That0therGeorge discusses "The Brilliance of Better Call Saul" whilst analysing one of his favourite episodes: Bagman. Letterboxd - letterboxd.com/That0therGeorge Instagram - / that0thergeorge
Yep that's very well put! Thank you so much for watching by the way. I think this is the best review I've done & it would seem that the algorithm is starting to catch up with it. I appreciate you stopping by.
Great episode but Chicanery is still my favorite. The conflict between Jimmy and Chuck is still my favorite plot line from the show and I just thought the scenes in the court were absolutely incredible.
Honestly, there are so many brilliant episodes of the show, I'm more than happy with people whichever one they want as their favourite. Chicanery is my 3rd favourite though and I'd love to do a review on it one day...
13:27 I’m not even joking when I say I thought that nacho broke the ac system to appear less suspicious when he uncontrollably sweats while he makes the swap to make him look less suspicious
Don't worry Dan, I reckon things will change once Season 6 concludes. Plus, Breaking Bad is still amazing anyway so it's not a huge deal if some people prefer it.
@@That0therGeorge great work! What is the name of the music at the end? It is the starting music of the next episode while both Kim and Jimmy were missing each other and finally were able to connect via cell phone.
Hell yeah man. I think Winner will always stand as my favorite episode of the show, but Bagman stands as one of Vince Gilligan's strongest showcases of his talent as a director. The rising tension and momentum throughout the post-Chuck era of the show is some of the most well plotted and paced shit I've seen on a TV show. Great video!
I love you Damian, thank you so much! Yes "Winner" is a fantastic episode, my favourite part about it is when Kim is getting really emotional about Jimmy's speech, just for him to turn round about be like "ha, fooled em' all" - It's a great of showing the contrast in the morality between the two. And yeah the latter 3 episodes of Season 5 are definitely my favourites of the post-Chuck saga and make hyped for Season 6, as I'm sure you are too ;)
@@damianandfilms Ahh dude Lalo limping slowly away from his house, with the noise of his footsteps in the gravel increasing gets me every time I re-watch that scene. You got any unique predictions for Season 6?
I’ve always loved bottle episodes where it’s just a handful of characters, usually two, being stuck in a small confined place. Throughout the majority of the ep we’re left with nothing but waves of banter and chemistry building between the characters and I find that to be really engaging. Eventhough some wouldn’t consider Bagman to be a bottle episode due to the desert setting technically being sporadic and random from one scene to another, the way the ep was constructed overall really gave me that kind of vibe and that’s why I enjoyed it a lot. Just gimme more Saul and Mike alone with nobody but each other any day of the week
Bottle episodes are always a chance for good writers to show off their genius. They originally existed for star trek, to have episodes which were very cheap to make as they had no special FX and only used existing sets and no new sets that had to he built. And limitation breeds creativity. So for good writers at least, it provides an opportunity to show off how good an episode can be purely with writing and not with special effects and tons of famous actors as guest stars and other expensive things like that. For writers of star trek we got episodes like TNG's episode Measure of a Man where Data went on trial to prove that he's a living sentient being (and so should be afforded all the rights that come with that) and not a machine or a computer that can be owned as a piece of property, which brings to mind slavery, and the episode does touch on that. It was a very cheap episode to make but it's absolutely captivating, and there's no action in it, no fights between starships like against romulans or klingons or the borg or anything like that. No, the antagonist was a human scientist who wanted to open up Data's brain to study it and learn how to create more androids like him because the creator of Data never passed on the knowledge before his death. Anyway km waffling too much now. I just especially love bottle episodes in star trek shows. Because they almost always end up being some of the best episodes. Because again, limitation breeds creativity, as every artist knows, and so if the writers are genuinely good writers, then the limitations of budget and lack of special effects really pushes them to write some of the best stuff they've ever written. And that's why people still watch all the 90s/2000s Star Trek shows to this day. And in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, the bottle episodes tend to be brilliant too. Although the most infamous and controversial episode of Breaking Bad is a bottle episode that a lot of people didn't like, it was the one where Walt and Jesse try to find and kill a fly. It really was a brilliant dissection of the characters and the stress they were under and fear of getting killed by Gus on their shoulders constantly, and so on. But people hated it at the time because it didn't advance the plot at all. But now it's years later and people don't have to wait a week before watching the next episode anymore, it's definitely had a critical reevaluation, and people understand the point of it better nowadays.
Better Call Saul Is the best show on T.V. and Bagman Is hands down my favorite episode of Better Call Saul. Bad Choice Road is probably a close 2nd for me.
Yep, absolutely! I almost see Bagman, Bad Choice Road & Something Unforgivable as a trilogy of episodes. What do you think of the episode "Chicanery"? I know that's a number one pick for a lot of people.
@@That0therGeorge I think Chicanery Is a brilliant episode of television and Probably my 3rd favorite episode of Better Call Saul. Michael McKean was definitely robbed of an Emmy nomination for that episode.
@@That0therGeorge My Favorite T.V. shows changes all the time except for my top 2 but as of now my top 5 favorite T.V. shows of all time are 1. Breaking Bad 2. Better Call Saul 3. The Sopranos 4. The Office 5. Sons Of Anarchy
Bagman feels like its trying to be a mix of "4 days out" and "Tohajalee" but isn't as good as either. Its still well written, but I wouldn't put it in my top 5 for this show.
Better call saul explores the internal conflicts of its characters way more (and better) than breaking bad which is what gives it an edge in many people's eyes. This episode is a very good example of that. Great video!
I agree! I still love Breaking Bad, but I feel like Better Call Saul does a much better job at fleshing out ALL of the characters. And thank you very much dude. Is Bagman your favourite episode of the show?
@@That0therGeorge There are so many episodes I love. Especially in the earlier seasons when Jimmy and Chuck's conflict was front and center like in Chicanery (S3 ep 05). Like i said in a video abt the show I made a while ago, this doesn't feel like a prequel but a bit more like a sequel bc it builds on Breaking bad and goes so much deeper that it's become something entirely different, entirely new and far better than what it is building towards. This show is just pure genius (Sorry for the mini essay, happens everytime someone asks me a question about this show lol)
@@FrdiloMrCritical Yep, "Chicanery" is a popular choice for a lot of people. It's my 3rd favourite of the show but I think it's so fantastic that I understand why it's a lot of people's #1. Yeah exactly & we've still got the conclusion with Gene to come, I'm almost hoping they do a full episode for that for S6E13, that would be cool. Don't apologise, I'm genuinely always really happy to get comments from new people who want to discuss media. So with that being said, you got any Season 6 predictions?
@@That0therGeorge I've got a few yes. A lot of people seem to think Kim Wexler is going to die (since she's not in breaking bad) but I don't see it; I think she's going to do something for or bc of Jimmy that's going to ruin their relationship or maybe even her reputation and she'll skip town leaving Jimmy behind, then Jimmy fully embraces his saul goodman persona (The person we meet in BB). Nacho also lives but I can see his father getting caught in the crossfire in his war against Lalo which will send him in an even darker path. Both Nacho and Lalo live at the end I assume since Saul Goodman mentions them in Breaking bad. What are your predictions?
@@FrdiloMrCritical I'm with you that I don't think she's dead. It's weird to me that people think that just because she isn't in "Breaking Bad". My prediction is slightly different to yours tho, I believe that she'll go to prison, "Something Unforgivable" seems to strongly imply that she's out to get revenge and start causing trouble, pretty much becoming her own Saul Goodman. I reckon Nacho will get a Jesse Pinkman style send-off, I don't think his dad will make it though. I have no idea about Lalo honestly. As for Gene, I think he's going after that taxi driver & I can definitely see him going back to Albuquerque. I can't see his getting a reunion with Kim in the Gene timeline though, this series and "Breaking Bad" have both been fantastic with how brutally realistic they are. We'll get an honourable send-off, but I don't think we're going to get the happy ending that a lot of fans want....
Thank you mate, I really appreciate that. I am in the final stages of editing the "Bad Choice Road" review and I'm sure I'll get around to Season 6 eventually. Thanks again!
Bagman is too amazing to even fully explain, it is just the culmination of the three core characters' journey in one episode. Mike, Jimmy, and Kim finally reach that point.
@@stefankarl4156 Surprised by the lack of Gene, but thought the opening to the first was still incredible - good look into Saul's life during the Breaking Bad events - hopefully we get a few more glimpses at things like that. But yeah fantastic episode and I thought the second one was actually a tad bit better. Seems like we're going for a slow-burn with the Howard stuff, but I'm super invested in Nacho right now. What did you think of them?
@@That0therGeorge I thought it was an almost perfect way to bring us back into the world, thankfully we get more nacho time while also understanding where lalo, Kim, Gus/ mike, jimmy, and even people like Don Juan and the cartel are doing. I’m guessing we got no gene because there will be episodes dedicated to that timeline, giving us that shot of saul’s house was a look into his life during breaking bad that was really interesting to see
Unrelated to the episode but there’s one particular scene I love so much. The scene that I think best sums up Saul Goodman is a scene where an ice cream was devoured piece by piece by the ants. Jimmy (an ice cream) thought that being Saul Goodman is his career at his best. He could be himself and he has no restriction from those like Chuck anymore, but he never thought that Saul Goodman also attracts opportunistic people (the ants), especially hardened criminals, to legally further their own agenda. The first ant (Nacho) appeared. Then the second ant (Lalo) and the third ant (Mike) and the fourth ant (Gus). Each one of them slowly but surely eating parts of his morality and sanity until the final ants (Walt and Jesse) left him with nothing but fear, pain and insanity (Gene Takavic). The worst thing is that in the latest episode, while Jimmy told Kim to left his mint chip ice cream out, Kim never left her mint chip out like him. Instead she ate it with joy. Kim is now officially one of those ants.
Even though it's unrelated to the episode, I really appreciate this input. I did get a similar vibe from the messaging but not quite as much as you did. I think that's a really awesome analogy for how to look at the latter half of the show and of course Saul's downfall in the end of "Breaking Bad"
@@That0therGeorge I don’t fully agree that Kim is the only one that got corrupted by Jimmy in this relationship. They actually corrupt each other. Kim is an enabler. She let Jimmy did a lot of shady things all the time. That’s why Jimmy thought that it’s okay to do bad things as long as Kim “the moral compass” let him do it. Kim had countless opportunity to dump him (and I thought she should’ve done it after Mesa Verde fiasco), instead she pulled a craziest stunt ever by marrying him. It’s until Jimmy faced the true horror of the cartel that he realizes that he’s bad for Kim but unfortunately, she’s deep in the game now and Kim entering the game is like Walt cooking the first batch of meth. It’s the first time ever that she feels that she like it. She’s good at it. And she’s alive. This scene in Breaking Bad sums it best about Jimmy and Kim dynamic. Jimmy: “You know, take that thing and get the hell out of here. *YOU AND ME. WE’RE DONE* .” Kim: “We’re done when *I SAY WE’RE DONE* .”
@@nont18411 So I agree to some extent but I still feel like Kim is a lot more pure and honest than Jimmy. I think the ending of "Something Unforgivable" will imply that things may start to shift
When you really think about it, if Saul didn’t take the job off lalo after getting the location of the pick up and the bagman was ambushed and the money was stolen, lalo would have likely thought Saul set him up and snitched the ambush as he was the only other one (other than the Salamanca twins) that knew where the money was going to be. This probably would have got Saul killed by lalo or ordered to be killed. So long story short taking the job was probably the best decision
When you were talking about continuity you should have brought up how the man at the facility in the begging said “I have something for you” on the phone after seeing the brother leave with the money, setting up the robbers
@@That0therGeorge legit Quote from peter. Later in the same episode they were in a rocketship that was in space, it was slowing down and brian says "Oh were slowing down, thats a good sign". Peter then randomly says "you know whats NOT slowing down? Breaking bad, havent seen anything like it since the Wire" and stewie mutters "christ he never shuts up about those shows" making fun of breaking bad and Wire's obbsessive fans lol
@@That0therGeorge by 2002 standards it probably is good. For that era it's innovative and unique. But by today's standards it falls apart and shows its age pretty quickly. Each episode is 1h and a majority of each episode is just filler material, with the relevant stuff taking not more than 20-30m of screen time. Plots are also told and not shown, with one character asking a question and another explaining everything as if he's explaining straight to the audience. I could only watch the first season, the beginning of the second literally just made me give up
Really tiny detail that I love in the massive shootout scene is how the noise from mikes sniper shots is delayed compared to when the bullet hits because of how far away Mike is from them. Really great detail I don't often see brought up and it's one of the only things I can think of that actually pays attention to those kinds of details
The atmosphere in this episode was second to none. Even though I knew Saul and Mike were going to survive this ordeal, there was a real sense of danger to the situation they were in. The way it was shot, lit, written, etc. brought across how vast and terrible the Chihuahuan desert is, especially when you're lost in the middle of it and far from civilization. The setting would be menacing enough even without the one surviving cartel goon roaming around in search of them. It reminded me of how the Cormac McCarthy book _Blood Meridian_ describes the landscapes of northern Mexico, as a wilderness rife with human and non-human dangers in equal measure.
Thank you! Yeah I really hope this series can be beneficial to both people who want to follow the show and for the people who are interested in understanding the brilliance of the show, whilst going on tangents into general storytelling.
Bagman and Bad Choice Road are as good as the very best Breaking Bad episodes. That's a level of quality that no other show has been able to reach in my opinion.
The reason I like BCS better than BrBa is because the writers and creators obviously matured. They no longer glamorize evil but instead glamorize good. It makes sense that Jimmy would have PTSD after a massive shootout in the desert where he is almost killed and guilt over getting Lalo out after seeing Fred's family upset and devastated. The series finale also was amazing because guilt can destroy you, but Jimmy was set free (by owning it all). Maybe it's because I been watching BrBa since day 1 back in 2008, each year each season each week each episode, same with BCS. I am 40 now, and I was like 26 when it all began. If you have to change, change for the better. ✌️
Thank you for your input! This is a good perspective to see because not many people have been watching since day 1 like you have. I personally love both shows, but yeah I obviously prefer BCS, I think there's a bit nuance with its themes and such like.
@@That0therGeorge I think the reason I like BCS slightly better is because it's not quite as tragic with as many horrible events as BrBa. We also feel the deaths alot more like with Chuck and Howard and Nacho and Werner especially. BCS is not as violent and action oriented which actually makes it more realistic too. As sad as the ending is, it's definitely a happy ending compared to Breaking Bad.
@@flightofthebumblebee9529 Yeah I can agree with that. It's definitely a lot slower paced as well, which I think elevates the deaths in the show. Thank you for watching the video by the way, I really appreciate it
I love how Mike tries to get Jimmy to realize that he put Kim in the game and then put on that blanket. Made me think of how Chuck was always right about Jimmy yet he never listened to him either
Mike shootout scene i cant forget that makes him even realistic is the moment he try to take out the man behind the car instead of luring him out he hit the tyre knowing that he have small chance to shoot the guy if tyre suddenly drop down
Thank you so much mate, I honestly appreciate that a lot. I do this as a hobby so the passion comes first and foremost, but obviously building up more of a viewer base is always nice too. You a big fan of the show?
@@hudsonjones5987 Both are excellent choices! Mine are Bagman & Bad Choice Road. But Winner, Chicanery, Something Unforgivable & Magic Man are all runner ups for me. That's the issue with BCS, there's too many excellent episodes to choose from haha. Thank you again for watching btw. I still think this is my best video so I appreciate you supporting it
It's still the best show ever haha. Thank you very much for that & I'm working on a follow-up by doing a review on "Bad Choice Road" - I hope to see you there :)
@@That0therGeorge it only exceeds breaking bad in terms if it’s cinematic craft and breaking bad’s thrilling narrative but honestly I think there’s a strong argument Jimmie McGill is a lot more complex than Walter White and for that I tip my fucking hat to them. It’s definitely the best show on television right now, gonna be sad to see it go but I very much look forward to the video man will stick the bell on!
@@McMingus Yes I agree completely. Walter White is phenomenal, but I do think Jimmy has a few more layers to him, as do most of the characters in BCS - the slow-burn nature of that show may bore certain audience members, but it really does a superb job to flesh out those characters. Thanks dude! My next video is going to be on a superhero related topic, but funny enough it does actually have a slight tangent on BCS in there. Once that's out (hopefully) by the end of this week, I shall work on the "Bad Choice Road" review and get that out (hopefully) before the Season 6 premiere.
I'm happy you can do what you love in making these videos, i really enjoyed watching it and hearing your take on it, the editing was really dope ngl. Ending of it made me tear up and write this comment lol, hope you can keep making them!
Honestly Noah, this is probably the best comment I've received. Thank you so much for this and don't worry, there's plenty more Better Call Saul analysis videos to come. I do really enjoy doing this and I don't think I'll stop anytime soon. Thank you again, I really mean it.
We got the 3 best episodes of the show other than chicanery all in a row in season 5(ep 8,9,10). It season 6 follows the pattern bb’s seasons and bcs seasons have followed of getting better each season, season 6 could top all other bcs seasons and episodes and maybe even breaking bads seasons and could solidly better caul Saul as the superior of the both.
Couldn't agree with you anymore there! I almost see the last 3 episodes of Season 5 as a trilogy, all 3 are a 10/10 for me and I'm looking forward to seeing the aftermath in Season 6 next month!
I think I consider breaking bad and better call Saul equal because I look at better call Saul as an extension of breaking telling a similar story of a man becoming his true self and breaking bad. Dats my opinion
Better Call Saul is slightly ahead for me, but Breaking Bad is still my second favourite TV show of all time. I think BCS is more or less flawless throughout, where as BB has a couple plot contrivances here and there, nothing too significant though. Thank you for watching by the way - what did you think of the video if you don't mind me asking?
@@That0therGeorge keep up the work bro and u should make a video about comparing and contrasting BB characters and BCS characters it would be interesting
Thank you so much mate! Yeah that's a really good suggestion actually. I do plan on making some more reviews of my favourite episodes in this show, but I may make a video like that once everything has concluded. Just out of interest, what would you say is your favourite episode of the show?
A subtle little set of details that calls forward to breaking bad is set up in this episode. When the twins are stuffing the money, Marco drops a stack on the floor, establishing him as a little clumsy. Later when Saul is trying to tell them he’s a lawyer, Marco is a little confused, when Lionel isn’t, establishing Marco as a little less intelligent. These are the traits that get Marco killed as he clumsily drops a bullet next to Hank, and makes the stupid decision to go and get the axe rather than cap Hank on the spot.
Hey Sean, thank you so much! I will have a video out on "Bad Choice Road" before the premiere of Season 6 - so yeah hopefully everything should line up quite well content wise haha. Have you got any season 6 predictions?
In keeping with the recurring motif of the Wolf & Sheep analogy/worldview that Jimmy & Kim were 'weaned on', I see Saul as the errant runt of the litter Sheepdog caught between the Wolves & Sheep, he's gregarious and dutiful but far outnumbered on all sides, his position between the two led his path into that of a similarly placed orphaned lone She-Wolf, Kim. Taking the analogy further, from the asphalt legal jungle to the ABQ desert, BCS & BB characters are so unique, every species rank of the foodchain is represented, from snakes and rabbits to foxes, bobcats, skunks, porcupines, coyotes, burros, crows, ravens, vultures, hawks and eagles, not to forget there was a scorpion, a horny toad, and a tortoise too! Mike is a dutiful wise-old castaway police dog. Heehee
Aw thank you so much man! I just have a lot of fun making videos, a lot of passion for talking about media, so I try my best to make my own thing out of it.
@@That0therGeorge ah I watched the first episode and thought it was amazing. Then I realized the series wouldn't finish before I went to boot camp so I decided not to continue. I also just watched your bad choice road video and that was also stellar
@@carsonthelad3870 Okay gotcha, best of luck with boot camp and I hope you enjoy Season 6 when you return home. Thank you very much! I think that video was an improvement on this one, so I'm really happy that you enjoyed it
This is my favorite episode of the show too, and I thought you did a great job with this video essay. Lots of really funny editing in this one too. Good job. 🙂
Yeah man it's an incredible episode! Thank you very much, yeah I really tried my best with the visual editing on this one so I'm glad it payed off. Thank you again!
@@That0therGeorge Both great episodes in my opinion, especially Bad Choice Road. That ending scene with Jimmy, Kim, and Lalo is one of the most suspenseful moments of television I've seen in years, and totally worth a video essay if you're interesting in doing more on better call saul. Also, that clip you briefly showed of the shot from Something Unforgivable of Lalo crawling through the tunnel is just amazing, I love it so much! Amazing finale overall, but my favorite episodes besides Bag Man are probably Chicanery and Winner. Better Call Saul is my favorite show currently on TV, and I can't wait to see how it all ends.
@@robertwild9447 Yep agreed, I still think Bagman is slightly superior to them but I reckon I'd give em' all a 10/10, there really isn't any criticism that I could think of. Yep Chicanery and Winner are excellent! Chicanery does a really good job at peaking the Chuck rivalry and Winner does a really good job at closing it off. I'm really excited to see how everything else gets wrapped up in Season 6. So aside from BCS, what are some of your other favourite TV shows?
@@That0therGeorge The Walking Dead is still a favorite of mine (it has it's ups and downs, but I still like it). Breaking Bad is my favorite TV show of all time, so for me personally, I think I need to wait and see how Better Call Saul ends before I can give it that honor for myself. I loved Daredevil (specifically seasons 1 and 3) and I also still like Rick and Morty. I also loved Game of Thrones for the most part, despite it's flaws. But there are still some big TV shows I need to watch. The Sopranos, The Wire, Deadwood, etc. But I'm honestly more of a movie guy than a TV guy.
I agree with the beginning statement, Better Call Saul is better than breaking bad. it does start slow for the first 2 seasons, but it is VERY worth it.
You really good at editing! I'm surprised you didn't mention the dark truth about Mike though, that in the end, all of his actions amounted to nothing, since the DEA confiscated the money he left for his family.
One of my favorite little things about the episode is the sound during the gunfight. You see the cartel hitmen go down, hear the whizz of a bullet going through them, before that distant, hollow *thoom* of the rifle, dead before you even hear it coming. The chaos, the panic and confusion of the men spraying bullets all around Jimmy contrasted to the calm, measured shots that take them out. How the sounds become more muted and muffled as the camera zooms in on Jimmy, highlighting the shock of the experience on him (as well as the loud noise eventually dampening his hearing even). It's thrilling, terrifying and confusing, and amazing all at once.
Thank you very much for the kind words my man! And yeah absolutely agreed, Gilligan knocked it out the park with this one. Would you say that this is your favourite episode or do you have another pick?
@@That0therGeorge There is no way I could pick a favourite episode, there are just so many stands outs man & I am absolutely buzzing for the final season. It's funny I originally started my channel to talk about games, movies and tv shows and for the longest time was really considering a video like "Why BCS is the best show on TV" or whatever, but never did because I switched my style but I'm glad people like you are out doing gods work covering the show!
@@SpotCam Yeah same man, I think season 6 will be amazing, hopefully it'll even top season 5. You totally should still make that if you want to, sometimes it's better to break away from the usual format and try something new. But thank you, I'm really glad you enjoyed the video. Is there many other TV shows you love aside from BCS?
Yeah agreed! And each season seems very distinct from the other as well. Season 1 has a very early 2000s vibe to it, where as the latter feels like it's becoming more and more like Breaking Bad. Which is brilliant in terms of continuity of the shows.
@@chalir4886 Thank you so much! I'm really happy that you're enjoying my channel. I'm working on some more BCS analysis on top of other things at the moment - I hope to see you about in the future
@@jomeotrashgod1098 Awesome man. I think Lalo will die (without Saul knowing, because he mentions him in Breaking Bad) - I feel that Kim will likely go to prison or at least get her lawyer privileges stripped away and I reckon Nacho will get a Jesse Pinkman style send-off. And I honestly can't even tell what's going to happen to Gene, but I hope he gets the ending he deserves. Have you got any predications?
Not that I prefer to watch dubbed, but in the German dubbed version Jimmy/Saul has the same voice actor as Iago from Aladdin, and I think that's just beautiful.
@@That0therGeorge (Sorry, I deleted that comment because I didn't want to spam the video as it can be annoying to people to see too many comments by the same person 😬) Yeah, the reference was awesome, I didn't expect it but I immediately grinned lol.
Hiya mate! I'm so glad I found your channel! I'll use this video whenever I have to convince someone this is the greatest TV show of all time (and believe, that happens very often 😁). Cheers!
Hello Denis and thank you! I'm glad you think this video does a good job at highlighting what works about BCS. Have you got a favourite episode of the show?
Thank you! Yeah I really tried my best with getting the visuals to match exactly what I'm saying. I'm glad you liked the presentation & the points. Is Bagman your favourite episode or do you have another pick?
Good choice! Think it's my 3rd personal favourite. I do plan on covering it one day - thanks for watching and I hope to see you about on my future BCS analysis
Hey dude, I'd actually been working on this video for the past 3 months. I re-watched both shows, took extensive notes, all with the aim of getting this review to be as good as possible. And I must say I am pretty proud of the end result, even if it took so long to get here. And then of course work and other irl stuff in-between. But don't worry, my next video is already scripted and video after that is about halfway scripted. First one will hopefully be out in the next couple weeks and one after that in early November. So don't worry, even if there's a longer gap in content it still means there's plenty of stuff on it's way. Hope that clears up everything, thank you for watching :)
I would love another bb universe tv series but I bet it would be one helluva challenge for the writers to have a 3rd show tie in with the other 2. But if anyone can it's Vince
@@jasonjenkins8910 Yep, Vince and Peter have maintained the continuity so well. Plus, they don't necessarily need to tie in with a tone of characters. We could just get a 10 episode mini-series that explores Mike's time as a police officer or something.
BB is a masterpiece in its own right, but I agree, BCS is IMO a better show as well. Like other commenters have said, this show delves deeper into the characters stories which is more enjoyable than BB. Walter White did a lot of things that were hard to watch (letting Jane die, the 2 minute window prison killings, etc) while Jimmy has been a character we relate to more and end up rooting for more.
100% agreed. Walter is a fantastic character, but I've much preferred Saul. I like that we've seen the 3 main stages of Jimmy, Saul & Gene play out, all of them very vast from one another. (thank you very much for watching btw)
@@rich925cal1 Thank you! I spent a long time working on that & for future videos I'm going to have different footage for them, all relating to the themes of the show
@@That0therGeorge I scrolled through the comments hoping someone mentioned it already and was shocked to not see something about it haha. I never comment on videos but I just had to say something about it!
@@thechief074 Haha, well again I'm glad you noticed the detail. And thanks btw, if you ever decide to watch some more videos of mine in the future, then please feel free to leave comment, it's always nice to discuss with new people on here
@@zing3r_ Good choice! I think Season 3 is somewhat 'underappreciated' - Not that anyone thinks it's bad or anything, it just never seems to get as much discussion as 4/5
Thank you very much my dude! My next video is going to be on the topic of "Superheroes & Accountability", but I do plan on making more BCS videos after that. I look forward to seeing you about in the future! What's your favourite ep of BCS btw?
@@That0therGeorge Chicanery. Ties together all the themes and character development of that past 3 and a half seasons and executes it all quite perfectly. Perfect 45 minutes of television. I saw that episode and i knew BCS had surpassed BrBA
@@JBJREEL That episode is incredible! It's my third favourite behind this & "Bad Choice Road". You're right that it ties together all of the past 3 and a half seasons & I'd argue it also foreshadows the rest of the show & even Saul's moral corruptness throughout "Breaking Bad". I don't think Chuck is a very good person, but I'd say it's undeniable that a lot of what he said about Jimmy in that court was correct and about how he'll inevitably hurt people - Jesse & Brock but be a prime example of that
I was looking for some more thoughts of the last shot - It didn't seem like a coincidence that the space blanket was back, and it felt symbolic that Saul was walking away from it like he did to literally finish the episode.
Recap is obviously involved, but that's not all this video is. I don't even talk about Bagman until 5 minutes in and there are numerous tangents throughout this video like comparing The Twins, Walter White and Saul, which was an analysis completely separate episode. If this isn't your kind of content then that's fine, but I believe this is absolutely an analysis of both the episode and using the episode to explore the brilliance of the show overall.
It's easy to put 2 & 2 together & immediately spot the irony of Saul using water from his bottle to clean his shoe when waiting for the cousins. And later being forced to drink his own urine. But what's also fascinating is that, back when Saul was working at Davis & Maine & he tried to get fired intentionally to keep his bonus perks, he once too didn't flush after using the toilet just to annoy everyone & claiming that he wanted to save water. In a way one could say that it's "peeetic" /poetic justice that he has to drink his own urine out of the Davis & Maine bottle, which back than he didn't want to flush to "save water". I love when various art forms like TV, games etc reward you for paying attention & subsequently giving you an ephiphany after connecting the dots.
I love this episode, but one thing bothers me. When they spotted the remaining gang member, why didn't they use Saul to slow the car down, so Mike could shoot the gang member, and then steal the car, without it crashing and rolling around?
Out of interest, what do you mean by "use Saul to slow the car down"? From my POV, there wasn't really much chance of that happening, the car was going to speed up the second the gang member noticed Saul regardless, there wouldn't really be a way of stealing it effectively given the grid searches it was doing
@@That0therGeorge I don't really know. But maybe Jimmy could get off the road so he wouldn't get as easily run over, try to lour the guy out of the car so Mike could shoot him. I don't really have the brains or ingenuity, but there's got to be some way. Perhaps I'm wrong. Still love the show and this episode, its just a thought that I had when I first watched it.
For a second I thought the title "Better Call George" was a reference to Saul looking like George Sr. from Arrested Development. With the head wrapping.
Thank you my man! Yes "Chicanery" is my VERY close second, I think it's an excellent way of peaking the Jimmy/Chuck feud. Do you think BCS is better overall or do you feel like BB does certain things better?
@@That0therGeorge No problem! Yeahh agreed and the court scene is one of the best things ever commited to film as far as I'm concerned! Well I think BCS is way better paced overall and has more quality episodes with moments that tie more consistently with the overall theme. That being said, Breaking Bad has some of my favourite moments of TV ever mostly on the basis of Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul's chemistry. I guess I just think that BCS has very little episodes I feel like I'd want to skim over on rewatch. That might just be due to the fact that Vince and the team have just gotten better though hahah, it's tough to say. Great editing on this one by the way, was laughing at nearly every cut lol.
@@misterhiggledypiggle Oh yeah the second he points out the battery and Huell walks into the room is such an incredible moment. Yeah I gotcha. For me I think Breaking Bad has a lot more grander moments, especially in episodes like Face-Off, Ozymandias & Felina. Those moments may stick with you a little more, but overall I think Better Call Saul is stronger with it's writing and overall production. Thank you! Yeah I've been trying to get a lot more creative with the way I put visuals together. I think it's a lot more engaging when they're timed perfectly with the commentary. So again, thank you. Have you been watching any other TV shows or movies lately?
@@That0therGeorge Yeahh absolutely incredible I tend to agree with that although there's a few moments from BCS that really stick with me, like Mike being seconds away from shooting Hector Salamanca before getting stoped by Gus, and Jimmy talking himself out of getting murdered by another Salamanca! I recently saw The Lighthouse and I've been working my way through Twin Peaks, both fascinating for different reasons hahah. You?
@@misterhiggledypiggle Oh yeah BCS has it's incredible moments but I still don't think we've had something on par with the Walter White "I Won" moment quite yet, very likely to in Season 6 though. I need to check out both of those. I watched Rocky & Tremors recently lol. & currently working my way through Mr Robot and I think it's really great, reminds me a lot of Fight Club. Have you seen it by any chance?
You have to consider how long a hole would take to dig for those and aside from when night came, they were constantly on the move because of the car doing grid-searches, so it wouldn't be good for them. Plus, it was Saul's problem carrying those anyway - Mike's perspective (based on how we've seen him operate) would be that Saul was assigned to pick up and deliver the money, Mike's principal would be that the task shouldn't change at all.
Thank you! As of right now I'm working on a review on "Bad Choice Road" - I've almost finished editing it. And for now I'm just enjoying Season 6 as a fan of the show, I haven't engaged my content brain with it just yet - but I'm pretty certain I'll end up reviewing it eventually. There are just other episodes of BCS that I want to cover first, Chicanery being another one of them.
@@it.was.written Yeah I think it was most people's favourite before the later episodes of Season 5 came out. Just out of interest - what do you think of the first two episodes of Season 6?
@@That0therGeorge the one where saul exposes chuck in the court and the last episode is also intense. also keep producing quality content like this. quality > quantity
@@rukna3775 Oh yes that one is called "Chicanery" It's my third favourite episode behind this and "Bad Choice Road". Thank you dude! Yeah my uploads are very few and far between but that's all in the hopes I can make the best video I possibly can when they do release. Ironically enough I guess the show itself abides by that rule haha
My season 6 predictions *Team Not Going to Belize* ✅Kim✅: There are so many clues that she might be alive - Jimmy being too cheerful during Breaking Bad timeline, a mysterious phone call on Jimmy’s birthday, Ed coincidentally selected Nebraska for Jimmy which turned out to be a state that Kim was born (Jimmy had no idea that he had to go there), Jimmy somehow knew how Ed operates even though he never used the service until Granite State. *Team Going to Belize* 💀Nacho’s dad: Lalo lost his family so he’s out for revenge and since Papa Varga is an Andrea of this story so… 💀Nacho: Of course a Jesse of this story would avenge his Andrea but Lalo is no dummy so they could both die in the same fashion as Gus and Hector. 💀Lalo: Either Nacho or Mike is gonna send him on a trip to Belize. 💀Howard: Kim’s and Jimmy’s big con is gonna put him on edge and I don’t think Vince is gonna leave this quote from Breaking Bad untouched. “I hope I don’t find you hang yourself in a closet.” - Saul Goodman, S3E2 He said this to Walt after Walt freaked out about Skyler’s gonna leave him after she found out the truth about his meth business. And you have to watch what happened after Saul said this. He went back to his car, then he sighed because of either his grief or his PTSD kicked in. 💀Jimmy: This guy will not go down without a fight. He won’t just turn himself in easily after Jeff spotted him. He wants to revive his Saul Goodman essence back so he will pull off one last con. If you read the script, it will also explain that this is his last shot to get back to become himself so I think something horribly wrong is gonna happen. The police might spot him or Jeff might even find a way to kill him because in this time, there is no Kim to save his ass. It could also be possible that once the police caught him, he might commit suicide. Because Jimmy has nothing left in his live right now. Kim’s gone, Huell’s gone. Howard’s gone. And most importantly, Saul’s gone so sending himself on a trip to Belize might be his best way out. There’s also a small reference in BCS 1x10. He said that he would never get a chance to go to Belize because he would stuck in a godforsaken land that is America forever and since chemistry is a study of change, this will change and Jimmy will finally get a chance to go there. It would also be a nice callback to 3 stages of Chuck as well. Chuck had 3 phases before his death: Being scared and isolated -> Went out of his way to destroy the life of someone he hates -> Public humiliation because the con went wrong, causing him to kill himself. Jimmy/Gene is at phase 2 now so his future is very sinister. Note: Bob Odenkirk loves to talk in the interviews about how Jimmy is the “last man standing” which means Jimmy could end up NOT be the last man standing. And if the last one standing turns out to be a woman would be very quite poetic.
I'm not sure about Nacho or Lalo tbh, I'm really curious as to what the quote from the "Better Call Saul" Breaking Bad episode in 2009 means for the outcome of the main show. I reckon at least one makes it
@@That0therGeorge I don’t think Lalo would just disappear after the shootout. Keep in mind, Gus’ men killed his family so Lalo is out for revenge now. Gus is a cautious man. He wouldn’t just tell Hector that all of the Salamancas are dead while letting Lalo live. I think Nacho and Lalo’s death have something to do with Gus and Mike and both of them never told Saul. There are many scenes throughout Breaking Bad that Gus and Mike discussed omitting information from “the lawyer” so Saul might not know that Lalo is already dead. Even if he knew, he still wouldn’t believe it because in the latest episode, Mike told him that Lalo was gonna die that night and we all know that Lalo came back so Saul might have an impression that Lalo is not dead, not until Saul sees a body himself.
@@nont18411 Yeah that's all very true actually. He may just THINK they're alive and people are out to get him, but in reality he's fine in that specific instance. Especially with Mike's protection in "Bagman" & "Bad Choice Road" it's pretty fair to assume that even IF Lalo was alive, he wouldn't get to Saul.
@@That0therGeorge There is one reason that could make Saul shit his pants even if Lalo was already dead. That reason is a Schwartz treatment. Walt threatened Elliot and Gretchen that if they didn’t give money to his family as he demands, the “two best hitmen west of Mississippi” will hunt them down. Lalo might have threatened Saul and Kim the same way but the difference is that, it’s not an empty threat like Walt. While Lalo’s death, the rest of the Salamancas were still alive and Saul already knew that Tuco and the Twins exist so Saul and Kim could be in danger at anytime. They might feel safe with the protection from Mike (or Ed) but the scene that Saul got captured by Walt and Jesse, Mike wasn’t there for him so it’s reasonable for him to freak out.
@@nont18411 Yeah good point. Also it could be likely that Saul thinks Walt/Jesse are other Samalanca family members, I mean most of them are still alive at that point in Season 2 so it's totally plausible that he thinks the family are out to get revenge or something. Which do you prefer by the way: Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul?
hmm I'm not sure if I would read it in a symbolic way personally. I think it was as simple as him walking in front of the car was such a huge thing and that sense of relief/no more need for the space blanket is what made him leave it behind. I know Vince is amazing at his attention to detail, but I don't personally think that everything requires that deeper meaning. But if that's what was intended, then, cool!
