness. It needs depth and nuance. It needs to make a statement about something related to the human experience, society, or anything important enough for me to care. Breaking Bad was essentially a character study that decided to stop being one.

It is not even close to the highest tier of tv drama. And I hope TC meant tv and not full length films, because BB doesn't deserve to wash Hitchcock's, Renoir's, Dreyer's, etc. balls.

A bit of an unpopular opinion but I think the show should've gone on for just one more season.

Everything felt a bit rushed towards the end. I think they needed more time to develop Lydia, Todd, and Jack as antagonists, and to build Walt as the villain of the show. As soon as he has his empire built the show skips ahead until it's time for it to collapse.

Conflict posted...

If the fifth season makes you never want to see the series ever again then you obviously don't like drama shows in general. It had some of the strongest moments in the entire show

I'd disagree. The show went from very grounded to cartoonish. In particular, the introduction of Nazi bad guys was clearly just for the sake of making some villains that at least made Walter somewhat sympathetic. They also were merely established as neo-nazi/white supremacists through throwaway lines, which is sort of weak.

The gun-in-the-trunk plot line was weirdly outlandish. The show couldn't seem to decide whether it wanted people to pity Walt or cheer for him. Jesse, who was largely a driving force of the show, was sort of sidelined and made to suffer for the drama.

The fact that Walt got his way in the end was incredibly weird given the show was built on showing that his actions had consequences, and that his ego was always ultimately his downfall. It's jarring for the story to suddenly radically shift the other way.

It's a shame, since the whole 'I won' plot was such a great climax to the show. I felt like the rest was some sort of reunion movie or something. If they would have resolved everything in the fourth season, it would have been much better and left some of the ambiguity I loved about the show in. Instead they just sort of tried to cash in on it and make a more actionized ending, which just didn't sit as well for me, personally.

Saying 'you just don't like drama' is obviously just trying to attack the person instead of their criticisms.

I never managed to get into it.
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It was a pretty bad show. A show that is clearly based on real life isn't supposed to throw logic out of the window so many times.
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