I've decided while I like Breaking Bad, I love Better Call Saul. I almost passed this by from the bad promo I saw on Stan, which is a solely Australian based streaming service (which I just discovered is owned by Nine and Fairfax which sucks because they're harbingers of misinformation and borderline fake news) but we don't get this bad boy on Netflix. I got another account for the free month to watch this after lending someone else's account and passing it up for a while because I wasn't getting use out of it.
I feel like Better Call Saul had the better dish of characters. Okay, you've got crossover with Gus and Mike, a little Tuco thrown in (which initially felt like fan service when I first watched the pilot but I loved it second time around). But throw in Rhea Seehorn as Kim Wexler , who is so fucking stunning and nuanced, her zigs when you think she'll zag are beautiful. Plus Michael McKean as Jimmy's brother Charles, who's masterfully playing Jimmy's protector and clandestine saboteur by somehow being the most tragic and sinister character on television, you've got a pretty magical recipe for drama with a better helping of good comedy from Odenkirk. Because what fucking universe could you see this character portrayed by anyone but him? Breaking Bad brought the pain with its cast of misaligned good guys. You can't ignore the ground it broke, you can't find another show that really matched the tension and dark comedy.
Saul's just weirdly more entertaining. And it's going into its own dark territory, somehow making certain life or death scenes palpably tense and unbearable even when you know the characters ultimately survive. The stakes are still high. And not all of Jimmy's choices are central to the plot, Gus features more as a buildup to how he established and maintained his grip on the town's drug cartel, fleshing him out was a good choice too, there were so many breadcrumbs left in the original series that made him worthy of inclusion. And getting Mike's backstory brilliantly laid out, we're almost spoiled with amazing moments Breaking Bad couldn't deliver. Gilligan knew he had to deliver with this prequel and he certainly does, but to have it surpass Breaking Bad is remarkable. You may hate the phrase "defies expectation" but shit, least it actually did. I did enjoy El Camino but I haven't watched it again. Going through the motions with Breaking Bad is difficult and I don't do it regularly. I can't remember last time I sat through it, it takes a certain mood to want to go there. (I also haven't ever bothered to rewatch Six Feet Under, I think now I'm less depressed I don't identify with the self-destructiveness of every main character so Brenda and Nate would just shit me to tears, they're fucking hard to root for in the end, both individually and as a couple).
I haven't rewatched Saul yet and since the last season isn't due until next year, I have plenty of time to reacquaint myself with the story, which is what I'm doing now I've exhausted all my YouTube channels (and I'm also avoiding content again for a while). But I have a pretty firm memory of most of the events, the characters are too memorable for you to really forget their actions. I had theories concerning the fate of Jimmy and Kim that are being blown out of the water and I'm so happy about that. She's not Skyler, I think they've been very careful about not having any analogous characters - Jimmy isn't Walt. Chuck isn't Hank. It's an entirely different show. Sure, selling it on its own without Breaking Bad would be difficult, if not impossible, but conception on this began very early on in Breaking Bad's production, it wasn't cooked up when things were winding down and they were looking for new material for another show. The point is, it holds its own. It has its own flourishes and quirks that differentiate it. The characters are fascinating, the production is just as brilliant. Casting's stupidly on point. My only criticism, which is no fault of the show, is that Odenkirk's starting to look much older than he should by this point in the original timeline, there's only so much you can do about that with makeup and wigs. The black and white forward flash intros compensate with this, we see Jimmy's thinning scalp, rimmed by his Cinnabon visor, before we see his face and thick mustache. I'm dying to know how this all turns out because I know I'm wrong about everything and I certainly want to be. You're better off not even speculating and just going along for the ride. I think the last season I'll anticipate with more excitement than most people had for Game of Thrones. And I don't think it's going to disappoint. They may not have had a conclusion in mind for Breaking Bad but I want to believe there's a set path for Saul even if we know the ultimate conclusion. There are still surprises in store, and I think we'll see it with Kim. I have a theory she's the key to Jimmy's exile to strip-mall lawyer life in a worse way than her just getting sick of his shit, like you're led to believe. I think there's a tragedy in store much bigger than her leaving him. The thrill of the grift has her more entangled than Jimmy. I don't have to expect brilliance, I know we'll get it. I don't think we have a disappointment in store at all.
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