Breaking Bad: 10 Darkest Jokes

Breaking Bad is widely regarded as one of the greatest TV dramas in the history of the medium. But, like many esteemed shows of its era, Breaking Bad also contains a very healthy dose of humor. Of course, most of this humor is of the black comedy variety, considering the show’s often violent subject matter.

But there’s nothing wrong with a little black comedy every now and again. Breaking Bad can often prove funnier than some TV comedies, and it’s thanks in large part to wonderful (yet somewhat depraved) scenes like this.

Emilio’s Liquid Remains

Perhaps the blackest of black comedy comes in the series’ second episode in Season One during Walt and Jesse’s “clean up” attempt. The entire premise of the episode is very dark, as Walt tries finding a way to kill someone while Jesse finds a way to dispose of a corpse. However, the entire ordeal is mostly played for laughs owing to the characters’ complete ineptitude. Jesse’s naivety hilariously rears its head in the final moments of the episode, as the acid eats away at his bathtub and rains liquified human remains down onto the floor below.

Krazy-8 Stumbling Through The Streets

The whole Emilio-Krazy 8 ordeal is one of the funniest scenarios in the entire show. Another darkly hilarious moment comes when Walt is driving to Jesse’s house. Krazy-8 had managed to escape the house, and Walt spots him stumbling down the middle of the street in broad daylight. Krazy-8 looks like a zombie, as he’s weakly shuffling, covered in dirt, wheezing, and bearing physical damage from the phosphine gas. Things get even better when Walt tries awkwardly re-kidnapping him, as he runs away in a blind panic – directly into a tree.

Krazy-8’s Bathroom

There’s also Krazy-8’s “bathroom” to consider. Having been re-captured by Walt, Krazy-8 is chained to a pipe via a bicycle lock placed around his neck (which Walt later uses to kill him). Walt hands him two big jugs of water, which Krazy-8 is quick to guzzle down. Audiences then see a plate with a sandwich and chips slide into view, followed by an empty bucket. As if the implication wasn’t clear enough, a roll of toilet paper slowly rolls into view before Walt follows it up with a bottle of hand sanitizer.

“It’s Just…You’ve Got Mustard…”

The unique tone of the series was set in the very first episode – even Walt’s cancer diagnosis was played for laughs. After suffering from a stubborn cough and collapsing at work, Walt is taken to the hospital and learns that he is suffering from an advanced form of lung cancer.

However, Walt is so numb and indifferent that he’s more concerned with the mustard on the doctor’s coat than the diagnosis itself. He barely listens to the doctor, and when he finally gets Walt’s attention, he is quick to point out the mustard plastered on the doctor’s coat.

Stealing The Methylamine

The entire methylamine sequence is chock full of hilarity, both of the light and dark variety. The humor begins even before the heist commences, as Jesse shows outrage at the pompom ski masks that Walt purchased for the job. They then trap a security guard in a stinky portable toilet and proceed to steal the heavy barrel of methylamine. And rather than rolling it, Walt and Jesse decide to carry it and awkwardly shuffle their way out of the compound – right past the imprisoned security guard, who is banging on the door of the toilet.

The Open House Cook

By the end of season one, Walt and Jesse proved more experienced cooks. However, their inexperience comes through yet again during the famous open house cook. The two start cooking meth in Jesse’s basement, not knowing that an open house had been scheduled. Cue the real estate agent spraying air freshener to cover up the meth smell and Walt slowly emerging from the basement like a monster, completely clad in cooking gear, and shushing a little girl from the doorway.

The Friendly Mailwoman

Season two’s Peekaboo is one of the most somber and saddest episodes of the entire series, yet it still finds time for some good humor. Just before barging into the house, Jesse prepares his tough guy act by practicing some of his lines like “Where’s my money, b****?” and “I will bury you because I’m crazy, yo.”

Just as he’s hyping himself up, a friendly mailwoman arrives and asks Jesse to move so she can put mail in the mail box. The two proceed to talk about the weather, with Jesse enthusiastically saying that the day will reach “the high 70s!”

Jesse And Walt Almost Die In The Desert

While playing with some very serious subject matter (like Walt’s cancer and their potential deaths out in the desert), 4 Days Out is perhaps the funniest episode of the entire series. There’s a ton of hilarity packed into this episode, including Jesse dumping the entire jug of water on the generator, his “wire” comment, Walt gazing in complete bewilderment at Jesse’s tin foil creation, and Jesse genuinely asking Walt if he built a robot.

The Roof Pizza

The roof pizza is one of the most famous visual jokes of Breaking Bad, and for good reason. The circumstances behind the roof pizza are quite sad and pathetic, as Walt desperately tries worming himself back into Skyler’s life with a pizza (and dipping sticks). When she turns him down, he flies into a tantrum and throws the pizza away – with the pizza itself landing on the roof. He leaves it behind, and leaves behind one of Breaking Bad‘s most iconic images in the process.

The Awkward White Dinner

Things between Walt and Skyler only get worse, culminating in one of the most awkward dinners ever seen on television. While Walt and Skyler stew and stare at each other in disgust (while getting drunk on huge glasses of wine), Jesse desperately tries making conversation. Topics of discussion include Skyler’s delicious green beans (that are actually store bought), the car wash, and the scabby cheese layering on frozen lasagna.