Better Call Saul

[Shylock]

Probably the best episode of the season, I think.  And I was also psyched when I realized the guns guy with Mike and Man Mountain was Trevor from GTA V.

[Curt McGirt]

The previews gave me no clue as to what's gonna happen, as it should be. 

 

I was a bit involved with this Brock Lesnar business on Youtube and haven't seen the previous episode (maybe the one before too) so I'm in the dark about the case overall but I caught the main parts of the ep. Mike is the man, and even though you feel bad about Jimmy you know Chuck is right. The problem is that Chuck can't see the same things we see in Jimmy... but then, he's his brother, he knows more than we do. Or has his own prejudices in that case if you want to look at it that way. Being an only child I have no knowledge of how things are between siblings, so hey.

[Joe Lucia]

There were something like four or five scenes tonight that were acted out so brilliantly. I love this show so much.

[sydneybrown]

even though you feel bad about Jimmy you know Chuck is right.

 

Chuck is right because he is determined to make sure that he is.  But if he was right, Jimmy would have taken the deal, and would have gladly walked away with the 20K up front and potentially a million later.  Jimmy finally had the chance to prove that he was worth something and his own brother basically said "you're not.."  And maybe he's not, maybe he would have screwed it up, but he's just fulfilling his own prophecy by making sure Jimmy doesn't succeed.

[(BP)]

Chuck also has to realize on some level that he's mentally ill, and Jimmy being the screwup brother comforts him. If Jimmy was successful at the firm and Chuck relapses it would destroy his idea of their dynamic, even though Jimmy has essentially already become his caregiver.

[elizium]

I have a feeling that the season is going to end with a flash forward to Saul in Omaha, seeing a news report about the Sandpiper case finally being settled after years in litigation and realizing he'll never see that money.

[A Guy Named Tracy]

Well, I guess we know why Saul/Jimmy changed his name and no longer wanted to use the surname McGill. I never would have guessed his own brother would be the one to betray him.

[J.T.]

Probably the best episode of the season, I think.  And I was also psyched when I realized the guns guy with Mike and Man Mountain was Trevor from GTA V.

 

I had a watch party and everyone lost their shit when Trevor showed up.

[Jrag]

[Technico Support]

I have reached my vote quota for the day so I will just have to post to tell you that that's awesome.

[J.T.]

I have reached my vote quota for the day so I will just have to post to tell you that that's awesome.

 

This.  Damn..

[RandomAct]

Looking back, I love the scene with Kim and Jimmy, where she desperately wants to tell Jimmy WHY he should take the deal, but couldn't. 

[sydneybrown]

I hated that scene.  I only say that because I watched it and personally thought about what I would do if I had the information she did and wanted to help him and it's almost like I wish she would have just dropped a clue or something.  She was at this point as in on it as anybody else, her revealing it would have helped both of them.  Now she's torched if she stays silent.  And he's going to hate her as much as his brother.  She cares about him.  He gave her back the biggest case she'd ever have.   But her gratitude could be that "You're about to get f'd over.  Let me spare you while..." No instead it's "Hey, just meander cluelessly and ask people what they know while they lie directly to your face."

 

She really is a terrible person for not stepping up.  How is Jimmy going to ever trust her again?

 

And if you loved the scene with Kim, would you really ever want to be married to her?  Because you know that's Jimmy's end game.

[bink_winkleman]

I think "loving the scene" is extremely different than having an opinion on how it shapes the dynamic between the characters.

 

Finally saw this last night (I usually watch Raw on Tuesdays, but, well, Mania Raw, and then I didn't get around to it Tuesday) and it was fantastic.  The show just keeps delivering on fleshing out characters in ways that make Breaking Bad even better.  Mike's line about having "done his homework" on Nacho and his goons was another touch accentuating on how reckless he must have found Walter, for instance. 

 

I know you kids with your video games were enamored with the GTA guy, but HOLY SHIT WAS THAT OTHER DUDE HUGE!  His IMDB tells me he's a former Toxie with tons of bit parts. 

 

I think Chuck was kind of right, but Jimmy really was fixing himself and had about a 60/40 chance of succeeding.  Now, though, his brother has created Saul and I think it'll come back to haunt Chuck.  But this

 

 

I have a feeling that the season is going to end with a flash forward to Saul in Omaha, seeing a news report about the Sandpiper case finally being settled after years in litigation and realizing he'll never see that money.

 

sounds fantastic.  I think Saul is going to somehow sabotage the case, though.

[Technico Support]

The stuff with Hamlin is awesome because he really is a decent guy that Jimmy just abjectly hates. Even when he tried to be a prick to Kim to cover for Chuck he couldn't do it.

 

 

That's a really great point.  In the hands of lesser writers and directors (big 4 networks), Hamlin would be a one-note Snidely Whiplash.

[RandomAct]

I hated that scene.  I only say that because I watched it and personally thought about what I would do if I had the information she did and wanted to help him and it's almost like I wish she would have just dropped a clue or something.  She was at this point as in on it as anybody else, her revealing it would have helped both of them.  Now she's torched if she stays silent.  And he's going to hate her as much as his brother.  She cares about him.  He gave her back the biggest case she'd ever have.   But her gratitude could be that "You're about to get f'd over.  Let me spare you while..." No instead it's "Hey, just meander cluelessly and ask people what they know while they lie directly to your face."

 

She really is a terrible person for not stepping up.  How is Jimmy going to ever trust her again?

 

And if you loved the scene with Kim, would you really ever want to be married to her?  Because you know that's Jimmy's end game.

 

 

I think "loving the scene" is extremely different than having an opinion on how it shapes the dynamic between the characters.

 

Finally saw this last night (I usually watch Raw on Tuesdays, but, well, Mania Raw, and then I didn't get around to it Tuesday) and it was fantastic.  The show just keeps delivering on fleshing out characters in ways that make Breaking Bad even better.  Mike's line about having "done his homework" on Nacho and his goons was another touch accentuating on how reckless he must have found Walter, for instance. 

 

I know you kids with your video games were enamored with the GTA guy, but HOLY SHIT WAS THAT OTHER DUDE HUGE!  His IMDB tells me he's a former Toxie with tons of bit parts. 

 

I think Chuck was kind of right, but Jimmy really was fixing himself and had about a 60/40 chance of succeeding.  Now, though, his brother has created Saul and I think it'll come back to haunt Chuck.  But this

 

 

I have a feeling that the season is going to end with a flash forward to Saul in Omaha, seeing a news report about the Sandpiper case finally being settled after years in litigation and realizing he'll never see that money.

 

sounds fantastic.  I think Saul is going to somehow sabotage the case, though.

Pretty much what Bink said.  I loved the scene for how it was done and portrayed.  Kim is no better than anyone else in Jimmy's life at the moment.  I think her intentions are good at times, but in the end, she's really just thinking about herself.  Do you really think there is any scenario where she would put Jimmy's well being above her career?

[Jrag]

And Saul is born.  Incredible season.

LOL at that Kevin Costner throwaway line from Breaking Bad actually being true. "I once told a woman I was Kevin Costner, and it worked because I believed it"

[The Comedian]

And so I went back and watched some Breaking Bad scenes and yes, Saul always had that pinkie ring...

[Curt McGirt]

Poor Kim. She really tried to do him a solid and he spit the bit. I wonder if this is a complete break with his brother and maybe even her. Wearing that ring, it's almost like Marco took possession of Jimmy's moral compass.

 

Smoke on the water, fire in the sky...

[Phantom Lord]

I was kinda hoping for more with how he became Saul. He had the whole world ready for the taking had he gone to the court house. He could have shown Chuck that he is just as good a lawyer if not better than him. Then he adjusts the ring and its like a damn switch. Maybe he feels guilty about letting Marco talk him into the one last score or something.

 

One thing that saddened me was Amy Davidson in such a throw away roll as the cute redhead. She should have been a bigger star after 8 Simple Rules. I mean things worked out great for Kayley Cuoco. The Kevin Costner line was so great though. I love all the nods they do to Breaking Bad.

[JimBob Skeeter]

I like that Chicago Sunroof is now part of the urban dictionary.

Honestly, this episode dragged on and on, with all the yammering and scamming, and by the end, both my wife and I were tired of it and don't see us following this show any more.  We say that now, but after the season break, we might check out the premiere and see where they are heading, but if it's all about Saul yapping incessantly, we're done.  Not that we didn't enjoy the ride up to now, tho!

[The Comedian]

Poor Kim. She really tried to do him a solid and he spit the bit. I wonder if this is a complete break with his brother and maybe even her. Wearing that ring, it's almost like Marco took possession of Jimmy's moral compass.

 

I read it as less "Marco taking possession" and more "Marco freeing him from Chuck". Go back to the "Chicago sun roof" monologue. Jimmy feels like he just wasted a decade of his life paying back Chuck for getting him out of a predicament he doesn't even think he deserved to be in. Marco chose to spend the last week of his life playing Slippin' Jimmy's sidekick again and loved every minute of it, and that made Jimmy realize that he needed to break out before he ends up dying as the unhappy shell Chuck has turned him into.

[Playa Shunna Ver 3.0]

If season 2 is all about the actual Saul transformation it will rule.  I just hope we don't jump right into full blown Saul with a running law practice.  I hope it goes slow burn, step by step here.  Slowest episode in my opinion, but i think it was necessary.  It was kind of like the cooler before the bug revelation by Jimmy at the end.  Great season, great start to the series.  

[sydneybrown]

 

One thing that saddened me was Amy Davidson in such a throw away roll as the cute redhead. She should have been a bigger star after 8 Simple Rules. I mean things worked out great for Kayley Cuoco. The Kevin Costner line was so great though. I love all the nods they do to Breaking Bad.

 

THAT'S who that was.  I saw her name in the credits and I recognized the girl but didn't put two and two together.  I always thought she was way cuter than Kayley in what little I saw of that show.

 

Kinda let down by the finale after last week's drama, but then again Breaking Bad tended to have the powerhouse episodes be right before the finish instead of the actual finish.  Felt like a filler episode where they had the last scene written but wasn't quite sure what to do with the other 40 minutes. 

 

But in all, this series has been WAY better than it has had any right to be. 

[The Comedian]

I will agree with sydney and JimBob that this was the least of the ten episodes this season. The bingo scene dragged interminably; I understand that this was probably a creative decision in order to convey Jimmy's stagnation, but I disagree with making the audience feel that stagnation as well. The Marco stuff probably would have worked better if they'd made Marco more of a best friend and less of a adulating disciple. And "coughing foreshadows death" seems like a trope Vince Gilligan should be too good to use.