Last night, the penultimate episode of Better Call Saul aired, and—spoiler alert for those who haven’t watched it—the worlds of Breaking Bad and BCS continued to collide. Ahead of next Monday’s series finale of Better Call Saul, we’re ranking the top episodes of its all-time great predecessor. [Note: spoilers for both ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘Better Call Saul’ are included in this article.]
10. “Say My Name” (S5E7)
The No. 10 spot is probably the most difficult on the list with “To’hajiilee” and “Confessions” being honorable mentions (along with episodes before Season 5 having a case). But the penultimate episode of the final season’s first half was all about Walter White’s pride—including the iconic “say my name” scene. If Walt’s selfish motivations weren’t obvious enough based on his confrontation with Declan, Mike straight up told Walt that his “pride” and “ego” caused everyone’s downfall—striking a nerve with Heisenberg that resulted in Mike’s death.
9. “Dead Freight” (S5E5)
“Dead Freight” was a remarkable episode with pulse-pounding action as the crew sets out to steal methylamine from a train, and in the midst of the intensity, it was fun to see Walt, Jesse, Mike, and even Todd working together towards a singular goal. Of course, the good times—following a successful mission—were extremely short-lived, as the sociopathic Todd killed the innocent bystander Drew Sharp, who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time (not unsimilar to Howard Hamlin in the final season of BCS).
8. “Gliding All Over” (S5E8)
Vince Gilligan and company have really nailed their midseason finales, and “Gliding All Over” includes the memorable prison assassinations ordered by Walter and carried out by Uncle Jack’s men. It’s ironic that killing ten guys in the span of two minutes is what was needed for Walt to be “out” (as he told Skyler)—and it was all for naught after the cliffhanger of Hank finally piecing together the truth about his brother-in-law.
7. “Half Measures” (S3E12)
Season 3’s penultimate episode is one that really ties into Better Call Saul because of Mike’s advice (“No more half measures, Walter”), and the lesson was understood by Walt—who ran over two drug dealers with his car to save Jesse from a shootout that would have likely resulted in his death. It’s difficult to not get chills after Walt stands over one of the dealers crawling on the ground, shoots him in the head, and then says only one word to Jesse: “Run.”
6. “Full Measure” (S3E13)
By the end of Season 3, Walt and Jesse are expendable with Gale being almost as good as them at cooking meth—as Gus makes the wise decision to go with the reliable, trustworthy option rather than a couple of wild cards. Just when it looks like the end of the road for Walt (who was planning to kill Gale himself before being “captured” by Mike), he finagles a way to tell Jesse over the phone that it will have to be him that does the deed. Aaron Paul’s top-notch acting was on full display as a reluctant, teary-eyed Jesse points the gun in Gale’s face for what feels like an eternity—then pulls the trigger before the screen cuts to black.
5. “Granite State” (S5E15)
Walter White being the ultimate anti-hero makes him someone that almost all viewers pulled for despite his flaws and path of destruction he caused. So, when he is up in snowy New Hampshire—and we know needs to somehow get back to Albuquerque for the finale—it was a nice twist to have Elliott and Gretchen lying about his Gray Matter contributions on television as the reason Walt decides he has unfinished business to take care of. After previously calling the police on himself, only a glass of liquor remains with cops swarming the bar, and the original musical score ends the episode.
4. “Face Off” (S4E13)
Walt’s pride is his downfall, and the same can be said for Gus in the Season 4 finale (though with a heavy seasoning of revenge). The longstanding dispute between the “Chicken Man” and the Salamanca family leads to Gus wanting to gloat by visiting Hector at the nursing home—but Walt had teamed up with the eldest Salamanca by strapping a bomb to the bottom of his wheelchair. The rotating look of Gus walking out of the room to show half his face is blown off was one of the show’s best shots, but the episode ending with the subtle reveal that Walt poisoned Tomás showed just how far he will go.
3. “Crawl Space” (S4E11)
If this was an article of the top Breaking Bad moments, the ending of “Crawl Space” would have a very strong case for the No. 1 spot. Walt’s desperation turned to disbelief turned to anger turned to maniacal laughter at the situation was simply unbelievable acting by Bryan Cranston—creating a chilling scene that ends with Marie fearfully calling Skyler as Walt’s laughter carries on until he passes out. The situation was setup by Gus threatening to kill Walt’s entire family, and looking back, it’s darkly funny that Saul’s “A-Team” seriously injuring Ted is reason for Skyler giving the money away.
2. “Felina” (S5E16)
Many consider “Felina” to be a perfect ending, so Better Call Saul will have very high expectations to end the entire BB universe on a high note. With the help of Badger and Skinny Pete posing as snipers, Walt begins “Felina” by forcing Elliott and Gretchen to agree to put $9 million in cash into a trust fund for Walter Jr. and Holly. He then visits his Skyler one last time while finally admitting he did everything for himself, and tells his wife where Hank is buried. The final showdown for Walt puts the machine gun into action to take out Uncle Jack’s crew—leading to freedom for Jesse and Walt dying peacefully in the lab.
1. “Ozymandias” (S5E14)
The first scene of “Ozymandias” picks up where the previous episode left off. No credits. No foreshadowing with a unique open. Just a shootout in the desert with Hank and Gomez taking on Uncle Jack’s crew. The DEA agents tragically (but unsurprisingly) lose, and Hank—knowing his fate—courageously faces death, which showed how far he came as a character with some fear and doubt in previous seasons (despite always talking a big game). A devastated Walt quickly flips back into the Heisenberg persona by telling Jack he still wants Jesse dead—and telling his former partner that he watched Jane die—but he’s left with only one barrel to leave the desert with. The chaos then carries over into the White household when Skyler and Walter Jr. find out that Hank is dead; Walt eventually drops off Holly at a fire station after leaving the house with her, calls Skyler to clear her from any prosecution with agents listening in, and starts the process of being “disappeared” to end the finest hour of the series.