| Breaking Bad season 3 | |||
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Season 3 DVD cover |
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| Country of origin | United States | ||
| No. of episodes | 13 | ||
| Broadcast | |||
| Original channel | AMC | ||
| Original run | March 21, 2010 – June 13, 2010 | ||
| Home video release | |||
| DVD release | |||
| Region 1 | June 7, 2011 | ||
| Region 4 | November 24, 2010 | ||
| Blu-ray Disc release | |||
| Region A | June 7, 2011 | ||
| Season chronology | |||
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| List of Breaking Bad episodes | |||
The third season of the American television drama series Breaking Bad premiered on March 21, 2010 and concluded on June 13, 2010. It consisted of 13 episodes, each running approximately 47 minutes in length. AMC broadcast the third season on Sundays at 10:00 pm in the United States. The complete third season was released on Region 1 DVD and Region A Blu-ray on June 7, 2011.[1]
Season 3 saw actors Bob Odenkirk, Giancarlo Esposito and Jonathan Banks, who play Saul, Gus and Mike respectively, upgraded to main cast status after guest starring the previous season.
Contents |
The city of Albuquerque is in shock after the mid-air collision at the end of the second season. Walt and Skyler have separated and Jesse is in rehab following Jane's death. Walt admits the truth about his meth business to Skyler, which results in her demanding a divorce in exchange for keeping quiet. Gus makes Walt an offer of $3 million for three months of his time, which Walt turns down because he wants his family back. Meanwhile, a pair of mysterious assassins from Mexico named Marco and Leonel, revealed to be Tuco's cousins, have set out to avenge Tuco on the orders of Tuco's invalid uncle. They almost kill an unsuspecting Walt before being notified at the last minute that Walt is working for Gus. Hank refuses another transfer to El Paso, using the Heisenberg case as an excuse to stay in Albuquerque, although he is actually too scared to go back and refuses to divulge his feelings to a concerned Marie.
Walt refuses to divorce Skyler and forcibly moves back with the family, calling Skyler's bluff that she will not tell the authorities or Walter Jr. about his illegal activities. Skyler retaliates by sleeping with her boss, Ted Beneke, in defiance of Walt's actions. A sober Jesse begins cooking the blue meth on his own to great success, angering Walt who sees it as a theft of his formula, resulting in a rift between the two. Gus exploits Walt's mental state about Skyler and the rift between him and Jesse to his advantage, convincing Walt to return to cooking meth. Walt is given an underground high-tech meth lab with an experienced assistant named Gale. He leaves Skyler signed divorce papers but makes it clear that he will continue to support the family with his meth money.
Meanwhile, Gus continues to be pressured by the Juarez Cartel to allow the hit on Walt. The Cousins show up at Gus's restaurant and ominously insist that they have waited long enough. Wishing to give Walt more time, Gus tells the Cousins they may kill Hank, the man who actually killed Tuco but was previously off-limits because he is a DEA agent.
Hank begins to investigate "Heisenberg" obsessively. He links the blue meth with the RV and unsuccessfully attempts to locate it using state DMV records. Seemingly at a dead end, Hank decides to call Walt for help. Hank is tenuously aware of a connection between Walt and Jesse—Walt had previously explained Jesse's phone calls by telling Skyler that he bought marijuana from Jesse—but he has no inkling that Walt is actually Jesse's partner. Hank asks Walt if he knows whether or not Jesse owns an RV. Mortified that Hank may be on to him, Walt arrives at the junkyard lot where Jesse stores the RV and insists that it be disposed of immediately. The lot's proprietor calls a scrap metal hauler who arranges for the RV to be destroyed. Badger tips Jesse off to Walt's plan, and Jesse frantically races to the lot to prevent Walt from taking the RV. Unaware that he is being watched by Hank or that Hank knows about the RV, Jesse leads Hank directly to the lot, where Hank comes perilously close to catching Jesse and Walt in the RV. Hank attempts to break into the RV but is confronted by the scrap metal hauler, who demonstrates a surprising level of fluency in the law of search and seizure and compels Hank to call for a search warrant. As Hank is waiting for the warrant, Walt calls Saul for help. Saul arranges for his secretary to call Hank and tell him that his wife has been in a serious car accident, prompting Hank to leave the RV to tend to his wife. After Hank leaves, the RV is compacted and hauled away. Upon realizing that he had been duped, an enraged Hank confronts Jesse at his home, beating him unconscious. Hank is suspended without pay for the incident and finally opens up about his panic attacks to Marie.
Jesse vows vengeance on Hank but is coaxed out of it by Walt, who offers to make him a partner in the lab. Skyler had asked Walt to speak to Jesse for Hank's sake, and also due to Walt missing his volatile yet successful partnership with Jesse. Gale is fired and Jesse drops the charges against Hank, but before Hank can celebrate, he is tracked down by the Cousins in a parking lot. After being warned by an unknown caller, Hank backs into and crushes Leonel before managing to kill Marco. Hank is shot four times in the incident and is hospitalized in serious condition, but survives the wounds. He refuses to leave the hospital until he can walk again. Walt also discovers that he is a target for the cartel after a legless Leonel angrily crawls towards him at the hospital, but Gus—who reveals that he knew Walt and Hank were brothers-in-law—takes care of it by having Mike poison and kill Leonel in his hospital bed.
Meanwhile, Gus starts a grab for power that kills Juan Bolsa, the head of the Juarez Cartel. Walt realizes that Gus directed the Cousins away from him to Hank in order to put police heat on the cartel, shut down the meth pipeline from Mexico, and dominate the meth trade in the southwest US. Gus tells Walt that he will extend his three-month contract to a full year, paying Walt a total of $15 million. Jesse, unhappy at being a lowly worker under Gus and all the restrictions that earning a large amount of illegal money has, begins to skim some of the meth so he can deal freely on the side. Walter suspects Jesse is skimming, but he denies it when confronted. Hank's health plan will not cover all of the physical therapy he needs, so Skyler—who suspects that Hank's shooting is related to Walt—offers to pay for the bills with Walt's meth profit. She tells Marie that Walt earned the money by card-counting at underground blackjack games. Skyler is brought further into Walt's business when she disagrees with Saul's laundering plans and prepares to handle the laundering herself, revealing that she never filed the divorce papers because married couples do not have to testify against each other. Hank, despite his refusal to go home, leaves after losing a bet to Marie about being able to achieve an erection in his state.
Jesse enters a relationship with a girl named Andrea from his rehab meetings. He learns that her 11-year old brother Tomas was involved with Combo's murder in season two and plans to take revenge on everyone responsible, even though the two dealers work for Gus. When Walter learns that Jesse will be killed if he goes through with his plan for revenge, Walt asks Gus to resolve the situation peacefully. Gus promises Jesse that children will no longer be used in his enterprise and Jesse reluctantly accepts a truce with the dealers. Tomas is shot and killed in a park, setting Jesse back on the path of revenge, as he assumes that the drug dealers were to blame. When Walter learns of the boy's murder, he races to stop a no longer sober Jesse from confronting the dealers. Walter intervenes just in time, running over both dealers with his car. One of the dealers survives and Walt uses the dealer's own gun to execute him. Walt tells Jesse to run.
Gus is furious that Walter helped Jesse escape, who is assumed to be hiding across the country but is still in Albuquerque. Although he agrees to keep Walter on, Gus is ready to eliminate Walter and let the newly rehired Gale take his place, a plan that Walter suspects. Walter and Jesse agree that in order to keep themselves alive, Gale has to be killed so Walter will be the only quality cook and therefore too valuable to be murdered. Walter is prepared to kill Gale himself, but Mike and Victor apprehend Walter and prepare to execute him. Walter bargains for his life by telling Mike and Victor that he will provide Jesse's location in exchange for being allowed to live, but when calling Jesse he instead informs him of his predicament and orders Jesse to kill Gale immediately, nullifying Gus's move to have him murdered and replaced. Jesse goes to Gale's apartment to carry out Walt's order, pointing the gun at Gale as the screen goes to black and a gunshot is heard.[2][3]
| № | # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | U.S. viewers (million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 1 | "No Mas" | Bryan Cranston | Vince Gilligan | March 21, 2010 | 1.95[4] |
| As Walt copes with the aftermath of the plane crash and Skyler's anger, Jesse comes to a new realization about himself. A new adversary tracks the elusive Heisenberg, Walter White's kingpin alter ego. Skyler seeks advice on the state of her marriage and confronts Walt. | ||||||
| 22 | 2 | "Caballo sin Nombre" | Adam Bernstein | Peter Gould | March 28, 2010 | 1.55[4] |
| Walt tries to reconcile with Skyler, but when his advances are rejected he takes drastic action to bring his family back together. A confused and angry Walter Jr. lashes out at his mother. With the help of Saul, Jesse makes a significant investment. | ||||||
| 23 | 3 | "I.F.T." | Michelle MacLaren | George Mastras | April 4, 2010 | 1.33[4] |
| Walt ignores Skyler's demands, increasing the tension between them. To retaliate, she sleeps with Ted, her boss (I.F.T. is an abbreviation of her confession to Walt: "I fucked Ted"). Saul entreats Jesse to persuade Walt to keep cooking. Still suffering from panic and anxiety attacks, Hank crosses a line at work. | ||||||
| 24 | 4 | "Green Light" | Scott Winant | Sam Catlin | April 11, 2010 | 1.46[4] |
| Walt loses control endangering his job and relationships; Hank throws himself into his investigation; Jesse has a new plan. | ||||||
| 25 | 5 | "Mas" | Johan Renck | Moira Walley-Beckett | April 18, 2010 | 1.61[4] |
| Gus tries to lure Walt back into the business with a high-tech superlab; Skyler doubts her new relationship; Marie is concerned for Hank's well-being. Hank finds a link between the R.V. and Jesse. | ||||||
| 26 | 6 | "Sunset" | John Shiban | John Shiban | April 25, 2010 | 1.64[4] |
| Walt settles into his new surroundings; Walt, Jr. wants answers about his parents' relationship; Hank's investigation causes problems for Walt and Jesse. | ||||||
| 27 | 7 | "One Minute" | Michelle MacLaren | Thomas Schnauz | May 2, 2010 | 1.52[4] |
| Hank's volatility forces a confrontation with Jesse; Skyler pressures Walt to make a deal; Hank faces severe consequences. | ||||||
| 28 | 8 | "I See You" | Colin Bucksey | Gennifer Hutchison | May 9, 2010 | 1.78[4] |
| The family waits for news; Jesse covers at the lab; Walt worries that he and his family are in danger. | ||||||
| 29 | 9 | "Kafkaesque" | Michael Slovis | Peter Gould & George Mastras | May 16, 2010 | 1.61[4] |
| Skyler hatches a plan; Walt and Gus come to an understanding; Jesse pursues a new opportunity. | ||||||
| 30 | 10 | "Fly" | Rian Johnson | Sam Catlin & Moira Walley-Beckett | May 23, 2010 | 1.20[4] |
| Walt, obsessed with a contaminant, refuses to cook; Jesse tries to get Walt on track. | ||||||
| 31 | 11 | "Abiquiu" | Michelle MacLaren | John Shiban & Thomas Schnauz | May 30, 2010 | 1.32[4] |
| Skyler gets involved with Walt's business; Hank struggles with recovery; Jesse has a startling discovery. | ||||||
| 32 | 12 | "Half Measures" | Adam Bernstein | Sam Catlin & Peter Gould | June 6, 2010 | 1.19[4] |
| Jesse, outraged at the death of his friend by the hand of his lover's 11 year old brother, attempts to kill the people who got the kid to do it. Walt takes care of it, forcing Jesse to go on the run. | ||||||
| 33 | 13 | "Full Measure" | Vince Gilligan | Vince Gilligan | June 13, 2010 | 1.56[5] |
| With Jesse on the run, Walt negotiates a bargain with Gus to provide for his and Jesse's safety. | ||||||
Unlike the second season, when the Breaking Bad writers planned the storyline for the entire season in advance of filming, the writing staff did not fully plan out the third season before production and instead developed the storyline as the episodes progressed.[6]
The third season was released on DVD in Region 1 and on Blu-ray in Region A on June 7, 2011,[1] in Region 4 on November 24, 2010[7] and in Region 2 in Germany on May 19, 2011.[8]
Special features on the DVD and Blu-ray include nine audio commentaries:
Behind-the-scene featurettes include:
Also included is a gag reel, deleted scenes, and "Better Call Saul" commercials and testimonials. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is Breaking Bad cast and crew photo collection.[1]
The third season of Breaking Bad received universal acclaim from critics, scoring 89 out of 100 on Metacritic.[9]
The third season received numerous awards and nominations, including seven Emmy Award nominations with two wins. Bryan Cranston won his third consecutive award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and Aaron Paul won for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series after being nominated the previous year. The series received its second consecutive nomination for Outstanding Drama Series; Michael Slovis was nominated for Outstanding Cinematography for a One Hour Series; Michelle MacLaren was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for "One Minute"; Skip MacDonald was nominated for Outstanding Single Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series; and it was also nominated for Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series.[10]
The series received four nominations for the Television Critics Association Awards, including winning for Outstanding Achievement in Drama. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul were each nominated for Individual Achievement in Drama, and the series was nominated for Program of the Year. Cranston also received a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.[10] Cranston received his first Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor in a Television Series Drama.[11] He was also nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series.[12]
James Poniewozik of TIME named "One Minute" as the fourth best television episode of 2010.[13] He also included "Fly", "Half Measures" and "Full Measure" on his list of honorable mentions.[14] The Futon Critic listed "Full Measure" as the sixth best episode of 2010, saying that "No show has played with the expectations of we've come to expect from television more than Breaking Bad. [15] IGN named Breaking Bad the best television series of 2010.[16]
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