One cooks meth, the other deals pot. Between Walter White on Breaking Bad and Nancy Botwin on Weeds, these two cable-TV characters have cornered the market on druggy portrayals of angst-ridden suburbanites. But Breaking Bad is proving to be even edgier than Weeds.

Walter, played by Emmy-winner Bryan Cranston, has desperation on his side. Afflicted with incurable cancer, he plunged into the crystal meth biz in Season 1, using his knowledge of chemicals (he taught science at the local high school) to put aside a nest egg for his pregnant wife and son.

While marijuana culture is presented as somewhat benign on Weeds (though gangsters do roam the show's landscape), meth has a more malignant odor on Breaking Bad. Walter and stoner student Jesse (Aaron Paul) sell their potent product to murderous Mexicans with apparent ties to drug cartels. This clearly is a dangerous business they've naively stumbled into.

Season 2, which kicked off on Mar. 8, begins with a homicide at a junk yard. After exchanging drugs for cash, Tuco (Raymond Cruz) beats ups one of his crew members, clearly to show how brutal things can be if they don't keep the meth flowing. The guy dies, and his body is dumped under a pile of cars. Jesse is super paranoid for good reason. Witnesses to the crime, their lives are now in jeopardy.

Just as Walter's's DEA agent brother-in-law Hank (Dennis Norris) finds the body, Tuco shows up at Walter's house, forcing him and Jesse to take a ride.

Also see:

Breaking Bad: Season 1

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