10 Best Villains In The Breaking Bad Universe

Breaking Bad is widely considered to be one of the greatest series to ever grace our televisions.

Each season only got better and better. The stakes only got higher, the deaths only got more heartbreaking, and walls only got tighter. It gave us a world of drug lords and crime bosses, each looking to carve out an existence -- and, just maybe, an empire -- for themselves under the harsh New Mexico sun.

The prequel/sequel series, Better Call Saul, has thus far failed to grasp the zeitgeist in the way that Breaking Bad did, but its critical praise has matched -- if not exceeded -- that of its predecessor. A much slower, more deliberate show, Better Call Saul is more concerned with a man trying to find his place in a legitimate business, when everything about him grates against that legitimacy. This conflict brings increasingly questionable characters to his doorstep.

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are full of villains. Very few people in either series are good. You could argue -- rightly -- that Walt is the greatest villain in either show, but we're not doing that. We're looking at people that have stood in the way of our protagonists' goals, no matter how morally reprehensible the goals might be.

That said, don't expect to see Hank on this list, either. That man is no villain. A nuisance, sure, but he's not a foe. He's a good man. We're looking bad and morally-questionable people.

Spoilers for both series ahead.

Lydia is an interesting case. She played a crucial role in the expansion of both Gus and Walt's respective empires. She was the mastermind behind multiple deaths: ten of Gus's former employees, as well as Declan and his gang. On paper, she is an absolute powerhouse -- a force to be reckoned with like no other.

In reality, though, she is a timid, high-strung person, nervous and shaky on almost every occasion. She is averse to blood and violence, and constantly fears that she may be betrayed or killed.

That's part of what makes Lydia such a fascinating character. She's made quite a life for herself through the pain and destruction left behind by the meth trade, yet she does something that no one else in the business does: she looks away.

Gus, Tuco, Hector, Walt... all of them were well-aware of the inherent violence in their business, and they didn't shy away from it. They may not have liked it sometimes, but they never tried to be above it. Lydia, though? She did. When Jack's gang killed Declan's crew, she plugged her ears and covered her eyes. Even in the dirtiest of businesses, she couldn't stomach getting her hands dirty.