‘Breaking Bad‘ had an impressive run between 2008 and 2013. But even a decade after it sired its final episode, it is considered one of the best TV shows of all time and is among the highest-rated series on IMDB. The show features Walter White’s miserable life that gradually takes dark turns life. As he navigates through it, the audiences join him on the rollercoaster ride.
Despite being one of the greatest shows of all time, ‘Breaking Bad‘ has its own setbacks. The worst-rated episode of the show has a 7.6 rating on IMDB — which if compared to others, is still a pretty good score. However, the initial season of ‘Breaking Bad‘ consisted of a loose storyline and an unsatisfactory ending. There were episodes that did not live up to the expectations. But once the show picked up steam, it was difficult to categorize any episode as truly terrible. Here are some of the worst-rated episodes of the show.
1. ‘Fly’
Fly is the tenth episode of season three of ‘Breaking Bad’ with a 7.3 rating. Directed by Rian Johnson, this episode is criticized for being slow and unrelated to the narrative of the story. In the episode, a fly is used as a metaphor for Walter’s guilty conscience and his need to be in control. Walter and Jesse combat a loose fly in the lab, protecting the meth from being contaminated.
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Gilligan explained that ‘Fly‘ is a bottle episode because they had a budget restraint and had to shoot only in one primary location. Despite that, Johnson was appreciated for his cinematography and for creating an episode with some brilliant symbolism.
2. ‘Open House’
‘Open House‘ is the third episode of season four with a rating of 8. It focused heavily on two of the most prevalent themes of the entire series. Firstly, if one is suffocated by everyday life, do they need to break bad to feel alive? And how bad can one behave before they run out of ways to justify it? This episode primarily focuses on Skyler White, who becomes more of Walter’s partner in his crime.
Walter and Skyler advance their plans to buy a car wash as a cover. Meanwhile, Jesse organizes increasingly darker parties to distract from his guilt for having killed Gale. The title of this episode refers to Marie’s visits to multiple selling houses and taking articles on display, with her kleptomania present again. It also refers to Jesse leaving his house’s doors open to strangers, and even allowing them to take his possessions and destroy his house.
3. ‘Green Light’
‘Green Light‘ is the fourth episode of season three with a rating of 8.2. In this episode, Walt’s world crumbles even more after discovering that Sklyer is cheating on him. Meanwhile, Jesse tries to set up a meeting with Gus to try and sell his version of the blue meth.
The episode’s name is a pun-intended title referencing the fact that Walt is dealing with Gus again, having been given the “green light” to produce more meth. The episode comically and symbolically ends with the final shot being that of a green traffic signal. The episode’s title could also be a reference to the story Walt tells Marie in the cafeteria, that on the way to the hospital for his surgery, every single light they hit was green.
4. ‘Cancer Man’
‘Cancer Man’ is the fourth episode with a rating of 8.2. This episode does not keep up with the action that the show is expected to have. It is plain, bland, and slow. This episode focuses on a deeper and more personal level of Walter’s and Jesse’s life. ‘Cancer Man’ is an important episode for the viewers to empathize with the antihero and his partner
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Walter reveals his cancer to Hank and Marie, who offer to help him with the treatment. On the other hand, Jesse gets kicked up by his family due to his drug addiction. This episode makes Walter and Jesse look like people who fight to end for their survival.
5. ‘Thirty-Eight Snub’
‘Thirty-Eight Snub‘ is the second episode of the fourth season, which rates 8.2 according to IMBD. This refers not only to the type of gun Walter buys but also to the various characters being snubbed throughout the episode.
Gus snubs Walter when Mike says Walter will never see Gus again. The car wash owner Bogdan Wolynetz snubs Skyler when she asks to buy the carwash. Mike snubs Walter when Walter asks him at the bar to get him alone in a room with Gus. Hank snubs Marie during his treatment. And finally, Badger and Skinny Pete snub Jesse when they leave the house at the end of the episode refusing to party any longer.
It mainly focuses on the main characters of the season, trying to show their vulnerability. Like the episode ‘Cancer Man‘, even this episode makes the viewers sympathize with the main characters, viewing them from the lens of normalcy.
6. ‘Down’
‘Down‘ is the fourth episode of season two, which is rated 8.2 on IMBD. The episode title is part of the foreshadowing of the season two finale and also refers to Walt and Jesse being in low places during the episode, with Walt facing tension with Skyler and Jesse being homeless.
Basically season one and two cover the character’s initial journey of struggles, which justifies the reason for their involvement in the production of meth. It provides a window into the characters’ minds.
7. ‘Bit By A Dead Bee’
‘Bit by a Dead Bee’ is the tenth episode of the show, directed by Terry McDonough. This episode marks the beginning of Jesse and Hank’s boisterous relationship. After burying Tuco’s gun in the desert, Walt and Jesse hatch a plan to explain away their disappearance. After splitting up with Jesse, Walt hitches a ride back to civilization in a pickup truck.
Shortly, in a supermarket, a clerk follows a trail of clothes littering the floor to find Walt, seemingly weak and confused, walking naked down an aisle. This episode is rated 8.3, as it lacked action and thrill. Just as the viewers worry for Walter, he confesses under doctor-patient confidentiality that he made up his story of having amnesia in order to cover for taking a few days off from the demands of his family.
8. ‘Breakage’
Just preceding, the next episode is ‘Breakage’ with an 8.3 rating, directed by John Renck. The title of the episode comes from the conversation between Jesse and Walter, during which the former explains that Skinny Pete’s incident was “Breakage“.
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It symbolizes Walter’s change into a Tuco figure, insisting on revenge to be taken, and his inevitable resemblance to Gus and also Hanks’s breakdown due to this post-traumatic stress disorder.
9. ‘Grey Matter’
‘Grey Matter’ is the fifth episode of the series, with 8.3 ratings, written by Patty Lin. This episode focuses on Walters’s ego and pride. It gives us an insight into why Walter refuses to sell his share in the meth business for a smaller fee. It also highlights Walters’s failures and regrets.
Grey Matter Technology is the company that Walt and Elliot co-founded along with Gretchen. Sadly, Walter hurried by taking a cheap buyout before that company became hugely successful and missed out on making millions from his own research.
10. ‘I.F.T’
‘I.F.T’ is the third episode of the third season, and is rated 8.4. After being thrown out by Skyler, in this season, Walter forces his way back in. This decision of his makes Skyler call the police, building up a very intense scene, while Walter keeps his calm as advised by Saul. On the other hand, Jesse struggles emotionally to cope with Jane’s death. Meanwhile, the Salamanca cousins are out for their revenge.
While all these episodes have the lowest ratings on IMDB, they are interestingly still rated pretty high as per the normal standards of TV shows in general. All in all, ‘Breaking Bad‘ remains to be a spectacular show even a decade after it ended.
