Breaking Bad was not originally set in Albuquerque, New Mexico

If it weren’t for “Breaking Bad,” Albuquerque, New Mexico would still be best known in popular culture as the site of Bugs Bunny’s wrong turns. If you’ve been sleeping comfortably under a rock, “Breaking Bad” is about Albuquerque science teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston), who uses his chemistry skills to cook meth after he is diagnosed with cancer. Because the show was set in the southwestern US, the story made a semi-frequent dip into Mexico itself and many of the series’ criminal subplots and characters had ties to fictional drug cartels.

With more than 500,000 residents, Albuquerque is the largest city in New Mexico. This is definitely a big fish in a small pond situation; the state has a vast land area but a sparse population of about 2 million. (It ranks 37th out of 50 residents for all U.S. states.) Why set up a television series there compared to better-known regional neighbors like Dallas,…