Mini reviews of Television seasons old and new. No fuss. No spoilers. Occasional bunnies.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

BREAKING BAD - Season 4 [2011]

"I am not in danger.
...I am the danger."

After the devastating, jaw-dropping finale of the the third season, Vince Gilligan's neo-noir/modern Western Breaking Bad had nowhere to go but down some immensely dark passages in it's fourth year. 

Like a twisted chess game, with lives at stake, the year starts off fairly slow, with the exception of the intense season premiere, enthrals in the middle and puts you at the edge of your seat with it's explosive finale.  Riddled with symbolism and a determination to drive forward, it's difficult not to be in awe of Gilligan and Co.'s attention to detail and character arcs.  The color schemes of both the costume and set designs are particularly impressive this year, as they compliment the beautifully, unique photography both dramatic and expositionary.  Dave Porter's ambient score broods and ticks like a time bomb waiting to go off with precision and dread, while the mostly Latino source songs slip into the setting with comfortable ease. 

Lastly, I know everybody says it but I can't say enough about Bryan Cranston's brilliantly intimidating performance.  Having never seen the show, my brother was comparing the DVD covers of Season One and Season Four and laughed “what happened to him?”  By the end of the fourth season, sweet old high school teacher, Walter White has finally become the monster he pretended to be in it's first year.

No more Mr. Nice Guy indeed. 

13 Episodes. 47 minutes each.

Buyer's Guide:
Available in both DVD and Blu-Ray sets and on iTunes, Netflix and Amazon.

4 ½ Walking Dead's out of 5

2 comments:

Impudent Urinal said...

Wonderfully tense and exciting season. Missing a lot of the black comedy of other seasons which is too bad minus the one bit of Ted and a carpet.
5 Make sure your tie is straight out of 5

cuckoo said...

I just subtracted the 1/2 for the Hank's "minerals" plotline. It was silly and dragged on for just a bit too long for my tastes.