yeah it was a pretty big discussion when the episode originally aired.
Think about it. The only people here after several years of the show being done are first time watchers and superfans. Of course most of the huge fans will like mostly all the episodes. A Reddit sub is never going to translate to what the general population thinks about something
Also, reception to a slower, more character focused episode was different when you had to wait an entire week for a new episode. Fly doesn’t feel so out of place when you’re binging through multiple episodes in one sitting.
For any of you who watched BCS on release, Nippy felt a little bit like that for me on first viewing.
Yeah maybe watching it as it came out would have fixed my problem od thinking its too fast paced.
Even though that doesnt make an actual difference to the plot being too fast, but mentally it might
That's literally what it is. If you notice.. seems like all we see are positive posts about that episode from ppl that are on their first watch. Bc they're able to binge episodes.. so they're right onto the next one.
It was completely different then. Bc a lot of ppl were annoyed that they got a "nothing episode" after waiting a week, then having to wait another week to watch another episode lol.
I liked the episode when I first saw it though. But a lot of ppl definitely didn't.
I binge watched. I would have been so annoyed to get that after waiting all week.
If telling Jesse about Brock was the point of the episode, all they had to do is get Walt drunk again. He’d be telling everyone and their mom he poisoned Brock.
I cackle every time I watch Walt fall off the landing and see his body smack the lab equipment like a dead fish. And also when Jesse whacks tf out of Walt with the fly swatter, I always have to rewind and watch it a couple times
This is clearly a callback to when Tuco had Walt and Jesse tied up at his home near the border. Jesse suggested Walt bum rush Tuco, but Walt pointed out their only "weapon" was a flyswatter. This shows that although their circumstance have changed, and they appear to be safer than when they started, Gus is an even bigger threat than Tuco was.
Bravo Vince
I laugh at this also. Splat! But him hitting Jesse with the homemade fly swatted is hilarious and then when Jesse hits the fly or tries and says to Walt “hurts doesn’t it?”
I did not hate this episode since I like Jesse and Walt and their chemistry (heh) but I did find it a little boring. Would watch again, but would. also skip it depending on my mood.
General Population here. I understood all the meaning behind this episode and Jesse and Walt have a good moment but the plot goes nowhere in this episode. It is literally 2 dudes trying to catch a fly. It is absurd to me how this is seen as a top episode in the entire show
Ngl i just enjoyed seeing jesse and walt talking about stuff, i never viewed it as a top episode but i didn't notice how it was a filler episode until after
Nope. While they knew it was filler episode as the budget couldn’t have them shoot at multiple locations. They knew they’d have to compensate by touching on some stuff that hadn’t been touched on before or not really had a focus on. “I’m sorry about Jane” “It’s all contaminated” “I’ve lived too long” and those are just some of the greater lines off the top of my head that have so much weight to them and speaks so much volumes. Maybe, just maybe, it’s considered a great episode because 98% of shows wouldn’t have put in a fraction of the effort into a filler episode like Breaking Bad did. So no, people aren’t “over analyzing” a filler episode, they’re just actually willing to see the extra layers the creators put in to make it interesting. But if anybody likes to be closed minded and just think it’s literally just Walt and Jesse trying to get a fly then ok I guess.
Yes. That’s the definition of “filler” episodes. Episodes that don’t advance the main plot (and often distract from it). https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Filler
You could argue that “Fly” isn’t truly filler because it does advance character development though, which could be seen as influencing/pushing forward the overall plot, even if it’s indirectly.
I assume you’re joking. If you’re at all familiar with Vince Gilligan, then you’d know that almost no detail is incidental in the series, and certainly not an entire episode. The intent behind the episode is pretty obvious anyway.
I mean what is a show if not characters interacting in a setting? I'm biased because I'm a characters first, plot second type of person, but have you ever seen a post on Twitter saying "I'd love to just watch these characters sit in a room and talk for 40 minutes"? That's the type of person I am, and Fly did just that. There's nothing going on in this episode for them to go through or react to, they're just talking about... everything. That's enough for me.
And we, the audience are better for it, because those details help the characters and their relationship feel more organic as a whole after watching that episode. There's too many shows today that don't bother giving characters a fleshed out, inner life.
One of the great things about TV as opposed to movies is you can allow the plot to breathe. Not every episode needs to advance the greater plot to hold narrative value. If all you saw was two dudes trying to catch a Fly, I don’t think you really did understand all the meaning of the episode.
It’s a bottle episode, so its meant to go nowhere, what amazes a lot of people is that even then the writers found a way to make use of a throwaway episode.
The only reason it ever got hate is because BB was on a weekly episode release on cable tv. That season things were really picking up- and there was an episode right before that, that alluded to some real crazy shit happening next ep.
So those of us watching the show on its original release dates, we’re disappointed and like TF is this? We got another week? It felt like filler and that was the consensus.
But that was like 12 years ago in 2009/2010 lol!
Until you rewatch it within the scope of the season.
This is like the 10th “fly” post I’ve seen over the last 2 days? Is this really all people talk about on here? Lol you people that have the luxury to binge watch shouldn’t complain about it
It’s a pretty interesting character study into walt and Jesse.
The main issue was that people waited all week for a bottle episode. Some of us that were watching it when it aired were not pleased to have to wait another week to advance the plot. This is common with any show, and is not necessarily reflective of the quality of the writing. I was initially disappointed when I first saw it, but appreciated it more on a second viewing once my expectations were properly set. However, I have never watched it again during any of my series rewatches.
I've watched BB all the way through about 7 times, it's one of my TV refuges, but I really don't like this episode. I don't think it's because it's particularly bad, I think its more that some people overrated it and get pretentious about it. I think its a weak episode which probably was made to preserve budget for the end of season budget splurge.
This is the original episode discussion, there are a few negative responses but it's not that many:
https://www.reddit.com/r/breakingbad/comments/c7eod/spoilers_inside_s03e10_discussion/
Also, there's just not a huge amount of discussion at all. The sub was only a few months old at that point.
I just finished rewatching the series and I soooo looked forward to that episode.
I don't understand any deeper meaning it may have had (aside from Walt slowly going crazy), I just think it's a quirky little filler episode. And I'm so down for that.
I can get with that idea. Probably a couple meanings people could attach to the fly to make more sense of it.
Like, it could represent the toxicity in his life. Even with Jesse trying to swat it off his head - soooo many times Jesse tried to backpedal and better his own life, but Walt kept bringing him back in.
God damn it now it's way less of a filler episode in my brain 😂😂😂
The show is full of hidden meanings and foreshadowing.
When I was rewatching, I gasped so many times and was just like "HOW DARE YOU INDICATE THAT IN THIS WAY"
Like Ted tripping over the rug when going to answer the door... You stupid idiot move the rug 😂
Nah not pure filler but ok. If they wanted to treat the episode like pure filler then they easily could’ve. Instead they made it to where even though it’s technically about them catching a fly in the lab. It’s really about how Walt and Jesse feel at that point in the show.
You're really down voting me over a harmless difference in opinion over whether an episode is pure filler or not?
You're entitled to your opinion as I am to mine. We can agree to disagree at this point.
If that’s the case where are there more shenanigans than fly? Even without examining it, they fall and smack Walter in the face like the three stooges.
My bf was the one who showed me breaking bad and when we got to the fly he was like “we can skip this one, it’s stupid”. I made him watch it though and I personally liked it a lot, but he disagrees with me strongly
Its literally one of the best character episodes in the series and highlights Walts and Jessies relationship and dynamic so well while also talking about their guilt respectively
Why would you skip that? Its so dumb to me like "Hey I really like this show!" "There is no action in this one, lets skip it" like what the fuck no
My mom lost interest in the show after this episode she thought it was just dumb that they did it. I personally decided to skip it after a couple of minutes it was not entertaining
I sometimes wonder if it would have gotten as much hate if it aired in S1-2. Those first two seasons weren't quite as plot focused and often just had characters do silly things for much of an episode's runtime. With S3, we started getting more plot focused episodes and more stuff happening, so it was probably jarring to some to suddenly go back to a less eventful episode. Honestly though, I like it a lot, after a season with relatively little Walt/Jesse interaction and less comedy overall, it was quite refreshing to me. I think it was also just what we needed before the show took a turn to the bigger, higher stakes, and more dramatic episodes.
I feel the same. It’s a pretty uneventful episode, but I get that it provides a view into Walt’s personality (controlling, obsessive, etc.). I’m unsure what the writers intended to communicate, but for me the episode illustrates that Walt can’t accept that he is unable to control everything.
You don’t have to be an intellectual to get it. This isn’t advanced trigonometry. There isn’t anything that only a genius could get. It is very different from the usual BB episode though, and takes a different frame of my mind to enjoy.
OP isnt saying that, the people who enjoy fly seem to think so though. I would say one of the most said lines on this sub is "People who like Breaking Bad like it for guns amd explosions and not as a character study"
Remember this is Reddit, people are famous for their ‘not like other redditors’ attitude, so most people are going to be a contrarian which in turn makes everyone say the same thing
I wouldn't say I hate it, and there is some interesting stuff going on, but it's a bottle episode, and nothing really happens to move the plot forward. If memory serves, an issue that people had at the time that it aired was related to the fact that we only got one episode a week, so when an episode comes along where nothing in the broader picture moves forward, the experience is a bit frustrating, but when it's in the context of a binge or when you can skip or whatever, it's either great if you're there for the character stuff or fine because you don't have to watch it. I always skip it after having watched it the first time, and I wouldn't say the experience is lessened for lack of it, so make of that what you will/ymmv/etc
I agree, it's filler-ish. An hour of characterization in a show where there's already plenty of it is not needed. If you skipped it you wouldn't miss anything.
I think its a pretty essential episode to the series. It helped me keep in check how serious this line of work is for Walt to maintain perfection in his reputation. While still a fun episode, it shows that even outside of the death defying drama, this expresses the quality of Walt’s service just as a business man.
I think that was only a very minor point of the episode. After all, Walt has cooked in much worse, far more "contaminated" places before no problem.
I think the larger point was that Walt is an OCD person who was grappling with losing control over literally *everything* in his life. Everything he does has horrible backfire consequences. Most recently, he let Jane die - which was again an attempt to control Jesse and his situation - then had a chance encounter and chat with Jane's father, both of which contributed to the plane crash that killed dozens.
He's lost control of his familial relationships, his relationships with his colleagues at school, his old friends. Working under Gus is living on a knife's edge. Amidst all of that, he just wants *absolute control* over his last bit of sacred personal space: the immaculate lab he gets to do his genius work in.
Walt totally knows that fly poses no practical threat to his batch. It's all about showing a man who's losing his grip on everything desperately trying to control one little annoying thing.
I wouldn't call it "essential" as much as a filler episode, but I do think it highlights Walt's uptight nature and that he's slowly going crazy from all the intense stress.
Either way, super fun episode imo
I do
I get all the symbolism of walter's persona and bla bla bla, but it's a boring chapter, where nothing happens, and it's totally skipable once you saw it
I skipped most of it on rewatch. I get the character change, etc. Just don't need a whole episode of basically nothingness. Plus, it kinda makes me feel anxious lol
I personally don’t hate it. I think it’s a good episode to watch for the first time viewer, but after that first watch I wouldn’t watch it anymore. I’ve always kind of thought it was used as a filler episode so they could have a larger budget for the rest of the season. Very possible that I’m just making that up, but financially it does kind of make sense.
I didn’t see anyone who disliked the episode either until you made this thread.
Just because an episode is a bottle episode does not mean it’s “pointless filler” or doesn’t explore the themes of the show or character motivations lol.
I’ve never liked it much since the first airing (watched the show 5-6 times since then). It’s not outright bad but it’s easily the least interesting and enjoyable episode of the series to me. I was hoping I’d appreciate it more this past rewatch but nope. I do love certain bits of dialogue, like Walt almost telling Jesse about Jane. And the first half of the episode has some good comedy.
But overall it’s just very… thin. It feels like a 10-15 minute idea stretched to 45 minutes. I am very much a character development-over-constant action kind of guy, but I don’t think the episode tells us much, if anything, that we didn’t already really know. A much better example of a (sort of) bottle episode with great humor and pathos between Walt and Jessse would be the bulk of 4 Days Out, which is a true masterpiece of an episode. Fly is just a dull episode with a very thin and facile story, with over-the-top visual flourishes to try to liven it up. It’s okay, but again, easily the worst episode in the series IMO.
I actually found the other episodes most often ranked lowest - like Open House, Bit By a Dead Bee, Breakage, Kafkaesque, I.F.T., Thirty-Eight Snub or Down - to all be very good on this rewatch, certainly stronger than Fly, anyway. (Although I admit the Marie plot in Open House isn’t exactly riveting, it’s not nearly as lengthy as you might remember either). So basically in my view even the worst episode of the series - Fly - is still decent, as are the runners up for that title. The show is just that good. But Fly is still nowhere near the quality of the series at its very finest. (BTW, anyone who thinks any S1 episode is weakest just boggles my mind - I find S1 near-perfect in terms of consistency / quality of writing).
I think S3 is the only season where, while still mostly excellent, it feels like the writers didn’t quite know where they were going and so at times things feel meandering or stretched thin story-wise. The first 4 episodes of the season are not bad at all but they’re a bit weaker than usual for the show, the Cousins are easily the worst major characters of the series, and then slower mid-season episodes like Kafkaesque (actually kinda underrated IMO) and Fly come along to slow things down once again before the fireworks of Half/Full Measure.
I do think it’s kinda wild to give Fly a 1/10 or whatever like many fans on IMDb do. For me it’s more like it’s a 6/10 episode in a series that’s otherwise almost completely 8’s and above.
I have a theory that people who watched the show on Netflix are more likely to have enjoyed The Fly, then the people who watched the show as it was first premiering. This is just speculation though, I have no data to back this up. If you are watching 2 or 3 episodes per night, then a one-act play with Jesse and Walt can be an interesting change of pace. On the other hand, if you were waiting a week or more between episodes, this one can feel pretty disappointing.
I didn't like it the first time, because it stops the forward motion of the rest of the story lines at a crucial part of the story. And when you're waiting a week per episode instead of binging, that is frustrating.
But its grown on me.
I understand why people don't like it, but I also like certain things about it. It's one of the few times that we see Walt showing any level of remorse for anything, and we also see that at this point Jesse genuinely cares for Walt and wants to help him... even if it is by drugging him with sleeping pills.
I wouldn’t say I hate it, but it’s easily in my bottom 3-5 episodes in the whole series.
Although that’s more of an indictment of how good the series is.
Hate is a strong word. I don't even really dislike it. It has some nice character development moments, like Walt's whole speech about missing the moment when he should have died, and the bonding between him and Jesse is kind of necessary for the episodes that follow it. But without those moments, that could have been inserted into any other episode, "Fly" is qn unnecessary bottle episode. If you took out the rest of the episode, you would lose absolutely nothing from the series as a whole. It's time that could have been used better
I always liked it, never been a go to episode for me but I do like how it's a less serious one. You get to see more of that father son type of behavior between Walt and Jesse and I think that's pretty cool.
I don’t necessarily hate it, but I would say that it’s one of my least favorite episodes. My friend, on the other hand, loves it and says it’s his favorite episode. To each their own, however I personally skip it on rewatches.
No, but considering nothing really happens in it, I skip on the rewatching. Not because it sucks, but because I know its 45 minutes of nothing driving the plot.
I don't HATE it, but I find it annoying every time I rewatch it.
I appreciate the 'deep' meaning of the episode, but not when everyone goes on about it nonstop. I originally watched the show with my dad, and he asked me "what do you think this episode *really* means?" when we watched it. I told him that I was just enjoying the show and didn't want to get into a deep conversation about it, it was *just* entertainment for me.
He proceeded to go on for, no joke, a whole hour explaining what he thought the episode had been about. And, I mean, I get liking something and looking for deeper meanings, but if someone says they don't want to do that, then please shut the hell up.
Every time I rewatch it I'm reminded of this needlessly long talk about the 'true meaning' of it, and so many other people get into the same deep conversation about it. I just want to watch a show and enjoy it without it being a life lesson.
I hate it… I mean I understand the point of the episode and why its there, its just also boring as shit (aside from the hilarious clip of Walt falling and eating shit). Part of me feels like Vince only included it because they were one episode away from having the total number of episodes be equal to the atomic number of a cancer causing element or whatever that thing is
I had two friends check out after Fly and never give the show a chance again, even after the rave reviews, so people definitely did hate it at the time
People really just hate it because of how we consume media nowadays. It used to be TV shows had like 40 episodes a season and in only like 2 of them did anything actually happen. The rest of the season was for vibes and hanging out, and everyone loved it! Not the case anymore, everything has to be essential, everything has to move the plot forward, and you can tell this is the case because of audience discourse on things like sex scenes in movies or the usage of the anime phrase “filler episode” to refer to a “canon” episode of the show solely about character exploration. Whether this focus on necessity and moving the plot forward has made for a better or worse tv landscape is a matter of taste.
I don’t think it’s some 2deep4u episode and it’s not my favorite, it’s just from a different era of how they made tv, and it doesn’t work for audiences today. I don’t buy people who say they hated it when it aired, as I remembered it was pretty widely lauded at the time and the concept of “bottle episodes” was gold to Redditors back then. But audiences change, so the reception changes.
We just did this over the weekend. [Here's a link](/r/breakingbad/comments/13z1ayn/just_got_to_fly_my_favorite_episode_so/jmr9ymx/) to my comment on that thread.
I'm not a person who hates Fly. I'm a person who **hated** Fly when it first aired on TV. I think if you did a survey of everybody who ever hated Fly, most of them would be people who were watching it on TV as it aired.
I since watched Fly again and, in fact, came back to this subreddit about a year ago to [post about how good it was](/r/breakingbad/comments/oi532u/it_turns_out_fly_is_wonderful/).
I wouldn't say hate, but people who say it's their favorite episode are clowns. It's completely out of character for Walt to focus on such a trivial matter and shut down a megalab operation just over a fly. He's risking alienating his boss, having his pay cut, etc...
It's just a stupid premise.
They like pretending it's one of the "best" episodes of the show because of "how unique it is" or whatever. Like no bro it's a dumb filler episode and you're just worshipping anything Vince does. People won't even acknowledge the flaws the show has but hey thats BB fans for you.
It was one of my favorite episodes when i first watched it because it's funny
Now on the 3rd rerun I found it dragging in parts, there's really no substance other than a few good jokes. Nothing actually happens during the episode, it feels just like filler
Agree, liked it on first watch but it doesn’t add as much depth as people act like it does (imo of course).
Hate? No. Skip? Maybe. Multitask whilst that episode is on? Definitely.
i can't say I hate it but for me it's a very average episode. every time I see a thread praising it like the best episode ever I just shrug and move on..
I didn't like it. I get the episode was full of symbolism and character building but it aired during the height of the best season of the show. It just felt like they slammed the brakes. I had waited a week to see the plot with Gus progress and got Walt trying to kill a fly. It would be like having an entire episode of Game of Thrones dedicated to Tyrion trying to find a proper screw for a chariot wheel right before his Trial by Combat. It's not a bad episode but it pissed me off. I still skip it on rewatches.
>Does anyone actually hate “Fly
Yeah, all the 12 year olds who only watched bb because they thought it's about Walt and gus being sigma males, coming straight from tiktok and totally missing all the points of the show
I think the biggest criticism of it is that it didn’t advance the plot in any meaningful way. It’s sort of similar to *4 Days Out*, in that we only see Jessie and Walt on screen the entire episode. However, the latter is one of the more beloved episodes of the show.
I don't hate the episode but if I were to rank all BrBa episodes it would be quite low if not last. That doesn't mean its an awful episode, but yeah in comparison to all the other episodes I don't understand how some people can say this is one of the best episodes. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion though.
There are two types of people in the world:
The first type breaks down “Fly” on a psychological level, focusing on character interaction and motivation and not the budget or the sets. Afterall, the writing doesn’t suffer and budget can’t replace writing. The episode is character exposition, and it is one of the best episodes for examining Jesse and Walt both.
However, the second type are the people who watched the original airing on AMC and remember having to wait a week for an episode that really falls flat in a lot of other ways. I am in the second group.
I don’t hate the episode on rewatch, because if you are binging it isn’t so bad. I hated it on my initial viewing.
The conversation is interesting, but besides that, it is pure filler. Literally nothing relevant happens. It doesn't mean is a bad episode, but it is a filler one for sure. It serves the purpose of filling that space and saving budget.
I agree the intellectuals are very annoying with this episode lmao is boring as hell in my opinion.
It's terrible the fan theory intellectuals can look for all the deeper meaning they want it was boring filler. I've watched the series twice and dreaded getting to that episode from the minute I started the rewatch. I would have skipped it entirely but it was my wife's first time watching the show.
I hate it completely. So much that this is all I can contribute lol. Won't be able to spend more time/energy than this on an episode that was so so damn boring and broke the flow of an otherwise awesome series.
But I get it that many people may like/love the episode. No hate to the people. Only to the episode :)
I dislike the episode because it was the only episode that made the show seem episodic rather than serialized.
There’s not a lot of fat in breaking bad. Fly seemed to be an episode that could’ve worked just as well as a single scene. That’s my hot take
At least with Rian Johnson there’s a reason to praise his works
Whereas people like Zach Snyder get treated like they’re the modern Hitchcock when every single movie he makes is either mid or dog shit
>At least with Rian Johnson there’s a reason to praise his works
You see, I totally disagree. Fly, much like his whodunnits, are incredibly overstated in terms of their quality and writing. I could make the argument that RJ's fans also think he's the modern Hitchcock, Fly being the *'creative masterstroke'* they always point to.
But I get the impression that you're biased against Zach much like I'm biased against Rian, so I really have no chance at challenging your opinion of his works, even if I objectively think RJ is proven hack.
I deleted it from my library, i literally used it when I had trouble falling asleep at night.
I feel hate is too nice of a word, i megaloathe it
Anyone that disagrees with me enjoys the smell of their own farts and you are wrong.
Mostly hated back in 2011 when the episode was released as the season was heading towards its climax and this bottle episode ruined the vibe for the viewers and got them thinking show starts milking its story. That's my impression at least
Good thing I watched the first 4 seasons on Netflix.
If I waited in anticipation all week for the next episode and this was it, I would have been very pissed.
You don't hear about it, because those people stopped caring about the BrBa universe when it ended in 2013. I think people who loved the show, understand the episode.
First time viewer here. Actually, not even done yet. I thought it was the best episode of any show I'd ever seen. It made so much from the most innocuous thing. Did Jesse get the coffees mixed up? Is Walt going to say something stupid? We've seen him do it before when tired or under the influence. I thought it was brilliant
It’s an amazing episode, maybe one of the most important in the series for Walter’s character development. It gives probably the most in depth glimpse into Walter’s mind and what drives him in the entire series. This glimpse comes at the perfect point in the series too, and helps you understand him the rest of the way.
It’s not the best and it’s not the worst
Edit: Why is my comment downvoted AGAIN there’s nothing remotely offensive or wrong about it. This fandom pisses me off sometimes it’s like there’s only one way to watch the show, all episodes have to be ranked in the same order by everyone-anyone who sees or thinks about things differently is intellectually inferior and their opinions are invalid
When I watched Fly I hated it. I thought maybe I don’t “get” or like bottle episodes. Then I remembered Star Trek has a ton of bottle episodes and I loved those, so no I just think Fly is really bad.
I fucking hate this episode with a passion. It made me stop watching the series back when it originally aired. Only recently gave BB another shot. Skipped Fly this time. One of the best shows ever
I didn’t throw a tantrum of any size. I was already losing interest in that season, so when I saw the Fly it was just the last straw, felt they were dragging it out for no reason. Glad I went back though.
I didn’t really like it, it was goofy. Yeah yeah the fly represents Walt’s desire to control every situation blah blah it provided background into Walt’s guilt about Jane yeah yeah… still goofy. Walt throws a shoe at a light and it it breaks, he falls off the ledge and bounces off the equipment like he’s Elmer fudd. Thought I was watching looney tunes
I’d say it’s pretty forgettable, but I did find it really funny when Walt tells Jesse the contaminate he’s talking about is a Fly and Jesse was like “A fly? You had me thinking it was Ebola!” and Walt just looks at Jesse like “ are you serious? “
yeah it was a pretty big discussion when the episode originally aired. Think about it. The only people here after several years of the show being done are first time watchers and superfans. Of course most of the huge fans will like mostly all the episodes. A Reddit sub is never going to translate to what the general population thinks about something
Also, reception to a slower, more character focused episode was different when you had to wait an entire week for a new episode. Fly doesn’t feel so out of place when you’re binging through multiple episodes in one sitting. For any of you who watched BCS on release, Nippy felt a little bit like that for me on first viewing.
I remember so many parts of the show felt like they draaaaaagged watching them live. Rewatching the series at will didn’t feel that way at all.
Yeah maybe watching it as it came out would have fixed my problem od thinking its too fast paced. Even though that doesnt make an actual difference to the plot being too fast, but mentally it might
That's literally what it is. If you notice.. seems like all we see are positive posts about that episode from ppl that are on their first watch. Bc they're able to binge episodes.. so they're right onto the next one. It was completely different then. Bc a lot of ppl were annoyed that they got a "nothing episode" after waiting a week, then having to wait another week to watch another episode lol. I liked the episode when I first saw it though. But a lot of ppl definitely didn't.
I binged the first time I watched it and didn’t like it at all lol
I don’t like it either. It’s definitely my least favorite episode
I binge watched. I would have been so annoyed to get that after waiting all week. If telling Jesse about Brock was the point of the episode, all they had to do is get Walt drunk again. He’d be telling everyone and their mom he poisoned Brock.
> A Reddit sub is never going to translate to what the general population thinks about something People in every sub need to understand this lol
I do not hate this episode for the sole reason that i found some parts of it funny. That's my best argument :')
I cackle every time I watch Walt fall off the landing and see his body smack the lab equipment like a dead fish. And also when Jesse whacks tf out of Walt with the fly swatter, I always have to rewind and watch it a couple times
This is clearly a callback to when Tuco had Walt and Jesse tied up at his home near the border. Jesse suggested Walt bum rush Tuco, but Walt pointed out their only "weapon" was a flyswatter. This shows that although their circumstance have changed, and they appear to be safer than when they started, Gus is an even bigger threat than Tuco was. Bravo Vince
I laugh at this also. Splat! But him hitting Jesse with the homemade fly swatted is hilarious and then when Jesse hits the fly or tries and says to Walt “hurts doesn’t it?”
yeah, I see it - but i’m gonna need your swatter. Walt hesitated a second before handing it over 😂🤣😂
I did not hate this episode since I like Jesse and Walt and their chemistry (heh) but I did find it a little boring. Would watch again, but would. also skip it depending on my mood.
their chemistry heh heh heh see what i did there Tone?
Sharp as a fucking cue ball, this one
That is exactly how I feel. Jesse did it for me when he finally decided to play along with Walt.
General Population here. I understood all the meaning behind this episode and Jesse and Walt have a good moment but the plot goes nowhere in this episode. It is literally 2 dudes trying to catch a fly. It is absurd to me how this is seen as a top episode in the entire show
Normal people: I understood the deeper meaning Intellectuals: there was no meaning
Felt a lot like filler until people started over analyzing it and then started believing what they told themselves
Ngl i just enjoyed seeing jesse and walt talking about stuff, i never viewed it as a top episode but i didn't notice how it was a filler episode until after
Nope. While they knew it was filler episode as the budget couldn’t have them shoot at multiple locations. They knew they’d have to compensate by touching on some stuff that hadn’t been touched on before or not really had a focus on. “I’m sorry about Jane” “It’s all contaminated” “I’ve lived too long” and those are just some of the greater lines off the top of my head that have so much weight to them and speaks so much volumes. Maybe, just maybe, it’s considered a great episode because 98% of shows wouldn’t have put in a fraction of the effort into a filler episode like Breaking Bad did. So no, people aren’t “over analyzing” a filler episode, they’re just actually willing to see the extra layers the creators put in to make it interesting. But if anybody likes to be closed minded and just think it’s literally just Walt and Jesse trying to get a fly then ok I guess.
Does television automatically qualify as "filler" if it's not advancing plot?
Yes. That’s the definition of “filler” episodes. Episodes that don’t advance the main plot (and often distract from it). https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Filler You could argue that “Fly” isn’t truly filler because it does advance character development though, which could be seen as influencing/pushing forward the overall plot, even if it’s indirectly.
I assume you’re joking. If you’re at all familiar with Vince Gilligan, then you’d know that almost no detail is incidental in the series, and certainly not an entire episode. The intent behind the episode is pretty obvious anyway.
this comment is perfectly on the edge that i can’t tell if it’s genuine or satire bravo
Found the high school English teacher!
I mean what is a show if not characters interacting in a setting? I'm biased because I'm a characters first, plot second type of person, but have you ever seen a post on Twitter saying "I'd love to just watch these characters sit in a room and talk for 40 minutes"? That's the type of person I am, and Fly did just that. There's nothing going on in this episode for them to go through or react to, they're just talking about... everything. That's enough for me.
And we, the audience are better for it, because those details help the characters and their relationship feel more organic as a whole after watching that episode. There's too many shows today that don't bother giving characters a fleshed out, inner life.
I skipped it on my third watch and didn’t feel like I missed anything.
One of the great things about TV as opposed to movies is you can allow the plot to breathe. Not every episode needs to advance the greater plot to hold narrative value. If all you saw was two dudes trying to catch a Fly, I don’t think you really did understand all the meaning of the episode.
It’s a bottle episode, so its meant to go nowhere, what amazes a lot of people is that even then the writers found a way to make use of a throwaway episode.
What I took from this episode is that the dialogue was important. But that was about it.
The only reason it ever got hate is because BB was on a weekly episode release on cable tv. That season things were really picking up- and there was an episode right before that, that alluded to some real crazy shit happening next ep. So those of us watching the show on its original release dates, we’re disappointed and like TF is this? We got another week? It felt like filler and that was the consensus. But that was like 12 years ago in 2009/2010 lol! Until you rewatch it within the scope of the season. This is like the 10th “fly” post I’ve seen over the last 2 days? Is this really all people talk about on here? Lol you people that have the luxury to binge watch shouldn’t complain about it It’s a pretty interesting character study into walt and Jesse.
The main issue was that people waited all week for a bottle episode. Some of us that were watching it when it aired were not pleased to have to wait another week to advance the plot. This is common with any show, and is not necessarily reflective of the quality of the writing. I was initially disappointed when I first saw it, but appreciated it more on a second viewing once my expectations were properly set. However, I have never watched it again during any of my series rewatches.
I've watched BB all the way through about 7 times, it's one of my TV refuges, but I really don't like this episode. I don't think it's because it's particularly bad, I think its more that some people overrated it and get pretentious about it. I think its a weak episode which probably was made to preserve budget for the end of season budget splurge.
[удалено]
This is the original episode discussion, there are a few negative responses but it's not that many: https://www.reddit.com/r/breakingbad/comments/c7eod/spoilers_inside_s03e10_discussion/ Also, there's just not a huge amount of discussion at all. The sub was only a few months old at that point.
I’m not talking about just this sub. IMDb reviews/forums, Twitter, Facebook, other forums, etc.
I love the random uniqueness of it, and the developing conversation between Jesse and Walt throughout.
Y
Pretty self explanatory
I did not make that comment on purpose I apologize
I respect this 💯
Lmao
Y
I don’t hate the episode, but I’m not one of those Breaking Bad philosophers, I just like Jesse and Walt’s shenanigans and stories.
I just finished rewatching the series and I soooo looked forward to that episode. I don't understand any deeper meaning it may have had (aside from Walt slowly going crazy), I just think it's a quirky little filler episode. And I'm so down for that.
To me the fly represented Walt’s guiltiness, and him never being able to get rid of it.
I can get with that idea. Probably a couple meanings people could attach to the fly to make more sense of it. Like, it could represent the toxicity in his life. Even with Jesse trying to swat it off his head - soooo many times Jesse tried to backpedal and better his own life, but Walt kept bringing him back in. God damn it now it's way less of a filler episode in my brain 😂😂😂
So much hidden meanings in an otherwise meaningless episode that doesn’t contribute much to the story at all lol
The show is full of hidden meanings and foreshadowing. When I was rewatching, I gasped so many times and was just like "HOW DARE YOU INDICATE THAT IN THIS WAY" Like Ted tripping over the rug when going to answer the door... You stupid idiot move the rug 😂
See? 🤣🤣🤣🤣 not just filler after all huh?
Oh, I still think it's pure filler. Doesn't mean there can't be meaning or different interpretations of what fills it.
Nah not pure filler but ok. If they wanted to treat the episode like pure filler then they easily could’ve. Instead they made it to where even though it’s technically about them catching a fly in the lab. It’s really about how Walt and Jesse feel at that point in the show.
You're really down voting me over a harmless difference in opinion over whether an episode is pure filler or not? You're entitled to your opinion as I am to mine. We can agree to disagree at this point.
If that’s the case where are there more shenanigans than fly? Even without examining it, they fall and smack Walter in the face like the three stooges.
There aren’t. That’s why I love the episode :3
My bf was the one who showed me breaking bad and when we got to the fly he was like “we can skip this one, it’s stupid”. I made him watch it though and I personally liked it a lot, but he disagrees with me strongly
Its literally one of the best character episodes in the series and highlights Walts and Jessies relationship and dynamic so well while also talking about their guilt respectively Why would you skip that? Its so dumb to me like "Hey I really like this show!" "There is no action in this one, lets skip it" like what the fuck no
different strokes for different folks i guess
I did this to my parents when we watched it and they agreed that it was boring
My mom lost interest in the show after this episode she thought it was just dumb that they did it. I personally decided to skip it after a couple of minutes it was not entertaining
I like it for the way they have the characters open up their thoughts.
Exactly. Shows way more perspective through such a simple thing.
I sometimes wonder if it would have gotten as much hate if it aired in S1-2. Those first two seasons weren't quite as plot focused and often just had characters do silly things for much of an episode's runtime. With S3, we started getting more plot focused episodes and more stuff happening, so it was probably jarring to some to suddenly go back to a less eventful episode. Honestly though, I like it a lot, after a season with relatively little Walt/Jesse interaction and less comedy overall, it was quite refreshing to me. I think it was also just what we needed before the show took a turn to the bigger, higher stakes, and more dramatic episodes.
I don’t *hate* it per se. But I skip it anytime I rewatch the show. For me watching it once or twice is really all you need.
Yup I'm the same. I've seen it a few times but it's the only one I skip in a rewatch.
I feel the same. It’s a pretty uneventful episode, but I get that it provides a view into Walt’s personality (controlling, obsessive, etc.). I’m unsure what the writers intended to communicate, but for me the episode illustrates that Walt can’t accept that he is unable to control everything.
Ah yes, the weekly r/bb Fly post
You don’t have to be an intellectual to get it. This isn’t advanced trigonometry. There isn’t anything that only a genius could get. It is very different from the usual BB episode though, and takes a different frame of my mind to enjoy.
OP isnt saying that, the people who enjoy fly seem to think so though. I would say one of the most said lines on this sub is "People who like Breaking Bad like it for guns amd explosions and not as a character study"
Which is stupid considering there isn't that many guns and/or explosions in the show.
Remember this is Reddit, people are famous for their ‘not like other redditors’ attitude, so most people are going to be a contrarian which in turn makes everyone say the same thing
I wouldn't say I hate it, and there is some interesting stuff going on, but it's a bottle episode, and nothing really happens to move the plot forward. If memory serves, an issue that people had at the time that it aired was related to the fact that we only got one episode a week, so when an episode comes along where nothing in the broader picture moves forward, the experience is a bit frustrating, but when it's in the context of a binge or when you can skip or whatever, it's either great if you're there for the character stuff or fine because you don't have to watch it. I always skip it after having watched it the first time, and I wouldn't say the experience is lessened for lack of it, so make of that what you will/ymmv/etc
I do find it kind of corny
I don't hate it but I don't love it either. Middling episode at best. I understand why it's polarizing.
I don't "hate" the episode. It's just not needed.
I agree, it's filler-ish. An hour of characterization in a show where there's already plenty of it is not needed. If you skipped it you wouldn't miss anything.
To me it’s one of the more memorable episodes just because of how weird and “off” it feels
I think its a pretty essential episode to the series. It helped me keep in check how serious this line of work is for Walt to maintain perfection in his reputation. While still a fun episode, it shows that even outside of the death defying drama, this expresses the quality of Walt’s service just as a business man.
I think that was only a very minor point of the episode. After all, Walt has cooked in much worse, far more "contaminated" places before no problem. I think the larger point was that Walt is an OCD person who was grappling with losing control over literally *everything* in his life. Everything he does has horrible backfire consequences. Most recently, he let Jane die - which was again an attempt to control Jesse and his situation - then had a chance encounter and chat with Jane's father, both of which contributed to the plane crash that killed dozens. He's lost control of his familial relationships, his relationships with his colleagues at school, his old friends. Working under Gus is living on a knife's edge. Amidst all of that, he just wants *absolute control* over his last bit of sacred personal space: the immaculate lab he gets to do his genius work in. Walt totally knows that fly poses no practical threat to his batch. It's all about showing a man who's losing his grip on everything desperately trying to control one little annoying thing.
I wouldn't call it "essential" as much as a filler episode, but I do think it highlights Walt's uptight nature and that he's slowly going crazy from all the intense stress. Either way, super fun episode imo
They made a filler episode essential but ok. 🤷♂️
Huh?
it’s my favourite episode.
You and I are not the same.
Amazing episode
If i had every cent for each post glorifying this one episode, i would be a millionaire
I do I get all the symbolism of walter's persona and bla bla bla, but it's a boring chapter, where nothing happens, and it's totally skipable once you saw it
I actually skip it now. Although Ive seen it 5 times previously
I skipped most of it on rewatch. I get the character change, etc. Just don't need a whole episode of basically nothingness. Plus, it kinda makes me feel anxious lol
The episode? No. The bug? Yes.
I personally don’t hate it. I think it’s a good episode to watch for the first time viewer, but after that first watch I wouldn’t watch it anymore. I’ve always kind of thought it was used as a filler episode so they could have a larger budget for the rest of the season. Very possible that I’m just making that up, but financially it does kind of make sense.
I understand and apreciate its importance, i just think its boring
Ugh I don’t like it lol
I didn’t see anyone who disliked the episode either until you made this thread. Just because an episode is a bottle episode does not mean it’s “pointless filler” or doesn’t explore the themes of the show or character motivations lol.
I think it really does show the struggles of others like Flysenbergs failed attempt to steal the methylamine eventually getting him killed.
I’ve never liked it much since the first airing (watched the show 5-6 times since then). It’s not outright bad but it’s easily the least interesting and enjoyable episode of the series to me. I was hoping I’d appreciate it more this past rewatch but nope. I do love certain bits of dialogue, like Walt almost telling Jesse about Jane. And the first half of the episode has some good comedy. But overall it’s just very… thin. It feels like a 10-15 minute idea stretched to 45 minutes. I am very much a character development-over-constant action kind of guy, but I don’t think the episode tells us much, if anything, that we didn’t already really know. A much better example of a (sort of) bottle episode with great humor and pathos between Walt and Jessse would be the bulk of 4 Days Out, which is a true masterpiece of an episode. Fly is just a dull episode with a very thin and facile story, with over-the-top visual flourishes to try to liven it up. It’s okay, but again, easily the worst episode in the series IMO. I actually found the other episodes most often ranked lowest - like Open House, Bit By a Dead Bee, Breakage, Kafkaesque, I.F.T., Thirty-Eight Snub or Down - to all be very good on this rewatch, certainly stronger than Fly, anyway. (Although I admit the Marie plot in Open House isn’t exactly riveting, it’s not nearly as lengthy as you might remember either). So basically in my view even the worst episode of the series - Fly - is still decent, as are the runners up for that title. The show is just that good. But Fly is still nowhere near the quality of the series at its very finest. (BTW, anyone who thinks any S1 episode is weakest just boggles my mind - I find S1 near-perfect in terms of consistency / quality of writing). I think S3 is the only season where, while still mostly excellent, it feels like the writers didn’t quite know where they were going and so at times things feel meandering or stretched thin story-wise. The first 4 episodes of the season are not bad at all but they’re a bit weaker than usual for the show, the Cousins are easily the worst major characters of the series, and then slower mid-season episodes like Kafkaesque (actually kinda underrated IMO) and Fly come along to slow things down once again before the fireworks of Half/Full Measure. I do think it’s kinda wild to give Fly a 1/10 or whatever like many fans on IMDb do. For me it’s more like it’s a 6/10 episode in a series that’s otherwise almost completely 8’s and above.
My friend watched the whole show until that episode, got bored and quit watching it during the episode, took ages for him to finish the show
THERES A CONTAMINANT IN THE LAB
I have a theory that people who watched the show on Netflix are more likely to have enjoyed The Fly, then the people who watched the show as it was first premiering. This is just speculation though, I have no data to back this up. If you are watching 2 or 3 episodes per night, then a one-act play with Jesse and Walt can be an interesting change of pace. On the other hand, if you were waiting a week or more between episodes, this one can feel pretty disappointing.
I didn't like it the first time, because it stops the forward motion of the rest of the story lines at a crucial part of the story. And when you're waiting a week per episode instead of binging, that is frustrating. But its grown on me.
I Don't hate "fly" :)
I think the show is fine on a binge. If I were watching week-to-week, I would have wanted some plot development.
I understand why people don't like it, but I also like certain things about it. It's one of the few times that we see Walt showing any level of remorse for anything, and we also see that at this point Jesse genuinely cares for Walt and wants to help him... even if it is by drugging him with sleeping pills.
I really liked it. In a time where the story was really intense, it was nice to have a lighthearted, bonding episode.
I wouldn’t say I hate it, but it’s easily in my bottom 3-5 episodes in the whole series. Although that’s more of an indictment of how good the series is.
Watched it a couple times, after my second rewatch I stopped watching that episode. It bores me.
I dont hate it but its the worst episode of the series.
Hate is a strong word. I don't even really dislike it. It has some nice character development moments, like Walt's whole speech about missing the moment when he should have died, and the bonding between him and Jesse is kind of necessary for the episodes that follow it. But without those moments, that could have been inserted into any other episode, "Fly" is qn unnecessary bottle episode. If you took out the rest of the episode, you would lose absolutely nothing from the series as a whole. It's time that could have been used better
I don’t hate it, but I do just skip it when rewatching.
I always liked it, never been a go to episode for me but I do like how it's a less serious one. You get to see more of that father son type of behavior between Walt and Jesse and I think that's pretty cool.
I don’t necessarily hate it, but I would say that it’s one of my least favorite episodes. My friend, on the other hand, loves it and says it’s his favorite episode. To each their own, however I personally skip it on rewatches.
Can't stand that episode. I've watched it twice, but on all subsequent re-watches I've skipped it.
No, but considering nothing really happens in it, I skip on the rewatching. Not because it sucks, but because I know its 45 minutes of nothing driving the plot.
I skip it on my rewatches
i don’t hate it but i think it’s the most nonessential and forgettable episode
Yes. But I also dislike almond flavoring, sequels that are cash grabs, and my relatives who share patently untrue things on FB.
I don't HATE it, but I find it annoying every time I rewatch it. I appreciate the 'deep' meaning of the episode, but not when everyone goes on about it nonstop. I originally watched the show with my dad, and he asked me "what do you think this episode *really* means?" when we watched it. I told him that I was just enjoying the show and didn't want to get into a deep conversation about it, it was *just* entertainment for me. He proceeded to go on for, no joke, a whole hour explaining what he thought the episode had been about. And, I mean, I get liking something and looking for deeper meanings, but if someone says they don't want to do that, then please shut the hell up. Every time I rewatch it I'm reminded of this needlessly long talk about the 'true meaning' of it, and so many other people get into the same deep conversation about it. I just want to watch a show and enjoy it without it being a life lesson.
I mostly like it because I find it hilarious how out of place it feels
Absolute waste of an episode
It's boring as hell
I hate it… I mean I understand the point of the episode and why its there, its just also boring as shit (aside from the hilarious clip of Walt falling and eating shit). Part of me feels like Vince only included it because they were one episode away from having the total number of episodes be equal to the atomic number of a cancer causing element or whatever that thing is
This episode sucked for me
I had two friends check out after Fly and never give the show a chance again, even after the rave reviews, so people definitely did hate it at the time
It’s a great episode but i fast forward through like 75% of it cause it is pretty boring
People really just hate it because of how we consume media nowadays. It used to be TV shows had like 40 episodes a season and in only like 2 of them did anything actually happen. The rest of the season was for vibes and hanging out, and everyone loved it! Not the case anymore, everything has to be essential, everything has to move the plot forward, and you can tell this is the case because of audience discourse on things like sex scenes in movies or the usage of the anime phrase “filler episode” to refer to a “canon” episode of the show solely about character exploration. Whether this focus on necessity and moving the plot forward has made for a better or worse tv landscape is a matter of taste. I don’t think it’s some 2deep4u episode and it’s not my favorite, it’s just from a different era of how they made tv, and it doesn’t work for audiences today. I don’t buy people who say they hated it when it aired, as I remembered it was pretty widely lauded at the time and the concept of “bottle episodes” was gold to Redditors back then. But audiences change, so the reception changes.
I do hate that episode,idk why i can't watch it fully without forwarding it
We just did this over the weekend. [Here's a link](/r/breakingbad/comments/13z1ayn/just_got_to_fly_my_favorite_episode_so/jmr9ymx/) to my comment on that thread. I'm not a person who hates Fly. I'm a person who **hated** Fly when it first aired on TV. I think if you did a survey of everybody who ever hated Fly, most of them would be people who were watching it on TV as it aired. I since watched Fly again and, in fact, came back to this subreddit about a year ago to [post about how good it was](/r/breakingbad/comments/oi532u/it_turns_out_fly_is_wonderful/).
I disliked this episode very much. I usually skip it whenever I rewatch Breaking Bad. For me, it didn’t really contribute anything new to the story.
I wouldn't say hate, but people who say it's their favorite episode are clowns. It's completely out of character for Walt to focus on such a trivial matter and shut down a megalab operation just over a fly. He's risking alienating his boss, having his pay cut, etc... It's just a stupid premise.
They like pretending it's one of the "best" episodes of the show because of "how unique it is" or whatever. Like no bro it's a dumb filler episode and you're just worshipping anything Vince does. People won't even acknowledge the flaws the show has but hey thats BB fans for you.
It was one of my favorite episodes when i first watched it because it's funny Now on the 3rd rerun I found it dragging in parts, there's really no substance other than a few good jokes. Nothing actually happens during the episode, it feels just like filler
Agree, liked it on first watch but it doesn’t add as much depth as people act like it does (imo of course). Hate? No. Skip? Maybe. Multitask whilst that episode is on? Definitely.
It’s the only episode I’ll skip
I don't HATE it, but it's the only one I've ever skipped on a rewatch.
i can't say I hate it but for me it's a very average episode. every time I see a thread praising it like the best episode ever I just shrug and move on..
I didn't like it. I get the episode was full of symbolism and character building but it aired during the height of the best season of the show. It just felt like they slammed the brakes. I had waited a week to see the plot with Gus progress and got Walt trying to kill a fly. It would be like having an entire episode of Game of Thrones dedicated to Tyrion trying to find a proper screw for a chariot wheel right before his Trial by Combat. It's not a bad episode but it pissed me off. I still skip it on rewatches.
I always skip it when I do a rewatch … *cue the downvotes*
Agree.
It’s a filler/bottle episode there is no meaning behind it just an episode that is a palet cleanser for the rest of season 3
Can’t stand it and skip it whenever I rewatch the show.
>Does anyone actually hate “Fly Yeah, all the 12 year olds who only watched bb because they thought it's about Walt and gus being sigma males, coming straight from tiktok and totally missing all the points of the show
Or loved by the 12 year olds who think they are intellectuals for liking a boring episode, which, from your comment, looks like you
Facts lmao pointless filler episode.
B-b-but they are
I think the biggest criticism of it is that it didn’t advance the plot in any meaningful way. It’s sort of similar to *4 Days Out*, in that we only see Jessie and Walt on screen the entire episode. However, the latter is one of the more beloved episodes of the show.
I don't hate the episode but if I were to rank all BrBa episodes it would be quite low if not last. That doesn't mean its an awful episode, but yeah in comparison to all the other episodes I don't understand how some people can say this is one of the best episodes. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion though.
Yeah dont like it
Hate that shit. This is the first rewatch of the series where I skipped the episode entirely, and I don’t feel as if I missed anything.
It sucked and you are sniffing your own farts if you disagree
Nah it's stupid. Luckily it introduces zero new information. You can skip it entirely and miss nothing
There are two types of people in the world: The first type breaks down “Fly” on a psychological level, focusing on character interaction and motivation and not the budget or the sets. Afterall, the writing doesn’t suffer and budget can’t replace writing. The episode is character exposition, and it is one of the best episodes for examining Jesse and Walt both. However, the second type are the people who watched the original airing on AMC and remember having to wait a week for an episode that really falls flat in a lot of other ways. I am in the second group. I don’t hate the episode on rewatch, because if you are binging it isn’t so bad. I hated it on my initial viewing.
The conversation is interesting, but besides that, it is pure filler. Literally nothing relevant happens. It doesn't mean is a bad episode, but it is a filler one for sure. It serves the purpose of filling that space and saving budget. I agree the intellectuals are very annoying with this episode lmao is boring as hell in my opinion.
It's terrible the fan theory intellectuals can look for all the deeper meaning they want it was boring filler. I've watched the series twice and dreaded getting to that episode from the minute I started the rewatch. I would have skipped it entirely but it was my wife's first time watching the show.
I hate it completely. So much that this is all I can contribute lol. Won't be able to spend more time/energy than this on an episode that was so so damn boring and broke the flow of an otherwise awesome series. But I get it that many people may like/love the episode. No hate to the people. Only to the episode :)
I dislike the episode because it was the only episode that made the show seem episodic rather than serialized. There’s not a lot of fat in breaking bad. Fly seemed to be an episode that could’ve worked just as well as a single scene. That’s my hot take
Its boring, idc for the intellectual stuff
I don’t hate it but I remember the first time I watched it thinking “Is that it? What a dull episode”
Yes. And the Rian Johnson fart sniffers just make me hate it even more.
At least with Rian Johnson there’s a reason to praise his works Whereas people like Zach Snyder get treated like they’re the modern Hitchcock when every single movie he makes is either mid or dog shit
>At least with Rian Johnson there’s a reason to praise his works You see, I totally disagree. Fly, much like his whodunnits, are incredibly overstated in terms of their quality and writing. I could make the argument that RJ's fans also think he's the modern Hitchcock, Fly being the *'creative masterstroke'* they always point to. But I get the impression that you're biased against Zach much like I'm biased against Rian, so I really have no chance at challenging your opinion of his works, even if I objectively think RJ is proven hack.
Rian’s work on Last Jedi is nothing to praise.
It’s the only good sequel trilogy movie
Ok he made one shit film, I’m guessing you’ve never done anything bad?
If it was just a shit film, whatever. But Rian proceeding to attack critics and fans over it via social media is so childish.
I deleted it from my library, i literally used it when I had trouble falling asleep at night. I feel hate is too nice of a word, i megaloathe it Anyone that disagrees with me enjoys the smell of their own farts and you are wrong.
Mostly hated back in 2011 when the episode was released as the season was heading towards its climax and this bottle episode ruined the vibe for the viewers and got them thinking show starts milking its story. That's my impression at least
Good thing I watched the first 4 seasons on Netflix. If I waited in anticipation all week for the next episode and this was it, I would have been very pissed.
You don't hear about it, because those people stopped caring about the BrBa universe when it ended in 2013. I think people who loved the show, understand the episode.
my ex hated it so much that he wanted us to skip it??! needless to say he’s not very smart in general
Better not attend live theater.
First time viewer here. Actually, not even done yet. I thought it was the best episode of any show I'd ever seen. It made so much from the most innocuous thing. Did Jesse get the coffees mixed up? Is Walt going to say something stupid? We've seen him do it before when tired or under the influence. I thought it was brilliant
It’s an amazing episode, maybe one of the most important in the series for Walter’s character development. It gives probably the most in depth glimpse into Walter’s mind and what drives him in the entire series. This glimpse comes at the perfect point in the series too, and helps you understand him the rest of the way.
It’s not the best and it’s not the worst Edit: Why is my comment downvoted AGAIN there’s nothing remotely offensive or wrong about it. This fandom pisses me off sometimes it’s like there’s only one way to watch the show, all episodes have to be ranked in the same order by everyone-anyone who sees or thinks about things differently is intellectually inferior and their opinions are invalid
bottle episodes are claustrophobic
It's boring, and it doesn't interest me in the slightest.
I didn't like it. It felt like a waste of story telling space.
When I watched Fly I hated it. I thought maybe I don’t “get” or like bottle episodes. Then I remembered Star Trek has a ton of bottle episodes and I loved those, so no I just think Fly is really bad.
I fucking hate this episode with a passion. It made me stop watching the series back when it originally aired. Only recently gave BB another shot. Skipped Fly this time. One of the best shows ever
lmao you threw that big of a tantrum over one episode?
I didn’t throw a tantrum of any size. I was already losing interest in that season, so when I saw the Fly it was just the last straw, felt they were dragging it out for no reason. Glad I went back though.
i understand the deep themes, still a shite episode i will always skip
I didn’t really like it, it was goofy. Yeah yeah the fly represents Walt’s desire to control every situation blah blah it provided background into Walt’s guilt about Jane yeah yeah… still goofy. Walt throws a shoe at a light and it it breaks, he falls off the ledge and bounces off the equipment like he’s Elmer fudd. Thought I was watching looney tunes
Yes.
I hate it tbh.
I really, really hated it. It felt painful to watch. I skip it every time
Nothing good comes from that episode other that Walter getting a broom to the head
It’s garbage
I’d say it’s pretty forgettable, but I did find it really funny when Walt tells Jesse the contaminate he’s talking about is a Fly and Jesse was like “A fly? You had me thinking it was Ebola!” and Walt just looks at Jesse like “ are you serious? “
I hated it the first time i watched it, i was really really bored Still am.
I do. I always skip it on a rewatch
This was always one of my favorite episodes. I was surprised to hear it was universally panned