TheBreaking Baduniverse created by Vince Gilligan, or as its fans lovingly call it, the “Gilliverse” is composed of two critically acclaimed TV shows and a movie, so it should come as no surprise that certain characters make appearances both inBetter Call Sauland its predecessor.
RELATED:Better Call Saul: Great Shows to Watch Now The Series Has Finished
Breaking Badcameos inBetter Call Saulare never mere fan service, though. Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould have carefully planned each one of them so that they make complete sense, either in the context of the world they take place in or with the aim of advancing the series' plot. Some of these appearances evenset the stage for important eventsthat take place inBreaking Bad.
10Ken Wins (“Switch”)
Ken Wins, also known as simply “the stockbroker,” serves a similar purpose in bothBreaking BadandBetter Call Saul.In each one of these shows, he is used by the protagonists to dip their toes into the well ofimmoral and criminal activitiesthey are about to dive into.
InBreaking Bad,Walt, annoyed by Ken’s obnoxious behavior in line at the bank, encounters him later at a gas station. Without any hesitation, he blows up his car by sticking a squeegee cleaner between the BMW’s battery terminals. In Season 2 ofBetter Call Saul, on the other hand, he falls prey to Jimmy and Kim’s tricks, as the pair cons him to pay for an entire tequila bottle they shared throughout the night, priced at $50 per shot.
9Dr. Barry Goodman (“Sunk Costs”)
The kind-hearted, but tough doctor is presented inBreaking Badas Gus Fring’s private medical caregiver after he successfully poisons Don Eladio and the entire cartel in Season 4 of the series. He also takes care of Mike, who suffered a gunshot wound during the same episode.
RELATED:Better Call Saul Moments That Added Extra Context to Breaking Bad
InBetter Call Saul,Dr. Barry Goodman is revealed to have his own clinic in Mexico. Even as far back as 2003, he cooperated with Gus, as evidenced by the doctor supplying Mike with drugs he used to frame Hector Salamanca’s drivers.
8No-Doze (“Mijo”)
One of the most shocking scenes in the early seasons ofBreaking Badinvolved Tuco Salamanca beating his henchman, No-Doze, to death at the junkyard right after making his first deal with Walt and Jesse. The only reason for the brutal, accidental execution was No-Doze’s remark to Walt and Jesse, which Tuco interpreted as “speaking for him.”
In the second episode ofBetter Call Saul’sfirst season, No-Doze appears again, this time in the middle of the New Mexico desert, where Tuco drove out Jimmy McGill and the two skateboarding twins who disrespected his grandmother. No-Doze says that Tuco can’t give the twins black eyes, since they already had them due to a beating they got from him earlier. Tuco yells at No-Doze to “stop helping” in a scene that was a clear reference toBreaking Bad’siconic moment.
7Gale Boetticher (“Something Beautiful”)
Fans remember Gale Boetticher as the quirky chemist who was passionate about his craft and seemed completely oblivious to the dangers and risks of working in the drug trade. He was also full of admiration for Heisenberg and his meth-cooking process. Unfortunately, he met his demise at the hands of Jesse Pinkman, for whom killing Gale was the only way to save his own (and Walter White’s) life.
Gale makes a brief cameo in Season 4 ofBetter Call Saul, where he is still a young chemistry student. He is visited by Gus Fring in one of UNM’s laboratories. His passion for chemistry and willingness to break the law for the drug kingpin was clear even then, with Gale outright suggesting that he could cook methamphetamine for Gus in the labs of his university.
6Ed Galbraith (“Magic Man”)
Ed, also known as “the Disappearer,” was an important character in bothBreaking BadandEl Camino,despite not taking up a lot of screen time in the original TV series. He was responsible for sending Walt to New Hampshire towards the end of Season 5 ofBreaking Badand transporting Jesse to Alaska inEl Camino.
RELATED:Better Call Saul: Best Slippin' Jimmy Scams, Ranked
Saul Goodman also used the Disappearer’s services, but viewers didn’t get to learn where he was sent to until the release ofBetter Call Saul’spilot episode. In the intro to Season 5 of the spin-off show, we see Goodman calling Galbraith to secure his services again, after being recognized by Jeff at the mall. Ed tells Saul that a “do-over” will cost him double, and after initially agreeing upon the price, the ex-lawyer changes his mind, saying that he will handle the problem without Ed’s help.
5Lydia Rodarte-Quayle (“Off Brand”)
Lydia first appeared in the final season ofBreaking Bad.The Madrigal Electromotive executive helped Walter White distribute his product after Gus’s death in the Season 4 finale. In the series finale, Walt poisons her drink with ricin, effectively killing Lydia as one of the final loose ends he needed to tie up in “Felina.”
Better Call Sauldives deeper into the origins of Gus and Lydia’s business relationship. The show reveals Rodarte-Quayle’s role in securing a location for Gus’s “superlab,” hiring Mike Ehrmantraut as Madrigal’s “security consultant,” and mediating the conversation between Gus and Peter Schuler, the head of Madrigal Electromotive’s fast-food division.
4Hank Schrader & Steve Gomez (“The Guy For This”)
Hank and Steve’s deaths in the desert inBreaking Badset off an unstoppable series of events in motion, one that culminated in Walt avenging his brother-in-law’s murder by killing Jack Welker’s gang in the series finale. Schrader was one of the most importantBreaking Badcharacters, constantly one step away from discovering Walt’s drug empire.
RELATED:Better Call Saul: Biggest Mistakes Made By The Characters
The likable DEA agent and his partner make one final appearance inBetter Call Saul’sfifth season. The agents follow a series of dead drops in hopes of arresting the men responsible and uncovering the brains of the operation. They end up recovering $700,000 in drug money but fail to make any arrests, not to mention making any dents in Gustavo Fring’s airtight drug distribution network.
3Jesse Pinkman (“Waterworks”)
Although Walt and Jesse appear together in Season 6, Episode 11 ofBetter Call Saul,their individual appearances in theBreaking Badspin-off made a much bigger impact on the season’s storyline and the series protagonists, Saul Goodman and Kim Wexler.
In Season 6, Episode 12, as Wexler leaves Goodman’s office after signing their divorce papers, Jesse asks if he could bum a cigarette from her. Once he lights up, he mentions that he recognizes Kim because she was Combo’s defense attorney, and asks her if Saul really is a good lawyer. It was a deeply symbolic scene, as it captured Kim Wexler at the end of her life-shattering path of crime and deceit, just as Jesse was about to embark on his own, similar journey.
2Walter White (“Saul Gone”)
Walter White’s cameo in the finale ofBetter Call Saulis centered around regrets. As they wait for the Disappearer to take care of their new identities and destinations, Saul Goodman asks Walt what he’d do if he had access to a time machine. The chemist refuses to answer, angrily claiming thatthe concept of a time machine is an impossibility.
Walt rephrases Saul’s own question into a query about his regrets in life, only then answering that his biggest regret is selling his shares in Gray Matter, a billion-dollar company he helped found. The scene perfectly captures Walt’s character, a man unable to entertain a simple thought experiment, constantly demeaning those around him, even for something as silly as suggesting the existence of time machines.
1Marie Schrader (“Saul Gone”)
Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul may have been the most eagerly-awaited cameos inBetter Call Saul,but it was Betsy Brandt who stole the show in the series finale as Marie Schrader. She slipped back into the role seamlessly, delivering a performance full of pain and sorrow, as she faced Saul, the man indirectly responsible for the death of her husband.
After Goodman was caught by the police in Nebraska, he was flown into Albuquerque and brought in for a plea hearing. Marie was present at that meeting and delivered a heart-breaking speech about her husband and Steve Gomez, setting up the rest of the finale by driving home the point that Saul Goodman needs to finally answer for all the pain and death he’s caused throughout the years.
