Better Call Saul - New TV Series 2014

[troutman]

I hope Chuck stays around - McKean is such a great actor and Chuck is an awesome character. Talk after the show was that he meant for Ernesto to hear the tape. I did not think of it that way.

AMC is selling mugs with Mike's "Don't" message on there.



I thought Mike was being led to Los Pollos Hermanos, but maybe it is too soon for that reveal.

Jimmy is showing signs of becoming Saul - when he threatened to take out the military man in his office.

Interesting that Gene would turn in the shoplifter, then try to help him.

[calumniate]

Originally Posted by troutman

I hope Chuck stays around - McKean is such a great actor and Chuck is an awesome character. Talk after the show was that he meant for Ernesto to hear the tape. I did not think of it that way.

AMC is selling mugs with Mike's "Don't" message on there.



I thought Mike was being led to Los Pollos Hermanos, but maybe it is too soon for that reveal.

Jimmy is showing signs of becoming Saul - when he threatened to take out the military man in his office.

Interesting that Gene would turn in the shoplifter, then try to help him.

Nice, haha! Without reading up on many theories, maybe the 'don't' thing is because Gus still values the relationship with old man. Mike and Gus are likely to meet soon I imagine

[Yamer]

The smile Chuck gave as Earnesto left showed me he wanted him to hear the tape. Not sure why yet.

I thought for sure he would let Kim hear the tape. Maybe that's still coming.

I didn't find that to be an overly interesting episode, actually. Just kind of slow and plodding. That said, it's a mark of a good show that even though I felt that way I didn't mind that much and will be counting the minutes to the next one.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Yamer

The smile Chuck gave as Earnesto left showed me he wanted him to hear the tape. Not sure why yet.

I thought for sure he would let Kim hear the tape. Maybe that's still coming.

I didn't find that to be an overly interesting episode, actually. Just kind of slow and plodding. That said, it's a mark of a good show that even though I felt that way I didn't mind that much and will be counting the minutes to the next one.

Yeah it was a bit slow but really the Saul story line is slow and plodding (not in a TWD manner as it's much better acted and written) for the most part. On it's own it wouldn't work as a one hour show but Mike's story is the perfect supplement that ties everything together and keeps things compelling.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I actually feel sorry for Chuck. It seems like he's in his own personal hell and part of me can understand why he resents Saul. Chuck did everything the right way. He went to college and busted his ass to get to the top. Meanwhile his younger brother is a con man that's spent his life getting into trouble and all of a sudden he's having success in Chuck's world in his mind by getting in through the back door. Also lets not forget that while Saul is the protagonist he's not exactly a good guy in that he will swindle anyone to get what he wants and Chuck knows that deep down that's always going to be the case (and he's right). I'm not rooting for Chuck of course but I don't consider him a villain like some do.

I'm not sure how you don't consider him a villain. He's a petty, jealous, scheming dbag. I kind of pitty him because he's such a loser but it doesn't make him less of a scumbag. All Jimmy has ever wanted is his brother's love and acceptance and Chuck has undermined him and turned on him every chance he's gotten. Chuck did some truly awful, awful things through the first two seasons (not to mention the flashbacks).

What is masterful about the Chuck character is that they've made him more subtly evil because he has the appearance of being a mental wreck, when in reality we all know it is a facade to help him cope with his own terrible behaviour. He's also a much more subdued villain than we are used to. Even compared to Gus's controlled villainy at the end of the day he was still a terrible human (I'll avoid spoilers in case anyone hasn't seen BB but you all know what he's done).

Chuck on the other hand stands up for good when it comes to everyone but his brother. Then he lies and acts in really despicable ways. The writers have done a terrific job showing how someone can be just a disgusting human being, without getting their hands dirty. This has in turn made Jimmy's turn into Saul much more tragic because there is an interesting comparison of nature vs nurture when it comes to his transformation.

Originally Posted by troutman

I hope Chuck stays around - McKean is such a great actor and Chuck is an awesome character. Talk after the show was that he meant for Ernesto to hear the tape. I did not think of it that way.

AMC is selling mugs with Mike's "Don't" message on there.

I thought Mike was being led to Los Pollos Hermanos, but maybe it is too soon for that reveal.

Jimmy is showing signs of becoming Saul - when he threatened to take out the military man in his office.

Interesting that Gene would turn in the shoplifter, then try to help him.

I didn't mean to suggest he'll be gone soon. I'm sure he'll die near the end of the series. I just assumed he'd die. Or maybe end up in a mental institution with his (fake) illness.


I'm curious if they have any sort of a long term payoff planned for the opening "current" timeline black and white shots. At first they just seemed like they were good callbacks to the original and helped provide some context but I can't help but wonder if there is a sort of allusion to S2 BB that had a similar sort of thing (although only thru 1 season). It'd be really cool if the writers were playing the long game here and there is going to be a payoff at the end of the series.

[Yamer]

Even if all they do is use the 'current' shots as narrative/symbolic contrast for the character it is worth it and effective.

I wouldn't put it beneath them to have a more substantial payoff with the timeline, however. Writing has been top notch.

[troutman]

I don't think Gilligan and Gould have planned out in their own minds the final fates of any of the characters. They go where the best stories lead. All they know for sure is Jimmy becomes Saul. Jesse was supposed to die early in Season One of BB.

[Erick Estrada]

The only real issue with the show from my point of view which is minor and impossible to correct is that despite the stories taking place pre-Breaking bad it's hard to hide how much everyone has aged. Mike in particular looks like he's laboring just getting around.

[chummer]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

The only real issue with the show from my point of view which is minor and impossible to correct is that despite the stories taking place pre-Breaking bad it's hard to hide how much everyone has aged. Mike in particular looks like he's laboring just getting around.

Breaking Bad did start 9 years ago, I don't think Mike was in season one but not much you can do about someone aging 8 years. Regardless of his age Mike is my favorite character on BCS.
Even though he moves slow he makes up for it with his smarts, he kills it.

[Flash Walken]

I think Chuck might be my favourite character.

He's such a compelling character.

There is SIGNIFICANT backstory about him we don't know yet that for me is what his whole character hinges on. I think Chuck Broke Bad, likely in part because of Jimmy, but also I suspect, because the things Chuck doesn't like about Jimmy are the qualities he doesn't like about himself. We're starting to see some of those conniving characteristics from chuck in seasons 2 and now 3.

Chuck suspects that Ernie is in cahoots with Jimmy. Let's not forget that Chuck is operating on what can only be described at this point as extreme mental delusion. His paranoia about Jimmy turned out to be warranted, yes, but perhaps not all of it.

Chuck thinkgs Ernie and Jimmy are in cahoots, so he's trying to get the information out there, ultimately with the goal of hurting Kim (which is the best way for Chuck to hurt Jimmy, perhaps as retaliation for the non-existent female companionship Chuck no longer has...)

[Yamer]

So far their only real mess-up was having Kaley the exact same age, despite the series being set about 8 years before BB.

[troutman]

"He is in hell… trying to live by the law and muting his instincts and drives all day long. He can’t keep it in forever." -- Bob Odenkirk on "Gene"

[direwolf]

Such a great show. Probably my favorite right now along with Game of Thrones and the Americans.

[Komskies]

Did I miss something? Who is Gene?

[troutman]

Originally Posted by Komskies

Did I miss something? Who is Gene?

Future Saul, manager of a Cinnabon.

“If I’m lucky, a month from now, best-case scenario, I’m managing a Cinnabon in Omaha,” an exasperated Saul Goodman told Walter White in the penultimate episode of the hit TV show Breaking Bad.

[Komskies]

Originally Posted by troutman

Future Saul, manager of a Cinnabon.

“If I’m lucky, a month from now, best-case scenario, I’m managing a Cinnabon in Omaha,” an exasperated Saul Goodman told Walter White in the penultimate episode of the hit TV show Breaking Bad.

Ah yes, of course. Forgot he was using a different name.

[chummer]

Hopefully they tell us more about Gene's story.
What a miserable, mundane life he is leading. Wonder if that had anything to do with his collapse to the floor.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by chummer

Hopefully they tell us more about Gene's story.
What a miserable, mundane life he is leading. Wonder if that had anything to do with his collapse to the floor.

It would be pretty cool if they do the lead-up until the day Walt walks into his office and then skip over the entire Breaking Bad arc and pick up at Gene turning back into Saul.

Who is he even running from at this point? Surely he can find out Walt is gone.

[Flash Walken]

Originally Posted by nik-

It would be pretty cool if they do the lead-up until the day Walt walks into his office and then skip over the entire Breaking Bad arc and pick up at Gene turning back into Saul.

Who is he even running from at this point? Surely he can find out Walt is gone.

He's probably running from the feds.

[nik-]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

He's probably running from the feds.

He took off when Walt started killing people. He thought he killed Huell.

Huell is still sitting in that room waiting for Hank and Gomez.