Breaking Bad cleans up at 2014 Emmys and all is right with the world

As I said in my Emmys predictions post I was banking on a few wins for Breaking Bad this year (namely, Bryan Cranston for Lead Actor and Outstanding Drama Series) but I wasn't overly optimistic about Aaron Paul and Anna Gunn's chances in the Supporting Actor and Actress categories. Well, turns out I should be more optimistic.

Breaking Bad won 5 out of 6 possible Primetime Emmys, including all acting nominations, writing for "Ozymandias" (as opposed to "Felina" which was also nominated) and, of course, Drama Series. The one lost was directing for "Felina," but Vince Gilligan already got his trophy as producer.

Of course, this is a fantastic way to go out, almost a full year after the show ended, but this elevates these actors, particularly Aaron and Bryan, to an extremely elite category: to have won three (in Aaron's case) and four (in Bryan's) Emmys for portraying the same character is very rare. Both actors are now among the most distinguished actors in television history. Anna is also honored with winning two consecutive Emmys for her portrayal of Skyler White.

Both Bryan and Anna submitted "Ozymandias": a wise choice, quite possibly their best performance of the entire series. Aaron, who actually had little screentime and less dialogue this season, submitted "Confessions", which is definitely his best acting of the final season.

I was not so sure about Aaron's chances going in -- I actually thought the Emmy would go to Peter Dinklage of Game of Thrones. I had actually caught up with that show, finishing season 4, the day of the Emmys and was blown away by Dinklage's performance as Tyrion Lannister. And I would've been happy to see him win. But he'll have another chance, possibly two or three more chances, while this is the end of the line for the Breaking Bad crew.

The infamous episode "Ozymandias" was also honored, of course, with the award for writing, going to Moira Walley-Beckett. This was also the first solo drama writing Emmy won by a woman in 20 years.

So basically, "Ozymandias" won 3 Emmys. Including Drama Series, 4. This episode, the third to last, is without a doubt the most impactful hour of television I have ever seen. It packs a punch -- to say the least -- and truly is the climax of the series, accomplishing what Breaking Bad set out to accomplish.

So this is really the end for Breaking Bad -- more or less. The spin-off series Better Call Saul is set to air in February and I'm very excited to see more of Saul and Mike -- the latter is my favorite character in the Breaking Bad 'verse. Or any 'verse for that matter. I doubt it will be as popular or successful as Breaking Bad, but the Emmys this year have shown me that I should be a bit more optimistic.