Analyzing Evil: Gustavo "Gus" Fring From Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2022
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Hello everyone and welcome to the ninety-fourth episode of Analyzing Evil! Our feature villain for this video is Gustavo "Gus" Fring from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul. I hope you enjoy, and thanks for watching. If you have any feedback or questions feel free to let me know below!
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#breakingbad #bettercallsaul #gusfring - Розваги
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Hey, I get it. Gotta pay the bills. We still love ya, Vile Eye.
@@StrongandGrand plenty of other less predatory sponsors that pay well. i really wanna see the day when content creators don't sell out their viewers trust for money
Did they really pay you for that "endorsement?" 😏
Considering the subject matter of your videos I’m shocked they didn’t approach you sooner
The best part of Gus Frank is he was hidden in plain sight. I'm more perfect can you get to be a cartel boss that works at a chicken franchise? It's genius. You complain about your food he's very polite it gives you a refund or replaces it but if you cross them he will murder you in the middle of the night.
"A life spent seeking revenge is just a suicide note written in the blood of your victims" is a damn good line
@@Gamfluent But that's the point. He wanted Hector to suffer by tormenting him with visits from the man who killed the rest of his family.
@@Gamfluent he DID Let him rot. He only returned that one time because he thought Hector had been talking to the DEA
Well at least it’s a suicide with a use/function.
Well at least it’s a suicide with a use/function.
@@joshuabeers6012 , not to mention he wanted Hector to “look at him”…..
Gus IS the embodiment of a corporation. Great PR, always positive and smiling, but mercilessly killing people behind the scenes.
I think Fring actually does enjoy donating to charity even the dea. I think he genuinely likes people he thinks are "good." I think he cannot bond with people because he's afraid of them being hurt like Max. I think he did have a wife and children at some point but they were murdered (maybe Pinochet.) He probably had a wife and kid prior to meeting Max. Guessing Fring is bisexual.
@@soxpeewee Of course he takes pleasure in being a community pillar, but that’s another aspect of corporate America. Rich people feeling good about the awful things they do by setting up philanthropies and such
@@soxpeewee I always thought of Gus being apart of Pinochet's regime and possibly committing war crimes which is why he fled and made sure nobody can trace him
Man as Corporation
@@soxpeewee y 😢😂😢10:11 w😢😢😢😢😂😢😢😢
I love how he sighs before he starts the sponsorship B-roll 😂
ohh so that's what it means. i thought he sighed because the thought of BCS has actually ended and no more stuffs in the near future from this IP, and i was like "i felt that brother" lol
who wants to do a read for Raid Shadow Legends?
@@corsojames I mean shit, if I got the check he got I would
@@masona8821 how much do they pay for an ad anyway?
@@masona8821 it must be hard advertising a game that you know is complete trash
Mike definitely deserves an Analysis he is a text book definition of Anti-Villain and is a character type people can relate to more often than you would think.
Agreed.
He really needs his own video.
I think this a very good one: ua-cam.com/video/DOEzpSnDA_0/v-deo.html
Oh definitely
vid named finger
@@zumabbar u jus got fringered
absolutely astounding how at 16:20 he says finger as soon as mike comes on screen, the editing is phenomenal
that cracked me up
that kid's name isn't mike
I refuse to believe that he didnt do that on purpose lol
What if Kid Named Finger is the one who edits these videos?
@@seifoswaglel5823 kid named mike:
I’ve been waiting for this one. A ruthlessly efficient businessman, a better Walter White. Gus Fring is powerful enough to cooperate and rival the cartel. He plays the long game and wipes them all out both as a means of revenge and to enact a monopoly on the drug trade in the southwest United States. Then he’s taken out by someone he continually underestimated and hated. A high school chemistry teacher with an ego even bigger than his.
So true. See even the smartest and biggest make mistakes and gus well his biggest mistake was thinking walter wasn't as smart as him. I belive gus thought there was no one that could rival him after the death of Lalo salamanca and along came walter white he was luckier and he was smarter.
there was no conflict in gus's mind, he knew what he truly wanted and understood himself fully. so he didn't have Walter's self destructive impulses
@@keithmichael112 Such a great point 👍
@@childeaterieatkidz4208 he’s the devil, he’s smarter and luckier than you
A better Walter White? He stoops to an even lower level than Walter White who at least partially redeems himself by sacrificing what time he had left by risking his life to ultimately save Jesse from the neo-Nazis, and Walter's supposedly a genius level chemist even though even tweakers can make meth, I don't think it's that hard, it's not like discovering some complex pharmaceutical molecule that saves countless lives throughout the future and is extremely hard to synthesise, that will get you a Nobel prize, or something like that. The only way Gus is better than Walter White is at being a businessman. And I feel as though there's more good businessmen than genius level chemists in the world, though I may possibly be wrong about that...
In my opinion, the scene where Gus threatens Nacho's father is the scenes that shows how downright evil Gus Fring truly is. He has committed other brutal acts, yes, but it was usually against someone who had it coming. Nacho's father was not only innocent, but a genuinely good upstanding person, and Gus was threaten his life(or worse knowing gus) just to get Nacho to do his bidding, a man while not innocent was trying to leave the game itself. It makes you wonder how many other innocent, good people have died under Gus' hand without him blinking an eye
I hate him for what he did to Nacho, I would have tried anything to kill this evil prick
Don’t forget he also threatened to kill Walter White’s innocent son and infant daughter only because Jesse didn’t want him to kill Walter.
This is why I supported Lalo in the final season
which episode
@@GenerationalTreasure "I will kill your wife. I will kill your son. I will kill your infant daughter." Just thinking about the way he said it sends chills down my spine.
this man SIGHED before admitting raid shadow legends was his sponsor.
The scene where Gus invites Walter over for dinner is one of the finest scenes in the series, in my opinion. Really highlights how measured and frightening a criminal he really is.
He plays some mind games there too. He has things around his house that make Walt (a fellow family man) think that Gus is a family man. And then when Jesse comes over, all those things are gone, and Gus appears to be a single guy, just like Jesse. Or idk, maybe he was putting the moves on Jesse...
@@transformersrevenge9 Walt’s was the put on when Jesse came over was the real thing . Better call Saul even confirms this . Gus never had a family nor really moved on from Max
@John Wall unless he was playing Jesse
I didn't notice them. Makes a lot of sense for his charecter.
Lol... corporations are always alluding to being "just like us" right. Whatever "us" they want to sell to
I always had the feeling Gus was working for Pinochet. Something don Eladio said “You are alive because I know who you are, but understand, you are not in Chile anymore.” Don Eladio also calls him Generalisimo in Breaking Bad. And when Hank and the DEA search for Gustavo Fring and can’t find any records, Gus says it’s because many government records got lost after the fall of the Pinochet regime. Always had a feeling he was high up in the secret police of Pinochet or a similar position and fled when things fell apart. Gustavo Fring is probably not even his real name.
yeah, i feel the same
Yep I don’t buy Gus resisting the Pinochet regime. His personality fit the regime of Pinochet and his methodical way of doing things fit someone from a secret police, a hangman or torturer in chief. And I think his escape was due to his sexual orientation. Not resisting the Pinochet regime.
@Der Derwo maybe not general but a middle manager type guy in the CNI or whatever state police they had.
I think gus was a big drug guy in Chile and got kicked out or fled because of Pinochet, which actually happened, it's how the cocaine production ended up in Colombia, by actually happened I mean the real history behind cocaine production
@@tomz5704 That would make for an amazing pre-prequel series, although an unnecessary one of course.
I’m almost willing to bet money Gus keeping the animal as a “pet” was facetious. Like Hector, I think Gus gave it just enough food and water to keep it alive until it expired from natural causes. Like Hector, the animal was a prisoner in its own body and death was a sweet relief.
Initially I thought him keeping it as strange but I can't imagine Gus "took care" of his new pet considering the fact that the family wasn't well off at this point. Such a good dark implication
One tragic aspect of Gus's life is that if his love Max saw how he sacrificed his life to avenge him, he'd probably be horrified and ask Gus to move on and 'avenge' them by living a happy and long life with someone he loves.
True, I love that tragic aspect of his character
I mean.....are we sure that Max was a good person? At the end of the day, he was in love with a cold-blooded psychopath. Assuming the story he told Hector about his childhood was true, Gus was always sadistic and evil. The fact that Max presumably knew this and still entered into a relationship with him implies he was no boyscout either.
@@laughingoctopus6550 As far as we know he was not a psychopath back then. About the story... I wish they hadn't included that. It diminished Gus's character to me.
Ya when he was with Max he seemed less sadistic than before or after.
It makes me so sad for him.
I’m surprised Mike Ehrmantraut isn’t gonna be covered in the foreseeable future. He’s such an amazing character somehow being able to be ruthless and stoic but also sensitive and caring at the same time.
Because Mike is not evil
Mike had alot of compassion under his thick skinned deameanor
Same with Jesse, everyone seems to say that he is a good guy but he is evidently not. He's not as bad as Walter, sure, but he did some pretty messed up stuff.
@@dixienormous9053 I mean Mike and Jesse are not good people but not evil people at the same time. They don’t fit in the “ Analyzing Evil “ videos.
He’s more tragic than evil. He made terrible decisions that caused the death of his son and “forced” him to become a gangster but he wasn’t malicious. He was pragmatic in his approach to evil, always trying to lessen the impact on the innocent.
His very last scene in Better Call Saul is so sad to me. It’s like he’s consciously turning the light out on the last human part of himself
Well said. His subtle facial expression when he leaves the wine bar and the wine steward was beyond incredible.
Gus is my favorite character. i love how cold, calculated, and ruthless he is while still being a little too good at being outwardly professional. hes honestly one of my favorite villains in media. he has his flaws but his pros more than make up for them in my eyes. i also think the show writers making him a gay man but only implying it rather than telling you directly was a genius move to prove that they can make a character complex but not unreadable. not telling us about his past also lets us focus more on the man he has chosen to become rather than the man he could have been. his OCD being both a detriment when rattled with anxiety and a major part of why he is so successful and meticulous is amazing. i could just go on and on and on about why i love him as a character.
also not to mention: bro STAYS dripped tf out
I always saw Gus killing Victor as a result of Victor being seen at the murder scene of Gale. Given how there were posters looking to speak to Victor shortly after, Gus needed him gone as not to bring links to him
Agreed I saw that as well especially since Mike asked Victor if he was seen and Victor admitted he was.
Definitely. He just managed to also make it seem like a warning to Walt and Jesse by doing it in front of them rather than quietly offscreen.
Yup and when you add the scene at the police station where they have a sketch of Victor, it adds up to the fact of witnesses.
I’m surprised the creator missed this
Victor also left his car at the scene when he made Jesse drive them back to the lab, big fuckup
You have no idea how much I've been wanting for you to analyze this man
Same
I wasn't waiting. Until I saw him, that is. Now he's the villain I never knew I always wanted to see analyzed.
Ya, this wins the Internet for the rest of the week. 👏👏👏
I rotate this man in my head like rotisserie chicken
That sounds gay af
He was the guy Tony Soprano always wanted to be. The strong silent type...
Gus had the makings of a varsity athlete, unlike Tony.
21:16 I agree that Gus’s ocd could’ve been agitated at this point, but I read him keeping Lyle at the store with him Moreso to create an alibi for himself with a witness present in case something went wrong with the drop
Agreed, was gonna comment this.
I always thought Gus must have had a smooth criminal life until he met Walter, when he must have thought "Oh shit what did I get myself into". But in BCS it really shows that that's not the case. He never had smooth life, it's always been tooth and nail.
I'll never get over the "hello everyone" thing at the beginning of videos. It's so funny to me.
Been saying that every since he started doing that🤣🤣
Brown noser...
I wish YOU would say instead of this text-to-voice thing. Or if not you, any person.
@@kyleashby4090Isn't that just the dude's actual voice?
@@thegrayyernaut it is dude is just on thta good shit
There was no other actor who could have played Gus better than Giancarlo Esposito. It’s unbelievable how fast he’s able to switch between Gus’s symbiotic personalities. One side of him is a benevolent, kind hearted man who loves his employees, his community, and wants the best for everyone. And the other side is the true Gus, a cold calculating sociopath who would murder dozens to achieve his goals.
One thing too I love about his performance is that we don't get the feeling that this is his 'alter ego' that he struggles to balance with his 'normal' life. In Better Call Saul we feel that about Jimmy/Saul but Giancarlo plays the character entirely different - portraying a much more compelling villain.
It to this day astonishes me that this is the same man who played Buggin Out in Do the Right Thing.
Frank Vincent would’ve done it better
From what I've seen in interviews, Giancarlo Esposito is a real teddy bear sweetheart.
It's fascinating to me how actors who play the most evil characters tend to be the most gentle people in real life.
the one thing i hated was when they forced him to try to speak spanish.
it was pure cringe.....but that's not his fault. that's on the writers/directors for focing him to try to speak spanish when he very clearly cannot. it would be like me trying to speak mandarin.
just like Walter white was destroyed by his pride, I believe that Gustavo fring was destroyed by his wrath. His deep anger at hector and obsession with torturing him with the death of his partner max caused his death and the subsequent destruction of his empire.
Tis a good way to go
Great analyzation.
Se7en
Gus Fring is one of the greatest villains to ever be crafted
From the way he is written, the way he dresses, how Giancarlo Esposito perfectly portrays him as this cold calculating monster to a warm and friendly fast food franchise owner like flip of a switch, how he affects all the characters around him, how he challenged Walt and made him want more power, how affected everyone around him, and how achieved his goals of wiping out his enemies only to let his own petty emotions be his downfall.
He's just perfect
And his final scene is sublime, how he emerges from the blast and straightens his jacket/tie, before the camera pans in to his de-fleshed face. That and so many scenes showed what true evil geniuses the show writers are.
Seeing Giancarlo Esposito snap into Gus on a dime and then revert back so seamlessly so slightly terrifying but also really cool to see; he does it so effortlessly, like breathing air.
Similar vibe from that Far Cry 6 trailer.
"hahaha" *death stare*
he did that at the Ecuador ComicCon recently and it was truly breathtaking, he's such an amazing actor and person ❤
Gustavo Fring is one of my favorite TV villains ever! I especially love the scene where he tears off his shirt, flexes his absolutely gargantuan pecs, and says with complete confidence: "Last chance to look at me Hector."
I Fringed right there and then when I saw the scene. What a great villain :)
That was one of the scenes of all time!
I liked it when he came to Walter White’s RV and said “It’s Fringin’ time, Heisenberg!” I literally fringed my pants.
Gus being a secret agent or having connections to an agency, even though never mentioned, does sound plausible for other well-known reasons:
1. He can call with not just an unknown number but a totally untraceable restricted number.
2. He can supply cellphones with extended range somehow, as Nachos was out of bounds but magically received a signal and a call from a similar restricted number.
I feel that it is more to make gus feel almost supernatural
He could have had a stinger made
it can be traced, unless the phone is broken which gus does multiple times like when bolsa died
Gus was one of the most terrifying characters on TV. Giancarlo Esposito did a phenomenal job with the character. Physically, he wasn't intimidating at all, but the way he presented himself and his cold calm voice when making threats was frightening.
I mean physically, he WAS intimidating, he had a strong physical muscular body when he was changing clothes during the box cutter scene. That and his upright body always was carrying physical strength behind all of his fine proper clothes. As well as his cold icy glaze he was giving off, as well as his sinister smiles that were all masks when you know the truth about him!
I would love an analysis about Todd as well. He is such an intriguing character, being a kind introverted man on the outside and a serial killer with no morals on the inside
I don’t really think he’s a serial killer. Serial killers often have a motivation, a compulsion to kill. Todd executing the kid on the bicycle was more like, “Meh, he saw us and it’s not good to leave any witnesses behind”
He was much more nonchalant about killing than any other character. That doesn’t scream serial killer to me. He’s definitely psychopathic but I think he killed due to the circumstances, not compulsion.
@@dksdmusic True. I’ll he honest, I kinda wrote serial killer because I was lazy, but he is definitely not one. He is a psychopath who would do anything to get his rank up. He would just mindlessly follow a leader. His lack of morals makes him a great companion
I think Todd is the most innocent of the group he is a psychopath through and through. Like for example the child he shoots had a tarantula in a Jar and Todd kept it. In my opinion he kept it literally just because the spider was cool looking to him he cannot attach the emotional aspects to things himself he can recognize it in others but not feel it himself
Lalo would be better
@@Nicolas815 Why did Todd balloon up in weight in. the movie and then slim back down again in BB I found that to be a plot hole UNLESS he was anti psychotic medication at the time which makes you gain a crazy amount of weight
Gus' very last scene in the restaurant is easily one of the top 3 most poignant moments in the entire Breaking Bad-Better Call Saul universe, right up there with Jesse's venomous monologue in the hospital in One Minute and Walter's confession of "I did it for me" in Felina.
I disagree. It's a great scene but it doesn't hold nearly as much weight in my opinion.
@@noahmay7708 This comment is not acceptable. Explain yourself. (LoL I'm joking).
@@sifatshams1113 Explain yourself. Why is that scene SO impactful?
It's a great scene, but it wasn't even the most poignant moment in that episode, let alone the show. Full respect, just curious to get your full take on it.
Really subtle and brilliant bit of character building. The visual dialogue of that scene alone tells you most of what you need to know, but the spoken dialogue adds so much on top. I agree, though I'd probably lower the bar to like top five or ten.
@@williammccormick2802 It's literally the one and only time in both shows we see Gus actually relax and enjoy himself. He's just been through all the madness and chaos of BCS, defeated a formidable opponent, and avoided the suspicion of Don Eladio. It's safe to say he's more than earned a break. He starts very lightly flirting with one of the guys who works there, and it's so strangely heartwarming to see a man so vicious, heartless, and cruel act this way, to finally see this side of him. But then, he slowly reminds himself that that a life of peace and happiness is not for him. He has much more work to do, an almost impossible task ahead of him. So he gets up, pays for his drink, and walks away from a world of light and warmth into the path that will eventually lead him to Walter White, Jesse Pinkman, and his death.
I can't believe you're not going to cover the breakfast eating mastermind of Walter Junior. The sheer inhuman brutality if veggie bacon and cold calculating ruthlessness of packaged cereal.
“But to live one’s life solely in pursuit of revenge, is no life at all. It’s a suicide note written with the blood of the people you harm.” pure poetry. This part really stuck with me.👏🏽👏🏽
You missed one other moment of the real Gus coming out; after he’s treated for his self-poisoning, he hugs the doctor and sincerely thanks him in a way where you’d think they were friends that go way back. Interesting detail and it was one of the only times you see Gus totally vulnerable
Perhaps his gratitude was honest - but more or less nothing more.
Gus has closed himself off to the world a long time ago.
@@wormwoodbecomedelphinus4131 honestly in the terrible life gus grew up in can you blame him?
@@Mike-jv8bv no, but I can blame him more than I can blame an alligator for wanting to snap at me.
I see him as a tragic, yet villainous character.
@@wormwoodbecomedelphinus4131 indeed you have a good point. Gus is a monster no doubt. But unlike the Salamanca animal trash who kill and shoot innocnet bystanders. . Gus isn't going to put a hit on you if you aren't in his business.
@@Mike-jv8bv yeah Gus has respect for people to a degree. Blood for blood. That's it
Giancarlo Esposito's performance in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul was so impressive and impeccable that his incredible character has become an icon.
I see you in every comment section 😂 from Finger memes to Onetake/Kiwi and this - You have to be BB and BCS' biggest fan!😅
saw you in bcs 1x1 table read comments xd
If you say so, Heisenberg.
@@Paul180 lol same. I even see him in penguinz0 videos
Yeah, to think that the actor went from a cameo in Trading Places, to his appearances in Spike Lee Joints, and The Usual Suspects, I think he’d be the last person you would expect to work for a character like Gus….
My theory was that Gus was part German, hence his last name. It could also explain why his Spanish isn’t so great (besides the fact that Giancarlo isn’t fluent in Spanish).
Yeah he’s literally named after a German football star. The Pinochet theory is basically like justifying how a guy called Mr Lopez met with a Spanish Freedom Fighter
@@hilotakenaka do you mean Torsten Frings? Not the same name.
Mate Chile is full of Germans.
Not just that, but think about how out of all companies he chose to get involved with it was a German one, and he had contact with a group of German builders where only one of them spoke English. Kinda strange unless we consider that his family may have came from Germany as, as some have said, there aren't many black Chileans out there, though say his family moved there and weren't born?
It would explain how he would seemingly have German connections, learned Spanish though isn't as solid of a speaker, and had a strange past even beyond Chile
@@HerrSchmitti It isn't, but the creators said that his surname was originally going to be Frings, but they dropped the s because it was too awkward to say
Gus Fring is probably one of the only personalities you've reviewed that genuinely gave me the creeps. That's immaculate character acting and writing!
I didn't even realise how damaged he was. His outwards personna is really well-crafted.
I think that’s part of why his death (aside from being just visually shocking + the false “He’s still alive?!!” moment) was so well done. You see the two halves of him, one already dead and skeletal.
Gustavo Fring is possibly the most well-implemented 'evil counterpart of the protagonist' ever in fiction.
evil counterpart of the evil protagonist?
@@melmel6445 I guess eviler would have been more appropriate.
@@DR7081 Walt is more evil
Let's not smoke crack now
This implies Walter isn’t evil himself.
I feel it should be mentioned that its 100% guaranteed that Gus directly ordered Tomas' murder by the fact that his body was found in the middle of a playground, easy to be immediately found. This is because from the get-go he wanted to get rid of Jesse as he was a bothersome condition he had to put up with to have Walt, he knew it'd push him over the edge and get himself killed, what he didnt account for is that he placed his bets on the wrong person, as Walt was much less predictable than he anticipated and Jesse ended up being who could've been his better asset in the long run.
As a side note, after this video I dont think I EVER want to see Hector Salamanca scrubbing dog shit off his shoe onto a desk again.
I honestly think Gus didn't have anything to do with Tomas' death. I don't even think the two scumbag groomers had anything to do with it. I think it was just a psycho buyer
Ya, I don't wanna see anyone scrub dog shit of their shoes and onto a desk
Also I really don't think he ordered the murder of Thomas
As someone who's suffered from OCD my entire life, it's always intriguing to see the depiction of the disorder in certain characters. I like how in Gus, we see not just the compulsions but also how OCD can shape an entire personality. Similar to Gus, my OCD has made me methodical with a focus on perfectionism. It's reflected in small things, such as carefully measuring ingredients for a recipe or in more significant things that affect your professional life.
So in some measure it can actually be kind of beneficial?
@@an-animal-lover Admittedly, it doesn't feel like that while entangled in cycling compulsions. Many can't regain control; without it, the positives are invisible or inconsequential. It's not always adequately expressed, but OCD is consuming. It steals your thoughts and directs your actions. The sufferer is reduced to an unwilling marionette, generally aware of the futility of their actions even as their skin itches to perform them. Ironically, for many, OCD develops as a way of grasping control in a situation of helplessness. Methodical perfectionism born from OCD will always be a sword that cuts the hand of the wielder. It's not a subdued desire for order. Without compulsions, obsession can carve out new homes.
@@Feiy16 I see
@@Feiy16👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿
Just binged the whole series again. He is such an amazing villain. He represents the most elavated type of evil; the Lawful Evil.
I am very familiar with the moral/ethical subsets of the lawful/neutral/chaotic system of morality, and Gus Fring is definitely not "lawful good". I'd say he's closer to chaotic good or chaotic neutral. Let me know if you can further support your position, I'm not so proud as to insinuate that I can't be wrong lol. Respectfully, 👍✌
@@firstnamelastname6216 he isn't good and he isn't neutral. He is literally selling illegal drugs.
He does not follow the law. Chaotic Neutral makes more sense. I do not think Gus cares for the law beyond evading it. Everything he does is to further his goals of revenge and power. Nothing else mattered to him. He is deeply selfish. There is no higher principle he looks to
@@firstnamelastname6216 the point of "Lawful" in the Lawful/ Neutral/ Chaotic is not necessarily attributed to cultural laws, but rather laws of one's own, as in staying true to their own personal code. If Lawful couldn't be against the law or against morals, then how could Lawful Evil exist on the spectrum at all? ☺️
More so than him would be Chuck “law is sacred” McGill
*I look at Walter differently after BCS* halfway through the spin-off I was thinking “Damn.. All this hard work and Walter’s going to bulldoze it all.. Shame” but after Howard, and seeing what Jimmy and Kim become and be almost as spiteful as Chuck.. seeing The Salamanca’s and how insane they were and how ruthless Gus was.. Walter is exactly what they deserve - I think if I rewatched BB I would now see it as these characters getting what they deserved.. except Mike.. Mike arguably didn’t deserve his fate.
Mike was in the game and he knew whats up.
Mike had every chance in the world to leave and he kept coming back. He deserved what he got purely for what he did to Zeigler and Howard's memory, even though Jimmy is equally culpable there.
Mike may have been a good man, but he repeatedly made deals with the devil, and ultimately made his own bed
Live by the sword; die by the sword.
Mike 100% deserved it. I think Papa Varga summarizes it pretty well in his last scene with Mike.
I can never get over how amazingly these actors play their characters, they feel like real people and sometimes i forget that they’re just fictional characters, even years later their performance holds up
These are so good. I never feel like these drag on. I listened almost nonstop all the way through and was surprised when I saw how long the video was very impressive
He reminds me a lot of Hans Landa from inglorious bastards. They both share this ability to be three steps ahead of everyone, and use their politeness to manipulate everyone around them.
yes but imo Lalo is even more similar to Landa coz hes also cheerful and got that maliciousness behind his smile
I'm with Nero on this one, although Lalo fits the bill Gus sure seems more like Hans to me. An amazing comparison I never put together until I read this comment.
Gus has definitely managed to become one of my favorite characters in Television History.
I was genuinely intrigued each and every time I saw him on screen in BCS
Yeah he’s my favorite character in both series he’s amazing, so is Mike.
I would really have liked to see more of max, even if his death is essential to gus' story
I'm sure there was space for him in bcs
Gus' number one goal in life was revenge. Vengeance. Vengeance is an idiot's game. His lust for revenge is what led to his demise.
That and he played with his food.
@@freetime2freeminds played?
@@gustavogaming6692 Wanted to keep the old guy alive just to gloat about his victory. Wanted to kill him in person when he thought he was going to snitch. Could have had him killed long ago by someone else. Literally this one flaw is what walter white abuses to kill gus.
Actually is his list for perfection that led to his death. If you remember, when Gale first talked to gus about Walt's blue meth, he persisted that it was the purest ever and tried to persuade him into getting Walt to work for him. Only for a mere 3℅ extra pureness. Something that would most definitely increase incomes but something very risky. Something that a careful man, like gus, wouldn't normally do. As to why he did it...His perfectionism tide with his Crippling OCD are probably the reasons why
I bet shortly before Hector killed himself and Gus Gus wished he'd just let Hector die of his stroke.
gus was one of the secret police, maybe an interrogator. it was eluded to that gus was to be greatly feared, and he had the respect of very dangerous and powerful men. that came from a terrible place. this was made clear in BB.
Secret police? what do you mean?
@@TheAlexC meaning he was probably working for the Pinochet government, rather than against.
Fring definitely was part of the Pinochet government...an agent of DINA in the counterinsurgency division in operation Condor.. infiltration, torture, disappearances..the whole nine yards.
Actually this makes a lot of sense,specially in the first meeting with don eladio when don eladio says "remember,you are no longer in chile" so clearly gus in chile had a powerful position (if he was working for the regime,he was probably killing drug lords,maybe even the kingpings feared him in chile,like a chilean hans landa)
I got another theory tho
What if the anecdote he tells to hector was all metaphors?
What if instead of a fruit he started growing plants of coca or other drugs to feed his family? And the chile incident being the regime taking the power and killing kingpings,drugdealers?
We never know,but both seem more plausible than "gus was nearly a freedom fighter" when gus its an opportunist,he wont change something,he is pragmatic and would move around a context for his benefit,not change it.
Chiles elite are almost all white of Spanish descent, there are very few black Chileans.
My working theory is that Gus is the child of someone moderately important in the regime and a mistress, girlfriend or similar. Its mentioned that his family is important enough to get respect from the cartel but Gus grew up in poverty.
He can call on the family name but has so little support he's okay with breaking off from his previous life to go produce drugs.
At best guess we have someone who is the child of a mistress, they acknowledge him enough to give some support and a useful low-level job in the military, possibly in the army or interogations, enough to give Gus a seriously scary reputation as well as a talent for being useful and organised.
Being black and gay around the very macho Chilean military however would not be a good thing no matter how useful and scary he is so theres a mutually agreed parting, Gus gets a little money and protection as long as he takes himself far away and doesnt actually call in any favours.
Again. Your videos are just incredible to listen to. The way that you convey your insight into what make these characters tick is incredible, and you truly have the gift of writing.
A professional breakdown of this character is something peculiar. I cant wait to watch this one. Have you considered also including the mapping of the characters personality and temperament using the big 5 in your videos Vile?
I've never bought Gus being Chilean: he speaks Spanish with a thick American accent, he's black (in Chile the percentage of black people is very low) and in BCS he told a story about a coati, which is not an animal native to Chile.
What if Gus is actually an American guy who worked for the CIA (maybe not an agent himself, but an external asset) and went to Chile to help the Pinochet regime somehow? That's when he met Peter Schuler and Max. The 'incident of Santiago' may be some sort of failled rebellion against the dictatorship. That would explain why Hector called him 'Generalissimo'.
In 1986, after that incident (or maybe because Gus knew the dictatorship was losing strength. In real life, Pinochet stop being president in 1990) Gus and Max (who, by that time, were already a couple) decided to go to Mexico but, in order to erase their past links with Pinochet, they got new identities, opened Los Pollos Hermanos and started their drug business. The rest is history...
Damn, that's a really good theory. Would fit really well with the timeline of what the CIA was doing in South America, RE drug running.
This adds a whole other layer to his story. Like the entire Chilean backstory is just a front/lie to hide his ACTUAL past
This is a very interesting theory also with Hank asking if Gustavo Fring is his real name alluding to the fact it isn’t his name
I agree that Giancarlos Spanish really gets in the way of me buying him as a Chilean but I don't think him being black has much to do with it, black people ma not be as common in Chile but there still some black people there and in the rest of south america in general
"he speaks Spanish with a thick American accent"
As a native spanish speaker, the accent of gus is really weird. His accent is something in between german and american (atleast for me), english to spanish speakers tend to have trouble with strong r and sometimes h which gus seems to say relatively well, but he mumbles words with s, c and i. He also stops to accentuate vocals which is common in german to spanish speakers. But at the same time he says names like salamanca in a very american accent. Kinda weird.
"to live ones life solely in pursuit of revenge, is no life at all, it's a suicide note written with the blood of the people you harm"
41:57 just leaving this here to appreciate the writing in these videos
The writing is good, too bad the narration is so awful
@@dansduncan idk i think the narration is great
it's calm and collected, presenting the info cleanly
if i were to describe it in one word it'd probably be "professional"
you might say it lacks personality but i'd say that in of itself is personality
Yeah it feel like that lines sums up the need for a vid on the punisher as well.
@@fortnitesexman bingo
The actor who plays Gus is always an amazing person to watch, each performance he commits to is astounding. You know it’s a good show when he’s involved 🙏🏼😅
Gus Fring was ruthless and did a lot of awful things for sure, but you can’t deny that he gave Walt and Jessie a fair deal, and he was as honest of a business man as someone could possibly be in his position. Maybe he shouldn’t have tried to kill Walter, gave him another chance and let him continue cooking for him until dying to cancer and letting Gale take over, that’s the biggest fault I give him for cornering Walt and Jessie
Agreed. Gus was the better version of Walter in so many ways. He cultivated an empire through patience, and smart, calculated risk. He played the long game. Walt was reckless. I think Gus's biggest fault was mistaking this for sloppiness and overestimating his own ability to see a trap coming his way. Walt was smart enough to recognize and use Gus's low opinion of him against him, reckless enough to throw together a plan that easily could have backfired in a million ways, and lucky enough to get away with it.
Walt was never going to succeed with gus due to his ego.
He couldn't give Walt another chance because Walt didn't fear him enough.
Gustavo Fring : true definition of a smooooooth criminal. His operation was calculated, effective and efficient. Everyone was eating in his camp
I really want to see a spin-off show centered around gus and the story of how he became who he is. It would be fun to see what you managed to get right.
I think it would be pretty hard. Gus is already pretty tame during BCS compared to BB. Before Max's death, he probably wasn't even close to as violent as he was after his death.
@@kitchensarehot8769 He doesn't have to be violent to be interesting. We could potentially see him going through the same kind of transformation as walter and saul.
Would be a decent idea but the main problem is giancarlo is now too old. You could see from breaking bad to better call saul there's a difference in the way he looks due to aging
Also it would kind of ruin the backstory as Gus being unknown adds to the suspense and keeps us intrigued
the actor already looks old, there's no way this'll happen
Time won't allow it. I love BCS, but they were already pushing it with how much older Saul , Mike and Gus look. I didn't realize how much older Mike looked till seeing him in BB clips again.
That sigh and deep hatred for yourself before the ad was beautiful.
I think Gus and Max wanted to start a legitimate fast food chain with Los Pollos Hermanos, but they turned to meth making to fund their chain out of desperation for money to get resources to expand Los Pollos Hermanos. Eventually Eladio and Hector noticed their meth making and forced them to work with them and use the restaurant as a cover.
After Max is killed Gus is stuck with using Los Pollos Hermanos as a cover for meth making and his dream with being legitimate life with Max in America was shattered.
Gus wanted to start a legitimate restaurant similar to Walter wanted to provide for his family by being funded by the meth business, but both of them got trapped in the game of the cartel and ended up embracing the game and corrupted their original goals.
Great analysis. The idea that Fring may have been an intelligence officer never crossed my mind, but makes so much sense.
Still saying "hello everyone" while villain opens his mouth first, what a legend.
Thank you very much for this!
Such perfection when it comes to explaining this series 👍👌💯👏
I love him for his Professionalism, especially compared to someone like Tuco.
Tuco forgets that the drug business is a drug BUSINESS
31:57. Bolsa and Eladio were blinded by all the money Gus was making for them and stupidly assumed he'd either gotten over Max's death or was too scared to go after them but at least Eladio had the sense to be suspicious like in BCS Season 6 when he warns Gus "I know you hate me but don't forget I'm your boss." He also waits for Gus to drink the poisoned tequila in Breaking Bad Season 4 before he drinks his not knowing Gus had an antidote. Bolsa, on the other hand seemed to only become suspicious shortly before the federalas killed him.
One interesting thing about Bolsa is two statements he made in BCS and BB:
When Lalo asks him if he trusts Gus he says "He will never be one of us, but he makes profit."
And then in BB when he and the Twins come to Gus to ask for permission to kill Walter as retribution for Tuco he says to Gus in private referencing to the twins "They are not like us."
So he clearly through that Gus was all business like himself and maybe even saw him as a friend.
Masterful work here. Great eye for details and nuances I missed. Thank you.
Absolutely fascinating and brilliantly presented. Well done. I love this examination of Chilean history and culture as likely explanations for what Gus became.
I really wish that Gus was the final boss of this show instead of Jack(no shade towards the actor who played Jack). Before Better Call Saul became a thing, Gus had 3 seasons of build up and was a 3 dementional character. He was really smart and intimitating and by season 4 it really felt like he (and by "he" I mean his hitman) could show up whenever he wants in order to see you dead. His death was also very smart and saticefying. Walt learning of Gus's 1 weakness and using that TO BLOW UP HALF HIS FACE was just perfect as Walt didn't need to be in the building in order for the explosion to work. Gus was so effective as a villian that he unknowningly incited Walt into poisoning Brock, thus causing Jesse to turn on Gus.
Jack was not the final boss of the show, it was Walt himself. Walt became the head boss of the drug empire after he killed Gus, and didn't just pack up and leave when he had the opportunity to, marking himself as the ultimate final boss. After season 4, we essentially switch who we're rooting for from Walt to Jesse, as he finally understands how much Walt has manipulated him over the series.
Jack (and Hank) was just a representation of how far things have gotten since Walt took over and the karmic comeuppance he gets for the stuff he does in season 5.
Walt was the boss in Season 5, not Jack... it would make sense for Walt to be his own downfall.
nah... too predictable and overly dramatic.
And I don't see Jack as the final boss. Jack is kind of skimmed over. In a way, Jesse was the final boss.
Gus was the final boss, Jack was merely the postgame
100% agreed. I could write a lot on this subject, but I think it speaks for itself that Better Call Saul was pretty much just as much about Gus's operation as it was about Jimmy, but there was basically no mention of Jack and his associates besides Lydia if you want to count her. It's pretty clear who the ultimate, most dangerous antagonist of the series was. Even though Jack and his crew weren't nearly as bad and formidable as Gus's crew was, they served a different purpose to the story than being some "bigger bad" than Gus was for the series, but I'm not trying to write a novel about all that here lol
Gustavo Fring is easily one of the greatest villains in history. He is the perfect foil to Walter because he is everything Walter aspires to be - powerful, influential, successful, with the ability to hide in plain sight - but can never attain due to his own character flaws. Hell, after having rewatched the series several times, there are points where it almost feels like Walter is the real villain of the story and that Gus and his organization are victims of Walter’s pride and arrogance. Another great video, Vile.
Also, I think this video, particularly the first half, highlights just how much more of the story of this universe could be told. Giancarlo Esposito himself has even even expressed interest in reprising the role again in a spin-off about Gus and I am 100% on board with that.
Gus is the definition of "hiding in plain sight". He represents so many in this world that seem to be upstanding citizens on TV and Instagram, yet are really living in a disturbing underground world. They just play the straight man on the surface so they can jump through legal loopholes for their shady business practices.
Gus is one of my favorite villains of all time. Giancarlo did an amazing job of bringing him to life
I assumed he kept Lyle around so he can have a civilian witness to state where he was at the time it was happening but we all see things differently I guess
I think you are correct
no reason it cant be both.
ITs clear that in the moment he orders the cleaning hes under immense anxiety and its affecting his present okay-ness
The moment its okay, hes able to self soothe and go back to "normal" comfortably, which is the same time the need for the alibi creating is done
16:23 “in order to save himself being fingered in his plot.” *shows clip of mike* you knew exactly what you were doing
Are you planning on doing an episode around Joe Goldberg from the Netflix series “You”?
Maybe the character might be a little low brow for your analysis, but the character is a serial killer who provides so much internal monologue to form a good analysis.
The character is evil, yet shows compassion and care for some individuals.
Anyway, love your channel. Thank you for so many hours of in-depth understanding to these complex characters.
Was waiting for this video.
I find it fascinating how an “Analyizing Evil” video can be made on the majority of the characters in this universe
2025 be like "analyzing evil: walter white jr"
@@aetu35 analyzing breakfast
I would love to see analyzing evil about todd alquist
@@Kev24 a simple kid who liked breakfast turned into a megalomaniacal gourmet who ran a restaurant empire of slave cooked food in plain sight
Mike, Todd, Lydia, Tuco, Hector, The Twins...
Gus Fring is the living embodiment of corporations in general. A cold and ruthless man whose only concern is obtaining as much monetary gain as possible, is completely apathetic to the suffering and damage he causes, while also putting on a positive and uplifting image to hide his more insidious nature.
I couldn't of said it better myself excellent way to put it
@@amethystlord the Take channel has a great analysis with this idea
One of the products Gus Fring sells is an addictive, damaging ti yiur healrh product mainly targeted at lie income demographics, which overlaps hugely with black; hispanic and other minority groups.
The other is meth.
Ummm i dont think so, gus’s personality is based on revenge and control, i dont see corporations doing stuff for revenge
@@sanketm1663 Mcdonalds and burger king; pepsi and coke, even when i was a kid the fed ex and ups guy could not stand each other. there are some lines that you do not cross. for true evil analyze David 'Danny' Pryce Worm/Loophole
YES! Been waiting for this one! I know I’m probably not the first to request it but I requested this analysis in the comments of a couple different videos.
This is by and large one of my favorite series on UA-cam.
Hats off to Vile for how extensively he’s able to speculatively delve into Gus’ background (most likely very accurately also), well done sir 👏👏👏
No matter how much I hate Gus, I will always root for him against the Salamancas and the cartel. Genuinely saddens me that Hector got the last laugh against him.
RIP Max
@@Bacbi what makes you think a cartel would tolerate incursions on their territory based on their need to get a "proof of concept"? this ain't a startup pitch, this is the streets.
We all RESPECT A LOVE STORY
I wonder if REAL CARTEL PEOPLE WATCH BB and BCS ? Anyone ever see a
Vlog or interview on that ?
Gus’s death and Hector’s death is kind of ironic though, as in a way, these people took them selves to hell altogether.
@@marciasloan534 no real cartel guy would admit on record that they're in a cartel
He didn't keep the creature as a pet he kept it to torture it
I think the reason gus acted that way around Gale was partially to manipulate him, but also because he reminded him of Max. Not in a romantic sense but professionally they were similar in that they were both mentored by him when they were chemistry students to eventually assist him in his illicit empire.
I think Homelander would be a great subject to make a video on.
What happened to Werner, though a tragedy, was entirely of his own doing. Mike warned him about what kind of people he was involved with, and simply told him to finish the job, and then he’d live care free with his wife forever with the money he’d be paid. Werner escaped the facility, that he knew his employers went to lengths to keep a secret, and thought he’d come back like nothing happened. He went out of his way to bring it on himself.
While I do agree with everything, the last part I don't. You've have tp be that foolish to believe that Gus would simply let Werner see his wife, even if he got the job done. Especially when Mike tells Werner that himself. Because THAT'S A LIE. And one Mike kept telling himself. He wants to believe that Gus will simply let Werner go, even if him an his men get the job done.
One thing to note is how in S4E9, Werner gives a look to the security cameras. I know this is him trying to figure how to escape, but I think the creators made this as him seeing that he's trapped in Gus's debt forever. And Gus himself knows this too. Werner's just like every person that gets involved with Gustavo Fring: AN ASSET. And one that he's not going to simply give up, no matter how much they've done what was asked. Gus made up his mind the moment this whole project started, that Werner can NEVER be free (figuratively and literally).
@@osmanyousif7849 There’s no indication that Gus would have had Werner killed if everything went smoothly. He let all his men go, plus, if you’re going to kill someone, why bother hiding the location from them? All the workers were covered up, nobody knew where they were or who they worked for, and nobody had any reason to give the secret up, since the police would also take their money.
We’re given all indications that Gus would have let him go if he simply did what he was tasked with. Lalo would certainly do that, but Gus took all the precautions to let them go safely afterwards, without exposure on his part. He only resorted to having Werner killed after he left, which proved he was unreliable and also knew the location.
Great series with great characters and fantastic actors, and now an incredible analysis--so good.
I'm only 16 minutes in and literally smiling as I watch this bc all of the research you conducted to understand Gus' connection to Chile and backstory is INCREDIBLE!!! 👏🏽 You are honestly such a LEGEND for this alone haha
Victor made 2 mistakes, the second being the greater. The fact that Walt was allowed use of his phone was a mistake sure, but Mike was just as responsible for that. Victors true mistake was being witnessed at the scene of Gales murder, so Gus had no choice to waste Victor at that point.
I disagree. I think Gus was angry at Victor for being more occupied in trying to do Walter and Jesse’s job in meth making rather than his own. He killed Victor because Victor wasn’t focused on his own job and to show Walter and Jesse the failure of not being focused on their own iob.
@@petermj1098 they do show Gus looking at a sketch drawing of Victor on a Wanted poster when he's waiting to be interrogated by Hank, which may imply Gus's foresight
"HUAAHHH!" - Gustavo Fring's last line
I never realized it, but Gus does definitely have OCD. I have OCD too, and I have a lot of the same nervous ticks or quirks as him. I don’t like getting clean clothes dirty or wasting clean clothes, I wash dishes longer than normal, and those traits do get worse when I’m stressed out. Gus’ OCD is brilliantly written because of how subtle it is. He’s never panicking over germs or washing his hands excessively or anything like that, but once you analyze those scenes like when Gus is in the bathroom of Eladio’s house or scrubbing the bathroom with the toothbrush, it suits him. The guy is always meticulous and careful.
It gets even worse when you spend more time alone.
your videos both keeps me entertained and helps me sleep lol I just wanted to say thank you lolll
33:17 idk if it was that single mistake he killed victor, i think it's likely that victor being spotted by the other people at Gale's body definitely played a part in his decision, I think in 4x8 where he looks at a police sketch of victor that calls back to this fact. and i think its also likely victor's decision to go on cooking when it was in no way his place to do so may have potentially also been a factor too
I always thought Gus made up his mind to kill Victor before entering the lab - he couldn't have saved himself by not trying to cook, anyway. Walter's later remark that Victor was flying too close to the sun was his typical egotism.
@@repussified i agree with that, but we don't know whether or not mike revealed to gus that victor was spotted at the crime scene, so it's very possible that these two things are both possible.
As for the idea that victor was going to die whether or not he attempted to cook, i mostly agree, however i will say i do feel that it really vindicated gus' decision to him
@@rhubiks8430 Wait what do you guys mean Victor was dead anyway? Me personally I'm still mixed on what exactly drove gus to kill him
@@sia6045 it was definitely because he was spotted at Gale's apartment. Victor became a loose end at that point and had to be dealt with.
Idk how he screwed up the understanding that hard. If it was due to the phone thing then Mike would be guilty too.
The exasperation in your voice when announcing the raid sponser got a Chuckle out of me lol
Bro frrr 😂 love the lowkey shade without outright saying so
Como chileno, pensar en Gustavo como un agente de la DINA resulta ser tan certero que me asusta. Y que publiques el video cerca del 11/9 (fecha que en 1973 fue el Golpe de estado) me hace reinterpretar al personaje aún más. Gran video! Bendiciones
Great video, great speech. Thank you a lot, enjoyed it very much 🙏
The greatest tragedy of Breaking Bad is how Walter White didn't know about Max and had no idea he was fulfilling Gus' dream, and that even the cold, calculating drug lord Gus was unlikely to replace Walter until he passed from cancer, as he clearly saw Walt as a proxy for Max's chemistry passion and would never dishonor his memory by betraying Walt the way the cartel betrayed him. The murder of Gail was completely unnecessary. I fully believe Gus wanted the two to be friends so there would be no anxiety about successorship, which backfired horribly.
Agreed. Though if I were Walt it would be interesting to see what choices I would have made differently assuming I had made the initial plunge into this world. Walt though, to me, seemed not to be a team player, had a huge issue with authority and made bad decisions with these hindrances.
but gus had mike take walter to the lab to kill him
@@grantmagnani3023 It was originally jesse who he wanted to get rid of for acting irrational and being very risky to the security of the operation, it was only when Walter intervened to protect jesse did he want walter gone as well.
Gale death was unnecessary? There was literally a whole scene where Gus asked Gale if he could take the lab over because he was going to kill Walt
I hope when you get to Saul, it isn't framed as "analysing evil" Jimmy does some pretty terrible things throughout the show but I wouldn't say he is completely morally bankrupt.
I think in retrospect of the whole series, without spoiling anything, Jimmy ultimately qualifies as a good person who makes a lot of mistakes.
I agree, like chuck said theres nothing malicious in jimmy, but evil is as evil does and the last couple episodes of bcs really drives that home. Although jimmy, saul, and gene almost seem like different entities, I see them as stages to jimmys soul eroding. Before chuck died, jimmy was a good kid who got wrapped up in some bad stuff, but after his death he willfully engages in that sort of life, eventually becoming a friend of the cartel, working with walter after being warned not to, and finally mocking his involvement with walt and twisting both his actions and hanks death right in front of a mourning and grieving Marie. If chuck was nicer or if any other alternative than maybe jimmy would have gone down a better path, but he chose not to.
Jimmy as Jimmy is definitely not a villain, but Saul is truly Jimmy with nearly no soul, emphasized most apparently as his persona throughout BB and later BCS. But his very last persona is truly him at his worst, but even then he was trying to get himself caught and punished.
@@ColeMD17 he’s not a good person at all but isn’t quite on the level of Walter white
Well, there was his time as Gene when he was willing to rob anyone including a guy with cancer, and was literally about to kill Marion without thinking twice until Marion said that she trusted him
This is a great informative video, keep it up
This one feels more like a fanfic a third of the way in