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On May 7, 2008, AMC announced that ''Breaking Bad'' was renewed for a second, 13-episode season.<ref>{{cite press|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2008/05/07/amc-renews-critically-acclaimed-original-series-breaking-bad-for-a-second-season-27500/20080507amc01/|title=AMC Renews Critically-Acclaimed Original Series, Breaking Bad, for a Second Season|publisher=AMC|date=May 7, 2008|accessdate=November 17, 2010}}</ref> Production began in July 2008 and the season premiered on March 8, 2009 and concluded on May 31, 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/07/breaking_bad_starts_shooting_s.php|title='Breaking Bad' Starts Shooting Season 2|work=TV Week|date=July 8, 2008|accessdate=February 6, 2009}}</ref>
On May 7, 2008, AMC announced that ''Breaking Bad'' was renewed for a second, 13-episode season.<ref>{{cite press|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news/2008/05/07/amc-renews-critically-acclaimed-original-series-breaking-bad-for-a-second-season-27500/20080507amc01/|title=AMC Renews Critically-Acclaimed Original Series, Breaking Bad, for a Second Season|publisher=AMC|date=May 7, 2008|accessdate=November 17, 2010}}</ref> Production began in July 2008 and the season premiered on March 8, 2009 and concluded on May 31, 2009.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/07/breaking_bad_starts_shooting_s.php|title='Breaking Bad' Starts Shooting Season 2|work=TV Week|date=July 8, 2008|accessdate=February 6, 2009}}</ref>


This season resumes where season 1 left off. Walter and Jesse have been kidnapped by drug dealer Tuco following the uncovering of his business by the DEA. Tuco, intending to use Walter and Jesse in a scheme involving a Mexican super-lab, has to be stopped, and in a dramatic struggle, Walt and Jesse shoot him and leave him for dead. Unbeknown to them, Hank has tracked down Jesse's car, which leads Hank directly to them and a super-methed-up, angry, wounded Tuco. He kills Tuco in an intense shootout. Jesse loses his money in his car when the DEA seizes it, leaving him broke. Jesse becomes involved with Walter once again, continuing their cooking. Cutting out the middle men (smurfs) who purchase large amounts of pseudo (Pseudoephedrine, typically as [[Sudafed]]), the two decide to steal a similar chemical which can be used with a new formula. After a successful theft, Walt and Jesse resume cooking in their RV in the desert. Walt decides they will cook for four days straight and "make hay while the sun shines" by producing 40 pounds of meth. Walter lied to his wife, saying he would be staying with his mother while he and Jesse left to cook. After they make large quantities of meth, the RV won't start. Walter at first despairs of their survival, then conceives a successful plan to construct makeshift batteries. The RV starts, and they return to town. When Badger is busted by the Albuquerque PD, Walter and Jesse are forced to hire a lawyer, Saul Goodman ([[Bob Odenkirk]]), and this further strains their finances, since they must pay $80,000 in legal fees. Jesse becomes involved with his landlord's daughter, Jane ([[Krysten Ritter]]), a recovering heroin addict. Walter breaks into Jesse's house to collect all of their meth for a $1.2 million deal with a drug lord, and misses the birth of his daughter, Holly. In Jesse's house, he allows Jane to choke to death on her vomit while drugged and asleep; for all intents and purposes, killing her. That morning Jesse wakes to find Jane dead, and is devastated. In the season finale, Skyler is overcome with suspicion over Walter's many disappearances and tells him to pack up and move out.
This season resumes where season 1 left off. Walter and Jesse have been kidnapped by drug dealer Tuco following the uncovering of his business by the DEA. Tuco, intending to use Walter and Jesse in a scheme involving a Mexican super-lab, has to be stopped, and in a dramatic struggle, Walt and Jesse shoot him and leave him for dead. Unknown to them, Hank has tracked down Jesse's car, which leads Hank directly to them and a very methed-up, very angry, very wounded Tuco. He kills Tuco in an intense shootout. Jesse loses his money in his car when the DEA seizes it, leaving him broke. Jesse becomes involved with Walter once again, continuing their cooking. Cutting out the middle men (smurfs) who purchase large amounts of pseudo (Pseudoephedrine, typically as [[Sudafed]]), the two decide to steal a similar chemical which can be used with a new formula. After a successful theft, Walt and Jesse resume cooking in their RV in the desert. Walt decides they will cook for four days straight and "make hay while the sun shines" by producing 40 pounds of meth. Walter lied to his wife, saying he would be staying with his mother while he and Jesse left to cook. After they make large quantities of meth, the RV won't start. Walter at first despairs of their survival, then conceives a successful plan to construct makeshift batteries. The RV starts, and they return to town. When Badger is busted by the Albuquerque PD, Walter and Jesse are forced to hire a lawyer, Saul Goodman ([[Bob Odenkirk]]), and this further strains their finances, since they must pay $80,000 in legal fees. Jesse becomes involved with his landlord's daughter, Jane ([[Krysten Ritter]]), a recovering heroin addict. Walter breaks into Jesse's house to collect all of their meth for a $1.2 million deal with a drug lord, and misses the birth of his daughter, Holly. In Jesse's house, he allows Jane to choke to death on her vomit while drugged and asleep; for all intents and purposes, killing her. That morning Jesse wakes to find Jane dead, and is devastated. In the season finale, Skyler is overcome with suspicion over Walter's many disappearances and tells him to pack up and move out.


===Season three===
===Season three===

Revision as of 01:42, 25 February 2011

Breaking Bad
GenreSerial drama
Crime
Black comedy
Created byVince Gilligan
StarringBryan Cranston
Anna Gunn
Aaron Paul
Dean Norris
Betsy Brandt
RJ Mitte
Bob Odenkirk
Giancarlo Esposito
Jonathan Banks
Country of originUnited States
Original languagesEnglish
Spanish
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes33 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producersVince Gilligan
Mark Johnson
Production locationAlbuquerque, New Mexico
Running time47 minutes
Original release
NetworkAMC
ReleaseJanuary 20, 2008 (2008-01-20) –
present

Breaking Bad is an American television drama series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. The series is currently broadcast in the United States and Canada on the cable channel AMC and is a production of Sony Pictures Television. It premiered on January 20, 2008. To date, three seasons comprising 33 episodes have aired. The series has been renewed for a fourth season, scheduled to premiere summer 2011.[1][2]

Set and produced in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Breaking Bad is the story of Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a struggling high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with advanced lung cancer at the beginning of the series. He turns to a life of crime, producing and selling methamphetamine with his former student, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), with the aim of securing his family's financial future.[3]

Breaking Bad has received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its writing and cinematography as well as for Cranston's and Paul's performances. It has won six Emmy Awards—including three consecutive wins for Lead Actor in a Drama Series for Cranston—in addition to numerous other awards and nominations.

Production

The series is set and filmed in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico.[4]

The network originally ordered nine episodes for the first season (including the pilot), but the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike limited the production to seven episodes.[5]

Lead actor Bryan Cranston stated in an interview: "The term "breaking bad" is a southern colloquialism and it means when someone who has taken a turn off the path of the straight and narrow, when they've gone wrong. And that could be for that day or for a lifetime."[6] Writer and creator Vince Gilligan defines the term as "to raise hell".[7]

Breaking Bad reportedly costs $3 million per episode to produce, higher than average cost for a basic cable program.[8]

Chemical elements in the credits

The credits feature symbols of chemical elements from the periodic table in green (for example, the symbols Br and Ba for bromine and barium in Breaking Bad). The credits at the beginning of the show usually continue this, with cast and crew members' names usually including one chemical element symbol if appropriate.

The opening credits also feature the formula (C10H15N) for methamphetamine.

The number 149.24 (the molecular mass of the methamphetamine molecule) is also repeated in the introduction. In some episodes' introductions, the word 'meth' (a slang term for 'methamphetamine') is repeated.

Cast and characters

Main article: List of Breaking Bad characters

Main cast

Overview

Season one

Main article: Breaking Bad (season 1)

The first season was originally intended to be nine episodes, but due to the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike only seven episodes were filmed. The first season premiered on January 20, 2008, and concluded on March 9, 2008.

A struggling high-school chemistry teacher, Walter White (Bryan Cranston), is diagnosed with incurable, advanced (stage III) lung cancer. On a ride along with his DEA agent brother-in-law Hank (Dean Norris), he sees a former student of his, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), fleeing the scene of a meth lab. He later contacts Jesse and devises a scheme to cook and distribute methamphetamine in order to provide financial stability for his pregnant wife and disabled son, and to pay for his expensive cancer treatment. During their first days of selling Albuquerque's finest meth, they encounter a series of problems with higher rank drug dealers.

Minisodes

On February 17, 2009, AMC and Sony teamed up to offer original Minisodes of Breaking Bad that take place both before season one and between seasons one and two. The short videos include a vignette where Walt (Bryan Cranston) and Badger (Matt Jones) attempt to break into a house; a peek at Valentine's Day between Marie (Betsy Brandt) and her husband Hank (Dean Norris); a moment between Hank and Walt on Hank's wedding day; Marie's video diary; and a music video from Jesse's (Aaron Paul) garage band Twaughthammer. These episodes were made available on the Minisode's home Crackle and AMC's site.[9] Other minisodes include an original cartoon called "Team S.C.I.E.N.C.E", narrated by Aaron Paul, about the comic book characters created by Jessie,[10] along with several infomercials hosted by Bob Odenkirk and meant as companion pieces to the fictional character's website.[11]

Season two

Main article: Breaking Bad (season 2)

On May 7, 2008, AMC announced that Breaking Bad was renewed for a second, 13-episode season.[12] Production began in July 2008 and the season premiered on March 8, 2009 and concluded on May 31, 2009.[13]

This season resumes where season 1 left off. Walter and Jesse have been kidnapped by drug dealer Tuco following the uncovering of his business by the DEA. Tuco, intending to use Walter and Jesse in a scheme involving a Mexican super-lab, has to be stopped, and in a dramatic struggle, Walt and Jesse shoot him and leave him for dead. Unknown to them, Hank has tracked down Jesse's car, which leads Hank directly to them and a very methed-up, very angry, very wounded Tuco. He kills Tuco in an intense shootout. Jesse loses his money in his car when the DEA seizes it, leaving him broke. Jesse becomes involved with Walter once again, continuing their cooking. Cutting out the middle men (smurfs) who purchase large amounts of pseudo (Pseudoephedrine, typically as Sudafed), the two decide to steal a similar chemical which can be used with a new formula. After a successful theft, Walt and Jesse resume cooking in their RV in the desert. Walt decides they will cook for four days straight and "make hay while the sun shines" by producing 40 pounds of meth. Walter lied to his wife, saying he would be staying with his mother while he and Jesse left to cook. After they make large quantities of meth, the RV won't start. Walter at first despairs of their survival, then conceives a successful plan to construct makeshift batteries. The RV starts, and they return to town. When Badger is busted by the Albuquerque PD, Walter and Jesse are forced to hire a lawyer, Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), and this further strains their finances, since they must pay $80,000 in legal fees. Jesse becomes involved with his landlord's daughter, Jane (Krysten Ritter), a recovering heroin addict. Walter breaks into Jesse's house to collect all of their meth for a $1.2 million deal with a drug lord, and misses the birth of his daughter, Holly. In Jesse's house, he allows Jane to choke to death on her vomit while drugged and asleep; for all intents and purposes, killing her. That morning Jesse wakes to find Jane dead, and is devastated. In the season finale, Skyler is overcome with suspicion over Walter's many disappearances and tells him to pack up and move out.

Season three

Main article: Breaking Bad (season 3)

On April 2, 2009, AMC announced that Breaking Bad was renewed for a third, 13-episode season.[14] The third season premiered on March 21, 2010, and concluded on June 13, 2010.

The city of Albuquerque is in shock after the mid-air collision at the end of the second season. Walter and Skyler have separated and Jesse is in rehab following Jane's death. Skyler reveals to Walter that she has been sleeping with her boss, as a measure of revenge for Walter's troubling revelations. Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) makes Walter an offer: $3 million for 3 months work, which he initially turns down. Later in the season, Walt accepts Gus' open-ended offer to produce meth for $15 million per year, leading Walter into a much deeper role in the meth business. Drama continues to escalate, forcing Jesse to become his partner in crime once again. Jesse and Walt, as usual, clash, causing a much undesired confrontation with Gus. Walter's protective and fatherly instincts end up pushing the both of them over the edge and leave the two scared and desperate for their lives. As Gus prepares to replace Walter as cook in favor of Gale (David Costabile), the two take matters in their own hands in order to preserve their value to the organization.

Season four

Main article: Breaking Bad (season 4)

On June 14, 2010, AMC announced that Breaking Bad was renewed for a fourth, 13-episode season.[1] Production began in January 2011 and the season is scheduled to premiere in summer 2011.[2] To bridge the gap between seasons, three mini episodes of four minutes in length will be produced.[15]

Reception

Breaking Bad has received critical acclaim in addition to numerous awards and nominations, including six Emmy Awards and Bryan Cranston winning the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in Drama Series three years in a row.[16]

Awards and nominations

Breaking Bad has received the following awards and nominations.[17]

Critical reception

Linda Stasi of the New York Post stated "the acting is as good as you'll see on TV."[18] Time said the series "has the elements of success".[19] Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly rated season one a "B+".[20] Novelist Stephen King also praised the series as "the best scripted show on TV" in his "Pop of King" column in Entertainment Weekly.[21] National Review commentator Jonah Goldberg has referred to the program as "the best show on TV" (emphasis in original) and to the character White as "a mensch at sea".[22]

On the review aggregator website Metacritic, the first season scored 74/100[23], the second season scored 85/100[24] and the third season scored 89/100.[25]

Ratings

The first season averaged 1.2 million viewers.[26] The second season premiere was watched by 1.7 million viewers, up 41.6% from the previous season.[27]

The third season premiere was the highest rated episode in the series' history; having been watched by 2 million viewers, with an additional 1.1 million viewers with the repeat airings later the same night, increasing 40% from the second season premiere.[28] The rest of the third season episodes averaged between 1.2 and 1.8 million viewers.[29]

Online promotion

Promotion for season three included an interactive role-playing comic designed by Nicholas Fortugno called "The Interrogation",[30] located on AMC's Breaking Bad website; in the game, users play Walter White's brother-in-law, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) Agent Hank Schrader, as he interrogates a suspect in a murder and gun-running scheme. Also released prior to season three was the Breaking Bad Criminal Aptitude Test, a personality quiz that compared the user to various criminal character types featured in the series.[31] Season three promotion also featured an elaborate website devoted to Bob Odenkirk's character Saul Goodman. The site includes legal advice, fashion tips and customer testimonials.[32] For season two, there was a viral marketing campaign in which users could experience meeting Walt from a first-person perspective.[33] A charity website was set up for Walter White in season two by Walter Jr.[34] The website's fictional donation button links to the National Cancer Coalition. An online customizable video was used to promote season one. Users would receive a webcam message from Walt urging them to live their life to the fullest, at the end of which he would score their name from a list.[35]

References

  1. ^ a b "AMC Renews Emmy(R) Award-Winning and Critical Hit "Breaking Bad" for Fourth Season" (Press release). AMC. June 14, 2010. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  2. ^ a b "AMC Begins Production on "Breaking Bad" Season Four" (Press release). AMC. January 7, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2011.
  3. ^ "No. 93: Bryan Cranston". Esquire. September 18, 2007. Retrieved September 18, 2007.
  4. ^ "Series 'Breaking Bad' to Begin Production at Albuquerque Studios". Albuquerque Studios. August 23, 2007. Archived from the original on October 14, 2007. Retrieved August 23, 2007.
  5. ^ "AMC Breaking Bad With Bryan Cranston". IGN. June 20, 2007. Retrieved January 16, 2008.
  6. ^ "Fans Chat With Bryan Cranston". AMC. March 9, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2009.
  7. ^ "Vince Gilligan Explains Why BREAKING BAD Is Called BREAKING BAD". American Film Institute. June 4, 2010. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  8. ^ "AMC, Sony make 'Bad' budget work". Variety. June 13, 2010. Retrieved June 13, 2010.
  9. ^ ""Breaking Bad" hits the Web in mini episodes". The Hollywood Reporter. February 17, 2009. Retrieved March 2, 2009.
  10. ^ "Breaking Bad Video Player". AMC. Retrieved December 29, 2010.
  11. ^ "Breaking Bad Video Player". AMC. Retrieved December 29, 2010.
  12. ^ "AMC Renews Critically-Acclaimed Original Series, Breaking Bad, for a Second Season" (Press release). AMC. May 7, 2008. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  13. ^ "'Breaking Bad' Starts Shooting Season 2". TV Week. July 8, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2009.
  14. ^ "AMC Renews Award Winning Drama Series Breaking Bad for Third Season" (Press release). AMC. April 2, 2009. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  15. ^ "'Breaking Bad' Won't Be Back Until July 2011: Plans For Mini-Episodes Online". Deadline Hollywood. August 4, 2010. Retrieved January 3, 2011.
  16. ^ "'Mad Men' and Bryan Cranston three-peat at Emmys while Kyra Sedgwick finally wins". Los Angeles Times. August 29, 2010. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  17. ^ "Awards for "Breaking Bad" (2008)". IMDB. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
  18. ^ "Tour de Pants - 'Breaking Bad' is Not Your Typical Drama". New York Post. January 17, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  19. ^ "Breaking Bad - The Short List of Things to Do". TIME. June 1, 2007. Retrieved May 18, 2008.
  20. ^ "Breaking Bad (2008)". Entertainment Weekly. January 11, 2008. Retrieved February 6, 2009.
  21. ^ "Stephen King: I Love 'Breaking Bad'!". Entertainment Weekly. March 6, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  22. ^ "Re: Mad Men". National Review Online. July 19, 2010. Retrieved July 19, 2010.
  23. ^ "Breaking Bad: Season 1". Metacritic. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
  24. ^ "Breaking Bad: Season 2". Metacritic. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  25. ^ "Breaking Bad: Season 3". Metacritic. Retrieved November 24, 2010.
  26. ^ "Ratings Rat Race: Solid Start For 'Rubicon'". Deadline Hollywood. August 2, 2010. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  27. ^ "Breaking Bad premieres higher". TV by the Numbers. March 9, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  28. ^ "Breaking Bad's Third Season Premiere Is Highest Rated Episode Ever". TV by the Numbers. March 22, 2010. Retrieved November 26, 2010.
  29. ^ "Breaking Bad Season 3 Ratings". TV by the Numbers. April 7, 2010. Retrieved November 10, 2010.
  30. ^ "Breaking Bad: The Interrogation". AMC. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  31. ^ "Breaking Bad - Criminal Aptitude Test". AMC. Retrieved December 20, 2010.
  32. ^ "Better Call Saul!". Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  33. ^ "Breaking Bad 2: Walt's Warning". Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  34. ^ "Save Walter White". Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  35. ^ "Walt's Wisdom - Blog of Walter White". Retrieved November 17, 2010.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Breaking Bad.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Breaking Bad.
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