Thursday, August 10, 2017

"Breaking Bad" Is Never Far From My Thoughts

Lately I've been puzzling about two matters. When Jesse has a triumph in "Breaking Bad," he is often shown affiliated with electricity and magnetism, for example, by showing him near power lines. Part of this may have been simple joy in the wizardry of technology and "action at a distance."
I was wondering whether Chuck McGill's fear of electricity was conjured when the writers were first trying to establish his character. They may have wanted someone whose character was the polar opposite of Jesse Pinkman's. Lawyers distrust action at a distance and instead get their power by trying to contain information under hermetic seal.

In physical Albuquerque, both their residences are located very close to one another. A clash between them can easily be imagined.

My second concern regarded the semiotics of "Breaking Bad": specifically, clerestory windows. I've noticed these windows are associated with healing in both "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul."

Even though I've eaten there several times, only now did I notice that clerestory windows are present at Garduño's Mexican Restaurant ('tableside gucamole', Season 5b, episode "Confessions"). There is no healing at all in that episode, however. Indeed, the venom was flowing more freely than ever. It's a big challenge to my idea.

If you remove all the bric-a-brac, the interior of the restaurant seems to resemble the interior of a Romanesque church. Maybe Vince was reaching for a different association than healing. A house of worship? With venom spilling everywhere? Strange. There's some subtlety I'm missing.

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