Breaking Bad: Season 5: PART II - The Thread

The final glance and nod between Jesse and Walt was a perfect end for them, we've been waiting so long for that. Thank you.

I expressed similar thoughts on Twitter earlier this morning.

I loved the finale, it ended just how I wanted it to. I will say though, that finale could have done with an extra half an hour. It's not necessarily what they could have added, I would have just preferred a slower ride to the end credits. The roller coaster that was the last two episodes needed more winding down time IMO, speaking specifically about the some of the scene's that tied back into Season 5's flash forwards (the diner, his old home).

Regardless of my issues regarding length, it has to go down by far as the greatest television show of all time!

I'm so happy to see Breaking Bad go out while it was still great. Incredible finale. Right up there with The Shield as one of the best conclusions to a TV series.

What an amazing end to an amazing show. I really can't complain about a single thing. I'm so relieved that they were able to tie up every loose end. Walt admitting to Skyler that it was all for himself was one of my favorite moments.

Also, I wasn't really paying much attention to the song playing at the end, but just listen to the lyrics and how perfect they are:

I liked the ending. I kinda want to know what happens to Jesse (does he go to prison, does he get "relocated") but other than that I thought it ended really well. I guess I also kinda wish Walt didn't die in a Nazi biker meth lab.

Anyway, I found this article about Gilligan's thoughts about the finale (there are also links to Cranston's and Paul's thoughts, though I have not read those). Really insightful for those interested the thought process behind the writing of the finale.

@aegon Poor Drew had it coming.

IMO, Walt doesn't get to nod at Jesse - a nod implies some kind of equal relationship; Walt has been a fucker to Jesse for so long that his "blessing" nod isn't worth shit. Jesse didn't shoot him, but he should have at least punched him in the face.

Wait, what happened to Scanlon?!

I have to say this: I think my favorite scene of the finale is Lydia's phone call. I may be reaching, but I saw it as a nice karmic death alluding to her careless throwing around the idea of murder and not having the stones to face the results. Walt is all "oh, hi, I gave you an incurable poison that will melt your insides over the next two days. Life can sometimes be that way, I guess" and just throws the phone away, like he almost forgot about it in all this. And to add insult to injury, the fact that he picked up the phone was purely accidental. This fucking show.

That ending was perfect. I'm so happy it ended the way it did. Easily the best ending to a show in a very long time.

@bigjeffrey: @naru_joe93: (raises hand) I like Mad Men more, but I understand why people like Breaking Bad over it.

I am satisfied. What a ride!

Man... MAN. Only thing missing was Huell discovering the hidden money and winking at the camera right before the end credits.

And, of course, Walt Jr. receiving his 9 mil and using it to buy stock in Kellogg's.

I think Drew was the name of the kid that Todd shot. No clue why we're bringing that up, and also that kid totally didn't deserve to get shot.

Actually that was just more about Drew (or slightly more evil Drew, at least) looking more like Todd in my opinion, what with people comparing him to Michael C. Hall at times. That little kid was Brock.

Uh...what? Todd didn't shoot Brock.

Me too, but I'm looking forward to slowly watching Breaking Bad again from beginning to end. Maybe I'll pick up the barrel during the holidays.

Fuck yes. What an ending.

@glottery: Nobody shot Brock, and I don't think Drew really looks much like Todd. Michael C Hall on the other hand, there's definitely some similarities there.

No. Drew Sharp is the kid shot at the end of "Dead Freight" by Todd. Brock Cantillo is Andrea's son, he was poisoned by Walt with Lily of the Valley in season 4 and the Nazis threatened to kill him to keep Jesse in line.

Oh, there *was* a character named Drew in the series? Well, I was just making a poor gag about GB's Drew...but nevermind, that joke died already! I do remember that kid, but I also did mean Brock. I wouldn't be surprised if Todd would've killed him along with Andrea.

But don't care about all that, I'm already too confused.

Thanks for the link! It's really cool to see the different ways it could've gone down and i'm glad about the way they chose to end it.

I liked seing how different Walt became after having spent months to reflect on how things ended up the way they did. Sure he was still bitter about the Grey Matter stuff, which makes sense because it's the main thing that caused his ego to spiral out of control. But he was a lot more level headed once he returned.

I dont think the finale would've benefited from an epilogue. Personally, I've never liked being told how people spent their lives after the events of books, films and series. I prefer things to be left open. I think we got all the closure we needed in the final episode. (i'm also glad the spin-off series is a prequel)

The movie is actually about Jesse being done with Meth and focuses now on producing Speed in Alaska.

It was such a fantastic ending, possibly one of the best endings I have seen on TV, I'm glad they let it go out while its still in its prime rather than go on for a bunch more seasons. (LOST!)

One of my favourite moments was Walt looking over his daughter, the tears that came down his face showed me that behind all the killing and murder and criminal activity Walt still has some kind of heart.

Got this from the IGN review, but the big showdown was a lot like Gus' revenge.

Enemy gets wiped out, second in command strangles someone, main character is hurt by his own machination.

Fitting that Walt took himself out by accident. All in all a fitting end for a fantastic show.

So long, Walt.

So long and thanks for all the Meth.

Upon re-watching the first episode I think I answered a question I had about the "rolling the barrel of money" scene. When they first get to their cook site in the RV, Jesse pops up after scouting a bit and says there's nothing but a "cow house" about 2 miles "that way". So that answers that. Walt knew there was someone nearby.

It was a pretty good finale, even though I found it to be a bit too predictable.

Yeah what the fuck man. If all these so called "award shows" can't even recognize a show that is obviously head and shoulders above anything else, what the fuck are they worth? Absolutely nothing. Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series?! What the fuck, are they that desperate to hand out shitty awards to everybody and their mother except those who actually deserve it?

And I also remember Trey and Matt talking about how the shows actually have to submit themselves for awards, and only ONE episode. What the fuck is that? You can't even come close to grasping the genius that is The Wire from one episode, since it is purposefully NOT strictly episodic unlike all other shows. It's almost as if these shitty awards were made for praising shit and calling it gold, when it so blatantly fails to reward the good stuff.

But that is incredibly ironic given David Simons general view on awards, which makes it very possible that they didn't submit for a whole lot of them. Who the hell needs awards anyways? I can pretty accurately judge a show with IMDB anyway, so why the fuck do I need to know who won Outstanding Host for a Reality or Reality-Competition Program? Was it really need to jack off Tom Bergeron with that nomination? So disgusting.

Grantland just put out this beauty. Todd's cracked me the fuck up.

Nothing else to really add. Amazing show and finale.

@boozak: Yeah, an epilogue would have been a little silly. I am a type of person that loves total closure no matter how bad it is but I guess it is more fitting to the style of the show that they don't detail exactly how everyone who survived got on.

Cheer up beautiful people, this is where you get to read the Breaking Bad Power Rankings -http://gunningham.wordpress.com/2013/09/30/breaking-bad-power-rankings-felina/

I am actually puzzled how that stuff even works. Actors also get nominated for individual episodes, but are they awarded solely for this single performance, or is this just a guideline for the academy? Take this year's Breaking Bad - Jesse Plemons should definitely get a Best Supporting Actor nod, but how do you even gauge which episode was his strongest?

And yeah, good point with The Wire - the show's methodical approach makes it so that I cannot think of a single really standout episode that's not the pilot or season finale, outside of maybe "Clarifications", and that's solely because it's the one where Omar Little bites it.

Breaking Bad is the first show that I've watched which made me sad that it was over. It's the same feeling you get when you finish a really good book. What a legend.

Games have a long, long way to go.

Now THAT"S how you end a fucking show! (I'm looking at you Dexter writers.)

There are two questions I have with Lydia:

1. Just HOW did Walt get the ricin in the sugar? It's fairly obvious Walt had planted the packet long before she arrived, but what method did he do use to get the substance in the packet without it looking tampered with? One guess was a syringe on the upper portion of the packet, but is ricin fine enough to work that way? Another option (and probably more realistic) is he had a packet before going to the diner, carefully cut it open, mixed in the ricin, and glued it shut.

2. What was Lydia calling Todd about at that time? She was aware of the evening meeting, so it was likely she wanted to make sure it was done and Walt was dead. A more interesting interpretation is there being some "so wrong, it's right" romance between the two and the call was Lydia cancelling a date due to feeling ill. However, the nature of the conversations they've had and the type of character she is, it's probably the first reason.

Also, we never did get the full details on the Brock poisoning, so because of that grave oversight, I'm calling the entire series a failure.

Also, also. If the DEA checks for prints in the nazi meth lab, odds are they'll get a match for Jesse, so hopefully he's crafting boxes in Alaska by then.

Ah well. The moral of the story is, don't take chemistry teachers on a ride-along to a meth raid.

I'll miss this show.

@nevalis: She asked if "it was done", as in did they kill Walt, when she thought she was talking to Todd. Dunno how she could mix up soft spoken Todd for Walt, but hey, she was sick and dying.

@theht: Yeah, I figured that was the case. I tried to remember everything from one viewing, and by the time that scene happened, my mind was already blown, so details are a bit blurry.

@boozak: Totally unrelated, but I thought the epilogue at the end of the final Harry Potter book was masterful. It put such a beautiful cap on things that the "present timeline" ending didn't.

@ghostiet: The only episode I remember the name of is Middle Ground, because of that fucking rooftop scene man.

So this was pointed out elsewhere and I thought it was amazing.

Breaking Bad had 62 episodes in total. The 62nd element on the periodic table is Samarium. Samarium is used to treat lung cancer.

God what an amazing show.

I got a bit teary eyed.

@fancysoapsman: Oh yeah, now I remember that.

Great, I've found a way to fill in the hole Breaking Bad made - I'll just rewatch The Wire and The Shield all over again.

Perfect ending! RIP Walter White...

So Walter entered the TV world with the help of Mr Magorium and battled his shadow self, right? Right!?

Vis a vis ricin: I've been sifting through research papers looking for a conclusive answer as to whether or not the heat from Lydia's tea would have denatured the ricin (because it's mostly protein). The best looking paper of the bunch only let me at the abstract, looking at the rest, it's inconclusive. Heat certainly could render the poison inert, but I couldn't get at any of the hard facts on time and temperature. Perhaps a real chemist could weigh in on this?

Anyone have any opinions on who or what Walt is 'praying' to in the cold open? I find it unlikely that he's appealing to a higher power which leaves me with two interpretations. The first is that he's addressing his 'persona', i.e. asking Heisenberg for help. I'm not sure I like this because I've never been a fan of the school of thought that WW and Heisenberg are separate entities, many people talk about the show as if Walt engages Heisenberg mode which is just bizarre. If anything Walt uses Heisenberg as a persona, accentuating his own traits and desires along with an idealised version of himself to get things done."Mask we use to face life's hardships" etc.

I prefer to think that Walt is in fact, talking to himself, trying to summon up the magic and the confidence he needs to succeed. Yes, he may be looking for aid in the form of his intangible luck that seems to crop up and break things in his favour, but mostly I think he's talking to himself in the way an athlete would before a crucial game.

The ending was perfect, as was the series overall... Still, can't help but feel sad that it's all over.

I watched it again and I gotta say, I think Walt managed to die a good person. When Walt saw Gretchen on the TV I saw that as the moment he truly broke bad. No reverting to Mr. White, no pretending with Heisenberg, just a changed Walter White. He then went back home to set everything straight for himself, before he would say that it's over.

You could say that the actions he took were good (leaving money, revealing Hank and Gomez, and killing the neo-nazis (and Lydia), but it wasn't coming from a 'good' place. Except for Jesse. He was all set to kill Jesse along with Jack and the merry men, until he saw the terrible state he was in. Then, despite himself, he saves Jesse. He just fuckin dives on him.

I don't think it's enough to completely redeem him for all the shit that's happened from his stint as meth kingpin, but it's enough to pull him out from whatever depths he'd submerged himself in when he decided to leave that bar.

I agree - as the thumping music built to a loud version of the Breaking Bad theme and the camera panned to a shot of a solitary whisky glass...I'm not going to lie, my heart was pounding.

A few people have said that this second half of season 5 has been about Heisenberg losing control and then getting it back for one last plan. Did anyone else think that the tipping point for when things started to go wrong was when Walt listened to the advice from Skyler and Saul to take out Jessie? That if he'd pursued a peaceful resolution with Jessie as much as he wanted to, then his defence against Hank could've remained watertight and the sequence of events that led to Hank's death and his need to flee might not have happened?

Sorry for bumping this after two days, but I only just got around to watching the finale and wanted to say something about it.

I think the finale was very well written, well acted and well shot throughout. Basically just like the entire series was. That said, I didn't like the ending. I only now realized I might have watched the series from a different angle all this time as other people did and also as Gilligan apparently did.

The thing I didn't like is how Walt got away with it. He got away with everything. It was pretty obvious ever since the first season that Walt changed because of cancer, but his intentions were always selfish. He had multiple options for every situation, but he always chose the one that got people hurt or killed purely out of self interest. It was obvious to me before the finale that Walt didn't do any of this for his family. To many times he could have chosen a safe and better path for them, but he chose the one that he wanted regardless of them.

I did like Walt. I can't exactly tell when, but over time I've grown to see he was a terrible man. Every person that was killed or hurt can be traced back to his actions. Ultimately, he didn't care. He only cared about his 'empire'.

I have to give it to the writing that they did a very good job of making me hate him, but also feel sorry for him. It's truly masterfully written that they managed to make everything seem like a grey area. But I wanted to see Walt get his. Especially when he approved of the torture and murder of Jesse, I wished he would pay and suffer for what he did.

But he never did. He managed to get the money to his family (assuming), he was never truly arrested, he lived the last of his days in peace while Jesse was being tortured and kept a slave and set out to get revenge on Jack; not to save Jesse, not to redeem himself, not even out of vengeance for Hank (even though his death was mostly his fault) but because Jack betrayed him and his legacy.

Grey as everything was and truly the idiot that Walt is, he only realized what he had done to Jesse when he saw him. Never even knowing they shot someone he cared deeply about to keep him in line. Even then, he tried to manipulate Jesse like he has been doing the entire series to go out as he wanted to. Jesse finally cut that cord, but Walt still went out accomplishing what he wanted and never being hurt where it would hurt him, dying on his own terms surrounded by that which he loved most; his work.

I had so hoped he would have failed. He didn't deserve any of it morally. It's only when I saw how much people loved the ending and liked Walt that I realized I am the only one I know that saw Walt as a bad guy. Not some guy doing what he had to do to save his family in a morally grey area because he had limited time due to cancer. I thought he was a bad person throughout, hurting anyone he came in contact with, the cancer being his stresser that made him twist to evil, just like any bad guy has something happen to them that makes them evil.

Anyway, the ending was really good, I just didn't like it.

Amazing from start to finish, couldn't imagine a better ending for the show. Pretty sad it's all over to be honest, but glad that it had a solid ending and didn't peter out like so many other shows do.