Fast and Furious: Brian O'Conner's best moments

In Brian's (Paul Walker) first race against Dom (Vin Diesel), he not only loses but also completely blows out his engine. But nothing can keep a smile from Brian's face. And when Dom asks why, Brian explains, with a childlike joy, "Dude, I almost had you." For Brian, that's all he needs to be happy — a moment where he nearly beat Dom. And that's pretty much all you need to know about Brian.

Brian might've entered Dom's life because he was working a case, but, once he found his way into Dom's inner circle, there's no doubt that Brian fell for his new family. And when Vince (Matt Schulze) is bleeding out in the middle of the desert, Brian risks his relationship with Dom by revealing that he's a cop so that he can get a helicopter in to save Vince. It's Brian's first instance of putting his new family first, but it won't be his last.

After avenging Jesse's (Chad Lindberg) death, Dom and Brian have one last quarter-mile race, which ends in Dom flipping his car and injuring his arm. But when Brian hears the sirens in the distance, he makes a choice: family first. Knowing it will cost him his job, Brian hands Dom his car keys, explaining, "I owe you a 10-second car." And so, Dom and Brian's relationship really begins.

A real driver doesn't have to look at the road to know when the traffic light turns red. It's a fact that Brian proves when he pulls the ultimate move on Monica (Eva Mendes). Sure, he might've stolen the "stare and drive" from Roman (Tyrese Gibson), but, over the years, Brian has certainly perfected it.

Brian will do whatever it takes to save someone he cares about, and when Carter (Cole Hauser) drives away with Monica on his yacht, Brian does the only thing he can think of: He jumps his car onto the boat. The lesson: If The Dukes of Hazzard can do it, Brian can do it better.

In the years between the first film and the fourth, Brian thought he'd moved on with his life. He'd become an FBI agent. He'd started wearing suits to work. But when Mia (Jordana Brewster) shows up in FBI holding, he doesn't hesitate before he sneaks her out of there. From there, it's only a matter of time before he's pulled back into the ride-or-die life. Plus, seeing Mia cry is his ultimate downfall.

Proving that Brian will always have a soft spot for Dom, even after years apart, Brian makes a deal with the FBI. Once again risking his job for his brother, Brian asks that, in return for taking down Braga (John Ortiz), they let Dom go.

By agreeing to go to Mexico with Dom, Brian officially makes a choice between life as an FBI agent and life as Dom's brother. He then takes things a step further by helping Dom avenge Letty's (Michelle Rodriguez) death. And by "helping Dom," I mean that Brian literally holds Fenix's (Laz Alonso) foot so that he can't move while Dom rams him with his car. 

Every Fast & Furious fan knows that the one thing Brian wants more than anything is to beat Dom in a race. And after Dom wrecks Brian's car early in the film, Brian can't let it go...even when he's severely injured. After killing Fenix, the cops start to arrive. Knowing that it could be the last time he sees Dom as a free man, Brian chooses his final words carefully: "I gotta ask you something: You know I would've won that race if you didn't cheat, right?" Yep, that's Brian.

After Dom gets his jail sentence, Brian turns into a full outlaw, driving Dom's father's car — and bringing a crew along — to break Dom out of the prison bus. Specifically, they do so by flipping the prison bus so many times that they probably kill everyone...except for Dom, who's clearly immortal.

In the middle of a job, things start to go haywire when Mia drives away with a car that's clearly very valuable to someone. And when one of their men is instructed to go after her, Brian doesn't hesitate before he jumps off a high-speed train to stop them. Moments later, he once again jumps off that train...and then off a cliff. No big deal.

After Hobbs (Dwayne Johnson) nearly gets his hands on Dom, Brian, and Mia, Dom decides they should split up. But Mia has a pretty good reason why that's a bad idea: She's pregnant, and she thinks they should remain a family. Dom agrees, but only after Brian — overcome with happiness — kisses Mia and tells her that he's "not going anywhere." Insert that megawatt Brian smile here.

Still hung up on the time Dom "cheated" in Fast & Furious, Brian gets another chance to win a race when Dom, Brian, Han (Sung Kang), and Roman all steal cop cars. And, guess what? Brian wins! And he's literally never been happier...until Roman lets it slip that Dom let off the clutch at the end of the race to let him win. The resulting look on Brian's face is a mixture of denial, devastation, and complete shock, all of which come together to create one of Brian's most lovable moments. 

At the end of the safe heist, Dom releases Brian's car from the safe, forcing Brian to leave him behind to go be a father to his unborn son. Dom heads into what seems to be a suicide mission, but, just as it starts to look like Dom is going to make it out alive, Reyes' (Joaquim de Almeida) henchman crawls out of his car and pulls a gun on an unarmed Dom. At that moment, Dom accepts his fate...but Brian doesn't. Coming back for Dom, Brian shoots first, saving Dom's life. 

Have we talked about how badly Brian wants to beat Dom in a race? Because even after they pull off the heist of a lifetime, Brian can't let it go. What's his dream day like in paradise? As he looks at their cars, he tells Dom, "I want another shot. You and me, once and for all." 

When Hobbs asks the team to help him take down Owen Shaw (Luke Evans) in exchange for getting Letty back, it's Brian who uses his knowledge to bargain for more: If they help Hobbs, they will all be granted full pardons. Hobbs tries to say he can't promise that, but Brian quickly shuts him down — because he knows that he can. Sometimes in this franchise, brains actually trump brawn.

When Brian hears that Braga is involved with Hobbs, he volunteers to return to the U.S., thereby risking life in prison if he's caught. But, knowing he needs to make things right with Letty, Brian uses his FBI contacts to get locked up in the same prison as Braga — where the two come face-to-face, and Braga explains that Letty's accident was Brian's fault. With tears in his eyes, Brian tells Braga, "You're lucky this door's between us." And despite looking panicked when the door then opens, Brian takes down Braga and both his men in just enough time to get back to his team.

When Roman tries to distract the tank and finds himself, well, being run over by said tank, it's Brian who jumps the median to save his friend at the last minute. Getting close enough for Roman to make the jump, Brian's responsible for yet another last-minute save. 

After the unforgettable tank sequence, Dom and the team think they have Shaw beat...up until he tells Brian to call Mia. And, at that moment, the look on Brian's face says it all. Shaw has the love of his life, and he'll do anything to get her back. And with the help of Hobbs, they let Shaw go. (Don't worry, they get him back.)

Somewhere along the way, Brian's "oh s---" became a staple of the series — just as much as Dom's muscles or scantily clad women. Whether he's jumping a car off a cliff or flipping through the air, let's just say that the fast life never stops surprising Brian — and that surprise inevitably made for some of the series' funniest moments.

When we catch up with Brian in Furious 7, he's doing his best with what he's got — and for the moment, that means trying to make shifting look cool in a minivan. And you know what? He doesn't completely fail. He might not know how to open the automatic door, but if Brian has any say, it won't be long before Jack — and that van — knows what a parking brake slide is.

When the team heads out to rescue Ramsey (Nathalie Emmanuel), Brian's skills as a former FBI agent earn him the honor of being the one flung through the air onto the bus where Ramsey is being held. Once inside, Brian is responsible for taking down multiple men, including the very impressive Kiet (Tony Jaa). But he's Brian, so not only does he come out unscathed, but he also defies gravity by leaping off the bus...as it falls off a cliff...onto the back of Letty's car. And, of course, by the end of the film, he'll get full revenge on Kiet. Because Brian always wins.

As a father, there are many lessons that Brian has to teach his son. And as a brother, there are many lessons he has to teach Dom. The common link? Brian tells Jack that cars don't fly, in order to get him to stop throwing his toys. Forty minutes later, Dom wants to jump a car between skyscrapers. Brian's very logical response to the death-defying stunt? "Cars don't fly, Dom!" Regardless, Brian is the perfect partner, never losing focus on the task at hand even as Dom risks both of their lives.

Before the big final showdown, Brian calls Mia to let her know that if she doesn't hear from him in 24 hours, he wants her to take Jack and move on with her life. But when she tells him that she's pregnant with a baby girl, Brian realizes that he has no choice but to survive. With tears in his eyes, he tells Mia that coming to the shop and buying that awful tuna sandwich was the best decision he ever made. Because, as he told her in the first film, it wasn't Dom that drew him in — it was her.

With his final job behind him, Brian returns to his growing family, playing with Mia and Jack on the beach. But when Dom tries to slip away without so much as a goodbye, Brian finds his brother on the road, pulling up next to him to do the thing they love most: race. As a montage of Brian's journey flashes on the screen, we get one last signature smile before the road forks and the brothers part ways. All in all, Brian's goodbye is subtle, sincere, and oh-so-heartbreaking.