Summary

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  Tuco Salamanca is a crucial character in both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, playing a significant role in the transformation of Walter White and Jimmy McGill.
• Without Tuco's involvement, Walter and Jesse would not have been able to expand their drug business, and Jimmy would not have caught the attention of the cartel.
• Tuco's absence would have drastically changed the storylines of both shows, with Better Call Saul simply being a lawyer show and Breaking Bad lacking the iconic character of Saul Goodman.

best TV shows of all time, first aired in 2008, when streaming services were barely starting, and changed the industry landscape forever. The series' increasing popularity reached its peak in its finale, which was seen by 10.3 million people at that time. Better Call Saul, Saul Goodman's spinoff, however, did not benefit from that popularity immediately as it made its own path.

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are available to stream on Netflix.

Both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul follow the moral and ethical transformation of a character who gets corrupted. For that very reason, both shows present a very similar structure and pace marked by an in-crescendo in which, season by season, things escalate to the point of no return. In the process of Walter White becoming Heisenberg and Jimmy McGill becoming Saul Goodman, things gradually change, and many ing characters come and go, while others stay. The curious thing is that in both shows, one ing character only present in the first part of each series is crucial for the development of the plot: Tuco Salamanca.

Tuco Salamanca Gets Both Jimmy McGill & Walter White Involved With The Cartel

Besides the fact that he only appears in a few episodes in both shows, Tuco Salamanca plays a very similar part in Walter White and Jimmy McGill's transformation paths. Tuco's first appearance in Vince Gilligan's universe happens in Breaking Bad, season 1, episode 6. At this point in the show, Walt and Jesse are starting to cook meth and sell it on their own, but to grow they need someone with a bigger reach to push their product. Tuco, the most powerful cartel person in the north at that moment, is Walt and Jesse's first step into making his business get real.

In Better Call Saul, on the other hand, Tuco first appears in the pilot. In the middle of a scam that does not go as planned, Jimmy winds up being kidnapped by him. Jimmy's ability to talk himself out of the situation catches Tuco and Nacho's attention, which will be the start of his relationship with the cartel, which is something that will be developed parallel to Jimmy's legit lawyer career and that will continue to escalate until Better Call Saul’s finale.

Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul Couldn't Happen Without This ing Character

Tuco's character is not only the first step in the long path of both lead characters of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, but it is crucial for everything that happens later in the shows. As for Breaking Bad, there is no chance Walt could become Heisenberg, the most powerful drug dealer in New Mexico, if it wasn't for Tuco. It is made clear in the show’s first season that Walt and Jesse selling the drug by themselves has little future ahead and that they could never have taken the next step and built their drug empire if it wasn't for Tuco.

In the case of Better Call Saul, Tuco is even more important, as half of Jimmy's story is tightly related to his relationship with the cartel. If Tuco had never kidnapped him, then he wouldn’t have been able to show his abilities as a lawyer and attract the cartel's attention. Everything that happens with Nacho, Hector Salamanca, and then Lalo Salamanca would never have existed in the show if it wasn't for Tuco. The curious thing about all this is that Tuco is such a relevant character for the show and Jimmy McGill's transformation arch, but he only appears in three episodes.

How Both Breaking Bad Shows Would Be Different Without Tuco's Presence

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul's beauty lies in how everything gradually escalates to the point of no return. Without Tuco, Saul Goodman wouldn't exist as Jimmy would never have gotten involved with the cartel. Better Call Saul would be just a lawyers' show. On the other hand, Tuco's absence in Breaking Bad would have made the show about Walt and Jesse trying to sell the product to street junkies and probably would have lasted two seasons. Let alone the fact that Saul Goodman wouldn’t exist, so one of Breaking Bad's best characters would be missing, and Better Call Saul as a spinoff would have never happened.