Warning: This list contains spoilers for all seasons of Breaking Bad.
Summary
Certain brief moments from the milestone drama TV showBreaking Baddefine the series anywhere from early on to its final episode.The now-famous saga of high school chemistry turned drug lord Walt White (Bryan Cranston) has a certifiable repertoire of iconic scenesthat are among the most celebrated in TV history. Several of the show’s most dramatic moments constitute the deaths of heroes and villains alike; however, other quieter ones show even more narrative complexity.
While thebest scenes inBreaking Badhave been listed many times, certain moments that define the show are not so obvious — despite some being only seconds long. Walt and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) are at the center ofBreaking Bad’sstory, and finding the interactions that best define their dynamic is a challenge.Other beloved and forgotten excerpts illustrateBreaking Bad’sthemes of betrayal and absurdity,some of which focus on the characters' reactions to painful news. Impressively, Vince Gilligan’s masterpiece makes every moment count when it comes to conveying the point of the story and characters.
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Season 1, Episode 1: “Pilot”
Jesse claims the title drop forBreaking Badin the first episode, the only time the phrase is used in the series. Most people are aware thatBreaking Badis about Walt’s arc of becoming a violent criminal, something that is captured in the title itself.Jesse is confused after Walt proposes their partnership because he does not yet know that Walt has cancer, which is the inciting incident that pushes him into the drug trade. In Jesse’s eyes, his old law-abiding teacher has randomly just decided to"break bad"— and probably thinks he’s witnessing the craziest midlife crisis ever.
However, Jesse’s lack of information might result in a more accurate interpretation of the situation. As Walt admits to Skyler (Anna Gunn) years later, he"did it for himself.“To some extent, Walt was always yearning for an adventure and his diagnosis was just the excuse he needed. He soon finds that he has a taste for the adrenaline-inducing world of drug deals gone wrong.Jesse’s temporary perception that Walt is becoming a criminal for the sake of it is more accuratethan either of them realizes at the time, hinting at the show’s conclusion.
9"Yeah, Mr. White! Yeah, Science!”
Season 1, Episode 7: “A No-Rough-Stuff-Type Deal”
Scientific expertise is a recurring motif inBreaking Bad, which Walt relies upon to get out of multiple dangerous situations alive. Jesse gradually comes to have an appreciation for the scientific aspect of cooking meth, which begins with him eagerly admiring their first batch. Jesse has an oft-quoted moment when Walt figures out a way to cook meth without pseudoephedrine.“Yeah, Mr. White! Yeah, science!“is a funny beat, but one that also holds drastic implicationsfor the rest of the show. Additionally, it showcases an earlier iteration of the two main characters' amusing, messy, and toxic dynamic.
Jesse eagerly responding to Walt’s plans becomes a staple ofBreaking Bad, as well as the two of them getting themselves into dangerously ridiculous plans.
Walt’s dependence on a new material to produce meth will change the nature of his business; it alters the supply and demand concerns and gives rise to his signature blue meth. Jesse eagerly responding to Walt’s plans becomes a staple ofBreaking Bad, as well as the two of them getting themselves into dangerously ridiculous plans.Despite himself, Walt comes to like Jesse and his enthusiastic reactionsand protects him for no other reason than personal attachment. However, their bond becomes a bad thing when Walt is willing to hurt others to keep Jesse by his side.
8Teddy Bear In Pool
Season 2, Episode 13: “ABQ”
The mangled pink teddy bear floating in the pool of the Whites' backyard is a compelling image associated withBreaking Bad. It is teased throughout season 2 before it is finally revealed thatthe teddy bear is among the debris from a plane crash that Walt indirectly caused when he let Jane Margolis (Krysten Ritter) choke to death.The bear is an image of the damage that has been done; its missing eyeball is a reminder that Walt can’t seem to escape. However, this moment of the show is stacked with recurring motifs.
The bear can be associated with Jane, but also Walt’s infant daughter Holly —at one point in the show, Holly is seen wearing a pink coat with a hood that has ears on it.Walt is wearing a pink sweater in the plane crash episode, perhaps showing his attempt to reclaim some innocence and honorability after Skyler leaves him with the kids. Pools also show up a lot inBreaking Bad, signifying a purifying, cooling effect on the characters, but one that can just as well be deadly.
7Walt Tosses The Pizza Onto His Roof
Season 3, Episode 2: “Caballo Sin Nombre”
Walt’s famous pizza toss is the most bizarrely iconic moment ofBreaking Bad. Angered by Skyler refusing to let him stay for dinner and coldly rejecting the food he brought, Walt yells in frustration in front of the house and somehow manages to throw the whole pizza into the air and onto the roof of the house. He leaves it there, receiving an angry call from Skyler later.Trying to make thematic sense of the pizza scene is no easy thing, but everything inBreaking Badis meticulously planned out,so it must have some purpose.
After leaving the pizza to rot, Walt comes back, breaks into the house, and goes to clean up the pizza himself. It’s an odd approach to showing his disturbing determination to remain a part of the family as a dutiful husband and father, despite Skyler making it clear she wants him gone. However,the pizza toss is mostly another comedic moment characteristic of the grim, wild humor that permeatesBreaking Bad.Additionally, the real-life owners of this house had problems with fans coming to their address to recreate Walt’s pizza toss (viaTIME).
6"I’m The One Who Knocks”
Season 4, Episode 6: “Cornered”
Walt’s speech where he imparts to Skyler that he is the one to be feared can be summed up by its final, haunting line.After Walt viciously states"I’m the one who knocks,“Skyler is silently stunned,before taking off with Holly for the day to think things over. Barring the discourses on the nuances and ultimate meaning of the scene, the quote definesBreaking Badby simply being one of its most famous and most quotable moments. However, that is not to say that there is no deeper meaning that has a bearing on the entire show.
“I’m the one who knocks"is especially impactful because it is a subversive way for Walt to make his point,describing a very specific situation and who he is in it. It hits Skyler because the idea that someone will come to their home to kill them is exactly what she has been imagining. Interestingly, Walt is perhaps not yet fully Heisenberg at this point. His defeat of Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) is still in the future, as is Gus directly threatening all the Whites' lives. This iconic moment foreshadows many things yet to come inBreaking Bad’stimeline.
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5Skyler Protecting The Family From Walt
Skyler’s life is in constant chaos throughoutBreaking Bad:First, she believes that her husband is either having an affair or on drugs. Things only get worse when she pieces together the truth. After that, she is always toeing the line of what she is willing to do to help Walt or challenge him. Unwilling to hurt her family by going to the police, she tries to get rid of Walt on her own, but is slowly pulled into his world and becomes responsible for laundering his money. Yet she still fights him at key moments.
Skyler’s line"Someone has to protect this family from the man that protects this family"is the perfect circular illustration of the Catch-22 she is stuck in. She’s particularly angry at Walt here because she knows Walter Jr. (RJ Mitte) will blame her for making them return his new car.There is no winning for Skyler when it comes to Walt,and she can only do her best to minimize the damage. She finally snaps and resorts to fighting Walt head-on when everything is well and truly destroyed, and there is no coming back.
4Gus' Death
Season 4, Episode 13: “Face Off”
Gus proves to be Walt’s most dangerous adversary inBreaking Bad. Theworst things Gus does inBreaking Badinclude giving Hank Schrader (Dean Norris) to the Salamanca cousins, threatening Walt’s children, and killing Victor (Jeremiah Bitsui) to make a point to Walt and Jesse.Gus is the only criminal mastermind smart enough to pose a true challenge to Walt.Gus' most memorable scene is probably when he poisons the entire cartel, demonstrating his maniacal brilliance and ruthlessness, in a storyline that is oddly divorced from Walt.
However, the image of Gus emerging from Hector Salamanca’s (Mark Margolis) nursing home room with half his face blown off is another image inextricably linked toBreaking Bad.Gus straightens his tie and jacket before falling to the groundfor another moment, demonstrating the subtly morbid humor of the show and illustrating his character one last time. The snapshot has also come to defineBreaking Badjust by how grotesquely memorable it is.
3Walt Threatens Saul
Season 5, Episode 1: “Live Free Or Die”
Saul Goodman’s (Bob Odenkirk) bright if vulgar persona drastically sets him apart from the rest of the rest of theBreaking Badcast, which is why it made sense for him to carry his own spinoff characterized by different themes. However,Saul’s presence inBreaking Badas a supporting character emphasizes the show’s darkly comedic streak.Saul immediately proves his ability to talk his way out of any situation while making several jokes. He further demonstrates his ambition and"moral flexibility”— as Mike (Jonathan Banks) calls it inBetter Call Saul— when he approaches Walt at the high school because he wants in.
However, while Saul plays a major role inBreaking Bad’smultifaceted tone, he has a different moment relating to Walt’s arc. Saul is generallylaissez-faireabout everything Walt does; Walt threatening Saul to prevent him from walking away in the season 5 premiere is an indicator of how serious things have become.Walt simply stating"We’re done when I say we’re done"illustrates how terrifying he has becometo his colleagues and family. Yet the callback to the line the last time Walt and Saul meet also emphasizes Walt’s downfall.
2Todd Shoots Drew
In season 5, Jesse and Mike Ehrmantraut both try to get out of the business when it becomes clear that Walt is out of control and what they are doing will only result in more death and carnage. A major factor in this is when Walt brings in Todd Alquist (Jesse Plemons), a criminal with a disturbing lack of empathy. After the crew successfully robs a freight train, they realize that they have been witnessed by a young boy on a dirt bike, named Drew (Samuel Webb).Todd only thinks for a moment before shooting Drew in cold blood.
This fundamental ideological divide leads to the fallout of Walt and Jesse’s relationship.
Jesse panics while Walt remains silent, typical of their characters. This incident happens very quickly and demonstrates how,no matter how much Walt insists otherwise, things will never be completely under control;the only way to prevent more death is to end it all. This fundamental ideological divide leads to the fallout of Walt and Jesse’s relationship. Drew’s death is another brutal example of what Walt leaves in his wake, as well as the villainy of one of the last season’s antagonists.
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1Walt’s Reaction To Hank’s Death
Season 5, Episode 14: “Ozymandias”
In one of themost disturbing episodes ofBreaking Bad, Walt finishes off his relationship with his family whenhis involvement in the drug trade leads to the deaths of his brother-in-law Hank and Hank’s longtime DEA partner Steve Gomez(Steven Michael Quezada). Things only spiral from there: Walt willingly hands Jesse over to Todd and his uncle Jack (Michael Bowen), Skyler pulls a knife on Walt to get him out of her house, Walt kidnaps Holly, and Marie (Betsy Brandt) finds out that her husband has been killed.
However,there is a very recognizable moment of Walt lying on the ground crying after Hank is shot,overwhelmed by grief. He recuperates and does business with Hank’s murderers very fast (coming back to kill them all months later). However, there is a moment where all Walt feels is despair and guilt for what has happened. WhileBreaking Badfollows many morally corrupt characters, moments like this prove that they are much more complex than being completely remorseless.
Breaking Bad
Cast
Breaking Bad, created by Vince Gilligan, follows a chemistry teacher turned drug kingpin named Walter White (Bryan Cranston) as he attempts to provide for his family following a fatal diagnosis. With nothing left to fear, White ascends to power in the world of drugs and crime, transforming the simple family man into someone known only as Heisenberg.
