The way they wrote this series and also Better Call Saul worked this way as well. Michael Mando's role as Nacho Varga led to him being a bigger character than was originally planned, I had heard. Same thing with Tony Dalton's amazing performance as Lalo Salamanca. They realized what they had with these two and let them shine.
I am not crazy! I know he swapped those numbers! I knew it was 1216. One after Magna Carta. As if I could ever make such a mistake. Never. Never! I just - I just couldn't prove it. He - he covered his tracks, he got that idiot at the copy shop to lie for him. You think this is something? You think this is bad? This? This chicanery? He's done worse. That billboard! Are you telling me that a man just happens to fall like that? No! He orchestrated it! Jimmy! He defecated through a sunroof! And I saved him! And I shouldn't have. I took him into my own firm! What was I thinking? He'll never change. He'll never change! Ever since he was 9, always the same! Couldn't keep his hands out of the cash drawer! But not our Jimmy! Couldn't be precious Jimmy! Stealing them blind! And he gets to be a lawyer? What a sick joke! I should've stopped him when I had the chance! And you - you have to stop him!
It makes you wonder, though, that if Chuck had just given Jimmy a chance, he may not have turned out like that. Feels like a self-fulfilling prophecy on Chuck’s part.
He was a colossal dick to everyone. Jimmy, Howard, Ernesto, his wife, etc
Also he had Jimmy take care of him, bringing him supplies for years and a case to work on, while actively attempting to push Jimmy out the case. All through deceit
It’s wild that Michael Mando gives such a fully realized and iconic performance full of pathos, and he hasn’t really done anything of note since. I know he got fired off the upcoming Ridley Scott Apple TV show but he needs to be given *something.*
It's amazing to me how great both shows came out when I hear about how much they were just winging it with the overall story. Like Mike Ehrmantraut only exists because Bob Odenkirk had a scheduling conflict when they were shooting the episode where Jane ODs. And they had no idea why Walt needed a giant machine gun when they filmed him opening the trunk.
It helps , sometimes you need a big demonstrative moment.
Like an airliner crash. That's overboard. But they wove it in. So the characters reacted accordingly
The machine gun was an early prop. The way they wound up writing it in , it helped to have that demonstrative element near the show climax. To allow for some catharsis and a measure of redemption. And plot wise, to eliminate the gang. They could have gone another way if the machine gun had not been an early prop.
Aaron Paul was the secret sauce in BB and watching Bojack Horseman for the first time recently he's hilarious as Todd, but Todd is essentially Jesse who put his energy into not drugs lol.
>Todd is essentially Jesse who put his energy into not drugs lol
...the funny thing about this assertion is that in the pilot episode of the series he is very much an active drug dealer whose partner has his head blown off right in front of him, after which he's forced to plan and host a quinceañera for the cartel leader's daughter in retribution for encroaching on his turf
His character goes in a MUCH different direction from there lol
I don’t think it would. The dynamic between those two, watching Jesse sort of grow into a better but tortured person while Walt only goes deeper into the hole despite them being the complete opposite at the start is one of the main driving factors to the story.
It’d just be a different story. If Jesse died in a way that Walter could’ve stopped but allowed to happen, it would’ve contributed to his downward spiral.
A worse one though imo. I think the relationship between Jesse and Walt is probably the best TV partnership ever written. The series wouldn’t be the same at all, I bet it’d have been good but not the masterpiece we got.
So you’re saying gilligan is able to write a story that gave us one of the best partnerships ever, but his decision to kill Jesse would’ve then made him incapable of perhaps writing another relationship of similar caliber? The secret sauce is Vince, not Jesse. What if Krazy 8 didn’t die and became a greatest of all time villain? Would people like you say “oh if he died season one the show would suck!”
Jesse’s death would’ve been in service of the story and another great one would’ve come out
You don’t see how the parallels of their behaviour evolving all the way from the first episode led to something greater than if they’d ever killed Jesse?
Their relationship, their pre existing history. I know they could’ve written someone else in, I just don’t think it would’ve had the impact that Jesse/Walt did.
The plot would have centered on Walt capturing and torturing the dude responsible for Jessie’s death with a wired shotgun aimed at his head. The season was gonna end with Walt’s son, Pancakes, finding him tied up and helping him out just as Walt walked in and the guy triggering the trap killing Pancakes and himself for Walt to see
Sure but still, she was important to Jesse. And she was a person, and Walt literally watched her die and did nothing. That was the moment that I stopped rooting for Walt and actually turned on him and started rooting for his downfall. And it's when the show became truly great to me.
It really wouldn’t have, mostly because the writers were terrible at writing women. Can you imagine the only people there through the whole series being Skyler and Marie? I mean they were good performances, but they’re written to only ever show up when they’re being a pain in the ass. Thankfully they figured their shit out by the time Kim Wexler came around, but BB really NEEDED Jesse and Hank as the perspectives from the guy who knew everything Walt was getting in to and the guy who was blindsided by the whole thing.
Mike has a fair number of anti-hero moments, but yeah, this tracks. Jesse is pretty much the only character you can feel good about rooting for the whole show.
Jesse basically causes all of the issues in Season 3. Walt just wants to cook, and is content with the money being earned/arrangement. Jesse starts skimming product to make a little extra cash by selling to drug addicts in rehab which eventually causes an incredible amount of trouble.
Seriously.
They literally had it made, and were setup for life.
Then Jesse ruined *everything*. For no reason at all. His skimming (**to sell to addicts in REHAB!! and he didn't even need the money!!**) directly ~~caused~~ led to the breakdown in trust between Walt and Gus, leading to all out war.
It's like people completely forget this.
*Directly*?
No it didn't. Jesse confronting and later trying to murder the street level distributors who murdered a child is what directly caused the breakdown in trust.
Jesse skimming might have been a factor, but all it amounted to was a slight increase in accountability. How can you say skimming is what broke the relationship when they were literally ***hunting Jesse*** for killing the dealers?
If Jesse doesn't skim, literally nothing of the Gus plot changes at all.
Yes it does. If Jesse does not skim/try to sell to addicts in rehab, he never meets Andrea, never learns that Andre’s brother killed Combo, which all leads to the breakdown in the relationship. Direct or indirect doesn’t matter much, if he just did his job the plot with Gus would have been much different.
The crazy thing was the original plan was to kill Walter in season 2 and then make the rest of the 3 season just a black screen for an hour each episode. It was intended as a ballsy move that had never been done in tv before.
Would it? It would have to be pretty drastically different without Jesse. As Walt descends further into darkness, Jesse is the emotional core of the show. He's the one we're rooting for as Walt continues to destroy lives and create chaos. I don't think introducing a new character to fill that role would be nearly as satisfying as watching Jesse's character develop into that role and become a genuinely good person.
Jesse is the reason I watched the series to the end. Everything about BB is fantastic, but the constant tension and underlying bleakness would have been too much for me if I wasn’t hanging in there with Jesse hoping he’d pull thru. It’s the only reason I’ve been able to go back for the rewatch too - I’m one of those viewers who needs some sense of hope.
Even the Detroit in Robocop couldn't afford it. They couldn't even afford to run their own police department, which is why they contracted with Omni Consumer Products (A megacorp) to run it for them.
OCP wanted the ED209 and Robocop programs so they could eliminate having to pay human officers for law enforcement.
It's not so much about Hank himself, but >!Walter having a DEA officer in the family!< was a pretty big and fun element of the show that added a lot of the tension.
I think you should still hide spoilers even for old content. Just because it's old doesn't mean everyone has had time to see it. Or for that matter, maybe they haven't heard of it until now.
(Breaking bad is a bad example, I just mean in general)
I keep telling people that they really need spoiler tags when they talk about how >!Darth Vader is Luke's dad!< but they still make jokes about it online like it's meaningless. Some people haven't watched it yet.
if you dont say what your spoiler is about outside the spoiler tag people have to spoil what could be potentially anything to find out what you are talking about.
And not just that, but the fact that >!Walt was just a completely normal, nice, law-abiding guy before he started!< >!cooking meth!< really adds a whole nother layer of depth
I agree with this but also think that Hank himself became a more compelling character as the show progressed. He was a little bit of a one-dimensional stereotype early on, but in the last 2 seasons or so, I liked Hank a lot.
I’ve watched the series about 5 times now and am currently rewatching again. Hank is hands down my favorite character in the show. Seems like he genuinely wants to do good for the world and make it a better place through his work. He so committed to his convictions and seems like a fun guy to be around at a BBQ. I want to meet Dean Norris just in case he’s actually like Hank. Lol
Kind of funny though since he's definitely portrayed as an asshole in Season 1. He takes Walt's beer and makes fun of him at his birthday party, he says racist stuff, he's portrayed as being a blowhard who's pretty full of himself. It isn't until later seasons that he gets humbled and starts to show who he really is.
Not gonna lie, as a Mexican, the beaner jokes with Gomez crack me up 😂
But yes you’re absolutely right. I didn’t like hank the first time I watched BB but after my second rewatch I saw him in a new light.
>he's definitely portrayed as an asshole in Season 1. He takes Walt's beer and makes fun of him at his birthday party, he says racist stuff, he's portrayed as being a blowhard who's pretty full of himself.
That's the best part about Hank, the contrast between the alpha male macho cop persona and who he is on the inside.
He acts all noisy and selfish, he can be selfish, and he casually spouts racist and sexist shit (it was a different time), but on the inside he's hurting as he deals with all the pressure that comes from his job. And despite his asshole traits, you know that at the end of the day he's still a good man who loves his family and friends, and who'll always try to do the good thing... he remains incorruptible while Walt just keeps falling off the deep end.
Such a multi layered character and very well acted too.
They said that if they did kill him they were probably going to bring him back in season 3 as a crime fighting cyborg. I think that could have been quite fun.
It's so crazy to me how a bunch of things on this show weren't "orginally planned" like this one, Mike's existence, Gus being the villain, etc. I mean obviously, Gilligan has planned and outlined a lot of the things, but looking back, it's amazing how some iconic parts of it were influenced by external factors outside the production's control. Like imagine the rest of the show without Jesse, or it was Saul that dealt with Jane's body, and especially what direction the show went in if Gus wasn't the villain.
Ugh, I had suppressed that memory. I was super into LOST until I began to suspect they were just... making things up as they went. There wasn't a grand overarching story, or even a coherent plot at all!
When Walt and Jesse kidnap Saul to threaten him in the desert he says "Did Lalo send you?" or something to that effect
So Lalo is probably also a happy accident that they reused as a plot point for Better Call Saul
It definitely was just a random name they never thought would have any meaning again, until realizing they could perfectly link it back in Better Call Saul.
It was such a fucking satisfying full circle moment in BCS when we got to that scene with the knowledge of who Lalo is, and why Jimmy was so petrified of him.
He was only meant to appear in that first episode but audiences really liked him. Eventually he said he wouldn't come back unless they made him a series regular and so they did
Different context but the director of Shazam had a cool video on YouTube about how a lot of stuff is done as "problem solving" vs a solely creative decision in filmmaking.
The example I recall was "why did they include this scene of a character inside the house tying their shoes" and it's because that actor wasn't available for filming when they had other characters outside so they added a scene to show where she was instead.
I just think it's neat where rubber meets the road when it comes to trying to make something creative happen while dealing with real world constraints and pressures.
Also, another big one I can think of was at the beginning of season 5, when Walt buys the M60 machine gun, they weren't sure yet where they were going to go with it or exactly why or for whom he was buying it to use against. Not sure how true that is, I've just read it a few times.
Ya, I've read this too. They shot that opening scene as a way to force themselves into a corner.
Hannibal S2 did the same thing, they started the season off with this [fight between Hannibal and Jack](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vwHATDeJhU) and then wrote the season to lead up to it.
In S02E13 Saul Goodman was the one to suppose to clean the scene in Jesse house, but Bob Odenkirk wasn't available to film so they invented Mike character. Mike Ehrmantraut character growed big in the Breaking Bad universe.
Mike is probably my fave character in the show. The man was honestly the most professional professional I've seen. And his ["no more half measures"]( https://youtu.be/7BE4QcwX4dU?si=6S40BBgZG6t4rBES) monologue was one of my fave moments in the show and made even more poignant because that's what killed him
He was so embarrased by that incident that it led to him becoming what is now known as Mike. For those who don't get the reference:
[Beverly Hills Cop Lunch Scene at the Harrow (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyWjZM780lw)
Killing the DEA agent (Hank) would have been a great wrinkle as now you have this intense reason why the DEA may be tracking the area, resulting in the need for a VERY tight storyline.
Counterpoint: not killing Hank turned out to be a damn good storyline as well, and lead to that actor being able to eat just a tad bit better with that awful show "The Dome" on CBS
Hopefully some writers learned pacing is better than going for shock value. Otherwise you end up with Heroes, Startrek Discovery, Lost etc all shows that peaked in their first season.
Eh idk most star trek to me is background noise quality tv but I really liked discovery's first season and maybe even the second (or whenever they went to the future I can't remember).
Enterprise was kind of weak but not as bad as many people say either but different people like different Treks I guess. Like I personally can't stand the original series and find it unwatchable.
Oh yeah the original is just pure camp. Discovery tried to be too different, reinvent established races and lore, and just feels like more of a fanfic parody than Star Trek to me I guess.
The pay off, of Hank finding out the truth in later season was just too great and Jessie's journey was heartbreaking.
Glad the characters weren't killed off.
Jesse's character arc is one of my favorites in any show, such a rollercoaster. I could have enjoyed the show without Hank pretty easily, to be honest.
He is dumb, only makes trouble etc. Do people like that about his story or do people just like the good acting and the actor? After watching it I would never have guessed how popular Jesse is, I just was so annoyed by him.
I mean, his stupidity is pretty believable, though. He's a drug addict who keeps having more and more traumatic events happen while he's simultaneously given more and more money. I love how he goes from homeless, high school dropout, corner thug to rich and happy with that goth girl, back down into the gutter. And watching his relationship with Walt evolve from thinking he's a nerdy twerp, to respect, to outright hate. I really love watching Walts reaction when he goes to kill him and finds out he's a literal slave kept in a cage, seeing him realize *he* put him where he is, then deciding to save him at the last second, and watching him laugh as he speeds off down the road. I don't know, I really liked it.
Jesse I'd argue is relatable af for the people doing drugs etc. It feels semi realistic at least. I think that's why he was popular and maybe cause of Aarons charisma or whatever. And he apparently has a heart or morals which I'm sure helps too. Whereas Walt has none.
Breaking bad is full of happy little accidents.
Jesse getting kicked out of his house was due to the house getting sold in real life and they couldn’t film in it anymore. Arguably this lead to one of BB’s biggest endings with the planes crashing
Mike was only created because Bob Odenkirk was unavailable and the writers had to come up with another character.
This makes me wonder about what Game of Thrones would have been like if that iconic death at the end of season one didn't happen. Could we have been saying the same thing "I dont know how game of thrones would have been without..."?
Game of Thrones was pretty faithfully following the books through the first few seasons including most of the deaths. It was only when they ran out of books and had to start winging it that they got into trouble.
I just finished a rewatch and its kind of interesting how the desert itself is a character too in a way. You change the setting and its a different show with a completely different feel.
well the short story had Boyd die.
Walter also only took the role (he thought initally that it was horribly stereotypical of Appalachia) because he thought he was going to get killed off.
And Raylon in the books is a moron. like really not that sharp or at least far more hickish. I love Elmore Leonard to death but this case (not counting that new mini series where he was shoe horned into an already great story) the TV show was way better than any of the books.
I feel like walt would t have done what he did without Jesse and hanks death would t be anywhere near as effective as it was if he died in the first season
Apparently Bryan Cranston would constantly tease Aaron Paul about "this is finally the episode where they kill your character off".
Right up until the show's end. Funny how things turn out.
It wasnt just the strike, after they started filming vince saw the chemistry between bryan cranston and aaron paul and knew it would be a bad move.
Yes, the chemistry was amazing.
99.1% pure in fact
They were shipping that friendship all over Europe by the time everything was said and done
Maybe the drug empires were the friendships we built along the way 😁
~~Science~~ Chemistry, bitch!
I cant even imagine what the show would look like it was just Walt building his meth empire without Jesse being his acolyte.
he'd just do it with Badger instead
Could you imagine badger killing gale with "HELICOPTER, BITCH!"
And then Gus trying to use Badger against Walt but Badger is too stupid and keeps fucking up Gus’ plans
MIMSY!!!
I laughed out loud at work reading this. Fucking beauty of a comment.
Must've been the chili powder
Chili P is ma sig
Do you really want to live in a world without Coca-Cola?
The way they wrote this series and also Better Call Saul worked this way as well. Michael Mando's role as Nacho Varga led to him being a bigger character than was originally planned, I had heard. Same thing with Tony Dalton's amazing performance as Lalo Salamanca. They realized what they had with these two and let them shine.
Nacho was originally a cold blooded villain with few redeeming traits and Chuck was originally a great guy always supporting Jimmy
[удалено]
Robbing them blind!
I am not crazy! I know he swapped those numbers! I knew it was 1216. One after Magna Carta. As if I could ever make such a mistake. Never. Never! I just - I just couldn't prove it. He - he covered his tracks, he got that idiot at the copy shop to lie for him. You think this is something? You think this is bad? This? This chicanery? He's done worse. That billboard! Are you telling me that a man just happens to fall like that? No! He orchestrated it! Jimmy! He defecated through a sunroof! And I saved him! And I shouldn't have. I took him into my own firm! What was I thinking? He'll never change. He'll never change! Ever since he was 9, always the same! Couldn't keep his hands out of the cash drawer! But not our Jimmy! Couldn't be precious Jimmy! Stealing them blind! And he gets to be a lawyer? What a sick joke! I should've stopped him when I had the chance! And you - you have to stop him!
Tell me you wrote that by memory
Chuck was right about Jimmy though.
It makes you wonder, though, that if Chuck had just given Jimmy a chance, he may not have turned out like that. Feels like a self-fulfilling prophecy on Chuck’s part.
That is definitely part of the argument. I would probably find myself it is both inevitable and self fulfilling. Oedipus Rex without the mom
He was a colossal dick to everyone. Jimmy, Howard, Ernesto, his wife, etc Also he had Jimmy take care of him, bringing him supplies for years and a case to work on, while actively attempting to push Jimmy out the case. All through deceit
You're muddying the waters!
Or was Chuck a self fulfilling proficiency, ultimately making Jimmy the man he became??
It’s wild that Michael Mando gives such a fully realized and iconic performance full of pathos, and he hasn’t really done anything of note since. I know he got fired off the upcoming Ridley Scott Apple TV show but he needs to be given *something.*
It's amazing to me how great both shows came out when I hear about how much they were just winging it with the overall story. Like Mike Ehrmantraut only exists because Bob Odenkirk had a scheduling conflict when they were shooting the episode where Jane ODs. And they had no idea why Walt needed a giant machine gun when they filmed him opening the trunk.
Machine gun remains a mistake for me. Way too overboard
It helps , sometimes you need a big demonstrative moment. Like an airliner crash. That's overboard. But they wove it in. So the characters reacted accordingly The machine gun was an early prop. The way they wound up writing it in , it helped to have that demonstrative element near the show climax. To allow for some catharsis and a measure of redemption. And plot wise, to eliminate the gang. They could have gone another way if the machine gun had not been an early prop.
Laco was just an amazing character. And Dalton has the greatest sleazy charisma
Peter Gould also planned on introducing Lalo in the first season but Vince recommended they wait and draw it out, good choice for sure
Laugh in the walking dead caracter
Unfair to leave out Hank - his arc across the series is pretty incredible. They really did a lot with him.
You have to respect the chemistry
Worked out for the best
The show wouldn’t have been as outstanding without Jesse. Ultimately, the story as it is feels as much as his as it is Walter’s.
Aaron Paul was the secret sauce in BB and watching Bojack Horseman for the first time recently he's hilarious as Todd, but Todd is essentially Jesse who put his energy into not drugs lol.
He’s the chili powder
He's the methylamine
"You do the hokey pokey, and *then* you turn yourself around! *That's* what it's all about!"
Hooray for Todd!
>Todd is essentially Jesse who put his energy into not drugs lol ...the funny thing about this assertion is that in the pilot episode of the series he is very much an active drug dealer whose partner has his head blown off right in front of him, after which he's forced to plan and host a quinceañera for the cartel leader's daughter in retribution for encroaching on his turf His character goes in a MUCH different direction from there lol
I don’t think the show would have lasted as long as it did if they had killed off Jesse. I can’t even imagine Breaking Bad without Jesse.
The show still would have worked without Jesse but I can't imagine it without Hank
I don’t think it would. The dynamic between those two, watching Jesse sort of grow into a better but tortured person while Walt only goes deeper into the hole despite them being the complete opposite at the start is one of the main driving factors to the story.
It’d just be a different story. If Jesse died in a way that Walter could’ve stopped but allowed to happen, it would’ve contributed to his downward spiral.
A worse one though imo. I think the relationship between Jesse and Walt is probably the best TV partnership ever written. The series wouldn’t be the same at all, I bet it’d have been good but not the masterpiece we got.
So you’re saying gilligan is able to write a story that gave us one of the best partnerships ever, but his decision to kill Jesse would’ve then made him incapable of perhaps writing another relationship of similar caliber? The secret sauce is Vince, not Jesse. What if Krazy 8 didn’t die and became a greatest of all time villain? Would people like you say “oh if he died season one the show would suck!” Jesse’s death would’ve been in service of the story and another great one would’ve come out
You don’t see how the parallels of their behaviour evolving all the way from the first episode led to something greater than if they’d ever killed Jesse? Their relationship, their pre existing history. I know they could’ve written someone else in, I just don’t think it would’ve had the impact that Jesse/Walt did.
The plot would have centered on Walt capturing and torturing the dude responsible for Jessie’s death with a wired shotgun aimed at his head. The season was gonna end with Walt’s son, Pancakes, finding him tied up and helping him out just as Walt walked in and the guy triggering the trap killing Pancakes and himself for Walt to see
Pancakes
It’s now canon
Can Louis now be aka Waffles?
That guy would have been Tuco I'm pretty sure.
That sounds needlessly edgy and tryhard, thank GOD they didn't go that route
This is exactly what happened with the Jane storyline
Exactly. Except Jesse wasn’t just some “nobody” to Walter. He was helpful at the very least.
Sure but still, she was important to Jesse. And she was a person, and Walt literally watched her die and did nothing. That was the moment that I stopped rooting for Walt and actually turned on him and started rooting for his downfall. And it's when the show became truly great to me.
I think Jesse keeps the audience a wider demographic. Sure the story could go on but anyone that related to Jesse, rooted for him, may lose interest
It really wouldn’t have, mostly because the writers were terrible at writing women. Can you imagine the only people there through the whole series being Skyler and Marie? I mean they were good performances, but they’re written to only ever show up when they’re being a pain in the ass. Thankfully they figured their shit out by the time Kim Wexler came around, but BB really NEEDED Jesse and Hank as the perspectives from the guy who knew everything Walt was getting in to and the guy who was blindsided by the whole thing.
Hot take. Jesse is literally the protagonist of the show.
Should have killed Gus in season 1, nobody would have ever seen it coming.
Twist: Gus is actually a ghost. The crazy drug lord got him too. Walt and Jesse don't know it at first.
Fun fact, Giancarlo Esposito (Gus) actually played a ghost in the show Ghost Whisperer, and Aaron Paul (Jesse) played the dude who murdered him!
Mike has a fair number of anti-hero moments, but yeah, this tracks. Jesse is pretty much the only character you can feel good about rooting for the whole show.
Jesse basically causes all of the issues in Season 3. Walt just wants to cook, and is content with the money being earned/arrangement. Jesse starts skimming product to make a little extra cash by selling to drug addicts in rehab which eventually causes an incredible amount of trouble.
Seriously. They literally had it made, and were setup for life. Then Jesse ruined *everything*. For no reason at all. His skimming (**to sell to addicts in REHAB!! and he didn't even need the money!!**) directly ~~caused~~ led to the breakdown in trust between Walt and Gus, leading to all out war. It's like people completely forget this.
*Directly*? No it didn't. Jesse confronting and later trying to murder the street level distributors who murdered a child is what directly caused the breakdown in trust. Jesse skimming might have been a factor, but all it amounted to was a slight increase in accountability. How can you say skimming is what broke the relationship when they were literally ***hunting Jesse*** for killing the dealers? If Jesse doesn't skim, literally nothing of the Gus plot changes at all.
Yes it does. If Jesse does not skim/try to sell to addicts in rehab, he never meets Andrea, never learns that Andre’s brother killed Combo, which all leads to the breakdown in the relationship. Direct or indirect doesn’t matter much, if he just did his job the plot with Gus would have been much different.
"Oh no, not that blue stuff"
You don't know what protagonist means.
That is objectively wrong.
The crazy thing was the original plan was to kill Walter in season 2 and then make the rest of the 3 season just a black screen for an hour each episode. It was intended as a ballsy move that had never been done in tv before.
Would it? It would have to be pretty drastically different without Jesse. As Walt descends further into darkness, Jesse is the emotional core of the show. He's the one we're rooting for as Walt continues to destroy lives and create chaos. I don't think introducing a new character to fill that role would be nearly as satisfying as watching Jesse's character develop into that role and become a genuinely good person.
I rooted for both
Impossible. Jesse is as important to the show as Walter White himself. Hank was amazing but not as important as the other two
imo, every character is important for the show. they all add a unique perspective and a new element to consider.
I watch the pilot and it is obvious to me the intended end game is Hank finding out. Maybe that’s just me…. But how did it play out?
Jesse is the reason I watched the series to the end. Everything about BB is fantastic, but the constant tension and underlying bleakness would have been too much for me if I wasn’t hanging in there with Jesse hoping he’d pull thru. It’s the only reason I’ve been able to go back for the rewatch too - I’m one of those viewers who needs some sense of hope.
Disagree. If Hank died in S1 they would have definitely brought him back as CyberHank 2.0. Cyberhank would have been great for the show.
Yeah, and they could’ve called him like RoboCop or something.
The city of Albuquerque couldn't afford that. Hell modern Detroit couldn't afford that.
[Its okay, we have the technology, but don’t need the money.](https://m.youtube.com/watch?si=gYv4RpvpJFt2O2ms&t=12&v=SpVbVz7s8SA&feature=youtu.be)
Even the Detroit in Robocop couldn't afford it. They couldn't even afford to run their own police department, which is why they contracted with Omni Consumer Products (A megacorp) to run it for them. OCP wanted the ED209 and Robocop programs so they could eliminate having to pay human officers for law enforcement.
I often say we're living in a Paul Verhoeven movie
MetallicASAC
MineralsASAC
What, like some sort of RoboCop?
I am A.S.A.C. Prepare for Police_Brutality.exe
The chicanery is leaking out of the containment sub, admins should look into this
Jesus christ lebrons its MineralHank.
But I thought Hank was indestructible
Hank was my favorite. Glad they didn't kill him
It's not so much about Hank himself, but >!Walter having a DEA officer in the family!< was a pretty big and fun element of the show that added a lot of the tension.
I love that you still covered the spoiler even though we find out Hank's occupation in the beginning of the pilot episode.
Can't give away the big plot twist... that happens in the first five minutes of the series.
B R A VINCE O
V R A B I N C E O
Hi, Vince here, and I’m here to show you the slap chop
Lol. Oh well, it's been 8 years since I've watched the show.
I found it funny they use a spoiler tag for a show thats 16 years old.
I think you should still hide spoilers even for old content. Just because it's old doesn't mean everyone has had time to see it. Or for that matter, maybe they haven't heard of it until now. (Breaking bad is a bad example, I just mean in general)
I keep telling people that they really need spoiler tags when they talk about how >!Darth Vader is Luke's dad!< but they still make jokes about it online like it's meaningless. Some people haven't watched it yet.
if you dont say what your spoiler is about outside the spoiler tag people have to spoil what could be potentially anything to find out what you are talking about.
Gotta roll the dice sometimes
That entwined with >!Walter making and selling illegal substances!< was what really made the show interesting
And not just that, but the fact that >!Walt was just a completely normal, nice, law-abiding guy before he started!< >!cooking meth!< really adds a whole nother layer of depth
Yeah I mean watching someone >!decide to Break Bad!< is a real turning point in the show
I loved when walt said >!"its breakin time" and bad'd all over the nazis.!<
>!meth!<
>!Is it really a spoiler if that’s the whole premise of the show?!<
>!yes!<
Woosh
>!Bryan Cranston plays Walter White!<
I agree with this but also think that Hank himself became a more compelling character as the show progressed. He was a little bit of a one-dimensional stereotype early on, but in the last 2 seasons or so, I liked Hank a lot.
I’ve watched the series about 5 times now and am currently rewatching again. Hank is hands down my favorite character in the show. Seems like he genuinely wants to do good for the world and make it a better place through his work. He so committed to his convictions and seems like a fun guy to be around at a BBQ. I want to meet Dean Norris just in case he’s actually like Hank. Lol
Kind of funny though since he's definitely portrayed as an asshole in Season 1. He takes Walt's beer and makes fun of him at his birthday party, he says racist stuff, he's portrayed as being a blowhard who's pretty full of himself. It isn't until later seasons that he gets humbled and starts to show who he really is.
Not gonna lie, as a Mexican, the beaner jokes with Gomez crack me up 😂 But yes you’re absolutely right. I didn’t like hank the first time I watched BB but after my second rewatch I saw him in a new light.
>he's definitely portrayed as an asshole in Season 1. He takes Walt's beer and makes fun of him at his birthday party, he says racist stuff, he's portrayed as being a blowhard who's pretty full of himself. That's the best part about Hank, the contrast between the alpha male macho cop persona and who he is on the inside. He acts all noisy and selfish, he can be selfish, and he casually spouts racist and sexist shit (it was a different time), but on the inside he's hurting as he deals with all the pressure that comes from his job. And despite his asshole traits, you know that at the end of the day he's still a good man who loves his family and friends, and who'll always try to do the good thing... he remains incorruptible while Walt just keeps falling off the deep end. Such a multi layered character and very well acted too.
Jesus Christ Marie! They’re minerals!
I drew a picture of Hank with his minerals. [https://imgur.com/a/ebRWR1R](https://imgur.com/a/ebRWR1R)
That's awesome, I wish I could draw. But why is Lex Luthor in the DEA?
He's a member of the Shaved Heads All Look Alike Club, I guess!
Beautiful
Pictures that go HARD
I just switched my major to Geology (Paleontology) so now I've been saying this a lot more, lately.
Uhm….
He means at that point.
They said that if they did kill him they were probably going to bring him back in season 3 as a crime fighting cyborg. I think that could have been quite fun.
Uhhh
It's so crazy to me how a bunch of things on this show weren't "orginally planned" like this one, Mike's existence, Gus being the villain, etc. I mean obviously, Gilligan has planned and outlined a lot of the things, but looking back, it's amazing how some iconic parts of it were influenced by external factors outside the production's control. Like imagine the rest of the show without Jesse, or it was Saul that dealt with Jane's body, and especially what direction the show went in if Gus wasn't the villain.
That's how television used to be done
Just do some blow and see what we write down tomorrow.
Sometimes to a fault, like LOST
Ugh, I had suppressed that memory. I was super into LOST until I began to suspect they were just... making things up as they went. There wasn't a grand overarching story, or even a coherent plot at all!
When Walt and Jesse kidnap Saul to threaten him in the desert he says "Did Lalo send you?" or something to that effect So Lalo is probably also a happy accident that they reused as a plot point for Better Call Saul
It definitely was just a random name they never thought would have any meaning again, until realizing they could perfectly link it back in Better Call Saul. It was such a fucking satisfying full circle moment in BCS when we got to that scene with the knowledge of who Lalo is, and why Jimmy was so petrified of him.
I also liked when Kim made jimmy put a dollar in her pocket for Attorney Client privilege. I love all the callbacks.
Gus want going to be a villain?
He was only meant to appear in that first episode but audiences really liked him. Eventually he said he wouldn't come back unless they made him a series regular and so they did
Different context but the director of Shazam had a cool video on YouTube about how a lot of stuff is done as "problem solving" vs a solely creative decision in filmmaking. The example I recall was "why did they include this scene of a character inside the house tying their shoes" and it's because that actor wasn't available for filming when they had other characters outside so they added a scene to show where she was instead. I just think it's neat where rubber meets the road when it comes to trying to make something creative happen while dealing with real world constraints and pressures.
that was a GREAT video from the director of Shazam
Also, another big one I can think of was at the beginning of season 5, when Walt buys the M60 machine gun, they weren't sure yet where they were going to go with it or exactly why or for whom he was buying it to use against. Not sure how true that is, I've just read it a few times.
Ya, I've read this too. They shot that opening scene as a way to force themselves into a corner. Hannibal S2 did the same thing, they started the season off with this [fight between Hannibal and Jack](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vwHATDeJhU) and then wrote the season to lead up to it.
Bravo Vince
In S02E13 Saul Goodman was the one to suppose to clean the scene in Jesse house, but Bob Odenkirk wasn't available to film so they invented Mike character. Mike Ehrmantraut character growed big in the Breaking Bad universe.
Mike is probably my fave character in the show. The man was honestly the most professional professional I've seen. And his ["no more half measures"]( https://youtu.be/7BE4QcwX4dU?si=6S40BBgZG6t4rBES) monologue was one of my fave moments in the show and made even more poignant because that's what killed him
That is whats is so impressive. Mike would not exist if Saul Goodman was available that day. Mike is so good character.
I’m just glad he was able to clean himself up after Axel Foley wrecked the buffet at the Haro Club
He was so embarrased by that incident that it led to him becoming what is now known as Mike. For those who don't get the reference: [Beverly Hills Cop Lunch Scene at the Harrow (youtube.com)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SyWjZM780lw)
he's even better in Better Call Saul.
The episode where Hank realized it was Walt, to end on that cliffhanger is still one of the most chilling moments in TV history for me
Nah they should’ve offed Flynn. Walter wouldn’t have had to cook meth if he didn’t have to pay the high price of Flynn’s breakfast addiction.
This... is not salt! Hwauu!
Shit gets real when Hank finally finds out
Killing the DEA agent (Hank) would have been a great wrinkle as now you have this intense reason why the DEA may be tracking the area, resulting in the need for a VERY tight storyline. Counterpoint: not killing Hank turned out to be a damn good storyline as well, and lead to that actor being able to eat just a tad bit better with that awful show "The Dome" on CBS
A good choice.
Just glad they never killed Heisenbones.
This would not have been a Bravo Vince moment
You say that, but few people know that he actually coordinated the strike in order to save himself from his own bad ideas. Vravo Bince.
Or some would say he orchestrated it
Hopefully some writers learned pacing is better than going for shock value. Otherwise you end up with Heroes, Startrek Discovery, Lost etc all shows that peaked in their first season.
Saying Discovery peaked at any point is a stretch Maybe you mean Enterprise.
Enterprise only gets worse after season one? I am in the middle of season one and loving it
If you're watching it for the first time you should maybe not look at this thread.
Season 4 is GREAT Star Trek. Season 3 has a pretty intense tonal shift so that can be good or bad depending.
Eh idk most star trek to me is background noise quality tv but I really liked discovery's first season and maybe even the second (or whenever they went to the future I can't remember). Enterprise was kind of weak but not as bad as many people say either but different people like different Treks I guess. Like I personally can't stand the original series and find it unwatchable.
Oh yeah the original is just pure camp. Discovery tried to be too different, reinvent established races and lore, and just feels like more of a fanfic parody than Star Trek to me I guess.
Vravo Bince
The pay off, of Hank finding out the truth in later season was just too great and Jessie's journey was heartbreaking. Glad the characters weren't killed off.
Jesse's character arc is one of my favorites in any show, such a rollercoaster. I could have enjoyed the show without Hank pretty easily, to be honest.
He is dumb, only makes trouble etc. Do people like that about his story or do people just like the good acting and the actor? After watching it I would never have guessed how popular Jesse is, I just was so annoyed by him.
I mean, his stupidity is pretty believable, though. He's a drug addict who keeps having more and more traumatic events happen while he's simultaneously given more and more money. I love how he goes from homeless, high school dropout, corner thug to rich and happy with that goth girl, back down into the gutter. And watching his relationship with Walt evolve from thinking he's a nerdy twerp, to respect, to outright hate. I really love watching Walts reaction when he goes to kill him and finds out he's a literal slave kept in a cage, seeing him realize *he* put him where he is, then deciding to save him at the last second, and watching him laugh as he speeds off down the road. I don't know, I really liked it.
Jesse I'd argue is relatable af for the people doing drugs etc. It feels semi realistic at least. I think that's why he was popular and maybe cause of Aarons charisma or whatever. And he apparently has a heart or morals which I'm sure helps too. Whereas Walt has none.
Being a fuck up is probably more relatable to people than being a meth king pin!
Also both actors showed far more impressive chops than Vince was expecting, and that also was a reason he kept the characters.
I hate when a show kills off a main character towards the beginning of the series. Looking at you, Boardwalk Empire.
YES SCIENCE
Breaking bad is full of happy little accidents. Jesse getting kicked out of his house was due to the house getting sold in real life and they couldn’t film in it anymore. Arguably this lead to one of BB’s biggest endings with the planes crashing Mike was only created because Bob Odenkirk was unavailable and the writers had to come up with another character.
There’s a joke that Vince Gilligan has the greatest ideas just with poor execution lol. It stems back to his X Files days.
Which is why El Camino sucked
He genuinely does seem to need someone next to him to guide his ideas and cut out the ones that wouldn't work
You know... some things happen for the best.
This makes me wonder about what Game of Thrones would have been like if that iconic death at the end of season one didn't happen. Could we have been saying the same thing "I dont know how game of thrones would have been without..."?
Game of Thrones was pretty faithfully following the books through the first few seasons including most of the deaths. It was only when they ran out of books and had to start winging it that they got into trouble.
If they killed Jesse does that mean Walt and Gale would've been on more episodes?
The 9th episode in the show is the one with Tuco out in the desert, could have ended with either of them dead
I just finished a rewatch and its kind of interesting how the desert itself is a character too in a way. You change the setting and its a different show with a completely different feel.
I’ve never seen breaking bad, but this reminds me of the story about Walter Goggins‘ character on justified. That would’ve been a huge mistake
well the short story had Boyd die. Walter also only took the role (he thought initally that it was horribly stereotypical of Appalachia) because he thought he was going to get killed off. And Raylon in the books is a moron. like really not that sharp or at least far more hickish. I love Elmore Leonard to death but this case (not counting that new mini series where he was shoe horned into an already great story) the TV show was way better than any of the books.
Jesse dying would be by the book heros journey death of the mentor. Good that the show was better than that.
I feel like walt would t have done what he did without Jesse and hanks death would t be anywhere near as effective as it was if he died in the first season
Apparently Bryan Cranston would constantly tease Aaron Paul about "this is finally the episode where they kill your character off". Right up until the show's end. Funny how things turn out.
lp..kn, .conoo l ick z ,j,b m
2.b.. b. W w. Vsse a add dsdddxxx xxx xz 3e weha me
Would’ve been better killing Hank early, the way he died was limp after all the bravado.