Better Call Saul

[Internet War Criminal]

Can confirm this.

Can also confirm nosemouth doesn't have any idea

Nothing Walt did bothered me all thst much except killing Mike, bit Mike did mouth off and antagonize him

Reminder that Mike, while played excellently, it's also a corrupt murderous piece of shit who got what he deserved, no less than Walt or Gus or Tuco did.

 

[No0neKnows]

episode names decided

11 self explanatory
12 more pissing memes
13 he turns himself in

Reminder there's still one scene filmed with Kim smoking in the rain left.

bonus:

Spoiler

 

[AnOminous]

Reminder that Mike, while played excellently, it's also a corrupt murderous piece of shit who got what he deserved, no less than Walt or Gus or Tuco did.

Given a couple wrong turns in life, most of these characters are someone I could be. There but for the grace of God.

 

[TheHarbinger]

Reminder that Mike, while played excellently, it's also a corrupt murderous piece of shit who got what he deserved, no less than Walt or Gus or Tuco did.

Mike and Gus are the same character played two different ways. Both were involved in shady things when younger. Gus entered the cartel. Mike was a corrupt cop involved with dirty money. Both have a close person involved with them in the corruption as well. Gus has Max who was tagging along with Gus and not the brains of the operation (hence the cartel knowing he was expandable unlike Gus whom they spare). Mike has his son who was also only involved in corruption because of Mike. Both get that close person killed. With Max being killed to send a message to Gus and his growing operation that they were encroaching on cartel turf. And Mike's son being killed by paranoid cops who thought that Mike's son was going to rat on them when Mike heavily implies that his son was actually going become even more corrupt had he not been killed.

Both of them basically live for work and live alone on purpose having no real friends or family. We even see Mike and Gus turn down personal relationships. Gus with that faggot waiter. And Mike with the uppity negro from church who refused to use the mop. Sure Gus hangs around with some people from Madrigal and does corporate events. And Mike hangs around with his daughter and granddaughter. But nothing close to being normal. They live for work.

Bu the difference between them is that Gus lives for revenge. His primary motivation is that he hates Eladio, Bolsa, and the Salamancas. And wants to see them dead or suffer enormously. Mike also has personal reasons for working for the cartel but on the other side of revenge. He wants to see his daughter-in-law and granddaughter have the bests lives that they can and as much money as they can get from him to live comfortably forever. So his motivation is to make himself happy by making his remaining family happy.

Neither of it works out very well for either of them. Gus gets revenge on everyone but refuses to kill Hector because he sees Hector as no threat and can gain pleasure by watching him live as a cripple. Which ends up being his real downfall probably even more than going against Walt. Mike loses all of his money forcing him to make major mistakes also leading to Walt killing him. They both die from Walt killing them but are thinking about another person at the time completely ignoring how dangerous Walt had become. Basically Gus becoming blind from revenge yet again. And thinking more about messing with Hector than defending himself from Walt. And Mike being blinded by his granddaughter and getting her more money than worrying about Walt as well.

 

[BetterFuckChuck]

Oh my god the episode where Saul is introduced is called Better Call Saul and the episode telling it from his perspective is called Breaking Bad that's so on the nose

 

[xXx: State of the Union]

 

[IceCreamForCrow]

Apparently the title of the next episode is "Breaking Bad." Not sure what this means.

I'm just gonna be Nostradamus and predict that this episode also doesn't take place during Breaking Bad. Likely it will be about Jeff and Gene getting into shit in the fall out of there scam. Or Jeff not being able to get over it and wanting to do more.

Probably some flash backs to Walt and Jesse.

 

[StrawberryDouche]

Wtf is this Ted Beneke is a good boi and dindu nuffin? He tried to extort money out of Skyler after she saved his ass from the IRS. Him getting his neck cracked was one of the most satisfying just desserts BB served. Fuck Ted Beneke.

He hasnt killed anyone except like a spic in the desert. Chuck killed himself paranoid about his brother being the cause of all his misfortunes

His brother *was* the cause of all his misfortunes.

His brother methodically destroyed the things Chuck valued most - his reputation and sense of self, which ultimately lead to his suicide. That was so much fun, they did it again with Howard and got him murdered.

Both those people would still be alive had Jimmy and Kim not plotted to destroy them. FOR FUN.

Jesse spent a year slaving for meth nazis, and will have to live with the guilt and trauma of getting his girlfriend killed (and killing Gale). You think those are unambigous happy endings for them, like they got everything they wanted?

He also has to spend the rest of his life in hiding, always looking over his shoulder, always afraid of being apprehended. He will never be able to live freely or in peace.

 

[TheHarbinger]

His brother *was* the cause of all his misfortunes.

His brother methodically destroyed the things Chuck valued most - his reputation and sense of self, which ultimately lead to his suicide. That was so much fun, they did it again with Howard and got him murdered.

Both those people would still be alive had Jimmy and Kim not plotted to destroy them. FOR FUN.

Yeah this is something that a lot of people miss. That Jimmy and Kim repeat the same pattern of gaslighting, provoking, and attacking Howard that they did with Chuck. Even using similar means and getting a similar outcome. And after both are dead they even act oblivious and continue to malign both Chuck and Howard. By keeping the story that Chuck was insane and paranoid (but in reality he was right that Jimmy was setting him up for public failure, having people break into his house even, track down his ex-wife). And then going with Howard being a drug addict in front of his family and his legal peers. "You lived with him....so you saw him every day".

A major part of their attacks are turning close people against both Chuck and Howard. Including their ex-wives (or soon to be with Howard). But Rebecca knew Jimmy way better than most and called out Jimmy and Kim for what they did knowing that they were playing Chuck in an immoral way. Howard's wife did not know Jimmy and Kim enough to see that they were way more sinister. They turn the lawyers against them as well even in death. Everyone sees Chuck as a mental case who offed himself over nothing. And everyone sees Howard as a drug addict loser who offed himself. And then finally they destroy their names and reputation with getting HHM eliminated as a legal practice.

They both destroy HHM from the inside and out. And their animus towards HHM stems from both Howard and Chuck harassing them and lying to them first. Like Chuck and Howard lying to Jimmy about why he was not hired at HHM. "I spoke to the board Jimmy.....and we can't hire you as a lawyer". Or Howard lying to Kim about why he was punishing her so harshly or why he did not want her on Mesa Verde despite her getting the account. "You knew about the commercial.....and didn't tell me?".

 

[Punchoboe]

And their animus towards HHM stems from both Howard and Chuck harassing them and lying to them first. Like Chuck and Howard lying to Jimmy about why he was not hired at HHM. "I spoke to the board Jimmy.....and we can't hire you as a lawyer". Or Howard lying to Kim about why he was punishing her so harshly or why he did not want her on Mesa Verde despite her getting the account. "You knew about the commercial.....and didn't tell me?".

Chuck and Howard dealt with Jimmy as the problem child he was. Kim was his girlfriend and partner in crime. They could have offered Jimmy an "of counsel" legal job where he does nothing and collects a check, but he would not have accepted that.

Had HHM hired Jimmy, it would have given Kim and him carte blanche to run scams with the firm liable for his action. They handled him diplomatically to minimize the drama for the firm and the family. It didn't work, and everything got wrecked anyway.

Gilligan and Gould may not want you to read their story this way, but Howard went to his grave knowing he was right.

Both of them basically live for work and live alone on purpose having no real friends or family. We even see Mike and Gus turn down personal relationships. Gus with that faggot waiter. And Mike with the uppity negro from church who refused to use the mop. Sure Gus hangs around with some people from Madrigal and does corporate events. And Mike hangs around with his daughter and granddaughter. But nothing close to being normal. They live for work.

Every single criminal in the BB universe is out for himself. These are selfish people on a power trip, piling up the cash they will never spend.

Walt's final speech rips the mask off about him doing it for his family. Kim's final speech in the Saul timeline is the same.

Mike goes through both series telling himself he kills to give Kaylee a better life, but in the end, he leaves her alone on the playground to run from the cops.

Gus could have walked away from the cartel, built his fast food empire, and had his connections in Chile deal with Max's killers.

Even Jesse became a dealer for the lulz and had a million chances to run, only leaving after Walt died.

The entire Salamanca clan is sadistic and likes hurting and intimidating people.

Nacho only cares that his Dad is threatened. Even in the end, he has an apartment with whores that he keeps supplied with drugs; someone who hated the business would not have done this.

Except for the lawyers and family members, there is no one to sympathize with, despite what Gould and Gillian want you to do. This may be a little postmodern, but it helps to look past what the creators want you to think.

 

[tostr123]

 

[BetterFuckChuck]

“Know who really knew Jimmy? Chuck” -Howard to Kim

It seems pretty obvious that Chuck is set up to be right. Even Gilligan himself has said it before. It’s not a particularly out of the box interpretation

 

[God of Nothing]

“Know who really knew Jimmy? Chuck” -Howard to Kim

It seems pretty obvious that Chuck is set up to be right. Even Gilligan himself has said it before. It’s not a particularly out of the box interpretation

He was right. Chuck was just insanely autistic about it.

 

[Fortunato Brown]

The recast for Jeff was a disaster. Apparently the script would have been the same even with the old actor and I think that also would have been bad. Just a total change in the character. Really disappointing .

 

[TVB]

Yeah, the recast for Jeff was just unnecessary here. Honestly, it doesn't sound like a bad idea if they'd replace someone who looked and sounded like the original actor, but the new one looks and sounds nothing alike.

 

[Fortunato Brown]

Yeah, the recast for Jeff was just unnecessary here. Honestly, it doesn't sound like a bad idea if they'd replace someone who looked and sounded like the original actor, but the new one looks and sounds nothing alike.

They apparently didn't have a choice since Jeff's OG actor was working on an HBO show and they have exclusivity clauses so you can't legally work for any other show during it to decrease costs of potential reshoots. However, they definitely should have found someone who gave off more of the creepy scary vibes of original Jeff.

There was perhaps a more interesting point that a redditor made as well about the last episode that I'd be interested to see the farms discuss:

See, you've hit on exactly the right question: It's not just that the actor changed. The entire demeanor and nature of the character transformed in a most radical way. Gene had Jeff overmatched this episode from minute one. We remember the Jeff of yore as a confident, even cocky, guy who is inherently threatening, despite his dimwits, thanks to the information he holds over Gene's head. Then, here, Jeff is instantly cowed, enticed and enlisted as a partner in crime in just seconds of screen time. So, the question becomes: Why did they change Jeff's character, not just the actor portraying him? I think the answer is fairly obvious, but you gotta follow the thread a bit. First, Jeff in S4/S5 is a threat, and threats are storytelling gold. Drama is tension and conflict. That's "Screenwriting 101"-type stuff. So, you don't drain all the tension out of a story, after going out of your way to create it in the first place, unless you've gotta really good reason to do so. For screenwriters of this caliber, there's simply no way this is an oversight. They did it knowingly. Now: What did they gain from doing it? How did neutering Jeff from the moment he appeared on screen this season change the story? Well, the show is about Jimmy, and this put Jimmy back in the driver's seat. It brought Jimmy back to the "clever grifter who can get the best of anyone" role we'd reveled in back before the cartel and grim death. And this shift in plot and power dynamics accompanied an equally seismic shift in the show's tone - a tonal U-turn back to S1/S2, worthy of Kim on D-Day. The writers could've renewed the conflict with Jeff, stoked it, brought it to a head, but instead they chose to go light tone and low tension. The greatest source of conflict in the episode came not from Jeff, but the security guard! We abruptly returned to the lighthearted, mischievous Jimmy of old, but one who ultimately rejected reverting to full Saul. And I think that's the pay off. If we retroactively reconstruct this, I think it's clear the writers wanted Jimmy to begin the journey to break free from Gene and take the first steps towards returning to "himself" - i.e. the early seasons Jimmy, but pre-Saul. If he'd spent the episode breaking out every ruthless trick in the book to cut down Jeff, then his rejecting the Saul clothing at the end indicates he returned to those tactics when threatened, but doesn't want to embrace them permanently. By returning first to quintessential Jimmy, then having him reject Saul-type clothes, it makes an entirely different statement - "No, I'm not Gene. But I'm not Saul, either. I'm stickin' with goodhearted Slippin' Jimmy. That's who I am." To get there, though, you can have Gene locked in combat with Jeff the whole episode. You have to erase basically the whole essence of the story they'd setup for Jeff, short of simply pretending the thing never happened.

Basically, what they planned for Jimmy vs Jeff changed totally from maybe initial ideas or intentions. The breaking bad team would also historically write themselves into near corners (Walter and the machine gun which they had no idea what he'd do with it) and then brilliantly write a solution that feels like it was intended all along. In here, this is the first writing failure I've seen in terms of character and momentum. The show was flawless until now. Hopefully the last three episodes can catch up some of that momentum.

 

[DeadwastePrime]

However, they definitely should have found someone who gave off more of the creepy scary vibes of original Jeff.

they shouldve hired a black guy it wouldve been better

 

[UnKillFill]

They should have had Jeff just be played by an entirely different actor every scene he shows up for (even in the same episodes) and have nobody comment on it in universe.

 

[Norbert the Tiger]

“Know who really knew Jimmy? Chuck” -Howard to Kim

It seems pretty obvious that Chuck is set up to be right. Even Gilligan himself has said it before. It’s not a particularly out of the box interpretation

Except it is shown that Chuck was not right about Jim. Chuck thought Jimmy was taking money out of the till. That is at best a half truth. The flashback with the "wolves and sheeps, kid, figure out which one you are going to be" indicates the real cause of the family's business concern was the do-goody father with the half ass smile on his face.
Btw, I don't blame HHM for not hiring Jimmy, but mostly because of the barely accredited law school. Is that correspondence school even accredited?

On another matter, I rewatched Nippy, and am now convinced that Jim/Gene is not going to get away with it. The way Marion (Carol Burnett) brings up how Jeff fell in the wrong crowd in Albuquerque, how she tells Gene "you are a good influence on Jeffy" and the look she has on her face when she asks about Nippy all indicate to me she either knows what is going or will very soon find out. If she knows about Albquerque, she knows about Heisenberg. And if she does not know about Saul Goodman, she soon will.

Beyond that, the blackie department store manager seems very astute (someone has to be on right end of the bell curve). Quite crucially, the scene where she calls Gene he says "Steve Dispatch." Then a Cinnabon worker "everything ok, Gene." The show does not show us that blackie overhears, but it stands to reason. Even if not, I suspect the mall manager will unravel things before they erase the tapes. The Cinnabon employee blowing his spot will likely play a role but even if not, I expect that.

 

[TheHarbinger]

Except it is shown that Chuck was not right about Jim. Chuck thought Jimmy was taking money out of the till. That is at best a half truth. The flashback with the "wolves and sheeps, kid, figure out which one you are going to be" indicates the real cause of the family's business concern was the do-goody father with the half ass smile on his face.
Btw, I don't blame HHM for not hiring Jimmy, but mostly because of the barely accredited law school. Is that correspondence school even accredited?

If Chuck had supported Jimmy he could have been a decent honest lawyer. Jimmy working stuff with the elderly was fine. All they had to do was fold the Sandpiper case into HHM and bring Jimmy on as secondary with someone like Chuck or Howard leading and showing Jimmy the ropes. Instead both Chuck and Howard sabotage Jimmy behind his back and conspire to steal the case from him. Chuck even uses a phone contradicting his illness to electricity to backstab Jimmy. Howard did not hire Jimmy for one reason.....Chuck. Had nothing to do with his law school. Howard even admits as much to Jimmy. He takes the Sandpiper case from Jimmy as well because of Chuck.

Chuck also lies about what their mother's last words were. He was just sick his entire adult life. And eventually his ex-wife and Jimmy abandon him. Even Howard and all of his friends at HHM no longer visit him after his public meltdown. No one even does a wellness check on Chuck. His ex-wife Rebecca leaves Chuck after his breakdown because even she was tired of him.

On another matter, I rewatched Nippy, and am now convinced that Jim/Gene is not going to get away with it.

Jesse gets away to another state with a new identity but some battle scars but ultimately it is implied he lives out the rest of his life fine. Walt takes on a new identity, but returns to his old name and home instead of fleeing, and dies in one last insane rampage of death (knowing his cancer will kill him anyways). Jimmy is under a new identity as well. All three main characters having used the vacuum repair service. The only two relatively unique endings left would be Jimmy having to live as Gene forever in his own personal prison. And never being Jimmy or Saul again. Or being exposed as Saul Goodman and having to turn himself in for arrest or just being arrested. And going to prison for a long time.

I believe that someone, likely new retard version of Jeff the cab driver, will hang up posters throughout the mall saying "FBI and DEA's most wanted. Saul Goodman. $5million Reward All Information". And Jimmy will have no choice but to either waste his diamonds on one last vacuum identity. Or turn himself in. And possibly the horribly cliche and predictable ending of his lawyer being Kim and then color returning to his life will be used.