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From Amazon.co.uk
No one would confuse the desperate dad Bryan Cranston plays in this character-driven drama with the fun-loving Hal from Malcolm in the Middle. In Breaking Bad, Walter White lives in the suburbs with his wife--and wears tighty-whiteys--but the similarities end there. During the pilot, the cash-strapped chemistry teacher finds out he has inoperable lung cancer. He and Skyler (Deadwood's Anna Gunn) have one son, Walter Jr. (R.J. Mitte), and a daughter on the way. With two years to get his affairs in order, Walter comes up with a wild plan: he and former student Jesse (Aaron Paul), a drug dealer, will open a meth lab.
In the hands of creator Vince Gilligan (The X-Files), Bad's first season plays like the improbable offspring of Weeds and The Shield. With nothing left to lose, the Albuquerque 50-year-old uses his death sentence as a catalyst to break every rule he's ever followed while keeping his family--including Skyler's radiologist sister, Marie (Betsy Brandt), and her DEA agent husband, Hank (Dean Norris)--out of the loop. Throughout these seven episodes, Walt takes on a hostage, a dead body, and a partner who likes to sample his own product. Based on the description alone, it shouldn't work as well as it does, except Gilligan and company keep the situations psychologically believable and Emmy winner Cranston makes Walt surprisingly sympathetic as he swings between compassion and self-interest. As he tells his students, "Chemistry is the study of change", a statement that applies equally well to the show, since Walt ends up in a very different place than where he began. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
In the hands of creator Vince Gilligan (The X-Files), Bad's first season plays like the improbable offspring of Weeds and The Shield. With nothing left to lose, the Albuquerque 50-year-old uses his death sentence as a catalyst to break every rule he's ever followed while keeping his family--including Skyler's radiologist sister, Marie (Betsy Brandt), and her DEA agent husband, Hank (Dean Norris)--out of the loop. Throughout these seven episodes, Walt takes on a hostage, a dead body, and a partner who likes to sample his own product. Based on the description alone, it shouldn't work as well as it does, except Gilligan and company keep the situations psychologically believable and Emmy winner Cranston makes Walt surprisingly sympathetic as he swings between compassion and self-interest. As he tells his students, "Chemistry is the study of change", a statement that applies equally well to the show, since Walt ends up in a very different place than where he began. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Product Description
Case, sleeve and DVDs are in excellent condition.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
201 of 212 people found the following review helpful
By L. Hennessy
TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
The synopsis (with NO SPOILERS):
A US chemistry teacher (Bryan Cranston, fom 'Malcolm in the Middle') discovers he has cancer, and has no way of paying the medical bills. One day it occurs to him that he could cover the needed expenses by making Crystal Meth - a drug which is in high demand on the streets. The series follows his adventures, and the ever-increasingly tangled web of lies that he weaves.
I've got to say how much I LOVED this series - season 1 is relatively short (7 episodes), but is filled with the kind of high-tension drama that made 'The Wire' so compelling. It's created by Vince Gilligan (the man behind 'The X-Files'* [*see comment]), and has the same quirky humour threaded all the way through - aided immensely by Cranston's witheringly caustic portrayal of a man who does not suffer fools gladly AT ALL, but ends up having to work with one.
As events unfurl, he is forced to keep bigger and bigger secrets from his wife and son...
I don't want to give the impression that this is primarily a comedy, because it isn't - it's a dark psychological drama with some great moments of equally dark humour - the cast are all exceptional, and the casting is spot-on. For example, Cranston's character has a son who has CP, so they cast RJ Mitte, an actor who actually has it in real life. This might seem a little worthy but when watching the series it works perfectly.
If you liked the grittiness of 'The Wire', the dark humour of 'The Sopranos' or the strange other-ness of 'The X-Files', I can recommend this to you WHOLEHEARTEDLY. Seriously - this is the best thing I've seen on TV for a long long time... and the good news is that series 2 is just as good, but 12 episodes long!
Take a chance - buy it - I promise you won't regret it.
A US chemistry teacher (Bryan Cranston, fom 'Malcolm in the Middle') discovers he has cancer, and has no way of paying the medical bills. One day it occurs to him that he could cover the needed expenses by making Crystal Meth - a drug which is in high demand on the streets. The series follows his adventures, and the ever-increasingly tangled web of lies that he weaves.
I've got to say how much I LOVED this series - season 1 is relatively short (7 episodes), but is filled with the kind of high-tension drama that made 'The Wire' so compelling. It's created by Vince Gilligan (the man behind 'The X-Files'* [*see comment]), and has the same quirky humour threaded all the way through - aided immensely by Cranston's witheringly caustic portrayal of a man who does not suffer fools gladly AT ALL, but ends up having to work with one.
As events unfurl, he is forced to keep bigger and bigger secrets from his wife and son...
I don't want to give the impression that this is primarily a comedy, because it isn't - it's a dark psychological drama with some great moments of equally dark humour - the cast are all exceptional, and the casting is spot-on. For example, Cranston's character has a son who has CP, so they cast RJ Mitte, an actor who actually has it in real life. This might seem a little worthy but when watching the series it works perfectly.
If you liked the grittiness of 'The Wire', the dark humour of 'The Sopranos' or the strange other-ness of 'The X-Files', I can recommend this to you WHOLEHEARTEDLY. Seriously - this is the best thing I've seen on TV for a long long time... and the good news is that series 2 is just as good, but 12 episodes long!
Take a chance - buy it - I promise you won't regret it.
11 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD|Amazon Verified Purchase
There are only seven episodes in this first series of Breaking Bad but I was so hooked I watched them back to back - it has been a very long time since I have felt that enthralled by any series.
The synopsis below does not give anything away beyond the first episode.
The first episode opens with Walt (played by Bryan Cranston) walking away from a burning RV, gun in hand minus his trousers and with police sirens blaring in the distance. The scene looks bizarre and surreal as Walt couldn't look anything less like a criminal if he tried. The story then switches back to the present day and begins to fill in the gaps as to how he came to be in that position. This is a technique used frequently in both series one and two.
Walt, a middle class, law abiding chemistry teacher discovers that at the age of 50 he has terminal lung cancer. He is working two jobs to keep the family finances afloat. His oldest son, Walt Junior has cerebral palsy and his wife, Skylar finds herself unexpectedly pregnant at the age of 40. Walt is at a loss as to how he is going to provide financial security for his family after his demise and in the short term how he is going to fund his medical care. He needs to get his hands on a vast sum of money - and he needs it quickly.
Walt seeks out one of his former students, Jesse (Dean Norris) - a time wasting, good-for-nothing layabout and small time drug dealer. Much as it pains Walt to have anything to do with Jesse, he needs him for the one skill set he does have - cooking and selling methamphetamine. Together, the pair come up with a scheme to make the best meth on the market and to get rich very quickly. Suffice to say, things don't always go smoothly for them in their new business venture. Read more ›
The synopsis below does not give anything away beyond the first episode.
The first episode opens with Walt (played by Bryan Cranston) walking away from a burning RV, gun in hand minus his trousers and with police sirens blaring in the distance. The scene looks bizarre and surreal as Walt couldn't look anything less like a criminal if he tried. The story then switches back to the present day and begins to fill in the gaps as to how he came to be in that position. This is a technique used frequently in both series one and two.
Walt, a middle class, law abiding chemistry teacher discovers that at the age of 50 he has terminal lung cancer. He is working two jobs to keep the family finances afloat. His oldest son, Walt Junior has cerebral palsy and his wife, Skylar finds herself unexpectedly pregnant at the age of 40. Walt is at a loss as to how he is going to provide financial security for his family after his demise and in the short term how he is going to fund his medical care. He needs to get his hands on a vast sum of money - and he needs it quickly.
Walt seeks out one of his former students, Jesse (Dean Norris) - a time wasting, good-for-nothing layabout and small time drug dealer. Much as it pains Walt to have anything to do with Jesse, he needs him for the one skill set he does have - cooking and selling methamphetamine. Together, the pair come up with a scheme to make the best meth on the market and to get rich very quickly. Suffice to say, things don't always go smoothly for them in their new business venture. Read more ›
79 of 84 people found the following review helpful
By Zeke Pliskin
Format:DVD
Now let's get one thing straight; this is a television program NOT for the faint at heart. If you like your viewing saccherine, with easy answers and everything wrapped up and snapped back to the beginning by the end of the episode, Breaking Bad is not for you. The premise alone should be enough to tell you that; a cancer-striken father who is a chemistry teacher turns to illegal drug manufacture with a not-too-bright ex-student and struggles with his own mortality and morality along the way, doing his best to hide the new career choice from his pregnant wife, son with cerebal palsy, medic sister-in-law and law enforcer brother. Yes, this isn't light-weight material by any means.
I'm not a fan of these shows that rely on "inflated sense of tension" to pump up the viewer's adrenaline levels while covering for poor scripting; stuff like 24, Lost and Prison Break started out well-enough but quickly descended into this cheap shock tactic approach to keep the audience hooked. Once I saw through this I stopped watching them completely and have been seeking out quality American shows that are well-produced and equally well-written, and I am happy to say that Breaking Bad is one of these. Not since I saw Firefly (a very different kind of show) have I enjoyed a television program this much.
Bryan Cranston is perfectly cast as Walt, the man who has to make tough choices to provide for his family. He so perfectly becomes the character that it was not until later I realised he was previously cast as Hal in Malcolm In The Middle. His emotional range is staggering; with a few well-timed gestures or vocalisations he can convey several feelings at once, and when Walt is in pain it is completely believable. Read more ›
I'm not a fan of these shows that rely on "inflated sense of tension" to pump up the viewer's adrenaline levels while covering for poor scripting; stuff like 24, Lost and Prison Break started out well-enough but quickly descended into this cheap shock tactic approach to keep the audience hooked. Once I saw through this I stopped watching them completely and have been seeking out quality American shows that are well-produced and equally well-written, and I am happy to say that Breaking Bad is one of these. Not since I saw Firefly (a very different kind of show) have I enjoyed a television program this much.
Bryan Cranston is perfectly cast as Walt, the man who has to make tough choices to provide for his family. He so perfectly becomes the character that it was not until later I realised he was previously cast as Hal in Malcolm In The Middle. His emotional range is staggering; with a few well-timed gestures or vocalisations he can convey several feelings at once, and when Walt is in pain it is completely believable. Read more ›
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4.7 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Buy the DVD instead - image quality is not high definition!
Image quality is not up to Blu Ray standards. Lot's of image noise.
Other than that, this series is highly reccomended!
Other than that, this series is highly reccomended!
Published 4 days ago by Theodoros
5.0 out of 5 stars
Breaking Bad bode set
Not having satellite TV I was first alerted to this series by all the hype surrounding the showing of the last episode. Well the hype was justified, riveting viewing. Read more
Published 6 days ago by Mr. T. Barton
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great show
We heard from a friend this was actually good. We weren't sure but we gave it a o and got hooked... 2 weeks and three seasons later we are spreading the word.
Published 8 days ago by ladygray
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent
Delivery was quick and the season is awesome, recommended for anyone looking for a gripping new programme to watch. 5 stars without a doubt
Published 9 days ago by Miles Holness
5.0 out of 5 stars
Breaking Bad
I have only watched episode 1 but am completely hooked. A great storyline and acted with humour and panache. Seems an improbable situation but it works. Read more
Published 12 days ago by C. A. Green
5.0 out of 5 stars
Terrific TV
BB gets off to a flying start, drops a little in tempo, but it reels you in and is destined to be classic viewing.
Published 17 days ago by nigpick
5.0 out of 5 stars
great
enjoyed it - a bit different acting very good- sparks discussion and conversation was a slow starter looking fwd to next series
Published 18 days ago by penny Askew
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent quality
This is a great show and I really enjoyed the first series on DVD but now I am watching the subsequent series on netflix. Read more
Published 23 days ago by Dorrington
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful series.
Cannot understand how the 'experts' at our major channels did not take this up when it first came out. Absolutely addictive, sometimes funny and totally enjoyable. Read more
Published 23 days ago by Jl Powell
3.0 out of 5 stars
Recommended
I bought this for my partner as it was recommended by some friends. We haven't watched it yet as we have only just finished watching heroes!
Published 23 days ago by Sophie
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