All becomes crystal clear.
Breaking Bad is a 2008-2013 crime television series created by Vince Gilligan, produced by High Bridge Entertainment, Gran Via Productions, and Sony Pictures Television, and distributed by AMC. It stars Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul. It is the first series in the Breaking Bad universe, although the second chronologically. It was followed by Better Call Saul.
"Stay out of my territory." - Walter White
Plot
As he furthers himself into the drug world, chemistry teacher turned meth cook Walter White struggles to keep his second life from his family, leading to a dangerous sequence of events with dire consequences.
The Background
The other day, I re-published my review of the first season of Breaking Bad because I am starting a Breaking Bad review series leading to an epic ranking of every Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul episode. My review of the first season was from right after I watched it for the first time, so I hadn't seen the other seasons then. I've obviously watched all of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, so I have the context of the rest of the show for the rest of these reviews.
The Sweet
Season two of Breaking Bad is an interesting one. I think season one is strange, because it feels like it isn't a complete season, so the first third of season two feels like the true end of season one. That hurts this season a bit, because it feels like the plot resets and we begin a new story around episodes four and five. But I also think that the first few episodes of this season are some of the early high points of Breaking Bad. Grilled, the episode that closes out the Tuco conflict, is one of the best episodes of the entire series. Vince Gilligan and the writers' room really flexed how awesome this show can get.
I also think that this season, along with season four, honestly performs the most progression of Walt's character. We see him begin to break bad in season one, but season two really sees him embrace the Heisenberg persona and realize how good he is at this. He digs himself deeper into this web of lies and this world of crime, and you just see Walter White begin to fade and Heisenberg begin to emerge.
Season two also does what any great sequel season of TV does. It expands the world and introduces some cool new characters. This season is the best in terms of new characters. Saul, Gus, Mike, Hector, and Jane are all introduced this season. And they are just so much fun. You see the world of Breaking Bad being populated with these nuanced, complex criminals that tease the line between good and bad. It is easy to forget how important this season is for the characters. The development that our previously established characters received combined with the new cast members just make it such an integral piece of Breaking Bad.
This also feels like the first season where Vince Gilligan truly began to inject the iconic symbolism and hidden meanings that Breaking Bad is known for. Throughout the season, we have this recurring image of a deformed teddy bear floating in a pool. The discovery of where the teddy bear came from is more disturbing and awful than you could've ever predicted at the beginning of the season, and it just works as a symbol to show how dangerous Walt has become and all the destruction that he is causing.
Finally, I think this season does a great job with payoff. The latter three seasons of Breaking Bad have incredible plants and payoff, where a minor piece of information is mentioned in one episode and it comes back and becomes incredibly important later in the season. This season shows signs of that, especially in the last few episodes. The finale of season two really has an awesome confrontation as Skyler finds out Walt has been lying to her, referencing all of these minor setups that had happened throughout the season. It demonstrates the genius of these writers and shows how good this series is going to get in its final three seasons.
The Sour
While I think season two of Breaking Bad has its great moments, I still think you can feel the show trying to find its footing a bit. As great as the payoff to the Jane subplot is, I do not enjoy watching Jesse fall back into drug addiction. I feel like her scenes are overemphasized. When Jesse begins dating her, we have probably two or three scenes an episode that show them just becoming the worst versions of themselves, which can be very unpleasant to watch.
I also think that this season meanders a lot in the middle portion. The beginning is great and the end is great, but between Tuco's death and the introduction of Saul, there's about seven episodes there that just don't really move the plot forward that much. We get plenty of great character moments and see Walt go further into the drug world, but it feels like the season suffers from a lack of true conflict until Walt and Jesse get stuck in the desert. It definitely slows the pace of this season down a good bit, which can make it a bit sloggish to get through.
As much as I love what the teddy bear represents and how the plane crash shows the scope and danger of Walt's turn to crime, I think that the crash itself is a bit cartoonish. Breaking Bad is a very grounded show. Even the over-the-top moments are often explained in a convincingly realistic way...except for the plane crash. There's nothing necessarily unrealistic about it, but I just felt like it was a bit too popcorn-y for how gritty and realistic the show tends to be. I felt like the point can be emphasized by showing Jane's father's grief without having a plane crash because Walt let Jane die.
Finally, I think that this season is the one that leans more into crime drama than crime thriller. For the most part, Breaking Bad is a crime thriller filled with edge-of-your-seat, intense moments that pay off with these incredible shocks and iconic moments. As I've already said, this season is slower and more character-based, so it doesn't really have the edge-of-your-seat moments.
Final Thoughts and Score
Breaking Bad's sophomore season is a slight improvement over season one. A slow pace and lighter thrills are the weak points, but strong character development and some great new characters make this another very solid season of Breaking Bad.
I will go Savory here. Age range is 15+.
SWEET N' SOUR SCALE
Sweet (Great) Savory (Good) Sour (Bad) Moldy (Terrible)
"Breaking Bad"
Fun Factor: 7.5/10
Acting: 9/10
Story: 7.5/10
Characters: 9.5/10
Quality: 8.5/10
Created by Vince Gilligan
Rated TV-MA for language, violence, drug and alcohol use, sexual content, disturbing themes and images
Premiered on March 8, 2009
Episode runtime: 48 minutes
Bryan Cranston as Walter White
Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman
Anna Gunn as Skyler White
Dean Norris as Hank Schrader
Betsy Brandt as Marie Schrader
RJ Mitte as Walter White Jr.
Krysten Ritter as Jane Margolis
Bob Odenkirk as Saul Goodman
Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo Fring
Steven Michael Quezada as Steve Gomez
Charles Baker as Skinny Pete
Matt L. Jones as Badger
Jonathan Banks as Mike Ehrmantraut
John de Lancie as Donald Margolis
Raymond Cruz as Tuco Salamanca
Mark Margolis as Hector Salamanca
Tess Harper as Diane Pinkman
Jeremiah Bitsui as Victor
Danny Trejo as Tortuga