Breaking Bad changed the course of Television for good. It is a show which established its dominance through some of the best writing I have ever seen in a TV series. Each season presented challenges and problems for Walter White (Played by Bryan Cranston) and Jesse (Played by Aaron Paul) in the form of new villains and even more complicated and intricate character arcs. Breaking Bad, somehow perfectly balanced thriller with comedy, tragedy with redemption. And a big part of what had us rooting for Walter White were the unfathomable odds presented by the spectacular line-up of antagonists on the show. From Tuco to Gus, here are the top 5 villains which turned Walter into Heisenberg.
5. Krazy-8
Krazy-8 is one of the first persons that Walter deals with. Krazy-8 was nothing but a small town drug dealer who worked under the pressure of Tuco and other Salamancas. His arc began with Jesse approaching him to try the meth created by Walter, the purest stuff in the whole Mexico. Krazy-8 was so taken aback by what he tasted, he started questioning the intentions of Walter and later on blackmailed him for his formula. This also led to the first time in the series where Walter puts his sly, survival skills to use and poisons Krazy-8 and Emilio with a subtle altercation in the formula. Krazy-8, who was now trapped in the basement of Jesse’s home, is desperate to break free and makes use of the softer, warmer side of Walter. Just like Walter’s survival skills enabled him to trump Krazy-8, Krazy-8 took advantage of Walter’s fatherlike bonding and almost got out of his cage. The later implications where Walter learns that one component of the broken plate has gone mysteriously missing, and he can’t wrap his head around what he has to do is one of the most well-acted and brilliantly conceived scenes in Breaking Bad Season 1.
4. The Salamanca Cousins
The Salamanca Cousins were arguably the most ruthless and menacing Villains in Breaking Bad. Their presence alone was an indication that something is about to go horribly and terribly wrong. Leonel and Marco Salamanca are the Nephews of Hector Salamanca who come into the picture after Tuco is shot dead by Hank. Their main purpose in Breaking Bad was to take revenge on the man who killed Tuco and the man who created the entire mess, Walter. However, their plans of killing Walter are thwarted by Gustavo Fring, and so they are led into the direction of Hank. The sequences like blowing an entire truck full of murdered refugees, and the epic showdown between Hank and The Cousins were some of the most nerve-wracking moments in the show. I remember being genuinely concerned for Hank and the petrifying discovery of Hank in his car by the Cousins scared the living hell out of me.
3. Todd
Where do I even begin with Todd. His character was one of the most unusual personalities in the entire show, heck, in any show for that matter. His outer shell of silent innocence seems so attractive and appealing until he unravels the monster that’s hiding beneath. And the most eerie thing about this is that for most part, he has very little self-awareness about it. He would kill an innocent child without batting an eye, without a single spasm or a second thought. Little was ever revealed about his origin in Breaking Bad, yet I like to think that his calm and unresponsive side must be attributed to his past upbringing by Uncle Sam. He must have gone through so much mindless violence that he came to think of it as being normal, and hence stopped questioning anything. He was menacing in his innocence and that has got to be the most subtle villain arcs ever.
2. Tuco Salamanca
Tuco, in a sense, indicates Walter White’s prime in Breaking Bad. Not Heisenberg but Walter White. Ever since he beat the living crap out of Jesse, he made it very clear that he was a dishonourable and clearly unstable man who only sees blood. In a way, he is the total opposite of a character like Todd. Tuco was noisy, barbaric and filled with the entirety of Albuquerque’s worth of Dopamine. He could beat a guy for questioning him and beat a guy for staying silent yet his presence also brought some weird dark humor in the show which I came to love in Season 1. “Tight, Tight, Tight, Tight”, these are the words that come to my mind whenever I reminisce about his journey in Breaking Bad.
1. Gustavo Fring
The Chicken Man of Breaking Bad. If there was anyone who stood to the level of Walter’s intellect in the entire show, it was Gus Fring. The most calculative, composed and precise person ever seen in Breaking Bad. With him, we are introduced to the inner workings of the widespread Methamphetamine empire of Mexico and his conflicts with a few members of the Salamanca Family. Gustavo Fring had a way of doing things which drew parallels with Walter White, but Gus always seemed more neater and tidier in his persona. Walter, even with all his capabilities, got messy and burst more times than I can recall, whereas Gustavo always held his head high and faced repercussions head first. His ultimate goal of redemption and vengeance drove his character to the pinnacle of cunningness. Each move he played brought him closer to his ploy of eliminating Don Eladio and his entire fortune built on the corpse of Gustavo’s partner. And this vengeance was what ended Gustavo Fring’s run in the show in the most poetic and ironic way.
The Movie Culture Synopsis
Breaking Bad is one show every cinema fanatic needs to familiar himself / herself with. These Villains posed challenges and took crucial lives which maintained the intensity of the plot. Breaking Bad still manages to uphold the title of the best show ever created on Television, even after so many years and these antagonists are some of the reasons why it went on to create history.