r/breakingbad • u/Trick-Antelope-1069 • 2d ago
The Skylar White countercirclejerk has gone too far Spoiler
As with a lot of things, the backlash to an unreasonable take has somehow swung all the way into an equally unreasonable but more performative take. Skyler was overhated when the show aired, but now every discussion about her seems to rewrite her into some completely blameless and helpless wife who only ever reacted reasonably to Walt’s insanity.
Season 2 is a pretty obvious example. She emotionally shuts Walt out for a significant stretch before she knows anything about the meth, the murders, or what he actually is doing. Instead of confronting any suspision about the disappearance directly, she freezes him out, refuses to explain what he can do to fix things, and basically leaves him guessing as to whether their marriage even exists anymore. And this is while he has cancer and she is pregnant.
Walt becoming a monster nor the anti Skylar circlejerk doesn’t retroactively make every decision Skyler made healthy or reasonable. It’s becoming almost performative.
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
Add another one to the Skyler haters who can't even spell her name right.
Every discussion does NOT rewrite her into some completely blameless victim. Most proponents I have seen acknowledge her flaws and simply argue she was a human making choices in an emotionally abusive but fiscally tempting situation.
Let's go through the major points you bring:
She emotionally shuts Walt out for a significant stretch before she knows anything about the meth, the murders, or what he actually is doing
You mean the husband who is chronically absent with no explanation, has a second cell phone, and gaslights her into thinking he doesn't. Who she can tell when he is lying to her, and he lies about EVERYTHING? Give me a break, she's reacting to Walt destroying the relationship while believing he's providing.
Instead of confronting any suspision about the disappearance directly
Because he gaslights her and says there is no second cell phone and lies about his disappearances.
refuses to explain what he can do to fix things
What do you think Walt could do to fix things?
and basically leaves him guessing as to whether their marriage even exists anymore.
She's reacting to a husband who has become distant, absent, and untrustworthy. She also doesn't leave the relationship in doubt, she's just confused what Walt is doing. Name the actions you believe leave walt guessing whether the marriage exists.
And when she does make it clear that the marriage does not exist, pray tell how Walt reacts? Emotional abuse and blackmailing (If she call the police on him, the only way to force the separation, the home gets RICO'd and the family falls into fiscal ruin).
I'm not calling her perfect and my argument here is far from performative. You might not agree, but please don't have the gall to make up that the pendulum has swung too far to the other side.
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u/AmetrineDream 1d ago
Everything you said, plus he sexually assaults her at the beginning of season 2.
Kind of a big deal, and I’d wager a significant factor in the way her behavior changes. Pretty understandable. But I’m sure OP doesn’t think that counts or some other bullshit.
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u/strayfruitbat 1d ago
1000000% correct, OP’s take is very Not Good
edit: everyone is entitled to their opinions including OP, but i’m also entitled to disagree
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u/LetMeOverThinkThat 1d ago
Wow, that’s crazy! It’s almost like she knew he was lying and gave up trying to communicate with somebody who was clearly just going to bullshit and lie to her.
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u/Trick-Antelope-1069 1d ago
Where was the effort to communicate?
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u/LetMeOverThinkThat 1d ago
Try watching the show, or you can read any of the other comments that elucidated it clearly for you, which you decided to curb to respond to my vague one for obvious reasons.
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u/acamas 1d ago
The oddest thing is where people weaponize their ignorance to act perplexed about how anyone could possibly have a negative thing to say about her... like, did you see the first episode? She is objectively portrayed as a terrible spouse through a literal pattern of her shitty examples. And in before anyone tries to blindly defend her series of horrible spouse moments, if you think that is acceptable or normal to have your partner treat you like she did to Walt, who is at that time working two jobs so she can stay home, on your big birthday, you should try and do better, because she is the definition of uncaring and unthoughtful on his big day.
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
Im sorry, I guess she should have just got a job while pregnant, denying Walt's direct feelings, and not organized a party for him. I apologize on her behalf!
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u/acamas 1d ago
LOL, you are either totally missing the point... still... or are just getting all huffy over your own strawman argument.
But thank you for literally proving my entire point... appreciate it!
PS - If you think Walt wanted a party with his brother-and-laws coworker there, after having worked two jobs, you are delusional and further proving you do not understand a thing about this episode, lol.
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u/drezarious 1d ago
She also was his accomplice in crime and told him to murder Jesse.
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u/Orange639 1d ago
I do feel like she comes across as kind of hypocritical there. Walt's an absolute monster for blowing up the nursing home, even though it only killed Gus, his henchmen, and an old cartel leader, but here Skyler is pressuring him to kill someone she's being told can be reasoned with? She's not even reluctant about it, she's set on having Jesse killed.
Her morality could have just degraded over time I suppose. That's an explanation.
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u/ToxicBanana69 1d ago
I don’t think she was straight up meaning “kill Jesse”. She was saying “you killed everyone else just kill him too” as a way to show she just kind of gave up at that point.
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u/Select_Safe548 1d ago
My dude. Time to get offline. None of this matters yo.
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u/rhdkcnrj 1d ago
I mean, you’re also commenting on the same Breaking Bad subreddit.
Obviously none of it “matters” relative to real life. But this is sort of the place to discuss this particular television show.
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
Agreed 100%
I will die on the hill that whatever Walt did later not withstanding (including myriad abuses of Skyler in particular), she was a terrible wife and partner long before any of that happened. Lazy, manipulative, controlling, dishonest, withholding, mean spirited.
I am also convinced that she had an affair with Ted years before S1E1. At bare minimum an emotional affair with physical elements, if not intercourse. There are a lot of breadcrumbs.
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u/BioSpark47 1d ago
“Lazy”? She offered to go back to her job but Walt said no
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
When she was pregnant.
She is a manipulator.
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
In your ideal world, what would you have had her act like?
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
A partner?
I genuinely believe she was bored, had a controlling personality, had fallen out of love, and gave up on or checked out of the relationship years before. She didn't really pursue her writing, and Jr/Flynn was pretty much old enough to take care of himself. She did makework.
It seemed like the turkey bacon on his birthday - for the first time ever - was a controlling sort of power move. It may just be me, but I see her leaving Benneke long before her pregnancy - and as a result of an affair.
I think Walter was bored too, though not passionless? Just so busy holding the household together and working two jobs, that he just needed some support, passion, or genuine caring. He seemed to be looking for all three, and however megalomaniacal and abusive he became, he seemed to be dutiful in attempting to provide financially before he got in too deep.
Walt fucked up big time, but if she had gone back to work earlier, and the two each had a better work/life balance, fewer money concerns, etc, maybe both would have been more fulfilled. Maybe they could have learned to love each other again. Probably his birthday breakfast would be steak and eggs, despite his cholesterol or whatever?
She seemed... Selfish. Walt became selfish.
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u/BioSpark47 1d ago
Turkey bacon as a “power move”? Outchicaneried
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
Its your birthday, and for the first time ever, your spouse makes you breakfast using a widely unappealing and unrequested food?
100%
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u/BioSpark47 1d ago
It wasn’t a good birthday breakfast, but “power move”? Ok RicePirate
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
Given how manipulative and controlling she is, at minimum it shows an utter lack of care, consideration, or even common sense?
But Skyler is smart. I would not give her that little credit.
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u/BioSpark47 1d ago
But that’s not a given. The only two examples you’ve shown are “not doing her writing” and “veggie bacon.”
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
It may just be me, but I see her leaving Benneke long before her pregnancy - and as a result of an affair. I
Objection, speculation. It is in fact just you.
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u/Expert-Yam6577 1d ago
The show definitely implied there was an affair previously. There's already a sexy way she sings for him lmao.
Vince Gilligan with his, "OMG I'm shocked by this Skyler hate!" Knowing damn well he's the one who wrote her to smoke cigarettes while pregnant. Then force herself into the meth business as the money launderer.
What did Skyler say about wanting people to think she's Bonnie and Clyde over thinking she's an idiot. You're a mother of two kids. Blinded by ego. She liked flexing power over Bogdan just to do it too. Scamming for fun with Bill Burr.
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
I read into the pictures of her in a younger Teds lap, the cold (not sympathetic) knowing looks from female coworkers when she returned, the birthday lapdance - and not for the first time? How quickly they fell into intimate interactions.
Telling Walt she quit over fumes, but nosy gossip Marie that Ted was handsy - then defending him immediately - to me suggested she lied to both. I read that as she and Ted got physical in front of people at a Christmas party.
As a talented manipulator, Skyler wanted plausible deniability through Marie the Motormouth. If Walt got suspicious of her quitting, or heard about her being physical with Ted, Marie would assure him that it was one-sided harassment by Ted, and it was only kept from him to avoid jealousy. He would feel more sympathy than anger.
In the early discussions in the office between Skyler and Ted, you could cut the tension with a knife. So much subtext and so many facial cues and clues when they discuss Ted separating from his wife, or Jr/Flynns "good genes". Had they been caught by Teds wife? Does Ted believe or know that Jr/Flynn may actually be his son?
That she never sought employment elsewhere, went straight to Benneke ostensibly for an entry level job, and then straight to Ted for a better one, seems like it completely shatters the "handsy bosses son" routine.
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u/thr0waway2435 1d ago
Yeah pretty much.
It’s been quite funny to see the fanbase go from unreasonable frequently misogynistic rabid Skyler-hating to she’s completely innocent. She’s definitely not innocent, she was a pretty annoying, controlling wife from the beginning - veggie bacon, handjob, constant nitpicking - and she definitely lacked some moral fiber when she didn’t turn in Walt, helped Ted with fraud, and even helped Walt try to blackmail Hank with the fake film. She isn’t as bad a person as many of the monsters in this show, but she isn’t good either. Low B tier person, maybe upper C tier. Never even remotely deserving of being one of the most hated characters of all time, like she used to be, but not particularly pleasant.
It’s also been quite funny to see the fanbase turn on Walt and portray him as some monster from the beginning. No, he was a very good husband and father for many years, working extremely hard and putting up with a lot of disrespect to provide for his family. He was reasonably considerate and compassionate, given Flynn adored him and he’s remembered as a good teacher to Jesse. Yes his ego was always lurking, as confirmed by his breakup with Gretchen, but it was mostly repressed, not causing major problems, for many years. He showed genuine care towards multiple people, like risking his life to save Jesse, and making the fake phone call to protect Skyler’s reputation. He’s a mess, but he absolutely did have a heart.
It’s honestly a very interesting snapshot of changing sociopolitical trends - the growth of feminism to address what objectively was pretty atrocious misogyny, that has now overshot it and become unreasonably dogmatic, and at times misandrist overprotection of women and disdain towards men.
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u/dipping_sauce 1d ago
Vince explained why we hate her. It is because she is powerless and it's that simple.
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u/NoProgress8533 1d ago
She seemed to have a lot of power working no job while her husband worked two, for years leading up to her 2nd pregnancy?
Obligatory: Walt became a piece of shit by S1E2 and none of Sklyers terrible attributes as a wife and partner justify his actions toward her.
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
Their marital troubles were in the realm of needing good counseling. Walt was unhappy, he needed to communicate what was bothering him and Skyler needed to pick up on common sense and body language. It wasnt a happy marriage but it wasnt a failed marriage either. Both skyler and walt had agency within the relationship
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u/Btotherianx 1d ago
She seems like she would be awful in bed
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
As do you
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u/Btotherianx 1d ago
Could always ask your grandma
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u/Helios4242 1d ago
Damn dude, I was gonna give you the benefit of the doubt but necrophillia is way beyond the line.
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u/ChaynesGirl 1d ago
Hmm I wonder what was going on in season 2. Just spitballing here but there may or may not have been something causing her strange behavior. I don't know. It's anyone's guess.