Summary

• The correct Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul watch order is crucial for understanding the entire Breaking Bad universe.
• Watching Better Call Saul before Breaking Bad can be interesting, but it spoils the events of Breaking Bad and diminishes the experience of both shows.
• El Camino should be watched right after finishing Breaking Bad, as it serves as an epilogue to the show.

Breaking Bad, but it also created a question regarding the correct Breaking Bad watch order. As of now, the Breaking Bad universe consists of two shows and one movie. Breaking Bad has 62 episodes in a total of five seasons, whereas the spinoff Better Call Saul has 63 episodes in a total of six seasons. The correct Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad watch order is crucial for understanding the entire Breaking Bad universe.

Better Call Saul is both a prequel and a sequel to Breaking Bad. The idea was that Better Call Saul would show Saul Goodman’s origin story, meaning that it was expected to cover Saul’s past only. However, in a clever twist, Better Call Saul started by following Saul Goodman after the Breaking Bad finale. From then on, Better Call Saul could no longer be labeled as a simple prequel, as the show was very much continuing Breaking Bad’s story. Still, the vast majority of Better Call Saul takes place before Saul Goodman met “Mr. Mayhew” in Breaking Bad.

The Complete Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul Watch Order

The Original Release Dates Showcase The Story As Intended

Ultimately, the correct Breaking Bad watch order is based on the final airing dates of the shows and the release date of the movie. Breaking Bad was released in 2008 and ended in 2013. Meanwhile, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie was released in 2019, and Better Call Saul ran from 2015 to 2022. As intended by Vince Gilligan, the proper Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul watch order is as follows:

As for the Better Call Saul featuring Jimmy McGill's alter ego, Cinnabon manager Gene Takavic, these occur after the events of Breaking Bad. It's true that the juxtaposed presentation of Better Call Saul's two timelines slightly confused some audience . However, any further confusion can be avoided by following the above Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul watch order, as everything comes together in the very last parts of the entire saga.

Why Breaking Bad’s Chronological Watching Order Doesn’t Work

The Timeline Shifts Are All Part Of The Journey

It is possible to watch Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, and El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie in perfect chronological order — though it's not recommended. Some compilations list the Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul watch order fully chronologically, which should, in theory, offer the best viewing experience. However, a strict chronological order simply breaks the flow of both shows.

By jumping from Better Call Saul to Breaking Bad back and forth, someone who is watching these shows for the first time would not get the full experience of either of them. Essentially, the pacing of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul is more important than any chronology.

the pacing of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul is more important than any chronology.

Another problem with the strictly chronological Breaking Bad watch order is that most of Better Call Saul Gene's scenes are placed in episodes that take place, for the most part, before Breaking Bad. For example, Better Call Saul’s first episode UNO opens with a flash forward to Saul’s life after Breaking Bad only for it to “go back” and present viewers with Jimmy McGill.

For someone to watch Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul in chronological order, they would have to skip parts of a lot of Better Call Saul episodes. The result would be an inconsistent, badly paced watching experience of what are two incredible shows.

Better Call Saul’s Gene Moments Don’t Land Without Breaking Bad

The Original Series Gives Context To Everything

Another option is to watch Better Call Saul before Breaking Bad. The problem, however, is that Better Call Saul is not entirely a prequel, with some flash-forward segments taking place during and after the events of Breaking Bad. Without the Gene scenes, watching Better Call Saul before Breaking Bad would be an interesting option.

Audiences would get the chance to follow Jimmy McGill’s entire fall before meeting Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad, not to mention how characters like Gus and Mike become far more complex after what is revealed in Better Call Saul. Still, the Gene scenes play against this Breaking Bad watch order option. For someone who has never watched Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul’s black-and-white scenes would not make a lot of sense.

It would not be difficult to infer that Gene was a wanted man who was not keeping a low profile, yet what exactly he had done and how it connected to the story of Better Call Saul would not be so easy to deduce. Without Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul is “spoiled” from the spinoff’s first scene in which Jimmy will get in trouble at some point without actually knowing how Saul Goodman got there. In addition, the Gene scenes spoil most of the events of Breaking Bad.

During Gene’s call to sca in Better Call Saul season 6, for example, the fates of Walter White, Jesse Pinkman, Gus Fring, and other Breaking Bad characters are discussed. Some moments during Better Call Saul season 6 work as a Breaking Bad epilogue, which is why watching Better Call Saul before Breaking Bad doesn’t work. Granted, viewers can always skip the Gene scenes and keep them for later, but the result would be an inconsistent watch of both Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad.

Why You Should Watch Breaking Bad Before Better Call Saul

It All Starts With Walter White

The best Breaking Bad watch order is to simply watch the original show before Better Call Saul. While Better Call Saul covers a lot of events involving Breaking Bad characters that happen before Walter White’s story begins, the best possible experience regarding this universe starts with Breaking Bad.

Indeed, that is how the “Breaking Bad universe” was envisioned in the first place – the story of Walter White. Characters like Saul or Mike were created to gravitate around Walter White and elevate Breaking Bad’s story, although they obviously became important characters on their own. The same applies to Gus, Jesse, and other Breaking Bad characters that appear in Better Call Saul.

Watching Breaking Bad first honors why and how that universe’s characters were created, which only makes Better Call Saul even more impressive. For example, Mike Ehrmantraut was created because Bob Odenkirk would not be available to shoot on a certain day (via Rolling Stone), therefore Breaking Bad needed a new character to interact with Walt and Jesse during season 2’s “ABQ”.

A few years later, Jonathan Banks was a co-lead in Better Call Saul, with Mike often stealing the show in the spinoff series. Likewise, Saul Goodman is a mere plot device at first in Breaking Bad – far less layered and complex than Better Call Saul’s Jimmy McGill.

Following the Breaking Bad watch order — as intended by Vince Gilligan — informs audiences of who those characters are and what they are fighting for. In fact, Better Call Saul assumes that viewers have watched Breaking Bad in a lot of moments. For example, when Gus appears for the first time in Better Call Saul, those who have watched Breaking Bad know exactly why he is doing what he is doing.

Finally, seeing the worst of Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad and then getting to know Jimmy McGill is an experience that outdoes any advantages of any modified Breaking Bad/Better Call Saul watch order.

How El Camino Fits Into Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul's Watching Order

Jesse Pinkman's Solo Adventure Is A Breaking Bad Epilogue

El Camino, a Breaking Bad spinoff movie, takes place after the events of Breaking Bad’s finale. In fact, El Camino begins right where Breaking Bad left off. Therefore, it is recommended to watch El Camino right after finishing Breaking Bad as the movie serves as an epilogue to the show. It is also recommended to watch El Camino before Better Call Saul, as one brief moment in Better Call Saul season 6 spoils El Camino’s ending.

Vince Gilligan Confirmed The Breaking Bad Universe Is Finished

There Are Still Stories Fans Want To See In The Breaking Bad Universe

Though many viewers feel there is more to be explored, Vince Gilligan confirmed the Breaking Bad universe is done with the end of Better Call Saul. Gilligan itted that there is some temptation to return to these stories again, but acknowledged that it is important to know when the end it:

"I can definitely imagine revisiting it. Selfishly, I’d like to do so, to keep this thing going. But without naming any names, I look around at some of the worlds, the universes, the stories that I love, whether they’re on TV or in the movies. And I think there’s a certain point, and it’s hard to define, where you’ve done too much in the same universe. Just leave it alone."

As such, the Breaking Bad timeline as it exists now appears to be the complete timeline.

Seeing the definitive end of this franchise will surely come as a disappointment for many fans. There were plenty of stories that audiences wanted to see explored, from the origin story of Gus Fring to seeing what Kim Wexler does with the rest of her life. However, it is also easy to see Gilligan's point in the matter. As popular as Breaking Bad and its spinoffs have been, there is a point where every story must end, and taking it too far can ruin the integrity of the things that the audience loved in the first place.

There's A Chronological Watch Order For Repeat Viewings

The Chronological Watch Order Is A Fun Option For Returning Fans

While the best way to watch the Breaking Bad universe is in the proper release order, there is a chronological way of seeing the story unfold that could be fun for fans to experience on repeat viewings. Again, this is not the way the story was intended to be told and is not an approach that first-time viewers should take. Given the way the shows, especially Better Call Saul, jump around in time, the watch order can be a little complicated:

The Breaking Bad Universe In Chronological Order:

The chronology of the Breaking Bad universe begins back in the first episode of Better Call Saul. Watching this in order, the viewer is introduced to Jimmy McGill, a lowly con artist who begins his journey of becoming a lawyer. The show would see Jimmy's story unfolding as he meets Mike Ehrmantraut, develops a relationship with Kim Wexler, and struggles with his eccentric brother, Chuck. The watch order would lead up to the final season of the show where, in season 6, episode 9, Jimmy and Kim would go their separate ways, leading to him embracing his Saul Goodman persona.

The watch order would then switch to Breaking Bad, where the focus would shift to the journey of Walter White. Throughout the first season, he would form his partnership with Jesse Pinkman and begin his meth business. In season 2, episode 8, Walt and Jesse meet Saul Goodman, who becomes their lawyer. His involvement in the series also brings in Better Call Saul characters like Mike and Gus Fring. In the final season of the show, Saul starts a new life with a new identity when Walt's crimes become known, while Walt is killed saving Jesse from captivity.

The watch order then brings the viewer to El Camino, taking place in the direct aftermath of the Breaking Bad finale and detailing Jesse's attempts to get out of town and go on the run. That movie ends with Jesse successfully making it to Alaska. The watch order can then conclude with the remaining episodes of Better Call Saul's final season, which detail Jimmy's life in hiding, his return to crime, and his eventual capture. Similar to the standard watch order, the Breaking Bad universe ends with Jimmy being sent to prison.

Of course, this watch order is not perfect as the shows and the movie feature flashbacks which complicate the timeline of events. However, for the best option in seeing the Breaking Bad universe unfold chronologically, this is the watch order to follow.