AMC owed some of us big time after what they did to their Walking Dead franchise this past year, and I am glad to say they came through in the fourth season opener of BETTER CALL SAUL, the great sequel to the now legendary BREAKING BAD. This fine show, which has been off the air for more than a year has returned in fine form, picking up pretty much where the third season ended, focusing on the aftermath of fateful decisions made by Chuck McGill, Mike Ehrmantraut and Nacho Vega in that season's finale.
As we all saw, an utterly defeated Chuck McGill took his own life be setting his house on fire after having been pushed over the edge by the loss of his position at his law firm. The catalyst for this had been brother Jimmy's call that resulted in a substantial hike in the firm's malpractice insurance due to Chuck erratic behavior brought on by his intense phobia to electricity. This episode, titled "Smoke," picks up with Jimmy learning of Chuck's fate, and for the next hour, he appears to be a genuinely grief stricken man, clearly in turmoil over what he knows is his role in Chuck's downfall. This is anything but the sly and confident Saul Goodman that we know he will become, and it looks like Jimmy might have finally seen the error of his ways. That is until the final scene, when an agonized Howard Hamlin confesses to Jimmy and Kim Wexler that he blames himself for what happened to Chuck. Jimmy's response tells us this is a man who has made a final turn to dark place.
The segments with Nacho picks up as Hector Salemanca is taken away in an ambulance after he suffers a stroke brought on after Nacho switched out Hector's medication; at first it appears that he has gotten away with it after carefully planning the whole scheme, and right under the noses of the cartel bigwigs and Gus Fring, but it is reveled that Nacho may well have fooled nobody and is in more trouble than he thinks.
By far and away, the part of the episode with Mike Ehrmantrout and his new job with Madrigal was the highlight of the show, and his infiltration of the Madrigal facility might just be best TV I have seen this year. Mike is truly one of TV's all time great bad asses, and it is all due to the great acting of Jonathan Banks, an actor who got good long before he ever got famous. Love to catch him in reruns from WISE GUY, a great series from the late 80's, and he was a tough guy then as well. I do smile every time they mention the name of Lydia, just because we know her ultimate fate.
Then there is the opening scene, set in the present day (I think), where Gene passes out at Cinnebon, and has to go to the hospital. It turns out to be a false alarm, but then this show wrings amazing suspense out of a sequence where Gene has to give his fraudulent identification to admissions at the hospital and it looks as if his fake identity might just get blown right there. This is followed by one of the most ominous cab rides ever, and we are left to wonder if the driver is someone from Jimmy/Saul's past, or just a manifestation of his justifiable paranoia. Or is it just a red herring.
Again, all praise to Vince Gilligan and his crew for doing the impossible, and giving us a BREAKING BAD sequel/prequel that rapidly becoming the equal of the original.
As we all saw, an utterly defeated Chuck McGill took his own life be setting his house on fire after having been pushed over the edge by the loss of his position at his law firm. The catalyst for this had been brother Jimmy's call that resulted in a substantial hike in the firm's malpractice insurance due to Chuck erratic behavior brought on by his intense phobia to electricity. This episode, titled "Smoke," picks up with Jimmy learning of Chuck's fate, and for the next hour, he appears to be a genuinely grief stricken man, clearly in turmoil over what he knows is his role in Chuck's downfall. This is anything but the sly and confident Saul Goodman that we know he will become, and it looks like Jimmy might have finally seen the error of his ways. That is until the final scene, when an agonized Howard Hamlin confesses to Jimmy and Kim Wexler that he blames himself for what happened to Chuck. Jimmy's response tells us this is a man who has made a final turn to dark place.
The segments with Nacho picks up as Hector Salemanca is taken away in an ambulance after he suffers a stroke brought on after Nacho switched out Hector's medication; at first it appears that he has gotten away with it after carefully planning the whole scheme, and right under the noses of the cartel bigwigs and Gus Fring, but it is reveled that Nacho may well have fooled nobody and is in more trouble than he thinks.
By far and away, the part of the episode with Mike Ehrmantrout and his new job with Madrigal was the highlight of the show, and his infiltration of the Madrigal facility might just be best TV I have seen this year. Mike is truly one of TV's all time great bad asses, and it is all due to the great acting of Jonathan Banks, an actor who got good long before he ever got famous. Love to catch him in reruns from WISE GUY, a great series from the late 80's, and he was a tough guy then as well. I do smile every time they mention the name of Lydia, just because we know her ultimate fate.
Then there is the opening scene, set in the present day (I think), where Gene passes out at Cinnebon, and has to go to the hospital. It turns out to be a false alarm, but then this show wrings amazing suspense out of a sequence where Gene has to give his fraudulent identification to admissions at the hospital and it looks as if his fake identity might just get blown right there. This is followed by one of the most ominous cab rides ever, and we are left to wonder if the driver is someone from Jimmy/Saul's past, or just a manifestation of his justifiable paranoia. Or is it just a red herring.
Again, all praise to Vince Gilligan and his crew for doing the impossible, and giving us a BREAKING BAD sequel/prequel that rapidly becoming the equal of the original.