Sunday, November 3, 2013

Better Call Saul Tigh: The Cars Of Breaking Bad

Even before Breaking Bad lost the thread and limped home through the nonsense bubbling up during the fourth season and the paint-by-numbers ego stroke/fan service of the fifth season--splitting the broadcast of season 5 was pretty obviously bullshit--one of the very best things about the show, and one of the most obvious signals that Gilligan and the skipper and the rest of the crew were pretty much just fucking around, was the way the characters were shorthanded with their automobile commonplaces.  WW's glaringly sad sack symbol of terrible life choices Pontiac Aztek was almost too easy.  Sticking Sklyer with the oversized and homely aging Jeep Wagoneer wholly contradicts Gilligan's love for and defence of the character later in the series.  After showing Gale's busted Subaru Outback wagon with the recumbent on the roof, they never really needed to hire an actor to say anything else about the character.  Saul Goodman's tacky Cadillac was even more repulsive than he could hope to be.  Jesse's sad and ugly Tercel.  Marie's stupid and ridiculous new Beetle.  Fring's hilariously uptight and joyless Volvo wagon.  Hank's garbage Jeep.  Mike's threadbare generic American sedan.  The cheesy Bentley Gretchen drove.  Ted Beneke's stripper BMW.  And last but not least, the pathetic PT Cruiser given to the pathetic son by his worthless mother; there was more truth in that sequence about the nature of Skyler and Walter, Jr and their places in the story than in all the Talking Bads and interwebs posts put together.  And before Gilligan believed the inanity of his own genius, he was being gleefully nasty--especially about the Skyler he claimed to respect so much--and having a shitload more fun. 

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