As the series finale of Better Call Saul has just aired, what better time than now to discuss both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, giving a rundown of each show and why you should watch this amazing duology. With such an amazing cast and crew behind these series, these shows are some of the most renowned and highly rated television of all time. 

Breaking Bad first aired in 2008 and was created by Vince Gilligan , and aired on AMC. After a shortened first season, this series snowballed into a huge pop culture phenomenon, with episodes having some of the highest viewer ratings in history.

Breaking Bad is about Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a normal, middle-class highschool chemistry teacher trying to support his family, after he is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. With only a couple years to live at best, and nothing to leave behind to his family besides debt and ensuing medical expenses, he has no idea how to cope. That is, until he takes a ride along with his borther-in-law Hank Schrader (Dean Norris). a member of the Drug Enforcement Agency, and learns just how much money drug dealers make. 

With this new information and his knowledge of chemistry far beyond the high school-level job he has, he partners with a former student of his, drug dealer Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul). The two team up to create and sell the best methamphetamine in all of New Mexico. Hiding this life from his wife Skyler (Anna Gunn), he goes on a downward spiral into the world of crime and ends up taking a path that will harm himself and those around him. 

Better Call Saul is a spinoff and prequel to Breaking Bad that launched in 2015. It focuses on the lawyer Walter White meets after entering the drug world. Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), is actually named James McGill, and this side character who seems to be pure comic relief in Breaking Bad becomes an incredibly compelling and fleshed out character when he gets his own series. In this prequel series, Saul, or Jimmy as he is called by friends and family, is not a criminal lawyer but a normal lawyer with his own solo practice. 

Living in Albuquerque, he attempts to compete against many titanic law firms, such as the law firm his own older brother Charles McGill (Michael McKean) owns. He occasionally partners up with a fellow lawyer that works for his brother’s firm, Kimberly Wexler (Rhea Seehorn). The world Jimmy lives in does have similarities to the world we see in Breaking Bad, namely the criminal world. Jimmy McGill is someone attempting to better himself through the law, but he gets dragged into the criminal world and oppressed by larger firms and lawyers in the law-abiding world. It’s the story of a man stuck between these two worlds as he tries to change and define himself in the midst of all this chaos. 

Both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are incredible on all fronts in my opinion, from acting to directing to writing. It’s rare to see a show fire so highly on all cylinders and even rarer to see it twice. For acting, Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn all deliver amazing performances in lead roles, and each star is able to perform some incredibly emotional moments and scenes. Even beyond the main stars, supporting characters and antagonists also all deliver amazing work, Michael Manda as Nacho Varga, Tony Dalton as Lalo Salamanca, Jonathan Banks as Mike Ehrmantraut and Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo Fring and many more great performances await within this universe. 

The directing and writing from Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould are also extremely important to the quality of the series’ and an impressive creation among the television show medium. From incredibly detailed color theory to dynamic camera work that pulls you into the intensity of the scene or emotions of various characters. Each show has a style of its own as well, these different protagonists and accompanying environment and atmosphere of show get different direction to solidify themselves as individuals even while being part of the same universe.

Both shows deliver impressive character arcs, that all feel unique in terms of execution and what paths characters take, while also keeping the same level of high-quality writing. Watching the slow evolution, de-evolution or just changing of these characters is an incredibly satisfying journey to experience. Many characters’ personal journeys tie to different thematic elements present in the series overall. The main plot writing as well is phenomenal, and there are some incredibly tense moments that always have the viewer on edge, just dying to know what happens next. These shows make decisions that seem highly risky in terms of how an audience would respond, especially compared to other television shows. 

Overall, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are two absolutely excellent shows. I love just a handful of shows about as much as I love them, but they could be my favorites. I would highly recommend watching these series if you’re a fan of drama, crime, lawyer or character focused series

You can binge both shows on Netflix now, including five seasons of Breaking Bad and five of Better Call Saul. The sixth season of the latter should drop later this year on Netflix and is available to watch on AMC+ now.