One Subtle Scene In Breaking Bad's Pilot Is Very Important To How Walt's Character Arc Unfolds

It has been 17 years since the pilot of the groundbreaking series Breaking Bad aired, and a few seemingly inconsequential scenes hit differently now, returning to the first episode after having watched the full series. Widely regarded as one of the best TV shows of all time, Breaking Bad follows the criminal exploits of Walter White (Bryan Cranston), a high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and sets out to become a crystal meth cook to set up his family for the future before he dies.

Naturally, the first episode has a lot of work to do to set this story up: Walt must receive his diagnosis and reconnect with his former student and future business partner Jesse (Aaron Paul), while the dynamics and financial circumstances of Walt's family must also be established. Some of the defining moments of Breaking Bad come to pass, but the pilot truly demonstrates how the show is a masterclass in writing from the beginning through the more subtle elements of Walt's daily life that are already setting up his fall from grace.

Walt Works At The Car Wash & Ends Up Washing A Student's Car In Breaking Bad's Pilot

Walt Is Humiliated By His Extra Job When A Rude Student Shows Up There

Walt at the A1A Car Wash in Breaking Bad

At the series' beginning, Walt is working at the car wash he and Skyler (Anna Gunn) will later buy in addition to his high school teaching job. The show makes it clear that the family is under financial strain, with the added pressure of their unexpected second child on the way. Walt is constantly working extra hours and doing manual labor outside what he was hired for, seemingly going along with his boss Bogdan's (Marius Stan) demands to keep the job. This leads to Walt having to wipe down the car of a rich student.

It sets up one of the core aspects of Walt's character, as his rise to power and violence is partially driven by how people made him feel small in his past life.

Essentially, Walt doesn't have power in his job at the car wash, while his regular job is one he is overqualified for. The fact that he has this interaction with the student who was messing around in his class earlier in the day only undermines his authority at his other job. It sets up one of the core aspects of Walt's character, as his rise to power and violence is partially driven by how people made him feel small in his past life. Taking precedence over any moral code, money and force equate to real power in this series.

The Power Dynamics At The Car Wash Are Completely Different Later In Breaking Bad

Returning To The Car Was In The Breaking Bad Pilot Shows How Much Things Have Changed

After watching the entirety of Breaking Bad, it can be jarring to return to the car wash in the pilot. It's as recognizable of a location as any of the iconic spots in Breaking Bad, one which viewers will associate more with the Whites' money-laundering, Skyler ringing up purchases with no customers behind the counter, and many tense family discussions as everything unravels. After Walt's mounting frustration leads to his outburst at the car wash and his quitting in the pilot, the location drops out of the series for some time.

The Whites buy the car wash in a later season, and more screentime is ultimately spent there when they own it. Therefore, it is unfamiliar but striking when Walt is depicted in the pilot as being powerless in this location. This building represents the economic tensions and power imbalances at play in Breaking Bad, and the contrast between Walt as a humiliated employee to a powerful owner who is using the place as a front is illustrative of his arc and the way he looks back on these experiences, reflecting on his own evolution.

Walt Went Back To Reclaim Power With Almost Everything In His Life In Breaking Bad

Walt's Character Arc Is Driven By Anger, Wanting Something More For Himself

If nothing else, Walt proves that he knows how to hold a grudge. He is continuously drawn to the drug business because of the leverage he has as a talented cook and prefers it to being an overworked, overqualified employee. Everything from losing out on the multi-billion-dollar company to having to clean a student's car made him bitter, pushing forward his descent into villainy.

He goes back to almost every place and person that made him feel powerless and reclaims power in that space of his life.

When Walt looks back on all of this, he realizes what he was really after, but by the end of the series, he is beyond trying to be better or do anything about this. He is still angry with Gretchen (Jessica Hecht) and Elliot (Adam Godley), so he has his revenge on them by threatening them into passing on his money to his family. Ultimately, Walt leaves no stone unturned. He goes back to almost every place and person that made him feel powerless and reclaims power in that space of his life.

Admittedly, Walt was willing to give up on Bogdan's specific car wash and go somewhere else, but Skyler insists on continuing to pursue this location because Bogdan insulted him. It is arguably the point in the series where Skyler is most drawn into Walt's spiral, as she too refuses to let such a slight go. However, the place of the car wash throughout Breaking Bad is ultimately one of the many ways the show illustrates the festering rage in Walt that was always looking for an outlet.