Breaking Bad Seasons Ranked Worst to Best
5. SEASON 1
The arguably greatest show of all-time is quite hard to rank considering that every season is incredible television. It also may be the only one that I can think of that gets consistently better as it goes on (excluding BoJack Horseman). Season 1 is often deemed slow and it is. Nevertheless, Breaking Bad had to set the foundation of its series and develop the characters that would soon become unrecognizable and wanted to make sure it was done methodically. I have no issue with that when the premise of a typical everyman dad wanting to cook meth is just so gripping. It just didn’t have the high stakes and wow-moments that the later seasons would have.
4. SEASON 2
Season 2 ramps up the experiences in the drug world here to escalate it above the first. The Tuco showdown is exhilarating even if we had to say goodbye to the firecracker that he was in his time on the show. Jane and Saul are also introduced and make their significant impacts on the show in their own way. The former’s death is truly a tragic sight to behold and marks the moment Heisenberg was born. Even when the show isn’t shocking us, we get character bonding moments like “4 Days Out” that emphasize what the heart of the show is and that’s Jesse and Walter’s relationship.
3. SEASON 3
People like to s*** on “The Fly” episode as soon as season 3 is mentioned and I’m not here for it. Bottle episodes like this allow us to explore characters’ psyches. Not everything has to be death and explosions. On a different note, this season really heightens the danger that the famous duo have gotten themselves into. Gustavo Fring is brought to the table as an excellent, calm, and calculated villain for the two to face. Fring’s distrust in them leads to yet another brutal (yet awesome to watch) finale where Jesse has to murder their replacement. It’s a pivotal moment that influences the story heavily going forward and gives us a great cliffhanger.
2. SEASON 4
Arriving at the top two is the probably the most riveting installment yet. Season 4 is the wild all-out war between Gus and Walt that rarely lets up until the culmination in “Face Off”. Legendary antagonist should always go out in style and having his arch nemesis, Hector, blow him up is about as perfect as it gets. Walt finally wins and starts his trek towards his run as tyranny. It’s also where we get THAT scene where Skylar tells Walter about her giving their money to Ted in an acting showcase for Bryan Cranston.
SEASON 5
For a show with as many Emmy wins and nominations as it had going into its last season, there was obviously a lot of high expectations for how Walter White ended his journey to villainy. I would say that they may have actually surpassed them with a potentially perfect season holding some of the best episodes in the show like “Ozymandias”. Not many shows know when to stop, e.g, Walking Dead, Riverdale, Dexter. Fortuntately, Vince Gilligan (creator) came in with a clear plan so that they couldn’t milk it for what it was worth. Everything comes to a head in the last sixteen episodes of the series that had a LOT to close up. Mike, Hank, Jack’s and Walt’s deaths are all satisfying conclusions to their arcs after some seriously intense confrontation. Their exits leave fan-favorite Jesse Pinkman able to walk freely as we all hoped (but didn’t think) he would.
