Breaking Bad

B R E A K I N G
B A D
R E V I W
created by
Jan Wanat

People say that human life is made up of
choices. Sometimes simple everyday
choices but sometimes hard ones can
change a life forever. That decision must
be made by the main character of a series
that I recently had the pleasure of
watching – “Breaking Bad”. In my case,
the adventure with the series was difficult,
just like with Peaky Blinders. After only
two episodes I was not convinced by the
series, but the reviews and ratings spoke
for it. Like Peaky Blinders, Breaking Bad
needed to give me more time to
understand how great the series is. From
episode to episode I wanted to watch
more and more perhaps because of this
the series became a worldwide best-seller,
earning huge sums of money and
garnering millions of views. Series which
encourages students to learn chemistry.
Talking about an amazing series, (created
by Vince Gillingham) telling the story of
an ordinary chemistry teacher who
becomes one of the largest producers of
methamphetamine in the United States. I
invite you to read my review of the
outstanding series: Breaking Bad (created
in 2008-2013).
50 years old chemistry teacher Walter
White (Bryan C) works at a high school in
the United States. Additionally, he works
at a car wash in the afternoons to make
things better for his family. He leads a
calm life with his wife- Skylar White
(Anna Gunn) and his cerebral palsyaffected
15-year-old son – Walter White
Junior (RJ Mitte) until the family's head of
household learns that he has lung cancer.
Additionally, White find out that his wife
is pregnant and he will have a daughter.

From the beginning of the series, we see the irony that is created among the main character:
Walter White is terminally ill. He has lung cancer, however, he has never smoked cigarettes. He
is a chemistry teacher however over time he has become a producer of methamphetamine. Enters
the drug world but his brother-in-law is high-ranking in the Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA). The main character's transformation begins as early as the first session when the White
learns about the disease. Knowing that the family will not be able to support themselves without
his meager salary, he takes drastic actions that will affect his and his family’s life. The character
decides to produce methamphetamine using his knowledge of chemistry and then becomes a
drug dealer. White thinks that this is the best idea. His premise is simple: earn as much money as
possible in two years because that is his prognosis. This is a breakthrough moment in his life. He
takes on the nickname - Heisenberg. According to a review by producer Vince Gilligan, the main
character's transformation was important for the creator. Even before writing, he decided that the
main character (at that time he did not know who would be playing this role) must change the
transformation from “Mr. Potato” to “Scarface”. White is an ordinary chemistry teacher without
any criminal history, so in the series appears another important persona: Jessie Pinkman (Aaron
Paul). He is a local producer and dealer of methamphetamine in Albuquerque. Interestingly, he is
White’s former student who has never been an excellent learner, however knowledge gained
from chemistry class with a connection to “experience from the street” allowed him to create
drugs. The boys come up with the plan. They will buy a camper, cook the meth inside, and enter
the criminal underworld. Walter creates the almost ideal methamphetamine that achieves 99%
purity. He is one of the best methamphetamine producers in the United States. The main
characters have a great plan, a good quality product to sell, contacts, and their purpose.

“The Godfather” has many thematic
similarities to “Breaking Bad”. That's the
wonderful drama of Michael Corleone, who
can do his best to protect and preserve his
family but ultimately succeeds in destroying
them. Sounds exactly like the life story of
the main character – Walter White ‘a.
Additionally, the audience can find more
factors that can conclude that Breaking Bad
is peppered with examples from The
Godfather for example insertion of murder
scenes like the classic Godfather scenes or
the introduction of the character of a
personal lawyer who has the task of helping
the main character in case of problems (in
The Godfather was Tom Hager as the
lawyer of the for the Corleone family.
Breaking Bad as the series has something
that can be called climate, which creates a
bond between characters and the audience.
Nothing on "Breaking Bad" happens by
accident, which is its greatest strength. From
watching the series, one can get the
impression that the plot is purposefully
being taken in a particular direction.
Gilligan is not hesitant to mix different
genres, including thriller, psychological
drama, and humor, but that doesn't imply
she is predictable.
Additionally, he bravely and effectively
employs a variety of camera-guiding
techniques, occasionally evoking arthouse
cinema, without erecting an ostentatious
barrier between the creator and the
audience. Last but not least are the main
character’s actions. Bryan Cranston
deserved to win whole Emmy awards. It is
no longer a game; it is an absolute - in my
personal view - conjunction with the
character he plays. According to an
interview with Cranston, the actor claims
he knew the guy who had the same case as
Walter White, perhaps as he claims that he
is related to his character.Like Walt’s blue
meta, the series is addictive and unique.
There are 5 seasons to the Netflix original
series. A two-hour feature called El
Camino was also made available by the
streaming service in 2019. It is a sequel
and epilogue to the television series
Breaking Bad.

Bibliography
Gilligan, V. (2011) Breaking Bad, Netflix. Available at: https://www.netflix.com/search?
q=bre&jbv=70143836 (Accessed: December 2, 2022).
acmionline (2017) Breaking Bad: In conversation with Vince Gilligan, YouTube. YouTube.
Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icJjT-yrcs0&t=208s (Accessed: December
2, 2022).
CBSThisMorning (2014) Bryan Cranston on "Breaking bad" Walter White character: "I
related to this man", YouTube. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=dZ9RIpfbYc8&t=4s (Accessed: December 2, 2022).