The middle portion of the would-be conclusion trilogy for Breaking Bad, "Granite State" tied up the loose ends of the flashbacks we'd been seeing for two half-seasons. We got to see Walt holed up in the New Hampshire wilderness, sick, bearded, and dying and with his days as Heisenberg little more than a memory. He sat in a cabin with nothing but his money, everything else lost to him and with no idea how to get it back. For the first time since he'd become a drug lord, Walter White was without his mojo. Regardless of where you stood on the spectrum of supporting him at that point, few things on television in 2013 were as sad as seeing him buying the company of his delivery man for a game of cards. Why It's On The List: If the episode that preceded it was the demise of Heisenberg, "Granite State" was the demise of Walter White. He had nothing left to live for, everything he'd worked to achieve was proven to be some level of a failure, and he couldn't do a thing to change it. It was harrowing, even if there's a strong argument that it was deserved. This to say nothing of the amazing closing minutes, which include an agonizing phone call between Walt and his son, a television interview, and Walt deciding that he's going to go out on his own terms.
Freelance writer situated on the east coast of Canada. Ten years writing pop culture, sports, news, and anything else that people will read. Follow me on Twitter @matthewjryder!
