WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD! (Don’t say I didn’t warn you)
After five seasons and a final episode count of 62, the critically-acclaimed drama series Breaking Bad came to an end Sunday evening. And the finale is still the buzz a few days later!
Besides fearing what sort of pain that creator Vince Gilligan had in store for the finale, fans were mostly worried about how it would end. After dedicating so much time to each and every episode, will it match the hype?
Well, I’m happy to report that “Felina,” the final episode that brought in over 10 million viewers, gave a satisfying end to the world of Walter White.
I can’t recall a protagonist that was more heavily discussed and fought over by than White, played expertly by Bryan Cranston of Malcolm in the Middle fame. Many found themselves sympathizing with the former high school chemistry teacher. To them, he seemingly fell into the world of drug-manufacturing in order to provide for his family after a cancer diagnosis.
These Team Walt supporters stuck to their guns, so to speak, despite Walt’s own body count — which steadily rose. But as season five went on, it became harder to ignore Walt’s ego.
“Felina” was a great ending because it finally gave viewers an indication that Walt was accepting the truth. In a pivotal scene with his estranged wife Skyler, he finally admits his true intentions, saying “I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. And I was really — I was alive.”
Despite claiming that his efforts were purely for his family’s benefit, Walt had been holding a grudge against former business partners because their company became worth billions of dollars a while after Walt burned bridges and left.
He had always been a selfish man, but his lung cancer distracted viewers from seeing the real Walter White. But, Walt’s end came, in a way, as a result of one of his few “caring” moments.
After triggering an onslaught of bullets from an assault rifle that he previously set up to take out a group of his enemies, Walt tackles Jesse Pinkman to the ground, saving his life.
Jesse was a former chemistry student of Walt’s that he blackmailed into becoming his partner in meth-making. Their relationship is one of the most co-dependent and mutually destructive things I have ever seen in media.
Despite Jesse turning on Walt, and rightfully so, Walt still tries to save him, resulting in a possibly fatal gunshot wound.
The show closes upon Walt taking his last steps amongst the various gadgets and equipment of a meth lab. He touches them fondly, leaving streaks of blood as he collapses to the ground and police officers surround him. We don’t know if Walter White lives or dies, but the situation speaks for itself. He spends his final moments, not with his family, but with himself and the chemistry, because that’s all it was ever about.Â