I have never watched Breaking Bad, not even part of an episode...

[joeybee12]

I think I'm the only person here who can claim that!

[Goalie49009]

1. This is Walt

[graywarrior]

13. !

[valerief]

86. The perfect marriage of two things Americans love--BB and kitty cats!

[Goalie49009]

88. thanks

[Auggie]

2. I've never seen an episode either ...

but it's on my list.

[Xyzse]

3. I haven't either.

I am waiting for December, for a long stretch of time I can do a marathon.

Then again, there are shows that I can not watch. So I have no idea how I would be with this one.
There are books that I stopped reading since I can not relate, particularly when it deals with drug use and other things of that sort.

I will still watch this though.

[cyberswede]

4. Me neither

...and I doubt I'll watch it. Not my cuppa.

[bif]

5. I haven't either

And I don't intend to.

[Agschmid]

6. Me too. I think.

[petronius]

7. Nope, I haven't either. Isn't it that show about crappy break dancing?

No idea why that would be so popular...

[seabeyond]

8. nope. i have not, either. nt

[LeftofObama]

9. I haven't either.

[jakeXT]

10. I watched a couple of episodes from season 1 /nt

[Raffi Ella]

11. I haven't either.

I haven't either.

I'm gonna have to look it up and see what everyone's talking about.

[rurallib]

12. haven't seen a second

don't have a lot of desire to either.
Tried to watch "Weeds" on cd a few years back. Started good and got strange pretty fast. Just don't care for those type series much anymore.

[hlthe2b]

21. Oh my.... Weeds is NOTHING AT ALL like Breaking Bad--whatever gave you that idea?

That is one bizarre comparison...

[rurallib]

24. I was using Weeds as an example of the type of series I don't like

sort of along the soap opera type where you need to see episodes sequentially.
All I know about Breaking Bad is it is a guy selling drugs. In Weeds it was a woman selling drugs.
Frankly, i just don't watch much fictional TV anymore.

[antiquie]

14. Haven't watched, heard it described as distressing, but

there's this:

Eudaimonia might not make us happy, but it can enrich us, leave us feeling fulfilled, touched, and perhaps even teach us something about ourselves.

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/2013/09/29/tv-so-good-it-hurts-the-psychology-of-watching-breaking-bad/

[steve2470]

15. I'm the same as you nt

[frogmarch]

16. Me neither, but

after reading about it on DU I kinda wish I had.

[HarveyDarkey]

17. I haven't either

Never even heard of it until a few months ago. Haven't seen the zombie show either. I'm not a big teevee watcher, I have other things to do with my time.

[UTUSN]

18. Me, too, neither. But also none of the Mafia-glorifying stuff either. n/t

[dixiegrrrrl]

38. There is no Mafia in it and there is no glorifying of drug use.

The show actualy demonstrates all the hazzles, problems, anxieties the main character has to deal with as he sets down a long road he could never have forseen.

[UTUSN]

46. My reference to "mafia" never referred to *this* piece. Just to whatever hoppin today

Like "The Sopranos" was all the bees-knees back when and now this.

[JonLP24]

67. I'd think real life drug manufacturing

Last edited Tue Oct 1, 2013, 10:58 AM - Edit history (1)

is more glamorous than this show. Pretty much everyone he works for ends up trying to kill him.

[Incitatus]

90. It might have been for Gale. nt

[greatauntoftriplets]

19. No you're not!

[Rhiannon12866]

20. Me, neither!

[hlthe2b]

22. why is everyone on this thread declaring their dislike for a show they've never watched?

Really?

Perhaps you say that because of subject matter, but I can say that there are lots of shows whose subject matter was objectionable but end up being very very compelling shows to watch.... And, in that, I include shows like the Sopranos, Dexter (early years), Sons of Anarchy (this one, I NEVER saw myself being interested in nor watching, but I was wrong), Breaking Bad, Six Feet Under (the funeral industry, really? ), the Shield, the Wire... and many more.

Seriously, don't you think you should at least try it before condemning it?

[joeybee12]

23. I didn't condemn it...

I just noted that I haven't seen it, while there are maybe 900 threads about it here today! Thought I was the only.

[Raffi Ella]

33. No condemnation here, hlthe2b.

I'm interested in it now from all the talk about it here. The last show I watched from beginning to end was Big Love, loved it, miss it. Maybe Breaking Bad will be my next 'Big Love'(not comparing the two).

[truegrit44]

51. i was a Big Love addict!!! but that was

the last series type show I have watched and actually never heard of this "Breaking Bad" thing until I keep seeing so many many threads about it. Doubt I will ever watch it but nice to see so many that seem to enjoy it

[Raffi Ella]

72. Yeah, I loved that show. I still miss those characters, lol.

They killed off the husband but it'd still be cool for them to do a follow up to see what happened with the wives and kids.

[Incitatus]

43. I keep on hearing about Sons of Anarchy, but have never watched.

A friend has been telling be to watch Breaking Bad for the first three seasons before I started watching.

On a scale of 1-10 how would you compare it?

[hlthe2b]

44. Sons of Anarchy versus Breaking Bad?

They are both very compelling, but I have to give Breaking Bad the nod. Vince Gilligan created, wrote, and directed so much of it, that it was very "tight"--with not a lot of "less-than exceptional" episodes and the acting was top-notch throughout. That's not to say SOA has less talent, but just that BB is really consistently exceptional--through all five seasons.

Granted (from the thread comments), both deal with subject matter that includes violence.. Sons' creator will often "go for it", in terms of shock value violence, while I thought BB mostly let the "shock" revolve around the main characters entry into that world and attempts to cope with it. Those worlds are violent, so it would be hard not to portray it.

Even so, the main characters in both deal with the hands dealt them and their flaws--something rather Shakespearean or Greek Tragedy about this... I think that aspect is what reels in the audiences..

[Incitatus]

45. Thanks.

I think I'll check out the first few of SOA.

[Incitatus]

110. My initial impression was they're just a bunch of low-life trashy thugs and I wasn't very captivated

I gave it a few more episodes and now I just finished season 2. It looks like I found another series to follow. You are definitely right about the violence and shock value. They are very different kinds of shows, but I too would put Breaking Bad on top.

[HarveyDarkey]

102. I didn't say I didn't like it, just said I've never watched it

as with all of those other shows you mentioned on the flickering box. Although, it doesn't flicker so much any more, and it's not really a box any more.

[sarge43]

25. No you're not

I've never watched either

[MrMickeysMom]

54. x 2

So, I guess I have something to look forward to later in life!

[sarge43]

60. I may check it out someday

At this point in my life, I have all the reality I can handle.

[MrMickeysMom]

68. You keep saying things that I can only "times"...

a million!

This is some wild reality show already.

[ZombieHorde]

26. I'm sorry your life is so empty and worthless.

You may want to see if there any support groups in your area. They might be able to help you through this difficult stage in your life.

[texanwitch]

27. I watched my first episode on Thursday, then watched all of them.

The show isn't for everyone.

It is a little bloody.

I watch the Walking Dead, blood doesn't bother me.

At the end Walt lost everything, there is a message there.

[NewJeffCT]

28. Me either

but, I was looking to see if it was available on amazon prime last night, so I will probably start watching it soon.

[texanwitch]

30. Be carefull.

Wait for the weekend to start.

I didn't get much sleep this weekend watching it.

[Kingofalldems]

29. Add me to the list.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

31. I've never seen even a second of it, my dear joeybee12! n/t

[Jenoch]

32. I have not seen this show either.

I'm fairly carefull about which shows I start to watch. I don't always want to like a show because then it's another show I have to watch and I don't really need more TV shows to watch. I'm a little OCB about watching every single episode.

[Paladin]

34. Your loss, non-watchers. (nt)

[alarimer]

35. I don't have cable, so I have seen all the episodes except these last 8.

It pisses me off that Netflix in Europe got them right after they aired. I have to wait however long it will be until Netflix has them here. I've been trying to avoid spoilers all day.

[JonLP24]

37. I saw episodes

#9, #11, #12, #14, #15, and #16 on Youtube.

It looks like youtube removed #9 & #11. Surprised they were even on there that long.

Don't have a TV myself so that is how I kept following the series after watching the first 8 on DVD. I would have waited if I didn't have BB on Facebook spoiling episode #13 for me (which was way too epic not to try to find ways to watch)

[Incitatus]

40. here you go

http://www.couchtuner.eu/

[patricia92243]

36. I had never even HEARD of it until all the posts about it today. And, I watch a LOT of tv - but not

much fictional stuff.

[Texasgal]

39. Nope. neither have I

I've never seen one epsisode of Sex in the City either... and I've never eaten a chicken Mcnugget! LOL!

[mnhtnbb]

41. Nope. Never watched a single episode.

[a la izquierda]

42. No, you are not the only one.

I've never seen it nor have I had the urge to.

[Scuba]

47. Nope.

Never even heard of it until a couple weeks ago.

[Prism]

48. I started from scratch three weeks ago

I was worried about the hype. Everyone recommended it so hard. I thought it was a cult-like thing. But, I wanted to give it a chance before it ended.

It was everything and more.

Intelligent, literate, Shakespearean.

While watching, I knew we were seeing some of the finest television of our age.

It is not overrated.

I finished the series on Netflix a mere four hours before the finale. I spent every waking moment of the last three weeks watching. I got home from work, watched a few episodes, and felt, "Damnit, I can't wait to get home from work tomorrow to watch some more."

It's good, good, good,

My boyfriend, I, and a buddy were glued. My jaw sometimes hurt from the tension.

I'm not a big tv person, but for the love of god, watch this shit. It's some of the best art of our times.

I cannot overstate how wrong I was in looking down on the "cultists" who loved it.

They loved it for a reason.

[Stardust]

58. Beautiful critique, Prism. I'm amazed at how close-minded some of the responses are...almost smug

in their never-ever, never-will attitudes. Fine, I really don't give a rat's patootie if they miss out on the best tv in my lifetime (and I go way back.)

[Prism]

75. It's not everyone's cuppa

I can see many shirking from the violent nature of things.

But man, for the cinematography alone. Has a show ever been filmed and edited so beautifully? And the way the directors paint in the corners of the screen. Lydia with her humidifier had me howling.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

59. I haven't seen any episodes, but plan to start

Thanks for the critique.

I'm looking forward to it.

[Prism]

76. Clear your schedule =) n/t

[texanwitch]

83. Don't start until you have a weekend.

The show will hook you really fast.

It isn't a show about meth, it is about how it effects people's lives.

The greed, the wanting more and more.

This show has it all.

I watched all 5 seasons in 4 days.

The acting was great, the plots always twisting.

You never knew what was coming.

I might even buy the DVD's, I buy very few.

[dixiegrrrrl]

69. I go out of my way to check out "cultist" movies/shows.

Having learned from long experience that generally they are worthing seeing.
Just seems to work for me...

[Prism]

77. I'm definitely more willing to invest in marathons now

There are a lot of shows my friends absolutely love, but I'd been reticent about investing the time to catch up. Breaking Bad was my first Netflix Marathon.

Based on word-of-mouth and friends' devotion, apparently next on the list is either Walking Dead or American Horror Story.

[dixiegrrrrl]

79. and more:

Game of Thrones
Downton Abbey
The Good Wife
The Newsroom ( just ended for this season)
Boardwalk Empire

All very good, with compelling characters, each in its own way worth the watch.

[benld74]

49. Me neither, except for the last 20 minutes last nite,,,

I do the same thing with books

[bigwillq]

50. I can claim it!

Never watched a second of it.

[MH1]

52. Nope, never watched a lick of it myself. nt

[Riftaxe]

53. Somehow, watching a show about a meth dealer

never really invoked my interest, strange that.

But thanks to the spoilers, i can skip the entire ordeal for which i am truly grateful.


I holding out for a reality show about proctology or something like it just a bit more cerebral then breaking bad.

[nirvana555]

55. I had friends telling me about it for a couple of years....

Finally, last year when I was between jobs, i checked out the first season from the library. It exceeded my expectations in ways I can't even explain. Then I checked out the second season. It was even better -I couldn't believe it. (I'm an aspiring writer so I really pay attention to plot feaseability, dialogue, etc.) In other words, it takes a lot to impress me. Then I started watching it with friends who were down streaming it from Netflix. It just got better and better and better. It is now almost universally believed to be the best television show in the history of the medium. You see, its not "just a T.V. Show." It takes the examination and illustration of the human condition to a level that has never been reached before. Add nuance, the best acting and directing ever before seen, and a storyline that leaves one speechless and there you have it. This "T.V. Show" is art.

[Riftaxe]

56. Maybe it is the presentation

And i like the main actor, but lord if i could help seeing every single time the main actor from his malcomb in the middle days with his afraid of afraid of wife face.

However, keep up the writing I read a lot more then I actually watch TV and have a very deep respect for writers both popular and historical <try not to emulate the historical writers they are a sign of their time>. With the exception of extremely bad literature, I always appreciate the imagination and the painstaking time they took to actually put it down then suffer to get it published.

[dixiegrrrrl]

71. Right up there with The Sopranos.

Which I have watched yet again recently.

I don't collect much in the way of tv shows...have The West Wing, The Wire, The Sopranos, and now Breaking Bad.

[CBGLuthier]

62. Television will seldom if ever be "more cerebral then breaking bad"

Making comments about the level of intelligence of a tv show you have never seen can be not so cerebral itself.

[Sheldon Cooper]

66. You'll wait a long time for something more "cerebral" than Breaking Bad.

Maybe you should just stick to the proctology shows.

[ellenrr]

104. +

[Matariki]

57. Nope. Me neither. But some recent reviews have made me curious.

Salon's in particular: http://www.salon.com/2013/09/28/walter_whites_sickness_mirrors_america/

[drm604]

89. What a great article.

I've watched the show from the beginning, and I love the way that article frames it. It really is a parable about Americans' fear and desperation.

[LWolf]

61. No.

I wouldn't know it existed if people weren't always talking about it online.

I think it's on a cable channel I don't pay for.

[DinahMoeHum]

63. Me neither. But if this truly is the end of the saga. . .

. . .I'd probably rent or buy the DVD.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

64. I haven't, either, but now that it's over

I'll check it out on Netflix.

[Tom_Foolery]

65. I like Bryan Cranston...

But I've never watched "Breaking Bad". Not my cup of tea.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

70. me either. although to be totally honest I do think I saw a piece of a trailer or maybe it was

part of the Very First Episode.

[panader0]

73. Never seen an episode either.

What I have seen, personally, is what meth can do to people, their families, kids. Lives destroyed.

[RebelOne]

74. I am close to never watching it.

I watched about 15 minutes one night and it bored me.

[Smarmie Doofus]

78. Nope. Me neither.

What's wrong w. us?

[GoCubsGo]

80. Nope. Never saw it, either. n/t

[RFKHumphreyObama]

81. OK, well, I can no longer claim that

I stumbled across the last minute of the final episode while channel surfing so I guess that might qualify as watching part of an episode. Then again, it meant absolutely nothing to me because I've never watched the series and I don't intend to catch it in syndication. Nothing against those who do, just not my type of show

[walkerbait41]

82. Not one episode, tried to but just couldn`t get into it.

Just not our thing.

[trof]

84. Me too

[alphafemale]

85. Hooray for you.

...So you didn't watch a TV show.

So what one way or the other?

[pokerfan]

96. I feel compelled to launch threads about every TV show I haven't seen

I'm guessing it would make quite a list....

[alphafemale]

108. Breaking Bad was one of the few for me.

Don't watch much TV.

[valerief]

87. I've seen all episodes twice (except for the final episode, only saw that once). nt

[abq e streeter]

91. Me neither, and I live in Albuquerque ,where it's set.

I don't have a TV but due to it's being a hometown show, with lots of places I'd obviously recognize, I'll probably check out an episode or 2 eventually. But I have many friends whose artistic tastes I have great respect for, who say it's possibly the best dramatic show of all time. And again, more than one of them are saying that; that it's that good. But none have explained why.Guess you have to have followed it over its lifetime to make an informed judgement on that, but I do suppose it was very well done based on my respect for the people who've raved about it.

[Bombero1956]

92. I never have either

and still the world hasn't stopped.

[pscot]

93. I had never heard of it

until people started going on about it last weekend. I still have no idea what the fuss was about.

[shanti]

94. Giancarlo Esposito

His acting is unforgettable in BB!

[BronxBoy]

111. Definitely not hating on Aaron Paul.....

but Giancarlo was definitely robbed of the Emmy last year. Gus Fring will go down as one of the best villains in TV history

[Paladin]

113. +1. Esposito's been doing great work for decades. (nt)

[War Horse]

95. I watched 1 1/2 episode, that was enough for me

I've basically had it with 'anti violence' violent tv shows and movies. I don't question its brilliance, it's probably great if you still have the patience for it. I don't anymore.

[LiberalElite]

97. I barely know what it is n/t

[madinmaryland]

98. Kicking for joey! I have never fucking watched it.

[grantcart]

99. i resisted for years. Started about 6 months ago.

Have seen every episode four times.


It is a great morality drama, one of the best.


It works on many levels including several metaphysical ones.


It is kind of like a modern version of Job, but this time Job doesn't sit back and take it.


I now believe it should be called "The self liberation of Jessie Pinkman".


Great story lines, actors and directing but Cranston should get a lifetime Emmy award for simply the way he used his eyes. He can say more with a stare than a three page speech.

[nirvana555]

100. Grantart,excellent analysis....

I love "The self liberation of Jessie Pinkman". And I agree about Brian Cranston. There needs to be a brand new special award. I started a thread earlier about scenes in movies/tv that people view as especially heartfelt. One of mine is now the scene on the BB finale when Jessie is daydreaming that he doing his carpentry work. He has such a look of peace on his face. And OMG what they did with the lighting during that scene was pure genius.

[grantcart]

101. Interesting question "Who imprisoned Jessie Pinkman?"

A cruel system?

Chemical addiction

Walter White who served as a surrogate father for a family that never connected with him?

Nazi drug gang?


No Jessie Pinkman was imprisoned by


wait for it


.
.
.
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
..
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Jessie Pinkman.


He was obsessed with creepy Todd but who was the co conspirator who was responsible for the affliction that landed on the poor child of Spooge and Skank?

Jessie Pinkman

Who was the one who was incapable of putting together any kind of structure for his life and needed first Walter then Mike to define him and his value.

It was only when he could walk away by himself that he could be released from his self imposed prison.

Or something like that!

[BronxBoy]

112. There were some amazing performances by actors who spoke very little....

Hector Salamanca was mezmerizing and used to great effect. I don't think I'll hear a bell or see a Ouija board without thinking of him

[ellenrr]

103. You're not the only one. I turned it on once or twice to see what the fuss is about..

I'm not interested in watching a series about meth heads. No matter how good the acting or the character development.

why don't they put their acting talent to something that entertains?

(I'm stuck on PBS' Halifax - it is just the opposite of Breaking Bad.)

[Sheldon Cooper]

105. I love when people who have absolutely no idea what they're talking about

decide to prove it to one and all. It's too bad you see no entertainment value in what is arguably among the top 10 all time best tv shows, and that's not just me talking. But go ahead back to your little PBS show, I'm sure that's one for the ages. Halifax, did you say it was? Hmmm never heard of it. But it's surely won numerous awards for excellence in entertainment, right?

[B Calm]

106. Is it a TV show?

[nirvana555]

107. The interesting thing is that some folks think BB is about a bunch of meth heads

and that it glorifies meth. It actually makes one never, ever,ever want to get close to anything resembling it. Kind of like what trains potting did for heroin.

[Demoiselle]

109. I've never watched it either.

I was afraid I'd get overly fond of people and then they'd die on me.
I had the same fear of The Sopranos.

[Bucky]

114. I've watched a couple of clips on YouTube. The story just doesn't appeal to me.

I've seen the scene where one drug dealer walks out of a bombed bathroom with half his face blown off. I don't object to lurid stories, but I'm too cynical to be amused by shock value theatrics. Stories with criminals as protagonists just don't interest me. Ironically, I do enjoy Boardwalk Empire (but I've only bought seasons 1 and 2). Maybe it's the historical angle that makes that seem more than just the Sopranos in spats and starched collars.

[Sheldon Cooper]

115. The problem is you don't know just how awful Gus Fring was, and what a great victory it was for Walt

to finally be able to kill him. Simply looking at that scene without any context doesn't lend itself to fully understanding the moment. Which isn't to say that the violence would be any easier to tolerate, but there was way more going on there than just 'shock value theatrics'.