What’s on TV?

[Cmaier]

Oof. It’s not looking like Jimmy/Saul/Gene is going to come out well in the end.

 

[Herdfan]

Just started S2 of Only Murders in the Building.

 

[ronntaylor]

Steady guys. Sometimes good is good.

I am enjoying it more as it progresses. Liked the end of S1. Just about to start S2. I should have done what @lizkat suggested and started it well before now.

 

[Chew Toy McCoy]

Finally started watching Breaking Bad. Not sure why now. It's so-so thus far after the first five eps. It's a bit dated, and a little scattershot for me.

It's a little slow burn at first that you do start to wonder what all the hype is about, but the pace and drama picks up.

I remember when I would see a new episode pop up on my DVR and I would get a sense of both excitement and dread, great writing but not exactly feelgood. Marathoning it can definitely make you feel like the world is a dark place.

 

[Edd]

Reservation Dogs, season 2! Strong start with the first two episodes. I love this show.

 

[shadow puppet]

Re: the season finale of For All Mankind...

NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

 

[DT]

Tomorrow ... OMG.

It's pretty fantastic. I was a bit sceptical, I’m someone who bought the original comic as it was released, who has loved just about everything Gaiman has done - and have always been apprehensive about any of his comics/stories/novels not translating well to another medium. I think they got this perfect, even with the changes.

It’s been a while since I revisited the comics - though the 14 year old daughter is reading my copy of the first hardback compilation - but the characters fell right into how I remember them, because for me, they’re more personality, a “feel”, and abstract concept than some rigid gender and ethnicity.

The wife loves it too, she read a few issues here and there, and knows the general story, but I’d say she’s closer to someone not familiar with the source than someone very intimate with it (like myself).

I do not cherish stories about people who chose or better said end up becoming shit bags, even though I believe people have limited choice. I started Breaking Bad and at this point in my life did not like this story of a man who has a medical issue, was offered substantial help and decided self destruction was his best path forward.

Was he? I never read it that way, he was vastly underpaid given his intellect, his medical prognosis was, "Well, you're a dead man ...", it was implied his insurance was pretty paltry.

I think you're right in that he ultimately got what he needed - but couldn't stop because his hubris would too great - I mean, look (and definitely listen) at the final scene, there's no better epilog to the series ...

Guess I got what I deserved
Kept you waiting there too long, my love
All that time, without a word
Did you really think that I'd forget
And regret
The special love I have for you
My baby blue

Oof. It’s not looking like Jimmy/Saul/Gene is going to come out well in the end.

It seems that way, geez, I don't know what I want to see - does he deserve even a slightly happy ending? Do they need to have a definitive ending for his story? I mean, if there was some way he got out, it's pretty obvious, Saul will return.

Pretty stoked for tomorrow night, while being sad it's over.

 

[Cmaier]

Was he? I never read it that way, he was vastly underpaid given his intellect, his medical prognosis was, "Well, you're a dead man ...", it was implied his insurance was pretty paltry.

I think you're right in that he ultimately got what he needed - but couldn't stop because his hubris would too great - I mean, look (and definitely listen) at the final scene, there's no better epilog to the series.

He was also haunted by what could have been - he could have been legitimately rich if he had made different choices about the start-up. He simultaneously blamed himself and others. Each little decision he made along the way almost made sense given the circumstances at the time, but it all spiraled out of control. Fantastic series, maybe the best ever.

 

[DT]

We've been talking about doing a full BrBa re-watch after BCS ends.

 

[Huntn]

Stranger Things Season 4: Episode Seven- The Massacre at Hawkins Lab. Holy crap, some significant mysteries/unknowns addressed here.

 

[Huntn]

He was also haunted by what could have been - he could have been legitimately rich if he had made different choices about the start-up. He simultaneously blamed himself and others. Each little decision he made along the way almost made sense given the circumstances at the time, but it all spiraled out of control. Fantastic series, maybe the best ever.

Breaking Bad- As I recall he turned the startup down, a legitimate path forward as he pretty much decided to manufacture illegal drugs. It's possibly my memory is bad, but these decisions seemed to happen about the same time. For whatever reason he broke bad to become a shitbag.

 

[Cmaier]

Breaking Bad- As I recall he turned the startup down, a legitimate path forward as he pretty much decided to manufacture illegal drugs. It's possibly my memory is bad, but these decisions seemed to happen about the same time. For whatever reason he broke bad to become a shitbag.

He cashed out years earlier and got stuck teaching high school chemistry, despite being a genius. It had a profound effect on him.

 

[MEJHarrison]

Breaking Bad- As I recall he turned the startup down, a legitimate path forward as he pretty much decided to manufacture illegal drugs. It's possibly my memory is bad, but these decisions seemed to happen about the same time. For whatever reason he broke bad to become a shitbag.

What I find interesting is I've watched Breaking Bad with probably 10-12 different people for the first time over the years. Some see Walt as a straight-up shitbag (I was thinking the exact same term).

But I've also known people who felt that Walt did the best he could with a bad situation to take care of his family. They don't really see him as an evil villain because he had good motives.

Honestly, I think I have some crazy friends. But I find it interesting that opinions were split.

 

[Huntn]

He cashed out years earlier and got stuck teaching high school chemistry, despite being a genius. It had a profound effect on him.

But when the show started was he offered a job at a startup, that paid much better than his teacher's pay?

 

[DT]

But when the show started was he offered a job at a startup, that paid much better than his teacher's pay?

At the point Walt is offered the job by Elliot, his former partner, the company they started together (that he bailed on, because of his relationship with Gretchen), is a multi-billion dollar enterprise. The offer is after Walt has been diagnosed, and there's the whole angle where he does eventually tell Skyler he's accepting financial help from Elliot and Gretchen, but of course, at that point, he's funding his treatment with drug money.

Basically the timeline is:

Walt and Elliot graduate together, and collaborate on a study that wins them the Nobel Prize, and Walt is romantically involved with his lab assistant Gretchen
Walt and Elliot form Gray Matter, which will eventually be a multi-billion dollar company
Walt leaves Gretchen, feeling bad about her family's wealth (like he wouldn't be able to ever give her a life like that - again driven ego/pride ...), sells his stake in Gray Matter for $5K
Elliot and Gretchen marry, Gray Matter becomes the company we know when BrBa starts
Walt is teaching school, gets diagnosed with shitty cancer, starts cooking meth, isn't very successful
His diagnose is shared with Elliot who offers him a job and/or help with the treatment cost, which he refuses
He tells Skyler later he is at least going to accept the financial help, but really he's not, and he's going to figure out how to increase his cash flow and meth yields (introduction to Tuco)

 

[Cmaier]

At the point Walt is offered the job by Elliot, his former partner, the company they started together (that he bailed on, because of his relationship with Gretchen), is a multi-billion dollar enterprise. The offer is after Walt has been diagnosed, and there's the whole angle where he does eventually tell Skyler he's accepting financial help from Elliot and Gretchen, but of course, at that point, he's funding his treatment with drug money.

Basically the timeline is:

Walt and Elliot graduate together, and collaborate on a study that wins them the Nobel Prize, and Walt is romantically involved with his lab assistant Gretchen
Walt and Elliot form Gray Matter, which will eventually be a multi-billion dollar company
Walt leaves Gretchen, feeling bad about her family's wealth (like he wouldn't be able to ever give her a life like that - again driven ego/pride ...), sells his stake in Gray Matter for $5K
Elliot and Gretchen marry, Gray Matter becomes the company we know when BrBa starts
Walt is teaching school, gets diagnosed with shitty cancer, starts cooking meth, isn't very successful
His diagnose is shared with Elliot who offers him a job and/or help with the treatment cost, which he refuses
He tells Skyler later he is at least going to accept the financial help, but really he's not, and he's going to figure out how to increase his cash flow and meth yields (introduction to Tuco)

Exactly. The job he was offered was declined for multiple reasons, not just that he didn’t want charity or that he preferred to become a criminal. Imagine you cofounded Apple but left in the first year for $5000, then years later Steve Jobs offered to give you health insurance when you got sick. Your ego might think you really shouldn’t even be in such a situation. You deserve more. Maybe some small part of you thinks that before you die you need to prove you could have been just as successful if circumstances had been different.

 

[Roller]

What I find interesting is I've watched Breaking Bad with probably 10-12 different people for the first time over the years. Some see Walt as a straight-up shitbag (I was thinking the exact same term).

But I've also known people who felt that Walt did the best he could with a bad situation to take care of his family. They don't really see him as an evil villain because he had good motives.

Honestly, I think I have some crazy friends. But I find it interesting that opinions were split.

Both points-of-view can be accurate. I see the Walt we met in season 1 as very different from what he eventually became as he progressively "broke bad." While he may have started off seeking to provide for his family, that increasingly became an excuse, though it wasn't until the end that he admitted he did it because he liked it and was good at it.

 

[DT]

I think it may be all the way into Season 5, there's a bit where Elliot is on TV, and he's asked about Walt, and says something to the effect of, "He didn't contribute anything to this company ...". It was a perfect storm of Walt's ego and Elliot's lack of recognition (and Walt "losing" to Elliot in terms of his relationship, his company, his discoveries).

I love how Walt got back at E and G, hahaha, they'll be looking over their shoulder and at the very least do a good deed.

 

[DT]

re: BCS

I did __not__ realize what Saul was saying in the promo from last week (for this week), now I know (via the promo with CC on Twitter), wow, OK, I wonder ...

OK, this is it tonight, watching in real time of course.

 

[Cmaier]

re: BCS

I did __not__ realize what Saul was saying in the promo from last week (for this week), now I know (via the promo with CC on Twitter), wow, OK, I wonder ...

OK, this is it tonight, watching in real time of course.

Not sure what you are referring to. Last week‘s promo was just the vacuum cleaner guy’s code, no? What is the “CC on twitter” you refer to?