Better Call Saul

[Shane Wahl]

 

Deadspin did a great job at the too, oh and the wire which by Internet law must always be brought up when talking about epic TV shows

 

I found the "Bubbles" subplot to be particularly dominant in terms of writing (and acting). That show was also helped in season 4 by what must be the greatest ensemble of teenage actors ever.

[DaveW]

Deadspin did a great job at the too, oh and the wire which by Internet law must always be brought up when talking about epic TV shows

Deadwood

[TheLeviathan]

Dexter is to TV shows what Game of Thrones is to books. A captivating, powerful start muddled by a total lack of focus and direction.

[Vanimal46]

Thoughts on last night's episode? Kind of felt like one of those filler, middle of the season episodes to me. Not breaking any news here, but Chuck really does not want to see Jimmy or Kim succeed. When he's to the point of destroying his body in order to save an account that he barely heard about? Mike's story once again was more behind the scenes... 2 episodes left in the season I believe. Something crazy needs to go down. 

[TheLeviathan]

Yeah, that was the most fillery episode of filler I've seen in awhile.

[Vanimal46]

This was by far IMO the best episode of the season.. Wow. The Chuck/Kim scene calling him out on never being on Jimmy's side was brilliant. Even though Chuck was right about Jimmy forging the address, what Kim said to Chuck wasn't wrong. He's always doubted Jimmy and never wanted him to succeed. Now Chuck's blood may be on Jimmy's hands?

 

After a couple of blah episodes I'm back on the hook.

[TheLeviathan]

I don't know how they did it, but when he hit his head that looked as real as I could possibly imagine. Great episode for all three major characters.

 

I'm still curious how the Mike vs. the Salamancas ends given we know most of them are still around in breaking bad.

[nicksaviking]

 

I don't know how they did it, but when he hit his head that looked as real as I could possibly imagine. Great episode for all three major characters.

I'm still curious how the Mike vs. the Salamancas ends given we know most of them are still around in breaking bad.

 

Right, all of them but the one that is currently collaborating with Mike. I didn't think it would happen so soon, but assuming Gus becomes part of the show (and I don't even know if they have secured a contract with the actor) it might happen as soon as the season finale.

 

Mike going solo and playing Rambo against the Salamancas for the rest of the run of the show sounds fun but will probably border on ridiculous soon. They probably will need Gus soon so there can be a more believable Salamanca/Fring feud.

[Vanimal46]

 

Right, all of them but the one that is currently collaborating with Mike. I didn't think it would happen so soon, but assuming Gus becomes part of the show (and I don't even know if they have secured a contract with the actor) it might happen as soon as the season finale.

 

Mike going solo and playing Rambo against the Salamancas for the rest of the run of the show sounds fun but will probably border on ridiculous soon. They probably will need Gus soon so there can be a more believable Salamanca/Fring feud.

That'll be interesting to see how they tie it all together and get Gus involved. I can't remember from Breaking Bad - was Gus working with the Salamanca's? Or did he just have a truce with them that this is his territory - stay out of it?

[TheLeviathan]

 

That'll be interesting to see how they tie it all together and get Gus involved. I can't remember from Breaking Bad - was Gus working with the Salamanca's? Or did he just have a truce with them that this is his territory - stay out of it?

 

He worked for them and as he tried to break into the business more Hector shot his partner right in front of him - which created his hatred for the cartel.  

 

But I agree with Nick, this mike vs. the cartel thing can't carry on too long just because we largely know how things wrap up.

[Vanimal46]

Wow. Can't believe that's how this season ends...

[Vanimal46]

I'm starting to hate Chuck more and more with each episode...

[Vanimal46]

No Gus sighting this season... But I have a sneaky suspicion that he was the one that put the stick on Mike's car horn and wrote the note "Don't" on his windshield. I'm pretty pumped up to see what's going to happen in season 3!!

[PseudoSABR]

 

No Gus sighting this season... But I have a sneaky suspicion that he was the one that put the stick on Mike's car horn and wrote the note "Don't" on his windshield. 

That's my reading, as well.  Who else could it be?

[Vanimal46]

 

That's my reading, as well.  Who else could it be?

I can only think of 2 characters that could do that. Gus makes the most sense, since he was always discreet with his role in the drug business. 

The other fan theory I read about, but is more far fetched IMO is Hank. Since he's been following the cartel for a number of years and wants to arrest them himself. I'd think Hank would make it known he was there and ready to kick ass if that were the case. 

 

Or it could be a character we're not familiar with yet.. It will be interesting to find out next year. 

[nicksaviking]

If anyone watched the after show, they seemed to heavily imply it was Gus.

The first letter of each episode title spells Fring's Back.

 

Edit: I just checked to verify this and the first letters are actually an anagram, not a straight spelling. Which ever fan picked up on that has way too much time on their hands.

 

Unlike folks here surely, who spend all day are always working hard and never have any time to spend online.

[TheLeviathan]

Good episode, really sets up some good storylines for next year.

[USAFChief]

I'm already in withdrawal.

[nicksaviking]

All the previews for season 3 show Jimmy in various stage of arrest. Unless it's due to something unrelated and minor, it looks like the whole con Chuck played on Jimmy is going to come to a head quite quickly, which is good in my opinion, no need to screw around all season with it.

[TheLeviathan]

Love that this is coming back.  Along with Taboo and Legion, I've got some nice stuff to keep me entertained until Fargo and Thrones come back.

[Vanimal46]

Just got a lovely little notification on my phone that Netflix is now streaming season 2 of this show! 

Happy binging! 

[snepp]

Hell yeah, I know what I'm watching tonight!

[TheLeviathan]

This and Fargo returning next month make me very happy.

[Vanimal46]

Season 3 premiere is tonight at 9:00 PM CT!

Gus Fring will be making his BCS debut this season... Looking forward to watching this again! 

[DaveW]

Good episode.

 

The 20 minutes of mike barely saying 3 words was amazing.

[nicksaviking]

Yeah this show has to be careful or people are going to be bored with the Jimmy stuff and just want to get to the Mike stuff.

 

I know the wirters like the buildup and the character development, which is really good, but I think lots of fans are going to start getting impatient if Jimmy doesn't start getting more involved with the criminal element soon.

[Vanimal46]

 

Yeah this show has to be careful or people are going to be bored with the Jimmy stuff and just want to get to the Mike stuff.

 

I know the wirters like the buildup and the character development, which is really good, but I think lots of fans are going to start getting impatient if Jimmy doesn't start getting more involved with the criminal element soon.

 

Agreed. I'm hoping this season is where we see Jimmy's transition to being the Saul Goodman we know in Breaking Bad... 

 

Mike's storyline has been way more compelling since the beginning of this show. 

[DaveW]

I feel like we go through this every season, it's perfectly ok for the audience/a few episodes to be better "mike" episodes then Jimmy anyways.

That is what made Breaking bad so freaking fantastic, Walt was the "main" character, but Jesse, Skyler, Gus, Mike, Hank all had various arcs where they freaking OWNED it.

Eventually Gus+Mike+Jimmy will all start working together anyways, it's masterful story telling, just enjoy the ride for now

[nicksaviking]

 

I feel like we go through this every season, it's perfectly ok for the audience/a few episodes to be better "mike" episodes then Jimmy anyways.

That is what made Breaking bad so freaking fantastic, Walt was the "main" character, but Jesse, Skyler, Gus, Mike, Hank all had various arcs where they freaking OWNED it.

Eventually Gus+Mike+Jimmy will all start working together anyways, it's masterful story telling, just enjoy the ride for now

 

They did and Breaking Bad was awesome because of it. But because of his constant peril, Walt's story line was almost always intense and compelling.

 

The fact that Breaking Bad was able to have near continuous intensity for five seasons was it's biggest accomplishment in my view. So far, outside of Jimmy's short Tuco story arc in season one, the only real intensity is coming from Mike's story. I personally enjoy Jimmy's story and if Mike wasn't in this show I think it would hold it's own as a completely different kind of narrative than Breaking Bad. A story about Jimmy is different and better than most other shows that focus on the law.

 

However Mike's underworld dealings and clever ruse's are way too reminiscent of BB, so fans will always be reminded that this isn't a different world or a different kind of story. So if this show continues to have two separate and unique narratives, I think they are in danger of the audience losing interest in one of them and hoping to see more of the most compelling of the two. 

[TheLeviathan]

Well, I try not to get hung up on the mike vs. jimmy thing.  Hell, if I did that, I'd argue Better Call Saul probably peaked with that incredible episode with Mike talking about his son.  They almost can't be better than that.

 

I appreciate the arcs independently and use my enjoyment of both to establish my appreciation for the show as a whole.