Better Call Saul

[Christophe]

How did everyone find the

 

Walt & Jessie

scene? Personally didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Would have been quite happy if

 

they never actually made an appearance and we just got the bit with Mike leading up to Saul going to the science fair

which I think would have been a nice enough tie-in to the BB stuff.

Was very "fanservicey" wasn't it? 

Edited August 2, 2022 by Christophe

[Arch Stanton]

4 minutes ago, Christophe said:

How did everyone find the

  Hide contents

Walt & Jessie

scene? Personally didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. Would have been quite happy if

  Hide contents

they never actually made an appearance and we just got the bit with Mike leading up to Saul going to the science fair

which I think would have been a nice enough tie-in to the BB stuff.

Was very "fanservicey" wasn't it? 

I know Aaron Paul is 14 or 15 years older in real life than the JP character in this episode and he certainly looked it.

Other than some "The Irishman" digital chicanery I don't know what the makers of the show could have done to alter that.

However, it is what it is, cameo appearances and IMO was done really well.

[Christophe]

Yeah true there is not much else they could do with them really, and if they didn't appear at all I'd probably moan about that!

But did cement in my mind that I don't really care about them now in this extended universe and am just fully invested in seeing what happens with the BCS characters/post-BB timeline. 

Do we think they've scratched that itch sufficiently or do we think there will be further split timeline scenes to come?

[Arch Stanton]

27 minutes ago, Christophe said:

Yeah true there is not much else they could do with them really, and if they didn't appear at all I'd probably moan about that!

But did cement in my mind that I don't really care about them now in this extended universe and am just fully invested in seeing what happens with the BCS characters/post-BB timeline. 

Do we think they've scratched that itch sufficiently or do we think there will be further split timeline scenes to come?

I think they're done with the BB timeline. Francesca's call with Gene (where Skyler and Kuby are mentioned), Jesse asking about Lalo and Mike giving Saul the info on Walter tied up any last lingering questions.

Gene/Saul all the way next episode with possibly a Jimmy/Kim reunion in the finale.

 

[Christophe]

Potential phonecall spoiler...

 

 

[the_bully_wee]

I'm going to avoid spoiler tags here because I highly doubt anyone will be coming on here without having watched the episode first.

There are dozens of folk claiming they've transcribed the phone conversation in English, German or both, and their claims are all wildly different. Won't be buying into any of them until there's some kind of consensus on it.

On the episode itself, I liked the cutting between the timelines, the mirroring of visuals and sounds was good and that of the events was even better. Unless there's a big twist then this episode confirms that it's not going to be a happy ending, among many other things. The Walt and Jesse appearances could be seen as a little tokenistic but it ultimately fleshed out one of the defining interactions in Breaking Bad, which is no bad thing, and in a way which shone a light on Saul more than Walt and Jesse themselves. It's his decision to recklessly pursue them (walking into the school to confront the cancer patient) that results in the downfall of Saul, and his decision to recklessly go back to that house (to defraud another cancer patient, having rationalised it to himself by remembering the evil of Walter White) that is pointing towards the downfall of Gene, too. I agree with the chap above saying that the BB timeline has served now its purpose and don't think we will see it in any substantial manner henceforth.

Gutted that there are only two episodes left, what a universe this has been. A relatively happy Jimmy/Kim ending was what I was after personally but that looks a mile off happening now; I'm sure whatever they go with will be great, though.  

[Yoss]

3 hours ago, Arch Stanton said:

I think they're done with the BB timeline.

 

Spoiler

Cranston stated the other week that he and Aaron Paul were in three scenes altogether - one with both of them (which we've obviously just had), and one each without the other, which are thus still to come.

 

[101]

Spoiler

I wonder if Gene goes into the guy with Cancers house and he's lying dead and get lifted for that or if he leaves hair at the break in and is traced as obviously Saul Goodman, either way I'd agree with him ending up in bother and Kim wading in would be a nice finale.

 

I thought they could have made more of Saul talking about Lalo but felt it rounded that scene off nicely but Jesse does look way too old and not like the proper skinny teenager he was back in 2008. Weirdly Walt looked as Walt should I guess he has aged into the character, but it did feel like they had kind of forgotten how to play their early relationship.

 

[Gianfranco]

I wondered if cancer guy might be undercover.

[djchapsticks]

Spoiler

My issue wasn't so much the age Jesse looked - I'm now used to suspending my disbelief in this series as Mike and Gustavo in particular are significantly older looking that they were in Breaking Bad and I even overlooked the glaring issue of Jesse Plemons' Todd in El Camino (though I liked the idea that unlike BB and BCS, El Camino is told almost exclusively from Jesse's POV so you could explain his change as unreliable narrator).

My issue was more with how Jesse sounded. I get that his voice has changed over the years, he was mid 20s in series 2 of BB and playing a teenager but his voice had none of the tone and inflections of Jesse. Walt was Walt but Jesse felt like someone else playing him. 

Spoiler

On to the episode itself and I've seen a few folk talking about how it was jarring jumping between the two timelines but I don't see it that way. There was a pretty clear theme of history repeating and the same mistakes being made such as being advised against something as a bad idea and him barrelling in anyway. It's also a total tone shift as any remnants of Jimmy that folk love are gone by this point in the BB timeline (which we already knew upon getting to know the comparatively one-dimensional Saul in Breaking Bad, so one-dimensional that many people were surprised he was even going to be the subject of a prequel series) and it appears unfortunately, also in the Gene timeline. Any notion that Saul was all an act all along during events of BB and he could transition into Gene and live his life relatively safe is now totally out the window. He's too far gone and Jimmy McGill is dead. Greedy, grubby Saul is all that's left.

The end scene was excellent. He walked into the school and made a decision against the judgement of others that would ultimately lead to his downfall and then, flash forward to Omaha, the parallel is that he's doing the very same thing, again with a cancer sufferer being the cause of it all falling apart.

I want the happy ending and Kim to ride to the rescue, save him from himself and the inevitable of the FBI catching up to him and both get to f**k off into the sunset to live their lives out (even though he, like Walter in the end, barely deserves a happy ending given all of his wrongdoings). Think that's simply not going to happen now, though.

 

[yoda]

Spoiler

I liked the cameos. Not overdone and filled in some stuff which, once I knew they were getting proper scenes, I kinda wanted to see.

Fan service for sure but it didn't feel gimmicky. The Betamax line amused me.

Onto Gene... It's quite sad to see that any remnants of Jimmy are gone. Slippin' Jimmy was a loveable rogue. A scoundrel. Saul Goodman is just a bad guy. I was shouting at the TV for Jimmy to pull through and stop the scam on the cancer guy. Hopefully Kim doesn't ride in and save him - I don't think, all things considered, that Saul deserves that ending. 

 

[RossBFaeDundee]

Spoiler

Enjoying this epilogue to the BB/BCS universe, as well as the character of Jimmy/Saul/Gene. He came to that (literal) crossroads and crossed it with that Kim phone call, and now he's relapsing hard. So hard that he's given up all pretense on the scam and is now just sloppily robbing a guy. As flawed and biased as he was, Chuck was right about Jimmy. The cutting between his fateful decision to help Walter White and this current robbery does a great job of slamming that fact home, Jimmy always has to flip that switch.

The next episode's teaser shows a couple of cop cars outside the house, so considering how blatant Gene is being, surely he gets apprehended... right? If it was up to me I'd have him arrested and he finally gets his reunion with Kim in a prison visiting room. I grew to hate Walter White (a loving hate) by the end of BB, and very much rooted for Skyler and Hank (and Jesse of course, as always) to get justice. I feel much the same thing has happened this season with Kim and Jimmy (especially Kim), and I want the truth about Howard's death revealed and Kim & Jimmy to face the music. All that won't happen, but I think Jimmy in prison is a fair ending point, with at least one major BB character having to come to terms with their actions.

Francesca scenes were fun, she just can't get away from wasters lol. Was also funny to know that Daniel "Pryce" Wormald was the owner of the laser tag place that Saul tried to get Walt & Skyler to invest in.

As for the flashbacks, they were all enjoyable and provided apt callbacks, though it's impossible to look at Aaron Paul and still thinking he's that dopey teenager anymore. Also fun to get sunglasses Mike again, as well as confirmation that he could tell Walt was a time bomb from the start, but Saul juuuust couldn't let it go. I'm curious as to what else they feel they need to address from the BB timeline.

This next bit is basically me just reading into things and probably reaching, but I feel like posting it anyway.

Spoiler

The ending honestly reminded me of the Season 3 finale, which is still probably one of if not my favourites episodes of the series. Chuck was right in that Jimmy couldn't help himself from being who he is, but he didn't know Jimmy's 'slippiness' was his own version of Chuck's mental illness - a coping mechanism designed to hide themselves from facing the reality of their loneliness. Jimmy's relapse, carelessly raising Marion's suspicions and the sloppy break-in has me thinking of Chuck tearing his house apart, a final step out of reality that will have irreparable consequences: death for Chuck, life in prison for Jimmy. The final detachment of anyone they cared about rejecting them was that final straw for both, though I guess it remains to be seen whether Jimmy gets a chance to come to terms with reality.

Edited August 2, 2022 by RossBFaeDundee

[scottsdad]

I liked that Gene was sporting the early Walter combo of moustache and huge sweater. Not sure if it was deliberate but in an episode with this title, I imagine it is. 

[TheScarf]

Spoiler

The final episode is called 'Saul Gone'.  I wonder if that's a reference to all his assets being seized and he does a WW and goes back to his old mansion to see it suffered the same fate as WWs house did; graffiti everywhere and kids skateboarding in the pool.

 

[scottsdad]

6 minutes ago, TheScarf said:

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The final episode is called 'Saul Gone'.  I wonder if that's a reference to all his assets being seized and he does a WW and goes back to his old mansion to see it suffered the same fate as WWs house did; graffiti everywhere and kids skateboarding in the pool.

 

It's the same play on words as Saul Goodman / It's All Good ,Man. 

It's All Gone. 

[TheScarf]

1 minute ago, scottsdad said:

It's the same play on words as Saul Goodman / It's All Good ,Man. 

It's All Gone. 

Aye I know, as in all his assets, his life. He could easily do a Walter and go back to ABQ to see the remnants, like Walt does in Felina.

[Clown Job]

8 hours ago, RossBFaeDundee said:

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Enjoying this epilogue to the BB/BCS universe, as well as the character of Jimmy/Saul/Gene. He came to that (literal) crossroads and crossed it with that Kim phone call, and now he's relapsing hard. So hard that he's given up all pretense on the scam and is now just sloppily robbing a guy. As flawed and biased as he was, Chuck was right about Jimmy. The cutting between his fateful decision to help Walter White and this current robbery does a great job of slamming that fact home, Jimmy always has to flip that switch.

The next episode's teaser shows a couple of cop cars outside the house, so considering how blatant Gene is being, surely he gets apprehended... right? If it was up to me I'd have him arrested and he finally gets his reunion with Kim in a prison visiting room. I grew to hate Walter White (a loving hate) by the end of BB, and very much rooted for Skyler and Hank (and Jesse of course, as always) to get justice. I feel much the same thing has happened this season with Kim and Jimmy (especially Kim), and I want the truth about Howard's death revealed and Kim & Jimmy to face the music. All that won't happen, but I think Jimmy in prison is a fair ending point, with at least one major BB character having to come to terms with their actions.

Francesca scenes were fun, she just can't get away from wasters lol. Was also funny to know that Daniel "Pryce" Wormald was the owner of the laser tag place that Saul tried to get Walt & Skyler to invest in.

As for the flashbacks, they were all enjoyable and provided apt callbacks, though it's impossible to look at Aaron Paul and still thinking he's that dopey teenager anymore. Also fun to get sunglasses Mike again, as well as confirmation that he could tell Walt was a time bomb from the start, but Saul juuuust couldn't let it go. I'm curious as to what else they feel they need to address from the BB timeline.

This next bit is basically me just reading into things and probably reaching, but I feel like posting it anyway.

  Hide contents

The ending honestly reminded me of the Season 3 finale, which is still probably one of if not my favourites episodes of the series. Chuck was right in that Jimmy couldn't help himself from being who he is, but he didn't know Jimmy's 'slippiness' was his own version of Chuck's mental illness - a coping mechanism designed to hide themselves from facing the reality of their loneliness. Jimmy's relapse, carelessly raising Marion's suspicions and the sloppy break-in has me thinking of Chuck tearing his house apart, a final step out of reality that will have irreparable consequences: death for Chuck, life in prison for Jimmy. The final detachment of anyone they cared about rejecting them was that final straw for both, though I guess it remains to be seen whether Jimmy gets a chance to come to terms with reality.

You’ve reminded me of that scene when Jimmy moved into his new office at Davis & Main. 

Sees a switch with a sign under it saying something like “do not turn off ever”

Walks over, removes the sign, flicks the switch just to see what happens 

The guy just cannot help himself at all

[Florentine_Pogen]

17 minutes ago, Clown Job said:

You’ve reminded me of that scene when Jimmy moved into his new office at Davis & Main. 

Sees a switch with a sign under it saying something like “do not turn off ever”

Walks over, removes the sign, flicks the switch just to see what happens 

The guy just cannot help himself at all

 

[RossBFaeDundee]

1 hour ago, Clown Job said:

You’ve reminded me of that scene when Jimmy moved into his new office at Davis & Main. 

Sees a switch with a sign under it saying something like “do not turn off ever”

Walks over, removes the sign, flicks the switch just to see what happens 

The guy just cannot help himself at all

That's exactly the one I was referencing, it really just is a perfect summation of his character.

[Christophe]

He is a self-destructor yeah. Whatever happened in that phonecall has pushed him to self-destruct again and I wouldn't be surprised if he is trying to get himself arrested with the cancer grift break-in