Top 20 Breaking Bad Episodes v. I'm back...with a vengeance. *SPOILERS*

[Tom Bombadil]

Finally an update 

And once again another awesome episode. One of my favorites from the final season.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

I'll post the next 10 in a few months

[FlyingBIZKIT]

^ Shit, I wasn't kidding. 


I'll get on this tonight. 

[SomeoneLikeHim]

Mother of bumps!

Looking forward to it!

[sneakyblueberry]

Great thread!  Get on to it tonight gahdam gahdam.

[Tom Bombadil]

Tonight probably means April

[FlyingBIZKIT]

Okay guys..


I'll be in Florida the next few days. No can do 

[FlyingBIZKIT]

HEY. I'm here to finish what I started. I took an 8 month break to do the second half of my list (About the length between the two halves of season 5) and let's just say I did that on purpose.

I know Breaking Bad is over now, so maybe some interest in this list will decrease, but I'm here to give you the rest

#10. One Minute (Season 3)

"Two men are coming to kill you. You have one minute."



What a fucking ending! Okay, let's rewind a bit. At the beginning of the episode, Tuco's cousins, Leonel and Marco, are shown in a flashback. Hector nearly drowns Marco to make a statement that family is all they have. In present day, it is shown that the cousins are going after Hank. Meanwhile, Hank's priority is beating Jesse's ass for being tricked into thinking Marie was in the hospital. Can you blame the guy? He really, really pulverizes Jesse, and he makes him looked like a bruised grapefruit afterwards. However, Jesse has the upper hand. He plans to press charges against Hank. Also, Walt is upset that Gale isn't the partner that Jesse is. Walt demands to have Jesse back, and Gus approves. Walt visits Jesse, who is very upset. He doesn't want much to do with Walt anymore, but he is finally convinced to come work with Walt at the lab. Hank is suspended and his gun is taken away, unfortunately. On the bright side, Jesse decided not to press charges, so at least something is going his way. The last scene of the episode is such a big one. Hank is out shopping and when he gets back in his SUV, he receives a mysterious call, informing him of the danger ahead. The voice says that two men are coming for him, and he's got one minute. He thinks it's a joke at first, but starts panicking when Gomez doesn't answer. One of the cousins, Leonel, is now standing behind his SUV and starts shooting. Hank floors it in reverse, but takes a shot in the arm. He pins him up against another car, disabling him. At the same time, Leonel shoots him in the side from the driver's window.  Hank escapes from the SUV, and grabs the Leonel's gun. He then finds Marco and shoots him several times. However, he's wearing a bullet proof vest, so nothing is working. He then shoots Hank twice. This is 4 times Hank has been shot, and he's finally on the ground. He could have been killed right there, but Marco wants to be gruesome about it, so he goes to get the ax from his trunk. Hank finds that bullet close by and tries to load it before Marco returns. As he has the axe in the air about to slam down on him, Hank shoots him right in the head. DEAD. When this episode ended, the thought that Hank dying wasn't out of the question.

Favorite Scene: The parking lot scene, of course. My brother watched this before I started the show and he kept telling me that this episode was gonna be good. I just couldn't wait to see it. By the time it had nearly reached it's end, I was thinking, wow, it's good, but wasn't something big supposed to happen? Then this happened. While Hank is technically an antagonist to Walt and Jesse, he's the guy you cheer for here, obviously. Watching this scene just gave me chills, especially when he's about to receive an axe through his skull. This scene proved that Hank was in fact, a fucking badass.

[Tom Bombadil]

Tonight probably means April

Looks like I underestimated you 
But this is one of my favorite episodes. The amount of suspense at the end was crazy.
I look forward to seeing #9 in November

[FlyingBIZKIT]

Tonight probably means April

Looks like I underestimated you 
But this is one of my favorite episodes. The amount of suspense at the end was crazy.
I look forward to seeing #9 in November

  No no no, I'm doing the rest in a short span.

[KevShmev]

As bad ass as that last scene is - definitely one of the biggest HOLY SHIT scenes of the series, especially at that point - this is the episode where Aaron Paul's improvement as an actor really stood out.  His speeches near the beginning (about how he will own Hank) and near the end (about why he is turning Walt's offer down) are both magnificent, and really showed off his acting skills.   

[FlyingBIZKIT]

Yes, he just kept getting better and better

[Chino]

Great review, very well written. I would highlights two things from that episode:

- The "a robot?" scene still cracks me up.

My favorite part about that is that in the finale that's exactly how Walt saved them.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

#9. Half Measures (Season 3)

"Run."



Jesse is very upset about the two men using a kid to kill his buddy, Combo. Jesse wants nothing but revenge, as he plans to kill them with Ricin. Walt, however, claims it isn't worth his time and effort, because it was only a territorial issue. Jesse is bullheaded and says he is going to do it anyway. Walt and Saul plan to get Jesse arrested for his own protection, but Mike gives Walt a speech demanding that there should not be anymore half measures (Jesse). Gus wants Jesse and the two thugs to compromise. Jesse tells Gus that they used kids and that it's a shitty way to do business. Gus then says, "No more kids." Well gee, thanks Gus. They took it literally (and I'm sure you meant it literally you little rascal) and actually killed the kid, who was related to Andrea. This pushed Jesse over the edge. He now plans to fuck those men. Up, of course. He finds them and sits in his car, and contemplates. He grabs his gun and starts walking over there. Well, Jesse clearly didn't think this through, so if someone doesn't intervene, then Jesse is probably going to end up like Combo, just more skinny. VROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM. Walt suddenly appears and plows them both with his tank of a car, a Pontiac Aztek. He killed one with his car, but the other is still alive, barely. He sends a bullet through his head with no hesitation, and looks at Jesse. He says, "Run.", because he's badass and he's probably freaked out.

Favorite Scene: The end. It was such a tense moment, and Jesse looked like he might have been done for. This is probably the first "HOLY SHIT!" moment for Walt. He just went balls to the wall, and didn't chicken out. At the same time, you start to see how different he is becoming. He surely isn't the same man we saw in the pilot.

[KevShmev]

Mike gives Walt a speech demanding that there should not be anymore half measures. He's referring to Walt holding Jesse back from going after those guys. If those men don't go down, they're likely to get more people killed, and things will get worse.

Huh?  I think you completely misread that.  Mike telling Walt that was his way of saying, "No more trying to reason with Jesse (hence, a half measure); it's time for him to be put down."

That aside, "Run" was definitely one of the most bad ass and biggest HOLY SHIT moments of the entire series.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

You're Goddamn right.






I did misread that. It has been a while since I've seen the episode, thanks for the correct interpretation !

[Tom Bombadil]

Another one of my absolute favorite episodes. The end was just incredible, and mike's speech was really cool as well

[MetalJunkie]

The last 30 seconds of that episode was definitely in my top scenes. That, and Walt saying Gale's address as Mike is about to kill him.

[Joshin U]

Re-watching the series for the third time as we speak so I will definitely be following the rest of your list. Awesome reminders of some fantastic scenes and episodes coming up for me.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

#8. End Times (Season 4)

"No more prolonging the inevitable."



In the penultimate episode of Season 4, the White family is panicking because they hear of the death thread and they head to Hank and Marie's house. Walt tells Skyler that he is the one that is being searched for, and sends them off for their own good. Skyler and Jr. tell Hank that Walt decided to stay at the car wash. Hank, of course, has no idea what Walt is up to. Gomez heads to the laundry facility to search for anything fishy, but comes up short. Jesse and Tyrus are nervously waiting in the lab as the search is going on. Gus then calls Jesse to tell him that Walt isn't trustworthy because of the extra baggage (Hank) he carries. Jesse is summoned by Saul and is patted down by Huell, who secretly steals the ricin located in Jesse's cigarette pack. Saul plans to get the hell out of there because he's afraid of Gus. Later on, Jesse is at home and receives a disturbing call that Brock is in the hospital . He then gets there as quick as possible. When he leaves the hospital for a smoke break, he realizes the cigarette that contained the ricin is missing. He tells Andrea that he has been poisoned, and he flees. Meanwhile, Walt is at his house camping in the living room. He's paranoid, as he's waiting for whoever to come in there and kill him. Jesse knocks on the door and Walt invites him in. Walt relaxes after a bit, and sets the pistol down. When Walt isn't looking, Jesse picks it up and points it at him, because he thinks Walt poisoned Brock with the ricin. Walt nearly shat his pants at this point, and he finally convinces Jesse that he didn't do it, and that this was all part of Gus's brilliant plan. Walt then persuades Jesse to help him take Gus out. Back at the hospital, Jesse waits and waits, fearing that Brock could lose his life. Walt is back at home preparing a pipe bomb to destroy Gus. At the end of the episode, Walt sits at the top of a building relatively close to the parking garage of the hospital where Gus is parked. Gus and his men head to the car, but Gus stops. Walt has the pipe bomb under Gus's car and plans to detonate it when they get inside. Gus realizes something isn't right, and leaves the scene. Walt fails. Wow.

Favorite Scene: Jesse confronting Walt is huge. Jesse has a soft spot for Brock, so he's seeking vengeance. The whole scene is extremely intense. Jesse is feeling nothing but rage as he presses the gun against Walt's forehead. Walt knows Jesse won't kill him. Walt tells Jesse he didn't poison Brock. However, we do find out later that Walt poisoned Brock after all, just not with the Ricin.

[Chino]

I always wondered if Walt had planned or anticipated Jesse reacting that way and as a result was faking having to be scared.

[KevShmev]

Three things that are easy to miss in this episode, because we didn't know yet that Walt had poisoned Brock:

1) Walt's third spin of the gun, which pointed at the Lily of the Valley berries, whereupon Walt looks forward again and you see the wheels turning in his head as to what he is going to do (poison Brock). 

2) We didn't realize it until the the end of the next episode, and Jesse didn't realize it until Confessions in 5b, but Jesse was pretty much right about almost every thing he said to Walt when he was accusing him, except motive; Jesse thought it was to rip his heart out one more time before he was dead and gone, when, in reality, Walt did it so Jesse would think Gus did it, and Walt knew he needed Jesse's help to kill Gus.

3) Gus realizing something was not right. The first time, we thought Gus was just that much of a bad ass where he could sense something wasn't right, but really, he had just come from Jesse telling him about Brock, and Gus likely was thinking about it and knew something wasn't right, especially since he likely knew about their history of poisons (when Walt told Gus of Jesse's plan to kill the two drug dealers in Half Measures...we don't know how much he told Gus).  Did Gus know that a bomb was under a car?  Not likely, but he knew something wasn't right enough to not take that chance.

Very awesome, and I agree about it being one of the best.  Walt's speech to Skyler at the beginning - "I have lived under the threat of death for a year now..." is beyond incredible.  Great dialogue and Cranston's acting is just off the charts magnificent.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

Right. I just love how smart this show is. It's written really well.

[KevShmev]

I always wondered if Walt had planned or anticipated Jesse reacting that way and as a result was faking having to be scared.

I think he knew that he could talk Jesse into thinking Gus did it, if Jesse did jump to the "Walt did it" conclusion, which of course he did.

Also, it's interesting to note that Bryan Cranston has said that he had not yet read the script for Face Off when they did End Times, so when he acted in the scene where he denies poisoning Brock, he didn't actually know that Walt would eventually be revealed as having done it.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

I just find it funny he can be a great liar until Skyler is involved

[KevShmev]

Haha, that's a great point.  Whenever he lied to Skyler, Walt always had this specific tone, like he was being overly dramatic with his storytelling, that made it so obvious that he was full of shit.

[FlyingBIZKIT]

Haha, that's a great point.  Whenever he lied to Skyler, Walt always had this specific tone, like he was being overly dramatic with his storytelling, that made it so obvious that he was full of shit.

https://www.vulture.com/2013/09/breaking-bad-walter-white-five-types-of-lies.html

[FlyingBIZKIT]

#7. Felina (Season 5)

"I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. And, I was really... I was alive."



This is it, the final episode. It's the episode we were all waiting for, but somewhat dreading for it to come as it was the end of this great show. Many people wondered whether Breaking Bad was going to get a proper ending, considering there was a lot of things that needed to be tied up in just one episode. Personally, I don't think it could have ended any better. It didn't feel rushed, and it was a satisfying ending. I wasn't too nervous awaiting the finale, because I knew Vince Gilligan could finish strong. Anyway, let's get to it. The episode begins with Walt sitting in a random car in New Hampshire. The police are around, but they don't find him due to the snow. He decides to head back to New Mexico. Later on, he arrives at a gas station, and goes to a pay phone, in which he gains access to the Schwartz residence. Walt heads to their home and scares them. He threatens them by saying they need to give Walter Jr. the 9.72 million dollars located in Walt's trunk. He wants Jr. to use the money for college and the family. Suddenly , two lasers are pointed at both Gretchen and Elliot. Walt is serious about this. It turns out these lasers were actually no threat at all, as it was only Skinny Pete and Badger. I was glad they made an appearance at the end. They tell Walt that the Blue is still being distributed, which means Jesse is still out there cooking. Walt gives them both ten thousand dollars as they part ways for a final time. Meanwhile, Jesse is shown cooking the meth, basically a slave. The scene that was shown at the beginning of season 5 is now in present day. Walt acquires the M60 from Lawson (Idgit!). He then goes to his abandoned home to retrieve the ricin. Walt then shows up at the cafe to see Todd and Lydia. He arranges a meetup with the Neo-Nazis. Meanwhile, Walt has something up his sleeve. He creates a robot, well, a gun turret triggered by the trunk opener on the car keys. At Skyler's apartment, Marie calls Skyler to inform her Walt is nearby. Walt is already standing in the kitchen with Skyler. He tells her that he cooked because he was good at it, and that he felt alive. He tells her goodbye, and reveals to her the burial site of Hank and Gomie. He then tells Holly goodbye. When he leaves, he sees Jr., but decides to let him be. Walt heads out to see Jack and his crew. He parks in a convenient spot next to the building so his plan is still intact. They take Walt's keys away and reveals that his plan is to eliminate Walt. Walt accuses him of partnering with Jesse, whom he ordered Jack to kill. Jack tells his men to bring Jesse out. Walt is surprised when he sees Jesse as a slave. The two look at each other, and Walt tackles him. Todd tries to separate them as the other men laugh. Walt activates the M60 in his trunk with his keys. Everyone dies except Jack, Todd, Walt, and Jesse. However, Jack and Walt both received wounds. Todd looks towards the car like a dumbass as Jesse strangles him from behind with his handcuffs. Walt grabs Jack's pistol and shoots the bastard right in the head, showing no mercy. Jesse and Walt both look at each other, as Walt slides Jesse the gun. Jesse tells him he will kill Walt if Walt actually wants it. He says he does, but he appears to already be growing closer to death with the bullet wound from the M60. Jesse puts the gun down and goes outside. Todd's phone goes off, so Walt answers. It is Lydia, who is seriously ill from the ricin. Walt informs her of what he has done and tells the bitch goodbye. The two men nod to each other as a sign of their final goodbye. Jesse drives off crying and laughing at once. It's such a beautiful moment, because Jesse finally catches a break. Walt then walks into the lab. Even though he will be dead within minutes, he looks happy. He wants to die in a place he loves most. He falls to the floor as the great Walter White is dead. The police arrive and look at the scene.

Favorite Scene: The final scene. Tons of needed deaths. So much revenge. The only way Todd's death could be satisfying is if Jesse kills him. It happened. Walt also killed Jack and Lydia in the best ways possible. I love this part because I feel like Walt is himself again in these final stages. He doesn't necessarily make up for all the bad things he has done, but he goes out in a positive way. Jesse driving away..just great. No character deserved freedom more than him. Walt died content. Even though about everyone died, the ending felt somewhat happy, because everyone seemed to get what they wanted. Fuck, I'm going to miss this show.

[KevShmev]

I said at the time that this was the most satisfying ending to anything I've ever watched, and I stand by that opinion.  The final shot of Walter looking up as the camera pans upward away from him as he dies is just so damn perfect, it still gives me chills just thinking about it. 

Also, Walt's final scene with Skyler was just an acting clinic by Cranston and Anna Gunn.  The way he said, "May I see her?", when asking if he could see Holly one last time before he died was just so heart-wrenching.

As much as I would have loved more of this show, I am glad they ended the way they did and when they did.  Perfection.

 

[FlyingBIZKIT]

I feel weird not ranking this one higher honestly

[Tom Bombadil]

Couldn't think of a better way to end the series. Everything about it was perfect. I love how Skinny Pete and Badger made one final appearance. They crack me up.

[Outcrier]

I think the end was good but a bit disappointing (especially after an episode like "Ozymandias").

[Bolsters]

I'm not sure I could actually ever build a ranked list of my 20 favourite episodes, but I don't even think this episode would make in it if I did. It's certainly not an offensive finale at all, but I think it's too safe. They resolved everything with a neat bow on top, crossed the T's and dotted the I's, but that's it. There's nothing exciting or daring about it; no risks were taken at all to try and elevate it above simply being suitable. There were also no surprises here at all, really. For me, that makes it a good finale since they didn't fuck anything up, but it also prevents it from being a truly great series finale.

[KevShmev]

I feel weird not ranking this one higher honestly

7th seems about right.  As perfect as the ending was, there were a handful of episodes I would call better overall. 

I'm not sure I could actually ever build a ranked list of my 20 favourite episodes, but I don't even think this episode would make in it if I did. It's certainly not an offensive finale at all, but I think it's too safe. They resolved everything with a neat bow on top, crossed the T's and dotted the I's, but that's it. There's nothing exciting or daring about it; no risks were taken at all to try and elevate it above simply being suitable. There were also no surprises here at all, really. For me, that makes it a good finale since they didn't fuck anything up, but it also prevents it from being a truly great series finale.

There weren't supposed to be any surprises.  Ozymandia was the climax of the series, and the last two episodes were in essence the aftermath.  Throwing in a surprise or two just for the sake of it would have came off well.  There were no surprises left.  Walt was dying and he took care of business before he did so.  In context, it was perfect.

[bertoltus]

Couldn't think of a better way to end the series. Everything about it was perfect. I love how Skinny Pete and Badger made one final appearance. They crack me up.

Yeah, who would have thought they'd eventually become master assassins after their early episodes?