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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Amph Better Call Saul (Spoilers within)

Discussion in 'Community' started by Jabbadabbado, Jan 12, 2015.

  1. EHT

    EHT Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 13, 2007
    Yeah, agreed. I still stand by this assessment of Mike's personality, though:
    Essentially, Mike could not find that other way, and despite trying multiple times, he could not change Gus' mind. He is obviously very upset over having to "take care of it", but if it had to be done he wanted to be the one to do it. To be able to have that conversation with Werner, just the two of them. That scene when Werner decided to walk into the desert to look at the stars, knowing Mike would follow and what he had to do, was just gut wrenching to watch.

    And yes... "s'all good, man". :p
     
  2. Rylo Ken

    Rylo Ken Force Ghost star 7

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    Dec 19, 2015
    I just think of Mike as a man who was completely broken by his son's death. He alternates between trying to find light by supporting his son's widow and grandfathering, and wallowing in his own brokenness by serving a man like Gus. Having to kill an essentially harmless man like Werner just reminds him of how broken he is and that he deserves to be this broken.
     
  3. EHT

    EHT Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

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    Sep 13, 2007
    Between that sad conclusion to the Mike and Werner situation, and seeing Jimmy just leave Kim standing there (in shock at how his heartfelt speech was actually another ruse, complete with the "s'all good, man" line to her), this really felt like a true season finale. I thought we'd see more of Nacho's fate, but I guess that comes later.

    I usually hate when this show finishes a season, but right now anyway it almost feels good to just have that break. This was the best season yet, I thought. I'm sure we'll want it back on way before it's actually back on, though... it's predicted to just have one more season left, right?
     
  4. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

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    Feb 27, 2013
    I think the only reason that is predicted is because BB had five. But who knows, really. I trust they'll stop when they decide the time is right.
     
  5. Darth_Omega

    Darth_Omega Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    May 19, 2002
    Socks with sandals? Yup definitely a German. :p

    Great episode, Mike shooting Werner and Kim's reaction to Saul calling the bar committee *******s was pefect.
     
  6. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

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    Feb 27, 2013
    That’s a great post, and reminded me of Mikes job at the parking lot. Now there’s a self-imposed purgatory.
     
  7. BigAl6ft6

    BigAl6ft6 Chosen One star 8

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    Nov 12, 2012
    Geezus, Chuck is even a better singer than Jimmy!

    So is Jimmy legally changing his name to Saul Goodman or is it just the name he is going to put on his law practice?

    Anyway, Jimmy *is* devastated legitimately about SOMETHING. I mean he broke down crying "why" in his car alone in a parking lot. Oh and the sliminess of sobbing at his brother's graveside was great, took me about half the scene to realize it was a con. Wexler may not have made a monster but she put the bolts in Frankenstein's neck, y'know?

    Anyway, the in between the lines-ness of Mike and Gus conversation was great. "Wait there" = he's going to be killed.
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
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  8. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

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    Feb 27, 2013
    Hey, @Ender Sai did you know the lead singer of Spinal Tap is a good singer?
     
  9. JEDI-SOLO

    JEDI-SOLO Force Ghost star 6

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    Feb 12, 2002
    Gah! I was definitely hoping to close out the build with some German wall support. Now I wonder if they will just time hop it over in a year for next season.

    Mike and Lalo’s game was excellent. That moment when he realized Mike was on the line was outstanding.
     
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  10. EHT

    EHT Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

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    Sep 13, 2007
    And when Mike lost Lalo at the parking lot... haha.
     
  11. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

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    Aug 16, 2002
    I don't think Jimmy's speech was entirely a ruse; the cold open showed that the brothers had genuine affection for one another that came through sometimes. He's definitely trying his best not to be genuine, though-- not even with Kim.

    Lalo climbing into and crawling through a flimsy drop ceiling was one of the more ridiculous moments in the BB universe.
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
  12. GregMcP

    GregMcP Force Ghost star 5

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    Jul 7, 2015
    We still don't know the contents of the letter.
     
  13. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

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    Aug 16, 2002
    Chuck's letter? Yeah, we do.
     
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  14. Harpua

    Harpua Chosen One star 9

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    Mar 12, 2005
    Yeah... it was read aloud.
     
  15. BigAl6ft6

    BigAl6ft6 Chosen One star 8

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    Nov 12, 2012
    "The man knew how to write a letter!"
     
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  16. 3sm1r

    3sm1r Force Ghost star 6

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    Dec 27, 2017
    Great episode. I loved it.
    There are two things that I haven't understood.

    1) Why was Lalo so obsessed with finding out what Mike was doing? He had no clue it could be something useful for him.
    2) Why did Jimmy have a second shot to become a lawyer? How does it work?
     
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  17. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

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    Aug 16, 2002
    Lalo came to New Mexico to dig up dirt on Fring's organization.
     
  18. EHT

    EHT Manager Emeritus star 7 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

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    Sep 13, 2007
    Right... Jimmy didn’t finish reading it out loud to the committee, but he did read the whole thing out loud to Kim in the episode where she gave it to him.

    Unless the letter being referred to is Werner’s letter to Mike. We’ve only seen Mike and Gus read it, but we haven’t heard what it says... although they suggested that it included his plan to come back in four days.
     
  19. Diggy

    Diggy Chosen One star 8

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    Feb 27, 2013
    Funnily enough, the co-writer of the episode said when they were coming up with the Lalo thing, he googled and found a video of a robber doing the ceiling thing at a payday loan store. I wish I could see the video.
     
  20. BigAl6ft6

    BigAl6ft6 Chosen One star 8

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    Nov 12, 2012
    I will admit I felt a little sad in the final scene, and Jimmy's turn was actually so great with Kim's reaction, but my nerd was more like "S'all good, man! Yah! Go be sleazy!!"

    Anyway, the EP is saying it may finally stop being two separate shows, which I am excited for. Only 1 Jimmy and Mike scene all season? Come now. Also right now both have taken a plunge into the dark side.

    http://collider.com/better-call-saul-season-4-finale-explained/#images

    Moving forward, Schnauz said he would like to see more crossover among the stories, which all definitely operated in their own space this season: “If I could wish for one thing right now, it’s that the streams would start crossing a little more, and we’d see more crossover with Jimmy and Mike, and those worlds coming together, which I think we’re moving towards. Jimmy and Nacho haven’t seen each other since Season 1, and we want to mix those worlds back up, too.”
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
  21. Sith_Sensei__Prime

    Sith_Sensei__Prime Chosen One star 6

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    May 22, 2000
    I don't know if this is what the co-writer watched, but I'm thinking it's the following video as it went viral in June.

    [​IMG]


    Go to around the 1:30 of the video to see the start of this epic fail.

     
  22. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

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    Aug 16, 2002
  23. yankee8255

    yankee8255 Force Ghost star 6

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    May 31, 2005
    There's certainly a self-fulfilling prophecy or vicious spiral aspect to it, in that Chuck's actions push Jimmy fuether towards being "Slipping Jimmy with a law license". But does anyone doubt that Jimmy would have ended up there anyway?
     
    Last edited: Oct 11, 2018
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  24. TiniTinyTony

    TiniTinyTony JCC Super Bowl Pick 'Em Winner star 7 VIP - Game Winner

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    Mar 9, 2003
    I didn't get the "watermelon, pickles" line. Was he just saying random words to look like he was praying at the cemetery?

    Fun fact from the podcast: Jimmy's cell phone ring tone from episode 6 of this season was Abba's "The Winner Takes it All".
     
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  25. Sith_Sensei__Prime

    Sith_Sensei__Prime Chosen One star 6

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    May 22, 2000
    I didn't know what the "watermelon, pickles" thing meant either, so I looked it up. "It's a theater thing for when you want background characters to look like they're having a conversation but they just say fruits. It was to make it look to the approaching couple like he was praying or talking to Chuck's spirit at his graveside."

    I loved the season finale.

    The season finale gave us payoffs and closures for loyal fans, and also provided enough side plots to look forward to next season.

    Let's start off with the manhunt for Werner. As I posted previously, I felt Werner's near death experience with the last demolition blast effected and motivated him to risk everything and see his wife. So, it's understandable the desperation of Werner and his reasoning for escaping. Additionally, having Werner explain his endgame of how he thought it was be better "to ask for forgiveness than asking [again] for permission" from his friend, Mike, was a nice touch. For one, I feel it effects Mike to hear that Werner thinks of him as a friend. I think that statement Mike feels he was complicit in Werner's escape in that Werner felt too comfortable with Mike and therefore could break the rules with little consequences. Which, leads to one of the reasons why Mike felt it was his responsibility to kill Werner, but as a friend, Mike allowed Werner to call his wife and save her life. Additionally, I think that "friend" statement will effect the way Mike will interact with Walter White down the road.

    The manhunt for Werner also nicely tie-in Lalo's role in the story, as well as to demonstrate what kind of threat he is to Gus and Mike. And what's funny about this entire thing is the show makes it so you're rooting for a real bad guy in Gus. So, the manhunt was a nice way to draw closure on Werner and setup anticipation for the next season with Lalo mixing things up.

    I'm still not sure what was the point of Gus showing the chemist guy the hole in the ground. It seems more a risk than anything else, as it's just another person that know about it. I suppose it's just fan service.

    As for Jimmy's campaign for reinstatement for his license to practice law, it was another compelling act of the story. First of all, it was interesting to see that Chuck actually vouched for Jimmy before the New Mexico State Bar at the beginning of the episode, as pretty much everything in the show demonstrated that Chuck didn't see Jimmy fit to be an attorney. And so, Chuck paying for the celebration at the karoake bar was something I wouldn't have expected either. And both Jimmy and Chuck singing "the winner takes it all" before going to sleep was so metaphorically poetic, as the winner does take it all by the end.

    And that's one of my favorite things about Better Call Saul, and the metaphors it drops all over the place. In the finale, one of those metaphors was the Chuck McGill college scholarship thing, where Jimmy advocated for that young lady who had a criminal element in her background and therefore was not given the scholarship. Jimmy than rushing outside to tell her the interviews were a facade and she was never considered for the scholarship. That "they" don't think someone like her deserve to be part of their profession, to which Jimmy advise her to cut corners, cheat, whatever she needs do to even the playing field. I think as Jimmy is telling this to the young lady, a light bulb goes off in his head on how to address the State Bar review committee.

    And with Jimmy's campaign for reinstatement. He uses Chuck's death to as a tool to show sincerity, by showing up at Chuck's grave and having a library dedicated to him. I feel since Kim helped devise this strategy, Jimmy felt he and her were on the same page in terms of faux of sincerity. Jimmy really feels this con of sincerity is the ultimate endgame to get reinstated to practice law, and Kim is fine with him not really having any remorseful feeling about Chuck.

    So, with the final scenes of the finale, it's a huge pay off for Jimmy and the fans, as well as a huge discomfort and disappointment. As the audience, we have a strong connection with Jimmy and Kim, but for the most part we're meant to be Kim in the story, especially in the closing scene. I mean, we all are rooting for Jimmy to get reinstated and has a desire to help him like Kim. And like Kim, we see his potential and his mistakes. So, when we see Jimmy address the review board with Chuck's letter in hand, and then refuses to read the entirety of it but rather speak "from the heart" it really feels sincere and contrite. That Jimmy finally feels some guilt and remorse over the death of Chuck. So, when Jimmy gloats about his performance and how he fooled the Review Board it is crushing for not only Kim, but the audience because we have so much empathy tied into Kim. As such, we're can't be happy for Jimmy getting reinstated, and moreso that Jimmy chooses to do business as, Saul Goodman. Saul Goodman stands for everything Chuck despised about Jimmy being a lawyer, as it's the more evolved "Slippin Jimmy;" licensed to practice and abuse the law.

    We finally see Jimmy become Saul Goodman and it's more bitter than sweet.
     
    Last edited: Oct 12, 2018