Breaking Bad review and summary of all 5 season
BREAKING BAD
REVIEW AND SUMMARY OF ALL 5 SEASONS
Today, I’ll review and summarize all five seasons, including spoilers and my personal opinions. Let's get started!
SEASON 1
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The first season of the series is now iconic, a season that gives us our first look at the protagonist: Walter White. Walter is a high school chemistry teacher with a family consisting of his pregnant wife Skyler, his son Walter White Jr., who has a disability, and his brother-in-law Hank, a DEA agent married to Skyler’s sister, Marie.
After his 50th birthday, Walt receives the devastating news that he has cancer, which changes his life forever. He reconnects with Jesse Pinkman, a former student and small-time drug dealer. Walt adopts the alias Heisenberg, and together they start cooking methamphetamine to secure financial stability for his family after he’s gone.
The first season is slow—maybe too slow—but it effectively introduces us to this world and makes us empathize with Walt. There are many twists and turns, and the final episodes are particularly well-written and engaging, especially Walt’s first encounter with Tuco and his "kidnapping," both of which have become iconic moments. Overall, the first season is decent, but it’s just a taste of what Breaking Bad will become. Don’t be discouraged—keep watching! The second season is where things get really interesting.
Season 1 Rating: 7.8
SEASON 2
A MAJOR TURNING POINT
Season 2 of Breaking Bad is a game-changer. It picks up where the first season left off, with Walter and Jesse meeting Tuco. They soon realize he’s too dangerous and try to escape, but they end up getting kidnapped by him. This is also where we meet Hector Salamanca, an old man in a wheelchair who will play a crucial role in later seasons. Tuco is eventually killed by Hank, who, while investigating Jesse, ends up in the desert and unknowingly saves the protagonists.
Meanwhile, Walter's marriage starts falling apart due to his constant lies. Jesse rents a house from Jane Margolis, and the two develop a deep romantic relationship. However, they both spiral into drug addiction, leading to tragic consequences. Jesse hires his friends Combo and Skinny Pete to sell their remaining meth, but something happens that will change everything in the next season.
Walter and Jesse also meet Saul Goodman, one of my favorite characters, who adds comedic relief while still being a key figure in the story. Saul introduces Walter to Gustavo Fring, aka Gus, the owner of Los Pollos Hermanos and a major drug kingpin. While doing a job for Gus, Walter receives a call from Skyler saying their daughter is about to be born. However, due to Jesse, he misses the birth but completes the job.
The season reaches an emotional climax when Jane dies in front of Walt, marking his full transformation into Heisenberg. Jesse, unaware of the truth, is devastated and refuses to cook meth anymore. Saul’s associate, Mike, helps Jesse erase all traces of evidence. Meanwhile, Jane’s father, an air traffic controller, inadvertently causes a mid-air collision, making Walter indirectly responsible for hundreds of deaths.
Saul Goodman
Season 2 had me glued to the screen. Stunning cinematography, Saul's introduction, Jane and Jesse’s story, Tuco’s fate—there’s so much to love. This is where Breaking Bad starts getting truly great.
Season 2 Rating: 8.5
SEASON 3
SLOW BUT ESSENTIAL
Season 3 sees Walt working in Gus’s high-tech meth lab alongside Gale, a skilled and kind-hearted chemist. However, Jesse eventually returns to work with Walt, and they resume cooking together. Meanwhile, Jesse grows close to Andrea, a single mother, and learns her little brother has been recruited by gang members working for Gus—these same gang members are responsible for the death of Jesse’s friend Combo.
Meanwhile, Walt is forced to move out due to Skyler discovering the truth about his criminal activities, though she keeps it a secret. Hank is targeted by Tuco’s cousins in a revenge plot, but Gus secretly warns him, leading to a violent shootout where Hank is critically injured.
Jesse, enraged by the murder of Andrea’s brother, plans to take revenge on the dealers responsible, but Walt beats him to it, killing them himself. This act of defiance puts both Jesse and Walt in direct conflict with Gus. Gus decides that Walt must be eliminated, so Mike kidnaps him. However, Walt instructs Jesse to kill Gale to make themselves indispensable to Gus. The season ends with Jesse pointing a gun at Gale’s head and pulling the trigger.
Despite being slower-paced, Season 3 is another step up. It’s filled with unforgettable moments, and Jesse's character development is particularly strong.
Season 3 Rating: 9.0
SEASON 4
THE END OF GUS’S STORY
If Season 3 was great, Season 4 is a masterpiece. The pacing is relentless, and every moment is gripping. Jesse and Walt must eliminate Gus, but Gus has a plan of his own—he intends to turn Jesse against Walt.
Before Gus can act, Walt creates a vial of ricin poison for Jesse to use against him. However, Jesse begins to trust Gus, straining his relationship with Walt. Things escalate when Brock, Andrea’s son, is poisoned, and Jesse initially suspects Walt. However, Walt manipulates Jesse into believing Gus is responsible. They reunite and plot to kill Gus.
Jesse is forced to work in the meth lab under guard, while Walt constructs a bomb. He convinces Hector Salamanca, who has a deep hatred for Gus, to help him. In a masterfully executed scene, Hector lures Gus into a room and detonates the bomb, killing them both. The season ends with Skyler realizing Walt was responsible for Gus’s death, and the camera zooming in on a flower in Walt’s backyard—the same plant he used to poison Brock. Walt is no longer Walter White—he is fully Heisenberg.
Mike
Season 4 is one of the greatest seasons of television ever. The cinematography, the tension, the character arcs—everything is perfect.
Season 4 Rating: 9.5
SEASON 5
THE PEAK OF THE SERIES
Season 5 is an absolute spectacle. Topping Season 4 seemed impossible, but they did it. The season begins with a flash-forward showing an older, bearded Walter White on his 52nd birthday. The main focus of this season is Hank discovering that Walt is Heisenberg, and Jesse realizing Walt poisoned Brock.
Everything falls apart. Walt’s family turns against him, his cancer returns, Saul is forced to go into hiding, and things spiral toward a tragic end. Hank and Mike meet heartbreaking fates, and Walter becomes increasingly ruthless and desperate.
It all culminates in a stunning finale. Walt rescues Jesse and, in an unforgettable final scene, dies from a gunshot wound, collapsing in the meth lab as "Baby Blue" plays. A perfect ending.
Season 5 Rating: 10
That concludes my Breaking Bad summary/review—one of the greatest TV shows of all time. Maybe in the future, I'll review El Camino. What do you think?
The incredible 3D Saul Goodman
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