Why do
people like Breaking Bad so much?
What draws people in so far that they will sit down and watch half of a season
in a day? Breaking Bad feels like we
could be watching the news and hearing about a model citizen gone bad. It seems
as though its storyline could happen in real life. It gives us a closer look at
some of the things that really happen in the methamphetamine industry. Breaking Bad allows us to dissect the
life of a man just like us, but that lives a double life as a drug-lord, all
while tucked away safely on our living room couch. It lets us see what we think
it would be like to feel free from the financial unrest that many of us face.
Breaking Bad
seems real. Most drug dealer stories seem distant, but Breaking Bad is close to home. We could go our whole lives without
meeting a “hardened criminal” drug dealer like Tuco, but it is quite unlikely
that someone has never taken a high school Chemistry class. Walter, as a high
school Chemistry teacher, connects us to this whole other world. He closes the
gap between those who are seemingly unaffected by drugs and those who are in
the drug industry.
The show’s believable execution brings us closer to the world
of methamphetamine. It is not like the cheesy sitcoms or overdramatized
“reality” shows that we have become accustomed to. Each episode is comparable
to a full length film in the amount of time that it looks like was dedicated to
it. The actors never miss a beat, the cinematography is creative and connects
us to the story, and the music draws us in emotionally. All this adds to the
engaging screenplay that makes us feel like, in another life, we could have
been Walter.
People like this sense of familiarity, but also desire
exploration. People want to see their own struggles portrayed on screen, but
also to see their own problems overcome. So many people are struggling
financially at this time, living paycheck to paycheck. They dream of living a
worry-free life. Breaking Bad gives a
story we are familiar with; a family with just enough, until tragedy strikes.
Suddenly, we are scrambling to grasp any stable thing that we can. Walter’s
family is able to get along comfortably until he is diagnosed with cancer. At
the news of his malignant fate, Walter clambers to hold onto his family. Money
seems to be the solution to our lack of freedom, but is difficult to get when
every dollar seems to be sucked up by the endless vacuum of medical bills, car
insurance, etc. caused by the tragedy. Walter is able to find a way to escape
this bondage; at least, financial
bondage.
Walter discovers the ability to provide for his family by
putting on a new persona, Heisenberg. This Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde like
scenario is appealing to us. People are not content with who they are and where
they are at in life. Breaking Bad
tells the story of a discontented man who is able to live a second life,
parallel to his first. Because Walter claims that his depraved actions as
Heisenberg are for his family’s wellbeing, it is difficult for us to decide
whether or not we should root for him.
The characters in Breaking
Bad are complex. Walter isn’t the only one that we question our loyalty to.
We want to pin down each character as good
or bad, so we know who it is okay to
give license to. Every character is exceedingly flawed, mirroring our own human
nature. It is easy for us to recognize these vile attributes in other people,
but much harder for us to acknowledge that we may falter in the same ways.
Because of this, it is difficult for us to bring ourselves to decide whether to
commend or condemn the characters of Breaking
Bad. If we are willing to admit it, we see aspects of ourselves in all of
them. These elaborate characters add to the intricacy of the show. We sit on
the edge of our seat and anxiously wait 15 long seconds for the next episode to
start, because we do not know what to think. We believe that the next segment
of the story will clarify who we are supposed to approve of and we like the way
this keeps us hooked.
We gorge ourselves with Breaking Bad because it poignantly displays the human condition. The
series allows us to examine other people dealing with our own life obstacles
from the other side of a glass screen. We are free to scrutinize, empathize,
and satirize; all while leaving us with the temporary illusion that at least I’m not that bad.
