Refer to my previous post regarding series finales in general, and last night’s “Breaking Bad” finale was a textbook example of how it should be done. I should not have doubted creator Vince Gilligan and co. Even great shows usually dip here and there, even “The Wire.” What has been remarkable about “Breaking Bad” is that over the course of five seasons, there have been no dips in quality or storytelling. The vision always intact, the story and character arc of Bryan Cranston’s Walter White inexorably marched forward to his tragic yet satisfying end. The “Breaking Bad” finale was satisfying at almost every level. And in the dark world of “Bad,” it could even be considered a happy ending.
In my previous post, I compared some shows that were left open ended (“The Sopranos,” “The Wire”) to others that tried to tie everything up (“Big Love,” “Dexter”) Tying everything up was harder to pull off, and usually failed. What Gilligan was able to do was really tie up most of “Breaking Bad,” where each character got payoff or pay back, essentially got what they deserved in a most satisfying manner.
Walt, of course, is dead. There was no other way. Even if he got out of the biz cleanly, the cancer was going to take him anyway. That gave him a certain amount of freedom to take sweet vengeance. But it did not take the easy path of Eastwood-like Armageddon (like, say, a “High Plains Drifter”…Gilligan always said he viewed “Breaking Bad” as essentially a western). Jesse was not only able to take revenge on the sociopath Todd (how satisfying was that after all that Todd had put Jesse through!), he was also set free and saved by none other than Walt himself. The simple, wordless glance and nod between the two men spoke volumes and made everything OK between them. Jesse has a chance, and he certainly deserves one, as he was really the conscience of the show. I had predicted that Jesse would kill Walt, but how they actually ended it was much more satisfying to me. As Walt was “the one who knocks,” it makes sense that the only person that would kill Walt would be Walt himself (throwing himself on top of Jesse and taking the bullet to shield him from the ingenious trunk gun he had constructed to take out Jack and his minions.)
As much as the viewer relished the bloodbath of the finale, in typical “Bad” fashion, the most stunning scene was the brief, clandestine conversation between Walt and the long suffering Skyler. He had lied to everyone (including himself) from the very beginning. “If you tell me one more time that you did this for the family…” “I did it for me. I enjoyed it. I was good at it. I felt alive.” Finally came Walt’s most honest moment of the entire series. Circumstances were excuses, in that moment Walt admitted to Skyler and to himself, he chose to be bad (to be “Heisenberg”), because he wanted to do it. The fact that he could potentially leave millions of dollars for his family was mere justification, but in reality it was not the reason (at least after the first season). That was great, great stuff.
What was most impressive about what Gilligan accomplished in this final episode was that he gave us payoff and delivered what we wanted, yet it was still uncompromising and moving and great television. Walt’s family will be (most likely) taken care of, he exacted sweet revenge on those who had wronged him, he set Jesse free and he was able to go out where he was happiest – in a meth lab set up to his specifications.
So ends one of the greatest shows ever grace the small screen.
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