Breaking Bad: Everything Walt Copied From His Victims

Walter White had a history of picking up traits from his victims throughout Breaking Bad. Over the course of the series, the character played by Bryan Cranston was responsible for the deaths of nearly 200 people when taking into account the plane crash incident. Among those victims were a number of figures that Walt directly killed and proceeded to copy some of their characteristics.

When Walt first entered the meth business, he held on to the moral obligations when it came to supporting his family as a way to justify his actions. He wasn’t equipped with the experience of how to interact with drug dealers or leaders in the cartel. In order to survive in that world and thrive with his budding meth empire, Walt had to transform into a ruthless killer. On that journey, Walt had a habit of picking up certain qualities that were noticeable in his victims.

In Breaking Bad season 1, Walt and Jesse Pinkman were nearly ripped off during their first drug deal. While showing Emilio and Krazy-8 his meth recipe, Walt concocted a poisonous gas. The explosion instantly killed Emilio but Walt and Jesse were forced into holding Krazy-8 captive. The partners kept the drug dealer in the basement and at one point, Walt made him a PB&J sandwich and he preferred the crust removed. After a stabbing attempt, Walt ended up suffocating Krazy-8 with a bike lock. Later in season 3, Walt was shown cutting the crust off of his sandwiches, a habit he took from one of his first victims.

Gus Fring was one of Walt’s most prominent victims over the course of Breaking Bad. The two tried to equally lead their divisions of the drug trade but Gus’ overbearing control became a threat to Walt. After a few failed attempts, Walt finally killed Gus in the season 4 finale with the help of a bomb and Hector Salamanca. In Breaking Bad season 5, Walt was seen driving an old Volvo. This may not seem significant, but Gus drove an older model Volvo in earlier episodes of the season. Hank had even stated that cars like that allow criminals to hide in plain sight. In addition, Walt refused to break from his act as a harmless car wash owner when Lydia Rodarte-Quayle came to see him in the same fashion that Gus presented himself differently in Los Pollos Hermanos.

The second major character that Walt personally killed was Mike Ehrmantraut. After killing Mike in season 5, it looked like Walt started to copy the man’s drink order. A season earlier, Walt and Mike were together in the bar and they both ordered whiskey but Walt preferred no ice. There were other instances in the series that hinted Walt’s preference with no ice in his drinks. After he killed Mike, Walt started wanting ice in his drinks. This was confirmed in the eighth episode of season 5 when Hank offered him a drink and Walt requested it on the rocks. Walt even started to use Mike’s lingo when confronting people. Mike once threatened him to “learn to take yes for an answer.” Walt spoke that exact phrase to Lydia in season 5.

The reason why Walt copied characteristics from his victims was never clarified in Breaking Bad. It’s probably that Walt’s subconscious was picking up the traits as ways to hang onto the victims. It was clear that Walt carried a lot of guilt during his time on the series. The critically-acclaimed episode, “Fly,” exemplified how Walt’s guilt plagued his life after Jane’s death. There was a similar instance with the eyeball from the pink teddy bear. Rather than keep tangible souvenirs from his victims, Walt preferred to allow their distinct qualities to live on.

About The Author

Kara Hedash
(1746 Articles Published)

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Kara Hedash is a features editor and writer for Screen Rant. From time to time, she dives into the world’s most popular franchises but Kara primarily focuses on evergreen topics. The fact that she gets to write about The Office regularly is like a dream come true. Before joining Screen Rant, Kara served as a contributor for Movie Pilot and had work published on The Mary Sue and Reel Honey. After graduating college, writing began as a part-time hobby for Kara but it quickly turned into a career. She loves binging a new series and watching movies ranging from Hollywood blockbusters to hidden indie gems. She also has a soft spot for horror ever since she started watching it at too young of an age. Her favorite Avenger is Thor and her favorite Disney princess is Leia Organa. When Kara’s not busy writing, you can find her doing yoga or hanging out with Gritty.

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