Breaking Bad is one of the greatest crime thrillers of the past 20 years, and while part of its success is due to the perfect casting and Bryan Cranston’s scene-stealing performance as the terrifying Walter White, another factor sets it apart. Despite its dark subject matter and extremely disturbing moments, Breaking Bad is often hilarious. Many of the best quotes in Breaking Bad come from Jesse Pinkman, but the moments in which Walt’s suburban life clashes with his criminal enterprise rival some of the best sitcoms ever made.
Fans who love the series’ comedy have several options to choose from when looking for a crime drama to watch after Breaking Bad, beginning with Weeds. The series has a similar premise, with a suburban parent building a drug empire in dire circumstances, but Weeds has a very different tone. Weeds‘ story follows suburban mom Nancy as she begins selling cannabis after her husband unexpectedly dies, with the series acting as a biting satire of suburban life before becoming a crime thriller in later seasons.
Making a great crime drama with humor is often a difficult feat, especially when the action gets gory, but 2025 was taken by storm when a crime thriller aired that could easily join the ranks of both Breaking Bad and Weeds in time. Deli Boys follows two pampered brothers who lose everything when their father dies, leaving behind a power vacuum in his drug business. Party boy Raj and Type-A Mir take over the illegal enterprise as well as the public-facing deli, with hilarious and violent results.
The first season debuted to an impressive 96% positive critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with viewers praising the cast, the one-liners, and the characterization, noting that it is still relatively rare to see a show based around fully-realized South Asian characters. Now, season 2 has surpassed the first, with a perfect 100% critics’ rating and 92% audience rating.
Season 2 of Deli Boys does not have enough episodes, and while a shorter season often heralds the end of a declining show, Deli Boys season 2 finale sets up a third season, which could get darker yet. With the characters celebrating a major win before an unexpected bombshell hits, revealing a potential antagonist, the show might be following in the footsteps of Breaking Bad and Weeds.
Which Elements Of Breaking Bad & Weeds Are Continued By Deli Boys
Deli Boys pays homage to the Breaking Bad world in its first episode, with the brothers arguing over whether Breaking Bad‘s sequel Better Call Saul is worth paying for. This small exchange encapsulates the humor and character dynamics for the rest of the show, with Deli Boys sharing the setup of both Breaking Bad and Weeds as Raj and Mir learn how to run a criminal enterprise. Like both Nancy and Walt, the two are in over their heads, but rather than taking on a tense and gritty tone, Deli Boys resembles a comedy version of Breaking Bad.
Like Weeds, Deli Boys breaks the rules of typical crime thrillers by having many of the characters succeed. Both Weeds and Breaking Bad show their characters suffering losses, with Breaking Bad‘s being especially harrowing, but while the Deli Boys characters do not have a smooth introduction into their new lives, they also take to the business much better than other accidental crime kingpins. This is largely thanks to the support network and mentors that keeps the brothers in line while providing some harsh life advice.
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Comparing Deli Boys to Breaking Bad and Weeds |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Title |
Year |
Seasons |
Rotten Tomatoes critics’ rating |
Rotten Tomatoes audience rating |
|
Weeds |
2005 |
8 |
70% |
80% |
|
Breaking Bad |
2008 |
5 |
96% |
97% |
|
Deli Boys |
2025 |
2 |
98% |
88% |
This feature also echoes Breaking Bad and Weeds, but Deli Boys puts its own spin on the mentor character. Breaking Bad had the deadpan Mike, Weeds had Heylia, Nancy’s supplier and occasionally protector. Raj and Mir have Lucky, one of the best characters in Deli Boys, who is equally at home shooting a rival as she is picking out a power outfit. With Deli Boys set to turn darker if season 3 happens, its well-written central characters will help maintain the show’s perfect record while ensuring it becomes a rival to rather than a copy of other excellent crime comedies.
- Release Date
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March 6, 2025
- Network
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Hulu
- Directors
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Oz Rodriguez, Maureen Bharoocha, Fawzia Mirza, Jeremy Konner, Andrew Ahn, Nisha Ganatra, Ahmed Ibrahim, Jenni Konner
- Writers
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Abdullah Saeed, Michelle Nader, Mehar Sethi, Ekaterina Vladimirova, Sudi Green
