Breaking Bad: Season 2

This "Breaking Bad" season was a gift for a friend. I naturally also gave them The Complete First Season first! as a present.Why share this crude, "low-life" theme?This series is so expertedly put together! It is difficult to analyse WHY given the subject matter,is so good.I can mention several factors that may have "hooked" me to such an unlikely series, with such "low-life" subject matter!I wanted to share this series.The "hero" was a lawbreaker with a capital "L" , yet, he had his own sort of integrity and values or agenda which he putas a higher priority to the "LAW"! namely . . . the survival of his family after his death! His genius ideas for Chemistry had been stolen from him by a so-called friend and "society" was rewarding this "friend" while HE with his unappreciated gifted intelligence was being treated as a slave by society . . . the same society. . . that backs up the "LAW"! The world is pretty absurd anyway andthis situation about the hero and his priorities becomes understandable. We can't help but sympathize with him on his dangerousquest to make millions of "big Bucks" out of a potentially lethal situation! He is doing it for altruistic reasons. He is very unselfish.Bryan Cranston with his understated personality portrayal is very good casting. The other actresses and actors are really wellcast. The situations are bizarre yet believable and convincing.Bryan Cranston's role was like a mouse trying to get the cheese from the trap and not get hurt. He had to outsmart so manypeople we are sure he will fail! Just when things look most bleak for him a tiny little triumph due to his own intelligent and calmreasoning help him out of the impossible situation and we breath a sigh of relief!Everyone needs him and wants him to be perfect! Who is perfect? No one not even the Chemistry teacher. Another sigh of relieffor the audience.He keeps his mouth shut and forgets his own ego when most would be tempted to talk about themselves. We have to admirethis trait.The roles of all the players were so well and realistically portrayed. There was a lot to enjoy about this series. I am really lookingforward to when the fifth series comes out on DVD in PAL frequency as that is my frequency.

This review is not specific to season 2. I never watched Breaking bad while it was still running. I only get a very minimal selection of channels and for me, the whole idea of a series where the main characters were into manufacturing meth just got on my nerves. I finally broke down and watched this when I was in the process of recovering from surgery and had been spending a lot of time around the house resting. I got into the story and really got into the characters who were for the most part well developed. I have a connection to New Mexico, so that was cool as well. I thought it was strange and a bit annoying that this series was censored!!! o.k the show is about meth guys, has loads of people saying "bitc*", strung out addicts, people having their brains blown to smithereens but, the "f" word and others were changed and frontal nudity was blurred out...There was not excessive nudity, it was not done in what would be considered obscene, it was just a scene of a body...this is not disney. Why censor it? I did not realize that I was paying for a censored version. I also found out after the fact that some of the seasons are cut down by a few episodes. What!! Overall, a good series, but I did not appreciate the censoring or the reduced down seasons. Just mentioning it so future buyers will be better informed consumers.

The first season of Breaking Bad saw Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a struggling high-school chemistry teacher, and his former student Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) join forces to produce and distribute methamphetamine in Albuquerque after Walt is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. Season Two was originally broadcast on AMC in the spring of 2009, and this DVD set contains all of that season's 13 episodes as well as special features that discuss the filming and plot.Walt decided to become a drug dealer to ensure financial security for his family after his impending death, but he and Jesse quickly ran into much more trouble than they anticipated--when this season started, they were already responsible for a death and found themselves as a business partner with someone insane (and that's putting it mildly), and their troubles only multiply in Season Two.The blue-colored meth that Walt produces with his vast knowledge of chemistry begins to sell quickly on the streets of the Duke City, and both Walt and Jesse rapidly progress in street smarts, but the unintended consequences of their life of crime escalate throughout this season. The two live a life of constant danger, do things that they likely thought they would never have to do such as launder money, must associate with many unsavory characters, and have to evade the police, including Walt's brother-in-law, DEA agent Hank Schrader (Dean Norris).The series portrays the tremendous psychological tension Walt suffers in attempting to live a double life and to keep his dealings secret from his wife Skyler (Anna Gunn). The entire season, but the final episode in particular, shows the extent to which the crimes of Walt and Jesse affect not just them, but Walt's marriage, their families, Walt's old friendships, and total strangers as well.A recurring theme that really arrests the viewer is the sheer number of lies that Walt tells to hide his drug activities as the season progresses.This series is not for children--there are extremely harrowing scenes of the aftereffects of an IED explosion, of a fierce gunfight, and of graphic effects of drug use and addiction. For those of age, though, "Breaking Bad" is an extremely rewarding series--there is great use of symbolism and the show has unexpected plot twists as well as outstanding scenes from the New Mexico desert. Above all, it probes moral issues by negative example, offering lessons on how not to deal with adversity, fear, and uncertainty.