[Daradon]

A bit long winded, but those who take the time to read it will probably like it and agree...



A thought/response to all those that say the last few episodes are filler or not as great as the rest, etc. Technically I guess you are right, it is 'filler'. However that's the whole point of having an end, and knowing the end is coming, there is really no way around it.

There is actually a literary term for reading, or watching a show/movie/story, and knowing the ending is coming. Tried to do a quick google search for it, but it's a long winded idea to search around and have come up empty after a few tries, but I studied it a bit years ago. Anyway, we've all been through the experience. Imagine you are reading a book and you get to the last chapter, or even the last ten pages. You know the ending is right around the corner. So your brain, especially if it's engaged, (and obviously we are watching and critiquing this show a lot so they are very engaged) is already figuring out what can and can happen in that last bit of time left. Your actively thinking, ok, there HAS to be a resolution for 'this, this, this' coming up and since it is so soon, we know it can't be 'this, this, or that'. It narrows the possibilities down, and makes the answers or plot easier to see. So in our mind, since we can see it coming and/or reasonably predict what is going to happen next, it's filler to us.

As well, there is next to no time left to add anything new, or have new plot twists. To have a satisfying conclusion you need to fill in the holes and so sometimes it seems like filler. However, there is really no way around it and the alternative is much worse. And we all know about bad or unsatisfying endings.

It's a problem that writers, and storytellers of both the page and screen have dealt with since the beginning of time, since people actually studied what makes good writing. People know 99% of the time when the ending is coming. All shows have screen time, every book has a back cover, and our brains know that and plug it into how we read or view the show. And with modern marketing, especially with TV, we know exactly how long things will last. Takes a bit of the fun out of it. But can you imagine going into a movie that you didn't know how long it would last (sometimes we don't know exactly, but we always have a reasonable idea) or holding a book that looks like 1200 pages but is only 600? No, these things don't exist. Stories can never mimic life exactly because we can see the end approaching. There is a finite amount of time and place to the story and in most cases it needs a conclusion. Life is not like that. (We die I know, and sometimes we see it coming, I know, but you see what I'm getting at)

That's part of the reason why people love twist endings so much. Cause it's flips that around to an extent.

However since we have not seen the last episode of Breaking Bad yet, we still cannot say truly how good or bad the 'ending' has been. Who knows, maybe there's even one last twist that blows all of our socks off Se7en style! I kinda doubt it, but it's possible.

But the criticisms people are levying at the last couple episodes have little or nothing to do with the talent of the writing style or the quality of the writing. It's just a natural phenomenon of telling a story. I will admit they made it a little harder on themselves in this regard by giving us those two flash forwards we have seen, as that also makes guessing easier. We have points to connect in our minds. However, it was a calculated writing technique used to build suspense earlier in the season and tell the story, and I think it worked really well.

Lastly, and this goes for all popular television series, and has a little to do with the last bit, but is important to remember, 'good' and universally loved endings are very hard to achieve. Would probably only need one hand, MAYBE two, to list the series that were able to tie it up well, while it would be hard to count the other side. Even shows considered some of the best television ever have struggled with this. Remember the Seinfeld series ending? Look at how people are reacting to Dexter this year. A television series lasts years, many many hours. Much more than a movie. Providing a satisfying ending to all these characters who people have come to feel so strongly about is difficult, cause they become so real to us. We want to know more and more and more.

As well, most series work with a plot line that is only visible for the writers up to the next episode or two. And even modern shows, that are more continuing and story driven than shows in the past still often don't know if they are going to last the season so even they don't plan ahead as much, and have to tell a certain amount of story on a clock. So resolving all these plot points, that were often thrown in by necessity as the show continues can be very difficult indeed. There's a certain amount of improv to it, in a sense. Can you imagine having to write a concise ending to 55 hours of improv?

So there you have it, my thoughts on it anyway, as I know a bit about the writing process. If you made it this far thanks for listening. All I'm saying is, you're looking at the natural progression of the end of a popular show and there are things to remember when judging writing. I think they have done a fantastic job so far. Far better than many other shows, they have kept the plot tight and believable and interesting all through the series. Course the big one is still to come, even I may change my mind. They could still screw it up, for sure. But they could also hit it out of the park, we all love a good twist ending. In the end I think we'll get a satisfying but slightly predictable ending that I will be happy with.

Sure hope we get a twist though!