Breaking Bad season 1

The first season of the American television drama series Breaking Bad premiered on January 20, 2008 and concluded on March 9, 2008. It consisted of seven episodes, each running approximately 48 minutes in length, except the pilot episode which runs for approximately 58 minutes. AMC broadcast the first season on Sundays at 10:00 pm in the United States. The first season was originally going to consist of nine episodes, but was reduced to seven by the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. The complete first season was released on Region 1 DVD on February 24, 2009 and Region A Blu-ray on March 16, 2010.

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Cast

Main

Bryan Cranston as Walter "Walt" White, a high-school chemistry teacher in Albuquerque, New Mexico. After being diagnosed with Stage 3 lung cancer and given two years to live, Walt enters into a partnership with a former student to cook crystal meth as a means of supporting his family.
Anna Gunn as Skyler White, Walt's pregnant wife and a struggling creative writer.
Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman, a small-time drug dealer and former student of Walt who partners with him to cook and sell crystal meth.
Dean Norris as Hank Schrader, Walt and Skyler's brother-in-law and a DEA agent.
Betsy Brandt as Marie Schrader, Skyler's sister and Hank's wife. She is a radiologic technologist.
RJ Mitte as Walter White Jr., Walt and Skyler's son who has cerebral palsy.

Recurring

Steven Michael Quezada as Steven Gomez, Hank's partner at the DEA.
Carmen Serano as Principal Carmen Molina, the principal of J.P. Wynne High School.
Max Arciniega as Krazy-8 Molina, an associate of Jesse's.
Charles Baker as Skinny Pete, one of Jesse's friends.
Raymond Cruz as Tuco Salamanca, a drug kingpin associated with the cartel.
Jessica Hecht as Gretchen Schwartz, Walt's former fiancee and business partner

Guest

Tess Harper as Mrs. Pinkman, Jesse's mother.
Matt L. Jones as Brandon "Badger" Mayhew, one of Jesse's friends.
Rodney Rush as Combo, one of Jesse's friends.
Marius Stan as Bogdan Wolynetz, the owner of A1A Car Wash, where Walt was formerly employed.
John Koyama as Emilio Koyama, another associate of Jesse's who is caught in a drug bust by the DEA.

Episodes

Music

Breaking Bads original score is composed by Dave Porter. The show also uses music from other recording artists with music supervision by Thomas Golubić. Select songs from Season 1 are featured on the Breaking Bad Soundtrack available through iTunes and Amazon.

Reception

Reviews

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the series' first season has an approval rating of 86% based on 43 reviews, with an average rating of 8.3/10. The site's critics consensus reads: "Though at times it feels forced and its imagery can be gruesome, Breaking Bad is darkly gripping and features a strong sympathetic lead in Bryan Cranston." The first season of Breaking Bad also received generally favorable reviews on Metacritic, scoring a 73 out of 100.
New York Post critic Linda Stasi praised the series, particularly the acting of Cranston and Paul. Robert Bianco of USA Today extolled the humor in the show, "mostly in Walt's efforts to impose scholarly logic on the business and on his idiot apprentice, a role Paul plays very well. But even their scenes lean toward the suspenseful, as the duo learns that killing someone, even in self-defense, is ugly, messy work." Troy Patterson of Slate was more critical, who, despite praising the show's dark humor and the performances by the leading cast, criticized the overall structure and layout of each episode, stating: "Imagine the Coen brothers directing an episode of Weeds, and you have Breaking Bad."

Awards and nominations

The first season received numerous awards and nominations, including four Primetime Emmy Award nominations with two wins. Bryan Cranston won for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and Lynne Willingham won for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series. Vince Gilligan was nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series for the pilot episode and John Toll was nominated for Outstanding Cinematography for a One-Hour Series for the pilot episode. Cranston also won a Satellite Award for Best Actor in a Drama Series. The series was nominated for Outstanding New Program of the Year at the Television Critics Association Awards. The series also received three Writers Guild of America Award nominations with one win. It was nominated for Best New Series, Patty Lin was nominated for Best Episodic Drama for "Gray Matter", and Vince Gilligan won for Best Episodic Drama for his work on the pilot.

Year	Award	Category	Recipient	Result	Ref.
2008	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series	Bryan Cranston for "Pilot"	Won
2008	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series	Vince Gilligan for "Pilot"	Nomitated
2008	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour)	John Toll for "Pilot"	Nomitated
2008	Primetime Emmy Awards	Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing - Drama Series	Lynne Willingham for "Pilot"	Won

Home media

The first season was released on DVD in Region 1 on February 24, 2009, in Region 2 on December 14, 2009, and in Region 4 on July 8, 2009. It was released on Blu-ray in Region A on March 16, 2010. Special features on the DVD and Blu-ray include two audio commentaries—"Pilot" by creator Vince Gilligan, cast members Bryan Cranston, Anna Gunn, Aaron Paul, Dean Norris, Betsy Brandt, and RJ Mitte, and editor Lynne Willingham and "Crazy Handful of Nothin'" by Vince Gilligan, Bryan Cranston, Anna Gunn, Aaron Paul, Dean Norris, and writer George Mastras; "The Making of Breaking Bad"; "Inside Breaking Bad"; AMC Shootout – Interview with Vince Gilligan, Bryan Cranston, and Mark Johnson; deleted scenes; screen tests; and Vince Gilligan's photo gallery.