WOOHOO! Finally, last month, I’ve enjoyed binge-watching the powerful Breaking Bad saga, after a decade of no-see. And I am glad that I've waited this long. When I first saw it, I was relatively new to writing and had never attempted to create an intricate, original story or a screenplay of my own. Although I thoroughly enjoyed the show at the time… suffice it to say, that my appreciation of the superlative craftsmanship that went into creating this masterpiece of storytelling was… superficial.
Having embraced the grind and developed as a writer, I have deconstructed and analysed hundreds of storylines on my continued quest to become a word-smith worthy of his letters. Now I've watched the series through new eyes. And man… do I remain thoroughly impressed!
The narrative is meaty, brimming with ingenuity and menacing substance. Vince Gilligan neither patronises the audience with cheap, on-the-nose cues, nor creates false expectations in an effort to sow unsubstantiated confusion. The exquisite character development scales beyond the protagonist, encompassing the entire cast and is a marvel to behold. The characters are deep and multi-faceted, not oversimplified and split into the pale shadows of ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’, as more shallow shows are prone to do.
At no point does the story become predictable or stagnant. THIS is how it holds tension until the last minute of the last act. BRAVO!
Having succumbed to a flight of foolish pride over a girl and rage-quit his life’s work in exchange for a paltry settlement, Walter idles his genius for years, as a ridiculously overqualified high school chemistry teacher and an extremely underpaid and overworked cashier at a depressing carwash. He is the subject of bullying and ridicule both at work and at home. Life alternates between chores, responsibilities and humiliation. But just as Walter appears to have given up on the hope of ever being happy… His humdrum, SSDD life is flipped onto its head!
Walter’s inciting incident comes in the stroke of the sudden revelation that he has malignant, inoperable, terminal cancer. Ironically, this death knell ignites his raging zeal for life and the insatiable desire to leave behind a worthy legacy. No longer does he take his time for granted. No longer is he content to be pushed around by Fate and just drift with the flow of humdrum toward the gaping drain of the Universe. He begins fighting and swimming against the current!
The saga begins with a desperate, burning need to retain his dignity and independence in handling hospital-related finances and do whatever it takes to ensure a collage education for his children. As Walter trades his soul for success and continued survival, the gentle man he once was... unravels. His story tumbles down from the moral high ground of caring for his family, spiralling into a nightmarish delirium of an ego-fuelled rampage, as he becomes obsessed with winning at all costs and addicted to the adrenaline rush triggered by imposing his impeccable genius and iron will upon the cruel world, which had until recently rewarded his meek, docile obedience with mockery and serfdom... Walter revels in his newly discovered knack of taking Destiny by the horns and riding IT for a change. Who knew that all it took to live his dream, was getting pushed beyond the point when he had anything to lose?!
It does not take long for his callousness and ruthlessness to match and vastly surpass that of those who had taken him for granted for years on end. As a result, he achieves magnitudes more in a single year than he had throughout his unremarkable life combined.
It is fascinating observing how greed and fear can twist a soul... and how money can be a doorway to freedom to live one's dreams to being an invisible prison of one's own construct, if one sacrifices integrity and reason on the alter of craven avarice.
This is my favourite scene and, imo, it sums up the entire premise of the series.
I remember playing a video game, where some crazed NPCs kept howling in the distance: “I am the one who knocks!” and I was racking my brain for the source of that quote. My girlfriend didn’t believe me when I told her that it was meme-worthy and when I finally remembered that it comes from #BreakingBad. In 2014 I could find no credible sources to confirm this. Now the Internet is inundated with sources, hahaha! 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAjJYkUnTEs
“I have spent my whole life scared, frightened of things that could happen, might happen, might not happen. Fifty years I spent like that—finding myself awake at three in the morning. But you know what? Ever since my diagnosis, I sleep just fine. And I came to realize, it’s that fear that’s the worst of it. That’s the real enemy. So, get up. Get out in the real world.”
— Walter White, Breaking Bad,
There’s a BB video game coming, it seems. However, having watched the trailer I am underwhelmed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUoMPwizX2g (note that even here they spliced in the “I AM the DANGER” scene)… I’m inclined to believe that this is still some ways off. The characters don’t do the cast justice and they gave the Aztec metallic paint (which blunts from the point made by that particular vehicle) and made traffic drive on the wrong side of the road—so sorry, Brits and Aussies!
Still, I am hopeful, as Unreal 5 is a mighty engine and if the dev team have the budget, they will get it right eventually, I’m sure—especially if Vince G has some creative direction! 
Have you already watched Breaking Bad? Well, while we wait for the game, why not give the Better Call Saul prequel spin-off series a watch? I saw that a couple of months back and can vouch that it will not disappoint! 
Well, perhaps not until the finale… 
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