← Breaking Bad

The speed run

medium confidence

20 of 62 episodes. Skipping the rest saves 1d 18h — 20h to watch instead of 2d 14h.

Twenty episodes. The turning points two published essential-episode lists agree on, plus the connective episodes that make them followable - neither source is watchable on its own, so the bridges here do real work.

For a rewatch, or if you want the story and not the sixty-two hours.

20
of 62 episodes
1d 18h
saved
20h
to watch

Updated

Where the story lives

Walt and Jesse
17/51 kept
Skyler and the family
11/43 kept
Hank's investigation
8/29 kept
Becoming Heisenberg
8/12 kept
Gus Fring's operation
6/14 kept
The Salamancas and the cartel
4/8 kept
1
2
3
4
5
in the path skipped other arcnumbers below are seasons · hover any mark for the episode

The path

Tick episodes off to track where you are. Turn on spoiler hiding below if you have not seen it yet.

Season 13 in the path
Where it starts, and the decision the whole series runs on.

A high-school chemistry teacher (Bryan Cranston) is diagnosed with a deadly cancer, so he puts his expertise to use and teams with an ex-student (Aaron Paul) to manufacture top-grade crystal meth in hopes of providing for his family after he's gone.

4 skipped — what you missed
Four episodes clearing up after the desert: a body to deal with, Skyler's suspicion growing, and Walt's diagnosis becoming a family matter rather than a secret.
The name arrives, and with it a willingness he has not shown before.

Walter, in the throes of his chemotherapy treatment and needing money more than ever, agrees to cook more crystal meth with Jesse; Skinny Pete hooks Jesse up with an important new contact, while the DEA intensifies its investigation of Albuquerque's new drug kingpin.

The season closes by handing him a distributor and a new kind of problem.

Walter and Jesse do business with a new partner-in-crime, but immediately run into "production problems," which necessitates a nearly impossible mission to knock off a chemical-supply house. Meanwhile, Marie throws a baby shower for Skyler and presents her with an unusual gift that shows a different side of the aunt-to-be.

Season 22 in the path
11 skipped — what you missed
Eleven episodes: the distributor problem resolves violently, Hank is promoted out of town, Walt and Jesse start selling for themselves, and Jesse falls in love with his neighbour.
The consequence of a choice made in a doorway, and the one he does not make.

A new addition joins the White family as Walter Jr. attempts to help out his struggling family by launching a new Web site. Elsewhere, Jesse's addiction worsens and his relationship with Jane begins to negatively impact Walt and her father.

The season's last image, and how far the damage reaches.

In the Season 2 finale, Skyler's frustration with Walt's secrecy boils over; Jesse is dealt a devastating blow that leads him down a path of self-destruction, and only Walt is willing to help him; and a grief-stricken Donald experiences more tragedy.

Season 33 in the path
6 skipped — what you missed
Six episodes: Walt and Skyler separate, a new employer makes an offer Walt cannot refuse, an industrial lab changes the scale of the work, and two men cross the border looking for Heisenberg.
Hank alone in a car park. The season's turn, and the cost of the last one.

Hank's behavior becomes increasingly more unpredictable and volatile, which leads to a confrontation with Jesse and problems at the DEA; Skyler wants Walt to make a deal; and Gus' decisions result in some serious consequences.

4 skipped — what you missed
Four episodes: Walt gains a lab assistant he does not want, Jesse falls back into using, and the partnership starts working against itself.
The conversation about half measures, and what it produces.

Jesse ignores Walt's advice and finds himself in a dangerous situation. Fearing for Jesse's safety, Walt takes drastic measures to try to put things right. And tragedy strikes following an unexpected confrontation.

The season ends on an order given and an order carried out.

Jesse goes on the lam in the third-season finale. But Mike is right on his heels, so Walt works a deal with Gus and comes up with an unsettling plan that might help guarantee both his and Jesse's safety.

Season 43 in the path
The answer to that order, delivered without a word for most of it.

In the Season 4 opener, Walt and Jesse are confronted by the life-threatening consequences of their actions. Meanwhile, Skyler contends with a puzzling disappearance, and Marie finds it difficult to help a recovering Hank.

8 skipped — what you missed
Eight episodes of a standoff: Walt and his employer circle each other, Hank keeps pulling at the laundry, and Jesse becomes more valuable to the operation than Walt is.
A trip south, and the clearest look yet at what Walt's employer is capable of.

The family becomes gravely concerned when Walt doesn't show up for his son's 16th birthday celebration. And Jesse's lab skills are tested in Walt's absence.

2 skipped — what you missed
Two episodes assembling the pieces: an old man in a nursing home, and a plan that needs him.
The season's end, and the last move in a war fought entirely indoors.

The fourth season ends with Walt and Jesse squaring off against Gus. Elsewhere, Walt acquires a surprise confederate with help from Saul.

Season 59 in the path
4 skipped — what you missed
Four episodes: the aftermath is cleaned up, a new three-way partnership forms, and a chemical supply problem needs solving.
The train, and the point where the new operation stops being clean.

Walt's team must get creative to obtain the materials they need to continue their operation.

1 skipped — what you missed
One episode of fallout from the heist, and the loose end it leaves.
Walt says his name, and settles the question of who is in charge.

Walt takes control of business matters as Mike grapples with the consequences of his actions.

The empire, compressed. A montage does what a season would.

Walt ties up loose ends. Seeing the evidence of his success, he makes a startling and dangerous decision.

What was found in a bathroom, and the conversation in a garage.

As Walt and Jesse adjust to life out of the business, Hank grapples with a troubling lead.

1 skipped — what you missed
One episode of both sides deciding how far they will go.
A confession recorded, and a threat delivered over lunch.

Jesse decides to make a change, while Walt and Skyler try to deal with an unexpected demand.

1 skipped — what you missed
One episode arranging the trap, on both sides.
The desert again, and the trap that has been building since the garage.

Things heat up for Walt in unexpected ways.

The episode the rest of the series was built to reach.

Everyone copes with radically changed circumstances.

Afterwards. What is left when there is nothing to run.

Events set in motion long ago move toward a conclusion.

The last one.

The acclaimed crime drama comes to a close in the series finale.

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