More than halfway through its third season, AMC’s Breaking Bad has had many twists and turns over its two-year stint on television. As the series has become increasingly more relevant in light of our current economic climate, this tale of an Albequerqe man’s secret life as a drug manufacturer steps further into the dark side with each passing episode.
Let me start from the beginning for those not in the know. Breaking Bad tells the story of Walter White (portrayed by Bryan Cranston). A middle-aged high school chemistry teacher, who in the face of financial troubles, also takes care of his pregnant wife and son. His son suffers from cerebral palsy, and to top that off is suddenly diagnosed with Lung Cancer. White decides to manufacturer—or “cook,” as it’s called—and sell crystal meth. Crystal Meth dealer Jesse Pinkman (Portayed by Aaron Paul), blackmails one of his former students while Walter sets out to make ends meet to secure his family’s future, while evading suspicions from his family and brother-in-law who works in the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Suffice it to say, things have certainly changed since the start of the series. At the beginning, Walter (nicknamed Walt) was a man you could easily sympathize with. Frustrated with the way his life worked out and his crippled financial situation, he resorted to “cooking” meth and selling it to obtain enough money for his family before he deteriorated from the cancer. Now, things are thing are different.
Having successfully beaten cancer through chemotherapy, and obtaining more money than he knows what to do with, he continues making methanphetemines and amassing more money. Over the course of more than two seasons, Walter has gone from a character you can sympathize with, to character you feel like you don’t even know anymore—which in this case is a good thing. The events from these past seasons have been some of the most riveting pieces on television in long time.
Much of the well-deserved credit goes to Breaking Bad series creator, Vince Gilligan. His pasts works include the TV series X-Files, and The Lone Gunmen as well as the films Home Fries and Hancock. Gilligan does a fantastic job with crafting believable and deceptive characters, although it also takes incredible actors to make these characters believable. Bryan Cranston’s Emmy Award winning portrayal of Walter White is amazing. The character of Walt goes through sudden changes in the series.
This show takes characters you think you know, and surprises you with a side of them you’ve never thought you would see—something this show does best. A major theme of the series deals with morality. The lengths Walt goes to conceal his life as a drug manufacturer to provide for his family is shocking. If your family’s livelihood is on the line, how far would you be willing to go to provide for them? Will you go so far as to become someone who is hated, disrespected, and leaves only pain and suffering in your wake?
These are some of the many questions this series asks its viewers to ponder. And with every episode, the response to that question becomes harder to answer.
Breaking Bad seasons I and II are available now on DVD and Blu-Ray. New episodes currently air on Sundays at 7 p.m. Eastern Standard Time and 10 p.m. Pacific Standard Time on AMC.
