Almost a decade after Breaking Bad ended, ardent fans of the show still idolize its protagonist, Walter White (Bryan Cranston), even after the series finale confirmed that he never truly broke bad (and always had the dark side within him).
While Walter was hailed as an anti-hero throughout the five seasons of the show, his confession to his wife, Skylar, in the series finale proved that he did have a choice, but he decided to give in to his dark side and live life to the fullest before dying.
Walter was established as a doomed and tragic hero from the beginning of Breaking Bad. Being a regular middle-class chemistry teacher, when Walter is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, his first thought is the medical bills for his chemotherapy and his family's needs after he is gone.
Therefore, claiming that he has no choice, he embarks on a violent and criminal journey and establishes the world's biggest drug cartel by cooking methamphetamine. However, the finale confirmed what many fans had suspected for a long time: Walter did have a choice to stop it all, but he didn't.
More on Walter White in Breaking Bad in our story.
Walter White's confession in the Breaking Bad series finale proves that he is not the anti-hero he claimed to be
While fans continue to idolize Walter White, his confession in the Breaking Bad series finale confirmed that he was not the helpless person he claimed to be.
Before going on a suicide mission in the series finale, he says this to Skylar:
''I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. And... I was really... I was alive.''
This one line, Walter's confession and eventual acceptance, proves that he never broke bad. Throughout the show, Walter claimed that he had no choice but to enter this dangerous business for the sake of his family.
However, even when the opportunity presented itself for him to tap out, he refused to switch. The Schwartzes and his college friends offered to help him out by paying his medical bills and Gus even offered him a stable income and secure future. However, Walter kept dismissing them and continued to steer even further into his illegal business.
Walter White's meth business was his way to feel alive within his numbered days in Breaking Bad
While Walter claimed that he had no choice, his confession in the Breaking Bad series finale proved that he did it all for himself. Giving the protagonist the benefit of the doubt, one can say that he was in dire need of cash flow and the drug cartel was a quick, albeit dangerous, fix.
But the limits he crossed while adopting his dangerous alter ego, Heisenberg, reached far beyond what was necessary. After dipping his toes in the meth business and tasting success, Walter could not stop himself from exploring his dark side.
Since he knew that his days were numbered and he had spent the entirety of his life being a regular chemistry teacher (which ultimately gave him lung cancer), he wanted that adrenaline rush for one last time. His Breaking Bad was by choice, a deliberate decision to break free from the mundanities of his finite life, and he wanted to die having lived a full life.
Walter's meth business was his excuse to channel his inner Heisenberg, which was always inside him but he couldn't get him out, until he finally did and the rest is history.
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