BETTER CALL SAUL

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

But he knew that Saul was a "criminal" lawyer rather then a criminal lawyer.

[Jay 37,322]

Ah OK. It's been years since I saw that episode

[Jay 37,322]

This also might mean Hamlin isn't as much of a dick as previously suspected.

Wait..... "might"? I'd go so far to say that Hamlin isn't a bad guy at all. The most "evil" things we've seen him do - denying Jimmy a job after he got his degree, and then denying Jimmy a job when he brings them the large case - seem to be the sole decision of Chuck, that Hamlin agreed to comply with.

Sure, he does have an offputting personality, and probably doesn't REALLY like Jimmy all that much as a person....... but is he really a bad guy? Now knowing what we know?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

He all hated him because he's rich, good looking and a bit of a prig.

Very smart misdirection.

[Jay 37,322]

Yup.

[Jay 37,322]

10 teases about the Better Call Saul season finale from co-creator Peter Gould

I ain't reading that until after I see the episode, but some of you might want to

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Marco

Starts with another flashback. A scene where Jimmy says his goodbyes top Marco, the far t guy he did the Rolex scheme with in Chicago.

Then flashed forward to HHM where he apologizes to Kim and meets up with Howard, who actually seems like a fairly decent guy. He seems genuinly amazed at what Jimmy did for Chuck for over a year.

There's a great bingo scene where Jimmy slowly loses it and starts ranting about his he got busted and unfairly accused for indecent exposure. This is a really great scene. Both funny and tragic. Jimmy is sick of ABQ, of his job.

He falls of the wagon, goes back to Chicago and becomes Slippin Jummy. Hima nd Marco pull a bunch of ingenious scams for a full week, one of them involving Jimmy pretending to be Kevin Costner. Another great montage!

But Jimmy needs to get back to ABQ, his clients need him. Him and Marco decide to do one more scam, the famous Rolex trick, which this time goes sour as Marco actually dies from a heart attack. The scene is strangely moving.

At Marco's funeral Jimmy gets a call from Kim saying that HHM is working on his case with another firm and they want him to become a pathner in their firm.

What happens then is essential.

Chuck betrayed him and Jimmy fell of the wagon a bit. But he really seemed contentious throughout that ne needed to get back to his clients who need him. He gets offered a partnership because of all the work he had done. And just when he's on his way to meet his new partners, he turns away...heads to Mike's booth and asks him why on Earth they let the 1.6 million dollars from the Kettleman's go.

Mike has a solid answer, one that fits perfectly with his own morals and how he sees the world. Jimmy doesnt have that answer for himself. But he will never miss an opportunity like that again..

Fade to black...

This is an excellent episode and indeed an excellent finale. It doesnt have a plane crash, or a drug lord with half his skulll blown off or Lilly Of The Valley. It has an ending that is unavoidable yet unexpected, and fits 100% with this show.

It is essentially the Better Call Saul version of the BB episode Grey Matter (S01E05), where Walt was given a way out as his "friends" Gretchen and Elliot offered to pay for his treatments and Walt decided to decline.

In Marco Jimmy gets a shot of what he's been working for all season. Respectability, a high profile case, partnership in a big firm. But he lets that slide, because Chuck was right, He will always be Slippin' Jimmy...

Odenkirk is first rate in this. Trying to come to terms with the betrayal, failing, trying to get things back on the rails, but ultimately changing his mind.

So season one does end with a bang, and one that I didnt see coming. No Nacho, so drug angle, simply the resolve of the main character to become less then what he could be. But at the same time free himself from the expectations that he could never fulfill anyway.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

You said Chuck was right about him last week. If Chuck hadn't been a prick, maybe he wouldn't have ended up being right. Fuck Chuck.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Jimmy, like Walt was given the chance to stay on the straight and narrow, and denied it.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Yes, but why? Would he have flourished if not held back by Chuck in secret and then wounded by his betrayal?

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Because Jimmy will always be Slippin' Jimmy.

Even before the betrayed by Chuck he did some questionable things. Taking a bribe from the Kettlemans, the scam with the twins, the phony rescue.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Yeah, but it's silly to think that who we are can't be affected or changed by how the people we care about view and treat us, either by encouraging us to become more, or telling us we never will.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I agree with that.

But I don't blame others for the many mistakes i have made in my life, or the wrong paths I have taken.

Maybe you are different.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

Yes, I blame you for all my ills.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Jimmy should have gone for that partnership, despite of Chuck. Or even because of him!

[Muad'Dib 1,801]

I had completely forgotten about this

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Ha!

[Jay 37,322]

18 “Breaking Bad” Callbacks From Season 1 Of “Better Call Saul”

Definitely didn't pick up on most of those. Feel like I should have recognized the diner and nail salon

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

You didn't reconize the nail salon???

[Jay 37,322]

Nope

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Wow!

[Jay 37,322]

One thing I realized while watching the BCS finale last night was that I really like that both Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad are set in a pre-"everyone has a smartphone" era.

It was a simpler time....

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Most of the phones you see in BB are burners that get broken in half and trown out.

But I disagree those were better days.

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

I hate smartphones. I only have one because our plan doesn't even cover regular phones anymore. You should have a choice!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I love smartphones, they have really enriched life and made things easier.

Two years ago I was walking the streets of Boston never once getting lost, even though I had never been there. They are a great gift!

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

I prefer writing letters, reading maps, and almanacs/encyclopedias/libraries. I like my technology like I like my government. Supporting and improving things behind the scenes, but not spilling over into every little part of my life.

[Jay 37,322]

Oh I love smartphones, and am glad I live in a world with them. But BCS and BB have a certain charm to them for writing around them. The high tech of shows like The Fall or Homeland by comparison can get tiresome.

[KK 3,307]

I find it hard to believe people still hate smartphones...unless you're a nostalgic, you can't deny how incredibly useful they've been. Like Steef says, now any moron can get around the big cities with little problems thanks to a smartphone. Or look up something in need of urgency. It's just very convenient.

[crocodile 7,990]

Smartphones are ok. But they have one BIG weakness... battery life. They failed me on more than one occasion.

As for Better Call Saul finale, it was good. The whole show is good. I like it but don't love it. There's something missing.

Karol

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I find it hard to believe people still hate smartphones...unless you're a nostalgic, you can't deny how incredibly useful they've been. Like Steef says, now any moron can get around the big cities with little problems thanks to a smartphone. Or look up something in need of urgency. It's just very convenient.

I am not a moron!

Fuck you, you Inuit!

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

I find it hard to believe people still hate smartphones...unless you're a nostalgic, you can't deny how incredibly useful they've been. Like Steef says, now any moron can get around the big cities with little problems thanks to a smartphone. Or look up something in need of urgency. It's just very convenient.

I honestly do. I resent being more or less required to use one. My GPS car thing gives directions and checks traffic, which is about the only truly on-the-go thing I've ever needed. As for navigating unfamiliar places, well, what happened to familiarizing yourself with them before arriving? People managed for a long time before Google Maps.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

All the way from Europe?

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

The first time I went to London, I relished every minute of looking over real maps of the city to get to know my way around. And this was before smartphones were really a thing.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I remember the old London A to Z.

[Jay 37,322]

In the future smartphones will be perfect, and all adults living would have grown up using them since adolescence, and no one will have any problems. We're just in the in-between phase now when a lot of stuff is being worked out, and an older generation (and hipsters of the younger generations) are raging against them

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

In the future smartphones won't be phones, they will be us...

[Dixon Hill 4,233]

So am I a hipster because I just prefer doing things a different way? It's not to make a fucking statement.

[KK 3,307]

The first time I went to London, I relished every minute of looking over real maps of the city to get to know my way around. And this was before smartphones were really a thing.

My dad used to do the whole reading over real maps thing. I've never had to, and by the time it became a necessity to venture unfamiliar territory, Google Maps was already there.

I find it hard to believe people still hate smartphones...unless you're a nostalgic, you can't deny how incredibly useful they've been. Like Steef says, now any moron can get around the big cities with little problems thanks to a smartphone. Or look up something in need of urgency. It's just very convenient.

I am not a moron!

Fuck you, you Inuit!

I was supporting you, you Dutch dolt!

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Oh....

[KK 3,307]

In the future smartphones will be perfect, and all adults living would have grown up using them since adolescence, and no one will have any problems. We're just in the in-between phase now when a lot of stuff is being worked out, and an older generation (and hipsters of the younger generations) are raging against them

Yup. Smartphones aren't going away anytime soon. Sure, we're still working on them, but they are the future.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Awaiting Jason's review, which Ive really enjoyed in the last 10 weeks

[Jay 37,322]

Yea, and its refreshing to me watching BCS where they all have little flip phones or other little phones with greyscale screens that don't do anything more than text and make calls (and maybe play snake....)

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I remember a girl I slept with playing snake in between my erections!

[Jay 37,322]

Better Call Saul 1x10 Marco

 

After 9 straight solid episodes, a lot was resting on the 10th and final episode of the season to live up to the legacy the show has created for itself in its short run. What it delivers is a polarizing episode that some will hate and some will love.

 

The episode opens with a now-expected flashback, showing Jimmy saying goodbye to Marco, the friend he was shown running the Rolex scam with in an earlier episode, after being saved from jail-time by Chuck. Jimmy seems excited about moving to Albuquerque to work in Chuck's firm's mailroom, though is clearly tempted to stay with Marco for a beer before leaving (And if Chuck wasn't waiting in the car outside, he likely would have). The bulk of the rest of the episode will be an extended sequence set in Cicero when Jimmy is reunited with Marco, but that is bookended by sequences in the present timeline.

 

First we deal with the aftermath of the tragic Chuck/Jimmy falling out from the previous episode. Jimmy meets with Hamlin who, as it turns out, is actually a pretty decent guy. The show almost goes out of its way to show that Chuck was behind all of the resistance Jimmy has hit on his way up the lawyer chain. It was a touching moment that Jimmy had laid out such detailed instructions for taking care of Chuck, and how impressed Hamlin was that Jimmy had been doing so much for Chuck every day on top of everything else. Hamlin really respects Jimmy's work ethic, and makes sure to explicitly tell Jimmy that.

 

Next comes a hilarious scene in the bingo hall, where Jimmy loses it as a series of B balls come out. This is one of those classic Gilligan scenes that does two things simultaneously: Gives Jimmy a chance to break down somewhat after the recent heartbreak and give him a motivation to get out of town, and also reveals the backstory of what exactly the situation was that Jimmy got in trouble in Cicero that Chuck needed to bail him out of. I will never forget what a "Chicago Sunroof" is, or the way Odenkirk delivered the whole monologue. Fabulous!

 

In Cicero Jimmy reunites with Marco at the same bar he last saw him at ten years ago, and before long they are spending a week together running various scams and grifts. The entire sequence was nicely done, especially the montage part of it. The best and most honest moment is when Marco pleads with Jimmy to do one last con before he returns to his clients in ABQ. Both the honestly in admitting that he doesn't need the money, but NEEDS to do the con.... and the flat out telling to Jimmy what Jimmy has secretly known all along: That Chuck doesn't like him and will never respect him.

 

During this final scam Marco dies of a heart attack, which is a sad moment for Jimmy, and an important one. Marco had spent ten years working for the man (his brother in law's standpipe business) and being miserable, and in one week of grifting with Jimmy was happy enough to tell him "this was the greatest week of my life" as he died.

 

Returning to ABQ, Jimmy checks in on Chuck by waiting outside his house. Sadly this was the only appearance of McKean in the finale. I loved his interaction with Ernesto, and how completely different it was from Ernesto (excuse me, Ernie)'s interaction with Jimmy outside. Also loved that Chuck was possibly going to open the door and go outside to talk to Jimmy, if he hadn't driven away.

 

Jimmmy's reason for returning to ABQ - besides truly wanting to followup with his non-Sandpiper clients - is a result of a phone call from Kim (sadly her only appearance in the episode). The Sandpiper case has grown larger than HHM can handle alone, and they are bringing in another firm. Kim tells Jimmy how all the clients ask about Jimmy all the time, which was a nice moment. But the most interesting part is that this new firm wants to interview Jimmy for a partner-track position. Jimmy almost cannot believe it (his ego is about the opposite of Heisenberg's), but ultimate gets ready to meet the new firm in the federal courthouse he has been working at all season. There is a great call back here as he psyches himself up by practicing what the say as he begins to walk inside......... and then the defining moment of the entire season happens.

 

Jimmy turns around and asks Mike, who is working the parking lot booth, about the 1.6 million dollars they had in their possession a few weeks back and why they didn't split the money and run. Mike indicates for him it was simple: He agreed to do a job, did the job, and that was that. He then reminds Jimmy what he said at the time - turning the money in was the right thing to do. Jimmy says he will never make that mistake again, drives off, and our first season comes to a close.

 

It is this abrupt ending that will polarize viewers. Some will feel that this finale is not "exciting" or "action packed" enough. Some will feel that Jimmy should have stayed "good" longer before settings into his future role. Some will feel the moment doesn't ring true, because the job opportunity on the table was so good, it would be foolish for anyone to give up. And that Jimmy had finally earned something purely out of his own hard work, and not as a gimme from his brother, and he should reap the rewards.

 

I wasn't sure what to think of the ending right after I watched it, but after sleeping on it I have come to really appreciate it. I love the parallels between this moment and arguably the biggest moment in the development of Walter White. Way back in Season 1, Walter met with the founders of Grey Matter, and they offered to pay for all his cancer treatments. All his problems would have been solved forever. Instead, he CHOSE to not accept it and cook meth to pay for things instead. Jimmy is now faced with a very similar situation. Taking the job at the new firm would surely have set him on the right path to being good, and living a nice life. But would he like this life? Of course the ring on his finger, reminding him of how Marco felt about his choices, plays a part in his decision to turn around.

 

Can't wait to see what Gilligan and Gould have in store for us next year!

 

Stray thoughts

 

-Was anyone expecting one of the new firm's lawyers in the meeting Jimmy was going to to be the business man Marco and him ran the coin grift on?

 

-"Sorry I called you a pig fucker"

 

-Anybody else thing the season was just a TAD bit rushed? I feel like 10 episodes was OK for the story they told, but 12-13 would have been better. Add one more episode's worth of material before the big Jimmy/Chuck fallout, building up the characters of Kim, Chuck, and Hamlin a bit, would have enriched all that. And then adding 1-2 episodes more after Chuck's Cicero escape would have been beneficial too, I think. Have this episode end with him at the funeral, and dedicate an entire episode to showing us more about Chuck's life without Jimmy, Kim's life, have an actual in person scene with Kim and Jimmy, explain the offer more, show Jimmy returning to his clients - maybe even have Jimmy go INTO the meeting with the new firm before deciding to back away from that life. Would have enriched things, IMHO. I'm glad season 2 will be 13 episodes.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

I think the overall pacing of season one is excellent, but that Marco feels a bit crammed because they needed to get somewhere at the end of the season.

Like you I noted the parallel with Grey Matter right away. Both Jimmy and Walt are offered a way out, and choose poorly. A Gilligan staple?

Some good music again in this episode for the montage. And loved how it ended with Smoke On The Water.

I wonder, was Nachos a bit a a red herring? Having the actors name show up in every episode?

It certainly worked.

The finale is a satisfying one without actually being a cliffhanger. And totally unexpected.

[Jay 37,322]

About that:

[Michael Mando (Ignacio "Nacho" Varga)] was on the Insider Podcast for last week, and they mentioned how they planned to have him in more episodes but it didn't end up working with the story. Those podcasts are a wealth of info, like they didn't plan on having the Kettlemans' story go past one or two episodes but the actors were so great they wanted to keep writing for them, and they didn't initially plan on Chuck's betrayal but it was more like a realization by the writers based on how Michael McKean played him with such dignity and pride that, 'holy shit Chuck's been behind it all!'

Kind of amazing to discover that the whole season wasn't meticulously planned out, and what was planned was largely rewritten as the show began shooting. I'm glad I didn't know that until I had seen it all.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

That is interesting, especially since it all really does fit very well.

Better Call Saul has one of the most well sorted storylines of any show.

I wonder what season 2 will bring.

Jimmy, instead of trying to build a career based on his own terms rather then Chucks?

Clashing with Kim, more involvement with Mike?

Interesting that up to this point the title of the show is almost a misnomer, since the name Saul was only even mentioned once.

[Jay 37,322]

I am very glad they extended the Kettleman's story beyond the first couple episodes. Beyond the fact that the actors were good, everything that happened really fit organically into the story. When they first showed up again in the later half of the season, I wasn't really sure about it, but by the end of any episode they were in it always worked.

And retroactively, now that moment where Jimmy and Mike have all of the Kettleman's stolen money and decide to turn it in ends up being the most important moment in Jimmy's life, pretty much.

Great stuff.

[#SnowyVernalSpringsEternal 10,265]

Anyone wanna guess how many seasons they plan on doing?

I think 4 would probably be the maximum you can squeeze this oiut without losing the quality.

[Jay 37,322]

4 sounds about right