As I'm looking through posts here, I'm finding a lot of people hated Jesse and thought he was a whiny little brat. I'm just not getting the Jesse hate
shareI've been binging the show for the first time the past couple of weeks. Currently on S5E12. Jesse is my favorite character.
shareI think what you're seeing is Walt-worshipers or people who just dislike any character that is opposed to the protagonist's actions.
shareOr people who dislike the idea of an irrational junkie RAT with a serious case of inferiority complex. All the whiny linear moron had to do was bite the bullet, get his ass to Alaska and then start rebuilding. But being the r3tarded spaz that he is, he decided to...well...I wish he had remained in that chamber for the rest of his days tbh. I don't like that he is the only one that got away seemingly at the end. It's not that Jesse had morals because I agree with his morals, but the way he went about his business from the get-go was infuriating to say the least. One foot in, one foot out and dragging everyone around him down with him while creating the majority of the casualties and looking to project his guilt onto others. F%#* Jesse. He's not as deplorable as Skyler or Walt Jr....on second thought, he is on par and in a three way tie for most despicable characters on the show. I like his character as far as the series is concerned but only because he is so easy to dislike.
shareHe's not as deplorable as Skyler or Walt Jr....on second thought, he is on par and in a three way tie for most despicable characters on the show.Walt Jr? Sure, he may have been painfully naïve even for his age, but he had arguably the best morals of any character on the show. I can't even try to rationalize calling him despicable. share
Jesse was fundamentally weak. It's why he became an addict in the first place. It's easy to hate Jesse because at first, he never asserts himself. His character growth/arc is huge though. He changes the most by far during the show's run.
shareIt is hard to say that Jesse changes the most by far in a show that the entire premise is based on the main characters transformation from boring chemistry teacher to a murdering Drug Kingpin.
Jesse does change massively throughout the series and it would be very interesting to see how his being held captive and subsequent rescue effect him. I really enjoy the cold opening of Ozymandias because it flashes back to Jesse jumping around playing on the rocks like a kid.
It is hard to say that Jesse changes the most by far in a show that the entire premise is based on the main characters transformation from boring chemistry teacher to a murdering Drug Kingpin.
it would be very interesting to see how his being held captive and subsequent rescue effect him.
I have no problem with the way the show ended and I don't think Jesse should have another spinoff or anything. Just from a place of curiosity I wonder what would have happened to him. He had been through more than anybody on the show yet made it out alive. He was saved by the same person he hated for getting him into the whole mess in the first place. He told Walt at the end so I would like to think he would have ended up having a positive life worth living...but in reality based off the way Jesse usually dealt with his problems (getting high) he likely would have fallen back into the same trap.
shareHe told Walt at the end so I would like to think he would have ended up having a positive life worth living...but in reality based off the way Jesse usually dealt with his problems (getting high) he likely would have fallen back into the same trap.
Jesse was always my favorite.
shareHe's my favorite on the show. I loved the ending when he was driving and laughing and screaming.
shareOverall, I liked Jesse. He made some bad decisions, but he had heart; consider how he tried to protect all the children he encountered.
shareI'm just not getting the Jesse hate
I don't get the Jesse hate either. He did some terrible things (the worst of which was murdering Gale), but he seemed to be really tortured by these bad acts. I see Jesse as a victim of his own addiction more than anything else.
Most of it comes from people who have too much bias towards Walt.I must say I find reading people's opinions about the characters to be fascinating. I think you can actually develop a psychological profile of the "types" of people who like/hate Walt, Skylar, Hank, Marie, and Jesse. They are all very very different. The results reveal a tremendous amount about the individual's own satisfaction and frustration with his/her own life.
I agree, it's funny how divisive the show is, I can't think of any other shows that find an audience with such differing opinions and interpretations. I think it's really interesting seeing the huge divide in people who rooted for Walt throughout the show, and the ones who hated him and couldn't wait him to get arrested/killed/die. They could conduct psychological studies on what separates the fans of bb I swear lol.
shareI agree, it's funny how divisive the show is, I can't think of any other shows that find an audience with such differing opinions and interpretations. I think it's really interesting seeing the huge divide in people who rooted for Walt throughout the show, and the ones who hated him and couldn't wait him to get arrested/killed/die. They could conduct psychological studies on what separates the fans of bb I swear lol.
I never implied it's unheard of for a shows fan base to be divided, but I don't know of any shows that have fans quite as split as breaking bad, and about so many things not just their opinion on Walt, IMO. I can think of other examples such as the sopranos and Mad Men where audiences were either rooting for or against the protagonist, but not to the extremes of breaking bad's fans.
shareThe writers developed so many stories and scenes that divide the audience right down the middle as much as possible.
Perfect example is Jane's death. They could have had Walt smother her with a pillow...but that would clearly leave Walt defenders in the minority. So they could have had him walk in after she rolled over on her own and choked to death...but no, that would place no fault on Walt. So what do they do?...just ride the fence right down the middle to split the fan base...we'll have Walt brush up against her, she rolls over and he "allows" her to die...and the fans still debate if he murdered her or not...just what the writers wanted.
Yes, Jane's death was one of those dilemmas where you have to decide whether to judge a person (Walt) by his actions or his intentions. Clearly, he didn't go there with the intention of killing Jane. And yet, his actions speak otherwise.
There's a wonderful old movie that addresses the same problem: A Place in the Sun in which the main character (a blinding gorgeous Montgomery Clift) is in a row boat with a former girlfriend that he wants dead (long story, but she's pregnant and he wants to marry Elizabeth Taylor instead). The old girlfriend can't swim and he plans to capsize the boat, "allowing" her to drown. At the last minute, he chickens out, but the boat tips over anyway and she drowns--- as he originally wanted her to.
How do we judge him, by his actions or intentions?
___________________________________
Never say never...
Can't really judge either one, with respect to guilt, on original intentions. Expect in your story, it depends on whether or not the blind man was capable of saving her, without risking his own life. If he was, and allowed her to die, he'd be as guilty as Walt.
However, if he let her die, expect he would get off by saying he felt he couldn't save her, for fear of being pulled under. Walt had no such excuse.
LOL, I meant that Montgomery Clift was so gorgeous, it blinded the viewer to look at him. No, the character wasn't blind at all. He was just an ambitious young man who got a poor girl (Shelley Winters) pregnant and then fell in love with Elizabeth Taylor and wanted to marry her.
The interesting thing is that A Place in the Sun(1951) was a remake of an earlier film from 1931. Both movies were based on the Theodore Dreiser novel An American Tragedy. But the two films are very different in the treatment of main character. In the 1951 movie he is sympathetic and in the 1931 movie he isn't. The facts, however, of the crime remain the same.
It's the same with Walt. If you are sympathetic to Walt's plight and you see Jane as a villain, it seems totally reasonable for him to allow her to die without culpability. If you are not sympathetic to him, however, his actions take on a different meaning and are clearly akin to murder. Earlier in the episode, they show him very mindfully putting baby Holly to sleep on her side, so she will not choke if she vomits. So his intentions putting baby Holly to bed are very clear. She is innocent and doesn't deserve to choke to death. Later on in the episode, Walt is able to demonstrate his intentions with regard to Jane and he does not take action to prevent her from choking to death.
___________________________________
Never say never...
That's what I get for reading too fast...you wrote it clearly...did seem odd a blind guy would plan to kill someone by tipping a boat over.
Yeah, for Walt, if you really put yourself in his shoes, it was a real dilemna that you could see him wrestling with as she choked. He had plenty of time to go over his pros and cons list with Crazy 8. But only a few seconds for Jane.
The writers really balanced the pros and cons, making it a difficult decision. Jane's "I will burn you to the ground" threat likely tipped the scale. Even after giving them the money, he saw she'd still be a loose canon.
Many people seem to take extreme stances with these charactors...very polarizing. But think if you focus on understanding the characters POV, would end up alot closer to that fence they balanced on...at least in the first half of the series, before breaking too bad.
The show is a great example of the slippery slope that exists when you go off the path. The only rule Walt seemed to set was that his family was off limits. That included Hank and Marie. Remember when Saul indirectly suggests that Walt neutralize Hank the same way Walt eliminated Mike. Walt is appalled about that and threatens Saul for suggesting it.
The writers really created complex characters and it really lends itself to rewatching. I think this show is the closest we get to seeing how people really and truly get sucked into a life of crime.
___________________________________
Never say never...
Well technically she killed herself. But yeah, Walt had her life in his hands and didn't do nothing.
shareThat is really interesting!!! Sometimes I surprise myself with the degree of dislike I have for Skylar!! She is the only character on the show I felt this way about. For me, I could find something redeeming about all the other characters-but NOT Skylar! 😉
Haha, we on occasion play a silly game where we have to take a drink every time I make a disparaging remark about Skylar-needless to say, BB viewing nights have gotten more fun....
I love Jesse too. I don't understand why the Walt lovers dislike Jesse, because ultimately, Walt loved Jesse too.
Jesse killed Gale because Walt told him he had to-to save Walt. What choice did he have?!
Walt loved Jesse too.Yes, Walt loved Jesse like the son he never had (oh, wait....).
I don't like this way in which you people state that "if you don't like Jesse, it is because you are a Walt lover". I don't like neither, I think they are both despicable human beings. Yeah sure Jesse at the least makes some improvements throughout the show but it is not enough for me to just forget all the stupid and selfish choices he made during the show. As for Walt, he just keeps getting worse imo.
shareJesse was a little bitch who should have been put down by Walt in season 1.
share