I hate how the opening credits are still running, like, 14+ minutes (30%) into an episode - nobody watching gives a damn who all those co-/excutive-/assistant-/etc. “Producers” are (with the possible exception of their mothers), and the intrusive text makes it hard to “get into” the show - anyone else agree?
I’ve never been bothered.
Nope. I think they always time them very well. And I care who they are. They all craft an amazing show, week after week, and deserve their front-title credits.
All shows are required by various legal agreements to display those sorts of credits. Breaking Bad isn’t unique or unusually obtrusive in that regard.
Fine - the opening credits on “The Sopranos”, an arguably similar drama, are finished in about a minute and a half - not still running FOURTEEN MINUTES into the show…
I’m a glass half full guy so I will point out that in exchange for unobtrusively extending the credits for 15 minutes is that the opening theme is all of 15 seconds. Better that then a 90 second opening theme/credit, IMO.
It’s exceptionally misleading to say the credits are “still going” at that point.
My mind automatically tunes out all credits when something is happening on screen - I don’t even notice. When there’s nothing else going on, like an intro along with theme song, or closing credits on black background, then my mind tunes back into the credits. Yep, that’s about as impressive as my super-powers get… at least it’s handy!
Again I have to disagree - if they were unobtrusive, I’d never have noticed them - and a self contained opening theme/credit sequence, if bothersome, can be easily fast-forwarded through.
From last week’s episode. Intro starts at 4:13, ends at 4:29. Credits start at 4:53. Last credit ends at 10:30. I was ready to say you were wrong, but you (toning down the hyperbole) appear to be generally correct.
They’re spaced out more than typical TV shows, which just roll them on screen in sequence. Breaking Bad is more carefully edited, and much more of a carefully directed visual story than typical TV shows. It appears that they space out the credits so that they can make them appear when they’re less distracting. They’re so unobtrusive this way I wasn’t even aware of how much they were spaced out until I went to go count it.
So no, doesn’t annoy me at all - it’s rather elegantly done I think.
OK, fair enough, I concede they aren’t running continuously - but perhaps it’s the fact that their display is delayed and can continue until the show is almost 1/3 of the way through is what makes them especially distracting to me.
I was noticing the credits last week and thinking the same thing, that they are a little obtrusive and run too long - have they always gone on for so long? But I’ll forgive them for it because the show is so good.
They put as much of the credits during the show so as to minimize how many credits they have to show at the end, giving them another minute or two of actual time for the episode.
Agreed. No problem with their credits at all.
Never had a problem with it.
No problem with it at all. I don’t even notice they are there.
No issues here.
I like that they do it that way, actually. I often watch shows like this on DVD in marathon sessions. With a really short opening theme and spacing the credits out like that, I get more show, plus don’t have to sit through a longer intro 4 or 5 times in one sitting. (Yes, I’ve heard of fast forward…I just don’t use it much.)
Yeah, I first noticed this sort of thing way back when Star Trek TNG was first airing.
I don’t know what version you’re watching (one with commercial breaks maybe?), but I just checked and for 5.04 - Fifty One, the credits end at 7:02. For this week’s episode, 5.05 - Dead Freight, the credits end at 5:32. OP is way off the mark. And what really makes me laugh is this:
Because I am so totally absorbed in this show that I never noticed them at all until I read this thread.