I don't know if the amazing Vince had a long game for Better Call Saul, but it's all starting to tie together for the final season. Saul's outcome's more obvious but I'm all for finding out Kim's destiny. Her mystique and development has come out in subtle ways and small flashbacks. She's been wonderfully played by Rhea Seehorn, who should've been showered with more awards by now. She's even directed an episode this season.
But the long game for her has always been to convince us she's too damn good for Jimmy. Whether he pushed her away with his stupidity and insecurity or she acted like she was going to end it all over his misdeeds nearly getting him killed. As I realised earlier, she's a zig when you think she'll zag character. I'll keep out the why of it, only to say she may be the one who let it all go wrong. Having said that the last cliffhanger suggests she disappeared for much darker reasons. I'm probably going to do a rewatch of this season since I've been a little checked out from all this election related nonsense etc.
As a side note, the fuckers have done a midseason break and cliffhanger so I've got to wait six weeks to even finish this post properly. You can't binge until they say you can.
I thought the second part would be two episodes, but we have six total, and one down, we know of Kim's fate, and all I can say is, I hope that's not how her story ends. Okay, the worst didn't transpire but with what happens she clearly can't live with herself and stay with Jimmy, and I thought we would end with the full realisation of Saul, that him at his desk could be a good ending, except the past hasn't caught up with the present. The cold opens alluding to the future have been fascinating breadcrumbs, I don't remember if we saw how Saul lived in Breaking Bad, just where he worked, he's taken the Sandpiper money and is living in crass opulence but clearly showing signs of stress and ageing. We've seen all that be stripped down but is that once Jimmy's leaving after Breaking Bad or is this between those points? This season is still four years before he meets Walter and Jesse.
But if this is the last we see of Kim before the end, I'll be more disappointed than if they'd offed her. She deserves something more poetic even if she isn't with Jimmy, I keep hoping they reunite at the Cinnabon and Jimmy basically has to pretend they don't know each other. I loved the vague Romeo and Juliet moment of her on the balcony and him in the parking lot looking up, right before it all goes to shit.
Mike's arc has now come to a point where he's also failing to reconcile his actions, Nacho's fate sadly a shitty reflection of what happened to his son, and he can't redeem himself to Nacho's father, he can't make amends. When he meets with Nacho's father, we see him behind a fence and Nacho's dad free in a sense, Mike's assurance of justice for Nacho rebuked, Mike no better than the gangsters. For all Mike's good intentions, he couldn't keep his promise to save Nacho. Mike's probably the most tragic character, seeing him face off Walter now in the context of Better Call Saul, his ending is more miserable for how much he wanted to protect his daughter in law and granddaughter, his only family. How much he excused his own behaviour for the sake of them, or Nacho, or as a means of self-preservation. I appreciated he was a part of this and we got his history, it was as much his show as it was Jimmy's. And Gus now seems more sympathetic, he had his own evil nemesis in Lalo, who was really the overall bad guy threatening all the main characters only to ironically be involved in Howard's death. It makes sense Kim can't reconcile her involvement with Howard's end, while Jimmy can unequivocally blame Lalo, more so for Kim's deception over never revealing Lalo was still alive - how could he have seen it coming? We don't really see how much that affects Jimmy emotionally, whether he hates Kim more for leaving (and can justify his insecurity it was always going to happen, he never deserved her) or for her lying to him and betraying his trust. Becoming Saul seems more justified, and more tragic considering Kim did influence him to be better to some degree, if only for her. Her idea they're poison to others if they're together is rejected by Jimmy; he's put too much into seeing her succeed for her to choose giving up.
I hope they have a moment, even if in passing. Being so close to finishing the story, most seem to assume the epilogue will involve current day Jimmy, my streaming service being a piece of shit and omitting the after credits shot of the apartment in black and white. Whether that was just to hint that evidence that Howard's been disposed of cleanly or if all roads lead to this point, I've no idea. I'm only annoyed streaming services haven't factored in credit scenes (they cut out the "Smeging garbage pod" lines from Red Dwarf. Least DVDs give you that, and the fact Marvel certainly didn't invent the idea of post credit sequences). So if I'd not heard it mentioned on a random podcast, I'd never have looked it up. There's speculation Kim will bring the colour back to Jimmy's life in the present, but this article I'm reading is from May, before we knew of Lalo's death, so the suggestion she'd arrange to have him taken out is ridiculous. It also states she was cool and indifferent about Lalo being alive which is bullshit, she was terrified of him when Jimmy was missing in the desert and completely conflicted once Mike told her Lalo was alive. I forgot about the little black book and the vacuum repair guy/re-locator (the actor passed away so he's not going to be seen again). I don't think Kim's about to mastermind her way back to Jimmy, she's too conflicted over what they did. I'm sure it would more be her discovering Jimmy's involvement with Walt, Saul going "missing" effectively and her deciding she needs to find him and make sure he's okay. Jimmy's chosen not to run after being "seen" as Saul. I feel like I need to rewatch season 5 at least before I finish season 6. I think I did most of a rewatch recently but I can't remember where I got to.
I really didn't think I'd end up enjoying this and being more invested than I was with Breaking Bad. Kim's basically the anti-Skyler, her antithesis. She does approach a lot with stoicism but not always, that she's always defended Jimmy and respected him, and been lured by the excitement of his world, she's been a better partner in crime up until this point. Acknowledging she was simply "having too much fun" to believe Lalo could fuck it up for her was revelatory. She can't stand herself now, she bought into her own corruption, justified it, then no longer could. She was able to get past Chuck and all Jimmy did to trip him up, but it was difficult. With Howard, it's impossible, and her straight up gaslighting his wife at Howard's memorial is beautifully executed in terms of good cringe, it's Kim planting the seeds of doubt when Jimmy fails, everyone's trust in her in excess of his she pulls it off to a devastating degree, whenever it came to deception, she was far more convincing than Jimmy and his bumbling. And that's when she can no longer stand herself, and rightly so. Her completely quitting was another shock that makes sense momentarily, like all her other shock moments - wanting to marry Jimmy when you think she's about to bail, crashing her own car, siding against her own clients because they were still morally reprehensible - everything she does you don't see coming but completely understand once she does it. In terms of unpredictability, she is a master of it. I refuse to believe anyone could say with her, "Oh, I totally saw that coming."
So, if Rhea Seehorn goes unrewarded this Emmy season, we have all failed as a society. I'll get a cow and sit out on a corner with a big-ass sign if I have to. The show's had 46 noms, majority for sound weirdly or writing and outstanding series. Rhea has a nomination FINALLY for supporting actress in a drama, including another one for an AMC short, which would be cool if they gave it to her for that but to pass her up? She's up against a pretty hefty lineup, I don't think Patricia Arquette deserves another one, I didn't see anything than Squid Game and some eps of Ozark and Julie Garner was good. Euphoria looks like a well made show but I'm not interested in it. Jung Ho-yeon got SAG awards, there is a trend to give nods to international actors, which I appreciate. Odenkirk should've gotten one by now, if they really are pinning their votes on how the show ends, I think it would be such a bummer for the show to go without a single fucking Emmy in any fucking category.
I may as well "live" blog this now we're back to the black and white cold opens, which I was really super happy about. I feel bad I've forgotten Jimmy's alias when he's at this point. It's Gene Takavic because of course I've got the Wikipedia open. I've even recognised a new character, Frank from Teenage Cocktail, who was pretty great, as Jeff. Gene's ingratiating himself to Jeff's mother, scamming her by means of doing a good deal, but it's to get to the guy who recognised him in the store, Frank (which I'd probably have cottoned on to if I'd watched season 5, and apparently season 4 because Jeff's been around since then). It looks like Gene's either out to teach Jeff how to be a Saul, or to really screw him over. It's delightfully unpredictable. Jerry from Parks and Rec's a mall security guard. Gene has donned the pinky ring and it looks like Jimmy's back in business. (I keep forgetting the they did the weirdest MBT tie in with this show). I'm also learning how to get through a sports ball conversation by making vague sentiments and cliches. I think this show has executed some of the best montages in TV history.
I guess this is a full Gene episode which I'm hella into. Gene's in recruitment mode, Jimmy can't help himself. And we get Walt's story, it's hilarious (in retrospect of what happens later, I would have been completely fine with this throwaway dialogue and nothing else). But now I'm thinking Kim's gone for good, since Slippin' Jimmy's back, I don't think she'd go for that. I still can't tell if this is Jimmy getting Jeff in trouble or if he's really running a scam. He has a police scanner. Jimmy's proving just how incompetent mall cops are. I just realised Jimmy's getting Jeff to lift a butt-tonne of shit. I'm assuming he'll hang him out to try if shit goes bad, which it just has. I think Jeff the patsy's out cold and oh, God here's Slippin' Jimmy holding the phone for Jeff to get out of the store. Rollin' with the punches, you scummy bastard. I don't know why I keep forgetting there's always a "moment" on the show where it all looks grim until Jimmy pulls the scam off, but this time it looks like he's losing the stomach for it.
Now it's evident he's done it to get Jeff off his back and put him in a bind to keep him from squealing. Fucking genius. So now he's had a taste of his old life, Gene hangs up the shirt and tie, there seems to be a finality, but we get to be reminded of the lengths he goes to purely to protect himself, while wondering if he could really return to being a grifter and deciding he falls somewhere in between. We didn't know what actions he was going to take once he was found out, but it was absolute brilliance and kind of a fun misdirect too, I couldn't say for sure what Jimmy was up to. Odenkirk is at his peak with Jimmy so I'm hoping they give him a more triumphant send off than Walt or Jesse. I liked El Camino but I'm invested in how it all ends for Jimmy.
So, we've hit the Breaking Bad episode, with a clever moment of the good ol' RV kidnapping, so they're keeping the used footage from BB to a minimum I hope. I was never thrilled with the concept of this being a crossoveresque episode so if it's done well I'll eat my words. We're back in the present after that cold open, Saul's beleaguered secretary dealing with the doofus twins, now living as a landlord and understandably paranoid about being followed. Now we know how she ended up with Saul she's less of a narky character, I totally forgot her name is Francesca. Gene's led her to a promised sum of cash hidden in the desert in exchange for the current details and where all his money's gone, and it's really gone, and Skyler gets a mention. Here we gooooo, I guess. This is a good means of catching us up with the aftermath of Walt and the gang. And Kim called Francesca, ohhhhhh my heart... She wanted to know about Jimmy, like I thought might happen in some regard. And he attempts to call her, though we don't hear anything just Gene yelling and gesticulating at a distance until he beats up the phone booth. So it just might be Gene will have to remain as Gene and all the contingencies Jimmy set up are gone. He's had to go back to Jeff to fix shit now. And so the sad culmination of Jimmy, Saul and Gene end up in a karaoke bar, but don't fret, the scheme's starting to play out.
I really hope the Breaking Bad fan service was a big tease on their part and we get barely anything. I'm sorry, but I don't believe in giving fans all the shit they want all the time. I can't even remember if the shit I'm seeing now was from Breaking Bad, Walt and Jesse have their full face balaclava beanies on, masks off, so Bryan Cranston's hair's covered, and I don't remember what Aaron Paul was doing now but it probably also involved having hair and getting around them both having to shave their heads. (I think Cranston had a bald cap in El Camino, and again, I was happy with that cameo, don't need more of Walt, k thanx). Okay, this all looks recent, it's also conveniently been filmed in near darkness to cover any telltale signs of ageing. And we go full circle on Lalo, again because I decided not to revisit Breaking Bad I didn't realise he and Nacho were detailed more than I remembered. It was a brief but effective moment with Jesse and Walt. Hope that's the end of it, since I'm more invested in Gene's new scam. I'd say it's Kim refusing to speak to him that drives Gene to just lean into the scam, until he runs in to a potential victim with cancer. Remains to be seen what happens to him.
And finally we get back to Mike, I honestly don't care about Jesse and Walt at this point. I'm happier with mentions than appearances, he gives Saul the rundown on Walt to see if he really is a viable option as a client, and Mike compares Walt to a fuckin' Betamax in terms of "investment". And we all know how it turns out.
Gene's new crew member, Jeff's friend with the dog, has more scruples and realises the cancer guy isn't fair game, Gene's in full Saul mode trying to justify why it was a good idea, history repeats, everyone's fair game. Or are they...? We'll find out next week. But the takeaway is Saul chose to "represent" Walt against Mike's advice, that he had an out from the very beginning and the lure of cash was too good. So, Jimmy's redemption is well within question now. Gene breaks into the cancer guy's house, and we have to wait one more week.
The Guardian's suggesting this week's fan service effort fell flat, but apparently last week's episode was the worst, which is absolutely wrong, it was great. I didn't find the RV scene that dissatisfying, but I did kinda tune out, because all we do get is Jesse and Walt bickering. I thought the show initially sucked because of the Tuco fan service moment, I completely checked out originally and I can't even say what drew me back and sucked me in, I think we needed Tuco more than Walt and Jesse. Because I think we're (sorry, I mean I'M) so done with Walt and Jesse it's just silly to keep slotting them in wherever possible. I'll agree the episode ending with Saul at his desk, ready to take a client was like a perfect ending in so many ways, it felt like one, but of course you're forgetting about Gene and the present, and how much people wanted to see Saul meet Walt and Jesse from Saul's perspective. I personally wasn't dying to but I wasn't mad at it in the end since it was done well enough, I'll let it slide. There's supposedly more, Saul's about to see Walt again. The cuts between past and present are getting closer together, like blips on a radar. Hopefully we're onto a warm finish and not a cold one. Now I can see Kim's out of the picture, I won't hope for anything, just that Gene will maybe do right by the guy with cancer, somehow.
I did watch this week's episode last night, but wasn't prepared to recap it. I was more astounded with the lengths Kim has gone to to appease her own guilt and escape her past. We see the other side of the phone argument, and I instinctively knew she wasn't the one yelling. She makes a dangerous choice thinking the truth will set her free but we finally see her break down the way she hasn't ever before, and it's fucking painful. Meanwhile Saul is at his worst, disguised as Gene and devoid of any empathy Jimmy had. Once he's found out (the use of colour from his old commercials online within the present black and white was really clever, which terrifies him but is revelatory as well), he's gone into survival mode at the expense of his own morality. Now both he and Kim are on the verge of reckoning but it's impossible to say how it ends. Needless to say, Kim is in hell, which is suburban Florida, masquerading as dumb white trash who gives Miracle Whip a go when the store's out of regular mayonnaise and sleeps with a dumbo who's so beneath her but what she clearly thinks she deserves. It's baffling but again so understandable, she was born into a certain level of poverty, she's trying to live a bland life to escape her old one. (Give Rhea Seehorn the fucking Emmy, you stupid bastards). Her owning up is also shocking and depressing for how little it assuages her guilt, but I knew her finding out Jimmy was still alive would give her some relief, even if it triggers her to do what's right at the expense of her own sanity and freedom, and copping an earful from Jimmy about turning himself in, the catalyst for her own actions. I'm so glad she didn't just disappear.
And we get some more decent fan service when she runs into Jesse outside Saul's office, where she's signed the divorce papers and is exiting Saul's life, disappointed in him by saying, he used to be a decent lawyer when Jesse presses her for her opinion. It works that Jesse wouldn't mention her to anyone later but recognises her from a friend's trial, it makes sense she never (and shouldn't ever) run into Walt. She'd be aware of him in the present but it keeps her out of Breaking Bad in a realistic way. This episode was just the purity of Kim laid bare. All that's left is the ending and that could be anyone's guess. It's likely Saul will be the architect of his own demise more than Kim.
Which turns out to be the case. Saul gets caught, rightly so, Gene quits his job, and Jimmy basically confesses to being the bigger baddie than Walter. Marie shows up in a really interesting cameo, you assume Saul's about to destroy Kim but it's really his last shot at redemption with her before he takes the fall for everything. There's a moment you think Jesse's about to lose his freedom, and we find out Walter is actually dead, which makes way more sense than him being sick in prison. Jimmy finally confesses to his dealing in his brother Howard's final ruin and suicide, which the rival lawyer who takes his case claims isn't even really a crime, but once we see it's all to win Kim back, Jimmy's actions aren't so nonsensical. A big question mark gets left over the fate of Kim and Jimmy, they share a smoke in prison, where Jimmy's still known as Saul for being the hero of the lower rung criminals and safe in gen pop, despite his assumption to the contrary. It was a fitting ending in the way Walt's ending made sense. I don't think there was ever a plan to have either of them get away with it, but Saul's ending was more poetic and bittersweet, and mildly hopeful. He hasn't ruined the one good thing he had in his life, and Kim's free to go back to practicing law, where she might become the lawyer she was meant to be. But the imagery of fences keeping two characters apart is more poignant with Kim about to leave and Kimmy in the yard with maybe 12 feet of empty space between the two, close but a world away, I don't really think it would've been as satisfying for them to ride off into the sunset together, and in your head, you're never really cheering for it, there are moments it seems possible but they were never inevitable. Maybe Jimmy will get out on good behaviour before his 80 plus years are done. Oh, and Walt could've spit some gold about how time travel is logically impossible, but he instead steers the conversation to the absolute crux of the question of what you would do with a time machine: It's not about what you'd do, it's about what you regret.
Of course, there's the inevitable "never say never" articles about the fate of the show and characters. Personally, it makes no sense to revisit any of this, from any aspect. Vince might be going back to his X-Files roots, I think we deserve something new as much as he deserves to put his masterpiece to bed.
Sadly, the Emmys were completely ludicrous. I understand why people wanted to give it to Squid Game for Lead Actor, but that ended like, what a fucking year ago almost. And it wasn't the most brilliant thing on. The lead was great, there were some good performances, but considering what Saul had to pull off in terms of stakes, where you're putting the titular character through the wringer in terms of violent confrontations, and while you know they're supposed to survive, there's still a split second where you're thinking, oh shit, this could still go bad, why would you even consider anything else. A show that established and built its tension, rolled with so many punches, dedicated so much time to adapting to their actors' strengths and just having a near-perfect innings, for all that effort, it gets entirely overlooked. For Squid Game.
I'm sorry, I knew the old guy wasn't dead. It wasn't a huge shocking reveal he was the guy in the hospital bed, that he orchestrated this. I'm sorry. It still had some crushing moments, but the Supporting Actress prize didn't go to the actress, and I thought she might clear it. Rhea still deserved it. I know Zendaya's got y'all rooting for her, she can really make that cry-snot look authentic, I'll pay that. But Rhea fucking disintegrated by the end. When she cracks on the bus, that's the absolute culmination of six seasons' worth of painstaking stoicism and subversion on her part to lead us from her true feelings. Yeah, she got mad, she yelled. She freaked out. When she wept, it was a whole other thing. You ask a show to deliver a final season of quality, they deliver and they get ignored.
At least this is something else to get pissed about. I know I nearly wrote this show off, but god fucking damn it. So many nails hit on the head and NOTHING.
