Better Call Saul

Okay good. What an ending for Nacho. In the moment was hoping for the murder/suicide (which feels wrong to say, what this show does to a man) but as the moment passed it became obvious this was the only way for him to go out without being tortured and have his father safe. Incredible acting of pure hatred. So visceral, need more of that. Sad to see the vortex of these cartels just suck people in (Mike, Jimmy, Nacho) with no hope of ever leaving. Immediate reaction is that this stands as one of the best episodes in the BB/BCS universe. This show is at its best when it leaves behind the thrill and glory of the chase and focuses on its devastating impact.

Mike is such a master of saying so much with so few words

It was an incredible episode and Michael Mando gave a brilliant performance. My only (very very minor) complaint was the jump from methodically following Nacho every step of the way from the compound to suddenly having Mike pull him out of the hiding place. Given that it was a shorter episode than the first two, it would have been cool to see how that all got arranged.

I'm starting to think they may kill off Kim in the final episode. (Don't get mad at me--these are not real people).

1) It would be one possible explanation for why she's never mentioned in Breaking Bad; her death is so traumatic for Jimmy, he never mentions her again.

2) It would make for a memorable ending if done right--like The Sopranos, like Mad Men--that people still talk about years later.

It would, though, close off a possible spin-off (I doubt a prequel to a prequel would work).

Alternatively, the last scene is her buying some rolls at Cinnabon, and she's either also taken the route Jimmy did to disappear, or she's in witness protection

"Oh, hi Gene. I'm.. Samantha. Do you like working at Cinnabon?"
"Well, it beats the alternative"

they share a grim, knowing look, and Kim walks off

I like that!

Yeah she calls the vacuum cleaner guy before the events of Breaking Bad.

I’m starting to dislike her but I don’t want her to dies., and death seems too obvious.

I’m thinking of one of the flash-forwards where Jimmy/Saul/Gene is driving somewhere after he realizes he’s been recognized. He may even know where Kim is.

I do like the show’s trajectory of “Oh no Slippin’ Jimmy is going to drag the noble Kim down” to “Oh no Kim is going to go too far and put our put-upon nice guy Saul in danger”.

I keep thinking of the Bob Odenkirk interview above when he says this season will make you think totally differently about Breaking Bad.

What was it Kim said? The choices are either to be a rat, or to accept that Saul’s working for the cartel

Holy shit this ep

What was it Kim said? The choices are either to be a rat, or to accept that Saul’s working for the cartel

Well this sucks..

Poor Nacho. The shard of glass stabbing took me back to one of the early episodes of BB when Crazy 8 (I think?) is tied up in Walter's basement and has a go at him with a piece of broken plate

It was nice of the Salamancas to take Hector out of the home for the day and then let him shoot the body

Daft question - the Salamancas only knew Nacho was involved in the killings in Mexico because Lalo survived to tell them right?

Nose deep in the devil's dandruff!

Daft question - the Salamancas only knew Nacho was involved in the killings in Mexico because Lalo survived to tell them right?

I don’t think the Salamanca’s are done with Gus yet. It was important to keep the pretence up via Nacho for Don Eladio and all the upper management, but I wager this is just another step in the Salamanca-Fring Cold War which will go on for the whole season.

in mind of the pretence needed for upper management: Nacho’s use of Bolsa in his final showdown basically assured his fathers safety. The impact of putting a gun to Bolsa’s head is not something Bolsa will be able to shake off. I think upper management will be absolutely assured of the con because of Nacho’s antics. Cannot say it would be the same if Nacho went out the Normal/Gus-assigned way. Great that he was able to insult Gus in order to guarantee his father’s safety from Gus

But then that would have ruined the illusion that Lalo is dead for Gus, or did they give up on the pretence?
― DAMAGED by Black Flat (Boring, Maryland), Tuesday, 26 April 2022 23:09 (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

I don't think so? And I don't remember the Salamancas saying to Gus that they wanted him to hand over Nacho, so I'm a bit confused as to how it all happened

Daft question - the Salamancas only knew Nacho was involved in the killings in Mexico because Lalo survived to tell them right?

Hector knows Lalo is alive, don't think Bolsa/Don Eladio are aware. But they all know Nacho was involved because he was at Lalo's place, and wasn't one of the bodies found.

Nacho may have put his dad in danger by telling Hector about the medicine switch- if he wants to get back at the dead Nacho, its better than shooting bullets into his corpse

I'm getting the timeline a bit confused cos i keep thinking things are in Breaking Bad that are only in BCS. So not sure where we were in the timeline in this last episode. It is still prior to any events in BB isn't it. Had me wondering if the dovetailing was a bit more complex for a bit. Like can't remember how early in BB Saul first appears. Actually were events depicted in the trailer for next week overlapping the timeline?

I don't think we can be sure either way. It's possible this season is overlapping with the start of BB. Saul appears in season two of BB iirc

Tuco Salamanca has to be out of prison for BB timeline to start

So, the scene in BB where Saul says “it wasn’t me it was Ignacio” has to happen like ... almost now to make timeline sense right? At this point Jimmy doesn’t know he’s dead but presumably will find out?

guiltily laughed at Hector rage-shooting Nacho’s already dead body a zillion times

Hector is my favorite character. That winking, dead-lip slobbering bell-ringing routine gets me every time.

tbh the machinations of the plot have kind of lost me as well but I don't really mind.

Line still makes sense if he knows nacho is dead

Yeah I’m getting kind of tired of all the subtle-clue-laying that you miss the first time you watch it. Just hit me over the head with entertainment.

After this I’m done with “Prestige TV” and will just watch Bob’s Burgers and I Think You Should Leave for the rest of my life

Wendy! Spooge! (A name that's impossible to forget--I hear it in Jesse's voice.)

Really liked the conversation between Kim and Mike, partly because you suddenly realize "Oh yeah, they've never actually met."

They should have had Spooge pop outside for a minute to use an ATM.

Directed by Rhea Seehorn.

Is that the first one she's done?

Survey--IMDB, actually--says yes, that's her first directorial credit.

Gus seems terrified of Lalo--he's got what, 20-25 guys out on the street (including his substandard fry cook at Los Pollos; I'm sure accomplished fry cooks/hit men are very easy to find)? I don't remember him showing this kind of fear in either BCS or BB.

it's more than one fear in the case w/ Lalo - the obvious "he'll murder me out of revenge", but also, what he knows and might tell Eladio and Bolsa when he turns up again. after all, he's third on the totem pole, with Bolsa and Eladio above him.

Lalo knows who set him up, and if it gets out that it was Gus, he's done and executed, as are probably most of his colleagues. whereas by the time BB starts, Lalo is presumably dealt with and out of the way, no longer a going problem, Hector can't talk, and Tuco is in jail and not entirely aware of what was going on while he was in.

well until the huge intra-cartel war where he killed all of his bosses

Everyone's saying Kim never met Mike but she knew he was the courthouse carpark guard, so they must have at least exchanged eye contact before?

it was a "I've seen you before but I don't know where, yet you're talking to me like we're old acquaintances." moment

Every now and then I kick myself for not remembering certain details from the first or second season, but then I remember it has now been a full seven years since the season 1 finale and don't feel quite as bad since I've never done a rewatch in the years since.

I've forgotten huge amounts of the first few seasons.

thinking about doing a rewatch.

I usually just watch the previous season's finale right before a new season starts.

so they must have at least exchanged eye contact before?

Yes; Kim said as much when she said, "I do know you--you were the parking attendant." It's possible they'd even exchanged a few words if she'd ever used the lot ("Five dollars," "Thanks," etc.). I just meant they'd never actually met beyond that.

One thing she didn't allude to--she realized it was Mike who was in the desert with Jimmy--was that it was Mike on the phone when Lalo showed up at their place. She probably figured that out at some point.

Disappointing filler compared to last week. Started out this show wanting nothing but slippin' Jimmy episodes, but was disappointed to see the Howard scam take up half of this episode. Can't always be guns blazing and a lot of things were set-up this episode (Cliff finally leaving Howard, Jimmy becoming the criminals lawyer, Kim's eyes opening to the underworld swimming beneath).

Yea this was a very intermediate ep

I miss Nacho. The Howard scam is really falling flat for me. I have no reason to egg them on and it’s not watchably self-destructive enough to hold my attention for that reason either. I just want it over with. A bit like the way I felt with NcNulty’s serial killer scam in the last season of The Wire.

I'm still not bored of watching Saul and Kim get up to their scams. I don't really care all that much about whether they take Howard down or not though, it's watching the elaborate plans come together that I find interesting. I liked the car key duplication scene in the previous episode too which was overshadowed by other events.

Yeah, I guess it’s partly just that my dramatic tastes veer away from the procedural, scam procedurals included.

What kind of asshole moves a cone