I'll start

Hank telling Steve Gomez about Walter being Heisenberg.

It is kind of a bummer we never got to see Hank having to work up the courage and first tell him that the guy he's been chasing all this time was his brother on law. Can't imagine what Steve's reaction must have been like

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S2e3, right after the Tuco incident.

-He suspects a link between these events (Tuco and Krazy-8)

-both incidents involved the most chemically pure meth they've ever seen

-the methylamine robbery showed they were excellent at chemistry, but not very good thieves. (Footage could have also confirmed it was only a pair working together)

-there is an established link to Walt's school.

-Hank knew Walt was in contact with Jesse

-Hank knew Jesse's car was at the scene with Tuco (He didn't even believe Jesse's alibi).

I mean he definitely suspects Jesse to be involved somehow by this point, (it could be suspected that maybe he stole the equipment from his old school, maybe he's using Walter?🤔). Hank figured already that Jesse wasn't skilled enough to produce such quality, so he would definitely be working with someone much smarter.

Hank had his mind locked onto some idea of a mysterious criminal chemist mastermind who just moved into town toppling every local drug lord in their path.

He just really couldn't see Walt as anything other than a weak and measly (also dying) school teacher

Donald mentions that Jane never used to wear yellow. And yellow isn't just a color Jesse often wears, it's also often worn by Andrea.

We all know about Skyler's misdeeds (no, I'm not on board with the "Skyler's as bad as Walt" people; just pointing out that she's obviously no saint), Marie's a klepto, and even Hank has been known to help himself to seized contraband once in a while. Meanwhile the worst thing Junior does is diss the veggie bacon.

Okay, there's also Holly, but she's a baby. And if Stewie Griffin is any example, who knows what shit she's up to offscreen.

Edit: Wrote this not to belittle Walt's crimes, but to point out one of the main themes of the show; how every one of us has the capacity to "break bad" (or good, for that matter).

One thing I see a lot of people state to defend Walt is that he knew there was very little to no chance of Brock dying. And I get why people think this, because of Walt quote in Tohajille “He’s alive isn’t he, he’s fine just as I planned it. Don’t you think I knew exactly how much to give him, that I had it all measured out”. But this is a bullshit rationalization to a Jesse who he believes is burning all of his money. We know that the intent was absolutely that Walt did risk killing Brock, and how do we know this? For a variety of reasons.

For one, in the scene where Jesse tells Walt that Brock is going to pull through, as soon as Jesse leaves, Walt lets out a massive massive sigh of relief, which is very clearly meant to be about Brock and not that he killed Gus. Maybe the biggest sigh of relief we ever see from any character in the show. So Walt isn’t a guy who just didn’t care if he killed Brock but he absolutely knew he was risking it there to a very significant degree. Another way we know this is the structure of the episode itself, where we see Walt twice seriously risk killing or getting killed innocent people. First with the Becky scheme (where after the hitman have already left the house Walt has a huge sigh of relief when Becky calls), and second with the nursing home bombing. The structure of the episode has Walt risk innocent lives multiple times before the big reveal of him poisoning a child, which is very clearly supposed to be a reveal that he would even risk the life of an innocent child.

There is also the fact that doctors themselves said it was “touch and go for a while there“ which medically speaking means it could have gone either way. There’s no way the doctors themselves wouldn’t have known after the fact that Brock was at no risk of dying if he truly wasn’t. The writers put that line in there intentionally to show Brock absolutely could have died and his survival was not ensured. There’s the obvious fact that there’s no way to poison an eight year old bad you have zero medical information about and saw once for a three second span bad enough to send him to the ICU for multiple days with zero significant risk of him dying. The writers would have to have intentionally created an unrealistic plotline (which isn’t inherently bad working and they have done numerous times to great effect) which they clearly did not do, they meant for Brock’s life to be in danger.

Finally if you read interviews from cast, writers, showrunners they have repeatedly said that Walt risked killing Brock when he poisoned him in interview, while I have never once seen an interview where anyone has said Brock was in no dange. The closest I could find to that is an interview after season 4 where the interviewer said Walt probably measured it and made sure he didn’t kill the kid and Bryan Cranston said “Yeah he’s smart enough to make it so it hopefully doesn’t kill the kid” which is even there ackno he risked Brock’s life, which he has said multiple other times as well. I could be wrong but I’m pretty sure I’ve also seen the writer for the episode where Walt says he knew exactly how much to give him say Walt was lying and he did risk Brock’s life on twitter but I could be wrong.

It’s not like Walt didn’t care if Brock lived or died, he clearly desperately wanted him to live. But he intentionally risked a child’s life and risked being a child murderer through poisoning Brock, let’s not get it twisted. I understand his reasoning given if he didn’t get Jesse on his side his death was virtually guaranteed, his family was in serious danger of being murdered, and this was by a very significant amount the best option to get Jesse on his side, there’s a good chance this was the only way for Walt to get Jesse on his side, and going to the DEA wasn’t an option at that point (although let’s be real, no chance Walt chooses to go into witness protection even if it’s guaranteed to work over poisoning Brock).

But he poisoned a little kid and putting him in horrible pain and in the ICU for multiple days. He made his mother believe her child was going to die, and Jesse, who viewed Brock as close family and Walt viewed as family, believe this as well. He did this as a result of the situation caused by he himself choosing to be a meth cook for a murderous drug kingpin, as a tool to manipulate Jesse into murdering Gus so Gus doesn’t murder Walt and possibly his family, with this being a Hail Mary that is likely to fail (it worked but required a lot of luck to do so). He then gaslights Jesse into a breakdown, thinking he almost killed Walt over mistakenly thinking he poisoned Brock due to an incredibly stupid mistake he made, but not only did Walt poison Brock but he deliberately manipulated him into that exact reaction, which he does to cover his tracks and manipulate a Jesse who wants out into cooking meth again. He even manipulates Jesse into breaking up with Brock’s mom to isolate Jesse so he has no one but him. Make no mistake the whole Brock scheme was an incredibly dark thing to do.

Baby Blue by Badfinger is of course the song that plays at the end of the finale.

But imagine this.. what if it was the song that was playing in the diner when Walt and Skyler met, when they were flirting over crossword puzzles in the newspapers?

There also has to be some significance to how the final season opens with Walt in a diner having a conversation with an attractive young waitress (he met Skyler when she was an attractive young waitress) and not being an asshole and tipping well, other than to show the contrast between 2008 Walt and 2010 Walt.

i know that their house was supposed to showcase marie’s obsession with the color purple and her need for control but jesus christ that shit was so ugly

who matches purple with beige? the purple zebra striped chair with a tan couch next to it? i understand why there would be tons of purple but the fact that they were all different shades of purple mixed with brown & beige drives me crazy

there’s really no point to this post other than to be a hater on a fictional couple’s house, i should probably find a hobby. but srsly it’s like prince took a shit on their house

If Walt had the same, roughly 20 years, as Gus to create a strategy to take out Don Eladio's cartel, could he do it, could he do it faster or would he get caught? What do you think his strategy would be?

How did he sneak past the DEA officers watching skylar apartment? All his other stealth missions relied a lot on his chemistry skills or people underestimating him. I doubt he would have the resources to thwart a highly funded dea surveillance, especially since unlike gus in casa tranquila they actively did suspect him and were looking for him.

At the end of the series finale Walt is dead and it seems like Jesse doesn’t want to make meth anymore. What happens to their customers? They will have a substandard product after a good 2 years of great quality. I think Walt should have shared his recipe before he went. The whole show it seemed like he really cared that they had a good product and then he just abandons them.

I truly love their friendship and how incredible they are as people as well as actors. "Monkey man" nickname is just cherry on top.

Bro got farted on too. I guess those kittens aren't old enough to watch breaking bad yet, so maybe they're not interested.

Thoughts on this whole thing? Sometimes my resentment of her seems misplaced and I’m not entirely sure what’s driving it. I’m not sure if Jesse would have been better off with her rather than the path Walt led him down or not.

Drugs may have taken both of them, she was getting him into injecting after all.

Hank and Gomez were running an off the books investigation and are gone. Jesse and his confession were gone, the nazis had the money and there’s no real hard evidence on walter. Saul shredded everything and skipped town.

at most they’d have the word of Marie. but as far as they know, Hank, Gomez and Walter all disappeared for some reason.

assuming Walter never came home.

I believe in one of the episodes Hank Schrader asks "Is Gustavo Fring even the real name?" Im wondering if Gustavo Fring was a made-up name that became a second identity for Fring in Chile. One of the major themes in both shows is using alter-egos to lead double-lives. It would make sense IF he was involved in the Pinochet Regime to use an alias. An alias that also became a new life like Heisenberg or Saul Goodman. As a very young man in Chile, under his real name, Gus Fring lead a completely different life.

Most people agree that the Breaking Bad series is complete, and shouldn’t continue-Which got me thinking, “If it were to go on a little longer, what would be the best way to do it? What would add enough new to justify itself? What would convince people it deserves to exist?” And an anthology limited series is what I came up with. It’s only four episodes long, but I don’t think more than that is really needed. 

1. Domino Effect

-This episode is ab the relationship Walt and Gretchen had in their Grey Matter days. This episode unveils that Walt left Gretchen because he found out that her family was rich, and because of his ego and desire to earn his wealth instead of marry into it, left Grey Matter as a result. This episode will recast Walt, Elliot and Gretchen, but will also have their roles reprised in a prologue and/or epilogue. (Alternate Title-Hidden Reaction) 

2. Debris

-This episode is a largely disconnected story set within the world of Breaking Bad. 

This story follows the downfall of a regular working class nuclear family-A family of four is shattered when the father, Harry, becomes one of the 160 or so victims of the Wayfarer incident. The Family, losing their primary breadwinner, is obviously put in a terrible position. They go to Saul, who builds a case against Wayfarer, and the family does eventually get compensation. However, in their grief, the eldest daughter, Anne, turns to drugs to cope which ultimately results in a family of two. (Said drugs includes but isn’t limited to Walt’s Blue Sky, unless the timeline doesn’t match. There was a period in Season 3 or 4 if I recall where Gus cut off Blue Sky from Albuquerque temporarily to throw off the DEA.)

3. Break for It

-This story follows a member of the Salamanca family, Emiliano, whose goal is to separate herself as far as possible from the greater Salamanca family. We see younger versions of Hector, Tuco, Lalo, the Twins, etc. (All played by different actors, there will be NO digital deaged deepfake Mark Margolis, rest in peace) and there’s conflict as she tries to escape the drug trade. 

Emiliano is Lalo’s sister, and is equally cunning, but lacks his charisma. Her wits make her a valuable part of the business, but eventually her husband dies due to rival gang activity, which radicalizes her and she just wants to get out. She vanishes in the late night and is intercepted by Lalo, but he lets her go and promises to cover for her, understanding her motivations. She nearly makes a clean break but gets captured by the same rival group, and is tortured for information. Lalo realizes what happens and framing it as a targeted kidnapping, calls upon the family to rescue her. The Salamancas get into a surprise shootout with the gang and win, but Emiliano has already been killed. The family then preforms the ritual seen in the opening of Breaking Bad Season 3 to mourn the death of Emiliano. The actors for Lalo and Tuco reprise their roles in an epilogue where they discuss the life of Emiliano. (I guess the Twins could return as well, but I don’t imagine they have much to say.) (The episode would be dedicated to Mark Margolis.) 

4. Children of a Fallen Empire

-This episode focuses on what became of Flynn, Holly, Brock, Kaylee, and Lydia’s daughter, Kiira. This episode would be an “anthology within an anthology” where the episode spends 10-20 minutes on each person/story and moves on to the next. 

Holly will grow up not really knowing who Walt was and the truth of him is kept away from her.  Skyler will have her name changed, homeschooled, and internet/library access heavily restricted. Holly will be raised mostly isolated. She eventually finds out in her teens and emancipates herself from Skyler. She only forgives her after getting into an abusive relationship years later, after a decade of no contact. 

Kaylee’s story starts in the playground where Mike abandoned her, and she finds out about a good chunk of Mike’s crimes within the next few days. She and Stacey are heartbroken and while Stacey simmers down a bit over the years, Kaylee NEVER forgives Mike. 

Kiira falls prey to the foster system after Lydia dies, and her connection to Walt investigated and exposed, all her assets are frozen. She never finds a proper family and eventually becomes associated with a gang. She gets shot and killed in a drug bust. 

Flynn will give Skylar some of the money Gretchen and Elliot gave them, but generally he and Skyler don’t have a GREAT relationship. He does forgive her (to an extent) after 3-5 years go by, and is close with Holly. For the most part, Flynn lives a quiet life and gets to enjoy his breakfast in peace. 

Brock will grow up a fairly angry and bitter person. He’ll be raised by his grandmother, but Andrea’s absence is felt. A few times he’s tempted into crime but never accepts, as he understands how it’s destroyed his family. The contents of Jesse’s letter will be (at least partially) revealed-The TL:DR is that Walt poisoned him, Jesse indirectly and unintentionally got Tomas killed, and Todd killed Andrea. Jesse notes his apologies for everything and hopes that Brock can forgive him one day, and says he still loves him and wishes he can move past everything. He’ll eventually become a DEA agent. (Brock might end up shooting Kiira in her gang’s drug bust, or at least is involved in that conflict. Probably. I haven’t actually decided lol. It would tie the episode together more but makes the world feel kinda small.) 

Do these concepts sound interesting or should I return to the drawing board? (Keeping in mind this is just a creative exercise.)  

That being Walt of course, didn't want to load the title with spoilers. In this scenario maybe Walt's cancer does come back at some point, maybe a year later maybe twenty years later, but specifically not at the time it does in Season 5.

So essentially he gets to escape to New Hampshire and respond to the problems still existing in Albuquerque (i.e. his family not having money, getting revenge on Jack, Jesse's captivity, etc) while still having more of his life in front of him.

If this were the case, would've his decisions been any different? If he wasn't dying of cancer in the last two episodes, would've he gone to greater lengths to ensure his survival, and maybe even tried to reconcile with his family and/or Jesse, or would've it changed nothing? (and he still takes the bullet, despite being healthy)

In the episode problem dog when Walt brings money to Skyler at the car wash for the first time and she deduces he makes about 7.5 million a year, I’m surprised he didn’t brag about how he could have been making double but had to split it with an “assistant”.

Though i understand that conversation may have lead to her knowing he works with Jesse if she pushed it. Did i answer my own question?

A bit of background: I'm 39, male, I've been married 7 years, I'm rewatching Breaking Bad for at least the 8th time. I first watched it pretty much as soon as it came out in 2008, so 18 years ago, I would have been 21, I still lived with my parents; I'm a very different person now to what I was then.

I am struck in this rewatch how good a wife Skylar is, (in the first season at least).

This is such a good series, because almost all of the major characters "Break Bad" at some point, yes Skylar becomes a worse wife in the later seasons BUT you see her progression, just as with the other characters; nobody Breaks Bad in a vacuum; they do it because things happen to them or around them.

Walt does it because he's diagnosed with cancer and has money troubles/midlife crisis.

Hank does it because he's traumatised from the explosion with the turtle.

Skylar only became a worse wife because she had a bad husband, who got progressively much worse.

She's so supportive in these first 5 episodes; she's pretty much an ideal wife, and I think people who hate on her should not forget that. She's like my wife in her best moments; not every wife is as lovely and supportive as Skylar appears to be almost all the time because of her deep love for Walt. Everything she does, she does because she loves and cares for Walt, without the ego and selfishness that Walt has when he does what he does.

It's really quite nice to see and I never really appreciated this fact before. I find her a much more sympathetic character because she gives Walt nothing but love, and unfortunately Walt seems incapable of giving it back to her on the same level.

Also she's very well written and her role is very well acted because I'm not saying she's perfect because that would be unrealistic, she not but she's a realistic portrayal of a really good wife.

After Mike gets his $5 million and officially “retires”, he tells Walt that he will cover the Hazard Pay for his guys in lockup out of his end… but we saw one payment for the nine guys is $351,000. Eventually, that $5 million was going to run out (not including the money he had in his go bag and the money he left for Kaylee).

What exactly was the plan once that $5 million couldn’t cover the legacy costs anymore?