Current Events > Walter White's worst decision in the series (Breaking Bad spoilers)

(+) Yeah! (+)

Out of all his questionable decisions, I (Butters) would have to say his worst decision was having Gale Boetticher murdered. If it weren't for that, the lab notes never would have been found and Hank never would have made the connection between the W.W. (Walt Whitman) in the lab notes to GB's other favorite W.W. (Walter White) on the Walt Whitman book signed from GB to W.W. It also didn't help that after Hank found the notes Walter said that after he looked through those lab notes he thinks Gale Boetticher is one big copycat and that Hank's guy might still be out there.

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Mike_Stanton posted...

I (Butters) would have to say his worst decision was having Gale Boetticher

Replaced by Jesse?

murdered

Which he wouldn't have gotten to if he hadn't replaced him with Jesse, but the writers kinda painted themselves into a corner.

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Mike_Stanton posted...

Out of all his questionable decisions, I (Butters) would have to say his worst decision was having Gale Boetticher murdered. If it weren't for that, the lab notes never would have been found and Hank never would have made the connection between the W.W. (Walt Whitman) in the lab notes to GB's other favorite W.W. (Walter White) on the Walt Whitman book signed from GB to W.W. It also didn't help that after Hank found the notes Walter said that after he looked through those lab notes he thinks Gale Boetticher is one big copycat and that Hank's guy might still be out there.

Mike was ready to kill Walt, if Walt hadn't called Jesse he was dead.

Keeping the book, yeah that cost him big and had no real upside. But it was in keeping with his character.

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If Walt just shut up and worked with Gale to begin with, he would've only had to work for a while and walk away a millionaire.

Instead, he can't. Then he's gotta fuck with the system to the point where Gus has to drag him out to the desert and threaten Walt.

Then, instead of just being a good boy, he's gotta kill Gus.

There's probably more times where Walt would've been able to walk away with more than enough money if he just shut up and did his job.

He could've put the book, I dunno. Somewhere not in the open. Like under his side of the bed perhaps

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Rhylos posted...

Then, instead of just being a good boy, he's gotta kill Gus.

After killing Gus, the series final boss should've been Hank, not some random no-names. I wanted to see the culmination of Hank VS Walt forever, and then they end it a few episodes in.

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joe40001 posted...

Mike was ready to kill Walt, if Walt hadn't called Jesse he was dead.

Right, but IIRC the only reason they were going to kill him right then and there was because they knew of the plot to have Gale murdered?

joe40001 posted...

Keeping the book, yeah that cost him big and had no real upside. But it was in keeping with his character.

Not just keeping the book, but also the moment when Walt was drunk and saying that he could tell that Gale was one big copycat. Not only did that cause Hank to keep further looking into the case, which made him question why a vegetarian like Gale had a napkin from Pollos Hermanos, but it made it that much easier for Hank to suspect that Walt's relationship with Gale was as a lab partner.

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Tbh, his biggest mistake was choosing Jesse to get him into the game. Because then he caught feelings and vice versa and them two trying to protect each other is what fucked up stuff in the long run.

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Rhylos posted...

If Walt just shut up and worked with Gale to begin with, he would've only had to work for a while and walk away a millionaire.

Instead, he can't. Then he's gotta fuck with the system to the point where Gus has to drag him out to the desert and threaten Walt.

Then, instead of just being a good boy, he's gotta kill Gus.

There's probably more times where Walt would've been able to walk away with more than enough money if he just shut up and did his job.

Solo_Wing posted...

He could've put the book, I dunno. Somewhere not in the open. Like under his side of the bed perhaps

True and true.

Kisai posted...

After killing Gus, the series final boss should've been Hank, not some random no-names. I wanted to see the culmination of Hank VS Walt forever, and then they end it a few episodes in.

Meh, I liked Jack Welker, Todd Alquist, and the neo-Nazi gang as villains.

"Now does this look like a partner to you?!?"

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Poisoning Brock. It was completely unnecessary and led to z Jesse going scorched earth.

Second would be killing Mike and all of his guys.

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berlyman101 posted...

Poisoning Brock. It was completely unnecessary and led to z Jesse going scorched earth.

Nah, getting Jesse on his side in that circumstance was the only thing that kept him alive.

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pegusus123456 posted...

Nah, getting Jesse on his side in that circumstance was the only thing that kept him alive.

I know that was Walt's reason, and iirc it worked, but I can't remember whether Gus was ready to pull the trigger after taking Walt out to the desert. I seem to remember him having other shit he was focusing on with the cartel.

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Tag

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Im certain, after that desert chat, Walt had a very short countdown to save himself.

berlyman101 posted...

I know that was Walt's reason, and iirc it worked, but I can't remember whether Gus was ready to pull the trigger after taking Walt out to the desert.

He says that Jesse's loyalty to Walt is the only thing keeping him alive but Jesse will eventually lose it. Of more immediate import, Walt didn't manage to stop Hank's investigation, so he was going to kill Hank too.

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Somewhat off topic, but why didnt Walt go to the police (lol) and say Hank assaulted him?

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Pretty much everything he does after starting to work for Gus

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Killmonger posted...

Somewhat off topic, but why didnt Walt go to the police (lol) and say Hank assaulted him?

When you're running a meth empire, it usually isn't the best idea to bring the police's attention to you.

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The real answer: Quit greymatter industries. Had he not had a little bitchfit everything would have been fine.

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Lokison posted...

The real answer: Quit greymatter industries. Had he not had a little bitchfit everything would have been fine.

Bruuuuh, I just looked it up and Vince Gilligan revealed why he left. I was going to say that I don't necessarily disagree with him because I always assumed Gretchen and Elliot had an affair and that's the reason he left. But it turns out he broke up with Gretchen because her family was rich and it triggered his massive inferiority complex.

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Lokison posted...

The real answer: Quit greymatter industries. Had he not had a little bitchfit everything would have been fine.

Didn't he have to leave/cash out because Skyler was pregnant?

Or is there one more part I'm forgetting?

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joe40001 posted...

Didn't he have to leave/cash out because Skyler was pregnant?

Or is there one more part I'm forgetting?

No it was entirely his own ego, it's not exactly stated but you definitely get that vibe from his last conversation with Gretchen

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His ego was his downfall at almost every point in his life. He couldve accepted Elliotts offer as well.

Exactly. I love the show and walt, but dude was a little bitch at the end of the day. I feel like the real fun of the show was watching how a man can spiral downward so hard.

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BroodRyu posted...

His ego was his downfall at almost every point in his life. He couldve accepted Elliotts offer as well.

That reduces things too much. Elliott did treat him poorly.

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joe40001 posted...

Didn't he have to leave/cash out because Skyler was pregnant?

Or is there one more part I'm forgetting?

He met Skyler after that.

I do feel like the show itself leads you to the conclusion you have though because I thought the same thing.

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joe40001 posted...

That reduces things too much. Elliott did treat him poorly.

I never said he didnt. But what he was going through at the start, that was an easy out. And I think it was foolish to say no regardless of the past.

pegusus123456 posted...

He met Skyler after that.

I do feel like the show itself leads you to the conclusion you have though because I thought the same thing.

He did at least sell his shares because of Skyler/baby right?

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joe40001 posted...

He did at least sell his shares because of Skyler/baby right?

No, he met Skyler after that.

Like I said, I did draw the same conclusion you did. Skyler seemed familiar with Gretchen and Elliot in a way that made me think the four of them were all friends back in the day.

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pegusus123456 posted...

No, he met Skyler after that.

Like I said, I did draw the same conclusion you did. Skyler seemed familiar with Gretchen and Elliot in a way that made me think the four of them were all friends back in the day.

I swear when he explained it to Jesse talking about how much the shares would be worth he was justifying selling them because of Skyler/Flynn

Am I super misremembering?

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joe40001 posted...

I swear when he explained it to Jesse talking about how much the shares would be worth he was justfying selling them because of Skyler/Flynn

Apparently not lol.

It does make more sense that he lost out on millions of dollars because he's a big ego baby, I guess.

joe40001 posted...

Am I super misremembering?

If you are, we both are.

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I cant say for sure, but I think he sold them in order to buy the house.

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No, he left the company and sold his shares before he ever met Skylar

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Worst: Turning down the money from Swartchz

Second: cooking meth

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depends what you mean by "worst"

letting Jane die is certainly a contender for his "cruelest" decision, as well as his decision that lead to the most drastic consequences for the most people

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averagejoel posted...

depends what you mean by "worst"

letting Jane die is certainly a contender for his "cruelest" decision, as well as his decision that lead to the most drastic consequences for the most people

With this in mind, it becomes even more blurry. I stand by leaving greymatter as his dumbest decision, but most evil is a whole different subject. I'd say him not stopping after Skylar found out. This is a hard question. Fuck.

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Yeah, leaving Grey Matter, the company he co-founded and named FFS is definitely up there. I feel like the main reason he ultimately decided to raise millions of dollars cooking meth for his family was to make up for the millions he lost by not staying with Grey Matter.

Poisoning Brock was also a highly questionable move that made very little sense even from Walt's own warped perspective.

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Rhylos posted...

If Walt just shut up and worked with Gale to begin with, he would've only had to work for a while and walk away a millionaire.

As I recall, didn't he make up an excuse to ditch Gale because Jesse was threatening to press charges against Hank?

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Antifar posted...

As I recall, didn't he make up an excuse to ditch Gale because Jesse was threatening to press charges against Hank?

In think him turning against Gale was because he realized if he continued he was going to be killed and replaced by Gale. I could be wrong, but I believe his motive for wanting Gale dead was understanding he just gave up with one thing that made him valuable enough to be kept alive.

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I stopped watching after he let Skyler work with him

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Lokison posted...

In think him turning against Gale was because he realized if he continued he was going to be killed and replaced by Gale.

Yeah, and that's what made Walt kind of delusional at that moment. He himself knew that he was going to die from cancer soon, as did Gus, and there was no reason not to assume that Gus wouldn't just wait for Walter's cancer to kill him before replacing him with Gale. At least none that I can recall off hand. But anyway, if it wasn't for Hank getting a hold of those lab notes, Walter could have still kept the book where he did and it wouldn't have mattered.

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Rhylos posted...

If Walt just shut up and worked with Gale to begin with, he would've only had to work for a while and walk away a millionaire.

Instead, he can't. Then he's gotta fuck with the system to the point where Gus has to drag him out to the desert and threaten Walt.

Then, instead of just being a good boy, he's gotta kill Gus.

There's probably more times where Walt would've been able to walk away with more than enough money if he just shut up and did his job.

Think you're missing the point of his character arc. Money was clearly not his motivation at that point

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JBaLLEN66 posted...

I stopped watching after he let Skyler work with him

You mean when Skyler started helping him launder his money? Well, as evidenced by her also helping out Ted Beneke with his money laundering, Sky just seems to have a thing for helping men launder money. Particularly those that she's slept with. Skyler is really kind of a whore and a slut if you think about it...

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Solid Snake07 posted...

Think you're missing the point of his character arc. Money was clearly not his motivation at that point

True. It made him feel alive. He liked it.

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i'm pretty sure his worst decision was to make meth.

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Mike_Stanton posted...

You mean when Skyler started helping him launder his money? Well, as evidenced by her also helping out Ted Beneke with his money laundering, Sky just seems to have a thing for helping men launder money. Particularly those that she's slept with. Skyler is really kind of a whore and a slut if you think about it...

What

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Honestly, Walt's worst decision (as far as trying to avoid the law is concerned) was bragging about how Gale couldn't be Heisenberg to Hank.

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Telling Hank Gale wasn't Heisenberg. If Hank thought Heisenberg was dead he wouldn't have targeted Gus.

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Not being an egomaniac and just getting cancer treatment right away paid for by his former colleagues and avoiding his family being put through hell

pegusus123456 posted...

Bruuuuh, I just looked it up and Vince Gilligan revealed why he left. I was going to say that I don't necessarily disagree with him because I always assumed Gretchen and Elliot had an affair and that's the reason he left. But it turns out he broke up with Gretchen because her family was rich and it triggered his massive inferiority complex.

100% this. Gretchen>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Skylar

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