i don't think jesse's parents were openly abusive or openly neglectful. i think they probably read every parenting book and took him to school on time every day and told him they loved him - and here's the kicker - jesse got fucked up anyway.
because jesse's a classic case of ADHD. talks a lot but doesn't think before he speaks, makes small mistakes, struggles in school, has raging rejection sensitive dysphoria. and for kids like him, those types of "good" parents don't work. suddenly their grand plan for their kid's life is off the rails, and it can't be their fault (because they did everything right), so it must be his. so they push him harder, with that quiet disapproval. they expect better, they tell him. he needs to work harder. try more.
but jesse has ADHD, so working harder and trying more don't work. so the pressure gets to his head and he's frozen in place and everything's his fault, so he just gives up. blink and he's failing his classes. blink and he never went to college. blink and they're kicking him out of the house.
and i honestly think that's so important - that sometimes, a kid will grow up in a house that supposedly has everything he could need in the whole wide world, and he'll get fucked up anyway. because he's got adhd, so he's still trying to fit shoes he'll never be able to fill. the same way that walter chases impossible ideals of masculinity, jesse probably spent his childhood trying to be someone he fundamentally wasn't ever going to be able to be.
and that right there is what fucks people up. not just downright abuse or neglect; just the simple fact that no matter how many parenting books your parents read, or how many times they say 'i love you,' they still look at you and see everything you aren't.
