While speaking out about Breaking Bad’s anniversary, Vince Gilligan recently noted that the team had to work their way out of several storytelling jams — particularly with the Season 5 tease of the machine gun, as well as how to kill Gus Fring while making it feel earned.
But Rian Johnson is correct in noting that Breaking Bad’s legacy is intact because the show still never lost sight to where it wanted to take Walt.
Of course, with all of the praise for the mental work that drove Walter White’s arc between Breaking Bad’s pilot and the events of “Felina,” it’s worth noting that creating the show did not come without its share of creative hurdles.