TheBreaking Baduniverse is a complex tapestry filled with anti-heroes and anti-villains. Ensconced in a world of drug cartels and violent gangs, no major character in the franchise is fully good or bad. Yet they are all compelling enough human beings to have audiences hooked on their personal story arcs across several seasons.
One of the best examples of this can be seen in the character of Mike Ehrmantraut, played by Jonathan Banks. First appearing inBreaking Badas an enforcer for the cartel, Mike soon grew into an important supporting character with a tragic backstory and a unique code of honor. Mike’s world was further explored in the prequel seriesBetter Call Saul.
Let us take a look at moments from the two shows where Mike stole the scene and the hearts of audiences.
10His First Clean Up
In trademark fashion, Mike debuted onBreaking Badin a highly understated manner. In the second season of the show, a new mess arises when Jesse’s girlfriend Jane overdoses on heroin in Jesse’s house. With Jesse almost comatose and the police on their way, Walt asks his lawyer Saul Goodman for help. That is when Saul gets in touch with Mike to clean up the mess before the cops arrive. Mike gets to Jesse’s place, quickly and efficiently disposes of any incriminating evidence, and coaches Jesse on what to say to the police when they come.
Related:7 Reasons You Should Rewatch Breaking Bad
You learn a lot about Mike’s advanced skills as a fixer in that scene. The scene is also what gave birth to Mike as a character. Initially, Saul was supposed to go to Jesse’s place. But since his actor was unavailable at the time, the character ofMike was created as a last-minute replacement. The creators of the show loved Jonathan Banks' no-nonsense portrayal of Mike in that one scene so much that they kept bringing him back before making him a full-on member of the main cast in later seasons.
9Warning Gus About Nacho’s Father
InBetter Call Saul, Mike starts out as a parking toll attendant who occasionally moonlights as a hired hand for criminals. Eventually, Mike’s abilities get noticed byGus Fring, and the calm and calculating drug lordmakes Mike one of his close associates. Still, despite working for Gus, Mike is always clear about what he will or will not do as a criminal. This brings him into direct conflict with Gus when it comes to Nacho Varga.
Nacho was an associate of Mike’s who started working for Gus under threat of death. Nacho tries to follow Gus' orders at great risk to his own life. Eventually, the lies catch up with him, forcing Nacho to go on the run. Gus wants to find a new way to control Nacho, so he instructs his men to bring in Nacho’s civilian father. That is when Mike puts his foot down, telling Gus in no uncertain terms that he will not allow anyone to threaten Nacho’s father. It is one of the few times anyone disobeys Gus directly and lives to tell the tale, and further emphasizes the unique position Mike inhabits in the criminal underworld.
8Rescuing Saul
Better Call Saulfollows the adventures of Jimmy McGill, acrooked lawyer who operates under the name of Saul Goodmanwhile building a lucrative practice working for criminals. But Saul soon discovers he has chewed off more than he can swallow when he is tasked with schlepping several million dollars in cash across the desert to pay bail for his client, the dreaded drug lord Lalo Salamanca.
The trek across the desert is filled with discomfort, but things get decidedly more uncomfortable when Jimmy is accosted by a gang of criminals looking to relieve him of his precious booty. Just when Jimmy thinks all is lost, shots ring out. The robbers start dropping like flies one by one, and it is revealed that Mike had been keeping an eye on Jimmy the whole time. With a single sniper rifle, Mike proves his cred as a Marine veteran who is still a deadly soldier in his old age.
7Standing Up to Walter
Bythe later seasons ofBreaking Bad, Walter White had started seeing himself as the top dog in his city’s criminal underworld. Drunk on his victory in killing Gus Fring, and dreaming of establishing his own drug cartel, Walter was quick to offer Mike a position on his team as an enforcer. Despite his deep misgivings, Mike accepts the position to continue making money.
Given the opposing nature of their personalities, it was natural that Walter and Mike would clash almost immediately. This happens when Mike declares that some of their drug money will need to go to former employees of his who might blab to the police about their operation. While Walter resists the idea of giving money to men who don’t even work for them anymore, Mike stands firm in his decision until Walter finally acquiesces. Once again, Mike proves that while he might not be the head of the operation, he will always ensure that things go his way no matter how ruthless a criminal he might be talking to.
6Warning Kim About Lalo
Kim Wexler was Jimmy McGill’s lawyer friend-turned-wife whostuck with Jimmy through the most difficult times. There was not a lot of overlap between Kim and Mike despite their mutual association through Jimmy, but Mike proved that he was already fully aware of Kim’s presence and had been studying her closely when the two meet in the final season ofBetter Call Saul.
At first, Mike merely sends an associate to tail Kim through her day. But when she figures out that she is being followed, Mike personally steps in to discuss the matter with Kim. He reveals to her that Lalo Salamanca is alive, and he might try to go after her and Jimmy. Despite being a hardened criminal by that point, Mike shows great gentleness and courtesy in his talk with Kim, attempting to allay her fears and proving that, despite his many wrongdoings, Mike still believes in sticking to his code of honor and doing right by his associates.
5Making Jesse Feel Valued
One of the most tragic characters inBreaking Badis Jesse Pinkman, a young man with many positive qualities, who gets led inexorably down the path of crime by men who seek to control and use him. Jesse is rarely made to feel like he is worth much more than being a hired hand by Walter White, Jesse’s so-called mentor who manipulates him at every turn.
Related:Breaking Bad: Jesse Pinkman’s Best Moments, Ranked
Gus Fring notices this dynamic, and in an attempt to lure Jesse away from Walter’s influence, he sends Jesse on cartel missions with Mike. What starts out as yet another strategy to manipulate Jesse turns into a genuine relationship between him and Mike. The two form a bond based on mutual respect, and Mike is one of the few people on the show who appreciates Jesse for his brains and courage, something that boosts Jesse’s confidence and sense of self-worth.
4Security Consultant Mike
One of the funniest scenes fromBetter Call Saulis a little detour into Mike’s world and how he believes in doing things. In Season 4, Mike gets farmed out to a big company called Madrigal as an employee so he can help with laundering Gus' money through the company. While his official designation is that of a security consultant, Mike is not expected to do any actual work for the company or go to work at all.
But that is not how Mike does things, especially when he receives a hefty check from Madrigal for his “job.” Determined to earn the check, Mike slips into Madrigal headquarters undetected. He takes a thorough inventory of the building and makes note of multiple security lapses. He then proceeds to point them out to a completely befuddled Head of Security, who can only wonder at this complete stranger who showed up one day and started lecturing him about how poorly he runs his team.
3Telling Nacho’s Father About His Demise
TheBreaking Baduniverse isnot a place where innocent civilians can prosper, even if they have not done anything wrong. This is what happens to Manuel, the father of Nacho Varga, who was a hard-working and honest man. At first, Manuel tried to keep Nacho on the straight and narrow path. But his son’s descent into drug cartel activities drags Varga Sr. unwillingly into the criminal quicksand.
It all comes to a head when Nacho betrays the Salamanca clan on Gus Fring’s orders and is forced to go on the run. For a long time, Mike tries to keep Nacho safe. But in the end, the only way to resolve the matter is by Nacho giving up his own life to keep his family safe. It falls on Mike to go to Nacho’s dad and inform him of his son’s demise. It is one of Mike’s most difficult moments in the franchise, as he is forced to come to grips with the destruction he and his associates bring about on their loved ones in the face of Manuel’s devastating loss.
2Taking Revenge
Mike is a complicated character. While he tries to live his life by a code, he is a criminal, and his criminal activities started long back when he was a beat cop in Philadelphia. Mike’s activities had a hand in the death of his son Matt, who was also a cop but who did not want to take part in corrupt activities. Matt’s steadfastness proved his undoing when he was killed by his fellow cops.
With no way to prove their wrongdoing, Mike takes it upon himself to get revenge for his son’s death. He pretends to be drunk and rambling when he is accosted by the cops he suspects of killing his son. Keeping up the intoxicated act, Mike gets enough information to confirm his suspicions and proceeds to gun down the two cops before they can take him out as well.
1Saying Goodbye
Mike manages to outlast most of his criminal associates inBetter Call Saul, but he comes across the most unexpected and insurmountable challenge inBreaking Badin the form of Walter White. After Gus dies, Mike, Walter, and Jesse decideto run the drug operation on their own. Of course, things fall apart pretty quickly and the police are soon hot on their trail.
Mike decides that he has had enough of the whole thing, and elects to make a break for it with his portion of the drug money. This leads to a final, heated confrontation with Walter White during which the latter shoots Mike with a gun. At long last, the always-resourceful Mike has no escape option. In the face of certain death, Mike elects to accept his fate with calm fortitude, watching the sun go down while bleeding out to death.
