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Wherefore art thou Mike? 'Breaking Bad' kills in ratings, closes stellar season

By April MacIntyre Oct 11, 2011, 0:00 GMT

Every fan of AMC\'s “Breaking Bad,” which saw the end of Meth king and Pollo Hermanos boss Gus Fring finally (Giancarlo Esposito) is dying to know if Mike (Jonathan Banks) will recover and step in with the cartel to hunt down Walt (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse (Aaron Paul) in the last 16 episodes.

Every fan of AMC's “Breaking Bad,” which saw the end of Meth king and Pollo Hermanos boss Gus Fring finally (Giancarlo Esposito) is dying to know if Mike (Jonathan Banks) will recover and step in with the cartel to hunt down Walt (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse (Aaron Paul) in the last 16 episodes.

Especially after he bonded (as much as a tough guy like Mike can) with Jesse this past season.

AMC's fantastic modern Western drama "Breaking Bad" makes me love my telly.  Their "The Walking Dead" is outstanding fare too, coming next week.

The "Breaking Bad" finale ranks as the most engaging series on television according to Nielsen’s IAG, which measures program engagement and ad effectiveness.

AMC premiered the season four finale of “Breaking Bad” to record rating results.  Season four reigns as the series’ highest rated season to date, growing 24% over season three for Adults 18-49, the most for any drama series in basic cable history. Last night’s episode scored a 1.4 HH rating attracting 1.9 million viewers. Across the evening, all three airings (10pm, 11pm, 1am) delivered 2.9 million viewers and 1.8 million Adults 18-49. In August, AMC announced the final 16 episodes to conclude “Breaking Bad.” 

AMC also experienced its best season ever for the ’10/’11 season in sales prime delivery of Adults 18-49 and Adults 25-54 increasing +9% and +8% respectively vs. last season.

AMC claims their season 4 averaged 1.9 million viewers, a 23% increase vs. S3- “Breaking Bad” season 4 garnered its strongest increases among younger viewers, growing its Adult 18-34 audience +42% over last season.

*The Nielsen Company.  Live SD Data. ( 01/01/01 to date)  M-Su 8p-11p, General Drama, Ad-Supported Cable.  Entire Season 4 vs. Season 3 A 18-49 (000) growth.  Full Series Original Premiere Episodes Only.

**Nielsen TV Brand Effect (IAG), 3Q11 (7/1/11 - 9/30/11), A18-49, A25-54, premiere episodes. All measured primetime broadcast and cable programs included.

*** The Nielsen Company.  Live SD Data.  AMC 00/01 - 10/11 Season (9/27/10-9/25/11) Sales Prime (M-Su 6p-1a)

“Bad is so good. Thank you Vince Gilligan; what a season and what a finale.   Few entertainment experiences move audiences the way ‘Breaking Bad’ does, consistently.  The audience growth from season three to season four is unprecedented for any drama in basic cable history and now it has been named the most engaging program across all of television by Nielsen.  We can't wait to share with fans what's next in the White house,” said Charlie Collier, AMC’s president.

Over four seasons, “Breaking Bad” has been heralded as one of the best TV dramas on television.

Monsters and Critics said, “Saul (Bob Odenkirk) makes being a sleazy ambulance chasing criminal lawyer look like great fun, and showrunner Vince Gilligan and company get to write some delicious dialogue that Odenkirk rattles off with gleeful perfection.

This kind of noir morality tale of a good man going bad needs this expert comic relief, and it's done just right, never too much."

Newsweek said, “Breaking Bad' is as addictive as the meth cooked by its cancer-stricken lead character, and just as insidious. It's also TV's finest hour.” 

The cast includes Emmy® Award-winner Bryan Cranston as Walter White; Emmy® Award-winner Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman; Anna Gunn as Skyler White; Dean Norris as Hank Schrader; Betsy Brandt as Marie Schrader; RJ Mitte as Walter, Jr; Bob Odenkirk as Saul Goodman; Giancarlo Esposito  as Gus Fring; and Jonathan Banks as Mike. Director of Photography is Michael Slovis. “Breaking Bad” is filmed on location in Albuquerque, NM.

The series first premiered on AMC in January 2008 and follows protagonist Walter White, a milquetoast high school chemistry teacher who lives in New Mexico with his wife, teenage son who has cerebral palsy and a new baby girl.  White is diagnosed with Stage III cancer and given a prognosis of two years left to live.  With a new sense of fearlessness based on his medical prognosis, and a desire to gain financial security for his family, White chooses to enter a dangerous world of drugs and crime and ascends to power in this world. The series explores how a fatal diagnosis such as White’s releases a typical man from the daily concerns and constraints of normal society and follows his transformation from mild-mannered family man to a kingpin of the drug trade.

“Breaking Bad” has received sixteen Emmy® Award nominations in the following categories: “Outstanding Drama Series” (2009, 2010); "Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series" for Bryan Cranston (2008, 2009, 2010); “Outstanding Supporting Actor” for Aaron Paul (2009, 2010); “Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series” for Vince Gilligan (2008) and Michelle MacLaren (2010); “Outstanding Cinematography for a one-hour series” for John Toll (2008) and Michael Slovis (2009, 2010); “Outstanding Sound Editing for a Series;” "Outstanding Single Picture Camera Editing for a Drama Series" for Lynne Willingham (2008, 2009) and Skip McDonald (2010); with six wins overall for Cranston (2008, 2009, 2010); Paul (2010); and Willingham (2008, 2009).