Better Call Saul: Real Redemption? 

I try to be super healthy but honestly, these videos are best enjoyed with a warm Cinnabon.

I feel like there’s one important scene you’re missing when asking whether or not Jimmy has ever taken accountability for his actions. In the season 3 finale, Jimmy destroys his own reputation within the elderly community in order to repair what he did to Irene. This seems like a very good example of him taking accountability, without it being about self-interest.

After re-watching the Tuco negotiation scene, I realized something I feel gets glossed over. Tuco is about to kill the two guys, and Jimmy literally tells Tuco "I put them up to it". Think about that for a sec. Tuco was about to gut these guys, and Jimmy STILL told him that it was his fault. He's lucky that Tuco kind of glossed over that comment as much as the audience does.

When jimmy tells the old people he manipulated Irene but didn’t actually own up to them and he faked that microphone bit cause he couldn’t actually face what he did is an interesting moment for his character

Gene Takovic makes the character all the more complex, an incredible feat tbh given he's around for 3 episodes only. The black & white episodes are like a soft reboot of the show, Jimmy, now as Gene, is going through all the phases he went through the entire show except in a more quick succession now, in Nippy he phases between good and evil trying to make the right thing while also taking advantage of the shortcuts just like in the earlier seasons, in Breaking Bad he turns into Saul Goodman to escape from the pain of losing his life's work to the feds and Kim's indifference and thus he becomes more indifferent to the pain he causes other people given his own emotional pain just like Jimmy in Seasons 4-6. Basically Gene is pretty much living a summarized version of his entire life and by extension us the audience are watching like a summary of the entire series in a mini story arc of sorts. Gene has nothing, both metaphorically and literally, Jimmy had Chuck, Kim and the law, Saul had money and fame, Gene has absolutely nothing, no friends, no family, no money, he has nothing to lose, he doesn't have the loved ones he used to keep as Jimmy McGill nor the popularity of Saul Goodman, this is why Gene has no restraint. In previous episodes we saw Gene try to replicate his personas, but in Waterworks we see Gene in the raw, we had a brief glimpse of it at the end of Breaking Bad and now it's clear, Jimmy was the lawyer, Saul was the criminal lawyer, Gene is just a criminal. He will rob and almost kill a man with cancer if necessary to escape, he will threaten to murder an old lady in order to save his own ass, he will even gloat to the DEA on their face about how he's gonna get away in his own terms. Gene is Jimmy's worse, Jimmy McGill with nothing to keep him in check, he's an unleashed "monster" and the realistic outcome of what 6 years of living as a soulless conman is gonna do to your moral compass. I thought I would make this brief analysis of the final episodes since while they were aired they got a lot of flack for their slow pace and atmosphere. Without these episodes the finale wouldn't work at all, they encapsulate what Jimmy's problem is, Jimmy is too smart for his own good, he will never be truly punished because he'll always find a way and he WILL take it. Kim, Chuck, the law, no one can punish Jimmy. Jimmy has to punish himself.

You know, the ending of the show is a lot more ironic, as it was Jimmy who told Walter White in their final meeting to stay in Albuquerque and face the music for his actions (“You walk in with your head held high, you'll be the John Dillinger of Metropolitan Detention Center…”), but Walt didn’t take his advice. Instead, it was Jimmy who took it.

Can't wait for the Lalo Prequel "Lalo's Gonzalo" where we see the origins of his vlogging career. Not sure if it's coming before or after "Huell's Rules" but should be great. Bravo Vince!

I think the reason they made the difference between his plea deal and his real sentence so huge is so the audience would know it was a genuine confession. Like you don't just give up 80 years of your life as a romantic gesture, you only do it if you've realized that not coming clean and facing your guilt is going to be worse than prison.

As for times he willingly took accountability for his actions, how about when he knowingly sabotaged the career he built in elder law to get Irene her friends back and put the Sandpiper case back on track?

Man I’ll be real with you, the last scene between Jimmy and Kim, made me cry man. Idk why, it just hit me hard. I felt like a little girl :(

Really hoping that there's a show in the future with this much character depth that allows for opportunities for discussions and videos like these. A lot are close, but in my opinion, nothing quite compares to this show's level of quality and how relationships structure and affect the show's world as a whole.

beautiful analysis as always. i really liked the way you ended it. the one thing about the finale that never sat with me is that imprisonment in a supermax isn't "justice" being served for his actions. perhaps it will keep him from harming more innocent people, but our "correctional" "justice" system is in actuality exactly what manuel said to mike - revenge. retributive, not restorative. nothing can really atone for all the harm jimmy did in his life, but tossing him in a cage in inhumane conditions for the rest of his life is no better. justice is indeed building a world which doesn't incentivize people to harm others for personal gain.

Remember the regret scene with walter while you watch breaking bad. The fact he looks at that watch is his real answer to the question, while he covers his shame with prideful boasts about grey matter

Gene's story ends when he is captured. He sees the literal writing on the wall in his cell and so reverts to the Saul Goodman persona. Sauls story ends when he negotiates the best deal he can (as Saul would). But when he sees Kim (literally) in the crosshairs in the courtroom (mirroring how he had a moment of moral hesitation in court when he represented Lalo), he reverts back to Jimmy, his true moral self. After the finale, I feel as if the main struggle of BCS had finally revealed itself- it's about the internal schism in the main character across his identities as Saul, Gene, and Jimmy. It's about a man battling with his demons (made literal identities) as he tries to get by in life. Breaking Bad was about watching a man become a demon, but Better Call Saul was about a man trying to counter or give into his inner demons (kind of like Sopranos, but ultimately more positive). Just think back to the song from the very start of the series- - My Echo (Gene) - My Shadow (Saul) - And Me (Jimmy) The Mike flashback focused on Saul Goodman, when he was still obsessed with money and collaborating deep into the world of the cartel. The Walt flashback focused on Gene, just as he's about to take on a new identity in hiding and is still refusing to reform himself. The Chuck flashback focused on Jimmy, before he began his descent into Saul and you can see his morality and humanity when he interacts with his brother (also some details in that scene hint that it actually takes place the day before the events of the first episode)

HE MENTIONED THE LADY SMILING

Good video. I would say the first time Jimmy took accountability was when he restored Irene's reputation, to his own financial detriment, in the season 3 finale.

One of the reasons I didn't want this show to end is because I'll miss your video essays. They're on the top quality ones, not only about this show in specific. But Better Call Saul is a great source of topics for this in deep analysis. Great job!

I remember watching Winner for the first time. I actually did pick up it was an act about halfway through, I just randomly thought ‘could he by lying here’ and my heart sank. I spent the next 2 minutes hoping I was wrong before the other shoe dropped. One of the most memorable experiences I’ve had watching a show, and one of the best episodes of TV I’ve ever seen. I’ve never wanted a character to truly change so badly

I know there will never be another show like Better Call Saul or Breaking Bad. Quite a ride.

Redemption, as in redeem, implies that we are all initially innocent and have committed acts that require redemption.

One of the only ways I think you're missing out by not watching Breaking Bad is the whole anxiety of watching each episode like "wtf happens to kim." Because the more you watch Better Call Saul, the more you realize how integral she is to the story but then in Breaking Bad: nothing. She's not even mentioned once. Obviously it's because she wasn't conceived of yet, but still lol. For me the anxiety was real like I was watching BCS like "Ok if Kim is still around, she would've been in BB"

Babe, wake up, a new what’s therapy? vid dropped

I will miss this series deeply

"I don't go to the dentist, because my high school bully had braces" is a terrible comparison to the Jimmy tearing up the shrink referral after talking to Howard. A more accurate analogy to that scene is "I don't go to the dentist, because a guy I know is going, and his teeth are not getting any better, and it sounds super painful." And please note, I am not saying that the re-wording I stated above isn't without some faulty logic; however, the original quote seems grossly over exaggerated in a bias way to make a point.

I didn't think of it when it aired at the time, but the scene where he makes Jeff say "we're done" feels like a call back to Breaking Bad where he tries to cut ties with Walter, and he corners him in his own office and says "We're done when I say we're done". Another example of Jimmy or Saul or Gene or whatever we're calling this person trying to take back control and power in his own life.

Man this channel is one of my new faves, you introduced me to long ass show analysis videos and I'm hooked, thank you for making this content

you make the perfect videos to watch contemplatively with one elbow rested on my desk doing the thinker pose while agreeably saying yup under my breath

Thanks for this! As a recovered alcoholic, I have a lot of thoughts and feelings when it comes to past actions, regrets, redemption. I think that's one of many reasons why this show was so captivating to me. I appreciate your analysis and you put my thoughts into words.

Been waiting for YOUR take on the final since it freaking aired.

I get unreasonably excited to see your deep analysis videos on this show on my feed! Can't believe these are all free omg

I just finished the series, and I couldn't wait to watch your analysis on it. Your Better Call Saul deep dives are so thoughtful and well-constructed. Also THANK YOU for pointing out that Kim returned the finger guns! I didn't notice it when I watched the finale and seeing that she returned the gesture made me appreciate the ending that much more.

This video was amazing, thank you so much for your hard work, and I can’t wait for the Jimmy The Artist one!! I didn’t even notice the “Confession Pattern” of the season finale’s 😮

Thanks! I have been struggling to put into words my non-orthodox feelings about the finale of BCS. I have not felt that it ended the way others say it ended. Your video is comprehensive and I love the therapy angle a lot.

Sorry, but you’re wrong about the finger guns at the end. Peter Gould, who of course wrote and directed the episode, said in interviews afterward that they had discussed whether Kim should give the finger guns back to Jimmy, and they had decided against it so viewers wouldn’t interpret the gesture as meaning that Kim was going back to scamming.

If love is connection and to connect is to compromise and empathize, then to disregard the other and go for whatever you want is the definition of disconnection. The path to a better future is wonderfully laid out by this show. If chuck had been as good as Kim turned out to be for Jimmy, maybe Saul may never have existed.

Isaac! That's me!! :-) Thanks for making me smile. Given your channel's theme of therapy and the video's theme of redemption, it'd be interesting to dive into Kim's apology and how she took accountability for her actions. (It doesn't deserve its own full-length video like this, but would be nice to hear what you think about it.) It'd also be interesting to hear your take on why she became such a bland, extremely passive person, who seemingly gave up on wanting "more" - I didn't fully understand that when I watched the finale. It was a beautiful scene when she volunteered for pro bono work again. You mentioned in your other episodes how Kim and Jimmy didn't seem to have any friends - it's also interesting how Kim had a group of coworkers she got lunch with. She didn't seem very interested in them, so I wondered how she found herself there.

OOOOH IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS

babe wake up, new what's therapy saul discussion

Brad thank you for making me love this dude even more

I love this series so much I have been waiting since the finale

i didn't see the channel name when the video autoplayed, but halfway in when you mentioned that you are a therapist yourself, i thought to myself, 'oh, that's why the analysis is so great and intricate.' as a social work student, appreciate all ur content!

WAKE UP BABE NEW WHAT'S THERAPY VIDEO

Been waiting for your vid since the finale, great work!!!

Do you not consider Jimmy confessing to all of his elderly clients as a moment of him taking personal responsibility? Admittedly its not an event that causes him to change in anyway, but he does step up when he realizes that he cannot fix the broken relationship between Irene and her friends without telling the truth

Babe wake up there’s a new “What’s Therapy” video about Better Call Saul

Absolutely godlike series. I just know before I’ve even started this video that it can go in the top 10 of video essays on bcs. (3 of the others also being yours)

I really hope you can make a video that focuses on Kim, too! Thanks for all your hard work. You've given us alot more to enjoy and think about.

2:17 "is this even a RE demption? Was he good before?" 🤔 I would argue that there were a few times when he was doing productive, "morally" good work. First, when he worked as a mailroom boy. Then when he was a public defender. And again when he ran his own practice next to Kim's doing elderly law.

Thank you for a wonderful and thoughtful series of videos. Keep up the good work! (Also I loved your “thank you” roll for members, with each one personalized with colour and font. I do the same thing for name labels for my students). 🙂

Great video, as always. Thanks for your hard work. I loved your thoughts on accountability, as I never really thought about it in the form of manipulation.

I've been eagerly awaiting your next video and I'll eagerly await the next one lol. Love these essays, you're amazing and brilliant

These are seriously the best videos on Better Call Saul.

I think you're still missing a bit what people mean about the therapy decision. It's not about Jimmy trying to make some rational decision and more about how affected he is by Howard's state in that scene. Jimmy has always seen Howard as the most put together, stable, unwavering person throughout the entire show, so it makes sense that he would be shocked by seeing so much clear suffering and vulnerability in him. Since Jimmy is also so focused on shutting down these elements within himself, he interprets those healthy reactions in Howard as weaknesses, and the fact that someone as strong as Howard could be going to therapy twice a week and STILL look like this--I think--convinces Jimmy that therapy just doesn't work. It's not that it's a rational or logical, but Jimmy is definitely already trying to come up with any reason to be able to justify not going and as backward s as the logic is, Howard being in therapy while also looking worse than ever is a good enough excuse. (As far as the many, many parallels this series does with Breaking Bad, Jimmy's irrational justifications to cover up his own anxieties about acknowledging the situation and his fear of seeking treatment mirror Walter's reaction to his own illness in an interesting way.) The issue I had with your earlier interpretation of Jimmy not wanting to go to therapy in order to do the opposite of what Howard is doing is that I feel like that goes against a fundamental element of Jimmy's character from the very beginning of the show, his tendency to imitate/become the people he's in conflict with. His entire law career is a result of subconsciously trying to become his brother, his instinct when dealing with the Mesa Verde case is to imitate elements of Kevin's personality, after going up against the Kettlemans he ends up transforming his office into theirs, whenever he does any of his one-off con-man schemes he tries to impersonate his mark as much as possible, and you can even frame his entire life as the result of child-Jimmy making the decision to be less like his "sheep" father and more like the "wolf" who ripped that father off. Most importantly, how many times throughout the show has he found some reason to straight up do a Howard impression? I think in a show where impersonating the enemy has been a go-to strategy for Jimmy so many times, the therapy decision is actually a deviation from his normal behavior. The fact that Jimmy very specifically uses all the information he learns in this scene to ruin Howard's life throughout the rest of the show only further sells it to me that he interprets Howard's behavior here (and going to therapy) as simple weaknesses -- because that's what maliciously turns them into. Anyway, loved all your videos on this show!

Yes thank the heavens for another excellent breakdown

I see the end as him starting to come to terms with accepting himself

Such an underrated channel, spectacular analysis videos fantastic job

these videos are awesome, thanks for making them

What made the Season 4 finale lying so left-field, was that every scene where Jimmy lies in that season has a tinge of corniness to it. Almost like heightened theatrical stage lying. But that's almost completely absent from his hearing. Very cleverly done. Also, the "We're done" motif feels like a deliberate call-back to his attempt to cut ties with Walter White at the start of Season 5. Another scene where he's made to feel small and helpless. I saw it not only as a push-back, but also to an extent, Gene deliberately (or sub-consciously) emulating Walter White's intimidating/controlling persona.

Thank you for your videos!

You know its going to be a good Friday when What's Therapy uploads a BCS video

Excited to watch as always

always thrilled to see you in my recommended man. keep it up!

Cool to see you personality at the end. You funny lil' rascal, you! Just started watching your content and find it really interesting and entertaining! Great job, buckaroo!

What a great video, I'm looking forward to watching more

YESSS NEW BETTER CALL SAUL WHATS THERAPY VIDEO

To answer the most notable and important question, yes, Lalo would've been a phenomenal RU-vidr.

Been waiting for this 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

You made us wait... Well deserved

15:13 I was one of the people that left that sort of comment, and in all honesty, i think both things could be true. Reason being that you claim Howard is doing the right thing in grieving about Chuck instead of running away from his feelings, that overall what the therapy is doing for him is good. And while that *is* in fact *true*, i doubt that this is the way Jimmy saw Howard at that point. Someone who dismisses therapy, I doubt his thoughts at that point were "huh, Howard seems to be doing pretty well thanks to that shrink". You could say that Jimmy wasn't looking to be honest with his feelings and face them head on, which was what Howard was doing, so he run away due to that. Jimmy was looking for some way to help him keep hiding what he was going through from Kim, and if a shrink couldn't make him feel better, then it wasn't gonna cut it for him.

@58:00 this was when Kim learned that Jimmy was the one who got Chuck's insurance cancelled. That shot was about her realizing that she had been lied to by Jimmy and had blamed Howard for Chuck's death instead of Jimmy.

I can’t wait for your next video😊

Love this channel

Incredible video and insight again you have a real talent at exploring these ideas! Thanks for making these!

I needed this 👏

@25:00 just finished a deep dive into logotherapy after reading a few body’s of work by Dr. Viktor Frankl. I whole heartedly believe that search for meaning is in all of us, and unreached in most of us.

Great job with these videos.

Regrets, I've had a few. But then again, too few to mention.

Yayyy another video!

Great vid! I'm surprised you didn't mention how Kim seems to counter Walt's, "You were always like this." When Jesse asks Kim if Saul is a good lawyer, she replies, "When I knew him he was." To me this seems to suggest that Kim believes he has changed, that he was not always like this. The scene also mirrors Walt's in that it's another Breaking Bad-era flashback with both shows' secondary protagonists, and arrives at the opposite sentiment. I also would argue that Walt's line is a conclusion based on disingenuous statements from Jimmy. Like yeah, Jimmy talks about how he regrets hurting his back, but also he's the one who brought up this entire conversation. He asks Walt about regrets (in this weird round-about thought experiment way) but when the question is turned back on him, he goes "Oh I don't know, I guess I regret hurting myself that one time." He acts as though he had nothing prepared and chooses a shallow answer, but clearly by virtue of asking the question, this topic has been on his mind. That doesn't necessarily mean Walt is wrong, but the evidence he's going off is flawed. Personally I think Jimmy was mulling over whether or not he had regrets, and asked Walt as a means of bouncing off somebody. He's debating the question. Then Walt's answer basically tells Jimmy, "Well if this is your answer, then this is what it would say about you." So Jimmy is just as torn on the question as we are. But of course that's just my interpretation.

Even tho I loved all the cameos throughout the series, I think my favorite is the one with Saul, and Walt talking about the time machine. Walt was gonna be the biggest cameo in the series, and I was interested to see how they'd pull it off. It didn't feel at all like it was there just to get the viewers. It felt necessary, and critical to the story. They hit the nail like Jimmy hitting the floor. You learn a lot about Jimmy in that short scene

Can you make a video of Kim and her self-imposed punishment? Many people say she didn't pay for Howard's death but I do believe she did in her own terms and she still can be sued by Howard's widow

First, really good video and about Jimmy manipulating his emotions Chick mentioned when he was telling Kim about how Jimmy stole money from his parents store that no one cried harder than Jimmy at his fathers funeral. I definitely feel like Chuck understood Jimmy I don’t know if I am remembering it right but I think Chuck said something about how Jimmy being locked up in prison would be the only way to ensure he doesn’t hurt anyone and in the ending that’s what happens. I definitely think that if Jimmy didn’t get locked up he would still do scams it’s almost an addiction for him.

Such a good video and channel. I felt kinda unfulfilled by the ending I was unsure about Kim’s feelings and Saul’s redemption and this video gave me a brand new perspective that I’m so appreciative of and I prefer it now so much more. Thank you 😊😊😊

Great to see another vid by you on Better Call Sus..I MEAN SAUL

A significant detail thats easy to overlook in the Gene/Jeff dynamic if you haven't seen Breaking Bad first is that Gene is acting a lot like Walt. Hell the episode where they run the drinking scam is *called* Breaking Bad to show how much, at this moment, Gene's story is mirroring Walt's.

whoah dude, done is a throw back to breaking. "we're done when I say we're done." Gene took that on.

I always have believed that when Jimmy told Marco in the first season that he had to go back to New Mexico because he’s a lawyer and he was being genuine at that time. You have to think there was no one pushing him to do that besides him at that point not Kim and not Chuck. I think after a week of partying his emotions sort of sobered up from being super pissed off at his brother and with the voice messages and miss text messages from Albuquerque it helped him realize that he was responsible for people, Which got him to decide to go back to New Mexico at that point.

"Bob Odin Kirk" played "Jimmy Saul Gene". The holy Trinity.

49:05 So, about this shot in particular: I rewatched this scene recently on a big screen and, it’s very subtle but, I did see Jimmy tearing just slightly. Not sure what the symbolic significance would’ve been behind it - maybe the last bits of Jimmy being buried under the guise of the sleazy, apathetic Saul Goodman or maybe burying his pain under the facade that “it’s all good, man”.

Wish we could've had Don Harvey's performance. He played that one scene so good

This channel is so, so good

Boutta be another banger

BABE WAKE UP WHATS THERAPY DROPPED A NEW BCS VIDEO

I disagree that we can't be sure if he's being genuine in his court confession at the end. His body language is subtly, yet noticeably, different from that of in his disbarment hearing. I normally would write this off to acting discrepancies but I don't think that's this case with a show of this quality.

I'm an hour in and thinking...Isn't it taking accountability with what he did to Irene? He basically confessed what he was up to to everyone to get her friends back together.

I think when Kim and Saul were signing the divorce paper Kim gives him the same look she did when he was playing through with the Mesa Verde commercial and made a fool of (forgot his name) dad. The first time you can tell she was trying to get through to jimmy but being blocked off by Saul and it’s pretty apparent in the 2nd but she less warrants a response.

WAKE UP, BABY. WHAT'S THERAPY? UPLOADED NEW VIDEOOOO! I missed you, man.

it's interesting how in this talk with walter about regrets he doesn't mention people he scammed, he just says something like 'this is how i paid for my school', it really shows how he used to prioritize his own needs above others'

I really think that jimmy often uses the truth to manipulate people and will tell the truth insincerely to get what he wants (the speech at The Bar) It is hard to tell when he's lying or being honest, but i think that's because he mixes the truth with lies so much.

I love this channel so much, thank you!