Breaking Bad (season 2)
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The second season of the American
television drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms t ...
series ''
Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited hig ...
'' premiered on March 8, 2009 and concluded on May 31, 2009. It consisted of 13 episodes, each running approximately 47 minutes in length.
AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** AM ...
broadcast the second season on Sundays at 10:00 pm in the United States. The complete second season was released on Region 1 DVD and Region A Blu-ray on March 16, 2010.


Cast


Main

*
Bryan Cranston Bryan Lee Cranston (born March 7, 1956) is an American actor and director who is best known for portraying Walter White in the AMC crime drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013) and Hal in the Fox sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2 ...
as
Walter White Walter White most often refers to: * Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' * Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP Walter White may also refer to: Fictional characters ...
, a terminally ill high school chemistry teacher in
Albuquerque, New Mexico Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
. Walt runs a drug business with his partner Jesse. *
Anna Gunn Anna Gunn (born August 11, 1968) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Skyler White on the AMC drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013), for which she won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a D ...
as
Skyler White Skyler White ( née Lambert) is a fictional character in '' Breaking Bad'', portrayed by Anna Gunn. For her performance, Gunn received critical acclaim, with some critics even lauding her character as the template for television anti-heroines. ...
, Walt's pregnant wife and a bookkeeper for the firm Beneke Fabricators. *
Aaron Paul Aaron Paul (born Aaron Paul Sturtevant; August 27, 1979) is an American actor best known for portraying Jesse Pinkman in the AMC series '' Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013), for which he won several awards, including the Critics' Choice Television ...
as
Jesse Pinkman Jesse Bruce Pinkman is a main character in the American television series '' Breaking Bad'', played by Aaron Paul. He is a crystal meth cook and dealer and works with his former high school chemistry teacher, Walter White (Bryan Cranston). Jess ...
, a laid-back, small-time drug dealer and cooker who is in partnership with Walter White. *
Dean Norris Dean Joseph Norris (born April 8, 1963) is an American actor. He is best known for playing DEA agent Hank Schrader on the AMC series '' Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013) and its spin-off ''Better Call Saul'' (2020). He also portrayed town councilm ...
as
Hank Schrader Henry R. Schrader ASAC is a fictional character in the AMC drama series '' Breaking Bad'' and its spin-off series ''Better Call Saul''. He is portrayed by Dean Norris and was created by series creator Vince Gilligan. Hank's character development ...
, Walt and Skyler's brother-in-law and a
DEA The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA; ) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating drug trafficking and distribution within the U.S. It is the lead agency for domestic enf ...
agent. *
Betsy Brandt Betsy Brandt (born March 14, 1973) is an American actress. She portrayed Marie Schrader in ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013) and its spinoff show, ''Better Call Saul'' (2022) and played Heather Hughes in the CBS sitcom ''Life in Pieces'' (2015– ...
as
Marie Schrader Marie Schrader (''née'' Lambert) is a fictional character in the AMC series '' Breaking Bad'' and its spin-off series ''Better Call Saul.'' Portrayed by Betsy Brandt, she is Skyler White's sister, Hank's wife, and Walter White's sister-in-l ...
, Skyler's sister and Hank's wife. *
RJ Mitte Roy Frank "RJ" Mitte III (; born August 21, 1992) is an American actor, best known for playing Walter "Flynn" White Jr. on the AMC series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013). Like his character on the show, he has cerebral palsy. After moving to H ...
as
Walter White Jr. Walter Hartwell White Jr. (also known as Flynn) is a fictional character in the crime drama series ''Breaking Bad''. Played by RJ Mitte, Walt Jr. is the son of protagonist Walter White (Breaking Bad), Walter White and his wife Skyler White, Sky ...
, Walt and Skyler's teenage son, who has
cerebral palsy Cerebral palsy (CP) is a group of movement disorders that appear in early childhood. Signs and symptoms vary among people and over time, but include poor coordination, stiff muscles, weak muscles, and tremors. There may be problems with sensa ...
.


Recurring


Episodes

The titles of the first, fourth, tenth, and thirteenth episodes form a sentence that reveals an event that takes place in the season finale (Seven Thirty-Seven Down Over ABQ).


Production

The writers of ''Breaking Bad'' planned the storyline for the entire season in advance of filming and knew how the season would end right from the beginning. That differed from subsequent seasons, in which the writers did not have a complete plan and developed the storyline as the episodes progressed. Series creator
Vince Gilligan George Vincent Gilligan Jr. (born February 10, 1967) is an American writer, producer, and director. He is known for his television work, specifically as creator, head writer, executive producer, and director of AMC's ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2 ...
said of season two, "That came about through many, many hours of beating our heads against the wall—very laborious work, which is probably why we haven't repeated that formula since."


Music

The original score for ''Breaking Bad'' was composed by Dave Porter. The show also uses music from other recording artists with music supervision by
Thomas Golubić Thomas Golubić is a movie and television music supervisor whose credits include '' Silo'', ''Better Call Saul'', '' Breaking Bad'', '' The Walking Dead'', ''Rubicon'', '' Halt and Catch Fire'', ''Ray Donovan'', '' Six Feet Under'', and ''After ...
. Selected songs from Season 2 are featured on the ''Breaking Bad'' soundtrack available through
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
and
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology c ...
.


Home video releases

The second season was released on DVD in Region 1 and Blu-ray in Region A on March 16, 2010. It was released on DVD in Region 2 on July 26, 2010 and in Region 4 on February 8, 2010.


Reception


Reviews

The second season of ''Breaking Bad'' received very positive reviews from critics, scoring 84 out of 100 on
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
. On review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the second season has an approval rating of 97% based on 35 reviews, with an average rating of 9.16/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "''Breaking Bad'' continues to soar, thanks to its artsy style and suspenseful thrills." ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' critic
Ken Tucker Kenneth Tucker is an American arts, music and television critic, magazine editor, and non-fiction book writer. Early life and education Tucker was born in Manhattan, New York City, New York, and raised in Stamford, Connecticut. He earned a ...
stated "''Bad'' is a superlatively fresh metaphor for a middle-age crisis: It took cancer and lawbreaking to jolt Walt out of his suburban stupor, to experience life again—to take chances, risk danger, do things he didn't think himself capable of doing. None of this would work, of course, without Emmy winner Cranston's ferocious, funny selflessness as an actor. For all its bleakness and darkness, there's a glowing exhilaration about this series: It's a feel-good show about feeling really bad." ''
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
s Tim Goodman claimed "The first three episodes of Season 2 that AMC sent out continue that level of achievement with no evident missteps. In fact, it looks as if Gilligan's bold vision for ''Breaking Bad'', now duly rewarded against all odds, has invigorated everyone involved in the project. You can sense its maturity and rising ambition in each episode." Horror novelist
Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...
lauded the series, comparing it to ''
Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company, ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cance ...
'' and '' Blue Velvet''.
Alan Sepinwall Alan Sepinwall (born October 19, 1973) is an American television reviewer and writer. He spent 14 years as a columnist with ''The Star-Ledger'' in Newark until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He th ...
of ''
The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to ''The Jersey Journal'' of Jersey City, ''The Times'' of Trenton and the '' Staten Island Advance'', all of wh ...
'' praised the season, calling it "brilliant". He lauded the sound design as well as the cinematography, enjoying the "emphasis of beautiful desert vistas and disturbing tableaux". He also compared the series to ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...
,'' more specifically on the similarity of
Walter White Walter White most often refers to: * Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' * Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP Walter White may also refer to: Fictional characters ...
and
Tony Soprano Anthony John Soprano is a fictional character and the antihero protagonist in the HBO television drama series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), portrayed by James Gandolfini. Soprano is a member of the American Mafia, Italian-American Mafia and, ...
and their respective reactions to similar situations. David Hinckley of the ''
New York Daily News The New York ''Daily News'', officially titled the ''Daily News'', is an American newspaper based in Jersey City, NJ. It was founded in 1919 by Joseph Medill Patterson as the ''Illustrated Daily News''. It was the first U.S. daily printed in ta ...
'' praised Cranston's performance of Walter White calling him "one of the best played characters on television".


Awards and nominations

The second season received numerous awards and nominations, including five
Primetime Emmy Award The Primetime Emmy Awards, or Primetime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (ATAS), the Primetime ...
nominations with two wins.
Bryan Cranston Bryan Lee Cranston (born March 7, 1956) is an American actor and director who is best known for portraying Walter White in the AMC crime drama series ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013) and Hal in the Fox sitcom ''Malcolm in the Middle'' (2000–2 ...
won his second consecutive award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and
Lynne Willingham Lynne Willingham is an American television and film editor. She is a two-time Primetime Emmy Award winner. Life and career Willingham was born in San Francisco, California to Natalie Chalkley Mirkovich and Joseph M. Mirkovich. She married Chris ...
won her second consecutive award for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series for "ABQ". The series received its first nomination for Outstanding Drama Series,
Aaron Paul Aaron Paul (born Aaron Paul Sturtevant; August 27, 1979) is an American actor best known for portraying Jesse Pinkman in the AMC series '' Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013), for which he won several awards, including the Critics' Choice Television ...
received his first nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, and
Michael Slovis Michael Slovis is an American cinematographer and television director. He is best known for his cinematography on the AMC series ''Breaking Bad.'' Career Slovis began his professional career in 1981. For many years, he worked as a camera operato ...
was nominated for Outstanding Cinematography for a One Hour Series for "ABQ". Cranston won the
Television Critics Association Award The TCA Awards are awards presented by the Television Critics Association in recognition of excellence in television. There are eleven categories, which are presented every summer towards the end of the organization's summer press tour. Due to ...
for Individual Achievement in Drama, with the series being nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Drama. Cranston won his second consecutive
Satellite Award The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...
for Best Actor in a Drama Series, with the series winning the award for Best Drama Series. Aaron Paul won the
Saturn Award The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
for Best Supporting Actor on Television, with the series winning the award for Best Syndicated/Cable Television Series. The series received two
Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility Th ...
nominations, for Best Drama Series, and
John Shiban John Shiban is an American television writer and producer. He worked in both capacities on ''The X-Files'' and its spin-off ''The Lone Gunmen'', ''Star Trek: Enterprise'', ''Smallville'', ''Supernatural'', ''Legend of the Seeker'', ''Breaking Bad' ...
for Best Episodic Drama for "Phoenix".


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Breaking Bad (Season 2) 2009 American television seasons 2 Television series set in 2008 Television series set in 2009