Season 3, Episode 9 “Kafkaesque”
I wasn’t a fan of Jesse Pinkman when I first started watching Breaking Bad. I thought he was simply a hot-headed scumbag who was too stupid to even become a capable meth dealer. However, as time passed and we got to know Jesse, I grew to like the character more and more. With Season 2’s “Peekabo”, Jesse quickly became my favorite character. Still, I think the defining moment for this character came during a tender scene where Jesse was in a group therapy session during “Kafkaesque.”
Jesse started going to rehab at the end of Season 2, after his girlfriend Jane overdosed on meth. After Jesse leaves rehab, he still occasionally makes stops at group therapy. At this session, the Group Leader asks Jesse what he would do with his life if money wasn’t a problem. Jesse simple states that he would make stuff with his hands. When the group leader asks him to be more specific, Jesse tells a story about a woodworking class he took in high school. The class’s assignment for the semester was to make a box, so Jesse makes the box as quickly as possible, thinking he could get a “D” and just slack off for the rest of the semester. However, when he showed the teacher the box, the teacher responded “Is that the best you can do?” Jesse says that there was something about the way the teacher asked that question, claiming that the teacher wasn’t implying that it “sucked,” but was honestly asking if that was the best Jesse could do, that struck a chord with Jesse. Jesse decides to keep working on the project for the rest of the semester. He becomes enthralled with the project, explaining that he kept working on the box until it was perfect. When the group leader asked Jesse what happened to the box, Jesse, while keeping his head down, told the room that he gave it to his mom. After Jesse's story the Group Leader starts bringing up adult extension programs where they teach wood-working that could eventually lead to a career for Jesse. However, Jesse quickly interrupts him, bluntly explaining that he didn’t give the box to his mom, but instead traded it for an ounce of weed.
This scene explains who Jesse Pinkman is perfectly. Despite Jesse’s attitude problem and slacker image, he’s an intelligent and hardworking person. If you push Jesse, the way the wood-working teacher did in high school or Walt has done throughout the series, Jesse is capable of accomplishing some *great things. However, what makes Jesse an ultimately doomed character is that’s he’s too guided by his emotions and addictions. It’s these flaws that keep Jesse from ever thinking logically. Instead of giving the box to his Mom and possibly helping to repair that relationship, he trades the box so he can get stoned. Additionally, Jesse continuously lets Walt talk him back into joining forces with him by either insulting Jesse or pulling at his heartstrings. Aaron Paul gives an electrifying, but also heartbreaking performance here telling this story. Jesse wants to be a good person and his heart is usually in the right place, but he’s simply too damaged of a human to ever really be saved.
* By great, I mean cooking Walt's meth formula perfectly in Mexico.
No comments:
Post a Comment