breaking bad, grey's & tvd: "felt so lonely in your company..."
one | Apparently there is a Porn Battle going on... Apparently I left prompts... Apparently I want Izzie Stevens and Damon Salvatore to get it on... Who knew?!
two | In other (Izzie Stevens related) news, I posted this manifesto at het_reccers. Read it. You know you want to. Contains fics by the ever glorious mammothluv, truhekili, slybrunette and clockwork_jo.
three | And finally, there are approximately one million things I could say about the sheer perfection that was the Breaking Bad season four premiere. It was, quite possibly, the most sublime forty seven minutes of television I've ever had the privilege to view...
But it was always going to be like that. After thirteen months of grinding through hiatus, opening with anything less than a bang was always going to be unacceptable. And Vince Gilligan, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul and Giancarlo Esposito in particular delivered on all counts.
Which is why I'm going to move straight onto the (even better?) understated, raw hopelessness that was episode two,
I suggest even better because it is surely infinitely more difficult to create a masterpiece full of seemingly innocent and meaningless scenes than it is when you're slitting throats and shooting guys in the face and dissolving bodies in acid (again). And taken separately, that's exactly what each scene in the most recent episode could have felt like, a mismatched conglomeration where most of the main characters don't even really interact with each other.
But let's break it down shall we? To me, this episode was all about Control. And, more importantly, the fact that every single character (aside from the absent Gus?) has absolutely and completely lost all sense of it... Add to this the absolute desperation they're all throwing into clawing it back, and the bitter realisation by the end that their attempts have all been woefully futile, and you have one of the finest episodes of understated television ever.
Walt | Oh, Walt. Walt is so out of control he's decided that the only way to wrest it back is to buy a gun he barely knows how to fire. I think the desperation inherent in his behaviour all episode was probably the most obvious of all the characters, though no less real. At one point he slipped back into Heisenberg's shoes but even that wasn't enough... While I'm not one hundred percent certain what Mike was trying to prove with the eventual beat down (beyond desperately asserting his own tenuous hold on control), the chilling manner in which Walt sat in the chair and practiced drawing and firing the weapon was a stunning visual. And how it all came undone? He spent the whole episode arming himself to the hilt, and in the end couldn't even defend himself from a few punches...
Skyler | Skyler is in the unenviable position of knowing too much, but, in reality, not knowing a thing... By throwing all her energy into the research and purchase of the car wash, she was able to create for herself a facade of sorts. Something that felt a lot like control, even though it really wasn't... Skyler's desperate attempt at control was completely undermined by the current owner of the car wash and his verbal smack down of both her and Walt. She could have all the facts and figures in the World, but none of it would ever be enough.
Hank | Hank is the epitome of someone who has lost control. Literally and figuratively. And his desperate attempt to claw some back has seen him throw all his efforts into the collection of his “minerals”. Despite all this, he can't even check his deliveries himself and has to practically beg Marie to do it for him. The one thing Hank can exert some control over is Marie and his relationship with her, and so he does.
Marie | I'm not sure I believe Marie has ever felt in control of her life, but I do think she is extremely adept at 'faking it'. Her 'brave face' in light of Hank's situation and her own failing relationship with him has been a mainstay, no matter how bad it's been, she's been there with her overly bright cheer and enthusiasm. And what does it get her in the end? A terse Hank telling her to “get out...” In other words, it gets her no where. Just like ordering rocks doesn't help Hank walk, and buying a gun doesn't keep Walt safe and gathering up knowledge and putting on her best power suit doesn't get Skyler what she so desperately wants. Which brings us to Jesse... Oh, Jesse.
Jesse | I think what makes his situation so sad for me is the fact that all along he's presented himself with so much false bravado (up to and including last week), and the most recent episode was finally a look at how much that facade has started to slip. Even after Jane died, all we really saw was him going to rehab. I mean, one of his best friends was killed, his girlfriend died, his aunt died, his parents completely abandoned him. Plus he's acutely aware that he's indispensable to the production of the meth. And so far the audience hasn't really been shown any fall out from that. I think this might be it. But I also think he'll continue to hide behind the bravado in front of everyone else (especially Walt). After all, it's his desperate attempt at keeping in control.
I love how the sound system was initially presented as Jesse being all "I am so not worried about all this shit that's going on, let's par-tay..." but in reality it was simply a device he used to block out the silence (or perhaps the sound of a man gurgling in his own blood) and the loneliness and the fear that are his constant companion at the moment. That final shot of him cranking the volume once the house had emptied out and sitting down in front of the sub woofer was so telling. And the way that his friends were all "We can party again in the future..." and Jesse's initial hesitation speaks to the fact that he doesn't believe a word of his "we'd be dead already if we were going to be..." lines.
So, in the end what does any of this really change? They all spend a whole episode desperately searching for ways to claw back some semblance of control, but, in the end, it's all completely futile. None of them have it. None of them are likely to have it any time soon. It took them 45 minutes of episode time fighting for it to realise. In a way, the characters all finished this episode exactly where they started it, with nothing. Nothing happened, no-one moved forward, nothing was achieved. And this is the brilliance of this episode in my opinion. Because while all the “nothing” was happening, each and every one of them came to understand the devastating futility of their efforts.
The sheer helplessness and hopelessness in this episode were almost tangible second fiddle characters that wove them all together seamlessly.
I am fully prepared for this show to leave me speechless week after week... I can feel it in my bones! It has completely ruined me for any and all other shows. The utter perfection is just... gah! It really is the complete package in my opinion.
two | In other (Izzie Stevens related) news, I posted this manifesto at het_reccers. Read it. You know you want to. Contains fics by the ever glorious mammothluv, truhekili, slybrunette and clockwork_jo.
three | And finally, there are approximately one million things I could say about the sheer perfection that was the Breaking Bad season four premiere. It was, quite possibly, the most sublime forty seven minutes of television I've ever had the privilege to view...
But it was always going to be like that. After thirteen months of grinding through hiatus, opening with anything less than a bang was always going to be unacceptable. And Vince Gilligan, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul and Giancarlo Esposito in particular delivered on all counts.
Which is why I'm going to move straight onto the (even better?) understated, raw hopelessness that was episode two,
I suggest even better because it is surely infinitely more difficult to create a masterpiece full of seemingly innocent and meaningless scenes than it is when you're slitting throats and shooting guys in the face and dissolving bodies in acid (again). And taken separately, that's exactly what each scene in the most recent episode could have felt like, a mismatched conglomeration where most of the main characters don't even really interact with each other.
But let's break it down shall we? To me, this episode was all about Control. And, more importantly, the fact that every single character (aside from the absent Gus?) has absolutely and completely lost all sense of it... Add to this the absolute desperation they're all throwing into clawing it back, and the bitter realisation by the end that their attempts have all been woefully futile, and you have one of the finest episodes of understated television ever.
Walt | Oh, Walt. Walt is so out of control he's decided that the only way to wrest it back is to buy a gun he barely knows how to fire. I think the desperation inherent in his behaviour all episode was probably the most obvious of all the characters, though no less real. At one point he slipped back into Heisenberg's shoes but even that wasn't enough... While I'm not one hundred percent certain what Mike was trying to prove with the eventual beat down (beyond desperately asserting his own tenuous hold on control), the chilling manner in which Walt sat in the chair and practiced drawing and firing the weapon was a stunning visual. And how it all came undone? He spent the whole episode arming himself to the hilt, and in the end couldn't even defend himself from a few punches...
Skyler | Skyler is in the unenviable position of knowing too much, but, in reality, not knowing a thing... By throwing all her energy into the research and purchase of the car wash, she was able to create for herself a facade of sorts. Something that felt a lot like control, even though it really wasn't... Skyler's desperate attempt at control was completely undermined by the current owner of the car wash and his verbal smack down of both her and Walt. She could have all the facts and figures in the World, but none of it would ever be enough.
Hank | Hank is the epitome of someone who has lost control. Literally and figuratively. And his desperate attempt to claw some back has seen him throw all his efforts into the collection of his “minerals”. Despite all this, he can't even check his deliveries himself and has to practically beg Marie to do it for him. The one thing Hank can exert some control over is Marie and his relationship with her, and so he does.
Marie | I'm not sure I believe Marie has ever felt in control of her life, but I do think she is extremely adept at 'faking it'. Her 'brave face' in light of Hank's situation and her own failing relationship with him has been a mainstay, no matter how bad it's been, she's been there with her overly bright cheer and enthusiasm. And what does it get her in the end? A terse Hank telling her to “get out...” In other words, it gets her no where. Just like ordering rocks doesn't help Hank walk, and buying a gun doesn't keep Walt safe and gathering up knowledge and putting on her best power suit doesn't get Skyler what she so desperately wants. Which brings us to Jesse... Oh, Jesse.
Jesse | I think what makes his situation so sad for me is the fact that all along he's presented himself with so much false bravado (up to and including last week), and the most recent episode was finally a look at how much that facade has started to slip. Even after Jane died, all we really saw was him going to rehab. I mean, one of his best friends was killed, his girlfriend died, his aunt died, his parents completely abandoned him. Plus he's acutely aware that he's indispensable to the production of the meth. And so far the audience hasn't really been shown any fall out from that. I think this might be it. But I also think he'll continue to hide behind the bravado in front of everyone else (especially Walt). After all, it's his desperate attempt at keeping in control.
I love how the sound system was initially presented as Jesse being all "I am so not worried about all this shit that's going on, let's par-tay..." but in reality it was simply a device he used to block out the silence (or perhaps the sound of a man gurgling in his own blood) and the loneliness and the fear that are his constant companion at the moment. That final shot of him cranking the volume once the house had emptied out and sitting down in front of the sub woofer was so telling. And the way that his friends were all "We can party again in the future..." and Jesse's initial hesitation speaks to the fact that he doesn't believe a word of his "we'd be dead already if we were going to be..." lines.
So, in the end what does any of this really change? They all spend a whole episode desperately searching for ways to claw back some semblance of control, but, in the end, it's all completely futile. None of them have it. None of them are likely to have it any time soon. It took them 45 minutes of episode time fighting for it to realise. In a way, the characters all finished this episode exactly where they started it, with nothing. Nothing happened, no-one moved forward, nothing was achieved. And this is the brilliance of this episode in my opinion. Because while all the “nothing” was happening, each and every one of them came to understand the devastating futility of their efforts.
The sheer helplessness and hopelessness in this episode were almost tangible second fiddle characters that wove them all together seamlessly.
I am fully prepared for this show to leave me speechless week after week... I can feel it in my bones! It has completely ruined me for any and all other shows. The utter perfection is just... gah! It really is the complete package in my opinion.