Better Call Saul: Why Did I Ever Doubt Vince Gilligan?


Here we go, ladies and gentlemen.
 "Seriously, when the going gets tough, you don't want a criminal lawyer. Alright? You want a criminal lawyer. You know what I'm saying?" - Jesse Pinkman, Breaking Bad, S02E08



Alright Vince - you win. I thought the idea for Better Call Saul was a bit strange... even selling out a little on the success of Breaking Bad. I admit it, Mr. Gilligan. I, Max Benowitz, the Sultan of Television himself, was wrong.

Bottom line: Better Call Saul is so fucking worth watching.

After a two night premiere to the show, any prejudices against the Breaking Bad spin off had dissipated. The first episode, titled "Uno," began with a very interesting sequence. Saul Goodman (or should I say Jimmy McGill) is working at a Cinnabon. He is terrified of a random tough looking guy in the store for an unknown reason. When the scary man gets up, it turns out he's just looking in Saul's direction because the man's girlfriend is near him. With that, the man hugs his girlfriend and Saul goes home. That night, the mustachioed Saul watches his television and, bored by what's on TV, goes to get a DVD from a hidden place in his surprisingly large house. He pops it in and advertisements for a lawyer named Saul Goodman come on. "Better Call Saul," they shout from the TV.

God?
Though the black and white introduction may have been a bit confusing at first glance, it was a stroke of genius. Good ol' Vince Gilligan showed us exactly what happened to Saul Goodman after the events of Breaking Bad. He obviously used the identity starter-over from the end of Bad to wipe his past and was then relocated. Now, Saul works at a Cinnabon and reminisces about the good old days of being Saul Goodman, the criminal lawyer. Yes, he's escaped with his life, but without any of his former glory or accomplishments. Whether Saul Goodman has "won" or not is completely up for debate. But, whatever the case may be, the audience now gets to see how exactly Jimmy McGill became Saul Goodman.

The first episode soon begins to show the life of Jimmy McGill. He's a lawyer making terrible wages by defending criminals, such as three hoodlums who had sex with a severed head. His older brother used to be a partner at a major law firm, but after a sickness began to afflict him (the nature of which we still don't really know), he's been on a very long leave of absence. Jimmy has been trying to support himself and his brother, but with the low cash flow and with his brother's ex-company refusing to pay up, it's difficult. Jimmy McGill has a lot of elements of Saul Goodman, but he's toned down, willing to be a criminal lawyer but not a criminal lawyer. On his way home from the courthouse, he happens to get into small arguments with the tollbooth worker - one Mike Ehrmantraut.

The long awaited return of Tuco Salamanca
One day though, while heading home from work in his car titled "esteem," Jimmy runs into a scam - two guys who stage being hit by  a car for a couple hundred dollars to keep the cops uninvolved. Though he sees right through the scam, he also sees opportunity. Being down on his luck, Jimmy decides to run this little scam on a potential client so that he can save the day and get their business. He employs the two idiots that ran the scam on him and gets to work. However, they do it to the wrong car - hitting an old Mexican woman's car instead. After tracking her home, Saul and the two hoodlums knock on her door and are greeted then none other than Tuco Salamanca - the most erratic druglord in New Mexico. Here is where the intrigue really begins. After being taken to the desert and almost killed, Jimmy talks his way out of both himself and the two idiots being slain by Tuco. Instead, the two just suffer broken legs and Jimmy is intimidated.

After returning successfully alive, Jimmy has a bit of PTSD, but returns to his previous life with gusto. Despite his efforts though, he still gets no business upon return to his office... until a mysterious visitor shows up - Tuco's main henchman. He informs Jimmy that he wants to rip off the people that Jimmy wanted to represent, wanting Jimmy to give him the information as to how to do it. Of course, Jimmy doesn't want to do it at first, but after leaving his card, Tuco's man simply tells him to call him when he's ready to join the game. With that, our two-night premiere ends.

What made these episodes so impressive was the carefully crafted standalone narrative crafted... alongside Bob Odenkirk's awesome acting job. Humanizing Saul Goodman (Jimmy McGill) beyond just a comic-relief, lying his ass off lawyer was a great idea. The storyline with his brother is obviously something to keep watch on over the course of the season as we still don't even know what sickness his brother has. Meanwhile, we have the story of how Jimmy comes to employ Mike and how Jimmy adopts the name Saul Goodman. Finally, we have the ever-interesting notion of seeing Breaking Bad alumni.
Running into success

Now, let's talk about the way that Bob Odenkirk acts for a moment. The facial expressions that this guy makes are just perfect. They're incredibly expressive even when the character is obviously trying to be under-the-radar. His acting is hilarious while still dramatic when it needs to be. Also, as a quick side note, are Bob Odenkirk and David Cross the greatest comedy partners of all time? One got to be a star of the greatest comedy ever (Arrested Development) and the other in the greatest drama. Mr. Show really gave us some fantastic alumni.

Overall, I am ridiculously impressed. From the beautiful shots of the Albuquerque desert to the fantastic characterization and storyline development, Better Call Saul went far above my expectations.

The morale of the story here? Never doubt Vince Gilligan.

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