Bryan Cranston immortalized the character of Walter White during Breaking Bad's 5 seasons, but here are his own two favorite episodes of the long-running AMC series. Vince Gilligan's acclaimed crime drama chronicles the aforementioned anti-hero's disturbingly fascinating character arc, where he goes from a mild-mannered chemistry teacher to the cold and hardened drug kingpin who goes by "Heisenberg." He's the show's main focal point; there certainly isn't a series without Walt. Every fan has their favorite moments from his character, as well as favorite episodes of the innovative project itself. Interestingly, Bryan Cranston also has his own set of top picks for episodes.
The series first hit TV screens in 2008, when the world met Breaking Bad's iconic main characters: Walter White and his ex-student, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul). After being diagnosed with inoperable cancer and embracing a sense that his current life track has become rather tedious and uninteresting (there's a strong "Is this really all there is?" vibe), he famously teams up with Pinkman to make a living off of high-quality, advanced science skill-produced meth. Of course, despite eventually becoming lucrative, this new lifestyle has its own set of struggles and dangers - not to mention the erosion of personal morals and values.
A 2021 article from Far Out Magazine cites what Cranston personally sees as Breaking Bad's best episodes: season 2, episode 12, "Phoenix" and the series finale, "Felina." The former entry features the infamous scene where Walt watches Jesse's girlfriend, Jane, die of a heroin overdose without doing anything to try and save her. Unfortunately for Jane, she previously made herself an enemy of the show's main star to get money out of him. The latter episode, which has become a widely lauded series finale over the years, concludes with Walter's death and Jesse's escape from the Welker compound. Cranston's top picks are certainly interesting choices. After all, both episodes are gripping in their own way. Additionally, it seems both capture integral moments - both for character development and tying everything up - in regard to Walt and his personal journey.
According to the aforementioned article, Jane's death scene in "Phoenix" "rendered Cranston a weeping mess during filming as he kept picturing his own daughter in the same awful fate." This certainly makes sense; it's a gutwrenching Breaking Bad moment, with superb acting by Cranston. As far as speculating exactly why else the episode stands out to the actor so much, the Far Out piece makes another valid point to that end. It asserts that Cranston's performance in Jane's death sequence "brought all of that emotional duality to the scene and helped to impart a message where his [Walt's] split persona was suddenly beginning to stack in one direction more than the other..."
As to why "Felina" is apparently so near and dear to Cranston's heart, the reasoning seems much more self-explanatory. Though impossible to please an entire audience, the finale is widely regarded as a masterpiece, artfully typing up a beloved series in a satisfying way. In an era filled with much-loathed series finales - like those of Dexter, Game of Thrones, and many more - "Felina" was really able to stand out in a positive light within the TV drama world. At its conclusion, Walt's Breaking Bad character arc is finally complete. He's undergone an astonishing transformation, and it all ends with his iconic character lying lifeless on the ground after losing everything he once held dear.