3. Crawl Space (Season 4, Episode 11)
If by this point the audience get weary of the relative security of Jesse and Walter working in Gus Frings lab, in true Breaking Bad fashion that security is turned on its head. Jesse and Walter are divided, and it seems Gus has conquered them as well. The episode features one of the shows most shocking moments, which perhaps wasnt intentionally so. Skyler, perhaps the shows unsung heroine, has been dealing with her feelings for Ted and her fear that his creative accounting will unravel the web of lies she has constructed with Walter. When she gets Saul to enforce Teds signing of a massive cheque to the IRS with the help of his security, it all goes wrong when Ted attempts to flee and he smacks his head right into a kitchen counter. Because its so unexpected, youre not sure whether to laugh or gasp. Maybe other viewers didnt get quite the impact I did from this particular moment in an episode far more engaged with Walters dilemma, but it certainly stayed with me. The final few moments are perhaps some of the most terrifying, and perhaps feature one of Cranstons greatest-ever performances, as Walters family is genuinely threatened by Gus and Walter rushes home to pay for a new start for the family, only for him to discover the money is gone. The shot of Walter laughing maniacally on his back in the dusty basement of his house is one of the shows most enduring images. Things never exactly ran smoothly for Walter since he got into cooking Meth, but at this point you realise he is absolutely in danger, and you are no longer watching a drama, but something closer to a disaster flick or a horror film.