It's always interesting to go back and watch a pilot after you've seen the whole show. More often than not - at least in my case - find most pilots to be weak; mere shells of what the show had become. This is not the case with Breaking Bad. The pilot is as good as the rest of the show. I mean sure Walter didn't fully 'break bad' yet, but in terms of its finesse, structure, and acting its as polished as the next five seasons.
The pilot introduces us to many things in very subtle way, and many of us who have seen the whole show can pick up on small clues that reverberate through the rest of the series. For instance the intense use of color throughout the show is obvious from the pilot. One of the things I have not heard talked about in abundance is the setting. Why the west or midwest? The original setting for the show was southern California, but I think setting the show in New Mexico provided an interesting element and in a way the city - the setting became a character in of itself. The west, at least in the past as we know the 'wild west' was always about a border of civilization and a lawless land. I think - despite if this was the creators intentions - the fact that Walter is on a straight an narrow path all of his life, never going outside of his comfortable area, only to turn 'bad' at this strange boundary of civilization adds to the show. I mean in the pilot their location to cook meth, and Walter's first touch with violence is in the middle of no where - the modern wild west. And as the show progresses he grows farther and farther from his meager chemistry teacher self and becomes - well - a monster.
In short, watch the Breaking Bad pilot again if you've already seen the entire show. It'll give you a new perspective on the show and allow you to pick up on things you simply could not have seen before.
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