Just out of curiosity, what is your top 3? (If there's 3 series better than BB, I wanna see them).............................
The sopranos The wire Game of thrones/madmen
Can't really argue with those. Loved the Sopranos, only seen the first season of the wire so far and 2 seasons of Game of thrones (will be catching these up in the very near future).
Only ever saw the pilot of Madmen, wasn't too sure about it but have been told by so many people how good it is, so it's located on my "to watch" list............
Just out of curiosity, what is your top 3? (If there's 3 series better than BB, I wanna see them).............................
The sopranos The wire Game of thrones/madmen
Can't really argue with those. Loved the Sopranos, only seen the first season of the wire so far and 2 seasons of Game of thrones (will be catching these up in the very near future).
Only ever saw the pilot of Madmen, wasn't too sure about it but have been told by so many people how good it is, so it's located on my "to watch" list............
The sopranos is utterly incredible, I can't emphasise that, as an aspiring screenwriter, just how well written it is and original whilst also paying homage to some greats. David Chase is an utter genius. Even minor characters like AJ are brilliantly written and set up from the very beginning. I could write essays on the themes it tackles throughout, I couldn't say the same about Breaking Bad.
The Wire is also brilliant, basically a Dickensian epic set in Baltimore, the thing that puts it below the sopranos in my opinion is that all the characters are based on real people that Ed Burns and David Simon knew or had heard of. The sopranos seems real yet (I'm assuming) David Chase never knew or met any of the characters in the show. After all, Mario Puzo wrote the godfather and said he had no personal experience of the mafia and some one could write the same thing from what you can read up on in the library. Chase, Burns and Simon knew 100% every character back to front, I never got the same feeling from Breaking Bad, I didn't even feel like i knew Walter Jnr very well at all (what would his every day been like? There was so much they could have explored with that character in particular).
Game of thrones is fantastic simply because it takes a fairly tired genre (bows, arrows, swords with fantasy) and yet seems really fresh and if you enjoyed the plot twists and turns of BB you'll love GoT.
Mad men has become a bit iffy, I watched the pilot again recently and realised what a well written piece it is. It's the script that got David Chase's attention to recruit Matt Weiner as a staff writer on the sopranos. It's just slightly lost its way in my opinion.
Breaking bad would come after those, but i am only half way through season one of Deadwood, so that may change again...
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Game of thrones is gash compared to the books (so far), don't get me wrong I still enjoy it but they have mostly just sexed it up and changed a few important bits... The sexing up is especially weird when most of the characters shagging about on screen are meant to be 14/15 in the book!
As for sopranos it was good for the most part but I personally feel it was overrated. There were too many cliches and it was at least a season too long. The cut to black was a terrible way to end a long standing series. Make your own decision blah blah blah.
BB is great, one of the best shows I've seen. It stayed true to the characters and didn't hide from it's very final ending. You grew to love and then despise Walt but still liked him deep down. Jesse was annoying but grew on you. Skylar I just hated from day 1. Todd was messed up all along. Hank was Pure brilliance as was his last episode.
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Even the most fanatic Wire fans will tell you season 2 was disappointing. If you really stopped watching after that, you’re missing out!
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Even the most fanatic Wire fans will tell you season 2 was disappointing. If you really stopped watching after that, you’re missing out!
Season 2 of The Wire is my favourite, I certainly find it the most powerful (apart from maybe 4's ending). Objectively the docks could have been more of a side-story but it was necessary in order to build up Baltimore as a city and its crime. Ziggy can grate but all he wanted was some respect, Frank only did what he thought was best for his docks, and Nicky got dreamy eyed thinking he could play gangster. It is a better watch the second time around.
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Game of thrones is gash compared to the books (so far), don't get me wrong I still enjoy it but they have mostly just sexed it up and changed a few important bits... The sexing up is especially weird when most of the characters shagging about on screen are meant to be 14/15 in the book!
As for sopranos it was good for the most part but I personally feel it was overrated. There were too many cliches and it was at least a season too long. The cut to black was a terrible way to end a long standing series. Make your own decision blah blah blah.
BB is great, one of the best shows I've seen. It stayed true to the characters and didn't hide from it's very final ending. You grew to love and then despise Walt but still liked him deep down. Jesse was annoying but grew on you. Skylar I just hated from day 1. Todd was messed up all along. Hank was Pure brilliance as was his last episode.
But that's why it is opinions.
The writers guild of America seem to agree with me on the sopranos www.wga.org/content/default.aspx?id=4925
I'd absolutely love to know what was cliche about the sopranos, the ending was brilliantly set up from seasons earlier (flash back to talking about "cutting to black" in the final episode is a massive clue).
If anything with breaking bad it's the characters that were most poorly written. (Spoilers below)
One big example is Gus excecuting what's his name in front of Jesse and Walt. He had previously said "I don't think violence is a good motivator", all his actions previously had pointed to this as well. Going for a shock factor isn't always "good writing", if it fits in with a character and it's shocking, it's good writing.
Don't get me started on skyler White, there is basically nothing likeable about her, at least with characters like Janice soprano there's an element where you can see why tony puts up with her. Right from the beginning I thought "why is Walter married to some one like that?". As for her profession, it's suddenly revealed she's a genius accountant... Surely accountants bring in more than chemistry teaching?? If times were really hard for the whites stay in accounting. As for her suicide "attempt", how many times have we seen a woman in a big dress walk into water like that?
Walter Jr is criminally underwritten. Do we actually know the name of his friends? What is his every day like? I would've loved an episode following Walter jnr.
The only characters with any sense of depth are Walter, Jesse and perhaps hank. We get a hint of Gus but then he dies in the most cringe way possible. Did they really think it was necessary to have him walk out of an explosion, with half his body blown off in some kind of terminator style? Made me literally say "...really?"
Don't get me wrong, enjoyable show, just not the best.
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Game of thrones is gash compared to the books (so far), don't get me wrong I still enjoy it but they have mostly just sexed it up and changed a few important bits... The sexing up is especially weird when most of the characters shagging about on screen are meant to be 14/15 in the book!
As for sopranos it was good for the most part but I personally feel it was overrated. There were too many cliches and it was at least a season too long. The cut to black was a terrible way to end a long standing series. Make your own decision blah blah blah.
BB is great, one of the best shows I've seen. It stayed true to the characters and didn't hide from it's very final ending. You grew to love and then despise Walt but still liked him deep down. Jesse was annoying but grew on you. Skylar I just hated from day 1. Todd was messed up all along. Hank was Pure brilliance as was his last episode.
But that's why it is opinions.
The writers guild of America seem to agree with me on the sopranos www.wga.org/content/default.aspx?id=4925
I'd absolutely love to know what was cliche about the sopranos, the ending was brilliantly set up from seasons earlier (flash back to talking about "cutting to black" in the final episode is a massive clue).
If anything with breaking bad it's the characters that were most poorly written. (Spoilers below)
One big example is Gus excecuting what's his name in front of Jesse and Walt. He had previously said "I don't think violence is a good motivator", all his actions previously had pointed to this as well. Going for a shock factor isn't always "good writing", if it fits in with a character and it's shocking, it's good writing.
Don't get me started on skyler White, there is basically nothing likeable about her, at least with characters like Janice soprano there's an element where you can see why tony puts up with her. Right from the beginning I thought "why is Walter married to some one like that?". As for her profession, it's suddenly revealed she's a genius accountant... Surely accountants bring in more than chemistry teaching?? If times were really hard for the whites stay in accounting. As for her suicide "attempt", how many times have we seen a woman in a big dress walk into water like that?
Walter Jr is criminally underwritten. Do we actually know the name of his friends? What is his every day like? I would've loved an episode following Walter jnr.
The only characters with any sense of depth are Walter, Jesse and perhaps hank. We get a hint of Gus but then he dies in the most cringe way possible. Did they really think it was necessary to have him walk out of an explosion, with half his body blown off in some kind of terminator style? Made me literally say "...really?"
Don't get me wrong, enjoyable show, just not the best.
In your opinion yeah, to many others its the greatest show ever. It beats every other programme and every film ever on IMDB
Isn't that exactly what threads like this are for though? To see other peoples' opinions? Imo, Breaking Bad was brilliant - because of Bryan Cranston's acting. He's amazing in that role. I love the show, but looking back on it now the dust has settled, I wouldnt put it in my top three either.
totally, but kent says it like its fact. He says its not the best and criticises the writing. No show is perfect but I loved BB and cant really criticise the writing because I think its superbly written and agree on Cranstons acting, was top notch.
Cranston was fantastic. Particularly since I grew up with him as Hal on Malcolm in the middle.
But why is the writing fantastic in your opinion? I've said my peice about why I don't think it's that well written, I think what pulls it along is the great acting especially.
So much has been said about how brilliant Breaking Bad has been that I didn't think that I could add any more to this thread but the truth has just come to me.
I am 41 and I have never experienced TV like this. A TV programme that made me look forward to the next week's episode every week: every week since I started the first episode in October 2012. That's every week for 15 months and I rationed myself to this schedule. During this period I have overseen the renovation of our house and I'm still doing the last decorating. I spent some days working in it for over 12 hours and often when it got hard I just looked forward to the next episode of Breaking Bad (and no, I'm not some lonely single guy).
For the final episode I just couldn't wait until next week and I watched it tonight (16/01/13). I couldn't wait until next week because I kept thinking 'what if I die before then, I'll never know how it finishes?' How crazy is that?
I think that in 20 odd years when I'm watching it yet again I'll remember this period of my life and tie it in with moving into this new house and the fun I have with my two little boys etc.
What else can I say but thanks to Vince Gilligan - genius.
I must say that I am in the Breaking Bad camp. Absolutely superb from start to finish, the small details in the directing are genius. The dung beetle at the start of one episode is depicting Walter with his barrel of cash at the end in the desert. @Kentaddick surely this is clever writing if you mentioned the cut to black clue in Sopranos?
The episode with the fly in the meth lab was so funny.
The acting from the lead role is like I have never seen before, the awards received confirms this. As each episode went by the tension grew and so did the acting.
I loved Sopranos and grew up with it, I was disappointed by the ending. It seemed to limp to an end rather than bow out.
Sopranos = Lazy ending to evoke controversy (yes I have read pages and pages about how brilliant it was) Dexter = Crap ending, they tried too hard Breaking Bad = Absolutely superb ending from the credit music to the name. Everything about it was superb
I must say that I am in the Breaking Bad camp. Absolutely superb from start to finish, the small details in the directing are genius. The dung beetle at the start of one episode is depicting Walter with his barrel of cash at the end in the desert. @Kentaddick surely this is clever writing if you mentioned the cut to black clue in Sopranos?
The episode with the fly in the meth lab was so funny.
The acting from the lead role is like I have never seen before, the awards received confirms this. As each episode went by the tension grew and so did the acting.
I loved Sopranos and grew up with it, I was disappointed by the ending. It seemed to limp to an end rather than bow out.
Sopranos = Lazy ending to evoke controversy (yes I have read pages and pages about how brilliant it was) Dexter = Crap ending, they tried too hard Breaking Bad = Absolutely superb ending from the credit music to the name. Everything about it was superb
I am just pleased the above shows were made.
Have to say I love the ending of the sopranos and thought it was perfect. I think throughout the show David Chase had striven to create something original out of the show. There are hints throughout the series about the ending, Silvio not hearing the first shot go off when that guy was killed right in front of him, to bobby pondering if things "just cut to black". I can dissect the final scene and have done so countless times, from the 3 attempts at parking from meadow (3 hits on tony, the 3rd one happening without a hitch), the black guys in the cafe (the only time you see black guys in the sopranos is if some one is getting hit, for me watching it I automatically thought "uh oh, some ones gonna die"), the man in the members only jacket walking to the bathroom (godfather reference). It's the final scene in the final episode written and directed by David Chase, every shot means something. The fact Chase has refused to comment on the ending and is quite surprised at the reaction suggests to me that when he wrote it he thought, considering what had gone on before, it was fairly obvious what had happened. A good writer should be able to show and not tell, I think Chase feels that maybe he failed as a writer, that people can't seem to grasp what the ending was. As for being "lazy", have you ever seen an ending like the sopranos? Nope. Have I seen an ending like Breaking bad in which a character dies and then the camera cranes up? Hundreds of times. That's lazy writing.
I've said it before in this thread, BB has virtually no deep characters; with the exception of Walter and Jesse. It makes up for these flaws by shocking and aweing the audience with plot twists and deaths. It's tv junk food, which is great if you want to chill out every evening and watch, i certainly enjoyed watching BB and could relax to it, but to call it brilliant is a tad too far. There were moments where i was left cringing (Gus's death, in fact Gus's character is handled horribly, I'd have loved to have learnt about his backstory all the way back in season 2). This is where taste comes into it. But from a writer's technical standpoint, Sopranos and the wire are far superior shows.
Only just finished Breaking Bad and I have to say I was slightly disappointed in the last two seasons. However, I think some of this was to do with how easy it was to watch. I started watching when it was first shown in the UK. I followed it to its mid week late night slot on 5 star or whatever it was and then scoured the internet and swapped files with friends to watch it when the rest of the UK forgot about it. Then suddenly it was everywhere and everyone watched it. It became too easy, and for my it was ruined. Damn all you jonny come latelys!
Didn't think it was outstanding brilliance. It was definitely watchable and had you on the edge of your seat. There were some great scenes. While I'm writing this comment I'm actually reminding myself that it actually was really really good.
I love how he just becomes an absolute mess at the end and forgets who he really is.
The star wars story is almost quite similar. Only how Walt/Anakin (Darth Vader) vow to look after their families by doing the necessary evil. Accept the power and bad behaviour only corrupts their mind completely...until they realise within themselves they have massively f**cked up and do only what they can to repair it. Those key moments of decision making.
Didn't think it was outstanding brilliance. It was definitely watchable and had you on the edge of your seat. There were some great scenes. While I'm writing this comment I'm actually reminding myself that it actually was really really good.
I love how he just becomes an absolute mess at the end and forgets who he really is.
The star wars story is almost quite similar. Only how Walt/Anakin (Darth Vader) vow to look after their families by doing the necessary evil. Accept the power and bad behaviour only corrupts their mind completely...until they realise within themselves they have massively f**cked up and do only what they can to repair it. Those key moments of decision making.
Funny, it struck me as a tv version modern retelling of Scarface. Outsider gets into the drug industry and slowly destroys everything around him and then finally destroys himself.
Didn't think it was outstanding brilliance. It was definitely watchable and had you on the edge of your seat. There were some great scenes. While I'm writing this comment I'm actually reminding myself that it actually was really really good.
I love how he just becomes an absolute mess at the end and forgets who he really is.
The star wars story is almost quite similar. Only how Walt/Anakin (Darth Vader) vow to look after their families by doing the necessary evil. Accept the power and bad behaviour only corrupts their mind completely...until they realise within themselves they have massively f**cked up and do only what they can to repair it. Those key moments of decision making.
Funny, it struck me as a tv version modern retelling of Scarface. Outsider gets into the drug industry and slowly destroys everything around him and then finally destroys himself.
Maybe both. There are quite a few refs to Scarface in BB as I recall.
Comments
Have just ordered the complete box set for Mr F for Xmas .
Will let you know if it was worth £50 .
If you think game of thrones is overrated you weren't paying attention
Only ever saw the pilot of Madmen, wasn't too sure about it but have been told by so many people how good it is, so it's located on my "to watch" list............
The Wire is also brilliant, basically a Dickensian epic set in Baltimore, the thing that puts it below the sopranos in my opinion is that all the characters are based on real people that Ed Burns and David Simon knew or had heard of. The sopranos seems real yet (I'm assuming) David Chase never knew or met any of the characters in the show. After all, Mario Puzo wrote the godfather and said he had no personal experience of the mafia and some one could write the same thing from what you can read up on in the library. Chase, Burns and Simon knew 100% every character back to front, I never got the same feeling from Breaking Bad, I didn't even feel like i knew Walter Jnr very well at all (what would his every day been like? There was so much they could have explored with that character in particular).
Game of thrones is fantastic simply because it takes a fairly tired genre (bows, arrows, swords with fantasy) and yet seems really fresh and if you enjoyed the plot twists and turns of BB you'll love GoT.
Mad men has become a bit iffy, I watched the pilot again recently and realised what a well written piece it is. It's the script that got David Chase's attention to recruit Matt Weiner as a staff writer on the sopranos. It's just slightly lost its way in my opinion.
Breaking bad would come after those, but i am only half way through season one of Deadwood, so that may change again...
It's all opinions the Wire was average, season two was so disappointingly slow, after season one which was solid I'm surprised they made another 3 seasons the second was so, so lame and I've not gone back to it.
Game of thrones is gash compared to the books (so far), don't get me wrong I still enjoy it but they have mostly just sexed it up and changed a few important bits... The sexing up is especially weird when most of the characters shagging about on screen are meant to be 14/15 in the book!
As for sopranos it was good for the most part but I personally feel it was overrated. There were too many cliches and it was at least a season too long. The cut to black was a terrible way to end a long standing series. Make your own decision blah blah blah.
BB is great, one of the best shows I've seen. It stayed true to the characters and didn't hide from it's very final ending. You grew to love and then despise Walt but still liked him deep down. Jesse was annoying but grew on you. Skylar I just hated from day 1. Todd was messed up all along. Hank was Pure brilliance as was his last episode.
But that's why it is opinions.
I'd absolutely love to know what was cliche about the sopranos, the ending was brilliantly set up from seasons earlier (flash back to talking about "cutting to black" in the final episode is a massive clue).
If anything with breaking bad it's the characters that were most poorly written. (Spoilers below)
One big example is Gus excecuting what's his name in front of Jesse and Walt. He had previously said "I don't think violence is a good motivator", all his actions previously had pointed to this as well. Going for a shock factor isn't always "good writing", if it fits in with a character and it's shocking, it's good writing.
Don't get me started on skyler White, there is basically nothing likeable about her, at least with characters like
Janice soprano there's an element where you can see why tony puts up with her. Right from the beginning I thought "why is Walter married to some one like that?". As for her profession, it's suddenly revealed she's a genius accountant... Surely accountants bring in more than chemistry teaching?? If times were really hard for the whites stay in accounting. As for her suicide "attempt", how many times have we seen a woman in a big dress walk into water like that?
Walter Jr is criminally underwritten. Do we actually know the name of his friends? What is his every day like? I would've loved an episode following Walter jnr.
The only characters with any sense of depth are Walter, Jesse and perhaps hank. We get a hint of Gus but then he dies in the most cringe way possible. Did they really think it was necessary to have him walk out of an explosion, with half his body blown off in some kind of terminator style? Made me literally say "...really?"
Don't get me wrong, enjoyable show, just not the best.
Sopranos and BB on par with each other as the best.
But why is the writing fantastic in your opinion? I've said my peice about why I don't think it's that well written, I think what pulls it along is the great acting especially.
I am 41 and I have never experienced TV like this. A TV programme that made me look forward to the next week's episode every week: every week since I started the first episode in October 2012. That's every week for 15 months and I rationed myself to this schedule. During this period I have overseen the renovation of our house and I'm still doing the last decorating. I spent some days working in it for over 12 hours and often when it got hard I just looked forward to the next episode of Breaking Bad (and no, I'm not some lonely single guy).
For the final episode I just couldn't wait until next week and I watched it tonight (16/01/13). I couldn't wait until next week because I kept thinking 'what if I die before then, I'll never know how it finishes?' How crazy is that?
I think that in 20 odd years when I'm watching it yet again I'll remember this period of my life and tie it in with moving into this new house and the fun I have with my two little boys etc.
What else can I say but thanks to Vince Gilligan - genius.
The episode with the fly in the meth lab was so funny.
The acting from the lead role is like I have never seen before, the awards received confirms this. As each episode went by the tension grew and so did the acting.
I loved Sopranos and grew up with it, I was disappointed by the ending. It seemed to limp to an end rather than bow out.
Sopranos = Lazy ending to evoke controversy (yes I have read pages and pages about how brilliant it was)
Dexter = Crap ending, they tried too hard
Breaking Bad = Absolutely superb ending from the credit music to the name. Everything about it was superb
I am just pleased the above shows were made.
I've said it before in this thread, BB has virtually no deep characters; with the exception of Walter and Jesse. It makes up for these flaws by shocking and aweing the audience with plot twists and deaths. It's tv junk food, which is great if you want to chill out every evening and watch, i certainly enjoyed watching BB and could relax to it, but to call it brilliant is a tad too far. There were moments where i was left cringing (Gus's death, in fact Gus's character is handled horribly, I'd have loved to have learnt about his backstory all the way back in season 2). This is where taste comes into it. But from a writer's technical standpoint, Sopranos and the wire are far superior shows.
Then suddenly it was everywhere and everyone watched it. It became too easy, and for my it was ruined. Damn all you jonny come latelys!
I love how he just becomes an absolute mess at the end and forgets who he really is.
The star wars story is almost quite similar. Only how Walt/Anakin (Darth Vader) vow to look after their families by doing the necessary evil. Accept the power and bad behaviour only corrupts their mind completely...until they realise within themselves they have massively f**cked up and do only what they can to repair it. Those key moments of decision making.
Just finished series 2 & will probably stay up until 1am to watch more episodes...
....or maybe not with tomorrow morning's early start for the trip to the northeast.