Board 8 > Breaking Bad - How satisfied were you with the ending? [BEE Week 1]

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Ngamer64
05/27/20 3:27:47 AM
#1:


How would you rate the ending of Breaking Bad?




FAIR WARNING - I promise there will be zero spoilers in the opening posts of this topic series, however everything after that could be Spoiler City. After all, we're exclusively discussing the final moments of some of the most beloved and long running series in the history of popular media... so proceed with caution!

Welcome to Best Ending Ever, the topic series where Board 8 will decide the best (and worst) endings in the history of film, television, literature, and video games. Each week we'll cover a well-regarded or controversial new entry.

For this opening week we'll be discussing the television series Breaking Bad. Note: please vote based on the final episodes of Season Five (Ozymandias, Granite State, Felina), NOT any events from Better Call Saul or El Camino!
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Last Week's Result
* none, this is our first topic

BEE All Time Rankings
* coming soon!


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ChichiriMuyo
05/27/20 3:47:42 AM
#2:


I can't imagine them doing a better job, especially if we're including Ozymandias as part of the ending and not just Felina.

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Ngamer64
05/27/20 3:58:12 AM
#3:


Ng's Hot Take
Breaking Bad is the best show I've ever seen... and yet it almost lost me very early on. Walt's former friends at Gray Matter offer to pay for all his cancer treatments and make sure the family is taken care of if he doesn't survive, yet he famously (senselessly?) tells them to bleep themselves. I didn't like his decision at the time, and rationalized it by saying oh well, there would be no show if he'd said yes. That's why I really appreciated how

MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING BELOW THIS LINE

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.
.
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in the end he was finally, finally honest with himself when he admitted to Skyler that everything he'd done had really been for himself, that being a feared and respected kingpin felt good and there were plenty of times when he could have stepped away, but he just didn't feel like it. Of course we as an audience had already realized this was true long ago, but hearing it from the man himself made for one of my favorite scenes in the whole series. As for the rest of the episode

* I loved the clever use of the laser pointers in getting Gretchen and Elliott to agree to Walt's well-thought-out "make things right" Gray Matter grant plan. and of course it was fun to get to say goodbye to Badger and Skinny Pete!

* it was a perfect ending/just what they deserved for Jesse and the detestable Todd and Lydia, I've got no complaints there

* my only problem is, Walt's ending specifically was a little TOO perfect. he got to go out a hero and a genius and on his own terms, and by the end, did he really deserve that?

Ultimately though I'm so won over by Walt's one moment of honesty from his earlier conversation with Skyler that I'll reward Breaking Bad's ending full marks despite my previous reservation.

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Giggsalot
05/27/20 4:00:20 AM
#4:


Voted 3. Definitely satisfying, but so clean and redemptive that it all felt slightly silly. Easy to see where the theory that the final sequence is a dying dream comes from.

Ending the show with some version of Ozymandias would have been way more ballsy and memorable for me.

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Snake5555555555
05/27/20 4:06:21 AM
#5:


One of the most complete and totally satisfying finales ever.

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Janus5k
05/27/20 4:24:35 AM
#6:


As someone who generally wasn't a big fan of Walt for most of the show I thought Felina was great. I'd been wanting something like that scene with Skyler for a long time and it was super refreshing. Also Todd fucking sucked and was the worst character on the show so Jesse offing him was practically a free high mark.

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xp1337
05/27/20 5:40:10 AM
#8:


Giggsalot posted...
Voted 3. Definitely satisfying, but so clean and redemptive that it all felt slightly silly. Easy to see where the theory that the final sequence is a dying dream comes from.

Ending the show with some version of Ozymandias would have been way more ballsy and memorable for me.
Yeah, this is where I was at as well.

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_stingers_
05/27/20 5:43:58 AM
#9:


The show ending with Ozymandias would have been too much of a cop out for me. I don't think we could reasonably believe Walt just abandoning everything and that being the end of it.

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XIII_rocks
05/27/20 5:56:38 AM
#10:


Ngamer64 posted...
* my only problem is, Walt's ending specifically was a little TOO perfect. he got to go out a hero and a genius and on his own terms, and by the end, did he really deserve that?

I don't buy into this completely. I get where it comes from, but in the end his family still hates him and his reputation is utterly in the toilet. He got the money to his family but literally everybody who knows him now thinks he's a scumbag. His son spits on his memory. What Walt did in the finale was as good as it could have been given the circumstances, but the circumstances were so shitty at that point that "perfect" feels like the wrong word to use. At the end of 5x08 Walt thought he had gotten away with everything and was going to live out his days running the car wash with his family. That would have been undeserved, that would have made him a real karma houdini.

What we got instead was everyone thinking he was scum, the destruction of his family's lives - at least until Junior turns 18 - the murder of his brother in law, Jesse turned into a meth slave and traumatized for life (and as a result, Andrea's death), like 6 months of exile, and, for whatever it's worth, dying early due to the bullet. (Also I'm not 100% sure I buy that the location of Hank and Steve's bodies would be enough to get Skylar out of the situation she was in, but the show presented it like it would be, so whatever)

I've seen this before, this idea that Walt got off easy, and to me it's like...no? He brought it back in the finale, for sure, he saved it from being a total disaster. But under those circumstances I can't get behind the idea that it was "perfect" for him.

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spooky96
05/27/20 5:59:45 AM
#11:


Granite State is the greatest episode ever made. Too bad its forgotten between Ozymandias and Felina.

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xp1337
05/27/20 6:15:20 AM
#12:


I wouldn't call it perfect but I think that Walt getting to launder the money he managed to keep through Gray Matter was a bit much. Take that out and I think it'd be a lot better.

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malyg
05/27/20 6:37:55 AM
#13:


dislike the final episode. haven't rewatched it since it was first aired but i found it very mediocre and normal compared to the rest of the show.

i never liked that a large part of the final season was showing off the chaos Walter created through his previous actions in S4 that he wasn't able to control. until the final episode where he's able to MacGyver it under control.
as others have mentioned, also didn't like how redemptive it felt toward Walt. Walt and Jesse leaving the show on positive notes felt like a cop out to me.
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Lightning Strikes
05/27/20 6:43:14 AM
#14:


I went 3/4 - I agree with the notion that it was satisfying, but a bit too clean.

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Nanis23
05/27/20 7:25:49 AM
#15:


Ending is perfect, show is near perfect. The worst thing is Mike death being the most anticlimatic and lame possible (and it's even more annoying when you watch BCS, see how much badass Mike is, and remember how he died so stupidily)

Interesting new series by the way, although I am not sure weekly is the best approach, but whatever

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GenesisSaga
05/27/20 8:14:45 AM
#16:


Snake5555555555 posted...
One of the most complete and totally satisfying finales ever.
I concur. I truly cannot imagine anyone disliking this ending to be honest. Even if you hate the man Walter became you get the satisfaction of watching him die alone, and if you thought he was a badass he went out like one. The only reason I could see anyone not at least finding it satisfying is if you thought Walter deserved redemption and could be steered back toward his former life, in which case you're just wrong. After a certain point in the series that bridge got burned and there was never any turning back.

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SeabassDebeste
05/27/20 8:25:40 AM
#17:


ozymandias is incredible.

felina is good. i guess i never really wanted walt to redeem himself since he got more and more evil as the show went on, but it was nice to see him getting revenge for the viewers' sake, at least. it did feel like fanservice a bit, being a coda.

granite state is the shitty part that was needed solely to grease those wheels. it played way too hard into grimness and made the uncharismatic nazis way too competent. the writers wrote themselves into a corner with that m60 flashforward.

that said, the final 3 min of granite state are about as good as the show has ever been.

overall a 3. if this were rabid dog-touhajilee-ozymandias it'd be a 4.
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XIII_rocks
05/27/20 8:41:17 AM
#18:


SeabassDebeste posted...
the writers wrote themselves into a corner with that m60 flashforward.

You don't think what he would actually do with the m60 was planned when they shot the m60 scene?

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ZeroSignal620
05/27/20 9:11:29 AM
#19:


Breaking Bad is my all-time favorite show and I was satisfied with the way it ended.

SPOILERS BELOW

Was Walter White a hero? In his own mind yes, though the endgame was evil killing evil. He had to make things right and get revenge on Jack, Todd, and the rest of their gang; I stand by the belief that the beginning of Ozymandias was the true death of Heisenberg. Of course Walt's actions in Felina would never make up for his actions in the rest of the series, but the point stands.

The final eight episodes of the series will forever be my favorite final stretch of any show. As already mentioned, a key highlight is Walt finally admitting his actions were for his own sense of satisfaction.

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BlAcK TuRtLe
05/27/20 9:19:35 AM
#20:


It's hard to not rate it a 4. Breaking Bad is the TV series that maintained a high level of quality from start to finish. Other shows may have had higher highs (GoT Seasons 3/4), but Breaking Bad was gripping and high quality from the first episode to the finale. And they stuck the landing. The ending is satisfying while still being reasonable, and El Camino was an excellent coda.

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SeabassDebeste
05/27/20 9:58:48 AM
#21:


XIII_rocks posted...


You don't think what he would actually do with the m60 was planned when they shot the m60 scene?

it's confirmed by interviews that it wasn't.
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Collat
05/27/20 10:17:35 AM
#22:


The ending was good, especially considering how other popular shows tend to drop the ball. Was a bit weird that the final antagonist is someone introduced halfway through the last season though.

Almost seems like they couldn't commit to making Walt go full villian. May have been the right choice in the end.
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XIII_rocks
05/27/20 10:20:46 AM
#23:


SeabassDebeste posted...
it's confirmed by interviews that it wasn't.

Just looked it up. Huh. Honestly felt natural to me.

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PerfectChaosZ
05/27/20 2:29:59 PM
#24:


The worst part about the ending was the nazis being introduced so late and it wasnt a more weighty emotional final boss. Sure they were scum but thats not enough sometimes. The nazis were awful.
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MysticBrohan
05/27/20 2:31:59 PM
#25:


fantastic ending, but i wouldve preferred Granite State as the last episode

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Ngamer64
05/27/20 2:35:29 PM
#26:


XIII_rocks posted...
I don't buy into this completely. I get where it comes from, but in the end the circumstances were so shitty at that point that "perfect" feels like the wrong word to use. At the end of 5x08 Walt thought he had gotten away with everything and was going to live out his days running the car wash with his family. That would have been undeserved, that would have made him a real karma houdini.
Yes, I guess I should clarify- Felina was practically perfect for Walt, but you're right, things had gotten very grim for him leading up to those final days. Which was very much deserved, and realistic. That's why I'll still rate the ending the full 4 points, because I intended this as a grade for the final 3/4 episodes as a whole rather than JUST that last hour.

malyg posted...
i never liked that a large part of the final season was showing off the chaos Walter created through his previous actions in S4 that he wasn't able to control. until the final episode where he's able to MacGyver it under control.
as others have mentioned, also didn't like how redemptive it felt toward Walt. Walt and Jesse leaving the show on positive notes felt like a cop out to me.
You have me in the first part, but you don't think JESSE deserved to end on a positive note either? The poor guy went through so much, if anyone deserved a silver lining it was him IMO!

Nanis23 posted...
Interesting new series by the way, although I am not sure weekly is the best approach, but whatever
I want us to have enough time for an ongoing discussion, but if the conversation dries up after a few days from time to time I'll launch the next topic earlier.

GenesisSaga posted...
The only reason I could see anyone not at least finding it satisfying is if you thought Walter deserved redemption and could be steered back toward his former life, in which case you're just wrong. After a certain point in the series that bridge got burned and there was never any turning back.
Oh I'm 100% with you there.

ZeroSignal620 posted...
The final eight episodes of the series will forever be my favorite final stretch of any show. As already mentioned, a key highlight is Walt finally admitting his actions were for his own sense of satisfaction.
Think I'd have to agree, for me only the best stretches of The Wire and Game of Thrones got close.


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Johnbobb
05/27/20 2:39:32 PM
#27:


4

Definitely one of the best series wrap-ups of all time

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iiaattgg
05/27/20 2:41:45 PM
#28:


Excited for the upcoming GOT burial

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Ngamer64
05/28/20 2:16:41 AM
#29:


BB comes out of Day One with an impressive 3.33 average, let's see which way that trends in the coming days.


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Ngamer64
05/28/20 1:05:01 PM
#30:


Next week we'll be covering a very highly rated HBO series.


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pjbasis
05/28/20 1:08:12 PM
#31:


Jesse's character arc is probably the most disappointing thing about the series to me. I think the end for him was fine, but the story pointed at so many different directions he could go but it felt to me like the series just couldn't take him in those directions because it didn't know how or it didn't care to do anything with him but beat him up?

He never develops any real agency as a character iirc

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skullbone
05/28/20 2:16:21 PM
#32:


pjbasis posted...
Jesse's character arc is probably the most disappointing thing about the series to me. I think the end for him was fine, but the story pointed at so many different directions he could go but it felt to me like the series just couldn't take him in those directions because it didn't know how or it didn't care to do anything with him but beat him up?

He never develops any real agency as a character iirc

I think his final decision to not shoot Walter shows that he's making his own decisions now but whether or not that's earned is up to you I suppose.

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Ngamer64
05/29/20 12:57:29 AM
#33:


pjbasis posted...
Jesse's character arc is probably the most disappointing thing about the series to me
Ehhh, yeah, I can see where you're coming from with that take.

(Outside the scope of this topic, but) I do think El Camino helped in that regard though.


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HaRRicH
05/29/20 2:03:07 PM
#34:


Breaking Bad's ending survived its hype.

That is already better than what most shows can do with lesser hype. I agree Felina felt a little clean, so to speak, but it manages to keep to the promises of the show alluded to or demonstrated from the very beginning:

*Walter White must die.
*He fears must be realized.
*His cleverness is top-notch.

(El Camino also manages to keep its previously alluded/demonstrated promises to Jesse's ending in BB -- Vince Gilligan and the crew are mesters of respecting their previous material for if-this-then-what progression)

Ozymandias is incredible television and the best episode of its series (only One Minute competes) While I'm glad you included it for this discussion, it just continues to show how well BB stuck its landing -- I would have voted for 4/4 even with just Felina.

About the Nazis sucking: Nazis always suck. What's incredible about BB though is the show repeatedly had episodes that could have been season finales or perhaps even series finales. We see it in this topic right here -- these last three episodes have people saying they would have been fine and satisfied if the show ended with any of them. The show kept upping the stakes, which is great as a general rule, but once you get to Nazis it's usually time to quit before you go deeper into Crazy Town and I'm so glad BB didn't fall for the pressure of adding additional seasons.

What a legendary show.

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ZeroSignal620
05/29/20 6:31:32 PM
#35:


HaRRicH posted...
Ozymandias is incredible television and the best episode of its series (only One Minute competes)

My favorite episodes of the series (mostly in order)

Ozymandias
Face Off
To'hajilee
One Minute
Half Measures
Felina
Granite State
Dead Freight
Gliding Over All
Crawl Space

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neonreaper
05/29/20 6:46:57 PM
#36:


M60 was awesome

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LiquidOshawott
05/29/20 7:07:59 PM
#37:


Im probably in the minority but Peekaboo was what got me hooked on the series and might be my favorite aside from Crawl Space.

Anyway, its a great ending, probably a 3.5, rounding 4

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Ngamer64
05/30/20 3:19:47 AM
#38:


HaRRicH posted...
Nazis always suck. What's incredible about BB though is the show repeatedly had episodes that could have been season finales or perhaps even series finales. We see it in this topic right here -- these last three episodes have people saying they would have been fine and satisfied if the show ended with any of them. The show kept upping the stakes, which is great as a general rule, but once you get to Nazis it's usually time to quit before you go deeper into Crazy Town and I'm so glad BB didn't fall for the pressure of adding additional seasons.
That's a good perspective, and one that hadn't been mentioned before. Perhaps the most impressive thing of all is that BB had only JUST gotten super popular as of those last eight episodes, as in conversation at the water cooler at the office kind of popular. They could have easily sustained that level of interest for another few years- it's amazing that they instead decided to go out on top and leave the world wanting more.

(Of course we did end up getting that "more" years later, but that will be a subject for another day!)


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ExThaNemesis
05/31/20 12:21:53 PM
#39:


One of the best shows ever. It's weird because I often don't like shows that either don't have anything supernatural going on, or aren't comedic. Breaking Bad is as real as it gets and I was still hooked the whole way.

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banananor
05/31/20 12:59:11 PM
#40:


the ending was about as good as it could have been, even though there were a few things that didn't make sense.

felina spoilers, obviously

****

the segment with the auto turret was dumb as hell, as in it somehow just magically was at the perfect angle to hit every single nazi dude

it was also silly letting walt get in as many final strokes to his own ego- the whole arrangement with grey matter was so pointless when he could've just asked them for the same thing in the first 3 episodes with no fuss. and they might have done it anyway, even if he didn't barge in and threaten them. but it was in character for him to think it was such a smart and great idea that allowed him to feel scary and powerful.

in general, i was very glad i stuck through the whole show. i think they could've condensed seasons 2 and 3 quite a bit. They had a fantastic arc for the first season, then floundered a bit when they realized the show was actually going to go on for a while. 2 and iirc the first half of 3 were extremely repetitive.

the show ozark is okay. it's 100% an attempt to capture some of breaking bad, but skip the first couple seasons and get into the midgame immediately, which i appreciate. it's just a little less focused, and a little more soap-opera-ish

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SeabassDebeste
05/31/20 1:57:09 PM
#41:


ExThaNemesis posted...
One of the best shows ever. It's weird because I often don't like shows that either don't have anything supernatural going on, or aren't comedic. Breaking Bad is as real as it gets and I was still hooked the whole way.

season 1 of BB was funny af though!
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XIII_rocks
05/31/20 4:49:09 PM
#42:


banananor posted...
the segment with the auto turret was dumb as hell, as in it somehow just magically was at the perfect angle to hit every single nazi dude

Well in fairness he parked there deliberately. The guy he was driving in with was even like "dude why are you parking here?"

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LiquidOshawott
05/31/20 5:23:57 PM
#43:


SeabassDebeste posted...
season 1 of BB was funny af though!

Yeah I rewatched S1 recently and the ending to episode 2 was so damn funny. Walts anger moments also seemed a bit funny in a comic way to me, dunno why.

IIRC it was after Tuco that made the tone more dark, when I decide to watch S2 it might make me think about it

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HaRRicH
06/01/20 12:07:48 AM
#44:


When the show was funny at the beginning, it still had outstanding intensity (Tuco).

When the show was intense at the end, it still had outstanding comedy (restaurant guacamole).

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Ngamer64
06/01/20 7:16:18 PM
#45:


ExThaNemesis posted...
It's weird because I often don't like shows that either don't have anything supernatural going on
Whoa now, slow your roll! I think you're forgetting that we still don't have any scientific explanation for how that pizza ended up on the roof.

But seriously though folks- last chance to have your say, tomorrow we move on to a certain much-loved HBO property!


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xp1337
06/01/20 8:37:07 PM
#46:


Ngamer64 posted...
a certain much-loved HBO property!
wow you really don't see much talk about the wire

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