On October 11, Breaking Bad fans finally got to see the end of Jesse Pinkman’s story and the Netflix, Original film fulfilled exactly what fans expected.

Breaking Bad ended with Jesse driving away ecstatic in a Camino, fleeing after months of captivity and torture. He was finally free from his former partner Walter White, the gang that enslaved him, and his life of making drugs. The look on his face perfectly captured his relief and let the audience know that Jesse was going to be okay. El Camino picks up from that point.

Jesse, played once again by the talented Aaron Paul, is a very well-rounded character who the audience can sympathize with. His character throughout the Breaking Bad series progressed in a way that contrasted to his partner Walter, played by Bryan Cranston. While Walter’s sympathetic character became more dangerous as the series progressed, Jesse became more cooperative as he tried to get out of the drug trade.

Because El Camino is a sequel, we don’t get much in the way of new character development. We learn a little bit more about one of Jesse’s captors, Todd, but it didn’t serve much in the way of story (other than introducing us to a source of money). Instead, the film introduces Neil and Casey, who own a welding company and worked with Jesse’s former captors. The problem with this is that these characters didn’t appear in previous episodes, so they don’t feel like as big of a threat as Todd or some of the other major antagonists that Jesse came across in the series.

Some of the flashback scenes were great because they felt like deleted scenes from the show. While some didn’t contribute much to the overall story, it was nice to see Jesse and Walter on screen together.

It is important to remember that El Camino had a lot to live up to; it is difficult for something to be truly as good and as inventive as the original. While the story is a bit predictable, it still captures the modern-western style of Breaking Bad quite nicely. The standoff scene is a perfect example of this.

El Camino is dramatic, action-packed, and a lot of fun to watch. Fans of the series will enjoy seeing the show references scattered throughout the film. Those who haven’t seen Breaking Bad can watch the recap and should be able to follow the storyline of the sequel.