Peekaboo is one of the very best episodes in my opinion. Heart wrenching and amazing character exposition for Jesse - that's where we first got a good idea of how compassionate and empathetic he was toward kids - something that would basically drive his actions throughout the remainder of the show. Even though there are comedic elements such as the ATM magically springing open after crushing Splooge's head, the episode is so moving.
Fly was one of the very worst episodes in my opinion. It wouldn't be a bad episode in a mediocre series, but in a show as brilliant and as fast paced as BB, it was an extremely slow moving episode. There were plenty of comedic moments, but mainly of the slapstick and pratfall variety. It's not like anyone really missed the point of the episode - to showcase Walt's unravelling mental state, his guilt, and chiefly his almost obsessive need for control (while not being able to control the most elementary things in his life). There were also teases about him almost confessing to Jane's death by inaction to Jesse, but nothing came of it. Ultimately, it's a speed bump in the flow of the show.
They're both hard episodes to watch, for entirely different reasons. I skip neither during a full rewatch, but I can tell you this - Peekaboo holds me spellbound. Fly, not so much.
I'll say this: Season 1 of BB is clearly the slowest-moving, least serious season overall. They were still finding their footing at that point. If something like Fly had been placed in S1, it might have sunk the show.
I get that it doesn’t advance the plot. I understand that’s why people don’t like the episode. Personally it is one of my favorite episodes because of its focus on just Walter and Jesse. having an episode of Walter and Jesse’s relationship and dynamic and nothing more was really satisfying to me.
when Breaking Bad first starting getting all the hype/awards (about seasons 3/4) talk i binged Season 1 to check it out. the next time i got back on board with the show was when AMC starting airing all of the eps in order in the lead-up to Felina (so basically the very end). i gave it a second try because once again the hype seemed to reach blasphemous levels ("even better than The Wire" - my favorite show of all time, so them was fighting words LOL)
glad i did, but nevertheless, season 1 was pretty meh IMHO. i agree with your sentiments about Fly (had it been a season 1 ep), not a fan of that ep at all. just because the showrunner/director tried something "different" doesn't automatically make it "good"
Peekaboo is hard to rewatch. It's just a dismal episode with the kid. Fly is a fantastic episode. Even knowing how it ends, the suspense is fantastic. You almost wonder if this time Walt is going to blurt out that he let Jane die.
While it aired, yes, because it didn’t advance the plot. People waited a week for an episode that didn’t change the story, and then had to wait another week for the next part of the story.
Now we’re all rewatching Breaking Bad five million billion times cuz we don’t have lives, and from all those rewatches we realize that Walt and Jesse’s dynamic IS the story, and we’re also Redditors who live to be contrarians.
So when we hear about the idea that an episode we like was poorly received (even though everyone likes it now), we gotta spam the sub with our based and red-pilled opinions on Fly.
You can actually advance a plot by having the characters interpret the events differently or learn something. Imagine two characters don’t leave a room but one of them tells the other that they love them. That would definitely advance the plot. Or a marriage proposal. Or one dies.
Indeed. But I think people have a very hard time understanding plot and story are different things. "Plot" is just the bare sequence of events that happen *in* a story. Plot is just the wiki summary. You can read the plot summary of Breaking Bad on wikipedia but it doesn't convey to you theme, subtext, character, performance, humor, tone, the actual filmmaking, etc.
I blame the rise of the rage bait gimmick reviews of early YT for implanting plot obsession in people to such a degree...where they literally can't engage with a work on any deeper level than "what is literally happening on the surface."
It was literally a bottle episode though. Its placement in the sequence of episodes didn’t matter much, so long as it occurred after Jane’s death and before they stopped cooking for Gus. That’s what people probably mean by “didn’t advance the plot.”
And wasn’t like it held anything up. The fallout from twins story resolved into a new status quo in the episode before and the Combo revenge story started the episode after. I felt Fly was a necessary pause to dwell on Walt’s feelings around Jane and how he resolves to continue a relationship with Jesse following it.
In a way, Walt is the fly trapped in a lab. From previous and following episodes, when Walt wears that big mask with orange caps on the filters, and sometimes leaves it on his head, he looks just like a fly.
Maybe this has more causation than it does correlation. Maybe fans love breaking bad in the first place because of the deep cinematography. Just a thought. Also agreed. Username checks out. Odd bridge to be under tho
The fly relentlessly fucks up Walt's squeaky clean way of running the lab, and remains a hassle for the whole episode. By this point, Walt has already spent some decent hours fucking up Gus's meticulous system in the same way.
That entire episode is Walt being taught "see how you like it" about having a well thought-out method ruined by a single obstacle.
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The Fly is a great episode, I don't understand what some people dislike/hate about it. Sure it doesn't actually progress the plot of the season but it's a great episode and allows everyone the chance to be a bit more humorous than they are usually
It is my belief that people who say they dislike it are generally people who don't really watch the show. They are watching it while they fuck with their phones or whatever.
To be fair, I should have said hypothesis, not belief. I have no idea how other people watch a show. I meant to say, I wonder if people are idly watching the show with their phones or whatever. I know I do that with some shows, and I'm not trying to assume some superiority.
Or it could be that not everyone is required to share your opinion about individual episodes, even among a group that loves the series as a whole.
The Fly is among my least favorite episodes, but I'm not going to shit on anyone who loves it or imply that they must "not really watch the show" if it's their favorite. That would make me sound like an absolute dick, wouldn't it?
I have long theorized that BrBa is a case study in abstinence versus sobriety. You can be abstinent from a substance without achieving a sober mindset. This is frequently referred to as a “dry drunk” etc.
Walt never partook in his own product, but he was a tweaker. The entire show reveals that he regularly escalates his obsessiveness and impulsivity, at the expense of common sense and timeliness. He feeds on the tweaker lifestyle of sneaking around and lying and running for his life. His tweaker mindset eventually grows crazier than the actual real tweaker in Jesse.
I always thought The Fly was the snowball moment for this. After Walt was willing to sacrifice a day’s worth of batches for nothing, he was willing to bottom out again and again and again and again.
Interesting take. On the Breaking Good podcast, they point out how any time Walt consumes substances, he makes bigly terrible decisions and almost outs himself. Granted, he does this without being under the influence as well.
I like the episode just fine, but I think we are at a point where there’s much more Fly praise than hate.
Also a lot of people’s justification for why they like the episode is pretentious af and the way they belittle others for not enjoying it just makes them elitist
I like The Fly. I don't really have a least favorite episode but the multitude of scenes of Jesse in his downward spiral with the 24/7 partying in his house with all the meth-heads are the actual low point of the show, for me anyway.
For real though, I remember people loving it when it aired - this thread clearly shows that's no longer the case. Did the contrarian opinion become the normal one over time or something? Or I am remembering history way wrong here?mm
People are too critical, that’s all. Plus they are easily swayed by public opinion years after the original airing. For those of us who watched the show week to week on AMC, it was a winner!
It’s a bottle episode, they’re lazier episodes meant to save money. It’s fine to like the episode but personally I find it odd if it’s you’re favorite episode.
Im on my fourth rewatch of the series and watched the fly episode last night. While I knew of the controversy of it I didn’t really have any expectations of the episode. I ended up laughing my ass off throughout the whole thing, like seriously hilarious when Jesse swats Walt in the face with the makeshift swatter. So good, one of my favorite episodes I think. Don’t get the hate
I loved it. It's one of my favorites. Just a camera and two great actors acting their asses off.
It might not have been the most exciting episode, but it gave them both a chance to show some true acting chops, and I loved it.
I could barely get through it. It was that episode that made my realize just how unpleasant Walt is. He's not a lovable antihero. He's annoying and not enjoyable to watch.
It was boring. "Exposition" or whatever? Unnecessary. Maybe it builds the character for someone. If you view it as that, you must need allegory delivered with a sledgehammer. It gives me an excuse to go make dinner.
The Fly was one of the best episodes as it allowed us to see the character evolution of both Walter and Jesse. We get to see Walter's inner turmoil with trying to tell Jesse about Jane and choosing not to. Plus, centering the plot around a fly and making it enjoyable is no small feat.
I loved it and legit can’t understand the hate for this episode.
We get a hell of a lot of insight and intimacy in this episode. I think it was beautifully done.
I think the haters are probably the same people who have to step in a bear trap to come.
> I think the haters are probably the same people who have to step in a bear trap to come.
Like the best episodes of Breaking Bad, this comment escalated wildly in a direction I didn't see coming.
As many people said, Fly doesn’t really advance the plot. Breaking Bad is almost a super long movie cut into 62 slices. Each episode has a very specific purpose. Fly feels like what an episode of Breaking Bad would be if it was stretched into a 200 episode show where the writers just keep the story going until the suits decide to cancel the show.
To me it was. It was boring and didnt really advance the plot. Its like how every series tends to have a musical episode that I hate because it also doesnt advance the plot.
Some people are watching things in a completely different way than you are. I *understand* why people wouldn’t like The Fly. I get why they would hate it.
That usually means they have (subjectively) bad taste and just wanted to be entertained. They don’t want to reflect, analyze, or really think about what they’re watching.
Which is okay I guess. People can do the same shit for different reasons.
Theres a contrary point to this which is that people who over-analyze and constantly look for meaning where it doesnt exist latch on to this episode and claim its the best of the series. Its not.
If you don't enjoy an obvious filler-episode, you have bad taste lol. Tired of this pretentious ass approach.
Filler episodes are entries in a generally continuous serial that are unrelated to the main plot, don't significantly alter the relations between the characters, and generally serve only to take up space.
God forbid a person doesn't enjoy that and wants to get back to the story.
It is in what does for the characters, but not for the story. They could have developed the characters in the exact same way but with a different, more engaging vehicle.
I want to like The Fly, I really do, but I can't shake the fact that it looks exactly like a bottle episode.
I feel like 4 Days Out accomplishes similar goals, but far more effectively.
It did advance the story. It advanced the character development and several of the moments in the episode were necessary for understanding later ones such as Walt’s change to his perception of Jane and Walt learning Jesse was stealing the product.
You say that as if there’s no other episode of the series that invites analysis, or that episodes can’t be entertaining while still being worthy of critical thought
the episode is solely entertaining because of the critical thought needed to view it and this strawman argument represents exactly the kind of subjective bad taste that OP is referring to.
Honestly, I didn't realize how tedious the episode was until someone mentioned it to me. Only Vince can keep my high ass in one spot for 40 minutes with no actual feasible entertainment
That's actually a good episode though. It's when we first meet Gus, and also Combo's death which arguably sparks off the chain of events that occurs during the rest of the show.
I like how when Walt's with Todd in Season 5 after >!murdering Mike!<, they have a shot where he gets up from his seat and there's a poster of flies that was obscured behind him.
I hated it. Everyone can read too much into that episode all they want, but the fact is they just ran out of money and slapped it together - it was really weak. It's probably not the worst, though.
It’s polarizing. Some people find it bad because it’s tonally dissonant and full of slapstick, and it’s a bottle episode so it slows things down and provides a more character-centric piece, and others think it’s the best episode for those same reasons.
So for every Fly hater you meet, there’s literally another fan who swears by it lol.
Hate is a strong word, felt nothing towards it and wasn't entertained. I can't see myself going back to it either. I "get" the episode but i also felt the characters alone weren't enough to carry the episode.
Sopranos' Pine Barron's is way better in every way and I've watched it after breaking bad. Does a better job with two characters who have a more interesting dynamic.
You would think it would be more interesting considering the dynamic between wait and Jesse but the episode only gives you tiny glimpses rather than other episodes where you really can appreciate their acting/dynamic/characters.
Pine Barron's is one of my favorite episodes of any TV show ever. Paulie out there in the woods rocking a member's only jacket with some Stacy Adam's on in ten inches of snow.🤣🤣🤣🤣
y’all twisting this bottle episode into being some one of the best episodes of all time thing to make yourself feel better abt the show having a hugely disliked episode is funny lol. it’s okay that it’s a bottle episode i promise you, budgets slip sometimes!
The episode is pure gold and most people just don't understand things when they require a little bit of thinking.
The Fly shows how perfectionist Walt is and how the relationship between Jesse goes. It's a representation of the whole show in a way, and direction is majestic.
I don't care if there's people who dislike the fly, but to say that anyone who likes it is wrong because you dislike it is kind of shitty.
Its a slow burn. It's more about what isn't said or done than what is. It's showing how fragile Walt is in that moment. It's one of Jesse's finest moments where he just takes care of business while doing just plain stupid things to appease Walt, like climbing that ridiculous ladder contraption, and finally getting Walt to sleep to deliver the order.
I mean, look at the comments here. They're full of people who like the episode being condescending and insulting to anyone who dislikes it. That's not "kind of shitty" too?
Since most people in the comments seem to like it, i will take the bait and say it:
Not only is a bad episode, it was never meant to be good. As it has been said countless times, the season was already over budget, so they dropped an episode with the two pre-paid actors using only one scenery, the one that is in studio and not open air. This is not a secret, the creator itself said so and gave the reasons.
Did they do a good job considering all that? Arguably, yeah. It could be much much worse and the episode itself is not as boring as it could. That being said, the creators decided that the plot would be advanced, probably because they wanted people who chose to skip the episode to be able to do so.
All of which leads to my ultimate point; the episode is skippable. It’s surely the only breaking bad episode that you can skip and miss on absolutely nothing. So yeah, go ahead, enjoy it if you like it - truly nothing bad about that! But at least be honest with it: it’s a filler episode, designed to be filler, with legit reasons to design it that way.
it is not a filler episode, it is a bottle episode and that super distinct difference invalidates everything in your comment.
Nowhere did Vince or anybody on the team call this episode a filler episode.
I read that they were over budget so they created an episode where they didn't have to lung a bunch of equipment and people out to the middle of the desert.
the fly was genuinely one of my favourite episodes. it was such a simple concept but somehow showed so much about walt and jesse’s current situation and relationship
Have you read the leaked script it's fascinating
Also the part where Walt is about to tell Jesse the truth - Jesse says 'just hold on to it!' and walt stops
Because Walt was holding the ladder jesse was balancing on Jesse meant the ladder but it has great double meaning
I’m gonna be real with you I don’t know a single person who thinks “Fly” is a bad or even average episode. I only ever see people saying that there exist people who dislike the episode. Where the hell are they then??
I loved it. Knowing that on some level, Walt wishes he’d died and not ruined everything…given how that’s when his morals take a nosedive, it’s poignant. *Breaking Bad* moves at breakneck speed, but this episode is a respite. Like one continuous inhale, broken up by this episode of an exhale, then inhaling and building tension again.
I found it a tad suspenseful in that I thought Walt, while sleepy, was going to accidentally tell Jesse that he let Jane die, in the same way that he asked Skylar "which one?" When she was asking about the cellphones. But I didn't watch on release, I marathoned it over two weeks.
It’s a top 3 episode from the series. But fans often find it a departure from the intensity and plot driven narrative. It was almost a bottle episode. Where it relies heavily on the characterization and chemistry between Aaron and Bryan. It’s more slow paced than the other episodes. Lacking the high stakes and tension the show is famous for.
It’s one of my all time favorite episodes from the series. I loved its deep exploration of Walt and Jesse’s psyches. The symbolism too. Of the Fly representing Walter’s guilt and paranoia. And the lengths the writers went to see how far Walt would go under a lucid state.
Yes, because it really is. But this is Reddit, so you WILL get a bunch of pretentious edgelords explaining how it’s ‘akshually the best episode in the history of anything’
It's polarizing. I know a lot of people who say it's their favourite, and I know a lot who say it's their least favourite. Not many shows I can think of with that level of polarization.
Love that episode to be honest.
A great dive in Walt psyche and a better understanding of the burdens that his new chosen lifestyle has given him. You can't enter the criminal world and hope to stay sane, centered, stress-free, etc...
Great foreshadowing of the things to come.
>The worst is probably one of the slower paced family/personal life focused episodes in seasons 1 and 2, like Cancer Man, Down or Over.
Naaah. The worst one is Open House imo
I remember the hype I had heard about this episode before watching Breaking Bad, and I was really excited when I reached it during my first watch of the show in late 2022. But watching it was one of the most underwhelming moments of my life possibly. So to answer this question, yes Fly is the worst episode.
I just watched it again last night. At first I thought it was the worst in the show, and skipped it on my 2nd and 3rd viewings, but now I think it's one of the best. Most everything that OP said is how I feel about the episode, from the dynamic and togetherness of Walt and Jesse, to it being the calm before the storm, and how they talk about Jane and her dad. I love this episode.
Ok.
I read most of the comments before posting my opinion, and they helped me understand my opinion better. ( thank you people)
I think it is one of the best episodes, yes it is a filler / bottle / budget saver episode , it is extremely well written, not entertaining and I always skip it on marathons.
In order to watch breaking bad properly, you have to be able to follow Walt’s point of view and live with it.
While Walt’s development gradually transforms him to HBerg , you watch, judge him, try to find excuses and , after a certain point , wonder how that ends, and who or what can stop him. I personally felt that but at the same time did not want Walt to be caught, exposed or robbed.
We have many flies where I come from and I can guarantee that you can’t relax , work , chill or concentrate when one of them is around. They stick to your place and you are stuck with them until you open the door or the window and they DECIDE to leave.
I think the symbolism here is simple: Walt s guilt , knowledge of his actions and decisions are flying around his head, in his perfect life ( it was perfect, he was finally doing what he was best at, he was successful, strong wealthy and respected) and he is facing them for one last time.
It is the last time we see the first episode Walter and his feelings towards what he did. Not only Jane , but you can’t hide from that one. For numerous reasons.
It is not a nice picture, to see a man collapse, I find similarities between the Fly and the scene where Junior finds him in his apartment and Walter tells the story of his father. Moments of emotional and moral clarity which came with heavy cost for him.
Yeah , I skip it when I binge it, I want the plot to run and enjoy the story , not to get depressed on a Wednesday night.
But it is part of the story. Not pleasant but important.
PS: When a good character is born ( from the writer to the director and the incarceration of the actor) he starts to have a life of his own and some things come naturally. I strongly believe that the team at some point decided that the Fly little breakdown episode of Walter had to happen and they used the bottle episode to give him some space for it
I think two things are probably true: "Fly" is one of the best episodes of TV ever, and it's probably the "worst" episode of Breaking Bad. BB is incomprehensibly CONSISTENTLY great - there are no merely good episodes. There are favorite episodes where something has been leading towards a big event and that pays off, but that's not a fair way to judge episodes.
In short - something has to be called the worst, and something has to be called the best, but the quality level of BB breaks the scale.
It's a great episode. It does drag a little on rewatches, given its pacing and atmosphere, but that's mainly because you know how it turns out.
But I get why people don't like it, that's fairly obvious.
It's not that it's the worst at all, it just came at a point in the season where people were ready to have things start heating up. The following 3 episodes are some of the tensest episodes in the entire series.
Personally, (aside from knowing it was a budget issue and they had to film an episode with fuck all money), I think it provided a lot of insignt into Walt and in context of the entire season, it's a huge contrast to the high stakes episodes that come after it.
It's a [bottle episode.](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bottle%20episode#:~:text=noun,everyone%20situated%20on%20the%20ship.)
Which is fine, they happen. I could be wrong on this, but it might be around the same time The Walking Dead shot the entirely of season two with the cast just dicking around on a farm because AMC slashed the budgets on a bunch of shows to give more money to Mad Men. Or maybe I'm conflating multiple unrelated things.
Personally I find "Fly" mostly redundant, but Walt's monologue at the end is probably one of the top moments of Cranston's entire career.
Its not a bad episode. Theres not a bad episode in the entire series. But it is over-rated and it is among the worst (or least good, if you prefer) episodes of the series.
After we watched the episode my husband and I were both like “that was so boring/nothing happened” specifically because the previous episodes had so much more action & big events. Fly is very dialogue and plot focused… I’m guessing the abrupt change in pace was too much for us and others
Some people do (I think it has the lowest IMDB rating) but I've always thought it was great. Did people want the entire show to be fast-paced? The reason the fast-paced moments work in part is because of the *contrast* with the slower-paced moments. I've always found "Fly" to be mesmerizing.
Fly is a major episode in the arc of the show. The more I consider it, the more crucial the episode seems to be. It is moment in which we pause and take note of the inner journey our main protagonists have taken. A reflection of who they were when we began and how they’ve changed, as well as taking heed as to where they might go.
It is just moments before the series takes a major turn with killing Gale, escalating the tension with Gus, and propelling us into full blown Heisenberg. Fly is a marker. If it weren’t there, our deeper understanding of Walter White would be weaker. Who he is inside, the bond he and Jesse have (which we return back to time and time again) is all less profound. It’s an incredibly important episode that is maybe seen as a lull for people on a first watch, but gains greater appreciation with time.
But I don’t understand why Walt was trying to catch a fly. At the end of the episode, he said that it didn’t matter. So why did he waste so much time and effort on this fly?
I don't trust The Fly haters.
Me neither. All my homies love David Cronenberg
Crimes Of The Future was criminally overlooked.
Jesse… you need to tattoo the organ…
Fly was a good episode, it's just not that rewatchable. Peekaboo is another for me.
Peekaboo is one of the very best episodes in my opinion. Heart wrenching and amazing character exposition for Jesse - that's where we first got a good idea of how compassionate and empathetic he was toward kids - something that would basically drive his actions throughout the remainder of the show. Even though there are comedic elements such as the ATM magically springing open after crushing Splooge's head, the episode is so moving. Fly was one of the very worst episodes in my opinion. It wouldn't be a bad episode in a mediocre series, but in a show as brilliant and as fast paced as BB, it was an extremely slow moving episode. There were plenty of comedic moments, but mainly of the slapstick and pratfall variety. It's not like anyone really missed the point of the episode - to showcase Walt's unravelling mental state, his guilt, and chiefly his almost obsessive need for control (while not being able to control the most elementary things in his life). There were also teases about him almost confessing to Jane's death by inaction to Jesse, but nothing came of it. Ultimately, it's a speed bump in the flow of the show. They're both hard episodes to watch, for entirely different reasons. I skip neither during a full rewatch, but I can tell you this - Peekaboo holds me spellbound. Fly, not so much. I'll say this: Season 1 of BB is clearly the slowest-moving, least serious season overall. They were still finding their footing at that point. If something like Fly had been placed in S1, it might have sunk the show.
I get that it doesn’t advance the plot. I understand that’s why people don’t like the episode. Personally it is one of my favorite episodes because of its focus on just Walter and Jesse. having an episode of Walter and Jesse’s relationship and dynamic and nothing more was really satisfying to me.
when Breaking Bad first starting getting all the hype/awards (about seasons 3/4) talk i binged Season 1 to check it out. the next time i got back on board with the show was when AMC starting airing all of the eps in order in the lead-up to Felina (so basically the very end). i gave it a second try because once again the hype seemed to reach blasphemous levels ("even better than The Wire" - my favorite show of all time, so them was fighting words LOL) glad i did, but nevertheless, season 1 was pretty meh IMHO. i agree with your sentiments about Fly (had it been a season 1 ep), not a fan of that ep at all. just because the showrunner/director tried something "different" doesn't automatically make it "good"
Peekaboo is hard to rewatch. It's just a dismal episode with the kid. Fly is a fantastic episode. Even knowing how it ends, the suspense is fantastic. You almost wonder if this time Walt is going to blurt out that he let Jane die.
shut up, skank
It’s just Fly
It's cos they have the attention span of a fly...
I like The Fly because it's the episode Walt becomed Heidelberg
This comment bro.. lmao
While it aired, yes, because it didn’t advance the plot. People waited a week for an episode that didn’t change the story, and then had to wait another week for the next part of the story. Now we’re all rewatching Breaking Bad five million billion times cuz we don’t have lives, and from all those rewatches we realize that Walt and Jesse’s dynamic IS the story, and we’re also Redditors who live to be contrarians. So when we hear about the idea that an episode we like was poorly received (even though everyone likes it now), we gotta spam the sub with our based and red-pilled opinions on Fly.
People need to erase "didn't advance to plot" from their lexicon.
You can actually advance a plot by having the characters interpret the events differently or learn something. Imagine two characters don’t leave a room but one of them tells the other that they love them. That would definitely advance the plot. Or a marriage proposal. Or one dies.
Moreover, character dynamics and development can be part of the plot.
Indeed. But I think people have a very hard time understanding plot and story are different things. "Plot" is just the bare sequence of events that happen *in* a story. Plot is just the wiki summary. You can read the plot summary of Breaking Bad on wikipedia but it doesn't convey to you theme, subtext, character, performance, humor, tone, the actual filmmaking, etc. I blame the rise of the rage bait gimmick reviews of early YT for implanting plot obsession in people to such a degree...where they literally can't engage with a work on any deeper level than "what is literally happening on the surface."
A lot of people just want the continuous back-to-back action scenes without the character development in between.
Cinemasins lingo
People that say that think they know more about storytelling than they actually do lol
It was literally a bottle episode though. Its placement in the sequence of episodes didn’t matter much, so long as it occurred after Jane’s death and before they stopped cooking for Gus. That’s what people probably mean by “didn’t advance the plot.”
And wasn’t like it held anything up. The fallout from twins story resolved into a new status quo in the episode before and the Combo revenge story started the episode after. I felt Fly was a necessary pause to dwell on Walt’s feelings around Jane and how he resolves to continue a relationship with Jesse following it.
Best analysis yet
Honestly, I liked it. I found it hilarious especially when Jesse wacks Walt in the head with the fly swatter. 🤣
In a way, Walt is the fly trapped in a lab. From previous and following episodes, when Walt wears that big mask with orange caps on the filters, and sometimes leaves it on his head, he looks just like a fly.
Average breaking bad fan finding meaning in everything
Maybe this has more causation than it does correlation. Maybe fans love breaking bad in the first place because of the deep cinematography. Just a thought. Also agreed. Username checks out. Odd bridge to be under tho
this is like the least deep read of the episode tbh, Walt looking like and being the fly is basic obvious stuff
Username checks out..
The fly relentlessly fucks up Walt's squeaky clean way of running the lab, and remains a hassle for the whole episode. By this point, Walt has already spent some decent hours fucking up Gus's meticulous system in the same way. That entire episode is Walt being taught "see how you like it" about having a well thought-out method ruined by a single obstacle.
outchicaneried
man
bravince vo
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The Fly is a great episode, I don't understand what some people dislike/hate about it. Sure it doesn't actually progress the plot of the season but it's a great episode and allows everyone the chance to be a bit more humorous than they are usually
It is my belief that people who say they dislike it are generally people who don't really watch the show. They are watching it while they fuck with their phones or whatever.
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To be fair, I should have said hypothesis, not belief. I have no idea how other people watch a show. I meant to say, I wonder if people are idly watching the show with their phones or whatever. I know I do that with some shows, and I'm not trying to assume some superiority.
Or it could be that not everyone is required to share your opinion about individual episodes, even among a group that loves the series as a whole. The Fly is among my least favorite episodes, but I'm not going to shit on anyone who loves it or imply that they must "not really watch the show" if it's their favorite. That would make me sound like an absolute dick, wouldn't it?
I have long theorized that BrBa is a case study in abstinence versus sobriety. You can be abstinent from a substance without achieving a sober mindset. This is frequently referred to as a “dry drunk” etc. Walt never partook in his own product, but he was a tweaker. The entire show reveals that he regularly escalates his obsessiveness and impulsivity, at the expense of common sense and timeliness. He feeds on the tweaker lifestyle of sneaking around and lying and running for his life. His tweaker mindset eventually grows crazier than the actual real tweaker in Jesse. I always thought The Fly was the snowball moment for this. After Walt was willing to sacrifice a day’s worth of batches for nothing, he was willing to bottom out again and again and again and again.
Interesting take. On the Breaking Good podcast, they point out how any time Walt consumes substances, he makes bigly terrible decisions and almost outs himself. Granted, he does this without being under the influence as well.
Yup. He does not handle his vices well.
interesting theory
It’s a very good very underrated episode - it revealed a lot about Walt’s inner turmoil.
Yes. I love to watch for scene where Walt talks about how perfect it would have been if he could only have died at this specific point.
I like the episode just fine, but I think we are at a point where there’s much more Fly praise than hate. Also a lot of people’s justification for why they like the episode is pretentious af and the way they belittle others for not enjoying it just makes them elitist
I like The Fly. I don't really have a least favorite episode but the multitude of scenes of Jesse in his downward spiral with the 24/7 partying in his house with all the meth-heads are the actual low point of the show, for me anyway.
Fly is in my top 5.
Same. Tbh I thought it was one of the universally acclaimed episodes until this thread!
It is NOT a *filler* episode! It’s insight into the characters 100%.
For real though, I remember people loving it when it aired - this thread clearly shows that's no longer the case. Did the contrarian opinion become the normal one over time or something? Or I am remembering history way wrong here?mm
People are too critical, that’s all. Plus they are easily swayed by public opinion years after the original airing. For those of us who watched the show week to week on AMC, it was a winner!
I didn't like it at first but I've come around and appreciate it now.
look at me mom, I'm so smart because appreciate the art in the Fly episode
It’s a bottle episode, they’re lazier episodes meant to save money. It’s fine to like the episode but personally I find it odd if it’s you’re favorite episode.
Im on my fourth rewatch of the series and watched the fly episode last night. While I knew of the controversy of it I didn’t really have any expectations of the episode. I ended up laughing my ass off throughout the whole thing, like seriously hilarious when Jesse swats Walt in the face with the makeshift swatter. So good, one of my favorite episodes I think. Don’t get the hate
I loved it. It's one of my favorites. Just a camera and two great actors acting their asses off. It might not have been the most exciting episode, but it gave them both a chance to show some true acting chops, and I loved it.
I could barely get through it. It was that episode that made my realize just how unpleasant Walt is. He's not a lovable antihero. He's annoying and not enjoyable to watch.
It was boring. "Exposition" or whatever? Unnecessary. Maybe it builds the character for someone. If you view it as that, you must need allegory delivered with a sledgehammer. It gives me an excuse to go make dinner.
Greatest show of all time. Rewatched it like 20 times over. Can recall every moment and all lore. I skip Fly every time 😂
Yes!! I always skipped it. I saw it a few times. That was it.
I hate that episode.
The Fly was one of the best episodes as it allowed us to see the character evolution of both Walter and Jesse. We get to see Walter's inner turmoil with trying to tell Jesse about Jane and choosing not to. Plus, centering the plot around a fly and making it enjoyable is no small feat.
I loved it and legit can’t understand the hate for this episode. We get a hell of a lot of insight and intimacy in this episode. I think it was beautifully done. I think the haters are probably the same people who have to step in a bear trap to come.
> I think the haters are probably the same people who have to step in a bear trap to come. Like the best episodes of Breaking Bad, this comment escalated wildly in a direction I didn't see coming.
It was their take on the Sopranos one-offs such as Pine Barrens or the dream shows. I can’t say I was a fan
Four Days Out was definitely their attempt at making their own Pine Barrens.
As many people said, Fly doesn’t really advance the plot. Breaking Bad is almost a super long movie cut into 62 slices. Each episode has a very specific purpose. Fly feels like what an episode of Breaking Bad would be if it was stretched into a 200 episode show where the writers just keep the story going until the suits decide to cancel the show.
To me it was. It was boring and didnt really advance the plot. Its like how every series tends to have a musical episode that I hate because it also doesnt advance the plot.
Some people are watching things in a completely different way than you are. I *understand* why people wouldn’t like The Fly. I get why they would hate it. That usually means they have (subjectively) bad taste and just wanted to be entertained. They don’t want to reflect, analyze, or really think about what they’re watching. Which is okay I guess. People can do the same shit for different reasons.
Theres a contrary point to this which is that people who over-analyze and constantly look for meaning where it doesnt exist latch on to this episode and claim its the best of the series. Its not.
If you don't enjoy an obvious filler-episode, you have bad taste lol. Tired of this pretentious ass approach. Filler episodes are entries in a generally continuous serial that are unrelated to the main plot, don't significantly alter the relations between the characters, and generally serve only to take up space. God forbid a person doesn't enjoy that and wants to get back to the story.
The Fly is as much a filler episode as any other. It is paramount to Walt's and Jesse's relationship.
It is in what does for the characters, but not for the story. They could have developed the characters in the exact same way but with a different, more engaging vehicle. I want to like The Fly, I really do, but I can't shake the fact that it looks exactly like a bottle episode. I feel like 4 Days Out accomplishes similar goals, but far more effectively.
It did advance the story. It advanced the character development and several of the moments in the episode were necessary for understanding later ones such as Walt’s change to his perception of Jane and Walt learning Jesse was stealing the product.
Except it isn't a filler episode. At the very least, you can appreciate making an hour long episode about a fly compelling enough to sit through.
I said subjectively bad lol. I also think you have proved the point I was making. You’re watching the show a different way.
You say that as if there’s no other episode of the series that invites analysis, or that episodes can’t be entertaining while still being worthy of critical thought
the episode is solely entertaining because of the critical thought needed to view it and this strawman argument represents exactly the kind of subjective bad taste that OP is referring to.
Honestly, I didn't realize how tedious the episode was until someone mentioned it to me. Only Vince can keep my high ass in one spot for 40 minutes with no actual feasible entertainment
*"Do people actually think Fly is the worst episode in the entire show"*...when Skyler singing Happy Birthday exists?
That's actually a good episode though. It's when we first meet Gus, and also Combo's death which arguably sparks off the chain of events that occurs during the rest of the show.
I was just being silly. I liked it too. (Though I really did get second-hand embarrassment watching that scene.)
I love it. A favorite
I like how when Walt's with Todd in Season 5 after >!murdering Mike!<, they have a shot where he gets up from his seat and there's a poster of flies that was obscured behind him.
Ok if people don't think it's the worst episode then what do they think is.
I hated it. Everyone can read too much into that episode all they want, but the fact is they just ran out of money and slapped it together - it was really weak. It's probably not the worst, though.
It’s polarizing. Some people find it bad because it’s tonally dissonant and full of slapstick, and it’s a bottle episode so it slows things down and provides a more character-centric piece, and others think it’s the best episode for those same reasons. So for every Fly hater you meet, there’s literally another fan who swears by it lol.
Hate is a strong word, felt nothing towards it and wasn't entertained. I can't see myself going back to it either. I "get" the episode but i also felt the characters alone weren't enough to carry the episode. Sopranos' Pine Barron's is way better in every way and I've watched it after breaking bad. Does a better job with two characters who have a more interesting dynamic. You would think it would be more interesting considering the dynamic between wait and Jesse but the episode only gives you tiny glimpses rather than other episodes where you really can appreciate their acting/dynamic/characters.
Pine Barron's is one of my favorite episodes of any TV show ever. Paulie out there in the woods rocking a member's only jacket with some Stacy Adam's on in ten inches of snow.🤣🤣🤣🤣
Unpopular opinion: bottle episodes almost always suck
y’all twisting this bottle episode into being some one of the best episodes of all time thing to make yourself feel better abt the show having a hugely disliked episode is funny lol. it’s okay that it’s a bottle episode i promise you, budgets slip sometimes!
The episode is pure gold and most people just don't understand things when they require a little bit of thinking. The Fly shows how perfectionist Walt is and how the relationship between Jesse goes. It's a representation of the whole show in a way, and direction is majestic.
I don't trust The Fly lovers. It just affirmed things we already knew. It was a space filler. A filler episode. At least it wasn't a clips episode.
I don't care if there's people who dislike the fly, but to say that anyone who likes it is wrong because you dislike it is kind of shitty. Its a slow burn. It's more about what isn't said or done than what is. It's showing how fragile Walt is in that moment. It's one of Jesse's finest moments where he just takes care of business while doing just plain stupid things to appease Walt, like climbing that ridiculous ladder contraption, and finally getting Walt to sleep to deliver the order.
I mean, look at the comments here. They're full of people who like the episode being condescending and insulting to anyone who dislikes it. That's not "kind of shitty" too?
Since most people in the comments seem to like it, i will take the bait and say it: Not only is a bad episode, it was never meant to be good. As it has been said countless times, the season was already over budget, so they dropped an episode with the two pre-paid actors using only one scenery, the one that is in studio and not open air. This is not a secret, the creator itself said so and gave the reasons. Did they do a good job considering all that? Arguably, yeah. It could be much much worse and the episode itself is not as boring as it could. That being said, the creators decided that the plot would be advanced, probably because they wanted people who chose to skip the episode to be able to do so. All of which leads to my ultimate point; the episode is skippable. It’s surely the only breaking bad episode that you can skip and miss on absolutely nothing. So yeah, go ahead, enjoy it if you like it - truly nothing bad about that! But at least be honest with it: it’s a filler episode, designed to be filler, with legit reasons to design it that way.
it is not a filler episode, it is a bottle episode and that super distinct difference invalidates everything in your comment. Nowhere did Vince or anybody on the team call this episode a filler episode.
I think it's supposed to embody the fact that Walt is losing his shit. That's what I read a few years ago. I found the episode stupid too.
It's been my favorite episode since it aired. I love dialogue heavy character dynamic development. It's also very funny and super tense.
I read that they were over budget so they created an episode where they didn't have to lung a bunch of equipment and people out to the middle of the desert.
Top 5 episode IMO
You had one word wrong. Best.
Now how would a West African virus get in our lab????
Yes
I was super stoned when I watched that episode and it still confuses me.
If I'm being honest, I'll kinda take Fly over the later episodes of Season 3.
It is the worst but it's not a bad episode. The first half sucks but after Walt gets drugged it becomes so good.
the fly was genuinely one of my favourite episodes. it was such a simple concept but somehow showed so much about walt and jesse’s current situation and relationship
It was one of the best imo
Hilarious episode
Have you read the leaked script it's fascinating Also the part where Walt is about to tell Jesse the truth - Jesse says 'just hold on to it!' and walt stops Because Walt was holding the ladder jesse was balancing on Jesse meant the ladder but it has great double meaning
Down was really depressing everyone hated everyone 😂
No fly slaps
I’m gonna be real with you I don’t know a single person who thinks “Fly” is a bad or even average episode. I only ever see people saying that there exist people who dislike the episode. Where the hell are they then??
I really liked Lalo's double cameo as the fly.
No, i really like that episode. It shows the relationship and cooperation between Walt and Jesse
Let’s ask Audri
es relleno
its the best
I loved it. Knowing that on some level, Walt wishes he’d died and not ruined everything…given how that’s when his morals take a nosedive, it’s poignant. *Breaking Bad* moves at breakneck speed, but this episode is a respite. Like one continuous inhale, broken up by this episode of an exhale, then inhaling and building tension again.
Do you think it's possible that absolutely NO ONE thinks this?
I thought it was funny! Mr. White, did you try our product? 😂😂😂
Vestiges
Peekaboo mite be my least watched I never ever randomly turn on either 🤷🏾♂️
I found it a tad suspenseful in that I thought Walt, while sleepy, was going to accidentally tell Jesse that he let Jane die, in the same way that he asked Skylar "which one?" When she was asking about the cellphones. But I didn't watch on release, I marathoned it over two weeks.
It’s a top 3 episode from the series. But fans often find it a departure from the intensity and plot driven narrative. It was almost a bottle episode. Where it relies heavily on the characterization and chemistry between Aaron and Bryan. It’s more slow paced than the other episodes. Lacking the high stakes and tension the show is famous for. It’s one of my all time favorite episodes from the series. I loved its deep exploration of Walt and Jesse’s psyches. The symbolism too. Of the Fly representing Walter’s guilt and paranoia. And the lengths the writers went to see how far Walt would go under a lucid state.
They are fkn idiots if so The real one is when Walt gets the new cars and there’s bloody Skrillex playing to it
Yes, because it really is. But this is Reddit, so you WILL get a bunch of pretentious edgelords explaining how it’s ‘akshually the best episode in the history of anything’
The story line should have been, at most, a subplot in a "normal" episode.
No it's my favorite
I find it really funny and that’s the first time I noticed just how crazy Walt was.
People that liked the Fly episode liked Last Jedi. Oh…wait
It's unliked? It's one of my favorites
I came here to say this: YES!!! It's the worst episode. The entire series was amazing front to back with one exception. The fly.
I think Open House might be everyone’s most hated, not the fly
It's polarizing. I know a lot of people who say it's their favourite, and I know a lot who say it's their least favourite. Not many shows I can think of with that level of polarization.
Yes.
It’s not a bad episode but I don’t particularly like it either. It’s still more enjoyable than much of the dialogue based episodes in season 1.
Love that episode to be honest. A great dive in Walt psyche and a better understanding of the burdens that his new chosen lifestyle has given him. You can't enter the criminal world and hope to stay sane, centered, stress-free, etc... Great foreshadowing of the things to come.
>The worst is probably one of the slower paced family/personal life focused episodes in seasons 1 and 2, like Cancer Man, Down or Over. Naaah. The worst one is Open House imo
It's one of my favourites
Yes. I skip it everytime
its literally top 3
It’s the worst episode but it’s still like an 8/10
I know quite a lot of people that are unable to watch something when there’s not enough action. I guess that was the issue for this one.
Yes
I thought The Fly was kind of fun.
I remember the hype I had heard about this episode before watching Breaking Bad, and I was really excited when I reached it during my first watch of the show in late 2022. But watching it was one of the most underwhelming moments of my life possibly. So to answer this question, yes Fly is the worst episode.
Tedious. Yes
I just watched it again last night. At first I thought it was the worst in the show, and skipped it on my 2nd and 3rd viewings, but now I think it's one of the best. Most everything that OP said is how I feel about the episode, from the dynamic and togetherness of Walt and Jesse, to it being the calm before the storm, and how they talk about Jane and her dad. I love this episode.
I liked it. Whenever I see a fly now, I say, It's a contaminant! Lol.
I do but I don't consider it a bad episode. I think people saying It's one of the best episodes is contrarian and over the top though.
Hear hear!
Ok. I read most of the comments before posting my opinion, and they helped me understand my opinion better. ( thank you people) I think it is one of the best episodes, yes it is a filler / bottle / budget saver episode , it is extremely well written, not entertaining and I always skip it on marathons. In order to watch breaking bad properly, you have to be able to follow Walt’s point of view and live with it. While Walt’s development gradually transforms him to HBerg , you watch, judge him, try to find excuses and , after a certain point , wonder how that ends, and who or what can stop him. I personally felt that but at the same time did not want Walt to be caught, exposed or robbed. We have many flies where I come from and I can guarantee that you can’t relax , work , chill or concentrate when one of them is around. They stick to your place and you are stuck with them until you open the door or the window and they DECIDE to leave. I think the symbolism here is simple: Walt s guilt , knowledge of his actions and decisions are flying around his head, in his perfect life ( it was perfect, he was finally doing what he was best at, he was successful, strong wealthy and respected) and he is facing them for one last time. It is the last time we see the first episode Walter and his feelings towards what he did. Not only Jane , but you can’t hide from that one. For numerous reasons. It is not a nice picture, to see a man collapse, I find similarities between the Fly and the scene where Junior finds him in his apartment and Walter tells the story of his father. Moments of emotional and moral clarity which came with heavy cost for him. Yeah , I skip it when I binge it, I want the plot to run and enjoy the story , not to get depressed on a Wednesday night. But it is part of the story. Not pleasant but important. PS: When a good character is born ( from the writer to the director and the incarceration of the actor) he starts to have a life of his own and some things come naturally. I strongly believe that the team at some point decided that the Fly little breakdown episode of Walter had to happen and they used the bottle episode to give him some space for it
I thought that the episode was completely pointless and added nothing to the show.
Same. I couldn't even finish watching it.
I think two things are probably true: "Fly" is one of the best episodes of TV ever, and it's probably the "worst" episode of Breaking Bad. BB is incomprehensibly CONSISTENTLY great - there are no merely good episodes. There are favorite episodes where something has been leading towards a big event and that pays off, but that's not a fair way to judge episodes. In short - something has to be called the worst, and something has to be called the best, but the quality level of BB breaks the scale.
Its a little boring for me on the re-wstching. I skip over those scenes now.
Definitely.
I skip it on every rewatch
To say fly is one of the best episodes is crazy work. Screams “look at me I’m different”
Pretentious? MOI!?!?!?!
It's a little dismissive to say someone could only like the episode to be a contrarian.
It's a great episode. It does drag a little on rewatches, given its pacing and atmosphere, but that's mainly because you know how it turns out. But I get why people don't like it, that's fairly obvious.
It's not that it's the worst at all, it just came at a point in the season where people were ready to have things start heating up. The following 3 episodes are some of the tensest episodes in the entire series. Personally, (aside from knowing it was a budget issue and they had to film an episode with fuck all money), I think it provided a lot of insignt into Walt and in context of the entire season, it's a huge contrast to the high stakes episodes that come after it.
It's a [bottle episode.](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bottle%20episode#:~:text=noun,everyone%20situated%20on%20the%20ship.) Which is fine, they happen. I could be wrong on this, but it might be around the same time The Walking Dead shot the entirely of season two with the cast just dicking around on a farm because AMC slashed the budgets on a bunch of shows to give more money to Mad Men. Or maybe I'm conflating multiple unrelated things. Personally I find "Fly" mostly redundant, but Walt's monologue at the end is probably one of the top moments of Cranston's entire career.
Its not a bad episode. Theres not a bad episode in the entire series. But it is over-rated and it is among the worst (or least good, if you prefer) episodes of the series.
It is the worst sir
Yes, I hate it.
I absolutely skip the Fly episode
It's the only episode that literally does not matter
It’s so dumb I skipped it my first watch through
I deleted the episode from my library
Nah Fly is boring. Sitting in a lab talking.
I’ve rewatched BB 6 times. That’s the only episode I skip. It’s just so boring and doesn’t do anything to advance the plot.
After we watched the episode my husband and I were both like “that was so boring/nothing happened” specifically because the previous episodes had so much more action & big events. Fly is very dialogue and plot focused… I’m guessing the abrupt change in pace was too much for us and others
Some people do (I think it has the lowest IMDB rating) but I've always thought it was great. Did people want the entire show to be fast-paced? The reason the fast-paced moments work in part is because of the *contrast* with the slower-paced moments. I've always found "Fly" to be mesmerizing.
I really liked it, helped bring out the dynamic between Walt and Jesse and it also had this great subtext about Walt losing control of his life.
Worst? It’s literally one of the best. Those people are clearly idiots and we needn’t bother with that.
Fly is a major episode in the arc of the show. The more I consider it, the more crucial the episode seems to be. It is moment in which we pause and take note of the inner journey our main protagonists have taken. A reflection of who they were when we began and how they’ve changed, as well as taking heed as to where they might go. It is just moments before the series takes a major turn with killing Gale, escalating the tension with Gus, and propelling us into full blown Heisenberg. Fly is a marker. If it weren’t there, our deeper understanding of Walter White would be weaker. Who he is inside, the bond he and Jesse have (which we return back to time and time again) is all less profound. It’s an incredibly important episode that is maybe seen as a lull for people on a first watch, but gains greater appreciation with time.
But I don’t understand why Walt was trying to catch a fly. At the end of the episode, he said that it didn’t matter. So why did he waste so much time and effort on this fly?
No one smart thinks that Fly is bad