Gustavo Fring is one of the very best characters in the Breaking Bad-Better Call Saul universe,
and a great deal of his draw as a character is based in how distinct he is as a villain, how
through the meticulous approach to everything he does and through the furious conviction he holds,
he is placed on this plane completely separate to anyone else in the story. Gus is different,
in numerous ways. But funnily enough, in others, he is exactly the same as all of us - possessed by
the same base problem that Breaking Bad argues is applicable to the vast majority if not all
of mankind. And that, more than anything, is the lasting resonance of his character
and a huge contribution to one of Breaking Bad’s most evergreen and prominent messages.
Years and years prior to the starts of both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul,
Gus’ partner and likely lover, Max, was unceremoniously killed through the combined
efforts of the cartel’s head man, Don Eladio, and Hector Salamance. And from that point on,
Gus resolved to get revenge on those who stole someone who meant everything to him away. Fueled
by this drive and his insane intellect, planning and resourcefulness, Gus began building an empire
that dovetailed with an underlying motivation to destroy all involved in his pain. And as we see
him make steps towards that, as his creation continues to sprawl and build, and even after
Hector is left paralyzed and unable to speak, we see him revel in taking steps towards overtaking
and reaping pain and misery on Don Eladio and particularly Hector. He doesn’t do this primarily
to balance the scales, but because he needs it. He likes it. It makes him feel good, and.. alive.
Unlike the classic sort of revenge characters for whom said revenge becomes a relentless duty
that they don’t enjoy yet feel responsible to carry out, Gus enjoys this. He gets a thrill
out of retribution and humiliation for Hector. His planned elimination of the cartel and Don Eladio
was no doubt gratifying, but perhaps due to the context, it was more business-like and efficient,
and he saves all of his lording over for Hector - in a huge contrast to the businessman-like
demeanor he applies to nearly every other facet of his life. Gus is calculated, cold, deliberate
and analyticial, and he builds his empire in a manner that reflects the type of man he is.
And I interpret his ruthless path to the top to be likely partly in honour of Max and the
success they could and would have had, and partly out of pure spite. A spite that is also deeply
related to Max. He is possessed in equal parts by a vengeance triggered by the pain of loss,
of wanting to honour his departed partner, and of bitter animosity,
a prideful desire to take this operation all the way to the top and make the competing influence of
the Salamancas obsolete. And the core gateway to all of these things was simple success.
Success is the path to this goal. And it just so happens that the path to
the very top lined up with meeting the most effective cook in the southwest.
It’s interesting that whilst trying to persuade, Gus portrays this very authoritative,
alpha idea of masculinity to Walt in order to appeal to his sensibilities. Whether or not he
himself bought into these ideals that he touted through his low growl was irrelevant. But having
grown to learn the type of man Walt is, Gus knew exactly what he had to say to tempt him back into
the game. He shows a great deal of interpersonal intelligence and understanding, seeing Walt’s
bravado, his feelings of inferiority, his need to prove himself, his pride and ego,
and the compensatory hunter-gatherer element he got such a thrill out of in his quest for control.
Likewise, he showed great adaptability in seeing utility in Jesse, and using much more of a softer,
warmer, more human touch in getting him over to his side. And he half-succeeded as well.
His cyclical relationship with using fear as a motivator is a whole other topic on it’s own,
but overall right here all I’d like to stress is that Gus is deeply astute, using his experience in
wearing masks, his intuition and resourcefulness to adhere others to him in different ways.
However, in a common theme with Breaking Bad - like Walt, like Hank in certain ways - in the end,
his ultimate undoing was his pride. While he starts out straight laced and patient,
in a way reminiscent of Walt during his fall, he slowly unravels as he gets closer to his vengeful
goals and as Walt gets closer to usurping him - the key difference being that Gus had experienced
an unravelling similar to this before in his life, and lived to tell the tale. Not this time though,
as he faced a man who, despite their differences, ended up understanding him on a profound level.
And Walter understands this in him, perhaps because subconsciously or consciously,
he sees lots of parallels with Gus in himself and intuitively knows that
pride is the weak spot for both of them. By getting Hector to commit a taboo in the game,
Walt ensured that Gus took that as a step too far, and as a result,
he was not willing to stay cautious. That was too much, and despite deciding that an inhumane,
slow death would suit Hector best, he decided that it was finally time for the man to die.
Yet Gus’ miscalculation was not quite this decision, but his need to do it himself, to lord
over the man who made his life a living hell as he watched him take his last breath. This is not
to say that Gus was wrong to want to do this, nor am I saying he was right, but this was undoubtedly
the key factor that lead to his demise, and the primary thing Walter was counting on.
The cause of so many minor and major problems and tragedies for many
characters throughout the series, is this ego. It always has been throughout history,
and will continue to be, even among men on either side of the divide.
Despite more or less acknowledging this on some level, Gus and Walt are more alike than
either of them really knows, and the core of that is rooted in something that Breaking Bad
argues is fundamental to mankind, and cycles of power, and rises, and falls. Gustavo Fring is
just different - in his menace, his authority, his absurdly threatening aura and genius intellect and
planning. And this continues to be a factor even down to the matter-of-fact tie adjustment just a
second prior to his death. But the way he met his end was rooted in something so base and applicable
to all of humanity, and it is incredibly telling that even someone who seemed to be positioned
so high above everyone was not able to escape the shackles of Pride. Many thanks for watching.