Yes, Breaking Bad is About Toxic Masculinity - A Video Essay
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ส.ค. 2022
- A video essay in which I argue what I assumed was obvious: that Breaking Bad is a show in large part about toxic masculinity.
"Song of Myself" gofundme: gofund.me/825bd014
"As Remembered": • As Remembered
skipping and disliking because nobody wants to see a youtubers face for 40 minutes. Your beard is the subject of this video more than the show itself
Apparently you haven't found Wendigoon's channel yet
Pin of shame
Haha how’s it feel to be put on the spot! Lol!
Ha lol
Your just mad he has a better beard than you lol! 🤪
You can’t forget the fact that walt broke up with gretchen purely because she had a rich family, so she would have been providing for him
Walt began his journey to self destruction long before the series began.
was going to comment this lol
What’s funny is in the end Walter could’ve gotten respect since Gretchen didn’t even ask for her family’s money
When is this said? I always seem to miss it, and assumed it was something along these lines and left unsaid.
@@kenna4346 I’m pretty sure it’s said during the scene in which Gretchen sits down with Walt and confronts him about his lies regarding them paying for his treatment to Skyler.
If you're one of those that hate Skyler, congratulations, you've been manipulated by Walter too.
Idk I think any dude would hate someone that gave the person they had an affair with 700 grand.
Aside from that, her character is more annoying than hate worthy
Hates a strong word. I'm annoyed by her existence.
I like Kim from BCS more than Skyler. Skyler can really be annoying (singing like some fucking prostitute to Ted rather than standing her ground on saying no), paying Ted/openly cheating on him for Walt, leaving Junior in the dust about the divorce (give him at least a make up reason for why it didn’t work out) and used Holly to trick/get pity for people.
Kim really owned up to her fuckups and even left Jimmy knowing they would be making things worse. She didn’t nag Jimmy all the time and they bounced off each other really well and she also had a likeable personality when Jimmy isn’t around-she can hold herself.
Yes Kim made more fucked up decisions and Skyler is someone I can’t stand because she does nothing but nag others can can’t self reflect
See I didn't like her at first, but the further away Walt gets from humanity the more I liked her
I completely sympathize with Skyler, she did everything I would expect from her husband gaslighting and manipulating her. Anna Gunn is also incredible at portraying abuse through her character.
Another scene that isn't talked about enough is when Walt goads his son into drinking so much he pukes into the pool just because Hank challenges his authority.
Bro Walt literally see a kid get shot and wasn’t even bother lol we’re we watching the same series cause Walt transformed into a ruthless drug lord after he let Jane died and killed crazy 8 😂 we know he’s a monster but he’s still one of the best characters in TV
hank really had no say in what walt does with his kid tho...hank was an arrogant control freak, who emasculated walt on countless occasions to make himself feel superior, and walt finally got the balls to contest it
@@govegan562 Hank is their uncle and is very close to those kids --he's trusted to take care of them for multiple months at one point. He is involved enough to tell Walt when he's being an idiot
@@katieturner6432 not in the way he did...he overstepped...he felt superior to walt, and he didn’t respect him...walt was reacting to that years of disrespect in that one instance...was walt in the wrong for what he did yea...the kid obviously couldn’t handle it and he threw up everywhere, but at the end of the day, it’s his kid and he was fed up with everyone around him telling him what to do
@@govegan562 children aren't the property of their parents and they aren't raised exclusively by their parents. At the end of the day Hank was better at looking out for Flynn than Walter
Yeah it's immature to hate Skyler but sending death threats to Anna Gunn is plain deranged
Yeah what the hell, I didn't even know they did that but honestly I'm not surprised (some people these days LMMFAO)
@@ErikCarlson-en4vzsome males. You know perfectly well, that it was almost exclusively males.
@@AA-cf4esYeah, honestly you're probably right about that considering her gender. Men and women have a relationship similar to cats and dogs. They can never get along. That's my opinion anyway. As for why? Beats me.
@@ErikCarlson-en4vzWow you sound like you’re part of the problem
@@AngieGandalf6Bro, what exactly did I say that's "problematic" huh? I'm simply saying men and women hate each other. Men hate women, women hate men, and that's not ideal. Sending death threats to an actress for simply playing a part is unhinged. I never stated it wasn't, and I never stated that it wasn't almost entirely men sending those death threats. So what's your problem here? I'm agreeing with you.
People forget that the best scene that is quoted all the time “I am the one who knocks” is about a man screaming at his scared wife. Like how do you look at that scene and not feel disgusted at this man.
Literally lashing out at her for pointing out the reality
fr, like its an iconic scene but oh my god walt is terrible in it
@@sadgreent5138 It is even worse. She is pointing out that THE CHILDREN are in danger. THE FAMILY is in danger. To the man who said over and over that everything he does is for his children and the family.
It's so ridiculous when people find that scene and the "Say my name" scene to be "badass". Walter barely amounts to anything he's ever dreamed of, because he just has illusions of power and security while it's quite transparent that he doesn't actually have his family's love, and his meth lab is a sneaky mobile one...
@@uzulim9234 Every scene illiterate fans deem "badass" is always so cringe-worthy. The scene with Walter racing sports cars with his son should have made it obvious enough that Walt has no class, no discretion, no maturity, and no sense.
breaking bad fans pick which character is the worst challenge (IMPOSSIBLE):
a- The child killer drug kingpin
b- The child killer drug cook
c- the woman
Female....
It’s simple. Walt is main character. We’re made to root for him. Skylar is against him. Sex is easily irrelevant.
@@cajunking5987 ?? I was making a shockwave reference
@@dillydraws nobody was talking to you here
@@cajunking5987 if you root for someone just because theyre a main character i dont think your opinions on fiction are relevant to like any conversation ever
When i first watched breaking bad, i was asking myself "So, when does Skyler become hateabl" in every scene. She's not some evil villain. She's a woman who loves her kids and wants to protect them from the evil, narcissistic, mad man in her house
“Mad man” he was trying to provide and care for his family. These days caring for your family’s wellbeing is abuse?
@@etj2127 Did you watch the show? The man admited he did it for himself lmao. Walter's a piece of shit
@@etj2127 he wasn't, you clearly didn't watch the show. He liked the power cooking and selling meth gave him. But then again, you're the kind of person to go on the internet to try to get people mad, I wouldn't expect you to be smart enough to realize
@@etj2127did you watch the show or the video? Walt had ways of providing for his family that didn’t involve MURDER and the like but he refused to take them because of his ego
That’s not protecting or caring for your family, that’s actively putting them in harms way and you can quite literally see that and how broken the family is by the end of the show
@@etj2127yeah Walter "I'm in the empire business" White clearly just wanted to provide for his family
I like how (some) fans will praise the phenomenal writing of the show and then completely miss that Walter is the villain
after watching the series for a 3rd time, i hate walt in the end
He's a Faustian hero. Walt is still the hero of his own story, and Breaking Bad is his story. You don't necessarily have to be a good or nice guy to be a hero. I think Walt can be understood as a hero even by a classical Greek perspective, being a bold man of great prowess who accomplishes great exploits. Only in the modern age did it become almost a requirement for a character to be moral and good to be seen as heroic.
Frankly I see the trend of making morally one dimensional heroes and protagonists to be rather stale. I think the fact that the hero of Breaking Bad becomes immoral and evil as the series progresses is one of the reasons it is so memorable.
@@RobertWankomy hate started with grey matter when he turns down the job that would take care of his cancer payments
People mistake protagonist with hero all the time. Protagonist just means the person who’s story were following, antagonist just means the character is antagonizing to main character in some way shape or form. You could make Homelander the protagonist in the Boys and that wouldn’t make him the good guy.
@@lelucasinator The name of the show is literally Breaking *Bad* you oversemenated fetus
This is basically all perfectly summed up in a stupid four panel meme I saw
Gretchen: take my donation money for cancer treatment
Walter: stfu libtard I'm fine on my own
Gus: cook meth and kill people for cancer money
Walt: yes Gustavo, glory to Los Pollos Hermanos
Walt initially was not in it for treatment money, but for money to leave behind. He would have died relatively soon regardless of whether he got treatment or not.
@@petarnovakovic2060 but greymayter doesn’t offer a donation for money, they offer him a job. A very lucrative job
@@Lightningkuriboh also I am sure if Walt came back to Grey Matter, if he did die, his family would be well compensated. Walt's ego got in his way at every opportunity he had to get out. "Billions. With a B"
Gus never asks walter to kill people he does but not because someone tells him too and he doesn't take Gretchen's money because he thinks it's charity and his ego is too big for that.
This comment is so fucking dumb it's actually unbelievable
How dare Skylar not want a egotistical maniac in the house!
And you know what’s wild is that part of the series takes place at the same time Tucos cousins break into Walt’s home wielding an axe. People really saw that and then thought Skyler was wrong for not wanting him living there
She still helps in aiding and abetting that maniac soo..
@bulletsisnothere4137 laundering money is no where near as bad as drug dealing meth and killing people.
She also was in a bad spot because telling Hank would destroy the family and possibly Hank's career.
@@josh043p6 the family was pretty much already destroyed. The only thing that would change would be Flynns vision of his father which inevitably faltered by the end of the show. So might as well tell Hank.
@@josh043p6 she also directly orders Walt to kill Jesse so
Attempted murder is another crime under her belt
The best thing about how Gus manipulates Walter with his speech at 13:50 about how a man must provide for his family is that it feels very genuine but is likely completely insincere.
Given the high likelihood that Gus is gay and single, his entire bit about being a family man becomes this elaborate ruse he constructed in order to manipulate Walter. It really shows how well he could read Walter and how deeply manipulative he is.
Yea, I think Gus was basically confirmed to be gay by one of the showrunners recently, or at least that him and max were romantically involved
Totally. When he invited Walter over for dinner he talked about how his kids don't like some of his cooking and there were kids toys around the place. But we never see any kids.
I get maybe why Walter wouldn't, Gus wants to keep his private life separate and safe from work, however, we the viewer never see any kids, and I think it's because he had none, he was just trying to convince Walter that a person can work in the drug business and also be moral and have children. We see Mike be a grandfather but we don't see Gus be a father. Because Mike is the rare exception here.
gus being gay actually sound really probably
ive been going thru this show w my gf recently and we both came away from this scene with exactly this take, im so excited to see someone else mention it.
gus is someone who would categorically Not have access to the kind of social standing that hes appealing to for walter here. walt covets this sense of superiority, in his manhood, in his heterosexuality and his whiteness (bc its all very tightly woven together, even if he isnt thinking about it like that), but crucially he has the space to covet it. he feels he deserves it.
whereas gus is so clearly putting on a mask for walter because he knows itll work. we see him in his interactions with the rest of his operation, esp. with the cartel, as well as with the abq police, and any respect they offer him is conditional on his performance being exemplary. even that doesnt spare him mockery (the jabs at his queerness come to mind). its really interesting to take into account for his characterization as someone who will do anything and be anyone in order to accomplish his goals.
put that up against walter who is completely unwilling to compromise literally anything about what he wants, and you see a really interesting portrait of how that privilege impacts the way these two ppl navigate the industry
@@mkdraws that is really interesting analysis.
I dont know how so many people could miss the point after "Im the one who protects the family from the one who protects the family" line from Skyler
because its fucking stupid and at that point they had an excuse for the money so making him return the car makes no sense
Its because shes a woman, and a woman standing against the shows protagonist, and since the protagonists are usually the good guys, which he isnt in breaking bad, and right wingers lack any form of media literacy, they miss the point, actually they dont miss it, they never even notice there was supposed to be a point to begin with.
In short... the breaking bad fanbase cant analyze media and they are sexist. (of course not everyone, breaking bad is one of my top 5 favourite shows, and there are a bunch of people who do get the point, but also alot who dont.)
I completely understood what Skylar was saying. I often do the same for my family.
And people praise the "I am the one who knocks" when he wasn't the one doing the killing, and was clearly under threats from Gus. He was literally so cornered that he had to takenit out on his worried wife because she told himthe reality, that he and the family were in danger
@@mandotherapper2586they didn't have an excuse? The gambling money was illegal money and could start and IRS investigation. It was an excuse for Marie and Hank only, who they trusted
Assaulting Skyler and letting Jane die are the exact moments Walt crosses past the point of no return from “I am trying to provide” to “I am maintaining control through any means necessary”
EXACTLY. He made the choice to let Jane die because she was preventing him from having full control over Jesse. Her death helped no one but himself.
hm yes every toxic trait nowadays is "masculine" can u just stfu like holy shit
You mean assaulting to the scene with the mascara and the fridge?
Male reactions to Breaking Bad remind me that most men hate women.
Also selling Jesse into slavery💀
The fact that before I watched the show I never heard anything about the rape scene but heard constant complaining about the Skyler Singing scene as "the hardest scene to sit through" speaks volumes about the fanbase.
absolutely
I mean to be fair, Ted, who is Skyler's boss, pressured her into singing the song that way for him. That's a sexual harassment lawsuit waiting to happen. And this was before Skyler decided to get with Ted.
ye i am completely disgusted by the rape scene
but i actually needed to skip the singing scene
i can handle horros but i can't handle cringe
Yeah that's still the hardest scene to watch for me. I can watch scenes of people being raped, tortured, murdered, heads being blown off, but goddammit was her singing cringe in that scene.
@@justsomeguywithadogpicture2622 LMAOOOOOO YOU UNDERSRAND
To add to your point, Walter left Gretchen because she came from a rich family, and he felt emasculated by that.
great point
He didn't feel emasculated, he developed an inferority complex, it makes no sense to get emasculated by that. The sources of his emasculation is Skyler, Hank and Jr.
@@hoked2194that's the same thing. he felt emasculated because he wasn't able to provide as well as Gretchen in the relationship. Since Walt think that as a man, he should be the one providing, that inferiority left him feeling emasculated.
@@alecelliott7506Psychologically they are not the same thing lmao. Get a grip, this entire comment section is one liberal hivemind
@@bobbypinmcgee5593 get a grip on this cock
What blows my mind about this is that even if you bought into the "Walt is just trying to provide" angle all throughout.... the show itself blatantly spells it out for the audience when Walt himself admits in the finale, "I did it for me. I liked it."
Boom. That's it. That's all the evidence you need. The show is telling you what it's all been about in this one scene. It's not subtext anymore, it is just the text itself. Plain as day, irrefutable.
It’s crazy what lengths people go to justify it and hate skylar. I’ve seen people say “he only said that because skylar is evillll and would only accept that answer” which is just dumb and wrong
Literally the show gives Walt every conceivable out right up to the end and he just keeps digging his own grave
Lmfao, Walt only did it for himself in the later seasons. He was legitimately trying to help his family early on. Crazy how people can't figure this out
@@justanugget6588 except in Ep 4 of S1, Walt has an easy out that would have helped his family way more when Elliot offers him a job and he chooses not to take it. That's a pretty early indicator of Walt's selfishness. Its the whole point of that episode.
@@TheCroBrosChannel Yes, he had a massive ego. But that doesn't change the fact that he cooked meth for his family?
a note on how Fring uses Walter's ego to manipulate him: when Walter is invited to Fring's house for dinner, there are children's toys strewn about the house. Fring even makes a comment on the dish they are eating, noting that he doesn't get to make it very often because the kids won't eat it. For a while i thought Fring's kids were some sort of dropped plot point, but of course the simpler explanation is that Fring doesn't have any kids. He's using the idea of providing for a family to manipulate Walter into continuing to cook for him.
Nah he's probably just trying to be relatable so walt will like him more
@@Alivefortuneteller Um, that's pretty much what he's saying.
This is also evident once Gus invites Jesse to that very house - the toys are nowhere to be seen. The previous facade no longer applies to... what was it? Ah, "a junkie."
I think it's funny with how Gus is also heavily implied to be a gay man. So using Walt's belief in a rigid family structure to goad him into working for him is almost comedic.
Didn’t really work out in the end, huh.
Its like American Psycho all over again. An incel parody so before its time incels took it unironically
Imagine being so slow you think Breaking Bad is simply a tale about incels. Lay off on the Blue Meth kid.
There is no satire on toxic masculinity that won’t be taken seriously, it seems. Fight Club, BB, etc. They don’t want to get it. At least not consciously.
Neither of those characters are incels.
80IQ comment.
@@candicefrost4561fr tho, it’s so frustrating. The whole sigma male bullshit is another prime example of this.
reaching
It's the joker all over again. Men love the idea that there is an attainable version of toxic masculinity that lets them keep their wives, their conscious, and their relationships with their kids while doing the explosions and murder somewhere else, but there isn't. There never can be, and that's the entire message. So sad people miss it and just think "well if ____ hadn't happened it woulda worked out"
"Men" don't love anything because "men" are a collective comprised of individuals with different opinions and ideas.
They’d rather believe a fantasy that lets them never act like adults than get interested in what could be in the real world if the just grew up.
this comment really made me think. you essentially echoed a thought i had multiple times (the "well if blah blah") but i see now how wrong that is
thanks!
@@spv420 i'm very glad to hear it haha : )
Visceral negative reaction to your comment. But if we’re speaking in generalities yea it’s unfortunately spot on.
i feel like a lot of fans of the show don’t realize that you can like a show and still find the main character (or literally all of then) immoral and unpleasant. it’s not a dig at the show in the slightest. it’s actually amazing that we continue to watch it despite how awful the characters are.
I mean we all the know the characters are awful I read berserk where the main villain is the most evil character ever but he’s still a really complex and well written character just like Walter white. Main character can be villains
I agree! It’s actually a testament to the show that it gets us to root for such an awful person.
Some of the best shows have morally corrupt and despicable main characters. People that you would never want involved in your life but are fun to gawk at from a safe distance, The Sopranos and Dexter being two that come to mind.
Many times you catch yourself rooting for them only for the show to remind you why you should not.
When I first watched BB, I was a teenager coming off of a breakup coupled with social anxiety.
A decade later, I watched the show again. I used to hate Skyler. But I realise that this woman bent over backwards for her family and became a victim of abuse all while still trying to protect her family.
Jessie annoyed me on my first watch. Now I realise that characters like Mike and Jessie are the "good" guys and Jessie is our hero. We have been watching the anatagonist's story the whole time, Walt's story.
@@julianmcmillan2867 I think it should be very clear that Walt is quietly a despicable sort of fellow from the get go. Heisenburg is just him indulging all his worst tendencies. I'm not going to break down his entire character here, I'm sure you probably know what I'm alluding to here, he has always had these toxic personality traits that harm him and his family.
Makes me think of a quote from Orson Welles:
"In a 1983 interview with fellow director Henry Jaglom, Welles revealed that he had a rather feverish reaction to being in the presence of Woody Allen. Not only was he sceptical of Allen’s approach to comedy, but he was vehemently averse to the hungry ego it served.
“I hate Woody Allen physically; I dislike that kind of man,” he said. Adding: “Oh yes, I can hardly bear to talk to him. He has the Chaplin disease. That particular combination of arrogance and timidity sets my teeth on edge.”
Jaglom countered Welles’ assertions, suggesting that Allen was a shy man and, therefore, surely couldn’t be labelled as arrogant. “He is arrogant,” Welles persisted in retort. “Like all people with timid personalities, his arrogance is unlimited. Anybody who speaks quietly and shrivels up in company is unbelievably arrogant. He acts shy, but he’s not. He’s scared. He hates himself, and he loves himself, a very tense situation. It’s people like me who have to carry on and pretend to be modest.”
The fact that they can literally see Saul mock Walt as he complains about how HE has to be the one to provide the money and STILL try to argue Walt is the good guy is insane to me. "Yeah there's no deep seated issues there" he said in a sarcastic voice. Jimmy knew Walt was full of it, absolutely weighed down by his pride of what it meant to be a "man." Gustavo saw that desperation to remain the "manly" figure of the house and manipulated him with it. It was always there. Seriously, how are people this blind?
Because it’s not gender based. Walt wanted to be in charge. It’s only called “he wanted to be the man” because he’s a male. It’s a tale of pride and ego.
@@pc3340 "it's not gender based"
Gus LITERALLY manipulates him by saying "A man provides by any means necessary." It is very much gender based. Walt does what he does to protect his "pride as a man." He wants his family to know HE was the one who raked in all that cash, rather than it be by anonymous fake donations. When Skyler cheats on him, it's an attack on his manhoos. It had to be him, the man of the house, resserting himself as the stereotypical dominant figure. You'd have to be watching the show with earplugs in.
Overt pride and ego does not have to be separate from toxic masculinity.
@@ApexGale Gus uses that because he knows he can appeal to him in that manner because Walt’s ego has already taken over. Yes being a man is central to his identity, but it would be no different if the main character was a woman. Pride and ego can be toxic traits regardless of gender. It would be more accurate to call it that, rather than just toxic masculinity. There is so much more to the show than Walt beginning to turn into a toxic person.
@@pc3340You're missing the point. If Walt were a woman, no one could use the "men must provide" trope to appeal to his identity. If the framework for the providing father figure wasn't already present, and if Walt wasn't so obsessed with having that identity, he couldn't be manipulated the same way.
@@caitthecat I just don’t agree. It wouldn’t have been a “man provides” it would have been something else to appeal to the ego and pride. The fact that those characteristics are common in toxic masculinity does not mean that was the overall point of the show. Walt was a broken person who went too far in taking back control of his life due to issues he never adequately dealt with and then mishandled as he gained power
HOW THE HELL IS THIS EVEN CONTROVERSIAL?!?!?
Walt destroys his entire family over pride, ego, and narcissism…
Is it masculine? Yes.
Is it healthy? No.
So it’s toxically masculine.
His family sucked eggs Walter is Swagg lord I wanna be him
@@anthos332 He wasn’t “Swagg lord” when he was crying and pissing himself on the ground while neo-notsees were stealing his money and burying his Brother in-law... just saying tho..
I've met a lot of idiots that think "Toxic Masculinity" is a phrase that thinks of all Masculinity as being Toxic
CLEARLY Toxic Masculinity is distinguishable from Masculinity, and Healthy Masculinity, but a certain group of idiots are intentionally misinterpreting the term so they can keep victimizing themselves
have you met the hardcore fans of this show? Walt to them is the template of peak masculinity.
I mean yeah it’s toxic but how is it inherently masculine? Because a man did it? Pride ego and narcissism are traits shared by both sexes so…
A scummy drug dealer in a scripted series: A man provides for his family no matter what!
Half the internet: So true, bro
🤦♀️
bros on the hustle mindset 😖
I love how it's a drug dealer whose family we never see, and potentially doesn't even exist. It's clearly a case of Walt's ego being played with to manipulate him, and he falls for it.
One overlooked line from Breaking Bad that reveals early on just how twisted Walt is comes when he's talking with his therapist after his 'fugue state.' Walt doesn't want to tell his therapist what's bothering him, but finally gives in and basically admits that he ran away for a while to escape the shame of what his life turned out to be. He hates that he's an underpaid teacher, and that his potential is wasted. But he says this about his family:
'My wife is having an unplanned baby and my son is disabled,' or something like that.
He views his family as props in his 'ideal life' diorama, a piece meant to impress others with how perfect his life is. Walt thinks that Walter Jr being disabled reflects badly on HIM. Even though he's occasionally kind to his son throughout the series, that moment reveals that he doesn't really view Walter Jr as a person - he's a prop to make Walt look good. And a disabled son does not make him look good.
It's an early glimpse into how twisted Walt's view of others really is.
He wanted a son to carry on his legacy. He didn’t involve Walter Jr in anything not just because he wants to spare him, but because he doesn’t see him as worthy because he’s disabled. Jesse is not only more broken and manipulatable but also a perfect apprentice in his eyes.
Could it be that Walter Jr. wouldnt be able to provide for Skyler and Holly, while also attending to his own special needs? Maybe? Stop with this victim complex
I'm surprised more people don't get this , naming a child directly after yourself is one of the most stereotypically narcissistic things a person can do, especially when Flynn tries to explore his own identity later in the series and Walt gets mad about it
he says what he says not that its not his ideal life, but because hes not in a financial situation to be able to support them as much as he couldve wanted. your assumption of how he views his family is very wrong as it contradicts the sole reason he went into the business in the first place (at least the sole reason in the first couple seasons). Even later when he fully realizes his passion for it and admits he kept it going for himself, he still does it for the intent of providing for walt jr.
@@scrubius.walt says that's his intentions. and that's true. but it's tied directly to his pride and his need to be the ultimate provider.
by the point of the fugue state thing, walt turned down elliot's offer to pay for his treatment. he did that for no other reason than it made him feel too bad, hurt his pride too much. he rejected that offer to then go into COOKING METH to get money for his family. he chose to endanger himself, jesse, and his family for his pride. i know people like walt and those people are scarily good at making you think they care for you more than they actually do.
I feel like every murder Jesse committed was filled with regret and he was almost forced to do so. He’s one of the most moral characters in the entire show.
You can’t help but feel bad for him.
Absolutely
💯
The only murder he didnt regret was todd.
@@mfisrae Yeah but Todd was among one of the most evil characters on the show, so I wouldn't have regretted that either if I was in Jesse's shoes
@@IncarnationOfNeutrality i think that was their point gang
That’s why he got away.
It's very painful to see people watch something as incredible as Breaking Bad and completely miss the point(s), themes and messages
can’t tell whether you’re saying he’s wrong or he has a point
@@LimboByMinecraft saying he is right
It’s fascinating that people can watch it taking everything at complete face value without a hint of nuance or critical thinking
it's very painful to see people like you suggest that Breaking Bad can be boiled down to "toxic masculinity is bad" then explain why did the writers do everything in their power to make Walt in S1 look so defeated, lost, frail, afraid, timid, etc? Hank constantly looks down on Walt, to the point where Walt can basically make up BS under his nose and he falls for it. Flynn/Walt Jr looks up to Hank, and Skylar is an incompetent wife who ignores her husband's needs and wants.
But no, just chalk it all up to "WOW, Walter bad!" What an embarassing analysis
@@thatoneshitposterthatlives2050 well said
I love how you use the rotten egg example. Because you'd think no one would need to explain something so simple.
I’ve seen those types of people come out whenever someone mentions “toxic masculinity” in breaking bad and it’s actually so weird to me. How is it NOT about toxic masculinity? A man so prideful he decides to cook METH over taking a chushy job from his rich ex business partner, the whole premise of the show is Walter ruining his and his families lives due to nothing but his own pride and refusal for “charity or handouts”, basically the definition of toxic masculinity 😂
thats the thing, they dont even know what toxic masculinity is lmao. these weirdos hear the term and are incapable of thinking critically for 2 seconds and doing a tiny bit of research so they take it to mean that masculinity ITSELF is toxic, and then their little egos get offended and they throw temper tantrums
And the documentary " Anna Nicole Smith: You Don't Know Me" is about a 25yo model with big hooters who marries an 88 yo billionaire two years before he kicks the bucket. Basically the definition of toxic feminity 😂
It's not toxic, a man wanting to provide for the future of his family is the definition of positive masculinity. The man had terminal cancer, and desperate times call for desperate measures. Sure he might have taken it a little far but at the end of the day he did it all for family.
Now Skylar hampering his efforts and boo hooing his every idea? That is the representation of toxic femininity.
@@slydubbeats Uh okay?
@@slydubbeats Did you watch the video? You don’t need to be masculine or feminine to be toxic but you can be toxic about masculinity, just like you can be toxic about a lot of other things.
I just finished watching breaking bad and I have something I wanna add:
The first thing that caught my eye was Hank's own arc of toxic masculinity and how that got in the way of himself and eventually his family. He was the one making all the comments to Walter in the first episode and always seemed to have that tone of "look at me, im so big and strong." It all seems to come crashing down when his PTSD symptoms start to show. His determination to shove it down and "be a man" come out in the form of lashing out at his wife, struggling at his job, and worsening his overall mental state. I think we saw a glimmer of hope when he finally admitted to having some issues (mind you, after yelling at his wife for suggesting the same thing), but him getting shot definitely set him back a little (likely because he didn't feel very strong with this new disability and having his wife have to help him with everything)
This is my first time actually putting this into words, but Ive been sitting with it since I started season 1. There's definitely more to this, but I'd have to think about it a little more
EXACTLY
hank isn’t so healthy of a character either and the bedridden hank arc is so blatantly about toxic masculinity I can’t believe people miss it
I like their two stories and how they go on different directions. Hank overcomes the toxic aspects of his masculinity and heals and grows as a man and a hero, whereas Walt does the opposite.
@@bumfricker2487 Because bedridden women cannot be annoying cuz they are helpless? lol
I'd argue Hank's toxicity in episode 1 is one of the reasons Walt broke bad.
@@JarinCOD No argument there. It was clear. The camera focused on the gun scene.
my least favorite thing is when people say something like “if you hated skyler then that means that the actors/writers did a good job” like no if you hated skyler you were watching the show with your eyes closed because she’s supposed to be sympathetic and definitely not hateable
I would actually disagree somewhat. Skyler is meant to be very unlikeable to anyone who exhibits similar traits to Walter White, she's a litmus test that functions extraordinarily well. If you hated Skyler White, it means that the writers have successfully set you up for a rude awakening as Walter, who is the primary source of Skyler's more abrasive behavior, partakes in actions that are increasingly harder to justify.
She's a filter that separates those who should watch the show for its merit from those who should watch it for its message.
Lol no.
Skyler, especially in the early seasons, was set up as a roadblock for Walter, who was portrayed to be the sympathetic and relatable one.
@@pc3340 very insightful response
@@DeadlyBlaze you're still not supposed to outright despise her like Umbridge in the fifth Harry Potter, funnily annoying maybe?
I'm very glad you brought up the scene with the mud mask. I often feel like people just conveniently forget about that as well.
But it gets worse. It's not the only rape scene, it's only the first one, and the most explicit -- the only one that shows the whole thing, rather than just [insert stronger word than 'implying' idk lol it's past my bedtime]
There is another time he does it, at least on-screen. I don't know the exact episode or whatever, but it's sometime after Holly has been born and during a time when Walter has fully assumed control over Skyler and over the household. It's not as um "violent" for lack of a better word which is probably why it can be missed if one isn't paying attention. But it's very disturbing because it's clear the abuse has gotten to such a point of hopelessness that Skyler has completely given up fighting back. And then later, I think sometime after the scene with Skyler in the pool, Skyler says to him, "I can't even keep you out of my bed." This part of her sentence is emphasized; there is cinematic and thespian weight to her words, and the creators of the show clearly wanted these words to be focused on. The implications are the same. They more than suggest that this is repeating violence from Walter.
This means Skyler has been emotionally eviscerated and violated by Walter so many times that she has entered a devastating cycle of learned helplessness, a psychological state I would not wish on my worst enemy.
As a survivor of a frankly ridiculous amount of abuse, and a childhood witness to years of domestic violence -- as a person who has very, very much BEEN Skyler more than once and for a god awful long time -- I have never been able to understand the Walter White stans, and I've almost never seen anything Skyler did or any of her reactions as unreasonable or thought that they didn't make sense. Walter repulses me in every sense (And I love Bryan Cranston... so this shows even more how amazing of an actor he is that he's just able to completely transform himself like that). He makes my skin crawl and he's not even real. To me, he's a symbol of every abuser I've ever had, because his manipulative and calculating behavior and his violent lust for power is so agonizingly accurate of real-life abusers.
Breaking Bad is so visceral and personal that it can be very hard not to have opinions about it that one may not have as strongly about characters from other media. So all that being said, I personally feel like every time someone speaks out about Walter being an abuser and defends Skyler, it brings more and more mercy to real-life survivors of abuse.
thanks for pointing that out!
I think I know the scene you are talking about, it is truly disgusting and portrays the disgust one should feel towards him well.
I'm sorry you went through all that and I hope you have arrived at a good place now.
I just finished watching the episode I think you’re talking about (when he kisses her in bed and Skyler’s lying there with a blank face?) and it’s so haunting. It’s a domestic horror Skyler can’t escape and I can’t imagine how scared she must have been. To see that and then see Walter stans hate Skyler because she understandably doesn’t feel safe with a meth king pin husband is upsetting. Walt is a monster, I don’t understand how people can’t see that. Aside from the money laundering and not leaving Walt when the lawyer advised her to, I think everything Skyler did was reasonable.
@@asmileisspecial I really cried when they fought with the knife, all the violence, the screams, and specially the audacity he had to insult her on the phone broke me.
I hated Walterf from the first chapter, he had the audacity to tell Jesse how to do his job when he didn't know nothing and expected to not have any repercussion for doing something illegal and HARM so many families, that gave me all the information of who he was. It is heartbreaking how many people like him exists in real life...
@monicavelazquezrodriguez3035 You know he insulted her on the phone to keep the police off her back. If he fulfilled the imagine of the monster they were looking for in that instance, they wouldn't even think about Skylar being involved in ANY of this. I agree he's a scumbag, but I think you missed the mark a little on that bit
@@homelessalcoholic2716 No, he insulted her to keep the police off HIS track. He wouldn't kidnapped Holy if he was so concerned about Skyler's wellbeing.
25:00. Its also something I notice in the movies “Fight Club” and “American Psycho”. Those movies, along with breaking bad, condemn toxic masculinity. But at the same time, they attract toxic men like moths to a light. I think it has to do with lack of media literacy common in many conservative circles (obviously, not all conservatives. I’m not putting anyone in a box).
fax. I fucking love fight club but i cant go around saying it because so many people who love it dont understand it and it pisses me off
le media literacy!!!! everything is political!!!!! this [media] is actually a satire of fascism!!!
“Women can’t be raped by their husbands”
“A man can’t break into his own house”
“A father can’t kidnap his own child”
•••
“This show isn’t about toxic masculinity”
Not to be that guy
I mean Skyler never changed the locks or divorced him so he never broke in.
@@bungbananaman
No…that’s still breaking in, or at least trespassing.
@@warlordofbritannia it's THEIR house yes he's allowed in legally morally no
@@warlordofbritannia no it legally isn't lmao
@@bungbananaman i mean, the cops in the show say that too so i don't see the point of reminding people as if it's an important detail to the story's message. you dont HAVE to be that guy lol. if anything, that detail is just to emphasize how helpless skylar is in her situation.
The ammount of ppl hating on Skyler even until after the show ended is insane. She was the sane one in the relashionship up until she went along with Walt's downward spiral.
Yeah also her cheating on Walt with Tod was totally reasonable 💀💀
@@SOMEONE-jf4qd Walt was already a murdererous drug dealer by then, but sure, cheating is toootally worse
@@SOMEONE-jf4qd yeah because cheating is as bad as being a goddamn drug kingpin. if walt cheated on top of being a meth cook you people would justify him doing it bc skyler was a bitch wife or whatever. make it make sense
@@tivaspotato two wrongs don't make it right and yes she's is a bitvh wife for cheating instead of divorcing him
@@SOMEONE-jf4qd It was reasonable, Walt wouldn't divorce her, and it was the only way to escape him
When I first watched breaking bad, I read it as a bait and switch. It felt like they purposefully set it up for you to revel in Walt's actions early on, so they could slowly turn up the heat and by the time you realized how bad it was, you were complicit, which has a bigger impact than just framing all his actions as bad from the beginning.
I also find it weird that you say (and apparently lots of people agree) that Skylar worked against Walt. I didn't get that at all. I thought her worst actions the whole show were her enabling of Walt. She went along with everything. She might have spoken ill about it, but she didn't really take any actions against him. She couldn't. She was basically a prisoner. That's why she was so freaked out when Hank finds out.
Reminds me of Jr's comment in Ozymandias that Skylar is just as bad for knowing and not doing anything.
I always felt bad for Skyler. I never understood where the hate was coming from, I figured she was simply trying to keep her family safe and healthy, but Walter kept screwing all of that up by doing what he thought was the same thing. Yes she made some questionable choices, but at the end of the day, she’s a saint compared to her monster of a husband.
It comes from the first 2 seasons, where Skyler was controlling and come of as annoying but from there, if someone still consider Skyler the bad person it is very clear they're misinterpreting what they're watching.
@@yoshiro-chan4479
In season 1 and 2 Skyler is a toxic controlling person.
In seasons 3-5 Skyker is still a toxic and controlling person but her husband is a drug-dealer.
how is skyler toxic and controlling tho? her husband disappears to cook meth for hours (sometimes days) on end and she's controlling for asking where he was? smh
@@riqrimoli
Im season 1 and 2 she does not know about the meth cooking.
She is introduced micro-managing Walt's diet and controling their finances, as far as she knows Walt post diagnosis self medicates with pot. Instead of discussing with Walt she goes behind his back to threathen his dealer.
She stages an intervention because Walt does not deal with his cancer her way. To one up she revokes Hank talking privilege when he starts to agree with Walt.
And there is just something off about the way she berates Walt for being late in front of all their friends and family on his surprise birtday.
All true, but Skylar was just not a likable person. They did that on purpose to bring about a dissonance between someone who tries to do the right thing but are basically a-holes.
BB fans disappoint me especially with how they view Skylar. She never wanted any of Walt’s drug money or the drama. She was trying to protect Walt Jr & Holly from Walt who could’ve got them all killed. She made bad decisions but unlike Walt, everything she did actually was for the family. I’m glad someone finally spoke about this.
She was a bitch but walt was also evil
She is a hypocrite and was willing to mobilize the state on anyone who smokes weed. Walt is bad and guess what Skylar is trash write alone with him.
I mean she literally got involved in Walt's scheme at a certain point. She was happy when it afforded her the ability to own Bogdon, and was willing to commit crimes to stop her boss from committing more crimes. I am not saying she is Walt or anything, but she isn't a bastion of honesty either.
@@coachleif So what? Why hate Skylar when she didn't do even a tenth of what Walter did?
@@freshrockpapa-e7799 It's not about Walt being more evil than Skylar. Everyone agrees on that.
It's about understanding, narratively, what the components are that put this situation together, and it's pretty easy to see that while sure Walt is worse, who would actually want Skylar as a wife? It was an unhappy marriage, that doesn't mean Walt was right.
In regards to the rape scene, I think you're forgetting one of the most toxic masculine ideas: "women can't be raped by their husbands". I think many viewers are able to dismiss the scene as "a sexual mishap" or "he just misread the situation" instead of seeing it for what it actually is: rape.
I've seen it repeatedly in media, wives having sex with their husbands against their will, husbands forcing themselves on their wives, and it is never called out by its true name. It is portrayed as "sad" ... you feel bad for her situation ... but it isn't called "rape" and it needs to be called out. When a person forces another into sex that is rape. Whether verbally, physically, psychologically ... it's all rape.
I think even harder to watch than the rape scene in the kitchen is the scene later in Season 5 when Walt rapes Skyler and she is too terrified of him to fight him off. She wants to be nowhere near him ... she's imagining ways she can to get away from him ... and Walt is completely oblivious to her. She's not a person to him anymore. She's a concept, an idea, a possession ... and he rapes her, leaving her shivering and terrified ... and he whistles while he goes to take a shower.
It's horrifying. Where is the outrage at Walt over that?
Glad I finally got a video to confirm it. Years ago I tried watching Breaking Bad, got to the episode with the dubious consent Walt just forcing himself on Skylar and it made me feel gross. Then apparently he does it AGAIN later on. I suppose the adult drama is meant to have very uncomfortable scenes.. maybe one day I'll pick it back up and watch it all from start to finish. IDK. I know all the spoilers for the series but maybe it'd still be a good watch?
@@blacksesamecandies you should definitely watch the show
@@blacksesamecandies when i first watched Breaking Bad, i knew every single thing that was going to happen, blew my mind anyway
K Coup. Thank you for this comment. This is a very important subject.
I had a similar experience in that I love the film Lust / Caution, and I even think some kind of romance, maybe even some degree of some kind of love, happens between the leads.
But I also think that the first time they had sex, he is brutally raping her. I think that because, though she has deliberately seduced him, and she went to that apartment planning to have sex with him, she did Not expect, Or Consent To, Brutally Rough Sex. He inflicts that on her.
That's not consent. I call that rape.
But when I searched for "Lust / Caution rape" I find nothing to indicate that Even a Single reviewer called attention to what I see, their first triste is a rape.
That's disturbing to me.
I frankly think that the term "toxic masculinity" gets thrown around too often and sometimes at least images if not out and out statements about healthy forms of masculinity get dragged into the condemnation, as if the person commenting can't tell the difference.
But a whole society by and large not noticing when something is a rape because the two characters know each other and once upon a time or under different circumstances the woman consented or would have consented--that's disturbing.
That is toxic.
No you don’t get it Skyler is obviously bad because she didn’t want her husband to be a drug lord who kills children
These people know what toxic masculinity is. They like it and want it to be the standard. That's why they don't want it being critiqued.
i was in an argument with a Skylar hater (he "forgot" about the rape scene until I brought it up ofc) and I was saying skylar was neurotic bc she was in a terrible situation and living with an actual murderer and predator, and she was processing that trauma in real time. He responded by saying that women like her who become icy and cold are impossible to empathize with, basically outing himself as being unwilling to read female emotions in any complex way. I said we needed to see people with more nuance and that patriarchy is what causes women to be seen in two-dimensional lighting and he pretty much ignored it and started talking about something else. The whole conversation was so frustrating. I don't think he'd admit it out loud, and I wouldn't call this man an outright Walt stan, but I agree that he certainly does to a point defend toxic masculinity by attacking the character that stands against it, Skylar
@charlottefarrell9095 Yeah, patriarchy is also what makes Walter feel obligated to provide for his family and maintain his status as a "proper man" by exerting violence
I have to disagree, not all know what toxic masculinity is. When what they constantly see a "Men are shit" then they ofc will feel attacked even when something isn't an attack because so many "feminists" saying that being a man is bad, then they're not gonna be open to listening. Ofc there are a lot that won't listen but alienating isn't gonna help those that actually want to learn
The feminist I'm talking about are those that don't want to abolish gender norms, but rather are neoliberal-feminist that only want to support women individually rather than systemic change to help everyone.
@@cencent2189 ive certainly seen bitter women co opt the feminist movement into something else, and i dont blame some men for having reservations as a result of that. men's issues not being brought to light only makes it worse as it makes gender equality feel a bit one sided at times. the kind of men were talking about though are ones who turn a blind eye to abusive power dynamics where women (like skylar) feel helpless and trapped and are left to rot emotionally, only for the same men to shrug and say she's a crazy bitch who did it to herself. (not to say skylar had no agency, or that she didn't have massive shortcomings that only made her situation worse)
anyways, i agree we need to do a better job of educating people bc the more we work together the better. this is a nuanced issue that people like to turn into soundbytes and simplify it a lot and it does tend to alienate men as a result
@charlottefarrell9095 Yeah I agree but also part of the reason why a lot of women's issues are brought up more than men's is cause women are the ones talking about it. Most women don't put men down but there are some that still maintain the patriarchy. Just cause the patriarchy is centered around men being in power doesn't mean that men don't suffer from it, and a lot of men and women don't get that. It puts a lot of expectations on men
Now, there are also a lot of "men's rights activists" that are just misogynistic because rather than wanting equality they want to put women down, and to a greater extent it's what we see in a lot of the manosphere. Like the "peak male" is something mostly maintained by men because most girls I know don't want that, they just want someone they can relate to and have fun with.
I just wish more men would get that cause it's really sad that as a society we could be getting change done like so many civil rights movements have but it doesn't happen. Also this is a nitpick ig but I don't like the name men's rights activists cause idk of any right men don't have
Funny how most of the hate Skyler gets comes from actual sexism and toxic masculinity.
Truth
She literally made veggie bacon for breakfast.
I found myself being annoyed by Skylar, but also simultaneously feeling heartbroken for her
Same.
hm yes every toxic trait nowadays is "masculine" can u just stfu like holy shit
She's annoying in the "stereotypical white woman annoying-ness" kinda way. The "Karen" kinda way. But she's still a complete character and a well written character. So we can look past it and see her as a human. You can empathise with her. And honestly she's in the right a lottttt of the time in the show
Look, no one reading this should want to be in a relationship with Skylar. We are shown a bad marriage most of us would want nothing to do with.... Still, Skylar had something way more horrific happen to her. Both of these things can happen at the same time.
@@coachleif huh???? She pampered and adored Walt with all her heart. That's made so clear. She absolutely adored him. It wasn't until he started acting aloof and suspiciously that she retaliated and distanced herself. She is the only sane one who is actually looking out and caring for her family; Walt even admits that it was never about providing to cater to his ego. If the roles were reversed I can't help but feel people like yourself who hate Skylar would find Walt's actions justifiable if he behaved as she did in response to her "actions." The double standards are so exhausting.
Something I've noticed everytime I speak to someone condemning Skyler for cheating is that they never seem to remember the rape scene. I dont think that's intentional on their part, I think it's simply a product of their biases and their misreading of the show as walt being a good guy, which has them write off many of the indefensible things walt does.
It confuses me that people think she cheated. She only did that after asking him for a divorce
also them failing to understand what the fuck rape is. seriously, some (that are even present in this comment section) are outright REFUSING to admit there's rape in BB. imagine being so apathetic and out of touch with reality
@@una-murayah well the same people who are talking about it think regretting sex is rape, so
@@cajunking5987 bold assumption. also apparently skyler screaming for walt to stop his touching and immediately rejecting it is not rape?
Can anyone give the episode number for the rape scene, I legit cant find it
And there will be people saying that he "saved" Jesse..
Jesse's life got ruined because not only did Walter coax im into working with him, but he also couldnt stand the thought of Jesse surpassing him.
He didnt save Jesse. He merely stopped what he caused before it got worse.
"Sort by Newest" disappoints again
:(
Oh damn they were cringe
Yep
eeyup
I actually never knew that Skyler was a fan hated character. Granted, I literally just finished Breaking bad a few weeks ago and now I'm three seasons into Better call Saul, but even if she was portrayed as annoying in some episodes, I never found her hate worthy. She made a lot of bad choices for sure, but she tried her best to keep the family whole despite everything that was going on.
I hate the character and some of the actions she took in the later seasons but I don’t think that she’s a bad character at all. It’s all about perspective If the show was made with her perspective we would be rooting for her the way we do with Walt.
I disliked Skyler only after she chose to be complicit in Walt's meth business. I think much of the Skyler hate at the time was for all the times she "impeded" Walt, but I was on her side for all of that. The rest of it was reaching for other excuses to hate her, like "she smoked while pregnant!" (which we saw once and only one cigarette, maybe two, before she flushed the rest down the toilet), or "she cheated on Walt!" (which was a Hail Mary effort to get Walt to agree to divorcing her, they were functionally divorced already while not legally, so no, not cheating).
@@pugman9672 I am just thinking, I don't hate Sky, but I have to ask.
Do we ever see her do any act of kindness towards anyone?
I just think Sky is not likeable, but not someone we can consider to be in the moral wrong and a bad person. I don't know if she's actually the opposite though, a kind woman who is framed to be the bad person. I think she's more the annoying woman, that is then painted out to be the bad person, and that is easier to fall for.
She’s a terrible mother partner and person she’s literally at fault for everything that happens to her and her family from the moment she decided to not go to the police
@@swagdaddy6932 she is at fault, but much less so than Walt himself.
when it comes to being the true family "protector/provider", i'd say that skyler comes a lot closer to that archetype than walt does. she goes back to her old job, with a boss who's kinda incompetent, while highly pregnant to fund her family's needs, she covers for walt in front of their son so he won't get scarred for life by finding out his dad is a meth manufacturer, she lets herself be seen as the bad guy again and again just to protect walt's image and not ruin his bond with their son, she comes up with the plan to buy the carwash in order to make their money "clean", etc etc. sure, she makes mistakes, but throughout the show she becomes more and more comfortable with getting her hands dirty just to protect her family. she rarely does anything for her own pride and ego, yet the brba fandom constantly makes her into a selfish bitch who doesn't do anything for the family. even if gus' speech about providing (which is just gus manipulating walt to get to his meth) is more seen in skyler than in walt: "a man provides, even when is not appreciated or loved, he simply bears up." which is exactly what skyler does, while walt gets mad when his role as the provider is ignored/when his actions aren't appreciated.
Brilliant comment, people don’t think or talk about this enough when discussing Skyler. It’s the fact that people in the show have done actually horrific things and are praised while a hard working mother, who doesn’t even snitch on Walt until he wayyyy crosses the line by getting Hank killed, is hated. So so weird
Do we just completely forget when she cheats on Walt. Infidelity is definitely something that makes me dislike a character a lot. Despite all the other things the fact to me that she did that was extremely selfish.
@@softsupp he covers that in the video. She told Walt multiple times she wanted a divorce, essentially breaking up with him without being able to legally end the marriage because Walt refused to sign the papers. She fucked Ted out of hope that it would finally push Walt to sign/accept that their relationship was over, as well as out of a need to find stability and partnership with someone who (at the time) wasn’t making her life hell
Walt was working 2 jobs and has cancer. You are ignoring a lot of what Walt did in favor of something Skylar did for much less time.
@@softsupp I found it very hard to be mad at Skyler in that scenario. Skyler demanded a divorce from Walt, Walt refused to sign the paperwork.
Minor note- It isn’t that Walt has learned his lesson when he gives the money to Gretchen and Elliot in the final episode: It is literally the only way he can get any of his money to his family, because with his crimes now known, if there’s any trace of the money being Walt’s drug money, it will get confiscated and Skylar, Walt Jr and Holly are out of luck. Additionally, Skylar and Walt Jr have both made it clear that they don’t want the money from Walt, and Walt knows it, so he realizes it can’t seem to come from him. So who could it come from? The rich friends who feel guilty because they got rich off Walt’s work.
So I disagree that this shows Walt learning his lesson, but rather it was one last brilliant move by Heisenberg (the toxic side of Walt) finding a way to trick his family into letting him provide for them (which his ego still needs.)
I agree Walt shows genuine remorse when he acknowledges to Skylar his crimes were not for his family but for himself, but even then he is also saying what Skylar wants to hear because he knows saying anything else will probably result in her immediately calling the police and refusing to accept the ticket he wants her to take so she can make a deal to end her potential criminal liability as Walt’s accessory. He is using his genuine remorse as a weapon, to get what he wants, namely for Skylar to not face consequences for his actions.
I literally just saw the TITLE in my recommended whilst watching the show, and then as i got on i was like "wait people think this show ISNT about toxic masculinity??"
RIGHT?? Walt Jr LITERALLY refused to eat the veggie bacon, i was like "bigot much???"
I like how they went on to flip things on their head when Better Call Saul started up by giving Jimmy his own, "I AM the danger!" scene. You can't even pretend it's badass like you do with Walter, where he's going on this cool rant about how he's a dangerous criminal genius intentionally juxtaposed against the fact he's actually just a scared man in over his head yelling at his wife. Jimmy's just a buffoon exploding with misplaced rage at a man calmly walking away from him while he shouts about shooting lightning from his fingers like a child.
I never realized the parallel between Walt's "I am the danger" scene and Jimmy's "I'm like a god in human clothing" scene, but that totally makes sense, that's awesome
@@ryanc970 they even happen at similar turning points in their story where they are quickly losing more and more control over their own lives (walt being on the thinnest of ice with gus and jimmy realizing hes getting in too deep with the cartel) as a way for them to take out their frustration and lie to themselves about their own agency over whats happening in their lives
@@ryanc970 Lightning Bolts Shoot From my Fingertipssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss
I love how in the "I am the danger" scene, Walt successfully hypes himself up to audiences as this badass gangster drug lord who doesn't afraid of anyone even though he's obviously terrified of Gus.
Meanwhile in the "I'm like a god in human clothing" scene, Jimmy just sounds like an angry little nerd who claims to have studied the blade.
both scenes became memes too, but whereas the "I am the danger" scene is used in cool edits saul's scene only appears in shitposts lmfao
Skylar is consistently one of the most reasonable characters in the show; she still makes some bad choices, but even when she does it is usually because she doesn't have all the facts or is being manipulated, lied to, or gaslit by Walt
In fact the worst thing she ever does in the show is be compassionate towards Walt and not want to see him locked up, so she helps him cover his tracks
"Listen guys, I know Walt viciously killed a bunch of people, poisoned a kid, cooked literal tons of meth, blew up a nursing home, manipulated Jesse like no tomorrow, watched Jane die and is indirectly responsible for two planes colliding and hundreds dead, but come on. He isn't that bad. Now Skylar? She cheated a couple times. She is obviously the the real villain of the show."
-An unfortunate amount of actual Breaking Bad fans.
@@habadasheryjones I wouldn't even consider her hooking up with Ted as cheating because at the time she had made it abundantly clear to Walt that she wanted to split, and he was trying to force his way back into her life against her will. It was basically her way of letting Walt know that while he could keep pretending, as far as she was concerned their marriage was over
Wrong. She is a horrible person. Weak, pathetic and stupid. She is "The Last Woman", a mirror of how disgraceful are all the people who get downgraded by society. She is one of the reasons Walt needs to "break bad".
@@habadasheryjones I bet watching the show was a torture for you. Go ask for pity anywhere else, you, silly ultimate man.
Men choose violence because they want to, rarely because they must.
Women are violent because they want to be
@@ExpertContrarian ur mum is violent gottem
Did anyone really NOT see this as one of the themes? The entire show was just Walter repeatedly letting his pride and ego destroy his life, his family, and countless other lives.
One of the things about the show that immediately stood out to me on my first watch, is that after having his ego shattered from being weak, helpless and vulnerable post-injury, Hank ends up coming back as a pretty skilled detective. Once he stopped tripping over his own need to look tough, he was able to do his job much better.
Bollox. Hank is a top policeman right from the first episode.
For instance, Hank knows that Jimmy In-'N-Out isn't the real Heinsenberg. Hank's instinct is always spot-on, even before he got shot by Tuco's cousin....
No actually you're so right. When I watched this show as a kid I totally sided with Walt on everything. Now that I'm 29 and watched the show again...I can't believe that he put so many people through all that pain all because he didn't want help with his cancer treatment. *Bombastic side eye*
Thats not funny
Criminal offensive side eye, even
@@Alivefortuneteller👀👀👀👀👀👀👀
You have 12 bottles of Soylent in your fridge.
Tbh, this feels like something that everyone who saw the show should know.
Just one thing. Walt left Gretchen. It was established during the conversation where she confronts him on lying to his family. It was explained that Walt left her after meeting her rich family. Which again wounds his pride causing him to leave her confused and then ending up with Elliot
On the flipside of "toxic masculinity", I think an example of non-toxic masculinity was Jesse standing up for Andrea's little brother out of pure sympathy, who was more or less cornered into joining gang life, which that in and of itself 2 strong examples of toxic masculinity, 1: (probably) for Tomas needing to reassert feeling like a man despite being a child by being in a gang, and 2: Gus's men reasserting their masculinity by holding power over this kid and having him do their dirty work just because they can. Jesse was the only one who realized Tomas shouldn't be in the gang life and made the effort to keep the peace. It's only after the two guys gun Tomas down does Jesse snap back into being trigger-happy, another example of how toxic masculinity doesnt develop in isolation, it spreads.
hm yes every toxic trait nowadays is "masculine" can u just stfu like holy shit
Jesse is kinda the reverse of Walter when it comes to them as father figures. They are both providers, but Jesse provides in the emotional and supportive sense whilst Walter mainly only focuses on money and power which eventually leads to him being less emotional and supportive with his own family.
The first time he meets Brock and every moment afterwards, he sticks around and just hangs out with the kid, not to show some sort of power or anything over him, just because he wishes to be there for Andrea’s kid and wants to support her as a single mother.
I mean I would’ve reacted the same way, it’s not toxic masculinity I just hate kids being killed 😂
how is that masculine tho
Nah you just don't know what is supposed to be masculine, don't worry i don't know either... nobody does actually.
I literally never hated skyler, she was almost always in the right and took the decision to actually protect her family. Unlike walt.
So many people find the "i am the one who knocks" scene badass, but holy fuck its not badass, its showing him super abusive. He IS the bad guy but hes the protagonist so a lot of people see him as the good guy because the protagonist is always good riiiiiight?
Also, in that moment, he defines himself as “the danger”, which Skyler views as harmful to their family. Walter just accidentally admitted he would ruin this family far more casually than he admitted he would protect the family.
Definitely: skyler is willing to be seen as a “bitch” if it helps her kids live a normal life. While Walter desperately wants to be seen as the hero/savior
hm yes every toxic trait nowadays is "masculine" can u just stfu like holy shit
It's not even badass, it's even pathetic, because he's lying to himself, he knows he's in extreme danger, he's just putting a front to keep Skyler under control. The rest of the very same episode we see him panicking over every single decision Gus makes thinking he's about to die
Too true, so many people make that simple leap from protagonist to "good guy", but what about Humbert Humbert? He's our protagonist. Is he the good guy?
that 'rotten eggs' explaination slapped im going to remember that and use it if I get the oppurtunity
Breaking bad is so heavy on its theme of toxic masculinity that it's hilarious that so many people miss it, or more likely, they willfully ignore it
Because people who aren't progressives don't know what it means, they hear it and get mad or indignant and turn their brains off.
Walter White is up there with Tyler Durden and Rick Sanchez in terms of characters that most people watching the show absolutely do not understand. I will never understand how anyone can watch BB and come away with it wanting to tattoo the Heisenberg logo on themselves.
Even if a fictional character is bad, you can still like him and want to get a tattoo or have a shirt of him. That you like or think a character is badass does not always mean that you think that character is a good person.
I really don't see anything wrong with someone getting a Walter White tattoo, it's like criticizing someone for having a darth vader shirt (genocidal and child murderer) or the joker
I dont think the tattoo is a big deal but the way the bb community praises walter it's honestly really cringe
@@dekkednt
It’s moreso because people idolize him as a character and seek to replicate him, I doubt people do that with darth vader
@pug the last line you wrote I feel is an important thing to consider about some people's justifications of their own actions when those actions are questionable: the idea that "The winner takes it all" means whatever you do in order to "win" is justified because you were the one that came out on top, and that somehow makes you better than your competitors; as if winning or succeeding is the most important thing and outweighs any negative consequence that is a result. When in reality you probably would've been better off doing things the right way, and seeing what the journey of doing that teaches you, and how it shapes you. I feel like it's never the actual horrible action that's the worst consequence, it's the way that action changes you, and the bias through which how you view that action.
i tattooed heisenberg on me because i love the show, not because i sympathize with him
b- but I thought... breaking bad was about the friends we made along the way...
Exactly. That last appearence of Badger and Skinny Pete couldn't have happened without the longing friendship without them and Walt 🥺 Truly wholesome
Dudebros: Walter White is so great because he is so good at everything.
Walter White: Incompetent at everything he does, only kept afloat by extreme luck and lack of conscience.
Skyler White: Good at everything she does, also does everything Walt pretends to do.
Dudebros: She suuuucks. Because... reasons...
It’s obvious that you are a woke feminist sjw so this will prolly go right over your head but Walter succeeded because of his amazing chemistry skills, he literally got an award. And by good at everything you mean infidelity? Money laundering? Attempted murder? Because all of those things pretty much failed while Walter started a meth empire with standard cooking equipment,a rust rv and some kid who failed in his chemistry class. But you don’t give men any recognition because you are the sexist one here and me and Walter are heroes.
Also, to you, “dudebro” is a gendered insult which = no no word for you. I’m an advocate for free speech but you are the ones silencing people for using words like “negro” or “American” so this is a taste of you own medicine.
@@etj2127 you and Walter are heroes? What the fuck are you smoking
@@etj2127 Who is silencing anyone for using the word ''American''? And how are negro or American gendered insults?
God I remember when heisenberg said "That's what you think Tuco! HEISENBOMB, GO!"
Such a well written show, the subtext on that line alone could be the subject of a video essay
I watched this show for the first time recently and was incredibly startled by the fan reactions to Skyler and the hatred for her. To me the whole point was to show how Walt became a monster and how that affected his family, and how Skyler did everything she did to get away from him and keep her kids safe. Not only does he assault her but especially towards the end he treats her like a possession. You can see the fear in her eyes and the way she freezes and goes silent every time he touches her. Imagine living with “the one who knocks”, wouldn’t you be afraid too?
Why did she helped him frame her own brother though and she wanted him to kill Jesse idk seems like she flawed like everyone else
@@GladwinAbel She is definitely flawed, but not nearly as much as Walter and co. IMO she did those things because A. she was afraid for her life and her kids lives and went along with Walt's schemes to not get hurt, which I think is what a lot of people would also feel forced into doing in that scenario. And B. Maybe in her mind if Jesse was gone Walt would stop the business?
@@coreym7209 I mean yes Walter was gone a long time all that was left is Heisenberg and imo jesse is the only person he cared about, yes he manipulated him but he showed that regretted everything he did in the end. As for skylar she ain’t a saint but I don’t hate her just saying it’s ok for fans to not like her
Both Breaking Call Saul and Breaking Bad emphasizes choices in main characters doing bad things. Without exceptions, the bad things are done out of self interests no matter how much rationalizations they throw around. Walt cooking meth, not saving Jane, Jimmy forging Mesa Verde documentaries, Kim plotting the whole scam against Howard, they do them to benefit their own ego when there are clearly altenatives to their bad choice roads right there. It's frustrating that some viewers are coated in layers of deflections to recognize maybe it's good that those shows they supposedly love point out the personalities they identify with in the main characters might be bad.
I feel like a lot of the immoral actions you see in Better Call Saul, are usually done out of a mix of hate and love. The Mesa Verde forgery was done both to spite Chuck and improve Kim's life. Gus' plot against the Salamancas was all done as revenge for his boyfriend/partner. It's all meant to demonstrate how these powerful emotions can enable moral backsliding.
Its ummm "Better Call Saul".
Except that the shows always hold Jimmy and Walter accountable for their actions. They had different characters speaking out loud about how evil these two are.
Kim, however, was never held accountable by the show anyway shape or form. Jimmy always got the blames for many things she also did and in the end of the story, they made her into some kind of innocent victim who got her life destroyed by Jimmy (even though she chose to ruin her own life when Jimmy warned her not to do it so many times).
The moral discussion which was more nuanced in season 1-3 had devolved into
“Jimmy bad. Kim good. Chuck right.”
Kim is portrayed to be on the right in every situation, no matter how bad her actions were. How she ended up getting away with everything while being considered by the characters, the writers and the audience in real life as “a moral compass, a hero of the story” always infuriate me.
@@nont18411 uh... No? Kim is the first character who realizes she got on a bad path and left, then punished herself ever since, including giving up a career in law, confessing to Howard's murder, and advising Jimmy to turn himself in. She never faced jail time, but it doesn't mean she got away with everything.
Everyone does everything ultimately out of self interest, take your pink glasses off please
It’s amazing how conservatives and liberals has so many of the same ideas but due to in group and out group vocabulary they immediately throw up defensive walls.
I remember after the finale having a long conversation at a bar with some church buddies that went over this exact topic just using different vocabulary.
It’s amazing how much language shapes thought, and how defensive the human mind is to protect group identity.
So true. Politics is just a shitshow of buzzwords now
Thank you so much for mentioning the SA scene bc you're right, it's rarely ever brought up. Ive brought this up to people who watch the show and they're always like "oh well, we don't see anything we don't know if he got that far and it ends as fast as it starts". Like, no. Even if Skyler beat Walt off in time for him NOT to r*** her, the writing was intended to show that he was TRYING to. And all of the bullshit excuses of him being so traumatized he didn't know what he was doing makes me so mad
even as a young goober when i first saw the series, without knowing all of the series' nuances, every time skyler did something because of walt's actions, I just thought "well, yeah I'd kinda do the same thing"
Not to be that guy but she ain’t a saint she did Cheat, ask Walt to kill Jesse, helped him frame hank etc
@@GladwinAbel But she didn't cheat on him, they were separated. If you think that their legal status is all that matters then that would mean you can only cheat if you're married, and that's not the case
i feel like a lot of people cannot put themselves into the shoes of another character that isnt within their fantasy. People would like to put themselves in the shoes of walt or gus or whatever so they can easily imagine themselves doing it, but they cant for skyler. When i watched it i always thought her actions are understandable. They might be sometimes wrong on its own, but a realistic reaction to what is happening to her
me too, everything skyler did was extremely reasonable in comparison to walt
i never hear men talk about the rape scene, when i bring it up they dont know what im talking about. i almost think they dont recognize the scene as rape which is disturbing so thank you for being so clear that thats what it was
It literally doesn't register on their brains.
That's because it's a meaningless word.
same mfs who whine and weep about you saying 'toxic masculinity' one time r the same mfs who complain about this generation being too sensitive
"i was in eighth grade and immature and frankly a bit sexist." so real lmao. every young male becomes a victim of toxic masculinity at one point in their lives. it simply depends on how they respond to it and what their support system is like. in middle school, i gave into toxic masculinity. I was sexist, homophobic, and a trump supporter unfortunately. Today, I am 18 and look back at that boy i was with disgust and sadness. I am happy that my friends never gave up on me and educated me to become the man i am today. I an see the flaws within masculinity and try my best to address them. and obviously i still struggle with elements of it, ie. being too protective over my siblings and girlfriend, struggling to allow myself to cry when i know that i need to, and believing i need to make myself intimidating to succeed. However, i have come a long way and i hope to continue improving
you're not a man just because you're not being homophobic. and what the f has trump got to do with i?. biden and killary are just as evil scum
TW: SA
One thing you didn't mention/missed was that while the scene in season 2 is the only time they truly show him raping her, there is a scene in episode 2 of season 5 where it is implied that he rapes her. Basically the entire scene is one close up of Skylar as she laid, turned away from Walt. Over the course of the scene Walt gets ready for bed by taking off his clothes as he would normally do, but the entire scene is darkly lit and the camera never focuses on Walt. While he does so he explains to Skylar how (paraphrased) "everything that's going on, Gus and ted, it gets easier, you start to get used to it. Don't feel bad about what you do if you did it for family. We have nothing, are nothing, but family." As he says this during the scene he feels Skylar up and keeps kissing her head neck and shoulders...the scene ends but not before lingering for a good 30 seconds. It relates to what you're talking about because although I don't see it mentioned as much online, for me personally it is one of the most uncomfortable wand well acted scenes by Gunn in the entire series.
Agreed, this is what I initially thought the video was referring to by “the rape scene”. It’s one of the most accurate depictions I’ve seen of SA. I think it’s hard for people who have never been assaulted to realize how awful it is to FEEL violated.
"TW"
*soyjak*
@@GenghisConnThr333 mfw I see any movie trailer from the last 50 years: cringe libtard soyjak venezuela 1984 !!!!
you sound like a 13 year old, try thinking for five seconds about what sexual assault is and you'll immediately understand why maybe someone who's a victim might want a little two word warning before a vivid description of a sexual assault. ptsd isn't some made up plot device for Army Movie #48953, it's a real thing that a detailed description of a sexual assault could VERY REASONABLY AND OBVIOUSLY set off. use your brain for something helpful instead of sitting here trying and failing to troll TH-cam comments for the love of god
@@QueenFondue "UwU I need a trigger warning on a comment on a video about a series about cooking meth and drug wars because my daddy touched me" zoomers are so pathetically weak lol, you wouldn't survive a day in a Call of Duty lobby, you'd probably cry about it on your pronouns-in-bio-Twitter account and then go back to posting unfunny Nintendo memes and dumb political takes.
I also didnt remember this scene until you mentioned it... however, while watching the show, it saddened and horrified me so much. I wish the assaults werent written off by the fans so much.
What more I remember is how Skyler was growing more and more terrified of walt leading up to that scene, and in it, even her lip was quivering. That terror that grew between her and walt is something that really is under discussed (although I guess there already is so so much to discuss in brba)
I'm sure you didn't address this because the video was already too long and mentioning Hank would take away from the streamlined nature of this video, but I think Hank is just as much a prominent figure of toxic masculinity in the show. That is not to say Hank is as immoral as Walt, but that he is as affected and motivated by societal expectations of how men are supposed to behave.
Hank, more than even Walt I'd argue, has the horrible habit of bottling up his emotions. Hiding them behind jokes, venting them through violence (Jesse, the scene at the biker bar), being ashamed of himself for his panic attacks, rejecting compassion from his wife and closest friend(Gomey) because accepting that compassion means accepting he is vulnerable. Effectively, Walt with Grey Matter and Hank following the Tortuga explosion with Marie and Gomez are the same thing. Misguided toxic masculine pride would not allow them to accept the help they clearly need. All of this because he feels like he failed as a man for having PTSD from one of the most horrific things you could imagine(Tortuga). His whole identity was built around being strong and unbreakable, but I think most men reach an inflection point in their life where this frame of mind becomes self destructive due to shame from its unsustainability.
Hank, especially after having to learn to walk again, learns as the show goes on to lessen these tendencies(although they never go away), whereas Walt as the show goes on basically attempts to subscribe to the same mindset of early season Hank. Which is why I think Breaking Bad's narrative is so intertwined with toxic masculinity, Hank and Walt are parallels against one another.
Great video though. I think a lot of these people leaving those stupid comments on the original video need to do the same soul searching that Hank needed to do.
Yeah, I think Hank and Walt are on opposite trajectories. Hank's initial pride and pomp make him blind to Walt being Heisenberg, but as the show goes on, he gets humbled by El Paso and his paralyzation and begins to lose that pride he initially had, allowing him to see Walt for who he truly is. Walt is initially careful and meticulous but then he gets greedy, prideful, and sloppy and his sloppiness gets him caught.
What's wrong with suffering in silence?
@@zomball5610 nothing if it isn't manifesting other unhealthy and toxic behaviors which it often does and does with Hank
he's just regular masculine. not toxic imo
@@StalinkTz his toxic elements are his attitudes towards his emotions, refusing to get help or do anything to manage his emotional state. This works fine for him, until it doesn’t, to the point that he loses his job for assaulting Jesse.
ALSO, Walt left Gretchen when he found out she was wealthy and he wouldn't possibly be able to hold the 'provider' role for her and he felt emasculated by that.
The breaking bad community is so so toxic. I loved the show but the fandom is down right scary
It's the same with Fight Club part of the community that unironically see Tyler as a role model.
Both pieces of art are amazing stories that unfortunately large amount of ppl completely miss the point of what it's trying to communicate
totally. i didn't watch the show for a long time because i felt so put off as a woman by the community. very unwelcoming and scary behavior
Great video. I think though that Walt wasn’t jealous of Gretchen and Elliot dating. I think he was emasculated when he found out Gretchen was a lot richer than he was. In 2x06, Walt goes to dinner with Gretchen, she talks about how Walt was packing his bags on their family vacation, without a reason why. But I think it’s implied that her wealth scared Walt in a way, he wasn’t the clear provider if they got together. To me, he was emasculated by her wealth. And that contrasts with Skyler, when he’s talking about how they first met, she’s a hostess at a bar or something like that, clearly not rich and someone, in Walt’s eyes, that is lower than him, and lower than Gretchen, and someone that he can provide for. Which boosted his masculinity.
Yeah I had the same thought. Walt's fragile male ego couldn't stand the thought of his woman being more successful than him so he split.
Another moment that comes to mind is when Skyler purposely let it slip that Bogdan insulted Walt for sending "his woman" to buy the car wash from him instead of Walt facing Bogdan himself, which infuriated Walt into buying the carwash from him out of spite when he wanted to move onto other options before Skyler brought the whole thing up.
I think the writers confirmed that the reason Walt and Gretchen broke up (they were even engaged) was because Gretchen's family's wealth made him feel inferior. That's also why he sold his share in Grey Matter
His main reason for doing anything is his pride and ego, toxic male masculinity has a part but a huge chunk of his actions come from him being prideful, egotistical, and greedy
Also worth noting Skylar is 15-20 years younger than Walt
@@sydneycorsiatto5912 Skyler is 12 years younger than Walt, at the start of the show Skyler is 38-39 and Walt is 50.
Jumping off of the sexual assault bit in s2, it’s implied he goes the full way with that in season 5 when the kids aren’t home, when Skyler says she can’t keep Walt out of her bed. IIRC it was confirmed outside the show that it means Walter was assaulting her, not just jumping in bed without her okaying it
What’s IIRC?
@@-dark-paradise If I Recall Correctly
I am not sure if toxic masculinity is the the main point of the show or not, but it's definitely there. I thought that it was pretty obvious how Hank had to act tough in front of his friends and refuse to show his vulnerability, which lead to him being stressful and all that. Not to mention Walt's ego and pride. the fact that some people can't see it is insane.
Exactly what I think, no the main point but a very important one
Yeah I agree. Either that or we have to come to a conclusion that there is also an element of toxic femininity. Because Lydia is basically the female variant of Walt - she participates in the drug cartel despite having a child - likely for the exact same reason why Walt does so, due to pride. We just don't see it, but I think it's implied, in a way.
added to my "good ass videos" playlist
its so stupid too how a lot of the skylar hate is "justified" by people arguing that she cheated on walt. its actually astonishing how many people justify hating skylar because she fucked ted, as if a woman cheating on a man is even nearly comparable to the things walt did. it seems like the toxically masculine traits of walt have carried over to a lot of media-illiterate fans.
Yeah her cheating on Ted was the only iota of power she could exert over Walt, who was more than happy to gaslight her into being the mom of the happy happy family.
@@GalaxyGal- victim blaming much
I guess walt killed people and cook meth, its somthing that's normalized in tv show nowadays, maybe that is why people tolerate walter fucking over other people's life while absolutely despise Skyler's " unfaithful " action. Also i belive that happy birthday scene reinforce their hatred for Skyler even more, it was just that bad.
Plus, she only had sex with Ted after she already established that she wants a divorce, so in my opinion it doesn't even count as cheating. Cheating is when you promise exclusivity and then break that promise. All Skylar did was have sex with someone, and it's not her fault that Walt refuses to acknowledge that their romantic relationship is effectively over.
Plus she never even cheated. She only did that after asking him for a divorce
It's very interesting that nobody talks about the rape scene, I think it says a lot about the way many viewers see the show.
Yeah that’s the one thing I can’t stand for only thing he did wrong
@@TheBBCSlurpee
Hold up, Walter White murdered dozens of people, poisoned a child, killed Jane, worked with literal fluffin’ Nazis…and you think the *only* thing he did wrong was that?
@@TheBBCSlurpee Didn't he poison a little kid?
@@RedRabbitEntertainment W hustle + drug
"name me one thing walt did that wasnt justified" EVERYTHING??? HELLO????
"Name me one thing Walt did that wasn't justified" well while it's true that most of what Walt did is justified, the one unforgivable sin he committed was that he did NOT go Go Karting with Jesse, unforgivable.
Finally. Someone who understands the need for a "Better Email Gale" spinoff and is willing to say it.
im so glad someone finally spoke about the rape scene. the first and second time i watched that was with my partners of the time (both men) and neither seemed particularly uncomfortable, or even acted like it was a wrongful action, and that was absolutely bewildering to me
What rape scene? Wtf
@@SamuraiPoohBear 17:40. I didn't remember that either
@@agustingm5892 wait he didn’t show the scene? And Walt stops when skylar tells him to? Still not getting it. I think this guy is making this up
@@SamuraiPoohBear he just grabs Skylar and goes and she's obviously not into it. You don't just *do* that.
There is no rape scene in the entire show.
My boyfriend once very excitedly showed me Breaking Bad. Every time Skyler was on screen, he would insist on his hatred for her. I'd always try to explain her point of view (I'm not a super fun person to watch TV with lmao). He'd concede that, while she had every right to feel the way(s) that she did, he still hated her for it.
We're both men, but it's such a surreal experience using someone's casual favorite TV show to unpack their complete dismissal of women's opinions and feelings. I don't want to ruin the whole experience for them, but it's also terribly uncomfortable to listen to someone shit on a clearly traumatized woman explicitly for feeling helpless.
Wow, that’s grim. I’ve never seen this show, but I’m glad to know more about it so I can have it as another litmus test in my arsenal.
Unless your husband is dumb, he doesn’t need her POV explained. It’s pretty obvious
@@cajunking5987 I promise you it's not obvious to them
@@Lu-li1ei I promise you it is.
Yeah this is the exact reason my boyfriend and I stopped watching this show together 😅 it was uncomfortable and frustrating after a while
Skylar is an antagonist in the show. She is not a bad guy.
The protagonist is the focus of the story. They’re the one who’s meant to be humanized, the one you’re supposed to root for. But the bad guy can absolutely be the protagonist. For another example, think of Bojack Horseman.
The antagonist is the character that goes against what the protagonist wants. They will oppose whatever the protagonist does in an attempt to pump the brakes on the plot. This person can be a good guy and still go against what the main character wants.
Skylar is a mom who wants to protect her children from a narcissistic drug dealer who actively invites danger and violence into their home. He is a man who will kill whoever gets in his way. He will lie again and again to manipulate everyone around him. He is the bad guy. Skylar is just trying to do what’s right to the best of her ability.
I’ve always seen Breaking Bad as a tragedy-a man who had everything, gets cancer, breaks bad, then loses everything.
It's basically Shakespeare.
Except he didn't "have everything". Did you even watch the show?
@@moonsnail3286Exactly. Half of the people who make all of these “deep” takes about the show prolly watched and learned about it from TikTok, watched a 1 hour summary and acted like they were Vince Gillian himself.
@@moonsnail3286 He *did* have everything, though. He had Grey Matter before he abandoned it, and he had a family who loved him. Walt had everything he needed and gave it up.
He had the chance to have everything he needed and then turned into an evil person
Skylar is such a well written character. She’s a badass, and no one fucking gets it.
She manages to put up with, fight back against, and even come out on top against one of the most cunning and cruel villains ever aired on American television. That pretty badass in my opinion
She's not. Go simp somewhere else
Skylar is a weird case, there are moments she behaves really badly like sleeping with ted etc and making that divorce thing which looked ridiculous but overall she unlike walt has done most of the things for the family- to protect jr and holly. Walt and skylar are both characters with many flaws but walter turns out to be a monster and inhuman later in the show, skylar definetly not
"I fucked Ted" was a great mic drop moment
shes literally a fucking boss like no one gets it
I get what you're trying to do and it is admirable. I don't have the patience to deal with reactionaries lol. As a the sopranos fan, that fan base mostly doesn't get the show either.
Last season of the sopranos sucked.
I don’t think the show would have lived on if it didn’t resonate. The people who are attracted to the surface level gangster aesthetic or violence will never be able to process the nuance of David Chase but I feel like they are a minority.
@@jasong7373 tell yourself whatever you need to in order to convince yourself that 3 dream episodes that include Tony on a horse in a hotel was good tv.
@@zloungeact dude you’re entitled to your opinion but it’s one of the most critically acclaimed carefully produced and written shows ever created maybe it’s more likely that you need to rewatch or accept that you’re missing something rather than it was bad.
@@zloungeact I thought the horse was a pretty obvious symbol of Tony's infidelity. He loves animals, he also loved whores. That's why when Carmella even told him "you can't keep your horse in here" it even sounded like whores lol.
I'm glad you talked about the kitchen scene. Its emblematic of other parts of the conflict. And even right after, Skyler tries to maintain Walts narrative, She hides what happened from Flynn and tries to let him still respect his dad.
For the toxic masculinity thing, I also think the scene where Walt is fixing up his house is notable. he sees someone else preparing to cook meth at the hardware store and does a lil power play, and he instantly doesn't care about those projects anymore. Meth making makes Walt feel powerful, that's the thing that matters more than convention or duty to his family.
Great essay!
Calling Walt Jr. “Flynn” is so fucking woke. The point of it was to show how Walter’s family hated him even more and his son didn’t even have the decency to say his real name. He also denounced the name later is season 3 soooo.
@@etj2127
Your "rotten eggs" example alone is really well done. I love hearing little ways to get points across.
"Masculinity: Providing for your family", "Toxic Masculinity: Needing to be the one who provides for your family".. These are the most important concepts in this video.. Kudos!
This is cuck philosophy in its infancy stage.
"What do you mean YOU need to be the provider? I have a boyfriend on the side who takes care of everything"
LMAO
Pride isnt masculine
@@chuckluck846 It sorta is
Men and women are raised based off of stereotypes. Racial stereotypes are outdated misconceptions and fucked up. Not to say we should be generalizing the behavior of men and women based off sex, either, but nobody is raising up their kids to conform to the stereotype of their race. For centuries people have dictated the way that men and women should act, with men typically being in a dominant role and women being in a subservient role. Acknowledging that doesn’t mean anyone is saying it’s okay.
How about "WANTING to be the one who provides"? Is that "toxic" too?
Imagine if history repeated itself, and 40% of the comments on this video were about him calling water wet.
Is water not wet
@@Invisiblelad I do personally think that water is wet, the joke with the comment is that some random off-hand completely unimportant comment would spawn tons of outrage, like on the original Breaking Bad video.
@@Invisiblelad There’s just a pointless internet argument about whether water is itself wet or if it only makes other things wet, sort of in the same vein as the “is a hot dog a sandwich” thing. Personally I like to indulge in the pointlessness of conversations like that but at the end of the day it’s just another stupid thing people yell at each other about.
The unreasonable number of dislikes... genuine "they hated jesus because he told them the truth" type moment
Do you decide the truth?
Breaking bad isn't that subtle, how can people miss the point so badly?
the way you explained toxic masculinity was so effective and i genuinely commend you for that. this was a really great video with really good points!
Yeah totally agree. This is what should be both taught to the hard core SJWs and the anti-SJWs of what this literally means!
The whole adjective describing a noun thing was so simple but effective. I always knew it was describing a type of masculinity, but replacing it with "rotten eggs" really hits home how stupid they people who think the term is supposed to criticize "masculinity" as whole really are being.
fucjing GENIUS!! this person is so clever !!!
@@itsblitz4437 I hate the term SJW so much lol It's a phenomena that exists but sadly anti-sjws have a habit of taking anyone who's remotely to the left or in a marginalized group and calling them SJW for that reason and that reason alone. And the attitudes that lead someone to being "SJW" aren't unique to leftists, but that's sadly just how it ends up getting used these days.
@@KalinTheZola I haven’t heard anyone unironically use the term “SJW” since 2018
It's funny this is even a debate to me. Seems super obvious, but I guess there's people out there who think Bioshock is conservative and Fight Club isn't about toxic masculinity.
with fight club is really funny because the bus scene, where they talk about body structure and how brad pitt contradicts himself, is a super famous scene, yet the alpha community sometimes dismisses it completely.
It still cracks me up that there are people who play Bioshock and agree with Andrew Ryan.
The fact that men got so pissed off over the mere mention of toxic masculinity is ironic when you consider that they are usually the type to have a problem calling women "snowflakes" if they criticize anything and get emotional (because they're passionate about the subject). Hypocrisy, one of my worst pet peeves.
Love that you cry about hypocrisy while being sexist
@@ExpertContrarian SOME MEN. Gee, just because I say "men can be so this or that" doesn't mean I don't know that good men are out there. Read between the lines! For goodness sake.
@@ExpertContrarian And you can't say it isn't a problem that exists. The path to betterment starts with realization. You have to become aware that there is a problem with how men are often raised to behave, for things to improve and for us women to heal the fear we have learned to feel.
@@ExpertContrarian you need to watch the rotten egg metaphor again. I know it's hard for your smooth brain
@@sadgreent5138 Following up your sexism with ableism really makes you shine!