Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 10: “Winner” Nothing you can say or do will make anyone trust you again. This is actually Mike’s message to Werner after the failed escape attempt (which we’ll get to in a second). But it could also serve as a thesis statement, not just for tonight’s episode, but for…
Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 9: “Wiedersehen” Last week, we left Jimmy McGill in a pretty good place. He and Kim had just pulled off an incredibly complicated scheme to keep Huell out of prison, and the caper actually seemed to bring them closer together after their relationship had hit a bit of a…
Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 8: “Coushatta” At first glance, Better Call Saul appears to be a show about transformation. And, in a very basic sense, that’s true—it’s the story of how Jimmy McGill becomes Saul Goodman. It’s also about the development of the Breaking Bad universe and a few of its supporting characters,…
Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 7: “Something Stupid” People stay together for all kinds of reasons. Sometimes those reasons really aren’t that good, but the familiarity of the relationship makes it easier to just go through the motions than to face the fact that things just aren’t working. So we tell ourselves that it…
Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 6: “Piñata” As much as I like both of them, I’ve never really bought Jimmy and Kim as a couple. I’m sure part of that is because we can see into their future, and we know that Kim’s not a part of Saul Goodman’s life. So there’s no reason…
Better Call Saul, Season 4, Episode 5: “Quite a Ride” Last week, Jimmy learned a valuable marketing lesson: if there’s not a natural demand for your product, find a way to artificially create one. This week, he doubles down on that strategy with considerable success. Unfortunately, he also learns a much harsher lesson in the…
Better Call Saul Season 4, Episode 4: “Talk” It’s the most basic concept in marketing—if you want to sell something, you have to create a demand for it. And, sometimes, that requires a little out-of-the-box thinking. And maybe a little paint. Jimmy made it very clear a couple of episodes ago that he really doesn’t want…
Better Call Saul Season Four, Episode Three: “Something Beautiful” In its fourth season, Better Call Saul has proven to be a show that can stand on its own merits and be incredibly entertaining regardless of whether you were a fan of its predecessor, Breaking Bad. But let’s be honest—for those of us who’ve watched the…
Better Call Saul, Season Four, Episode Two: “Breathe” We all wear masks from time to time. It’s a skill we learn at a young age—we’re taught not to let people see who you really are. We learn to let them see what we want them to see. It’s safer that way. We’re afraid that, if…
Better Call Saul has a fairly obvious premise: how did Jimmy McGill become Saul Goodman? And, to a lesser degree, what was life like for a few of the other characters in the Breaking Bad universe—Mike Ehrmantraut, Gus Fring, and even Hector Salamanca—before Walter White turned their lives upside-down (and actually ended them)? However, at…