Sorry this week’s Better Call Saul review is going up late, but why don’t you sit the fuck down and enjoy Margaux and I discussing “Amarillo.”
Trevor: There are few shows on the air right now who can pull off a cold open like Better Call Saul. From the second I saw Jimmy in a white suit, ten-gallon hat, and bolo tie, I knew I was in. It’s a great way to make Jimmy’s transition into Saul reliably compelling.
Margaux: Right? That was my first note. Jimmy is such a charmer (and a hit with the AARP set) and it’s such a subtle throughline to Saul on Breaking Bad. Like, it’s not that hard to see how we eventually get to Saul, but I think Jimmy really likes the Jimmy of now.
Trevor: Lots of great connective threads from this episode to previous installments, which is a great way to keep BCS from becoming more than just a Breaking Bad prequel. I love Jimmy’s interactions with the elderly, because while he’s a natural showman, he still has a soul. And we’re seeing him at something of a crossroads in his life, where he’s still willing to pay a bus driver to let him climb aboard and speak to the passengers, but Kim is pushing him – with varying degrees of success – to go legit. Bob Odenkirk’s performance is so great that even though we know which path he chooses, it’s still fascinating to watch the choice itself.
Margaux: I think Chuck pushes him too. Well, push is maybe too nice a word for what Chuck did in the meeting room with Jimmy, more like shove and corner Jimmy into being legit. Or at the very least, trying to call him out on his bullshit. I mean, Jimmy and Chuck were in literal and figurative opposition of each other throughout that meeting (they sat across from one another). They make Howard the ref because Cliff is somewhat unaware of the rift between them, but anytime Chuck would challenge Jimmy on a point, all I could hear was, “gorilla with a machine gun” so I can only imagine how that makes Jimmy feel in the moment.
Trevor: One thing I loved about that scene was the subtle crinkle of Chuck’s jacket. It never allowed the viewer to forget this presence, which becomes more intrusive by the scene. Another thing that impresses me about Better Call Saul is that it can present itself, at times, as a straightforward legal show without sacrificing its identity. The show wears many hats, and does so pretty well.
Margaux: Better Call Saul is no Boston Legal, but that’s not a bad thing. The legal jargon never gets in the way of the storytelling, and most of it you understand on a peripheral level, you won’t need to Google “soliciting of clients” to grasp what’s going on. We already that to Jimmy’s mind, a win’s a win, no matter which way you get it, whether it be bribing a bus driver to fake a breakdown or if you really did end up catching the attention of nosy seniors in a sunroom. I loved Jimmy’s more ethical getaround on how to reach Sandpiper’s residents (and potential clients in their class action case) without direct mailers. It was 100% Jimmy, and beyond that, had a lot of call backs to season 1. Alpine Shepherd Boy rides again!
Trevor: I loved Davis & Main’s crappy commercial – which is absolutely accurate, down to the mention of mesothelioma – and I got a genuine grin when Jimmy said “What ever happened to showmanship?”
Margaux: Also, who hasn’t seen one of those generic commercials for mesothelioma and immediately tuned out everything that followed?
Trevor: Jimmy’s actions are a testament to his newfound…well, I won’t say “professionalism,” but the commercial he ends up making is far away from the commercials he makes after becoming Saul Goodman. But airing the commercial during Murder, She Wrote without running it by Cliff Davis? That’s pure Saul.
Margaux: One thing we learned for sure, no matter if he’s Jimmy or Saul, he’d rather ask for forgiveness later than to ask for permission. Mainly because he thinks he can always get you to see his side of things once he lays it out for you. And we all know how well that goes in both cases, as Jimmy and as Saul.
Trevor: Let’s switch gears for a sec and talk about Mike. I always like seeing his paternal side come out, and it was sweet of him to show so much concern for Stacey. I also like the subtlety of Mike getting his jobs from a weird veterinarian – Mike is literally an old dog, getting paid to perform old tricks.
Margaux: Stacey bums me out. Not only are her and Mike more or less unified by a tragedy, but now we’re seeing definite cracks in Stacey’s facade. When Mike stakes out her house after she tells him she’s heard gunshots two nights in a row, my heart really sank when we find that it’s just some poor schlub dropping off the morning paper. I don’t think Stacey is the type to cry wolf just because she wants to move, I think something deeper (and possibly a little more paranoid) is going on with her, almost a la Chuck.
Trevor: I like how the writers left that vague. And I have to admit, when Mike went to meet the mysterious person who requested him by name, I was 80% sure it was going to be Gus Fring. Don’t get me wrong, I love Nacho, but I just want Giancarlo Esposito back on my TV, goddamnit.
Margaux: I thought it was going to be Tuco, so much so, I started to chant: TUCO, TUCO, TUCO, TIGHT, TIGHT, TIGHT. Once it was revealed that it’s Nacho that wants to be the Whitney Huston to Mike’s Kevin Costner, it made a lot of sense, especially after last week, there’s way more story there with Nacho. What kind of story (excluding the most likely violent kind) though remains to be seen. What I liked about Mike’s story arc is how separate it is (for now at least) from Jimmy’s, each of their plots serving as a breather from the other.
But back to Jimmy, anytime a boss calls you at 10pm, not only is that a huge horrible red flag of a sign – BUT! To have to come in for an 8am meeting? The “you’re fired” writing is basically on the wall. Which, as soon as Jimmy took matters into his own hands, you knew was coming around the bend because the road to the hell is paved with good intentions, as Saul (future Jimmy) probably knows very well by now.
Trevor: One thing is for sure: he’s not done making commercials. I can’t wait. To me “Amarillo” was a four-star episode; a case could be made for more, but certainly not for less.
We’re only on episode three, but “Amarillo” is my favorite episode so far. I don’t want to go too far in the star count, though an argument could be made that this is show is the best and it never gets anything lower than 4 stars anyway, but I’d like to keep my overhyping praise in check (for now). So, let’s just go with 4 stars because all plots set up in “Amarillo” will only continue to pay in better and bigger ways as the season goes on.
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