I'll echo your feelings, and amplify them to say that I think BB -is- the best show in television history. The thing that astonishes me is how (at least from listening to Gilligan) seat-of-the-pants some of the plotting was. Things like not including the Schwartzes until they were reminded by a fan, or not knowing when filming episode 501 either what Walter had been doing in New Hampshire or who the gun would be used on. To be able to have laid out all those plot points not knowing they could be knitted together into a coherent and satisfying whole is dumbfounding.
Just brilliant television and a tribute to the creativity of its writers and staff. --Dave Sikula On Monday, September 30, 2013 6:08:09 PM UTC-7, PGage wrote: > > I would not want future historians of the internet to review the archives > of this list devoted to TV and see no comment the day after on the final > episode of one of the most well executed series in the history of > television. No need for spoilers here (though good luck to anyone who has > both been following this show and is even remotely plugged into the > internet who is trying to avoid spoilers) to make a simple point. There can > still be a reasonable and passionate argument about what the best drama is > in the history of television. But I think what is beyond all reasonable > debate is that no drama in the history of American television has ever been > so consistently good, and so unified in its vision. This was a great story, > well-told. I love Sopranos, Mad Men, West Wing, Deadwood. I think I can > argue that each of those had episodes and even seasons that were as good or > better than Breaking Bad. But each of those others had episodes that did > not quite work, and season arcs that seemed to be false starts of a kind > (and Deadwood of course never got an ending). I don't think there was a > single poor episode of BB, nor a single broken story arc. Every new > character, every new plot development, seemed to be part of a seamless > whole. > > If Gilligan told us that he had written the entire five seasons before > shooting even the first one it would be easy to believe. The last part of > the last season brought so many strands of the multiple layers of the story > together in such a satisfying and dramatically and existentially satisfying > way that it was really breathtaking. I have not yet read any reviews of the > episode (I was up late watching it and the Homeland season opener, and then > at work all day) but I can not image there are many real fans of the show > today who are saying: "it was pretty good - but I wish they had done X, Y > or Z". For me it was a completely satisfying ending to a series that never > failed to surprise and delight and thrill and horrify, and that held up a > character that we had never seen before and was still too, too familiar. > > In many ways the final season, and final episode, was the mirror opposite > of what happened to poor, poor Dexter. > > Bravo to Gilligan and his entire, amazing cast. > On Monday, September 30, 2013 6:08:09 PM UTC-7, PGage wrote: > > I would not want future historians of the internet to review the archives > of this list devoted to TV and see no comment the day after on the final > episode of one of the most well executed series in the history of > television. No need for spoilers here (though good luck to anyone who has > both been following this show and is even remotely plugged into the > internet who is trying to avoid spoilers) to make a simple point. There can > still be a reasonable and passionate argument about what the best drama is > in the history of television. But I think what is beyond all reasonable > debate is that no drama in the history of American television has ever been > so consistently good, and so unified in its vision. This was a great story, > well-told. I love Sopranos, Mad Men, West Wing, Deadwood. I think I can > argue that each of those had episodes and even seasons that were as good or > better than Breaking Bad. But each of those others had episodes that did > not quite work, and season arcs that seemed to be false starts of a kind > (and Deadwood of course never got an ending). I don't think there was a > single poor episode of BB, nor a single broken story arc. Every new > character, every new plot development, seemed to be part of a seamless > whole. > > If Gilligan told us that he had written the entire five seasons before > shooting even the first one it would be easy to believe. The last part of > the last season brought so many strands of the multiple layers of the story > together in such a satisfying and dramatically and existentially satisfying > way that it was really breathtaking. I have not yet read any reviews of the > episode (I was up late watching it and the Homeland season opener, and then > at work all day) but I can not image there are many real fans of the show > today who are saying: "it was pretty good - but I wish they had done X, Y > or Z". For me it was a completely satisfying ending to a series that never > failed to surprise and delight and thrill and horrify, and that held up a > character that we had never seen before and was still too, too familiar. > > In many ways the final season, and final episode, was the mirror opposite > of what happened to poor, poor Dexter. > > Bravo to Gilligan and his entire, amazing cast. > -- -- TV or Not TV .... The Smartest (TV) People! You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TV or Not TV" group. To post to this group, send email to tvornottv@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to tvornottv-unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/tvornottv?hl=en --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TVorNotTV" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to tvornottv+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. 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