Visitors Review

Sanpaco13 (2012-05-25 21:51)

Pollos

I don't often begin singing a show's praises until I've seen most ofthe series and it has been canceled. Even less often do I come on hereand write a review for it. But in the past two weeks as I've begunwatching Breaking Bad I have the same kind of excitement for this showas I've had in the past with other favorite shows of mine like TheX-Files or Lost.As I watched the first few episodes I kept switching from laughinghysterically to feeling very serious and grave to feeling empathy forsome characters then hate for the same characters later. Youimmediately think you have each person pegged into a stereotype, andfor the most part you are right on with it, but as you get to knowthem, you begin to love them anyway despite their flaws and the thingsyou hate about them.Of course the cinematography and all that is great too, but that is notusually what I look for in a show, at least not consciously. If you dothen all the more power to you and this show does a great job with thatas well. But for me a show is about story, characters, great acting,and how the show makes you feel as you watch it. This show has all ofthe above.The title of a show can at times have some awesome significance aswell, and for me "Breaking Bad" has a couple different meanings. One,Walt and Jesse are two of the most unlikely drug lords and because ofthis they end up really stirring things up in the crime scene. Second,breaking bad in the same sense that you would say a plane broke left orright. In other words turning bad. It happens gradually at first andthen suddenly you're headed in a completely different direction.Watching the evolution of Walt's character has felt this way to me. Hestarted slow with just cooking a little meth and selling through Jesse,but soon he's offing local distributors, getting run down by thecartel, and at the same time his family life falls apart.Needless to say I am impressed with the show and I think it has beenimpeccably handled plot-wise to allow for the story to head in justabout any direction at any given time and I look forward to seeing whatelse is in store.

Fredrik Carlsson (2012-05-25 09:06)

One the best TV shows I've ever seen

Walter White (Bryan Cranston) is a high school chemistry teacher whoseems trapped in his own life. He works part-time at a car wash andworries about money. His wife is pregnant and his son has cerebralpalsy. In the midst of all this he is diagnosed with terminal lungcancer.Seeing as he hasn't amounted to much in life Walter wants to leavesomething behind. He's looking for easy cash. By chance he meets upwith a former student. The student is now a drug dealer, real nameJesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), who goes by the street name "Captain Cook".Walter, who was once a genius chemist, produces some of the bestmethamphetamine Jesse have ever tried and he starts to push it.Walter, who already had to deal with his cancer, now also has to dealwith his new life as a criminal and a world that might be too much forhim to handle. He's also struggling to avoid to catch the suspicion ofhis brother-in-law Hank who is a D.E.A agent.Personally, I love the set-up, and the theme. Drug romanticizing andcriminal shows always have some moral ambiguity and as such, with verylittle spoiling, Walter is forced to do bad things. It's intriguing tosee a show that doesn't push these things to the edge nor does itignore them blatantly. Walter displays a gradual and small change. Notoverwhelming development from scene to scene as in other TV shows. Healso reacts and show disgust for gruesome acts of violence instead ofthe regular indifference or even reveling in it as we're so used to seein other shows. But it still affects him. And that is another thing Ilike about this show. Walter has a conscience. But each of his morallyambiguous choices push him closer and closer to the edge. Which raisesanother point of interest in the show: Will his family tolerate theperson he's becoming and will they stick around? Bryan Cranston has created a very living character with his portrayalof Walter White. Not putting down everyone else's performance for thatmatter. Even the more apparently superficial characters such as Jesseand Hank have a lot of subtle nuances to them. It's a refreshingcontrast to the otherwise exaggerated and stereotypical Hollywoodcharacters who can be summarized in two or three words.As far as inspirational sources goes the theme of a making thecharacter a bad guy is recognizable from Dexter or The Shield. BreakingBad however is not as fast-paced as the later (although seasons 2 doescrank up the speed) and not as vivid as the former. Not saying thatit's not inspirational but Breaking Bad, so far, seems to reward thepatient. If this had been CSI: Miami they would probably have told thisstory in one episode but lacking the great photography, excellentacting and hilarious black comedy.If you're looking for a show that will grow on you and with refreshingideas and character development, look no further, Breaking Bad is here.

alexruthrauff (2012-05-25 00:08)

It's good, but...

I'm in the middle of Season 2 right now and I've had major issues withhow sloppy this show can be sometimes. Witness: 1. Jesse is busted bythe DEA and then released when they apparently have nothing on him. Butwait--the DEA SHOWS HIM that they've found his duffel bag full ofmoney, which was in his car, which was with Tuco when he was shot.Jesse says it isn't his, obviously... but his prints would be all overit (first thing they'd check), and I'm no lawyer but it seems that asack full of money with your prints all over it found next to a deaddrug kingpin would be PLENTY of evidence to charge you with a seriouscrime. But no, there's no indication that they finger printed themoney, and Jesse's let go. NOPE, not buying it.2. When Jesse tries to cook meth using Walt's recipe, he doesn't get itexactly right--the stuff he makes is very good, but not great, so whatdoes he do but THROW IT OUT IN THE DESERT. Again, the stuff he makes onhis own is excellent, he's got no other income, but instead of sellingit and working on the formula he just repeatedly tosses it out. We'resupposed to believe that this broke meth head has suddenly become asobsessed with perfection as a German luxury car engineer? 3. Let's rundown the list of reasons Hank should suspect Walt of being involvedwith meth. Chemistry equipment used to make meth is known to be missingfrom the lab Walt supervises... There is apparently a new expertchemist manufacturing meth in the area... Walt is a known associate ofJesse, whose car was found next to a dead meth kingpin... Walt wentmissing at exactly the same time Hank raided a meth distributor'shideout... Walt is known to have cancer and faces an uncertainfinancial future... Walt is missing for hours at a time without a goodexplanation... COME ON. We're supposed to believe that thishigh-ranking DEA agent hasn't had the thought cross his mind once?Sorry, not buying it.It's a great show for a lot of reasons, but sloppy stuff like thismeans it can't measure up to shows like the Sopranos or the Wire, whichare meticulously detailed and eminently plausible. That's my two cents.

The-Driver92 (2012-05-24 02:35)

Best Show on TV, bitch.

The best television dramas of all time don't TELL you what is good orbad, or WHO is good or bad -they let people be people, and then youform your own opinions of the characters. From the Sopranos, to theWire, to the Shield, and now Breaking Bad. And honestly, I think thismay surpass them all, even the Sopranos.Meet Walter White. Well, if you're already on Season 4, I assume youknow his story. From dorky chemistry teacher/car wash worker tomillion-dollar methamphetamine cook, the transformation isunbelievable, yet believable at the same time. You know his story, howhe got here, and it all seems to fit. The writers have made it clearfor a long time that Breaking Bad was similar to Scarface - that Waltis comparable to the transformation of Mr. Chips to Scarface, and thisseason shows that perfectly.Walt has and still believes coming into season 4 that he is doing thisall for his family. But is he? How far will he go? And is this all formoney, or something else? We get to see many ethical dilemmas and innermoral battles in most of the characters this season - Walt, Skyler,Jesse, Mike, Hank, Marie and even maybe a small glimpse into the pastof chicken man and meth king-pin -Gustavo Fring.Each episode gets more and more dark (did you think it was possible?),and Walt continues to surprise the audience with strange decisions anda terrifying look into the path he is going down. If you look back atseason 1 episode 1, before the meth and cancer, that angry, torturedindividual was already inside of him. That results in the question: wasWalt ever even really that good of a guy? He hasn't changed as much asyou may think, but his anguish, pain, and stress is amplified by about200x. And as expected, the end of each episode is usually a majorcliff-hanger, and you'll be begging for more.The acting is nothing but simply perfect. Bryan Cranston as Walt willmake you laugh, cry, and even conjure hatred. Giancarlo Esposito as Gusbecomes a huge player in this season, and he should be up for an Emmy.The glazed, empty, evil look in his eyes is terrifying, and therearen't many boundaries he won't cross to get what he wants.This is definitely the darkest, thought-provoking, best acted show ontelevision at the moment, and maybe ever. If you haven't watched it,start from the beginning and follow Walt's odd and morally perplexingadventure into the life of a meth cook.

joelseeman (2012-05-24 12:23)

hooked and i can't stop

a couple of days ago i started watching breaking bad not my kind ofshow i thought but i tried it and i can't stop bryan cranston isincredible one of the greatest actors i've seen in a while even if youdon't think you would like this show believe me when i say you will andnot only bryan cranston but his supporting actor aaron paul who i grewup on in movies such as ''whatever it takes'' ''van wilder'' and ''biglove'' he evens the playing field on this show a truly great cast andscript drives this show and i'm only half way through the secondseason. so believe me when i say this is a show that every singleepisode takes you somewhere new a makes you watch every episode fromstart to finish.

darshan chudasama (2012-05-23 21:37)

breaking bad is bad ass

this is a well made series so far there are only 4 series and do notknow if there will be any morewell watching this series was great did not expect it , it got a lowviewing rate because i think it was not as commercial as other but itsone of them when you watch it , you want to see it till the end Bryan Cranston is the main character who is the dad in MALCOLM IN THEMIDDLE , and he was the best thing about MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE and heis a true actor in this series and is very entertaining to watch , thisseries has a great ending the way its been shot with the camera is nice and there is some cg workas well that looks good i would like to say much more about this series as there is a lot tosay but its best to see it for your self , what can i say but its wellput together in my opinion

svenfost (2012-05-23 10:26)

Great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just saw episode 3x10 and have only one thing to say: Whuawahua! It'sjust the best fiction I've seen for years. In France we call cinema the7th art, in the US it's the industry of entertainment. In most cases, Iprefer the American way of saying it. But for this episode, I'm on theFrench side… Imagine the pitch: let's put two guys and a fly in a cavefor 50 minutes. Who's crazy enough to accept such a scenario? Theactors are so real, so sensitive, so violent and so fragile; I justfell in love with both. I leave next door to Godard, in Switzerland andI'm sure he'd like this challenge: no sex, no violence, no incrediblecamera effect, no make-up and no tricky scenario: just two guys in acave with a fly. Only those incredible actors could have made it sotense and beautiful. Please go on!

valis1949 (2012-05-22 16:11)

Mind Blowing

BREAKING BAD:Season One explodes like a sucker punch to the gut, and isnothing short of mind-blowing. The pilot for this series is a definite"Must See", and stands with the greats of Action/Adventure Televisionand Cinema. This segment begins at such a giddy peak, that you thinkthe only way forward would be to tell the tale as a long flashback.However, through a marvelous piece of editing and writing, the plotmiraculously moves forward from that point. Bryon Cranston'sidiosyncratic performance is a joy to behold. He embodies a man who isagainst a rock, and an even harder place, who has no other option butto throttle his higher aspirations and grimly carry on. His solace andvalidation in middle-class morality and virtuous conduct is long gone.I eagerly look forward to more of this ambitious, entertaining series.

boatista24 (2012-05-18 14:54)

An ingenious classic

This is one of those rare works of pure genius, combined with stellarcasting and superb direction, production, song selections and cameraangles, as well as the incredibly synched talents of Bryan Cranston andAaron Paul. The last time I saw a continuing saga this good was RichMan, Poor Man, over 30 years ago. The remarkable guest-star list,combined with a story line to die for, has made this series sointeresting that one can't take their eyes off it. It is absolutelyFLAWLESS. Bryan Cranston's performances are beyond reproach, but thereal guy to watch is Aaron Paul. This extremely talented young actorwill one day win an Oscar - there is no doubt. I wait with bated breathfor season 3!

mhogan7-4-50485 (2012-05-18 04:33)

Ch is not the symbol for any element!

In the opening credits, being that part of the show is focused onchemistry, letter combinations in the opening credit names thatcorrespond with element symbols are highlighted, with the first letterof the chemical element capitalized.The Director of Photography is Michael Slovis (if you read this, greatjob!). The two letters that are highlighted as a chemical elementsymbol are the 3rd and 4th letters of his first name (mine as well)...Ch.But Ch is not a symbol for any element! And we wonder why we are sobehind in science compared with other countries! Michael Hogan, PEChemical Engineer

m_saikiran (2012-05-17 23:53)

wow what a series,worth watching

First three seasons were awesome,Bryan Cranston did justice to hischaracter Walter white.Only point I dint like is skyler's relationshipwith ted(even though it was for short duration)apart from this allthree seasons are great. chemistry lecturer cooking meth to make moneyvery interesting.But I think fourth season is going out of track.....but I am waiting for what would be the end as gus and walter are tryingto terminate each other,also hank behind gus which would put walter infront of hanks gun.trust me give a try

Kukuman90 (2012-05-17 07:49)

The best show out there at the moment!

This is my first review, however I thought I had to mention what agreat show this really is! The first season is great, the second, in myopinion, is probably even better, and the third season is a littleslower but some of the episodes are especially well written and acted.The way the characters develop throughout the show is nothing short ofa masterpiece. The acting is top drawer. I never really rated BryanCranston before I saw him in this show. However I obviously overlookedwhat an amazing actor he really is. Aaron Paul as well plays the rolebrilliantly and provides a stunningly powerful performance, especiallyin season 2. To anyone reading this who is hoping to stumble across aGREAT show and hasn't decided whether they should give this show a go,all I have to say is please do, you will not regret it. Unfortunatelythis show has been slow to come onto UK TV, but this is probably THEbest American TV show I have watched. Its better than any film becausethe characters are truly given time needed to develop.

Fox Garrison (2012-05-16 21:42)

Hot Show, Hot Cast

This is a great show. First of all the look of the show is justabsolutely outstanding. It has this greenish-yellow tint to it thatmakes the desert scenes all the more gritty and hot. You can reallyfeel the heat from those scenes. The acting is without questionmovie-quality. In fact, the whole show has this movie feel that canonly be described as a mini-movie for TV (not a TV movie though). Ilove the fact the show perpetuates drama in the most ordinarycircumstances. Only The Sopranos came close to the balance thatBreaking Bad has with its story lines. Altogether, Breaking Bad is thenext greatest thing to Meth!

thebrainflow (2012-05-16 07:55)

Brilliant Character Work In Pitch Black Comedy-Drama

The age of Bryan Cranston has returned. Once universally lauded for hiswork in Malcolm In The Middle, there had yet to be a good vehicle forthis man's particular talents. He has that rare gift of generatingsympathy and manic-energy at the same time.For those that would be content to label this show a Weeds knock-off,bear in mind that Breaking Bad is a new kind of monster. It touches onthe very same themes, "living realistically as a middle class in theUnited States" which often makes us resort to extremes to survive. Likethe mother and daughter team that robbed that bank. But the weedselling antics of Showtime's hit show is really nothing like "Bad." ThePilot was about as perfect a Pilot as I've ever seen, and much of itrests on Bryan Cranston's shoulders.Cranston plays Cheimstry teacher Walter White. He has a loving wife, achild with Cerebal Palsy and another is on the way. He also happens tobe dying from an inoperable lung cancer situation, which happenedalthough he "never smoked." His finances in disarray, the once greatstudent of science turns to crime to solve his problems.He cooks Crystal Meth with a good for nothing ex-student. From theantics of the first episode, the show is leading towards a dark place,but a place of truth. This is a no nonsense black comedy.For people that love Tarantino or the Coen's, this might be your cup oftea.

aerovian (2012-05-16 10:09)

Completely unpredictable

I'm in my fifties and have watched enough television programs andmovies that nearly every fictional story I see is repetitively andtransparently predictable. I know how it's going to turn out before thehalfway point, because Hollywood just keeps regurgitating the samestory lines and scripts ad nauseam. But when I watch Breaking Bad, Ifind virtually ZERO predictability. I am completely locked-in throughevery episode because the plot always manages to deviate from theexpected. And yet it does so, for the most part, without seriouslychallenging rational beliefs. I think this show is an absolutemasterpiece, and the kind of gem that is too rarely encountered in thegarbage-filled thousand-channel morass that is television today.Breaking Bad should be considered the absolute benchmark for serialdramatic programming.

timberwolf24 (2012-05-15 14:49)

If I had a nickel for every time I saw Bryan Cranston half naked.

I just finished the series so now I'm waiting for season 4, but let metell you Bryan Cranston is one hell of an actor, from playing anover-stressed and over-worked comedic father in Malcolm in the Middle,to a serious dramatic bad a** father and a Methamphetamine cooker. Notonly is he phenomenal, but Aaron Paul definitely deserves an Emmy forseason 3, I'll poop my pants if he doesn't win.The main plot of the show is Walter White (Bryan Cranston) is a HighSchool Chemistry teacher that is diagnosed with cancer. He and hisfamily are already middle class and paying for Chemo-therapy isexpensive, so he hooks up with a former student (Aaron Paul) and startsto cook Methamphetamine, and he can do it perfectly since he respectsthe chemistry. And from there it just gets better and better.One thing I love about this show is not only the incredible acting andwriting, but the character development. I don't think I've seen a showthat focused this much on the dynamics of characters, which more showsshould do. You'll see Bryan Cranston go from an average father andteacher to a stone cold bad a** in the blink of an eye. Also Aaron Paulin season 3 blew my mind, he is emotional, intense, and comedic all atonce. This show deserves a perfect 10.

cracker (2012-05-14 14:01)

Second Season is Massively Disappointing Compared to First

I have never seen a television show start out with such promise in itsfirst season and then degrade so precipitously in its second.The first season (10+) of this show is a truly original achievement,blending the masterful creation of suspension of disbelief for a highlyimprobable premise, the darkest humor, high irony, excellent writingand character development, brilliant acting, and bone-chilling suspensetogether to create a masterpiece. I could not stop watching it and wasreminded mostly of the best Hitchcock while sitting their jaw-droppedand reeling, completely addictive and brilliant television.The second season (4, being charitable) of the show crosses the lineinto absurd elements that prevent suspension of disbelief, pares outthe black humor by at least 80%, contains only very obvious"Dickensian" level ironic elements, devolves into a formulaic"hyper-dialogued" progression from "soap drama moment" to "soap dramamoment," stops all meaningful character development cold, hampers theactors (who for the most part are very obviously phoning in theirtrite, yawn inducing lines... but still manage to do a good job),introduces banal and unnecessarily derivative subplots seemingly gearedto a teenage/young female vampire melodrama audience (office dalliance,ill-fated romance, etc.), removes all of the nail-biting suspense andreplaces it with "are we there yet?" mild annoyance, in short castratesthe show and drains all the testosterone right the hell out of it...quite a feat.Does the marketing machine insist on feminizing every single goodfictional show appealing to a heterosexual male audience these days?Why yes it does. Apparently men don't watch much fictional televisionthese days and no one cares if we do because we aren't that susceptibleto advertising and branding (unless it's pickup trucks, beer or golfequipment).The progression from "Breaking Bad" Season 1 to Season 2 is as if one'sfavorite season of "24" was followed by a season in which Jack Bauergoes around and ties up all his past romantic interests ala "chickflick" methodology, wholly derivative and destructive of the show'spremise and potential.Caveat, I have not seen Season 3, and have no real incentive to unlessextreme changes and reversions to Season 1 form are made.Caveat 2, beware of marketing shill reviews on IMDb, there's obviouslyquite a bit of viral marketing at play on this title. Any awards thisshow wins or has won are attributable to the brilliant first season,not the second.

rmaoun (2012-05-13 23:04)

Together with The Sopranos, the best TV series I've ever seen

The only TV series 'Breaking Bad' can be compared with, in my opinion,is The Sopranos.I know they have completely different story lines, but still, they'reboth great Dramas. Even though Breaking Bad has more action and somethrill, they are in many ways alike.I'm not here to compare them but to talk about what makes Breaking Badsuch a excellent show. To begin with, it is produced by AMC, a channelwhich never disappoints in the matter of quality of TV series they air.The actors and performances are very good and intense (and that's atleast a plus two in a TV drama), the writing is very solid andcoherent, and the direction of each episode is masterfully done.Bryan Cranston was one of my favorite comedy TV actors of all timesince Malcolm in the Middle (FOX), and it's very nice to see how heevolved in a very positive way to drama television.These are the seasons I give it a reasonable 10/10. And I'm sure youwould give it too, if you just give this excellent show a chance toprove it's worth it.

danielloos618 (2012-05-11 20:15)

My new favorite show

This show is simply the most captivating series I have ever watched.For the the past several years Dexter has been the only show on TV thatheld my interest from week to week......until now! I watched the first3 seasons in a matter of days. I have become totally invested in themain characters, and am amazed at the chemistry between the castmembers. It's refreshing to finally see a show that allows BryanCranston to use his skills to full potential. The man is a superbactor. Needless to say, Walt (Cranston) is my favorite character on theshow. Coming in at a close second is Dean Norris, as Hank. Once again,a tremendous acting job. His character, along with Bob Odenkirk'scharacter, Saul Goodman, provide much of the comedy relief. Speaking ofBob Odenkirk, it's good to see him thriving in this role as the "dirtylawyer". At first Saul seems like a simple comedic character, but asthe show progresses, different sides of Saul are revealed. If you arelooking for a good show to start watching, WATCH BREAKING BAD!

joninaz (2012-05-11 12:47)

Why I loved this show

I was late to the game... kept hearing good things but never saw it.Finally I decided to dedicate some time, but I'm not one to jump into astory mid-stream.Therefore I sought out Season One, Episode One, so I could begin at thebeginning. You have to do the same if in a similar situation. Thegenius of the series is character progression, so you can't be randomin when you start watching. The evolution of the people and theirinterwoven stories is the core of the series.After the first few episodes, I was consumed in watching every show inorder, as quickly as I could. It's simply brilliant.Rather than re-hash the details, all I can say is it's worth thejourney. The concept is wild, some of the characters can be annoying,and a lot of people will find holes in the storyline. Here's my reply:It's smarter than everyone watching. The writers are 10 steps ahead ofyou. You will be challenged, shocked, confused and irritated on anumber of levels.And that's why it is genius.