Breaking Bad - Season 01 [Blu-ray] [Region B]

This has bleak, black humour and represents the depth to which our post-modern world has descended. But why do i love it ? How ordinary ? Mr White ? We all had teachers called Mr White and even Jesse continues to call him that throughout their fraught and lethal relationship. Well its either that or 'bitch'. Characterisation is everything and this series really does develop each of the main contenders. But Walter is the star. We admire his intellect and sympathise with his plight as an underachieving chemistry teacher at odds with his financial failure, while his contempories make it rich. The effort to make extra income from the car wash and the humiliating embarrassment that this brings serves to remind us of our own failures and shortcomings. But we don't turn to crime and attempt to lessen the impact on our consciences by lieing to all our loved ones as well as ourselves. This is what Walter does and it gets deeper and deeper, darker and darker until you begin to realise that his position at any given time in the series is unpredictable as well as the velocity or pace at which he moves. Heisenberg is a brilliant alias for Walter. Part of you wants Walter to succeed, because of his at first, apparent motives for doing so. He is dieing of cancer and wants (not needs) to leave his family with financial security, given that his son has cerebral palsy and his wife Skyler is expecting a child and him just turned fifty. His disarming, calm and slightly diffident manner along with his well known illness make him perfect for getting under the radar of DEA and police. The spiral of decline into drug crime, drags everyone he loves along with him until all are tainted directly or indirectly with the sad immorality of human weakness - desire, greed, hate, envy, lust and total lack of any consideration for others. Being responsible for the consequences of your actions is a huge part of the philosophy of utilitarianism that underlies much of American values and in this series the writers have provided us with a brilliant ambivilance to this as represented in the hero/villain Walter. The knock on effect of his actions are interwoven so well - the flight control officer, whose daughter Walter watches choke to death on her own vomit, is so affected by this trajedy that he ends up being responsible for a mid air collision, killing hundreds. Then we see Walter reluctantly addressing the whole school about the issue as part of a group therapy where everyone in Albuquerque has been seen in need of counselling. Walter tells everyone that there is still a positive side to this trajedy - 'it is only the 53rd worse air crash in history' ! It is really bleak at times - but it is also very funny. The hitman for the drug boss is seen returning his lovely grandchildren back to their mummy in their beautiful middle class home where they are encouraged to say bye bye to 'pop pop' - not grandpa or grandpappy. The very next scene we see him shooting three Mexican drug adversaries - 'pop' 'pop' 'pop' ! Just like that. It is excellent acting by the cast, the New Mexico desert and townscapes provide room for escape, the study in evil, the tragi-comic script, tension and audience participation where you feel you can make the decisions, good or bad, on behalf of Walter. I read somewhere where it was called a 'dramedy', a new genre of Tv movie. It is great entertainment - and you will not regret entering the quantum world of Walter White.

There are only seven episodes in this first series of Breaking Bad but I was so hooked I watched them back to back - it has been a very long time since I have felt that enthralled by any series. The synopsis below does not give anything away beyond the first episode. The first episode opens with Walt (played by Bryan Cranston) walking away from a burning RV, gun in hand minus his trousers and with police sirens blaring in the distance. The scene looks bizarre and surreal as Walt couldn't look anything less like a criminal if he tried. The story then switches back to the present day and begins to fill in the gaps as to how he came to be in that position. This is a technique used frequently in both series one and two. Walt, a middle class, law abiding chemistry teacher discovers that at the age of 50 he has terminal lung cancer. He is working two jobs to keep the family finances afloat. His oldest son, Walt Junior has cerebral palsy and his wife, Skylar finds herself unexpectedly pregnant at the age of 40. Walt is at a loss as to how he is going to provide financial security for his family after his demise and in the short term how he is going to fund his medical care. He needs to get his hands on a vast sum of money - and he needs it quickly. Walt seeks out one of his former students, Jesse (Dean Norris) - a time wasting, good-for-nothing layabout and small time drug dealer. Much as it pains Walt to have anything to do with Jesse, he needs him for the one skill set he does have - cooking and selling methamphetamine. Together, the pair come up with a scheme to make the best meth on the market and to get rich very quickly. Suffice to say, things don't always go smoothly for them in their new business venture. The series is full of black humour - some of the things that happen are so awful that they are absolutely hilarious. The subject matter won't suit everyone's taste, some might even find it offensive, but I have to admit that I laughed until I cried on many occasions. Bryan Cranston plays Walt perfectly. He is completely believable in his role and it is impossible not to side with him and want him to be successful even though at the back of your mind you have that nagging reminder that he is now producing Class A drugs. The series doesn't make use of cliff-hangers or other tension inducing stunts commonly used in series such as 24, Prison Break, Oz etc - it simply doesn't need to bother with that type of ploy. Instead it relies on an imaginative plot, well written script and well rounded characters. When one episode ends all you will want to do is watch the next one; I would be surprised if anyone could stretch this series out over a long time period. The only negative is that there were just seven episodes - I wanted more as will anyone else who watches this series. Suffice to say I immediately bought series two and am currently watching those pretty much back-to-back. Overall, a brilliant drama series. If you missed it first time around on TV then grab a copy now, you won't regret it.

And here come some more. Oh my God! This is, no contest, the most drop-dead, gasp for breath, shout at the screen, run-around-the-block-at-the end-of-every-episode in sheer exultation series I've ever seen on TV. It's a unique, sustained, tragi-comic masterpiece of the very highest quality - in any medium. To put it in context, I adored the Sopranos from start to finish; my wife and I have watched the whole set several times, having accumulated all the disks from around season 4, when we first got hooked. Other programmes we've loved as a couple have been Huff: a delightful surprise and, in its time, another product of taking a chance with the Amazon reviewers of seemingly similar taste and being blown away by the quality of the work. If it helps you into our mind-set, the same thing goes for Rome, in its way; and ditto for mutual matrimonial appreciation of Boardwalk Empire. Jimmy McGovern's The Street, Mad Men and the Andy Whitfield Spartacus also make it onto our conjugal video juke-box - although on slightly differing criteria, respectively. So that's a couple of factors to frame my absolute respect for Breaking Bad and its creators: the fact that my wife loves it, too - and I trust you can see from the above that we're selective with our devotions - plus the rare justification of a same-breath mention with, above all, the Sopranos. Indeed, if the creators of Huff and the Sopranos teamed up with the Cohen Brothers... you might just about get into the quality zone established by Breaking Bad. My gratitude goes to the combined deities of taste, luck and internet browsing for dropping me onto the Breaking Bad page a couple of months ago. It could have been one of the better "if you liked this" links; then the synopsis and reviews - at that point, intriguing and suggestive, rather than fully bought into. Well, thanks Heavens for chance, informed guesswork and 1-Click! Because season 1 of Breaking Bad arrived soon thereafter. Still not entirely convinced that Sarah would go for it (actually at the "possibly" rather than "probably" point right then) I left it a couple of weeks before we ventured on the first episode... ...and that was it - hooked from the start! Amazing! Family narrative, left field content, a plot that never stops thickening, oblique ideas centre stage, difficult moments and material, hilarious comedy, quite astonishing action set pieces, suspense. And some of the longest conversations, effortlessly engaging, moving, touching, side-splitting and the rest, that TV has been brave enough to entertain for a long time. For me, it's the ultimate compliment; that is, a flawless, no compromise, sustained reciprocal compliment to the audience's intelligence. Combined with sheer entertainment value - and here we are getting into Shakespearian territory - Breaking Bad cannot be judged any less than, as I said, superlatively superlative! Oh, by the way, that's me doing the shouting, because I'm so excited. Please don't let me mislead you: my glee and enthusiasm is stirred by the quiet subtlety and sheer good taste that more accurately characterises Breaking Bad than my ravings do. My excuse for the hurrahs and eurekas is the comparative rarity of this level of artistic brilliance, well, anywhere nowadays. It really is quite magnificent. Literally never a dull moment. With Breaking Bad, it's actually almost an "of course" paragraph to mention the cast (every single character selling every single line and moment to maximum, utterly authentic value); the overwhelming cinematic production values, photography, soundscape (glorious for home cinema), music - even the dressing of the actors - sublime editing. But it must be done; as the team assembled here, with the world-class writing they have to work with, pulls off some of the greatest televisual strokes ever accomplished. I ordered season 2 after 3 episodes. These quickly followed by 3 and 4 from Amazon Germany (thanks again to Amazon contributors - yes, they come packaged for the German market but with pure English disks in the box). With just 2 episodes left, we've gone through all 4 series from start to end in one unbroken sequence. And, guess what; yes, we'll be starting all over again as soon as we've finished. It starts great and just keeps getting, miraculously, better. Superb. This should be the most celebrated TV programme of all, by any fair standards. So, whatever: do yourself an unregrettable favour and join the comparatively rare but incomparably satisfied fan-base of this exquisite programme. Now, please.

All good

A family saga, a personal drama, a black comedy. Breaking Bad is all these things and more. This short but very sweet first series introduces two of the most well rounded, well written characters to grace our screen. Their tenuous relationship alone is enough to float this series. Walter White is a good man who teaches chemistry and has lived a normal life. That is until he is diagnosed with lung cancer. He panics, despairs but most of all worries for his family's future. After all his wife is expecting a baby. He unexpectedly bumps into an old student of his in a rather compromising situation. This could be his way out. Combining his chemistry skills with the "business links" that Jesse has, his new partnership takes to making the best drugs in town, and so their mini-adventure begins. The series works because there are so many layers to the story. On the surface this does just seem like a drug fable with the normal tropes thrown in. Peel back some of those layers and you will see a family struggling to cope with the prospect of losing the head of the house. On top of all this you have Walter struggling to create the drugs whilst keeping any violence to a minimum. He struggles with the morality of the whole situation. Does he continue to risk people getting hurt for the money or does he walk away and leave his family in dire straits. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul are superb. They play of each other wonderfully and their tense partnership is both sweet and destructive. Over the 7 episodes they really grow together and the story really excels when they are together. The writers of Breaking Bad have skilfully woven a story and a superb character arc into such a short space of time. With one of the best written characters around it had to be a supreme actor to take up the role. Bryan Cranston delivers in spades. He is strong, emotional and sometimes utterly terrifying. He has a moral compass which sways erratically and he goes from being the meek teacher to the ultimate dealer. A character up to his knees in a cesspit, Cranston gives him heart and in turn makes the audience support him even though it doesn't feel right to. Aaron Paul shouldn't go without a mention either. His bubbly, erratic Jesse is the superb counter to Walter's downbeat persona. He bounds around spitting insults and avoiding the police as if it is the most natural thing in the world. He can't understand why a bumbling old chemistry teacher is helping him out, but he doesn't care when the product is this good. A criminally short lived series that begs you to move on to series two. Breaking Bad is television at its best.

2009? I watched one episode of this. Then got my kids (all of them old enough, don't worry) to watch it. And I tell you folks, nothing that year came close to this series, and we are all unreconstructed Doctor Who fans from the old school (whatever that means) and we were all totally in thrall to this amazing series. Who is Brian Cranston? Don't know, but he deserves each and every award that he has received, been nominated for, and if there aren't any he hasn't got and you think he should have, for goodness sake get creative and INVENT one. Same goes for whathisface Gilligan and everyone else. Where one earth do I start? Maybe it's the deconstruction and disassembly of the American Dream. Walter, a gifted chemistry teacher, one day wakes up and finds out that his persistent cough is lung cancer. That would be bad enough, but his circumstances are such that he is far more terrified about the future than any normal person would be given his diagnosis. The story is basically what he is prepared to do to try to make a future for his wife, his teenage son and his baby (who is about to arrive). So far so good. But what a merry dance we are led into. We are tempted to believe that Walt really is very unfortunate, but as the series progresses, and believe me, it does so in fine style, we start to see faint but unmistakable inconsistencies in this apparent series of facts; we see (for instance) that his son is actually very intelligent, far from being helpless, he's a one of the series' strongest characters, and so it goes on - what really IS driving Walt? What is REALLY going on? I'll let you find out. I don't know where to begin with the enormous questions that the series raises. I remember my old drama teacher telling us that the purpose of drama was to knock you on the head and make you think, make you laugh, to assault you and not let you get up for at least a while. What is the source of Walt's dissolution? Is it the nature of what America has turned into? Who are his real friends? Why does he feel poor? What is the American Dream? Who pays for it? And what is it's eventual disposition? Whatever the answers, you will not be disappointed with this sucker, that, I promise. I want to meet this guy Walt some day, even if it is the last thing I ever do. Very, very powerful and often very funny too. Highly recommended.

I happened to come across this whilst randomly browsing on Amazon one evening. All I can say is, it's one of the best things I've seen for a long time. The writing is sharp, witty and clever and the acting is superb, as is the storyline. The main character, Walter White, is played by Bryan Cranston (who plays Hal in Malcolm in the Middle). White is a high school chemistry teacher who is told he has terminal cancer. In response, he decides to do what he can to secure his family's financial future, and this is where the rulebook he seems to have adhered to his whole life, is thrown out with the trash. White uses what he knows best: his chemistry knowledge to make crystal meth and thus follows a chaotic, comedic and, at times, painful and tragic chain of events. White also seems to embark on a voyage of self-discovery; plus we discover things about his past, the decisions he made previously and how they impacted on his life, and the decisions he is making now, which are impacting on many others. The supporting characters also add great humour and depth to the story lines. White is supported by his pregnant wife, Skylar, who has no idea about what is going on; his dopey DEA agent brother-in-law regales White with stories of crime crackdowns with no idea he is cohorting with a minor druglord and his hyper sister-in-law, Marie, has her own secrets. White's partner-in-crime, Jesse, is superbly played by Aaron Paul and the partnership is almost Laurel and Hardy at times. Beneath the surface though, there is the reminder of what the drug scene is really about - the ruined lives, the violence, deaths, fear. We see two parallel and vastly different worlds existing side by side with White keeping a foot in each, trying desperately not to bring the two together. 'Breaking Bad' is black comedy at its best but beware it is quite gory in parts!

I seem to be in a minority of one when it comes to assessing the merits of Breaking Bad - I don't believe it deserves all of the accolades it gets in terms of being one of the greatest shows ever made. However to be clear - this is a good TV show. It's just not in the same league as The Wire and Game of Thrones. I confess that I abandoned BB midway through the second season. Mainly because I decided I had better things to do then get depressed by its unrelenting bleakness. My problem was that I was unconvinced by the extreme decisions Walter White made: I just didn't buy the fact that, knowing he was dying an intelligent and compassionate man would value making money to support his family after he was gone, at such a cost to his very soul, above spending the little remaining time he had with said family. Sure, some characters would do that: but what we learn about Walter's values and principles made the road that he takes seem inauthentic. In terms of epic crime drama nothing can touch The Wire, not even Breaking Bad.

Like most people I know that are aware of this show, they found it and OD'd on it, watching basically the entire series in a short period of time. It's a great show, the writing is solid, the acting is amazing and the premise is the most original thing to happen to TV in a long time. The good: -Every episode with a few little things that weren't aired in the original episodes (overall, most episodes are pretty close to what aired, very few bad words, only one nude scene that I can recall) -Cast commentary provides insight into the characters and production of the show. -Lots of other extras including screen tests for the actors, a photo gallery, cast interviews and behind the scenes features. The Bad: -Maybe I am a cheap individual, but I still feel like the price is a bit much for basically 7 episodes (it premiered during the year of the writers strike). I know there are extras and the show is really great, but come on. I honestly think this should be priced at or just under $20. -No outtakes. I wish every show released on DVD had outtakes. I find them endlessly entertaining. Minor point and really my own preference, but I figured I would throw that in for those that are like me. It's a pretty good set.

ich dachte eigentlich immer, dass mich ernsthaftere Serien wie Breaking Bad eigentlich überhaupt nicht interessieren. Die Pilotfolge von BB habe ich mir um ehrlich zu sein nur wegen Bryan Cranston angeschaut. Ich konnte mir einfach nicht vorstellen, ihn in einer so ernsten Rolle zu sehen. Ich ging davon aus, dass ich nur diese eine Episode sehen werde, da mich Serien dieser Art eigentlich nicht so interessieren, und zu Bryan Cranston würde eine solche Rolle ohnehin nicht passen. In beidem habe ich mich geirrt. Und zwar ganz gewaltig. Die Geschichte um Walter White zog mich von der ersten Minute so in ihren Bann, dass ich nicht mehr aufhören konnte immer und immer wieder die nächste Episode zu starten. Ich hatte in dieser Woche zufällig Urlaub, so dass ich mir alle Episoden von Season 1 bis 4 in einem Stück ansah (Unterbrechungen nur zum schlafen :-)). Gerade Season 1 ist der Hammer. Season 2 bis 4 fangen jeweils gut an, flauen dann ein bisschen ab und enden bombastisch. In dieser flauen Phase werden dann verstärkt die Charaktere beleuchtet, oder einfach mal etwas komplett neues gezeigt (die Episode mit der Fliege im Labor treibt beispielsweise die Handlung ÜBERHAUPT nicht voran, ist aber unendlich komisch anzusehen, beispielsweise als sie die Fliege dann endlich erwischen, und diese in slow motion auf dem Boden aufschlägt - genial!). Einzelne Szenen fand ich hin und wieder etwas zu sehr in die Länge gezogen. Dafür wird man aber belohnt mit einer originellen Story, sehr interessanten Kameraeinstellungen, sowie sehr interessanten Charakteren, die allesamt mit fantastischen Schauspielern besetzt sind. Alle passen hervorragend in ihre Rolle und leisten sehr überzeugende Arbeit, was mich zu meinem Irrtum Nummer 2 bringt -> Bryan Cranston. Wie gesagt, ich erwartete es überhaupt nicht. Aber seine Darstellung des Walter White ist für mich persönlich die beste schauspielerische Darbietung, die ich jemals gesehen habe. Es zog mir fast den Boden unter den Füßen weg. Ich habe mich so oft dabei ertappt, wie ich einfach mit offenem Mund da saß, und einfach Kinnladeneffekt pur hatte. Seine Gesichtsausdrücke sagen mehr als 1000 Worte. Es ist einfach unglaublich und erschreckend zugleich, wie real diese Figur durch ihn und seine Performance wird. Ich kannte ihn vorher hauptsächlich aus Malcolm in the middle, und ich habe ihn schon damals heiß geliebt. Um ehrlich zu sein, er war durch diese Rolle sowas wie mein Favorit, ich mag diese "Hal" Charaktere in TV Serien, da sie einfach so liebenswürdig sind. Bryan Cranston meisterte das perfekt. Er verpasste Hal diesen leicht femininen Touch, er hatte Schiss vor wirklich allem. Wenn man diese "goofy" Performance von ihm gewohnt ist, ist Breaking Bad der krasseste Gegensatz, den man sich vorstellen kann. Ich kann es noch immer kaum glauben, dass "Hal" und "Walter White", die unterschiedlich nicht sein könnten, von dem gleichen Mann verkörpert werden. Und dass er es schafft, beide Charaktere mit so einer derartigen Perfektion darzustellen. Das, sowie die Tatsache, dass Bryan Cranston ein wirklich netter, sympathischer Kerl zu sein scheint, machen ihn ohne Zweifel zu meinem persönlichen favourite actor (Zitat von Aaron Paul: "he is so much like his Charakter on Malcolm in the middle in real life!") Naja, nicht umsonst hat er für diese Rolle dreimal hintereinander den Emmy abgeräumt. Jüngst hat auch sein Kollege Aaron Paul endlich diese wohlverdiente Auszeichnung bekommen. Ein bisschen Bauchweh habe ich nur was Season 5 betrifft. Am Ende von S4 wird die Handlung nämlich eigentlich abgeschlossen. Ich hoffe nicht, dass man hier den gleichen Fehler macht wie bei anderen großartigen Serien, und mit einem Schnellschuss das großartige Finale zerstört ....

Todo el mundo debería ver esta serie, una de las mejores que he visto en mi vida. No cuenta ni con audio ni subtitulos en castellano por ser la versión inglesa, pero sin necesidad de un gran nivel de inglés se puede entender perfectamente. El doblaje en castellano que he visto posteriormente es muy malo, con lo que recomiendo encarecidamente la versión original

La prima stagione di una serie che ha cambiato le regole. Capolavoro assoluto!! Un plauso al doppiaggio italiano, hanno fatto un ottimo lavoro. Consigliata per chi non l'avesse vista o per chi ama i contenuti speciali e le curiosità del set. Sarebbe stato bello avere una cartolina in regalo.

The bar that was set for television with shows like The Sopranos and The Wire has been taken up a notch with Breaking Bad. Like both of those shows, its characters are realistically drawn and believably acted by amazing casts (as noted by many, particularly Brian Cranston's "Walt"). What seemingly began as a somewhat simplistic premise in season one rises to the level of engrossing thriller by the end of season two - and then to the level of Shakespearian Tragedy by the end of season Three. The character arc of Walter White from complacent and defeated suburbanite to calculating criminal is one of the most rewarding rides I've ever experienced in any form of fiction (TV shows/movies/novels). The reason I say the bar is taken up a notch is not because I think it's better than the shows I mentioned (persa). There is a bit of "apples and oranges" in comparing any TV show to another. It's because Breaking Bad easily on par, yet accomplishes its greatness sort of with one hand tied behind its back. HBO has the freedom as a premium channel to be as vulgar or graphic as the story dictates... nearly uncensored. AMC (who produces Breaking Bad) works within much more restrictive limits, yet feels every bit as gritty and intense as those other shows. And I'm not sure that seeing the occasional naked person or cussing rant could do much to improve upon it (though I'm certainly not against either =) Unlike in some shows, Walt's amazing character arc never puts the plot in the back seat. Too often that happens to a show of this type, making it devolve into tedious melodrama that starts to feel like a soap opera. I love Mad Men, but half-way into season two I started to feel like I was watching Melrose Place with brilliant set-design (thank god it redeemed itself in season three). Except for the occasional humorous moment (and sometimes there are many), the show is definitely a drama, but it's punctuated with enough twists and unexpected turns to satisfy the most rabid thriller fan. It's plotting is written near-flawlessly. On another note, although the show looks nothing like a Wes Anderson film, its meticulous set-design and artfully cinematic look bring comparisons to my mind. There is never a scene or shot that seems out of place or boring. It also has moments of unforeseen action (think Bill Murray kicking the Pirates off his boat) that seem to come out of nowhere and lurch the characters and storyline forward rather than merely being cliché set-pieces which seem to be expected from a show essentially about criminals. In case you haven't noticed, I'd highly recommend the show. =)