After a relatively slow first and second season, Breaking Bad picks up pace quickly, culminating in a nail-biting finish—and offering a satisfactory conclusion to the egomaniacal Heisenberg and his empire of drugs and death. Unfortunately, everyone who has the misfortune to be part of Walter White's life is also dragged into his meth-fueled maelstrom.
Not all of them survive, but the few who do are reduced to mere shadows of their former selves, all to gratify a man who places his pride before everything, and everyone else. In some ways, it can be argued that there is little distinction between Walter's friends, family, and enemies, considering that fate has pretty much the same ending in store for them.
10 Todd Alquist Is Choked To Death By Jesse
Unlike Walter and Gus, whose depravity is shielded by layers of well-constructed camouflage, Todd openly throws morality to the wind from the time he's introduced. His early crimes notwithstanding, Todd later forces Jesse to become the Welker gang's indentured meth cook.
When Walter returns from his New Hampshire "sabbatical," however, he kills everyone in the White Supremacist Compound, except Jack and Todd, by using a remote-activated M60 gun turret. Jesse consequently uses the chaos to his advantage, pounces on Todd, and chokes him to death.
9 Skyler White Gets The Closure She Deserves
A year after Walter's secret gets out, Skyler is living at an unknown location, where she meets her husband for the last time. They have a civil discussion about the past, and Walter finally acknowledges that everything he was meant only to satisfy his ego.
This confession is the first genuine thing he has done for his wife in a long time, which is why Skyler appreciates it enormously. Walter then hands over the location coordinates for the authorities to recover Hank's and Steve's corpses, before disappearing. Skyler is left alone with her thoughts, and perhaps, a measure of peace.
8 Marie Schrader Is Presumably Under Federal Protection
Marie is devastated to learn about Walter's alter ego, but not half as much when she discovers that her husband has been killed while in her brother-in-law's company. She naturally assumes that Walter is responsible, and distances herself from Skyler as a result.
However, she rings her sister when Walt is sighted in Albuquerque, offering a temporary reconciliation for old times' sake. Sadly, Marie seems to have lost her love for purple, given that she wears a plain black and white outfit in her last scene.
7 Jesse Pinkman Screams His Way To Freedom
With their enemies destroyed, the two protagonists have little to say to each other, except Walter asks Jesse to kill him, but the latter refuses to do so, telling his mentor/victimizer to take the plunge if he wants it so badly.
Jesse proceeds to leave the compound and drives away in Todd's car. The scene in question is visceral, to say the least, given that this is the moment that marks Jesse's first taste of true freedom since the first episode.
6 Hank Schrader Is Killed By Jack Welker
Jack Welker's gang betray Walter and starts shooting at Hank and Steve, quickly killing the latter. The ASAC makes a bid for his dead partner's gun, but is stopped by Welker. Unfortunately, the neo-Nazis learn that Hank is part of the DEA, which convinces Jack to execute him.
Walter desperately implores on behalf of his brother-in-law's life, causing Hank to shut him down, saying: "you're the smartest guy I ever met, and you're too stupid to see—he made up his mind ten minutes ago." Hank's subsequent death signifies the crumbling of Walter's Heisenberg persona.
5 Flynn Tells His Father To "Just Die Already"
Walter attempts to get in touch with his son, ecstatically telling him that he could wire him money for expenses through Flynn's friend, Louis. Flynn doesn't want anything to do with his father anymore, accusing him of murdering Uncle Hank and asking his father why he "doesn't just die already."
His closing scene shows him leaving his school and going to wherever Skyler's new home is. Flynn's baby sister, Holly, is shown to be sleeping in an awkwardly charming scene: Walter caresses her face and leaves.
4 Mike Ehrmantraut Is Killed By Walter In A Rage
Mike and Walter's hatred for each other comes to a head when the latter demands to know the identities of certain witnesses. Mike bluntly refuses, saying that Walt is responsible for every problem they currently have, exacerbating the already heated situation.
In the end, a bullet is exchanged between the pair, except it's Walter holding the gun—having finally turned the tables on the older man. Mike, in his trademark severe style, orders his killer to "let [him] die in peace;" most impressive because Walter would have never let him have the last word under any other circumstances.
3 Saul Goodman Disappears To The Relative Safety Of Nebraska
Saul's exit strategy is blocked by Walter, who menacingly warns his lawyer that "we're done when I say we're done." However, once the reality of Heisenberg is uncovered, Saul immediately activates his escape plan.
He fishes out his rainy day funds and gets in touch with the "disappearer," Ed. Bizarrely, Saul meets Walter one last time, turning down the latter's offer to "get revenge"—ultimately disappearing to the safety of Omaha, Nebraska. Saul is one of the few survivors to get at least a little closure, even if his life is turned upside down.
2 Gus Fring Is Blown To Pieces
Gus falls for Walter's ploy, visiting Hector Salamanca at Casa Tranquila, where he mocks the old man for his perceived betrayal. He then tries to kill Hector using some kind of syringe-administered poison, but is greeted with a burst of bell rings.
Gus' confusion quickly turns into the terror of realization, but it's far too late—the wheelchair-bomb explodes, killing Hector, Tyrus, and tearing off the right side of Gus' face.
1 Walter White Bleeds To Death Alone
Walter is fatally injured in the M60 gun attack, but survives just long enough to kill Jack Welker and say his last goodbyes to Jesse. Alone in the meth lab at the compound, Walter wistfully remembers his disastrous journey as police sirens screech in the distance.
He collapses to the ground and presumably bleeds to death with Badfinger's "Baby Blue" playing in the background of the scene. The first line of the song summarizes everyone's final feelings: "Guess I got what I deserve."