Breaking Bad's pilot episode contains one of the most iconic moments of the entire series: the scene where Walter White emerges from his RV-turned-meth-lab, holding a gun and sporting a pair of white underpants. He holds up the gun in response to sirens in the distance, seemingly ready to face off with law enforcement. That scenario never plays out. Walt soon realizes the sirens are from a firetruck; no one is after him and Jesse Pinkman.

Although Walt doesn't use his gun in the pilot of Breaking Bad, one has to wonder what he would have done if police officers actually showed up. His intentions seem clear the moment he raises the weapon. However, it's hard to imagine Walt shooting anyone — especially cops — at this stage of his journey.

Walt's Underpants Gun Scene Doesn't Fit His Breaking Bad Story

Walter White in a green shirt and white underwear during Breaking Bad pilot

Although Walt's underpants scene is lauded as one of the most memorable moments from Breaking Bad, it doesn't make a ton of sense in the context of his character arc. Walter spends much of Breaking Bad tiptoeing around law enforcement. He also avoids hurting and killing others at the beginning of the AMC series. Viewers will recall his struggle to kill Krazy-8 in Breaking Bad season 1. It's only as he transitions into Heisenberg that he becomes indifferent to violence and death.

Even as Walt becomes more comfortable killing for the sake of his meth business, his violence rarely extends to law enforcement. During the final season of Breaking Bad, he pleads for the lives of his brother-in-law, Hank, and his partner, Gomez, even as they plan to turn him in. With that in mind, it's hard to believe that Walt would have ruthlessly gunned down police officers as early as the Breaking Bad pilot.

Why Breaking Bad Showed Walt Pointing A Gun Toward Sirens

Walter White Wearing a Green Shirt and Holding a Gun in the Breaking Bad Pilot

Knowing Walt's reluctance to kill during the early seasons of Breaking Bad, his iconic underpants scene comes off as confusing. It's possible the writers wanted to show how desperate he felt at the prospect of getting caught. After all, Walt wasn't used to hiding evidence or skirting law enforcement at this point. He might have raised the gun without truly intending to use it. People do strange things when they feel their life is on the line, as Walt no doubt did.

This moment could also have been intended to foreshadow Walt's future demise. As he becomes more of an anti-hero, he begins accepting death as a necessary evil of the meth business. Not only is he willing to kill villains like Gus Fring, but he's content playing a role in the deaths of characters like Jane Margolis and Mike Ehrmantraut. Perhaps Breaking Bad's pilot proves there was a darker side to Walter White all along, even if it took some time to truly surface.