Summary

• Walter almost revealed his secret life as Heisenberg early on with his shady behavior and suspicious phone habits.
• Hank missed numerous clues from Walt's bizarre fugue state to driving recklessly to avoid discovery at the industrial laundry.
• The connection between Walt and Jesse, sudden wealth, and Skyler's fear for her children should have raised red flags for Hank.

The most burning question throughout Breaking Bad related to when Hank Schrader would discover Walter White’s secret life as the meth kingpin Heisenberg, and based on the many clues that Walt left throughout the series it should have been a lot earlier. Of course, the scene where Hank pieced it all together while sitting in White’s bathroom was an iconic Breaking Bad moment, but throughout the show there were plenty of other times when Walt almost accidentally let his double-life be known. While Walt was often cunning, at other times he was downright reckless regarding his life of crime.

The earliest hints that Hank had about Walter’s life of crime date back to the first season, and continued right up until he finally figured it all out at the end of the second half of the fifth season. From fugue states to driving into oncoming traffic, the increasingly bizarre behavior of Walt should have been ample evidence for Hank to start investigating his genius chemist brother-in-law. Throughout Breaking Bad there were so many Heisenberg hints that Hank should have noticed.

10 When Walter Stole The High School Lab Equipment

Season 1, Episode 6: "Crazy Handful of Nothin'"

The first moment where it truly felt like Walter White’s secret life was going to be discovered by Hank Schrader came after the stolen lab equipment was linked to J.P. Wynne High School. Hank immediately realized the connection to Walt and even asked him to do an inventory check with him to try and discover how much equipment had been stolen. While Hank joked to Walter “we don’t want people to start worrying about you” he remained completely oblivious to Walt’s role in the robbery.

Hank joked to Walter “we don’t want people to start worrying about you."

Hank’s first clue came when Walt acted incredibly shady after he showed him the meth-making gas mask the DEA found in the desert. This clue should have turned to outright suspicion when Hank learned that only Walter and the school staff had access to the lab and that despite being such an attentive teacher Walt acted like he did not know how many respirators or other equipment the storeroom was supposed to have. Had Hank not thought Walt was incapable of being a criminal, he would have been a prime suspect at this point.

9 Walter’s Second Cell Phone

Season 1, Episode 6: "Crazy Handful of Nothin'"

After Walter’s links to Jesse Pinkman were discovered by his wife Skyler through a reversed dialed phone call, Jesse gave Walter a second burner cell phone so that the two could communicate secretly. While Walter lied and told his wife Jesse was his weed dealer, Walt was less than inconspicuous with his new second cell phone and even answered it in front of Hank while checking the high school laboratory for the stolen equipment. Walter nervously answered the phone and tried to hide it from Hank, but as a seasoned detective, he should have realized something was wrong.

As Breaking Bad progressed Walter got better at hiding this phone from the people in his life and he stored it above the drop ceiling of his classroom, where he was completely out of sight and out of mind. However, one time Skyler should have left Walt was when he revealed the existence of his second phone by asking “which one?” when Skyler asked him if he had brought his phone to the hospital. Walter’s seeming inability to hide the fact he had two phones was a major hint about his Heisenberg persona that Hank never picked up on.

8 Walter’s Fugue State

Season 2, Episode 3: "Bit by a Dead Bee"

Of all the seemingly impossible situations that Walter White has found himself having to lie his way out of, the “fugue state” excuse may have been most simultaneously absurd and ingenious. In desperate need to cover up the fact that he had been kidnapped by Tuco Salamanca, Walter took off all his clothes, wandered around a supermarket, and pretended he had no memory of the previous few days. When the hospital was unable to find an explanation, his family was forced to believe Walter’s suggestion that it was a mix of medication and chemotherapy that caused a “fugue state.”

As a longtime law enforcer, one person who should have seen right through Walter’s excuse was Hank Schrader. Through many years of solving cases, interrogating criminals, and noticing when somebody’s story just did not make any sense, Hank should have dug deeper into Walter’s complex and nonsensical lie. While this may not have been enough to tell Hank that Walter was Heisenberg, it should have been a major clue that Walter’s secretive lifestyle needed to be investigated.

7 When The Description Of Heisenberg Looked Like Walter

Season 2, Episode 8: "Better Call Saul"

One recurring Breaking Bad image was the Heisenberg sketch, which was the only guide Hank and had to what the drug kingpin, unbeknownst to them, named Walter White looked like. While who exactly drew the sketch, which depicted Walt with his signature hat, glasses, and mustache, was not known, the drawing looked close enough to the real man that had Hank suspected Walt earlier he would have been caught back in the third season. The sketch was initially linked to the cartel, and it could have been a prime clue to Hank linking Walter with Tuco and the Salamanca’s.

The drawing was not the only clue that Hank had that Walter was Heisenberg as after Badger was arrested was being represented by Saul Goodman, he directly described Heisenberg to Hank as an older guy, medium height, with no hair in outline that gave Hank all the clues he needed to suspect Walter. While this may not have been immediately obvious to Hank at the time, once Hank had the Heisenberg sketch to go along with it he should have figured out the truth.

6 Walter Telling Hank He Had Half A Million In Cash In Duffel Bag

Season 3, Episode 1: "No Más"

For all his cunning lies to keep himself out of trouble, the inflated ego of Walter White meant that, occasionally, he could not help but drop subtle hints to Hank Schrader that he was Heisenberg. One of these moments came in the third season premiere “No Más” as Hank was helping Walt move his belongings to his new apartment and lifted the bag full of money that Walt had gotten from his with Gus Fring. While Walt tried to take the bag at first, Hank grabbed it and was closer than he’d ever been to accidentally finding out the truth.

At first, Hank joked about the bag being full of “cinder blocks” before Walter fully itted it was “half a million in cash” as he had now reached a low point due to his crumbling marriage. However, Hank remained oblivious to Walter’s confession and laughed away the idea by saying “that’s the spirit.” This was yet another instance of Hank being so blinded by the truth, that he could not see what was staring him right in front of the eyes, that Walter was the Heisenberg he was so desperately trying to bring down.

5 Walter’s Connection To Jesse Pinkman

Season 3, Episode 6: “Sunset"

One of the most damning hints that should have told Hank Schrader that Walter White was Heisenberg a lot earlier was Walt’s consistent association with Jesse Pinkman. As a former student of Walt, the connection between the two characters was obvious from the beginning, and he made several phone calls to their personal home, Skyler visited him to warn him against the lie that he was selling weed to Walter, and there were definitely instances of them being seen driving their RV together. Throughout Breaking Bad there were lots of moments where Hank could have pieced their relationship together.

However, the most obvious point where Hank should have suspected that Jesse was working with Walter came in the third season episode “Sunset” when Hank almost busted them inside the RV. With nowhere left to run, Hank got a falsified phone call telling him that Marie was in a car accident and was being airlifted to hospital. This caused Hank to flee the scene, and Hank should have pieced together the many hints about Heisenberg and realized that only Walt knew this was a surefire way to get him to leave.

4 Walter’s Sudden Wealth

Season 3, Episode 9: “Kafkaesque"

Hank should have been more than suspicious about the White family's sudden incredible wealth that seemed to come out of absolutely nowhere. With knowledge about Walter’s cancer treatment, the difficult financial circumstances of the White’s lives, and even the fact that Walt needed to take a second job at a car wash to make ends meet, it did not make sense that their money worries would disappear so quickly. While Walter concocted a complex lie to explain away their money troubles, Hank should know that when something appeared so far-fetched, it was usually because it was not true.

Shockingly, spearheaded by Skyler, Walter falsely itted to an entirely different kind of life of crime to explain their money and offer to pay Hank’s medical bills. Together they pretended that Walt made his money gambling and that this allowed them to pay for his cancer treatment, buy the car wash, and pay for Hank’s treatment. By accepting their help, Hank was knowingly taking dirty money, but what he should have figured out was that if a genius chemist was in dire need of finances, Walter would be more likely to use that skillset to make money than gambling.

3 “This Genius Of Yours, Maybe He’s Still Out There”

Season 4, Episode 5: "Shotgun"

After pursuing those distributing blue meth for over four seasons of Breaking Bad, Hank had finally thrown in the towel after concluding that Heisenberg was Gale Boetticher and that he died before they caught him. This was exactly the get-out that Walter White needed, but after hearing Hank describing Gale as a “genius” to Walt Jr. during a dinner, Walter’s ego meant that he could not help but disagree. Walter then sowed the seeds of doubt in Hank’s mind when he told him that the work in Gale’s notebook looked like “rote copying.”

Walt put it all on the line to tell Hank he thought Gale was “copying someone else’s work.”

Walt was so desperate for recognition of his work and so embittered by the idea that Gale would be ed as the genius chemist Heisenberg, that Walt put it all on the line to tell Hank he thought Gale was “copying someone else’s work.” This short-minded assertion was made after Walt was drinking wine with dinner, this less inhibited version of himself shocked Skyler as he could not help but drop a hint that he was Heisenberg. Walt was so careless in this moment, that it’s shocking Hank did not read between the lines of what he was insinuating.

2 When Walter Drove Into Oncoming Traffic

Season 4, Episode 11: "Crawl Space"

While on a ride along with Hank, Walter discovered that his brother-in-law had pieced together Gus Fring’s association with an industrial laundry where he cooked meth. Not only this, but he wanted Walt to drive him to the laundry where his association with the whole operation would have surely been noticed. In desperate need to avoid this, Walter drove into oncoming traffic and put both of their lives in danger to ensure he could continue life his secret double life as Heisenberg.

Walt’s nervousness during their interaction and the way that Walter tried to dissuade Hank from going to the industrial laundry should have a been clear indication that Walter was trying to tamper with his investigation. After their close brush with death when Walt drove directly into another car, Hank should have realized this was a clear avoidance tactic and that he was on the right track with his industrial meth lab theory.

1 Skyler Trying To Keep The Children With Hank and Marie

Season 5, Episode 4: “Fifty-One”

In the early part of the fifth season of Breaking Bad, Skyler was convinced that the only way to keep her children, Walt Jr. and Holly, safe from their father was to have them stay with Hank and Marie Schrader for three months. This was a serious lifestyle change for the children that should have clued Hank into the fact that something was seriously wrong with Walter. With so many other things pointing to Walter’s secret identity as Heisenberg, this fear that Skyler had for the children could have been just the clue he needed to figure things out.

However, Hank never put two and two together to realize the children staying with him and Marie was an indication of something more sinister about Walter. Instead, Hank believed that it was all due to the state of the couple's marriage and that they needed that time to work on their relationship and try to mend their fractured union. Hank should have spotted the genuine fear that Skyler had for their safety and realized that his newfound role as guardian to two children was due to Walt’s criminal double life.