Better Call Saul has done it again, folks. After four episodes, the series has shown us four different faces, much like the weaselly man at its sniveling center. Episode 1 was a deliberate character introduction peppered with touches of an indie art film. Episode 2 reachedBreaking Bad levels of paranoia and tension, complete with bodies bound and gagged in the sun-drenched New Mexican desert. Episode 3 played out like a lighthearted detective caper, as Saul Jimmy took a literal hike and nabbed some rookie crooks guilty of white-collar crime. And Episode 4, "Hero," ditched the danger to serve up Better Call Saul's funniest outing yet, an underdog story about the little guy buzzing in the ear of the rich, corporate dick.
After Jimmy found the Kettlemans singing Kumbaya in the mountains way behind their house, they offered Jimmy a bribe and it was another sign that the universe wants this guy to go dirty. And God bless Jimmy, he always tries to say no, he really does. But the Kettlemans' temptation was too persuasive, their argument too impenetrable (watching the two parties try to outwit each other was hilarious). And worst of all, they laid down a hard truth: "I'm sorry, you're just..." "Just what?" "You're the kind of lawyer guilty people hire." It's funny that such a line was uttered by a thief; Better Call Saul is twisting the legal arts into its own animal, somewhat like Breaking Baddid with the drug trade. Appearance matters more than truth on this show, and the Kettlemans aren't about to make themselves look anything close to guilty, even while lying to themselves to sell the con even more. Craig deserved that money? Yeah, right.
Maybe the universe is conspiring against Jimmy, but I'm starting to think that it's Jimmy's destiny to break bad. (So what if my argument already has an answer thanks to Breaking Bad?) Because when Jimmy gets his hustle on and bends the rules, he's unstoppable.
Jimmy's irking of Howard Hamlin was a work of art, paid for by the dirty money he accepted from the Kettlemans. And Jimmy's "victory" in pissing off Hamlin was made even sweeter by the fact that he used Hamlin's own clients to grease his machinations, which involved full salon treatment and a custom-tailored suit with very detailed specs. I hope your Miller Lite came out your nose when you saw the billboard Jimmy put up, and that the can hit the floor when Jimmy and Howard sat down before a judge while wearing the exact same outfit.
One of Jimmy's strengths is to make the best out of any situation, and even after the judge ordered Jimmy to have the billboard taken down, he found a way to benefit by staging a heroic rescue that was filmed for all of Albuquerque to see. Jimmy wanted publicity, and he got publicity. It just took a little ingenuity and a few grand.
The interesting thing is that Jimmy is doing all this in an attempt to go legit. And it's when he tries to do the right thing that he fails. Grinding away as a public defender didn't get him squat, certainly not any new clients, and warning the Kettlemans about Nacho resulted in disaster. Jimmy is good at being bad, in his own way, and it's going to be awhile before he realizes that. More and more, Better Call Saul is feeling like the origin story for a supervillain, with destiny choosing Jimmy's paths. Shadiness has always been a part of Slippin' Jimmy's life, and it appears fate wants it to stay that way. Go get 'em, Jimmy.
BETTER READ THESE NOTES
– That was Kevin Weisman (Hello Ladies, Awake) playing Jimmy's mark in the opening flashback! Always good to see that guy on TV. Really good scam, too.
– "S'all good, man."
– I love Betsy Kettleman. That woman is deranged! Comparing what they were doing to slavery was too funny. "Yeah, this is right up there with that," Jimmy said.
– I'm really loving the way the answers to big questions are being revealed as the story moves forward. We didn't know whether Jimmy took the bribe until he pulled out a stack of bills and placed it on his desk. They're like mini-cliffhangers!
– Was Jimmy looking at an orange shirt a sign that there's prison time in his future?
– "Hamlindigo blue." The new color of jealousy.
What did you think of "Hero"? Does Better Call Saul pass your 4-Episode Test?
