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BETTER CALL SAUL


Jay

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6 hours ago, Anthony said:

 

I still wish we could have seen more moments where we saw Jimmy crossing these lines for the first time. That 6.09 time jump still hurts.

 

Agreed - feels like puzzle pieces are still missing but the scene with Kim and the divorce documents provided much needed closure. Guess we'll have to wait and see what unfolds in the finale.

 

It's fitting in a way. The unresolved trauma from Jimmy's past fuelled the embers that birthed Saul Goodman. Maybe it's right that viewers don't receive satisfying closure to Jimmy's trail of destruction, if Jimmy himself won't pay penance for his sins. 

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Kelley’s first question of this week’s podcast, interrupting someone else’s, is if Kim is on the run or in hiding in Florida. Vince gently reminds her that Kim is still using her own name, but he and Peter also give insightful responses about Kim’s mindset.

 

These have been weekly reminders of why I just listened to the commentaries the last few seasons. The Q&A during the midseason break was great, though.

 

EDIT: I will add that I once saw her at one of JW’s Hollywood Bowl shows, so she’s not all bad. 

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3 hours ago, SpaceCoyote said:

Kelley’s first question of this week’s podcast, interrupting someone else’s, is if Kim is on the run or in hiding in Florida. Vince gently reminds her that Kim is still using her own name, but he and Peter also give insightful responses about Kim’s mindset.

 

These have been weekly reminders of why I just listened to the commentaries the last few seasons. The Q&A during the midseason break was great, though.

 

EDIT: I will add that I once saw her at one of JW’s Hollywood Bowl shows, so she’s not all bad. 

 

She also asked if last week's episode was the first time an episode led directly into the next one (with Gene opening the cancer guy's door). That was an insane question to ask from someone following the show. Either Vince or Peter reminded her even in this season with Lalo turning up to Kim's apartment led directly into the next episode.

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I pulled up her filmography, and she even edited at least two examples - the very first episode leading right into the second (Tuco pulling Jimmy into his abuela's house), and the penultimate episode of season two leading right into the season finale (Jimmy entering the copy shop after seeing Chuck pass out).

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Vince Gilligan Prepping New Series; ‘Better Call Saul’ Followup About To Hit TV Marketplace With A Bang

https://deadline.com/2022/08/vince-gilligan-new-drama-series-genre-better-call-saul-followup-x-files-1235089196/

 

Quote

 

...Once again, for his next drama project he is going with a wholly original idea. No one would comment, but there is a lot of anticipation in the marketplace for the pitch, which is expected to come out in the next couple of weeks, with at least 8-9 networks and platforms lined up to hear it.

 

I hear the new project, which comes from Sony Pictures TV where Gilligan has been under an overall deal for a long time, is a departure from the world of drugs and crime he explored in Breaking Bad and its prequel, Better Call Saul, whose series finale airs Aug 15. Word is that the new show harkens back to Gilligan’s tenure on The X-Files. But don’t expect a sci-fi drama — when he was a writer-producer on The X-Files, Gilligan was known for focusing more on the human condition in his episodes, which is something he is said to also be doing in his new series, exploring similar themes of bending reality while holding a mirror to humanity.

 

Described as a blended, grounded genre drama, the new series also is being compared to The Twilight Zone. It is said to be set in our world while putting a tweak on it, focusing on people and exploring the human condition in an unexpected, surprising way.

 

Thought-provoking but not a morality tale, the new show is expected to carry the signature Gilligan tone that infuses drama with humor.

 

...I hear it is envisioned to play over a couple of seasons with an overreaching story arc.

 

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I'm thankful BCS was made, but I usually wish creative teams of movies and TV shows I enjoy would join reteam for new, original projects instead of sequels/prequels, so that would be great with me. Edgar Wright's Cornetto trilogy is the perfect example.

 

It sounds like Peter Gould is going to develop something of his own, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Tom Schnauz come onboard at the very least. Probably some of the producers and below-the-line people like costumers, editors, composer, etc. as well. Many of the Breaking Bad writers who didn't migrate to Saul have either struck out or not been up to much since, so maybe some of them will return.

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Almost killing the cancer patient and the old woman was pretty harsh for the Jimmy we saw during all those years... But he has been ruthless before on the show.

 

Remember episode 4x06 Piñata, when he threatened to turn those teenagers into, well, piñatas? Both back then and now, he could be threatening when feeling in danger.

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Whenever I rewatch BCS and see all the times Kim kicked ass as a lawyer, it'll be really sad knowing how she will spend years in a job where that talent is totally wasted. 

I see a parallel with Walter in terms of that wasted talent. Walt's chemistry knowledge meant he was massively overqualified for a teacher just as Kim's skill and intelligence is totally wasted as a brochure writer. They are both capable of achieving so much more than those jobs. 

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Spoiler

 

This season 6 teaser from a while back is interesting. Looks like Gene is heading to Albuquerque in the next episode? (Note for example the "Albuquerque Sane Collaborative" flyer.) From the background noise and the flyers ("Come watch the district attorneys and the public defenders slug it out for a great cause.") I guess this is Bernalillo County Courthouse.

 

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1 hour ago, Jilal said:
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This season 6 teaser from a while back is interesting. Looks like Gene is heading to Albuquerque in the next episode? (Note for example the "Albuquerque Sane Collaborative" flyer.) From the background noise and the flyers ("Come watch the district attorneys and the public defenders slug it out for a great cause.") I guess this is Bernalillo County Courthouse.

 


I’m pretty sure that this footage is purely promotional, not something from the actual show. It’s something both shows have done in the past. But we’ll see in a few days!  

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2 minutes ago, SpaceCoyote said:


I’m pretty sure that this footage is purely promotional, not something from the actual show. It’s something both shows have done in the past. But we’ll see in a few days! 

 

That's something I was wondering about but didn't mention. Thanks for confirming that it's been done in the past. Could you give any concrete examples off the top of your head?

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The greatest and best-known example is the teaser for Breaking Bad’s final season that was all landscape and location footage, with Cranston reciting Ozymandias.

 

Better Call Saul had one during the midseason break showing the candle, now splattered in blood, flickering in Jimmy and Kim’s apartment (which I don’t think is from 6x07 or 6x08?), with audio of Kim delivering her oath of attorney, which, like the Ozymandias one, seemed to be recorded just for the teaser. There was also this one, which revealed the season five release date, and is probably the best comparison.

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1 hour ago, SpaceCoyote said:

 

That's a good example! I think you're right that the footage was shot specifically for the purpose of the teaser, but it still might be hinting at what's going to happen next.

 

Interesting though how the wanted poster mentions his "Saul Goodman" alias, but not his "Gene Takavic" one. Maybe the teaser simply symbolizes Gene's initial success in eluding the FBI.

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Better Call Saul 6x12 Waterworks

 

Again I liked the flashbacks, primarily because directly continued on from the main BCS storyline instead of adding context to Breaking Bad events and situations.

 

It was interesting to learn how quickly Jimmy was in full Saul mode after Kim left (this can't be any more than 6 months later), and how he responds to the pain he is feeling from her leaving him: Making her wait an hour, acting nonchalant about the whole thing, calling Francesca sweet-cheeks in front of her, etc.  But I liked that we saw him checking himself out in the mirror before she comes in (telling us that he does still care), and I also liked that it was clear she saw through everything he was doing without directly stating such (but you can tell from Seehorn's acting).  

 

Her scene with Jesse was fine.  I wish it went a little deeper into things, like when he asked her if he was a good lawyer, she had said something more along the lines of "if you're going to break the law, he'll know the best way to keep you out of jail" or something like that instead of just "when I knew him, he was".  Although even that line shows that she feels like she doesn't even know him any more, he's changed so much.

 

It was funny seeing 40something Aaron Paul playing a teenager, but for me they kind of pulled it off, since the large clothing and mist from the rain helps.  Speaking of that, It was awesome how she leaves Saul's bright, colorful office and the rain acts as like a barrier into the black and white world, since everything you can see through the rain is completely grey.  I love that when she runs out into the rain, the next time we see her (chronologically) is in the b&w 2010 timeline!

Speaking of that, her scenes in that timeline were amazing.  I loved that both her and Jimmy effectively did the same thing after the events of 2004 - shed their old personalities and found new ones to distract them from what happened.  Jimmy obviously leans into an outgoing personality that lets him fill up his days with constant activity, while she goes the opposite route, finding the most boring job and live imaginable, where she can't screw anything up.  She doesn't let herself make any decisions any more (not about miracle whip vs mayo, not about ice cream flavors, nothing) because the last major decision she made got an innocent man not only killed, but his reputation tarnished forever and his entire law firm shut down.

 

I love the time the episode took to show us Kim's life - this 10 minutes or probably less tells us everything you need to know about her entire six years.  And I love that the phone call from Jimmy changes everything.  It wasn't until then that I realized everyone involved with the whole incident - Lalo, Mike, Gus - were all dead, and she would have known all that from the news - and she would have also learned that Jimmy got mixed up in later shenanigans Gus and Mike got up to with Walter White.  Kind of a shame we will likely never get to see her learn all that, but regardless, the phone call with Jimmy is still super compelling.  She can barely bring herself to speak at all, and when she does she can barely say anything beyond the fact that he should turn himself in.

 

And I love that her next course of action is to go back to Albuquerque and write out and affidavit confessing what she knows about Hamlin's death, and then share that affidavit with Cheryl.  Much liker her breaking up with Jimmy, Kim always does things that are completely understandable based on what we know about her character, yet I still never see them coming ahead of time.  I also like that it is left ambiguous about whether or not the DA will even prosecute the case, which doesn't really matter - what matters is Kim admitted to everything, and told JImmy to do the same.  I liked the very interesting wrinkle that she lied to Cheryl about knowing if Jimmy is alive or not.

 

Her final scene was incredible - Kim's breakdown on the bus was the emotional climax to the Howard scam, and her and Jimmy's entire relationship, I didn't know I needed.  Seehorn's acting was so incredible, she better finally get the Emmy love she deserves.  I am pretty sure we'll see Kim again next week, but if we don't, they've wrapped up her storyline satisfactorily here.

 

Meanwhile, Gene's storyline was pretty interesting.  We've known he was hiding as Gene because of the events of Breaking Bad, he did one scam with Jeff to get him off his back, and then he started scamming bankers after the phone call with Kim because he's like like an alcoholic with scams, he can't help himself, it's how he's coping with the events of his life.  But here in cancer guy's house, we keep learning just how far he's willing to go.  He gets all the pictures he needs and could walk out the door... but decides to go upstairs.  Upstairs he doesn't just take more stuff, he starts drinking his booze.  The guy sits on the stairs, he doesn't just wait it out.... he grab's the man's own dead dog's ashes in an urn to whack him on the head, potentially kliling him, to get out.  We're leaning, I'd say, he basically wants to get caught - he's taking bigger and bigger - and more important more and more unnecessary - risks.

 

The way he gets out of the house and avoids getting caught was pretty funny - Jeff crashing his taxi was another moment I didn't see coming.  I also enjoyed this story they had clearly worked out ahead of time if one of them got caught, with him being Jeff's father, lol.  It was smart of him to have Marion be the one to bail him out, and you have to wonder what he would do with his life if that just worked.  Would he continue to try to scam people there in Omaha? Would Jeff want to keep working with him?  Would Jeff turn him in?

We'll never know, because of course instead Marion figures out who Gene is.  Holy cow, that final scene was something else.  I loved that he gave one beat of "that's not me", before turning pretty quickly into intimidation mode; That brief period when he was holding the telephone cord like a choke wire was something else.  I liked that sanity prevailed, and he didn't do anything to this poor old lady - I'd like to think his previous experience with elder care and Irene in particular played a part here.

 

Well, now I really wonder what he is going to do.  I'd guess he races home, grabs his shoebox of personal items (and diamonds) and takes off....... but then what?  Where is he gonna go?  The only choices I can think of are back to Albuquerque, or to Florida.  He's not going to Cicero I don't think.  I can't wait to see what happens.

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What's strange about these final episodes - and this may be the reason they feel "off" to me - is that there's no protagonist or antagonist. Stuff is just happening but I'm not rooting for or against anyone.

 

By the end of Breaking Bad, Walt was despicable, but we were still rooting for him to win against the nazis and rescue Jesse. 

 

I don't think this ambigous middleground is particularly clever or satisfying - it's just bizarre. I'm not invested. I don't really care what happens next week. What a sad state of affairs.

 

It really is looking like the way I'm going to watch this show in future is 1.01 - 5.10, 6.10, then 6.01 - 6.09. It's really disappointing that the gap between BCS and BB hasn't been filled in more.

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Great write-up @Jay, I also agree with the reading that Gene's recklessness implies that he wants to get caught; it's not exactly within his wheelhouse to turn himself in so he's kind of taking Kim's advice but the only way he knows how to. He knows punishment is in the horizon, but by taking things further and further he's intentionally making the punishment more severe for himself because he knows he deserves it. It's also very much like a secretive drug/alcohol abuser acting more reckless as a cry for help.

 

8 hours ago, Jay said:

We'll never know, because of course instead Marion figures out who Gene is.  Holy cow, that final scene was something else.  I loved that he gave one beat of "that's not me", before turning pretty quickly into intimidation mode; That brief period when he was holding the telephone cord like a choke wire was something else.  I liked that sanity prevailed, and he didn't do anything to this poor old lady - I'd like to think his previous experience with elder care and Irene in particular played a part here.

 

Thanks for pointing out his line "that's not me"; I just realised that is a great way to read Gene's expression just after Marion says "I trusted you" and he realises the weight of what he's doing. The horror that passes his face in that moment really sells the internal struggle that we're watching - who is this man, and who does he see himself as? After Jimmy, after Saul, after Gene, who do we have left? Huge shoutout to Carol Burnett for turning in a heartbreaking performance this week. It's phenomenal to watch these two comic giants, known for their wit and warmth, show off their dramatic chops.

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Indeed! 

 

Anyone else just have idea whatsoever what the finale is gonna be about? 

 

I'm trying to remember how I felt after Breaking Bad's penultimate episode ended, with him leaving the bar in New Hampshire as the BB theme music played. 

 

I guess at least then, we at least  had the machine gun tease we hadn't caught up to yet. Here, we got nothing. 

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3 hours ago, Jay said:

I'm trying to remember how I felt after Breaking Bad's penultimate episode ended, with him leaving the bar in New Hampshire as the BB theme music played.

 

Pumped. Excited.

 

3 hours ago, Jay said:

Here, we got nothing. 

 

And I feel totally indifferent to watching it or not. Surely not what you want for the finale of a show.

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Based on my reaction to the previous two episodes, I'm going to make the assumption that I'm not going to enjoy the finale.

 

But as I've said, we've already had 10 near perfect episodes this season that tell a complete story. I've been thinking about how I might rewatch this show in future but tighten the last season up slightly to account for ignoring the final 3 episodes.

 

I think it's achievable with 2 relatively simple changes. I may actually make these edits once the blu-rays are available:

 

1.) Make Nippy the first episode of season 6. It avoids subverting expectations about when Gene will appear, and tells a complete isolated Gene story, which also wraps up all the previous black and white teasers. It makes the conclusion to the Gene storyline the "one last hurrah" heist, with him hanging up the Saul shirt and tie at the end for good. He's confined to his miserable life as Gene.

 

2.) Swap the two scenes showing Saul's house from Wine And Roses and Fun And Games around. So open Wine And Roses (now 6.02) with him waking up in bed with the prostitute and going through his morning routine. It establishes the house and gets you into the "Saul Goodman is almost upon us" mindset. Then, when you watch Fun And Games, it will cut from Kim and Jimmy's breakup to the house-clearing scene. There are all the nods and easter eggs to events and items from throughout the show, the melancholy Mancini music, and the show ending on the shot of the Zafiro Añejo bottle cap in the gutter. A near perfect ending as far as I'm concerned.

 

I also thought about what if the Point And Shoot teaser with Howard's car on the beach was the Wine And Roses teaser, but while that may be cool, the house clearing scene wouldn't fit as well in Point And Shoot.

 

 

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I'm not expecting a finale even remotely comparable to "Felina" (not referring to quality), except for maybe the great Walt/Skyler scene, where Walt finally cuts the bullshit and is honest with both Skyler and himself. I could see an ending that is basically all that - quiet, revealing conversations between characters - with none of the death or danger that gave Breaking Bad's ending its fireworks (I don't think our guy's going to die). I'd like to believe that after 50 years, Jimmy/Saul/Gene is going to stop constructing Russian doll identities to escape his thoughts and feelings, and finally look inward at why he is the way he is, and why he's done the things he's done. Not just the major ones, like ruining Howard's life, aiding and abetting Walt, and almost killing two people - everything going back to stealing from his father's store and running scams in Chicago. In contrast to a machine gun massacre, the most "exciting" thing that happens here could be that Jimmy/Saul/Gene gives himself up and goes to prison. Maybe, instead of creating yet another identity, he sheds his old ones ("Saul Gone"), and we get to see what's underneath?

 

All that being said, come Monday night I’m going to set aside any predictions or expectations and let the finale be what it is.

 

The episode is expected to be around 67 minutes (from 98 minutes with commercials), which would make it the longest of either show (Breaking Bad: 58mins ["Pilot] / Better Call Saul: 60mins ["Winner" and "Something Unforgivable"]). I'm curious if there's anything in particular behind its considerable length, like a time jump, or if it's just that Gould's been given the leeway to cook this thing low and slow.

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After season 3, only the 2 Lalo visits to Sauls apartment were top notch stuff. There were some great scenes here and there but overall I think there was a significant drop in quality after the trial episode, where the series peaked.

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On 12/08/2022 at 10:00 PM, Jay said:

...when he asked her if he was a good lawyer, she had said something more along the lines of "if you're going to break the law, he'll know the best way to keep you out of jail" or something like that...

 

That would defeat the real purpose of the exchange, I think. What Jesse asks, literally, is "this guy: any good?", so her response serves one purpose for Jesse but a different one for the viewer. It's the final cadence of the (pre-Gene) Kim/Jimmy relationship.

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Is this a good time to discuss the fact that during it's entire run I haven't really gotten the fuss about this show? I've seen it all, but it has been a total bore for me.

 

"Then why waste so much time watching it???"

 

Because I loved Breaking Bad and figured this show had an important reason to exist. I just don't feel like it's justified its existence. 

 

Everyone here seems a lot more down on it now that we're near the end so maybe others are coming around to the same thing?

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It more than justifies its existence. We've had 2 "bad" episodes in the entire run (and even then, not even all of us here agree on that.) I'd go as far as saying I think I enjoy this show more than Breaking Bad.

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4 hours ago, crumbs said:

Anyone else oddly flat going into the finale?

 

Not me. It's always difficult to end on a high, certainly, and I'm not going into this with naively high expectations, but Better Call Saul has been a great series and is as good now as it's always been. I'm very eager to see how they finish it off.

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It's really hitting me this morning! Been following this universe since the summer of 2010, and it might be over for good in about 12 hours. Crazy to think of what all has transpired in both my life and the world at large since then (there were only two years between 2008 and 2022 where we didn't get more!). Got the BCS soundtrack going at the office.

 

I don't think there's a bad episode between Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul, and I can't see that changing tonight. Even if the finale underwhelms, this has been the superior show for me (and that is no slight towards Breaking Bad).

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Enjoyed re-reading this old interview with Vince Gilligan from days after the series finale of Breaking Bad aired. It's so interesting to go back a decade and see him resigned to never topping that show as he plans his next move (which, as this mentions, wasn't meant to be Better Call Saul, which he only intended to help Peter Gould get off the ground). He says something about cracking the ending of Breaking Bad that will probably apply here: "What we realized is that we wanted to satisfy the viewers more than we wanted to surprise them." He was also very confident - "for the first time in my career," he jokes - about the how that finale would be received.

 

There's also a recent interview with Peter Gould where he says this about the endings of both shows:

 

Quote

What we realized was, this is a very different show from Breaking Bad. And it has a very different ending. [In the final episodes,] the show takes some turns that I don’t think anyone’s expecting, that I think are great and organic. But I have no idea … hopefully, the world will love it as much as we do.

 

...Obviously, we want people to love the show. The reality is, you can never please everybody. And I think the thing that I’m most proud of is that both shows have integrity. And we’re not wildly changing it because we’re trying to figure out what the audience thinks and what they’re expecting; we’re not playing a game like that. We’re trying to finish telling the story in the most organic, satisfying way we can. The best thing would be if people loved it.

 

Also, this particular ending, I think it’s going to cause some discussion, and a lot of thinking. In my perfect world, you keep writing the story of the characters in your own head. These characters live in the minds of the audience after the show is over. And that’s the ultimate compliment and that’s something that Breaking Bad definitely had; you still see people reference all the Breaking Bad characters, even in just casual conversation or in memes. And that’s the ultimate compliment: if the characters live beyond the story in the hearts and minds of the audience.

 

There's also a fun interview with Carol Burnett about her time filming BCS.

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So here are my thoughts going into the finale

 

Breaking Bad was a great 63 episode show.

 

El Camino was a great followup to give Jesse a nice ending.

 

If you only consider up through the first 10 episodes of Season 6, then Better Call Saul was a great 60 episode show of six 10-episode seasons with a great main story:

  • Gus got more background on how he got from being a minor player to taking over the area he has at the start of BB
  • Mike got an interesting background about his time in Philly and his son, and the story that got him from a little corrupt to empty inside and working for Gus.  The insight into his moral code was fascinating and the numerous montages of him doing various tasks were awesome every time
  • Nacho had a nice "the cartel guy who wants to get out, but has a tragic ending trying to" character arc
  • Lalo was a villain for the ages, just fantastic
  • Hamlin was a good foil for the heroes of the story while not actually being a bad guy at all, which is a hard line to walk
  • Chuck was another great foil to our hero, with tragic ending.  McKean was fantastic throughout
  • Kim is a great character that was extremely well-acted from start to finish; The brief insights into her childhood and the final explanations for all her actions through the series explain a lot but still leave you thinking she could star in her own spinoff show.  Her reasons for leaving Jimmy make total sense and you are left wondering what she does with her life after everything goes down the way it does.
  • And that leaves Jimmy, who was turned from a funny side-character in BB to a fantastic, well-defined, fleshed out, nuanced character.  The insight into his life before either show - the way his father ran the store, the way his brother treated him when he was young, scamming with Marco, getting into legal trouble that Chuck gets him out of, deciding to put him self through law school in secret only for Chuck to tell Hamlin not to hire him, was great, and then the events of the main story affect him in fascinating ways.  Chuck's death and his near-death experience in the desert among other things getting pushed down and never talked about, and not being able to stand up to Kim and tell her scamming Hamlin is a bad idea informs so much of why certain things happen the way they do, and the way Kim leaves is the final bit of interesting story that completely sets up who he is in Breaking Bad in a way you never could have predicted from Breaking Bad alone.

On top of that main story, the flash-forwards to his life as Gene in hiding after the events of BB is a cool coda, and it nicely ends with him having to do a scam to get a guy who recognized him off his back, and then he thinks about continuing, but hangs up some Saul-type clothing letting the audience decide if he'll never return to that life, or just won't in that particular moment.

 

So far, so good all around, no complaints at all (especially if Nippy is watched before Wine and Roses instead of after Fun and Games). 

 

In fact, I feel like if those 10 episodes is all we got this year, I'd be completely fine with one more, seventh season, of 10 more episodes, actually.  There's a lot of ground left to cover after this main story:

  1. More of the details and nuance that went into getting from the Jimmy that just lost Kim, to the BB-era Saul
  2. Like, not just her own personality, but also how he gets to the point where he's OK suggesting the murder of innocents
  3. How does he get that mansion and when, does he like it there or is he miserable, what's the story with all the stuff in it?  Like I want to see his face when he finds the tequila stopper in the condo.  Speaking of the condo, it was Kim's did she sell it? Kick him out?
  4. There should have been a longer time still operating as "Saul Goodman and Associates", I wanted to see him figure out the "Better Call Saul' catchphrase , film his early commercials, eventually change the sign
  5. I wanted to see the early cases that make him notorious among criminals, more-so than being Lalo's lawyer.  I want a montage of the word spreading and the business growing
  6. I want more of Francesca's slow dissent into putting up with all his schtick
  7. I'd take more of Gus setting up the pieces - finishing the lab, working with Gail and Lydia, keeping the cartel off his back.  
  8. I'd take more of Mike being OK with everything Gus asks, admittedly there's not that much left to show here
  9. I'd like to learn more about Sandpiper - how quickly the case got settled, how much money they got, how it was doled out, how it affected the residents of the nursing homes, etc.  How Jimmy and Kim separately reacted to getting the money
  10. I'd like to learn more about HHM, how it fell apart, where the people went, how Cheryl handled it

And on top of all that, the story of Kim could be told slowly throughout all this, instead of compacted into 15 minutes of one episode.  You could see her meet the boyfriend, struggle with the new life, being temped by an easy scam and not doing it, etc.  You could see her learn on the news that Gus Fring was found dead, later see on the news about Walter and how Jimmy is a wanted man, etc.  Maybe a detective figures out her connection to him and eventually comes to ask questions, etc etc.

 

And on top of ALL that, we could get the big Gene timeline wrap-up.  Maybe they still do a similar story of Gene calling Francesca for an update and hearing Kim called, calling her and flipping out causing him to do super risky scams and not care of he gets caught.  We can still see Kim admit to her crimes and breakdown on the bus.  But all this stuff would all be more developed and detailed instead of the two-episode version we got.


At this point, I feel like this idea would sit better with me than the final 3 episodes we are getting.  Because the first 2 episodes of the final 3 were so far away from what I expected I am still having a hard time reconciling with them.  I thought we'd get so much more BB-era Saul and we got so little.  I thought they had a grand plan for the Gene timeline but so far it's just scams that take up a huge amount of runtime and him reverting to his old ways just even more-so than before.  And a lot of time spend on new characters that aren't as endearing as the ones we spent 60 episodes following.

 

REGARDLESS,


I am going into tonight with a completely open mind and and open to being completely blown away by the storytelling making me realize their plan was better than mine without a shadow of a doubt.


We'll see in 5 hours!

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OK, they got me, that was a good ending. 

 

Whether we needed hours of Jeffy, Marion, security guards eating cinnamon rolls, and all bankers getting scammed is another story.

 

But this was a nice coda to Breaking Bad, and a nice ending for Jimmy McGill. 

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