Breaking Bad: 10 Greatest Betrayals
Breaking Bad was a show filled with treachery as characters would often betray one another. These stood out as the most impactful and hurtful.
AMC’s Breaking Bad earned its status as one of the best TV shows of all time because of its stellar cast, outstanding storytelling, and unique cinematography. In order to survive, most characters had to tread lightly. Nobody could be trusted; neither family members nor business partners. Only one thing was certain: each action had consequences. Sometimes, those consequences manifested in a form of a betrayal.
There was no shortage of lies, deceit, and manipulation in Breaking Bad. Walt’s decision to break bad set in motion a series of events of morally ambiguous nature. The only way to achieve a sense of justice was to fight fire with fire. Even a woman as loyal and honest as Skyler resorted to betrayal to cope with her life, showing how far these characters went.
Ted Didn’t Use Skyler’s Money To Pay The IRS
Skyler used some of Walt’s first earnings to help get Ted out of trouble with the IRS. After all, as his employee, she was complicit in his crimes. She gave him the money through Saul who told Ted that he just inherited money from a long-lost relative.
Ted didn’t use the money to make things right with the state, though. Skyler came clean and begged him to do what is right, but he refused. His betrayal of Skyler ultimately cost him everything he had.
Skyler Cheated On Walt
Cheating on a partner is often viewed as a betrayal. Even though Skyler only did it to escape her bleak reality, her disloyalty is one of the things fans hated the most about her.
Instead of cheating on him, Skyler probably should have just left Walt instead. It wasn’t just Walt who got hurt. Ted genuinely cared about Skyler, but it became clear that she only used him. She didn’t actually care about him at all.
Walt Told Fring About Jesse’ Intentions
Among the best things that Jesse had consistently done is standing up for children. Andrea’s brother Tomas worked for Gus’s employees. He was forced to shot Combo and eventually died himself when he was just eleven years old. When Jesse found out, he wanted revenge. His plan was to take the ricin and poison Gus’ guys.
Walt took the liberty to tell on Jesse, arguing that Gus would have killed Jesse if he got caught acting on his own. That was just Walt’s opinion, though, and not a certain truth. As Jesse said, the poisoning was a good plan. If they died of a flu-like disease, Gus wouldn’t have suspected a thing.
Walt Murdered Mike
After Gus’ operation fell apart and the DEA was closing in on Mike, Walt ordered the murders of prisoners who probably would have talked. While one could argue those murders couldn’t have been avoided from Walt’s perspective, there was no need to take out Mike as well.
Mike gave Walt the benefit of a doubt several times throughout the show and always spared his life. Walt returned the favor by shooting him in the gut. Mike didn’t deserve to die like that, especially since he was a man of few words and would never have snitched on Walt.
Walt Betrayed Flynn
This betrayal didn’t happen in a flash of a second; it’s the kind of betrayal that slowly accumulates with every lie. Walt was an exceptional liar and he kept his son in the dark until the truth caught up with him in season 5.
After Flynn realized who his father was and what he had done, he hated him so much that he wouldn’t even talk to him. His immense hurt could be seen in the final phone call between the two.
Walt Didn’t Want Out
After the successful train heist, Mike, Walt, and Jesse had a whole lot of methylamine to sell. Mike found a buyer, Declan, and each of them could have walked away with $5 million and no enemies who would want them dead.
Since season 5 Walt was a full-blown megalomaniac, he didn’t want to quit. Instead, he was flexing his power by saying things like “Say my name” and “There’s no ‘we’, Jesse.” If Walt just agreed to sell and the show would end there, it would be a happy ending.
Skyler & Walt Blackmailed Marie & Hank
In his “confession,” Walt confessed to cooking meth under the watchful eye of his evil brother-in-law, Hank. He manufactured a believable story and even backed it up with financial ‘proof.’ Skyler was right there with him, pressing record on the camera.
The family met in a restaurant and Marie urged her sister to see sense. This betrayal put a strain on the Breaking Bad sisters’ relationship, especially since it eventually led to Hank’s untimely death.
Gustavo Killed His Loyal Assistant Victor
In the corrupt world of Breaking Bad, nothing could secure one’s survival – not even loyalty and honesty. Victor was one of the most loyal characters on the show, but Gus killed him just to send Walt and Jesse a message.
What’s worse, he killed him in the most brutal way possible. He cut his throat with a box cutter, right after Victor proudly told him that he knows Walt’s recipe.
Jesse Went To The DEA
In the world of drug trade, everything is fair game, except for going to the DEA. After everything Jesse had to endure, it is no surprise that he decided to work with Hank, even though the man beat his face into a pulp in season 3.
After realizing that it was Walt who poisoned Brock, Jesse went ballistic. He wanted to bring Walt to justice, even if it meant he has to confess to everything he had done up until that point as well. As a response to this betrayal, Walt put a hit out on Jesse’s head.
Walt Poisoned Brock
Walt takes the cake for the biggest betrayal of the series. He poisoned an innocent 5-year-old just to get Jesse back on his side and to bring Fring down.
What’s worse is that Saul knew all about this. Walt merely orchestrated the plan, but it was Saul who did a lot of the dirty work.
