Caution: Major spoilers for seasons 3 & 5 of Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, respectively.
Some critics have compared the events at the end of Breaking Bad’s final run of episodes on AMC to the now-infamous Red Wedding that takes place in the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones’ third season on HBO. While it is easy to feel that there is a similarity, it is considerably more difficult to explain why.
How is it that a wedding feast massacre of a heroic young king and his family in a medieval fantasy setting evokes a similar emotional response to the downfall of a despicable contemporary methlord? Beyond the potent mix of horror, anger, and shock that leaves you rooted to the couch after the credits have rolled, there is a deeper phenomenon at work that goes some way towards explaining why the Red Wedding and the downfall of Walter White are so potent: cause and effect.
All other considerations – honor, family, intellect – yield to this mighty narrative force. Different as they may be, Robb Stark and Walter White, through a series of key decisions, set in motion a chain of events that culminate in devastating consequences. Furthermore, these decisions are byproducts of fundamental flaws in these two characters.
At first glance, it is difficult to view Robb Stark and Walter White as anything alike. The former is mostly sympathetic, while the latter is for the most part despicable. However, from a narrative perspective, the two characters serve similar functions that make them the most useful focal points for this comparison. They are intended, above all, to highlight the result of slavish adherence to noble ideals. Honor, family and love are commendable – but only up to a point. They do not free characters of the obligation to consider the concrete consequences of their actions.
True to life, Robb Stark and Walter White do not suffer these consequences alone. The innocent (Holly, Walter Jr, Robb’s unborn child and loyal bannermen) and the less-guilty (Hank, Marie, Catelyn, Talisa) must reap the consequences of actions outside of their control.
Despite a series of bad decisions, Robb Stark possesses an underlying nobility and innocence. Superficially, he is a victim, an object of pity. Yet, he has a tendency to make rash decisions guided by emotion and, towards the end, a disconcerting belief in his own righteousness. To be sure, external factors – the machinations of treacherous lords Walder Frey and Roose Bolton, Tywin Lannister’s machinations, and perhaps the blood magic of Melisandre – play a substantial role in the bloody Red Wedding massacre. But without a series of decisions by Robb, it would not have happened.
In marrying Lady Talisa (Jayne Westerling in the novels), he forsakes his pledge to marry Walder Frey’s daughter. His execution of Rickard Karstark loses him the crucial support of the Karstarks, who comprise a substantial portion of his army. This places him in the unenviable positions of appealing to Walder Frey, the very man he slighted out of love for Talisa, in order to replenish his forces. Thus, Robb Stark places himself at the mercy of men eager to exploit his weaknesses, seize power, and exact vengeance.
Complicit as he is in the Red Wedding, Robb Stark’s transgressions differ in nature and severity from Walter White’s. His betrayers still bear moral responsibility for actions that are unforgivable even by the standards of George R.R. Martin’s brutal world. In addition, Robb’s devotion to noble ideals, though at times imperfect, remain to the end.
The audience can imagine themselves making similar mistakes under the circumstances, especially in their youth. Indeed, even Robb’s worst lapse would not be fatal or irredeemable for an average person, unburdened with the responsibilities of leadership. Yet, in Game of Thrones, as in Breaking Bad, even sympathetic characters must face the consequences of their actions.
Walter White, in contrast, has lost all semblance of sympathy. He pays lip service to the ideals that once, at least partially, governed his decisions, but it is clear that he is by the time of “Ozymandias” a slave to his own ego. The first shot of the third-to-last episode is of water reaching a boil. Walt explains to Jesse that this common occurrence is a chemical reaction. Exposing water to heat begins a process that is simultaneously chaotic and inevitable.
The same can be said of Walt’s decision to cook meth. Slowly, the consequences of this decision, compounded by decisions he makes over the course of a year (much like Robb’s decisions leading up to the Red Wedding), produce an outcome that is surprising at first, but makes perfect sense in retrospect.
Walter White, too, finds himself in an unenviable position that would try any man. Diagnosed with terminal cancer and lacking the financial means to provide for his family after he dies, the audience can sympathize with, if not condone, Walt’s decision to cook crystal meth. On top of that, we learn that he has been robbed of his legacy as the founder and architect of the multi-billion-dollar company, Gray Matter. The fate of an extraordinary man doomed to a mundane, fruitless suburban life is easy to relate to. Who doesn’t feel, on some level, that they are not recognized for their abilities?
Alas, Walter White takes all the wrong lessons from his plight, squandering any sympathy we may have for him through a series of increasingly despicable actions. Aside from the human cost of a horrible drug like crystal meth, Walt and his alter-ego Heisenberg wreaks havoc on his loved ones, peaking in his neo-Nazi associates’ murder of his brother-in-law, Hank. This is the straw that breaks the camel’s back, destroying whatever semblance of a life Walt has left. Walt must live with the fact that he has indirectly murdered a family member, turning his remaining family members irrevocably against him and undermining his whole justification for cooking meth in the first place.
Thus, while Hank is killed by Uncle Jack, Walt bears the ultimate responsibility as the architect of the events that led to his death. The world of Breaking Bad is one of cause and effect at its most extreme. A character’s action eventually leads to a reaction, no matter how convoluted its path. Andrea’s death in the subsequent episode, “Granite State,” serves a similar function for Jesse Pinkman, punishing his refusal to leave the meth-cooking game against the urging of his conscience.
Watching Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, the viewer cannot help but feel as if the events are headed towards some awful conclusion. Critics and commentators have cited both shows mastery of building and sustaining tension. But this alone does not constitute greatness. It is not difficult to shock by killing off beloved characters or introducing twists. It is all about context.
The Red Wedding and the bloody downfall of Walter White go beyond thrilling entertainment and into the realm of true art because their architects have meticulously laid the groundwork for these events to occur, leaving a trail of seemingly unrelated decisions that, upon reflection, seem inevitable.
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Assessing the Role of Cause & Effect in Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones
Caution: Major spoilers for seasons 3 & 5 of Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, respectively.
Some critics have compared the events at the end of Breaking Bad’s final run of episodes on AMC to the now-infamous Red Wedding that takes place in the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones’ third season on HBO. While it is easy to feel that there is a similarity, it is considerably more difficult to explain why.
How is it that a wedding feast massacre of a heroic young king and his family in a medieval fantasy setting evokes a similar emotional response to the downfall of a despicable contemporary methlord? Beyond the potent mix of horror, anger, and shock that leaves you rooted to the couch after the credits have rolled, there is a deeper phenomenon at work that goes some way towards explaining why the Red Wedding and the downfall of Walter White are so potent: cause and effect.
All other considerations – honor, family, intellect – yield to this mighty narrative force. Different as they may be, Robb Stark and Walter White, through a series of key decisions, set in motion a chain of events that culminate in devastating consequences. Furthermore, these decisions are byproducts of fundamental flaws in these two characters.
At first glance, it is difficult to view Robb Stark and Walter White as anything alike. The former is mostly sympathetic, while the latter is for the most part despicable. However, from a narrative perspective, the two characters serve similar functions that make them the most useful focal points for this comparison. They are intended, above all, to highlight the result of slavish adherence to noble ideals. Honor, family and love are commendable – but only up to a point. They do not free characters of the obligation to consider the concrete consequences of their actions.
True to life, Robb Stark and Walter White do not suffer these consequences alone. The innocent (Holly, Walter Jr, Robb’s unborn child and loyal bannermen) and the less-guilty (Hank, Marie, Catelyn, Talisa) must reap the consequences of actions outside of their control.
Despite a series of bad decisions, Robb Stark possesses an underlying nobility and innocence. Superficially, he is a victim, an object of pity. Yet, he has a tendency to make rash decisions guided by emotion and, towards the end, a disconcerting belief in his own righteousness. To be sure, external factors – the machinations of treacherous lords Walder Frey and Roose Bolton, Tywin Lannister’s machinations, and perhaps the blood magic of Melisandre – play a substantial role in the bloody Red Wedding massacre. But without a series of decisions by Robb, it would not have happened.
In marrying Lady Talisa (Jayne Westerling in the novels), he forsakes his pledge to marry Walder Frey’s daughter. His execution of Rickard Karstark loses him the crucial support of the Karstarks, who comprise a substantial portion of his army. This places him in the unenviable positions of appealing to Walder Frey, the very man he slighted out of love for Talisa, in order to replenish his forces. Thus, Robb Stark places himself at the mercy of men eager to exploit his weaknesses, seize power, and exact vengeance.
Complicit as he is in the Red Wedding, Robb Stark’s transgressions differ in nature and severity from Walter White’s. His betrayers still bear moral responsibility for actions that are unforgivable even by the standards of George R.R. Martin’s brutal world. In addition, Robb’s devotion to noble ideals, though at times imperfect, remain to the end.
The audience can imagine themselves making similar mistakes under the circumstances, especially in their youth. Indeed, even Robb’s worst lapse would not be fatal or irredeemable for an average person, unburdened with the responsibilities of leadership. Yet, in Game of Thrones, as in Breaking Bad, even sympathetic characters must face the consequences of their actions.
Walter White, in contrast, has lost all semblance of sympathy. He pays lip service to the ideals that once, at least partially, governed his decisions, but it is clear that he is by the time of “Ozymandias” a slave to his own ego. The first shot of the third-to-last episode is of water reaching a boil. Walt explains to Jesse that this common occurrence is a chemical reaction. Exposing water to heat begins a process that is simultaneously chaotic and inevitable.
The same can be said of Walt’s decision to cook meth. Slowly, the consequences of this decision, compounded by decisions he makes over the course of a year (much like Robb’s decisions leading up to the Red Wedding), produce an outcome that is surprising at first, but makes perfect sense in retrospect.
Walter White, too, finds himself in an unenviable position that would try any man. Diagnosed with terminal cancer and lacking the financial means to provide for his family after he dies, the audience can sympathize with, if not condone, Walt’s decision to cook crystal meth. On top of that, we learn that he has been robbed of his legacy as the founder and architect of the multi-billion-dollar company, Gray Matter. The fate of an extraordinary man doomed to a mundane, fruitless suburban life is easy to relate to. Who doesn’t feel, on some level, that they are not recognized for their abilities?
Alas, Walter White takes all the wrong lessons from his plight, squandering any sympathy we may have for him through a series of increasingly despicable actions. Aside from the human cost of a horrible drug like crystal meth, Walt and his alter-ego Heisenberg wreaks havoc on his loved ones, peaking in his neo-Nazi associates’ murder of his brother-in-law, Hank. This is the straw that breaks the camel’s back, destroying whatever semblance of a life Walt has left. Walt must live with the fact that he has indirectly murdered a family member, turning his remaining family members irrevocably against him and undermining his whole justification for cooking meth in the first place.
Thus, while Hank is killed by Uncle Jack, Walt bears the ultimate responsibility as the architect of the events that led to his death. The world of Breaking Bad is one of cause and effect at its most extreme. A character’s action eventually leads to a reaction, no matter how convoluted its path. Andrea’s death in the subsequent episode, “Granite State,” serves a similar function for Jesse Pinkman, punishing his refusal to leave the meth-cooking game against the urging of his conscience.
Watching Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad, the viewer cannot help but feel as if the events are headed towards some awful conclusion. Critics and commentators have cited both shows mastery of building and sustaining tension. But this alone does not constitute greatness. It is not difficult to shock by killing off beloved characters or introducing twists. It is all about context.
The Red Wedding and the bloody downfall of Walter White go beyond thrilling entertainment and into the realm of true art because their architects have meticulously laid the groundwork for these events to occur, leaving a trail of seemingly unrelated decisions that, upon reflection, seem inevitable.