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Jay

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Better Call Saul 5x02 50% Off

 

What a fun opening montage of those two knuckleheads going on their dumb crime spree!  It was definitely an unusual montage for a show that has seemingly perfected the artform.  I liked how the fallen gnome statue is mirrored by the fallen ice cream cone at the end of the episode.

 

Really intense sequence where Gus's men kidnap Nacho and intimate his father will be killed if he can't get Lalo to trust him and give him more information.  Poor Nacho.  I loved when Lalo went to visit Hector and replaced his medicine with booze and basically sussed out that as long as Gus brings in the money, he's protected by the cartel.

 

Not sure how I feel about Krazy 8 getting his name from a poker hand that made no logical sense but there you have it.  When the police showed up and everyone scrammed and he was stuck on the ladder and the drugs fell out of the gutter, it was pretty damn funny.  Nacho's little parkour run to rescure the drugs was another exciting scene to work, pretty convenient he immediately found a way to impress Lalo!

 

Poor MIke.  This has to be the low point we've ever seen from him, when he lashes out at Kaylee like that.  Man it was hard to watch.  At least we know everything will be patched up by Breaking Bad.

 

The entire open house sequence with Jimmy & Kim was great.  Their relationship has gotten so icy, and it seemed like Kim is right on the knife's edge of just being done with his shit.  Then she seems to start to slowly warm up as the house tour goes on, until finally her laugh during the shower scene was amazing.  She's still got nothing but heartbreak in her future but at least she can still have fun... for now.  I did like that she laid the law down that she doesn't want to trick her clients, and Jimmy agreed.

 

Jimmy's wheelings and dealings in the court house were great.  And his ruse to get Suzanne in the elevator to blow through all their cases was pretty great, though I'm not really sure why she didn't figure out that he set it all up.  Or does she realize, but secretly liked clearing all that work off her desk?

 

The final scene where Nacho rolls up and tells Jimmy to get in the car was great.  It took me a second to realize that these guys haven't actually interacted since early season 1!  It was a nice reminder that Saul Goodman isn't just about spending the day in the courthouse cutting deals, but that he eventually does things for the cartel.... I guess it starts here!

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Better Call Saul 5x03 The Guy For This

 

The opening with the ice cream cone and CGI ants was..... interesting.  The show's never really done anything like that before.  Not really sure it worked for me.  I get the metaphor, but as a scene it was kinda boring.

 

Holy shit the long buildup from there to Saul finally talking in Lalo's garage was awesome.  Silent car ride, Lalo's tinkering when they get there, finally Saul asks to talk and clears his throat, so well done.  I loved that Lalo had heard of Jimmy through Tuco.  I had managed to almost entirely forget about that!  I loved how Jimmy had no clue how much to charge and tried to come up with a number he thought was too big for Lalso to pay and Lalo just immediately pays it.  He probably could have charged double!

 

I was very confused why Mike wanted that picture taken down at the bar until I looked it up after and remembered that Werner said his dad worked on the Sydney Opera House.  Pretty well done fight scene they had Mike get into.  Between this episode and last they are just using Mike quickly each week to remind you he's around.  I wonder when whatever his plot this season will be will kick in.

 

The scenes between Nacho and his dad are often some of the best and nicest scenes the show does and this one was no different.  So heartbreaking to see this, Nacho had such a good plan for him to be able to get out and his refusal to take his blood money is so brutal.  Another heartbreaking scene between them.

 

The long sequence of Saul and Krazy 8 was absolutely fantastic.  As soon as you saw that pot belly walk by in that shirt you knew it was Hank and Gomey, and BOY did their appearance not disappoint in the slightest!  Dean Norris was absolutely fantastic returning the role, especially returning to the pre-jaded, pre-PTSD, pre-hospitalization, etc Hank. This happy-go-lucky Hank was a pleasure to watch as was the flawless interaction with Gomey.  BTW, was it Lalo and Nacho's plan to have Saul interrupt mid-interrogation and stay there with Krazy 8 for the rest of the interview, or was that flair that Jimmy added on?  Getting him to be a CI seemed to be Jimmy's idea at least.  Awesome sequence from front to back.

 

Kim's stuff this week was really interesting too.  After highlighting how free she feels having a day of only pro bono cases and no Mesa Verde stuff, she gets sucked into meeting with a guy who refuses to move to make way for a Mesa Verde call center.  And this guy is delightfully grumpy, I loved it.  And I loved how he handed her ass to her before she turned around and laid the law down.  Its seems to have worked, at least to Mesa Verde's approval, until she pulls over and later we see her go back.  I had idea idea where the scene was going at this point.  When she started showing him real estate options I thought she was trying a nice guy angle, until she started spinning a tale of moving a lot when she was a kid of stumbled over her own words trying to get the lie out and he completely called her on it.  Utterly brilliant.  After telling Jimmy last week tricking her clients if nothing something she'd ever do, she tried to do it hear and failed to an embarassing degree.  Now the only question is does she give up on the scam or bring Jimmy into the fold to help out next week?

 

I wasn't the biggest fan of the final scene where both Jimmy and Kim return home and silently vent their various frustrations by throwing beer bottles into their parking lot.  Seemed like an absurdly juvenile thing to do.  And I wish these two would share more with each other.

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Re: the interrogation, I think everything was planned by Jimmy up until Hank called him out on his BS and started to walk out the door. Usually you can tell when Jimmy is faking surprise and having real surprise, but I might be wrong. 
 

I want to complain that these episodes are moving so slow, but I just can’t - it’s so much fun to watch these characters that I really don’t care about the slowish pace. 
 

1 hour ago, Jay said:

After telling Jimmy last week tricking her clients if nothing something she'd ever do, she tried to do it hear and failed to an embarassing degree. 


Are we so sure she was trying to trick him? 

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4 hours ago, Fargo said:

Are we so sure she was trying to trick him? 


I don’t think she was; I think she was telling the truth and that’s where she failed.  After all, the problem was solved; there was no reason at all for her to go back except for a crisis of conscience.  No reason for her to go back and lie to him.

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Better Call Saul 5x04 Namaste

 

It was good to see those 50% off goofballs again, especially since one of them is so similar to a young Jessie, it's pretty funny.  It was nice seeing Jimmy talk them into using her services rather than the "public pretender" even though overall the scene is probably the most inconsequential of the episode.

 

His lunch with Howard was fascinating as hell.  Two men affected by the death of Chuck a year later and the difference between how they handled it about as night-and-day as you can get!  Howard went through therapy, did some soul searching, realized it was wrong of him to acquiesce to Chuck's requests and aid in holding Jimmy back, and wants to make it up to him with a genuine offer.  I completely believe that he really did always admire Jimmy's "Charlie hustle" work ethics.  Meanwhile Jimmy had refused to deal or even talk about Chuck's death, has rejected any straight and narrow path and wants to only forge his own bending the law as often as possible.  This is really exemplified by that speech he gave late last season to the girl who was rejected for the scholarship from Chuck's foundation.  He basically told her the world would never look past her mistakes and she'd have to make her own path.  And now here's Howard willing to look past Jimmy's mistakes and offer him a real job and he just cannot accept it, and even attacks Howard's car in retribution.  What a character.

 

The Hank and Gomey scenes were significantly less interesting this week than last week.  I suppose the "majestic culverts" banter was slightly better than the expired frosting banter, but the whole stakeout and chase scene wasn't very compelling I thought.  At least it showed Gus didn't want to lay down and have someone arrested at each location, he got to have one of the three give a chase and make the DEA do some work, and he didn't lose a guy there.  But the loss of $700,000 is surely something he's really not happy about.  it's interesting too that in episode 2 Lalo met with Hector and basically realized Gus's cash flow is what keeps him protected from the cartel, and now Lalo already found a nice way to attack that.  He's pretty lucky those drugs got stuck in the gutter!

 

I admire Kim trying another tactic to not have to kick Mr. Acker out of the home, but when Paige and Kevin decided to stick with the lot in question, I feared what it might mean when she went to see Jimmy in the courthouse (nice trick he pulled with the lookalike defendant, btw).  Mr. Acker's line reading of "a man fucking a horse?" is one of the funniest things I've seen on the show in a while.  That actor is great.  I have no idea what scam Jimmy and Kim have cooked up here but I can't wait to find out

 

Poor Mike, rejected by Stacey and goes out to get beat up.  I assume that's Mexico he wakes up at in the end?  Does this mean Gus has had men following Mike everywhere he goes, and his men got him patched up after his stabbing?  Interesting.

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On 3/3/2020 at 2:53 PM, ATXHusker said:

Episode 3 was pretty good, wonder if Kim's childhood story she told to the squatter old man was true or made up? 

 

You know what's funny is my interpretation when I watched the scene was that she was basically trying to be Jimmy, lying to the client to get what she wanted.  That was why I thought she stumbled on her own words trying to explain the blue toes from being out in the cold.

 

However, looking around the internet afterwards, I see this is hotly debated, with some people thinking she told the truth, and some not!

 

 

 

On 3/3/2020 at 2:53 PM, ATXHusker said:

Nacho is definitely feeling the heat, trying to get his father to sell his business for a higher than valued offer, but he was too keen on what he was up to.  

 

Nacho is in such a shitty circumstance, and it keeps getting worse.  I liked that in ep 3, Saul is telling Lalo that if he hears about a rat, Krazy 8 isn't it... and Nacho is right there.

 

 

 

On 3/9/2020 at 5:42 PM, Fargo said:

Re: the interrogation, I think everything was planned by Jimmy up until Hank called him out on his BS and started to walk out the door. Usually you can tell when Jimmy is faking surprise and having real surprise, but I might be wrong. 

 

I think you're probably right.  Jimmy always seems to have two modes during every scam, one where things are going his way, and then as soon as things start to turn, he kinda kicks it up a notch and does what he needs to get the result he wants.  I think Hank is way too smart to have fallen for Jimmy's schtick for a second (he even picks up on the "S'all good, man" right away) and so he truly was going to leave the room and Jimmy knew to offer him what he needed (arrests) to get the plan to work.

 

 

 

On 3/9/2020 at 5:42 PM, Fargo said:

I want to complain that these episodes are moving so slow, but I just can’t - it’s so much fun to watch these characters that I really don’t care about the slowish pace. 

 

The show has eased us into the pacing over time. It's just part of the DNA of the show at this point that it likes to indulge in certain types of scenes.  I personally love it.

 

 

 

On 3/9/2020 at 5:42 PM, Fargo said:

Are we so sure she was trying to trick him? 

 

Listening to the Insider podcast, they seemed to assert that Kim was actually telling the truth.  Which is interesting.  It means she is trying every tactic possible before having to resort to the Jimmy tactic.  First, she tried reasoning with him.  Then, she tried a Chuck-esque laying down of the law type scenario, throwing the power of the law in his face.  Then, she tried to truly relate to him as a person, with a bunch of real estate research as an option for the future, and a true story from her past as a way to connect on a personal level.  After even that didn't work, and one final attempt to sway Kevin and Paige didn't change things, she resorted to running a scam with Jimmy.  I think this could be the true start of a real Slippin' Kimmy scenario here.

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On 3/10/2020 at 3:53 PM, Jay said:

At least it showed Gus didn't want to lay down and have someone arrested at each location, he got to have one of the three give a chase and make the DEA do some work, and he didn't lose a guy there.  But the loss of $700,000 is surely something he's really not happy about

 

What was your take on the scene at the restaurant with Lyle?  There was clearly nothing wrong with the fryer, and Gus was just stringing him along.  At first I thought Gus knew something would happen at the restaurant and he wanted Lyle (a civilian) to be there as a witness or something, but as the scene went on, you could see Gus in his office, just absolutely seething at what was going down.  Was he just taking his frustrations out on poor Lyle, because he couldn't take it out on anyone else?

 

On 3/10/2020 at 3:53 PM, Jay said:

Does this mean Gus has had men following Mike everywhere he goes, and his men got him patched up after his stabbing?

 

Makes total sense that Gus would have him followed.  At this point Mike knows virtually everything about Gus' operation, and since they didn't part on the best of terms Gus would be very smart to keep an eye on him.

 

On 3/10/2020 at 3:53 PM, Jay said:

I admire Kim trying another tactic to not have to kick Mr. Acker out of the home, but when Paige and Kevin decided to stick with the lot in question, I feared what it might mean when she went to see Jimmy in the courthouse (nice trick he pulled with the lookalike defendant, btw).  Mr. Acker's line reading of "a man fucking a horse?" is one of the funniest things I've seen on the show in a while.  That actor is great.  I have no idea what scam Jimmy and Kim have cooked up here but I can't wait to find out

 

I have a feeling Kim is headed towards a major crash-and-burn regarding Mesa Verde.  That's clearly how the show is setting us up, so it could very well be a twist somewhere along the way to shake it up, but where we've seen her at odds with Mesa Verde before, now she's actively working against their interests.  This won't end well.  I just can't figure out what her motivation is.  Is she just "sticking up for the little guy?"  She obviously cares more for her pro-bono clients, but for whatever reason she just can't quit working for Schweikart and be a regular defense attorney (which is what Jimmy wanted her to do).  Is it the money?  Her reputation?

 

 

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17 hours ago, Matt S. said:

What was your take on the scene at the restaurant with Lyle?  There was clearly nothing wrong with the fryer, and Gus was just stringing him along.  At first I thought Gus knew something would happen at the restaurant and he wanted Lyle (a civilian) to be there as a witness or something, but as the scene went on, you could see Gus in his office, just absolutely seething at what was going down.  Was he just taking his frustrations out on poor Lyle, because he couldn't take it out on anyone else?

 

Yea, I don't think it was like, an alibi situation or anything.  I think he was just pissed off about having to lose three quarter mil and took his frustration out on poor Lyle.  It made the scenes more interesting instead of just showing Gus sitting around until the phone call came.

 

17 hours ago, Matt S. said:

Makes total sense that Gus would have him followed.  At this point Mike knows virtually everything about Gus' operation, and since they didn't part on the best of terms Gus would be very smart to keep an eye on him.

 

Right.

 

17 hours ago, Matt S. said:

I have a feeling Kim is headed towards a major crash-and-burn regarding Mesa Verde.  That's clearly how the show is setting us up, so it could very well be a twist somewhere along the way to shake it up, but where we've seen her at odds with Mesa Verde before, now she's actively working against their interests.  This won't end well. 

 

She's being a fool.  I remember last season when she first started taking pro bono cases, and she missed something to do with Mesa Verde because of one, and she had to apologize to Paige, and promise that it would never happen again, that she would always put Mesa Verde first.  Well she was was a year (less?) later in episode 3, telling her assistant she wasn't going to answer the phone when Mesa Verde was calling in while she was in court.  She's already breaking her promise!

 

17 hours ago, Matt S. said:

I just can't figure out what her motivation is.  Is she just "sticking up for the little guy?"  She obviously cares more for her pro-bono clients, but for whatever reason she just can't quit working for Schweikart and be a regular defense attorney (which is what Jimmy wanted her to do).  Is it the money?  Her reputation?

 

Her motivations are always hard to suss out.  There's no friend character she has scenes with where she discusses this stuff, and she never discusses this stuff with Jimmy either, so we are often left speculating about her motivations, which are sometimes explained later, sometimes not.  In this case, she could have something inside her that wants her Mesa Verde / Cchweikart & Cokely deal to crash and burn, and join Jimmy in a "the world is unfair, I will make my own path happen" scenario.  Or maybe she thinks she's come up with a scam to get Mr. Acker to want to leave his house that just starts with Jimmy representing him.  I dunno.  Hard to say right now.  Can't wait to find out!

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1 hour ago, Jay said:

Or maybe she thinks she's come up with a scam to get Mr. Acker to want to leave his house that just starts with Jimmy representing him.  I dunno.  Hard to say right now.  Can't wait to find out!

 

I don't think she's trying to get Acker to leave; I think they're going to try and save Acker's house by screwing up Mesa Verde's claim to the land.

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Slight spoiler:

 

Spoiler

Episode 5.06, which will air on March 23, is titled Wexler v. Goodman. It could be Jimmy and Kim face to face on the court related to the Mesa Verde case. But if the two face each other on trial, will Kim risk her career by purposedly losing to Jimmy?

 

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1 hour ago, Jay said:
Quote

Makes total sense that Gus would have him followed.  At this point Mike knows virtually everything about Gus' operation, and since they didn't part on the best of terms Gus would be very smart to keep an eye on him.

 

Right.

 

I'm wondering about Mike, though.  Seems to me like his character arc is nearly over (at least to the point of where he was on Breaking Bad).  Last season's storyline with Werner was vitally important, as it showed Mike committing his first cold-blooded murder on Gus's orders.  Now he's obviously wracked with guilt, and blames Gus.  All that's left is for him to return to Gus's employ; maybe if Gus saves his life, he will owe him?  It can't be that simple, but we know at some point in the near future, he returns and commits himself to Gus for the remainder of the story.

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His arc isn't over.  He has to evolve from being OK that he killed one guy and living with, to being OK with killing anyone he's asked to at any time, and dispose of the bodies, etc.  Plus he has to patch things up with Stacey and Kaylee.

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4 minutes ago, Jay said:

His arc isn't over.  He has to evolve from being OK that he killed one guy and living with, to being OK with killing anyone he's asked to at any time, and dispose of the bodies, etc.  Plus he has to patch things up with Stacey and Kaylee.

 

Reminds me of the opening to Casino Royale, where the bent MI6 section chief is taunting Bond about feeling his first kill, and says "Well, you needn't worry.  The second is--"  BANG.

Bond: "Yes.  Considerably."

 

 

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Hehehe.

 

Mike was at his most interested in season 4 or 5 or whatever it was in Breaking Bad when he was kind of mentoring Jesse.  It'd be cool if they gave him another companion character in BCS

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Better Call Saul 5x05 Dedicado a Max

 

I LOVED all the MIke and Gus scenes this week!  By far the best they've done with either character all season.  It was so Mike to immediately leave the house and sit by the road, and I wasn't surprised that the doctor found him immediately and MIke was wise enough to know to go back.  The funniest moment was certainly when they started a montage complete with a great Porter montage cue, and then the lady comes in and just gives him a cell phone charger :lol: That was so great!  The scene between Gus and Mike at the end was awesome, great acting by both gents.  I wish the scene hadn't abruptly ended to end the episode, and I hope next week we get to see them interact more, perhaps sharing their revenge stories or at least coming to more of an understanding of each other.  Really good stuff.

 

The one scene with Howard was very very strange I thought.  I assumed he kinda figured Jimmy was behind the bowling ball attack, but he didn't bring it up.  Biding time to confront him later?  And why did Jimmy lie and say he was still contemplating it instead of turning him down again?  I didn't get that.

 

All of Jimmy's routines with Mr Acker to delay the demolition was pretty funny, I enjoyed all of it.  And boy did I love that it got to the point where Jimmy knew they couldn't continue it any longer and they had effectively lost.  What I am very curious to know, or read speculation from my fellow JWFanners, is if he truly, in his heart of hearts, actually did think there was no real reason to continue, and hoped Kim would agree, or if he was choosing all his words carefully, playing some reverse psychology to get her to want to continue by going down the Kevin path.  Very interesting question to ponder.

 

And that brings us to the giant confrontation Kim has with Schweikart.  Holy shit that was scene was very well staged and well acted.  WTF is Kim DOING?  It's like she WANTS to be fired.  I mean, on the surface she is just arguing to be kept on the Mesa Verde case so that she can use whatever she saw in the picture to blackmail Kevin and let Mr. Acker stay in his house, but to me there seemed to be more going on under the surface.  I really sense bad things for Kim in the future now.

 

As always, damn, I can't wait for next week's ep!  This season is now half over and I feel like it's just getting started.  This season has truly improved on all the mistakes they made in season 4, for certain!

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Neat!

 

The other standout musical cue was during one of the Saul/Acker scenes, the battery removal, grinding, and disbursement I believe.  Fun stuff!

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Yea this season is such a great improvement over season 4, I love it.  

And yea, the tension is really mounting.  We didn't even see Nacho this week, and I still worry about him!

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Agreed. I was really disappointed with how slow season 4 moved. It lacked momentum, story threads treaded water and characters covered old ground for most of the season (in stark contrast to BB by season 4, where 4 years of storytelling reached a brilliant crescendo).

 

This season is a revelation. Clear story threads for all main characters that feel earned, progressing in surprising ways, building towards a dramatic climax as the season continues. Bravo to the writing room for reinstating that disciplined sense of direction that was noticeably absent last season.

 

I, too, fear that Kim is heading down a very dangerous path here. I think we all expected things could only end badly for her, given Kim's absence in BB, but it's like watching a car crash in slow motion at this point.

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I was thinking yesterday that we can make parallels between Kim's and Mike's recent story arcs: both are insatisfied with their jobs and their respective bosses (Kevin and Gus).

 

Kim was shown as a competent, idealistic lawyer that fought hard for Mesa Verde being her client. But now that she have achieved that, she grew more and more bored and disillusioned with the job at MV, and tried to find some emotion in her life with some pro bono clients. 

 

I guess she feels like she is trying to compensate for the fact that she works for a ruthless corporation (much like Mike now dislikes working for Gus' ruthless criminal corporation) and find some emotion and purpose in life. This is how she feels attracted to Jimmy and his more carefree lifestyle. Kim doesn't help the pro bono clients or Mr. Acker for pure empathy or solidarity with poor people, she does that because A- she is trying to appease her guilt of working for a big company like Mesa Verde and B- she wants to be more like Jimmy, and less about the restrained world of advocating for corporations.

 

But this path isn't going to end well for her. By being attracted to Jimmy's lifestyle, she going more and more on a very dangerous, tragic path.

 

On the other hand, Jimmy's very specific sexual fantasy on which he pretends to be Kim and Kim pretends to be Kevin was one of BB/BCS' most awkward moments ever.

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22 hours ago, Jay said:

WTF is Kim DOING?  It's like she WANTS to be fired.  I mean, on the surface she is just arguing to be kept on the Mesa Verde case so that she can use whatever she saw in the picture to blackmail Kevin and let Mr. Acker stay in his house, but to me there seemed to be more going on under the surface.  I really sense bad things for Kim in the future now.

 

I think it was basically a Fight or Flight moment for Kim, and she chose to fight. When I was a kid and was caught by my parents in a lie, I would sometimes just double down and hope to talk my way out of it. Never really worked out for back then.

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I think what's most tragic about Kim's trajectory is that it's only possible because of Jimmy.  He is totally an enabler for her worst tendencies... and I think she knows it.  If everything else in her life was the same but she was dating someone else - well, she wouldn't have Mesa Verde at all since she only got them when Jimmy switched the address on Chuck, but let's ignore that for a second - she probably would have still WANTED to help Mr. Acker but wouldn't really have the resources to do so.  Even if she somehow thought up some of the little scams he did to delay the demolition she wouldn't have the contacts to find someone to break into Kevin's house, etc.  Not only does Jimmy have the tools at his disposal to let her indulge in her worst tendencies, he is extremely supportive of her doing so and doesn't seem to REALLY try to steer her away from them.  Jimmy thinks the world is out to get him and it's every man for himself, and he has no problem bringing Kim into this view with him

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On 3/17/2020 at 12:04 PM, Jay said:

All of Jimmy's routines with Mr Acker to delay the demolition was pretty funny, I enjoyed all of it.  And boy did I love that it got to the point where Jimmy knew they couldn't continue it any longer and they had effectively lost.  What I am very curious to know, or read speculation from my fellow JWFanners, is if he truly, in his heart of hearts, actually did think there was no real reason to continue, and hoped Kim would agree, or if he was choosing all his words carefully, playing some reverse psychology to get her to want to continue by going down the Kevin path.  Very interesting question to ponder.

 

I think he seemed 100% ready to give up.  Kim was the one who pushed it further, not Jimmy (although he certainly went along with it once she had decided).  This isn't all about Jimmy ruining Kim's career, she's taking an active role now, as well.  Even when Rick Schweikart flat-out called her on the bullshit, and gave her every opportunity to walk away, she stood up to him and made it even worse.  I'm not sure we can completely lay the fault for Kim's impending downfall at Jimmy's feet.  He may have gotten her started on the road, but she keeps going, and for no logical reason at all.  At least with Jimmy, you could argue that he was dealt a raw hand, with Chuck sabotaging him behind the scenes at HHM (if we're to believe that Howard's recent job offer to Jimmy was genuine, and that he truly felt he should have given him a chance when he got his degree), and he had to fight and scrape his way up the ladder, so that's the only way he knows.  Kim had a legitimate law degree (no "University of American Samoa, go Land Crabs" for her), a good job with HHM, then a better job at S&C.  They give her the opportunity to work for Mesa Verde, AND to spend plenty of time doing pro bono work.  

 

 

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Yea she's taking a pretty great career and throwing it down a toilet.  It's amazing to watch.

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I have to keep reminding myself that of all characters in the whole BCS/BB universe, nobody gets a happy ending.  I suppose Jesse comes closest at the end of El Camino, but I wouldn't call starting over in the Alaskan wilderness a happy ending.  He's alive and safe, at least.  It's been awhile since BB, and on BCS we've been watching Gus and Mike in their war with the Salamancas, so we're rooting for them (I guess), but don't forget it's ultimately Hector who wins that fight (with help from Walt).

 

Is that why these shows are so compelling?  That it's like watching a train wreck in slow-motion, we know what will happen but can't look away?  Nacho will surely end up dead, somehow... Kim's career will likely go down the toilet (I doubt they would kill her off, but who knows).

 

And just how likely is it that "Gene Takavic" will have a happy ending once this is all over?  He had a chance to make another escape at the start of this season, and he decided to take care of it himself.  Probably not a smart move.

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I think it's true that nobody in the BB/BCS universe has been shown to have a happy ending, but at least that doesn't mean everyone is necessarily getting a bad ending; There are a lot of ambiguous endings in the 'verse!

 

Gus, all his henchmen, all the Salamancas, all the neo-Nazis, Mike, Todd, Jane, Lydia, Hank, Gomey, Chuck and Walter all die.  Skyler will probably never been able to have a normal life again, Marie lost her husband, Water Jr is probably pretty screwed too.

 

But then Jesse's ending is pretty open ended.  He seems genuinely content to spend the rest of his days in remote Alaska, though I'd say it remains unclear if he has live with and worth through all the trauama he experienced getting there.

 

Hamlin is an interesting one, he's always had a cushy life, and we've seen him talk about how he wishes he hadn't joined his father's law firm and forged his own path instead.  Though after his and Chuck's deaths, he doesn't seem to be circling back to that idea, I guess he sort of de facto is running his own firm now anyway, and his new zen lifestyle seems to allow him to forgive and forget any past issues.  But will that remain?

 

Kim and Nacho are the HUGE open questions of all the main characters for sure.  Nacho is stuck in a very tough spot where his life and future are in a lot of danger.  Saul seems to think Nacho's still alive when Walt and Jesse take him to the desert in 2008 in Breaking Bad season 2, but that doesn't necessarily mean he is alive.

 

Kim has no foreshadowing of death in her future or anything, but the current storyline seems to heading towards a potential loss of the Schweikart & Cokely job or maybe even her law license... 

 

And that leaves Jimmy.  I think he has the best potential for a happy ending out of everyone.  We already know where all his character growth leads him to by the end of the main storyline of BCS thanks to BB, but the key is the Gene scenes that take place after BB.  There is potential in this scenes that he could reunite with Kim, or find some other sense of happiness once enough time has passed since all the Walter White stuff destroyed his Albuquerque life.  Who knows.

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I haven't seen episode 6 yet, but I just remembered to post here that in episode 5, the "private eye" that Saul hires to investigate Kevin was SUPPOSED to be Bill Burr's character from Breaking Bad (Kuby), but he was unavailable so they re-wrote it for Sobchak.  Sobchak is the dude from season 1 that Mike throat-punched that made Man Mountain run away, causing Pryce to hire him for the protection job

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Great episode last night!  For shits and giggles I called the # below and there's a funny voice mail greeting by Saul.  You definitely need to see the episode first though...

 

 

 

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Better Call Saul 5x06 Wexler v. Goodman

 

Holy cow, that was one hell of an episode of television!!  Odenkirk and Seehorn deserve all the emmys, they each had multiple scenes of great acting, their final confrontation was amazing!  This season has been so consistently good and rewarding, I can't think of any way that it isn't better than season 4.  I can't believe there's only 4 episodes left!

 

The cold open with young Kim was great, because the show has held back on revealing Kim's past except for the tiniest dribs and drabs for so long, and this opening tells you so much about her, especially when combined with what she told Mr. Acker about her past a few episodes ago.  But most important, it makes an awesome bookend/parallel to the end of the episode.  This is what Kim is used to; She's used to people lying to her, it's just built into her from childhood and she (presumably) never sought therapy to work on that, and it helps explain why she's been drawn to Jimmy this whole time (on top of the fact that there's that part of her that genuinely enjoys doing the scams).  It's a cycle that she hasn't broken out of.  Also, the actress playing her mom did some AMAZING Rhea Seehorn imitations at times, like she really studied how Rhea plays Kim, it was great!  The girl playing young Kim also had some decent similarities as well.

 

The long sequence of Jimmy directing the commercials was super fun and super funny. so many good little jokes and moments in there.  I was a bit surprised when after that nice montage, Kim showed up and said she had decided to call off the scam, because of the fight with Rich at the end of the previous episode.  It's so logical and makes so much sense, and I'm glad she made that (right) decision.  However, I knew things wouldn't go as planned because the never would have spent the time showing the filming of those commercials if we weren't going to be seeing them later....

 

I loved the foreshadowing of Jimmy's worst side when he has those two hookers interrupt Howard's lunch with Cliff.  Not only was it a very funny scene, it reminds the audience that Jimmy (Saul?) is not the best guy.  I mean, when you think about it, he's fucking with Howard for basically no reason; Howard apologized for everything he did for Chuck, offered him a job, is trying to be a better person, etc.  Yet Jimmy is just brutal towards him!

 

My only complain about the episode I think the instant end of what had been Mike's arc through the first 5 episodes, and the start of a new one here;  That short conversation Mike and Gus had at the end of episode 5 was so tantalizing, and I was REALLY hoping we'd get to actually SEE Gus and Mike sharing their revenge stories.  I wanted to see Gus tell Mike about the death of Max at Hector's hands under Don Elladio's orders, maybe finally learn if Max and Gus were in a relationship and not just business partners, see how they arrive at a place where Mike is willing to work for Gus because of his understanding of a need for revenge, etc etc etc.  But sadly the first time we see Mike and Gus this episode they've seemingly already had this conversation off-screen.

 

What I think is an interesting thing to ponder about the meeting where Nacho tells Gus that Lalo plans on using Krazy 8 to feed the police information that will disrupt Gus's business is that we haven't actually see Lalo instruct this; There's a possibility here that Nacho is making all this up, using Gus as a tool to take out the Salamanca's for him.  If that is true and Gus finds out, things will not be good for Nacho...

 

Oh, another slightly disappointing thing about the episode was Lalo; He was SUCH an awesome, intimidating, wild card force through the first 4 episodes this season, then we don't see him at all in 5, and now in this episode we only see him when he gets arrested.  I want more Lalo!  I hope he's not just out of the picture now, I hope get gets to do some crazy and fun shit in the final 4 episodes.  I did enjoy Mike's methods of getting him arrested, the talk withe librarian and the police call, etc.  I also loved that Mike reminds Nacho that he warned him he might be biting off more than he could chew by trying to take out Hector, and that Mike played the family member in trouble card.  It will be interesting to see what happens after the Lalo dust settles, but I feel like we're heading towards Gus asking Mike to kill Nacho and/or his father.

 

Holy cow, the settlement meeting scene was just incredible.  From the moment Jimmy busts into the room you know something was up, and then when he completely, utterly, and so completely BETRAYS Kim by playing the commercials it was just an amazing sequence.  The constant looks she was giving him, the words she was choosing to use, was just amazing to watch as he just steamrolled through everything.  I loved that the explanation of what Kim saw in the photographs from Kevin's house was that he based his company's logo off a photograph he didn't have the rights too, and that Jimmy had found the original photographer.  Basically, the entire scam Jimmy is pulling here is kind of ludicrious, pretty hilarious (the dad going "yee-up!" cracked me up every time), and I suppose pretty logically sound.  That it leads to a handshake agreement between Jimmy and Kevin is interesting too, like Jimmy is leaving open a possibility of further scams but Kevin has no choice but to trust in it.

 

I can't imagine Kim's legal future is looking too good, as Rich and Kevin have to know that she dating Jimmy is such a massive liability; I was kind of surprised that they seemed OK with it in prior episodes but I guess you had to accept it to get to this point in this episode where it all comes together.

 

And then, holy hell, when Kim comes up just SEETHING and Jimmy is idly playing guitar (Smoke On The Water, of course, his scamming song with Marco), and he seems to kind of assume she'll be OK with everything because they got the result they wanted, and she starts rolling up her sleeves, I thought we were heading towards a physical alternation!  Every thing she says to him during this fight is so completely on point, he completely betrayed her, he lied to her, he made her the sucker, and she is so right that she cannot trust him and that they need to break up.  The fact that Jimmy only begins to actually show ANY real emotion when she suggests that is interesting, I suppose partially shows how he never thinks about the long term effects of anything he does, only the immediate result, and also maybe a little bit of him realizing he could lose the literally only other person on the planet who has ever shown love to him with his parents, Marco, and Chuck all dead.

 

But then she says instead of breaking up they could just get married, and I was left there speechless.  WTF?

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On 3/24/2020 at 8:24 PM, Fargo said:

AMC isn’t working for some reason on my Fire TV. I swear it’s one of the shittiest apps out there for streaming. 

 

Again, I can't watch it on my TV. BCS seems to be the only show that's not working on the AMC app. What a joke.

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Better Call Saul 5x07 JMM

 

Holy cow, another fantastic hour of television.  Talk about a show firing on all cylinders.

 

The whole opening wedding of Kim and Jimmy was a fascinating sequence.  So much to take in with the subtle acting both Seehorn and Odenkirk do throughout, and all the comic relief from Huell was perfectly integrated.  I loved it all!  So interesting too that it took 10 seasons in the Breaking Bad / BCS universe before we finally got a sex scene, and honestly it was the right time to do so, it showed so much insight into Jimmy and Kim's relationship, especially when he stopped the proceedings to tell her about the cartel.

 

On that note, it's so well done how Jimmy kind of inevitably ending up working for them.  It's funny to think back that his entire story line only crossed with them early in season 1 until earlier this season, and now he's really stuck with no option.  I think in his heart, he truly would have preferred the bail plea not working, Lalo going to jail, but them believing he did everything he could.  Instead, well, I can't wait to see how things go next week....

 

I loved the way Kim handled Kevin.  That short meeting where he doesn't commit to keeping them or not, and then her going back in and tells him all the ways he didn't listen to her and Rich, and how she hopes he will listen to his next lawyers more, and that was what caused him to stick with her, was all great stuff.  I love angry and persistent Kim!

 

Another fascinating scene is Mike telling Stacey that he is past the issue that caused him to yell at Kaylee.  I don't REALLY believe him, in the sense that he's clearly similar to Jimmy in the sense that he doesn't like to explore his own emotions or ever talk about them with others, but I suppose what he is really saying is that his new found job working for Gus because he feels Gus's revenge is justified is what is making him be OK right now.  I just wish we got to SEE Gus and Mike talk about all this!

 

Holy hell, that board room scene at Madrigal with Avacadofest, Spicy Curls, and all the silly restaurant names like Lufwaffle was amazing, some of the funniest stuff they've done in a while, I loved it all.  I was definitely confused about the scene where Gus meets with another Madrigal guy and has to talk him down, until I read online after that he is the guy who kills himself in Breaking Bad after Gus dies and is linked to the meth lab.  I guess it's hard to explain better who this guy is on screen, but now that I know it all makes sense.  Poor Gus, always has multiple causers of stress in his life.  Lydia was hilarious too, talking about shiving or shanking Lalo in prison :lol:  When the scene first started, I thought we were gonna see Gus and Lydia had a secret romance going on! 

 

Lalo deciding the revenge on Gus for jailing him was to have Nacho burn down one of his restaurants was very logical, as was Gus going along for the burn to make sure it's done right.  I thought it was an interesting side of Nacho, how aggressive he was ripping and breaking everything there, contrasted to how meticulously Gus set up the chicken fryer slide situation.

 

Holy hell, the final scene with Jimmy and Howard was incredible!!!  I loved how Howard is no fool, and of course knew that Jimmy was behind the bowling balls and hookers... and how Jimmy kind of fell apart when he said, no quick whitted explanation, he kind of stumbled.  But then the explosion Jimmy has at the end was awesome.  There's so much subtext to it, like when he blames Howard for killing Chuck you realize Jimmy has still, after all these months, not properly processed anything to do with Chuck's death at all.  Howard has looked inward, worked on himself, and become a better person, willing to forgive and forget mistakes of the past.  Jimmy cannot admit his role in Chuck's death (it all started with him swapping those addresses, and continued with him using the phone trick in court!) and just explodes with rage he has no control over because he has stuffed down all his emotions until they've come exploding out here.  Odenkirk did all this so perfectly, and even Patrick Fabian was great when he realizes what is happening and just walks away trying not to react.  Awesome stuff all around.

 

I can't believe there's only 3 episodes left!

 

 

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Agreed...  Also, we now have a better idea of what might happen to Kim in the future.  Let us all have a moment of silence to commemorate the passing of the Suzuki Esteem....

 

 

Suzuki Esteem - Better Call Saul Digital Art by Joseph Oland

Better Call Saul Suzuki Esteem - Specs on Saul Goodman's Car

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This entire season has been nothing short of amazing!  Season 4 was definitely the weakest of the show but even it was better than most shows out there.

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Season 5 is really making up for every mis-step they took in season 4, and they have produced just an utterly amazing season of television.

 

Listening to the Insider podcast for ep 8 was pretty interesting, they filmed it in To'hajiilee state park, but miles away from the Breaking Bad location, and had to deal with lots of issues.  They had 18 filming days for the episode, which is almost double a normal episode's length.  The glow stick scene was shot on a sound stage that replicated the actual location they filmed the day part of that location in!  The amazing stunt with the car was done with a real stunt man inside the car, pretty crazy stuff.

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