So Tom Hiddleston opened the Marvel panel as Loki, in costume and in character, but anything the Norse god of mischief can do, Bryan Cranston can do better, turning up to the Breaking Bad Comic-Con panel with a startlingly realistic rubber mask that made him look just like Heisenberg.
Whipping the "death mask" - his words, not ours - off to the roar of the crowd of hazmat-suited Breaking Bad fans, he proceeded to kiss the face of Albuquerque's most famous fictional meth lord, before Aaron Paul followed suit and gave it a healthy smack on the lips.
Cranston also confessed that he's spent some of the previous day walking around the Comic-Con floor with the mask on, enjoying the compliments that passers-by gave him for his excellent costume. But after all that fun and games came the stark truth: Breaking Bad is almost over - the final season airs in the U.S. on August 11 - and it's not going to end with everyone skipping and singing 'Kumbaya'.
There was plenty of conversation about what's been and gone so far in the previous four and a half seasons, but here below are some extra titbits to get you even more excited about the show coming back for one last hit of the good stuff. Do not read on if you're not totally up to date with the show.
A favourite moment from the show from Cranston: "[Aaron] tells the story of the “robots?” line from [Season 2 episode] '4 Days Out', where Walt is trying to teach Jesse another science lesson on how to recharge the RV. We were shooting the scene at the end of a long day, and then the focus puller said, 'Man, I wish you would’ve told Walt you wanted to build a robot!'
Of course, what happened next saw Cranston and Paul faking a problem with the camera just so they could do one more take and Paul could improvise that line. “The set is very loose and very comical,” adds Paul. “[Bryan] is the most professional person I’ve ever worked with, but also the most immature man I’ve ever experienced.”
An intriguing fan question from the floor saw show creator Vince Gilligan try to explain how Walter White was able to administer the Lily Of The Valley poison at the end of Season 4. “That’s an excellent question,” said Gilligan. “The writers would always tell the story of the 'Evil Juice Box Man'. The way we worked it out on our timeline is he had just enough time to do it, but it would’ve been very tricky indeed.”
With his experience as a teacher, the writers reasoned that he'd be able to make it into the child's school easily and quickly without anyone batting an eyelid. “That’s our inner story, the writers and I, for how it happened," adds Gilligan. "It would’ve been very tricky timing, but he was a motivated individual at that point.”
Then there was the footage from the first episode of the final half of the final season that was shown to the assembled crowd, so if you don't want to know anything about anything to do with the new Breaking Bad episodes, click away now. If you're intrigued, then highlight the following text to reveal.
The clip opens with buying-a-machine-gun-in-a-Denny's-diner timeline Walter White heading back to his family home to find it abandoned, kids skating in the empty pool and graffiti everywhere. There's something inside the house that he needs, so he breaks in. A neighbour catches sight of him, and drops her groceries on the floor at the sight of his bushy-bearded appearance. In a neat gracenote, three oranges roll out of her dropped shopping bag.
There's plenty more in the scene to enjoy, but you'll be able to see it all for yourself - if you live in the US and have access to AMC, that is - come August 11.