"A cavalier disregard for customary fiction." Chapter 29: Breaking Convention

If you haven't been keeping up with Breaking Bad, simply put, you're doing yourself a disservice.

I've only recently become enamoured with BrBa, watching all five seasons in the past month. I've watched a simple family man become a meth-cooking drug kingpin, and it's been nothing short of astonishing what this show has been able to accomplish in regard to the fine art of character development and storytelling.

As any fan of Breaking Bad has inevitably done, I find myself really thinking about the eventual conclusion to this ludicrously engrossing epic. The show's unconventional approach to character sympathy, plot lines, and story arcs has really made me really dissect my personal perception of fiction in general, which is no easy feat.

It's rare that a show demands so much of us as viewers, and is rewarded with success. It's refreshing. It's not normal, and that's compelled me to analyze why BrBa has become such a massive cultural phenomenon.

The classic trope that almost all of mainstream fiction adheres to is good triumphs over evil. Period. In very few cases does a television show or movie stray from this formula, but Breaking Bad turns the concept completely on its head.

What happens when the protagonist transforms into something morally despicable, regardless of motive? Does the end justify the means? Does one's allegiance fade over time? How loyal does one, (as a fan) stay to a character as he or she slowly morphs into something barely recognizable?

Most typical works of fiction tend to wrap up neatly, with minimal casualties (literal or figurative). This show has been unapologetic in its emotional turmoil. Breaking Bad has been almost cavalier in its disregard for customary fiction.  (Plus, it's brilliantly written, shot, and acted, which doesn't hurt.)

It's the storytelling that's really the star here, however, and the story happens to be ending this Sunday.

It's been quite the ride for Walter White and soon, the chaos is coming to an end, for better or for worse. Every fan in the world has predictions, anticipations, questions they want answered, and above all else, an excitement to see What Happens Last. None of us can possibly be certain of what's going to go down.

The only thing that's certain in my mind is Breaking Bad is going to continue breaking convention, and the art of storytelling through fiction is better off because of it.

                                                                                                              -NxB

Watching: Breaking Bad

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Chapter 28 - All Of The Above

Creative Communications. Year two of two. Let's get started, then.

We aren't the bright-eyed innocents anymore. Shrugging our shoulders and pouting our lips in an apathetic apology to our instructors just plain doesn't cut it if we fail. We're "the second-years" now. No more messing around. No more excuses. No more unanswered questions.

Speaking of unanswered questions, I've been having the same conversation for about 20 years now, at least once a week. Sometimes with another person, sometimes internally; always the same question:

What do you want to be when you grow up?

I hated the question when I was five and I hated it recently, when an assignment asked the same thing. -- of course, it wasn't framed in those exact words -- instead, this time, we were asked "What are your goals? videojournalist? Shooter/editor? Freelancer? On-air personality?"

I miss these days, when staying inside the lines was the only thing I had to worry about.

The short answer, for me, is All Of The Above, so why is it still such a frustrating endeavour to endure this inner-dialogue?

I think it's probably because I don't want to do any one thing for the rest of my life. People change, (me especially) and the prospect of walking one path for the rest of my life frightens and frustrates me.

But I believe I've figured out why.

"What do you want to be when you grow up?" and "Who are you going to be to this world?" aren't the same questions, and I've been treating them as if they were. That's frustrating because there will never be an answer to the latter of the two questions. That's for history to dictate.

I think we should stop asking kids in Kindergarten what they're going to be when they grow up, not-so-subtly insinuating that What You Do = Who You Are.

It isn't. At least, it shouldn't be.

What You Do is determined by, simply, what you do; whereas Who You Are ought to be determined by the content of your character; how you treat others, how you contribute to your community and your society, and the legacy that you leave behind.

I'll aim to be a good person, to treat everyone with at least a modicum of respect, and basically leave every person/place better off than how I found them. I'll aim to be remembered fondly.

That's what I want to be when I grow up.

                                                                                                              -NxB

Listening to: "Madness" by Muse

"Don't let the actions of the few dictate the perception of the many." - Chapter 27: We Outnumber Them

Today, another tragedy.

During the Boston Marathon, three were killed and dozens more injured.

Last time, guns. This time, bombs.

What I want to talk about, though, isn't the downward spiral of humanity, the disgusting state of our society, or how we need to clean up our attitudes and figure out why the fuck these things keep happening.

That's not what I'm walking away with today.

I'm not going to remember the perpetrator(s) of this horrific attempt at terror.

I'm not going to cynically live my life thinking the world is a horrible place full of demons. Full of killers - full of monsters.

I'm not going to allow myself to live with any semblance of fear or anger toward The Unknowns.

I'm going to remember that, despite the fact that there are twisted viruses masquerading as people in our world, they're simply blips on our evolutionary blueprint. Glitches. Accidents. They won't endure.

There could have been more bombs, but these heroes ran towards the destruction, not away.

Heroism dominates psychotic terror and we have to make sure that's how it stays.

For every attacker that seeks to terrorize, there are a dozen heroes willing to run toward the insanity, toward the terror, to help those that need it. That's why the monsters will always try, but never win.

This picture was also went viral today, and it's incredibly poignant:

Brilliant advice, and so true.

I spent 27 years being angered and frustrated and confused by these seemingly random acts of violence. These complete voids of human empathy. I tried to explain it, and when I couldn't, I became consumed with jaded cynicism. This cynicism creeps and festers, along with fear, when we can't explain tragedy with logic or reason.

But it's important to not let the actions of the few dictate the perception of the many.

We outnumber them. Don't let their futile attempts convince you otherwise. 

                                                                                      -NxB

"Plagiarism's Steady Incline" - Chapter 26: Consuming Mediocre Art

These days, it's tough to be original. They say everything's been done and done to death; I'm inclined to believe Them.

That's why we, as consumers of media, are flooded with remakes, re-dos, reboots, rehashes, remixes, reruns, re-imaginings, and retweets. 

Once in awhile, something original and incredible comes along and blows us away, sure... but this saturation of repetition, masked, and then packaged, and then marketed as BRAND NEW seems to be slowly suffocating me.

I think this is all motivated by the same gripe I have with a lack of artistic integrity these days.

There's too much money to be made by making five Transformers sequels and seven Fast & Furious movies and not enough money being made creating original, thought-provoking art.

No, that would take time, effort, talent, funding, and artistic integrity.

It's difficult, though. I know that first-hand. Creating anything from scratch is a difficult process, and of course there are going to be previous motivations and inspirations that Creators draw from.

I guess my only plea is that as consumers, we attempt to recognize when we are being manipulated into consuming mediocre art. That's a greater travesty than creating the art itself.

I'll leave you with a brilliant short film (7 mins) that had a completely original twist on the classic Zombie Apocalypse genre. Pure genius. Enjoy.

                                                                                      -NxB

Playing: World of Goo by 2D Boy

Watching: The Winnipeg Jets trying to make the playoffs.

"We will shape the perception of our industries." Chapter 25: Difficult Decisions

I'm going into Media Production because I love filming, editing, and telling stories through a visual medium.

This potentially means I may be working in the field of journalism in the future, and that might not be as bad as I had previously thought.

We've been having some amazing discussions in Joanne Kelly's (@JoanneMKelly) journalism class the past couple of weeks.

About ethics, about grey areas, and a number of 'what would you do?' hypothetical questions that, really, have no right or wrong answers.

Those are the best kind of questions.

It's incredibly inspiring and thought-provoking listening to some of my colleagues and how they approach situations differently.

If a family approaches you with a sob-story fundraiser for their sick child, do you cover it as a journalist? What about the fifteen other sick kids who are having fifteen other fundraisers? Should you print (or post, or report) the names of convicted sex offenders in your community? What about convicted prostitution solicitors? What about drunk drivers? Armed robberies? What if the person is 'famous'? Where do you draw the line?

As far as the 'sick kids' hypothetical goes... Some argued that none of them deserve coverage, because there are thousands of sick kids everywhere, every day.

The counter-point to that was also raised. Just because we can't help everyone doesn't mean that we shouldn't help anyone.

I would like to write that again.

Just because we can't help everyone... doesn't mean that we shouldn't help anyone.

I think there's a difference between what we're required to contribute as a journalist and what we ought to contribute as a citizen of our community, and of our Country, and of our planet.

We're being groomed with the ability to communicate effectively and/or creatively, and with that ability comes a surprising amount of power.

Depending on the particular soap-box we may decide to shout our messages from, we will (potentially) have the ability to influence and sway public discourse, and we can't take that responsibility lightly.

It's important to start thinking about the consequences of our actions.

As journalists, what we choose to cover, how we choose to cover it (and why).

As public relations practitioners, the messages we want to convey, what our motivations are, and how the public is going to respond.

As advertisers and media producers, how will we tell a story or sell a product? Is a hyper-sexualized image the right message to be sending? Do we want to contribute towards current trends or rage against them?

Questions like these need to be asked – of ourselves, and of our peers.

We're the next generation, and we will shape the perception of our industries for years to come.

Remember that.

                                                                                                              -NxB

Watching: The Walking Dead Season Finale

Playing: Bioshock Infinite by Irrational Games

"Reversing Rape Culture" - Chapter 24: Some Things I Need To Say

The more I hear about it, the more I want to read deeper.

The more I read, the angrier I get.

The angrier I get, the more fed up I get. Something needs to be said and/or done.

I apologize in advance if this is all over the place. I'm not even sure what I want to say...

Something disgusting happens in the world, for the umpteenth time, and the world just keeps on spinning. Those that are in charge of influencing and molding our youth continue to slap offenders on the wrist and blame victims. It's beyond ridiculous. We're not cavemen. Let's evolve.

---

A 16-year-old girl was raped by two high school football stars in Steubenville, Ohio. I'd love to say that this is the first time that this has ever happened.

I'd also love to sit here and say that there is one solitary solution that would make these travesties stop. There isn't. There's dozens of influences and deeply rooted problems that need to be solved, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't try.

This is a multi-tiered problem that needs to be fixed collectively in our culture, from the ground up.

Our collective mindset needs to change when it comes to rape culture. I'm guilty of it, too, sadly.

In our high school there was... an incident. A girl a few years younger than me accused one of her classmates of violating her and forcing himself on her. I was skeptical because of her reputation. I'm embarrassed of my former mindset now, though I understand where the mindset comes from.

It has to change. We have to evolve on this issue.

Children today need to have it hammered into them that rape will not be tolerated. No grey area. If you violate someone in the worst possible way, your entire life can and should be ruined, too.

First and foremost, young men need to be taught respect. Even superstar athletes. (cancel that. Especially superstar athletes.) Respect yourself enough not to be peer pressured into doing something that disrespects yourself or another human being. In any capacity. Respect women no matter what. Treat others how you would like to be treated. You're no better than anyone else.

Young women need to be taught that their self-worth needn't be dictated by the amount of attention from others. They need role models to help and guide them through this messed up world that glorifies hyper-sexuality. They need to know that it's their right to say no, and to not be afraid of standing up for themselves. They, along with the young men of the world, need to be taught the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse, and until our collective culture shifts, they need to learn not to put themselves in dangerous situations.

Small communities that idolize their small-town sports teams need to get some perspective. The allegation that Steubenville community leaders (and peers of the convicted rapists) took measures to gloss over the misconduct of their star players is, at best disgusting/shortsighted and, at worst, criminal.

Everyone needs to operate under the same set of rules. Just because someone can shoot a hockey puck, dunk a basketball, or throw a perfect spiral, does not mean they are exempt from any of the rules that govern the rest of us. No matter who you are or where you're positioned in our culture, don't allow anyone to exist outside the parameters of normal society.

---

So... what can we do?

If you plan on having kids some day, or have kids of your own now, sit them down and -gasp!- have the difficult conversations. Raise them. Nurture them. Protect them. Arm them with the knowledge and experience that you've gained. Make it abundantly clear that behavior like this can't and won't be tolerated.

If you're a teacher or a community leader, or someone in the position of influence over our youth, use this power for good. Lead by example and treat everyone you come across with the respect they deserve.

And last, but certainly not least, if you see something terrible happening, make it stop.

Sounds simple.

I know it isn't. I understand the pressures on young people, to fit in, to be cool, to have friends.

But if you see something happening that you know you wouldn't want done to you, make it stop, or tell someone who is capable of making it stop. If you don't, you're just as guilty as the perpetrators.

We can turn things around and change the collective minds of those that don't yet understand.

We have to.

---

Sorry for the rant, thanks for reading my ramblings


                                                                                               -NxB

"Afflicted by Inspiration" - Chapter 23: Time To Get To Work

Throughout the past three days, we've been treated to ~70 presentations from ~70 second-year Creative Communications students, something that I will become in a few months.

Watching the passionate presentations of some of these literal geniuses was inspiring. Hearing them speak about their Independent Professional Projects (IPPs) was completely infectious. I can't wait to start working on my IPP, and in my major.

The overarching lesson I learned from this weird, rare experience of new-found motivation (despite the fact that I'm exhausted, overworked, and fighting off the first cold I've had in half a decade) is that I'm at my best when I surround myself with art and art's creators. I think that can be said of anyone.

When we surround ourselves with others who are motivated, creative, and have a true passion for what they do, how can we not follow suit? It's impossible not to be afflicted by inspiration.

The flipside of this new realization is... to avoid the black holes at all costs.

Black holes that consume positive energy and vibes. Black holes that absorb creativity and artistic desire. Black holes that inhale inspiration and motivation.

I don't have enough time left in my creative prime to waste on another year on artistic auto-pilot.

Not anymore. Time to get to work.

                                                                                                              -NxB

Listening to: Simple Man - Shinedown