There’s something especially chilling
about someone who approaches murder not as a moral problem,
but as a logistical one. Here, Breaking Bad’s Gus Fring carefully
and deliberately changes into a hazmat suit, brutally murders his most faithful associate
and then just as calmly washes up. Gus’ motivations aren’t passionate,
they're purely logical: Victor has to die because
he was spotted at a crime scene and that might compromise
Gus’ business interests. Gus needs to teach Walter and Jesse
a lesson. Two birds with one boxcutter. [Well? Get back to work.] Before we go on, we want to talk a little
bit about this video's sponsor -- Skillshare. Skillshare is a superb online learning community
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to get 2 months access to all classes for free. If Walt’s evil superpower is chemistry,
then Gus’ superpowers are optimization and efficiency. [Now thank me, and shake my hand.] With Gus, Breaking Bad explores the questions,
what would it be like if drug dealing was treated like any other business -- and what happens when a person
lives his entire life like he's a corporation? [Ahh es el businessman, Que bien, que bien.] The always professional Gus is
the opposite of what we might expect when we think "drug dealer." So Gus becomes a foil to
the other drug dealers we get to know in Breaking Bad -- especially Tuco, Hector and even, Walter. [Animals.] Tuco Salamanca is driven by impulse. [I don't need your punk ass
to vouch for me!] Every move Gus makes
is calculated to pay off. [I investigate everyone
with whom I do business. What careful man wouldn't?] Tuco controls his minions
with fear and erratic rage. Gus reads people and manipulates them
with just the right type of positive reinforcement. [3 million dollars for 3 months of your time.] His phrasing here gratifies Walt’s ego,
by emphasizing how important he is, how valuable his time is. [What -- what was the offer, if I may ask?] [It’s, uh, 3 million, for three months of
my time.] Hector Salamanca is an old-school drug dealer
governed by rules like blood for blood and family before everything. [La familia es todo.] But Gus recognizes these kind of principles
as ineffective. [This is what comes of blood for blood, Hector. Sangre por Sangre.] The only family Gus seems to care about
are his employees, [Those men outside are my trusted employees.] and even then, still only up to the point
that they help his businesses and aren’t a liability. Like Tuco, Hector solves problems
by threatening his rivals. But Gus, even when baited, remains completely professional, composed [Adding more product will threaten
the reliability of the entire operation.] and doesn’t reveal himself. Hector and Gus are set up as life-long foes
in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul because, in addition to their bad blood,
they’re existential opposites -- each seems offended
by the other’s very nature and can’t abide his way of
operating in the drug business. Walter, with his scientific
and reasoned approach, is more similar to Gus,
or so he’d like to think. [I was told that the man
I would be meeting with is very careful. A cautious man. I believe we’re alike in that way.] But Gus knows better. [I don’t think we’re alike at all,
Mr. White.] The key difference between
Walt and Gus is ego. Walt secretly really wants people to see
that he's finally rich and powerful. Gus never flaunts his wealth or power. [You are a wealthy man now. And one must learn to be rich. To be poor, anyone can manage.] And Gus sees the value in keeping up
humble appearances. After all the idiots and maniacs
we’ve seen, it’s refreshing when we meet Gus, [Can I help you, sir?] and witness his rejection
of old-school thuggishness in favor of a more reasonable,
corporate management style. After all, we the viewers are rooting
for Walt and Jesse's hardy little start up, so it’s a relief to see it safe for a time
under the wing of a capable parent company. [Your new lab.] In our American context,
this feels like success. But over time, Gus’ character also
leads us to question -- how is drug dealing different
from other businesses? And is a corporate mindset applied to crime
actually scarier than the old-fashioned ways? [I need 200 pounds per week to make this
economically viable.] In Gus's mind,
meth is a commodity, no different from the chicken he sells. He discusses his operation only
in the vocabulary of business. [How much product do you have on hand?] [I have always done business
with certain local manufacturers.] [I don’t believe fear to be
an effective motivator, I want investment.] Professor David Pierson examines
the connection between Gus’ business tactics and neoliberalism. Neoliberalism prioritizes a free market -- the idea is that the less involvement
the government has in the market, the better it is for the economy
and for the consumer. Pierson points out that for neoliberals,
crime is an inevitable part of society and it can even be a totally rational choice. In neoliberal thought a criminal is, quote, “a rational economic actor who contemplates
and calculates the risks of his actions.” And who embodies this rational criminal if
not Gus, whose every action is dictated not by emotion,
but by opportunity. Furthermore, Pierson points out
that methamphetamine is just one drug among a class of “performance enhancer”
substances, that “have become both the fuel and the product for the neoliberal fetish
for productivity.” Most products in this class are legal,
like caffeine, energy drinks, steroids, Viagra, and prescribed Adderall -- which by the way is very close
to meth chemically. But looking at this list,
it's clear that meth is hardly the only product
that's highly profitable and desired, while also being harmful to consumers. And if you think about it,
how different is a typical large company from Gus’ drug empire
in terms of the collateral damage it causes? Even if most major global corporations
don’t trade drugs that directly kill people, many cut corners in ways
that damage lives and the planet. [It's basic, simple money-laundering,
and HSBC had its hand right in the middle of it.] [Drug cartels themselves, yeah,
you know, in their own words, it is the place to bank.] Look at it this way:
Gus sells two things -- one is a popular consumer product
that is targeted at low income populations and with long-term consumption
can contribute to disease and death; the other is methamphetamine. [One taste and you'll know.] So, through Gus, the show communicates that,
if the first priority is always profit, consumer well-being will always come second,
and so will employee well-being for that matter. By showing us this fearsome
drug dealer businessman, Breaking Bad points out
that the ruthlessness, immorality and harm
we associate with crime are less connected
to the “drugs” part than to the “business” part
of Gus’ operation. [Pollos Hermanos, where something delicious
is always cooking.] So with Gus, Breaking Bad shows the dangers
of the capitalist model, which does undeniably, like Gus,
appear so attractive for a while. Some argue that Gus's inspiration
for building his drug empire was to avenge the death
of his partner Maximino. Gus certainly is fixated on torturing
the person who killed his partner -- Hector Salamanca. And Gus embodies the maxim
that revenge is a dish best served cold -- by waiting and crafting the perfect plan,
he maximizes his enemies’ suffering. [Don Eladio, Don Paco, Cesar, Reynaldo,
Ortuno, Cisco, and Luis. Escalara. All dead.] The cold, burning hatred deep inside Gus, this desire to settle scores
that partially drives him, may be a commentary on
what’s emotionally driving the ultra-ambitious leaders of corporations,
too. This clip from the show Billions
supports a similar idea. [Hate is nature's most perfect energy source. It's endlessly renewable.] Yet the show doesn’t fully resolve
the mystery of whether this controlled, festering hate causes Gus’ need to succeed, or if he’s already programmed
to seek corporate success, and the vengeance motive
is simply extra fuel. Gus was set on selling meth
before Maximino’s death, [This product is the drug
of the future.] and if his only priority were vengeance he could have had that
cold satisfaction a lot earlier. He poisons all of Don Eladio’s associates
only when the timing is right -- when can’t afford to work with them anymore
because the cartel’s animosity toward him combined with Hank's suspicions
might result in him being found out. Thus the primary motive in this takeover
isn't revenge, but growth -- the goal every corporation reaches for above
all, no matter the cost. In a competition-based marketplace,
a business is considered healthy only when it’s constantly growing,
overcoming competitors and claiming new territories. [I have a very large investment in this. There's so much overhead that I can't afford to shut down. Not even for a week.] Clearly, more crystal meth is worse for society, so growth in Gus’ case is a negative
for public health. But the same can be said of many corporations
who are so set on growing that they have no concern for public health,
for the environment, or for whether the world actually
needs more of their product. With Gus’ growth mentality,
Breaking Bad is subtly questioning the values underlying capitalism itself. Gus’ dual nature as a person is also a commentary on the split between
the outward faces of corporations and their true inner operations and intentions. On the surface,
Gus is a benevolent philanthropist and a model citizen. [Gus Fring is a pillar
of our local business community.] He provides jobs and security
for hundreds of people. [My friends, I promise you
that together we will prosper.] But the bottom line with Gus is always
what’s best for business, [I hide in plain sight,
same as you.] and the show highlights the dissonance
between his warm public persona and his cold private mind. [A DEA hero should never have to pay
for a meal at Pollos Hermanos.] To convey this duality, Giancarlo Esposito
plays Gus with small, disconcerting incongruities in his speech and physicality. Gus smiles often,
but his smile doesn’t reach his eyes. [Do it.] Gus’ warm and cordial exterior
reminds us of companies’ consumer-friendly speak in their advertising and PR campaigns, but that down-to-earth rhetoric
is often at odds with their coldly profit-driven agendas. [Yes, the old ways are still best
at Los Pollos Hermanos.] Ultimately, Gus’ two faces
are capitalism’s two faces. At first, we’re fascinated by Gus
and we see a lot of the positive face -- there’s his focus on and achievement of
success, his somewhat self-made nature, his discipline, his meticulous organization,
and his amazing work ethic. But over time, we see more
of the negative face, the lethal, cold, inhuman bottom line. [I will kill your wife. I will kill your son. I will kill your infant daughter.] By the end, Breaking Bad shows
the ugly truths of the capitalist mentality through Gus’ character. It reveals the destructiveness
of the “winner-take-all” growth-obsessed mindset --
a mindset that can be traced to many of our crises in recent decades --
the dot com bubble, the financial crashes of 2008,
the Facebook data scandal. And when it comes to drugs,
today’s opioid epidemic was largely brought on by the corporate pushing of oxycodone
for huge profits -- the founding of corporate drug empires
that are somehow legal. In the moment of Gus’ death,
his two faces become literal. And his final gesture is
to straighten his tie, a detail which perfectly captures
who he’s become. In his last moments on Earth,
Gus isn’t thinking about loved ones or seeing his life flash before his eyes --
he's just correcting his outer presentation. There’s a hollowness in this final gesture
that tells us the man inside him is gone. Only the capitalist is left,
driven to the end by appearances and effectiveness -- an empty husk of a man
wearing an impeccable suit. [If you have a complaint,
I suggest you submit it through our email system.] Maybe you're thinking of
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Thank you for sharing this, Imma have to watch all their character analysis videos now
I’m not a businessman, I’m a business, man...
I will sell delicious fried chicken to your wife, your son, your infant daughter.