There is no discrete point at which you can say people have turned from good to evil. You can watch them redefine how far they’re willing to go, over and over again, and no matter how bad it gets or how hard it is to imagine, there’s always somewhere further that they haven’t been yet.
They’re still the same people they always were, just more revealed. Aspects of their personalities that they didn’t see in themselves, or that they hid from themselves, are brought front and center. Everything that they find themselves capable of doing in extreme circumstances, they were always capable of. That’s the dark potential of the human race.
And that’s why Breaking Bad is such a rich show. Walt, for example, isn’t substantially different now from what he was in episode 1, scene 1. He’s learned some stuff about the drug business he didn’t know before, but as far as the other stuff goes–the really disturbing stuff–he’s a natural.
I think people equated Walt’s underdog status and initial “selflessness” as him being good and upstanding guy, when in reality this was merely a mask he wore to live a life without problems. Walt isn’t a sociopath, he cares about people, but he also has that intelligent awareness that people can be used and manipulated for his own ends.The ease at which he does these things is what shows his true nature, and his ego and need to “protect his family” remedies his guilt.
The cancer coming back is something I’ve pondered about, and sometimes I’ve actually considered that…
…
[details=Spoiler] When Walt was getting reevaluated and talking to the other guy getting treatment about taking charge of one’s life, I couldn’t help shake the feeling that when Walt received his “good” diagnosis that it was actually not a good result (which he told his family at dinner); and his fear of death depicted this season was really him being terrified of not living up to his full potential… hence the reason he confidently made suicidal risks this season. Sadly, the reasons so far have been unsubstantial.
I still think Grey Matter is a loose thread, as well as Massive Dy- er… Madrigal Electromotive; so next season will probably have a new collusion due to the massive power vacuum in the Southwest.[/details]
Once he let heroin girl die that was it. He went over the edge. Bad was broken, I remember when I saw that scene was I like “Man Walt, Cold Blooded” Everything else up to then was him either fighting for his own life terrified, or him trying to make sure he wouldn’t get caught. He didn’t need to let her die.
why do we have to put everything in spoilers? if someone reads the breaking bad thread before having watched the season finale its his own fault
I can see that spoilers make sense when people saw a preview or whatever, but not when the season is over and everyone is just discussing what happened
walter couldn’t have saved jane. he also was there to get iirc their supply of meth.
you need an antidote to reverse what happened to jane…and since she already stopped breathing. to clear her airways of the foam and somehow get her heart started again…hes a chemist but i dont think he could make an antidote from stuff that was laying around the apartment. calling 911 would’nt have helped either. if the fire department was nearby…a few minutes…but still too late to revive somebody.
they also wouldve been arrested if the fire department showed up because likely they wouldnt be able to do anything cept call the cops once drugs are seen all over tables. then how is walter going to take all that meth with jesse awake freaking out and the fire/police departments outside and inside?
Doesn’t matter. The rule is, if it’s new shit, spoiler tag it. There are people in this thread who are just starting out, and it’d be pretty sad if they carelessly wandered in at the wrong point and glimpsed, in big capital letters: ZOMG GUS IS AN EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL.
I’ve only watched the second season in bits and pieces, but I’m pretty sure Jane was choking on her own vomit. Not some foam that needed an antidote. All Walt would have had to do was turn her over on her side (like Jane herself told Jesse to do to avoid choking on vomit when high on heroin).
Jane was going to fuck things up for him, why not let her die? He wasnt supposed to be there anyways but i get what youre saying. His morals did go out the window after s2.
Walt was, right from the start, proud and selfish: common character traits that can lead to evil actions. His cancer was simply the event that sparked the actions Walt took based on these traits; actions that were evil. And there is no question that Walt IS evil. He has brought danger, pain, suffering and death upon friends, family, and innocent people just to that he try to create the image of a strong provider (just look at the reveal at the end of the last episode to see the extent of his manipulations).
The scene:
Spoiler
when Walt broke down and told his son that he did not want to see him as weak
sums up his true motive: it wasn’t about providing for his family, it was about satisfying his ego. Maintaining that image of a strong provider, no matter what the cost.
He is a deep, fascinating character, but Walter White is evil.
i like how people are debating when Walter became a bad guy. did everyone forget he broke(?) a kid’s leg in the first episode for making fun of his son? what about when he blew that dude’s car up in the gas station? that explosion could have killed MANY people, yet people are like “WHOA WALKING AWAY NOT LOOKING AT THE EXPLOSION WHAT A HERO THAT GUY TOTALLY DESERVED IT AHAHA STAY OUT OF MY TERRITORY HOME DEPOT METH COOKERS I BOUGHT 20 PORK PIE HATS OFF AMAZON IRL-” and nobody ever says anything about the plane crash. Walter is a piece of shit- and just like Dexter, people aren’t acknowledging that fact just because he’s the main character.
uhh, you don’t [details=Spoiler]turn down a lucrative job which would get your cancer therapy paid for free to ruin other people’s lives. you aren’t being “protective of yourself and your family” by doing that.[/details]
He didn’t want Gale dead; in fact, he definitely liked Gale and had great “chemistry” (see what I did there) with him. Once he realized that Gale would threaten his existence? Dead. Same thing with Brock: you could see a huge relief on Walt’s face when he found out the boy would be ok. You could also see the remorse in his eyes when he allowed Jane to die.
One of the recurring themes in the show is living with the consequences of the choices you make. Walt is not evil but he has definitely lost a huge part of his morality. He’s just not on the same level as Gus and whoever else.
