Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: The Complete Series

 

Better Call Saul is a drama that aired from 2015 to 2022. It is mostly a prequel series to Breaking Bad, the iconic crime drama that aired from 2008 to 2013, but it is set in several time periods, including two years after the end of Breaking Bad. It stars Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Michael Mando, Patrick Fabian, Tony Dalton, and Michael McKean. It also features several Breaking Bad alums, some in leading roles (or prominent recurring roles) such as Jonathan Banks, Giancarlo Esposito, Lavell Crawford, Tina Parker, and Mark Margolis, and some in more minor roles or cameos, including Laura Fraser, David Costabile, Raymond Cruz, Luis Moncada, Daniel Moncada, Steven Bauer, Betsy Brandt, Dean Norris, Aaron Paul, and Bryan Cranston. Some prominent guest and recurring cast members include Carol Burnett, Juan Carlos Cantu, Peter Diseth, Barry Corbin, Julie Pearl, Joe DeRosa, Rex Lin, and Mark Proksch. 

The series focuses on providing the backstory for Saul Goodman (Odenkirk), the smarmy "criminal" lawyer who helped Walter White build his drug empire in Breaking Bad. Most of the series is set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, between 2003 and 2007 (which is where the Breaking Bad timeline starts). We see that Saul is a struggling solo practitioner named Jimmy McGill, who is living on taking low-paying public defender cases and whatever other work he can find. He is living in the shadow of his brother, Chuck (McKean), who was a partner in a prominent law firm called Hamlin Hamlin McGill (HHM) but is now a shut-in because of a debilitating hypersensitivity to electromagnetism. When the series uses flashbacks (mostly to the 1990s), we see that before moving to New Mexico, Jimmy was a conman in Illinois who scammed Marks out of money. After being bailed out by his brother after being arrested, Jimmy moves to Albuquerque to work in the mail room at HHM, secretly goes to a correspondence law school at the fictional University of American Samoa, and then passes the New Mexico bar exam. While Jimmy is a good lawyer, he can never quite leave his conman past behind and is more than willing to cut corners, which is one of the keys to his transformation into Saul Goodman. The series also jumps to Saul's post-Breaking Bad life, where he lives in Omaha under an assumed name, "Gene," managing a Cinnabon (paying off on the line from Breaking Bad) and pining for his life as Saul.

The Blu-Ray set is a 19-disc set. Seasons one through five each have three discs, and season six has four. They are packaged in a large keep case that requires discs to be stacked on top of each other on tabs that either make it damn near impossible to get the discs out or allow the discs to fall off and float loose. The extras include at least one commentary track on every episode (some episodes have two commentary tracks). Most commentaries are led by one or both showrunners, Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould) and include cast and/or crew members. The commentaries spoil events from the series, so if you have not watched the series yet and care about spoilers, you should watch all the episodes first, then listen to the commentaries. Then, in each season, there are behind-the-scenes material, gag reels, and "training videos" that are led by cast members in character and use animation with Easter Eggs from the series and from Breaking Bad. They are the same discs released for the individual seasons, with the same extras, just repackaged in a single case. So, if you bought the seasons individually on Blu-Ray, this does not give you anything more. 

The series is a very good prequel that is different from but matches the quality of the parent series. Odenkirk is wonderful playing Jimmy and showing his devolution into Saul. The writers do a great job conveying that there were a series of events that, had things gone differently, Jimmy would have never become the criminal he ultimately would. They also reveal that there were several events that should have warned him against the life he would ultimately choose. The series also shows the evolution of Mike Ermantraut (played by Banks) from a guilt-ridden former dirty cop from Philadelphia to Gus Fring's fixer. It is not a family-friendly series. It includes swearing, drug use, some sexual content, and nudity. While it was initially conceived as a comedy (revealed in one of the commentary tracks), it is a fantastic drama with some humor (usually dark humor) mixed in. Ultimately, if you loved Breaking Bad, this is a must-watch. If you have never seen Breaking Bad, you can watch this series first, but you want to watch Breaking Bad before you watch the final three episodes of Better Call Saul. Otherwise, it will spoil much of what happens in Breaking Bad. Even if you have not watched Breaking Bad and are just looking for a good dramatic series, this is absolutely worth your time to watch. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 6

 

The sixth and final season of Better Call Saul aired during the spring and summer of 2002. The sixth season was delayed (airing two years after season 5 ended) because of the COVID-19 pandemic and Bob Odenkirk's on-set heart attack during the season. In it, the series finally catches up to the start of Breaking Bad, and we see Jimmy's full transformation into (and embrace of) Saul Goodman. The first nine episodes finish off the pre-Breaking Bad storyline. The final four episodes are mostly set in the "present" day in Nebraska (two years after the end of Breaking Bad) but also include events that occurred during Breaking Bad and El Camino, shown from Saul's (or another character's) perspective. Of course, this means we get more cameos from major Breaking Bad characters, including Betsy Brandt and, yes, Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston. The main storylines in the first nine episodes are Kim and Jimmy's continued scam against Howard Hamlin and their attempts to take him down and the feud between Gus and the Salamancas (with the discovery that Lalo survived the attempted hit) coming to a head. As you would expect, those two storylines intersect in a major way. In the final three episodes, we see how Gene decides to "handle" the situation with the cab driver (now played by Pat Healy after the role was recast), recognizing him during Season 5 and the ultimate resolution of the series. The guest stars in that storyline included Carol Burnett, Jim O'Heir (best known for his role in Parks and Rec), and Kevin Sussman (best known for his supporting role in The Big Bang Theory). The series also brought back several cast members from the earlier seasons, including Julie Ann Emery, Jeremy Shamos, Lavell Crawford, Steven Bauer, Jessie Ennis, Ed Begley Jr., Dennis Boutsikaris, and Michael McKean. Other guest stars who appeared this season included Sandrine Holt and Reed Diamond.

The Blu-Ray set is a four-disc set. As in prior seasons, each episode has a commentary track (a couple of episodes have two commentary tracks), and some episodes have deleted scenes. There is about an hour of behind-the-scenes material, another set of training videos (this time, featuring the three film students Josh Fadem, Hayley Holmes, and Julian Bonfiglio, who Jimmy/Saul has used over the years to film his commercials and get video or pictures for his scams), and a gag reel. The season ends the show and the Breaking Bad universe well. The ending could have been much different had Bob Odenkirk been unable to continue filming after his heart attack. In the bonus features, Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould said the series would have ended with episode eight if Odenkirk had not been able to return. In one of the behind-the-scenes interviews Odenkirk said he hoped that the showrunners would have recast Saul and properly finish the story, but Gilligan and Gould said that would not have happened. Thankfully, Odenkirk recovered and eventually returned to finish shooting the show. I will not spoil the ending of the series for people who have not watched it, but we do see a resolution for the arcs of all the surviving characters. If you have watched the prior five seasons, it will not come as a surprise that not every major character survives, and a significant death in the season directly impacts Jimmy's final transformation into the Saul Goodman we were introduced to in Breaking Bad. Ultimately, the season is well-written and very well-acted, and the ending of the series is satisfying. It is absolutely worth the time to watch.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 5

 

The ten-episode fifth season of Better Call Saul aired in the winter and spring of 2020. All the main cast members returned for the fifth season, and Tony Dalton, introduced as Lalo Salamanca at the end of season four, was promoted to a series regular. This season also continues to include characters from Breaking Bad as the show gets closer to the events of that series. This season, the notable appearances include Dean Norris and Steven Quezada, reprising their roles as Hank and Gomez. Robert Forester also makes an appearance (which would be his final appearance before passing away) in the first episode when Saul's cover as "Gene" is compromised in Nebraska. This season's other notable guest and recurring stars include Javier Grajeda, Steven Bauer, Steven Ogg, Ed Begley Jr., Norbert Weisser, Laura Fraser, and Roy Wood Jr.

The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc set and, like the prior seasons, includes extras on all three discs. There are commentary tracks on each episode, deleted scenes for select episodes, and some episode-specific behind-the-scenes material (all of which are accessed off the individual episode pages from the menu). Then, there is a series of legal ethics training videos (presented as a CLE course) led by Rhea Seehorn in character as Kim, a gag reel, and some making-of material. Since much of the commentaries and behind-the-scenes material was recorded during the pandemic, they were done via web chats. That was fine for the most part, but the commentary tracks did not flow as well as in past seasons since the people recording the commentaries were not in the same room, and the audio quality of the commentaries was not as good as in prior seasons. As with the prior season's commentaries, they are all led by Peter Gould and include various cast and crew members. Vince Gilligan does participate in the commentary for the episode he directed, which is the most pivotal episode of the season, if not the entire series. 

The show continues to be extremely well-written and acted. Without giving too much from this season away, we see all of the main characters continue to evolve, and those who will be around in Breaking Bad get closer to those versions of their characters. Jimmy has fully embraced his Saul Goodman persona but is not yet the person we will see in Breaking Bad. Interestingly, the writers made Hank see right through Jimmy's bullshit, immediately recognizing the name as a take on "s'all good man." The writers also gave Jimmy an out that would have avoided everything that came later had he taken it and a warning of what life would be like if he got involved in the drug business, even tangentially. Of course, those who have watched Breaking Bad know the path Jimmy will take, but this season reveals why he took it. We also see how Mike becomes Gus' fixer despite walking away after killing the construction manager at the end of season four. And we see Kim being influenced even more by Jimmy'Saul's dark side. Ultimately, this is probably the best season of the show so far and is absolutely worth watching.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 4

 

The 10-episode fourth season of Better Call Saul aired during the summer and fall of 2018. Most of the series regulars returned for the fourth season, except Michael McKean, whose character, Chuck, was killed at the end of season three. Although, McKean would make a couple of guest appearances during flashbacks. This season, the notable addition to the cast is Tony Dalton, who plays Lalo Salamanca (who, along with Nacho, was first referenced in Breaking Bad when Walt and Jesse kidnap Saul). Dalton is fantastic as Lalo, playing him as almost a combination of Hector and Gus, disguising his true intentions under a charming and almost chipper demeanor. This season has two main storylines that are kept separate. The first is Jimmy's continued transition to Saul as he deals with losing his brother and his suspension from the practice of law while his relationship with Kim becomes increasingly strained. The second is Gus' move to take over the drug business after Hector's stroke, including the start of construction on the Superlab that we see in Breaking Bad. Wrapped up in that storyline is Mike's transition to Gus' fixer, which is somewhat similar to Jimmy's transition to Saul. At the end of the season, Jimmy embraces being Saul Goodman (although he is not quite the character he is when we first see him in Breaking Bad), while Mike does not go all in on working for Gus. We also get another glimpse into just how ruthless Gus can be and how he is not afraid to get his hands dirty, when necessary.

The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc set with a nice collection of extras. Each episode has a commentary track led by Peter Gould and usually includes the writer and director of the particular episode and sometimes a cast member or two. Vince Gilligan does not participate in the episode commentary tracks this season, although he is interviewed in the behind-the-scenes material. The other extras, spread across the three discs, include a gag reel, several behind-the-scenes featurettes, and a series of training videos for Madrigal Electromotive "taught" by Jonathan Banks in character as Mike. They include animations with Breaking Bad easter eggs, similar to the training videos for Los Pollos Hermanos included in the season three set. To access the commentaries and deleted scenes, you must access the individual episode pages under the "episode selection" link on the main menu. The rest are accessed under the "special features" link. Most of the behind-the-scenes material is on disc 3, but are linked at the top of the special features menu (so it seems like all the special features are on disc three). However, the training videos and a short film are on disc 1 even though they are at the bottom of the special features menu. 

Ultimately, the series continues to be extremely well-written and acted. The writers continue to move the storylines closer to Breaking Bad while using flashbacks to flesh out the storylines. And in the first episode of the season, we see the aftermath of "Gene's" collapse at work (which occurred in the first episode of season three) and subsequent hospital visit. If you liked the first three seasons of the show, this season is absolutely worth watching.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 3

 

The ten-episode third season of Better Call Saul aired in the spring and summer of 2017. All the primary cast members returned for season 3, including Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Patrick Fabian, Jonathan Banks, Michael Mando, and Michael McKean. The show also continues to bring back characters from Breaking Bad as the series gets closer to the events of the parent series. Of course, in season 2, the big addition to the cast from Breaking Bad was Mark Margolis, reprising his role as Hector Salamanca. This season, as was hinted at through multiple Easter eggs, Giancarlo Esposito reprises his role as Gus Fring. Laura Fraser, Lavelle Crawford, and Steven Bauer also reprise their Breaking Bad roles. The show picks up shortly after the events that ended season 2, with Chuck making the tape of Jimmy confessing to altering the Sandpiper documents. One of the main themes this season is Jimmy versus Chuck, and we see what ultimately pushes Jimmy to transform into Saul. In fact, we discover the origin of the Saul Goodman name this season, although Jimmy does not use it constantly yet. The other big storyline of the season is the feud between Gus and Hector and how the various criminals around the two get pulled into it. We also see what led to Mike working for Gus. 

The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc set. Like the season one and two blu-ray releases, this season has a lot of bonus content, including commentary tracks on every episode, several behind-the-scenes featurettes, and a conversation between Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, and Jonathan Banks discussing their characters and the show in general. There is also a gag reel and a series of short "Los Pollos Hermanos" training videos where Gus discusses the employment policies for the restaurant, which include some rather hilarious animations. The show continues to be very good. It is well-written and extremely well-acted. The writers do a great job telling a story different from Breaking Bad but will ultimately set up the characters as we see them in Breaking Bad. This season also includes the first major death on the show. Of course, people who have watched Breaking Bad already know who cannot be killed in the series, but the writers still manage to keep the series suspenseful. They also do a great job of continuing to develop the characters, especially those (like Jimmy) who are not yet in the place where they will be a few years later. I would say that Gus is the most like his Breaking Bad character this season, while characters like Jimmy and Mike are still evolving. Ultimately, if you liked the first two seasons of Better Call Saul and liked Breaking Bad, this season is absolutely worth watching. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 2

 

The ten-episode second season of Better Call Saul aired from the fall of 2015 to the spring of 2016. All the main cast members, including Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Patrick Fabian, Michael McKean, Jonathan Banks, and Michael Mando, return. Ed Begley Jr. has a multi-episode guest-starring arc this season, playing the head of the law firm Davis and Main, which was introduced in season 1. The series also continues to tie into the Breaking Bad universe by bringing back actors from the parent series, both small character actors you may not remember from Breaking Bad and those with larger roles. The main addition to the cast this season from Breaking Bad is Mark Margolis, who, of course, plays Hector Salamanca. The twins, Marco and Leonel, also appear, and Raymond Cruz reprises his role as Tuco. And, while Gus Fring does not appear in season two, there are easter eggs that hint at his arrival.

Interestingly, we see Hector when he can still walk and talk and get a glimpse at just how much of a villain he is. As was the case with the first season, the show uses a serial storytelling format in which the episodes build on each other. The season starts with another flash-forward showing Saul's mundane life in Nebraska as "Gene" but still pines for his life as Saul. Then, the series is primarily set in 2003 before the events of Breaking Bad as we continue to see Jimmy's transition into Saul as he pisses away every opportunity to be a legitimate lawyer because he cannot quite give up the life of the con man. We also see his relationship with Kim and his brother evolve, and we see Mike's transition from a guy who is not afraid to get his hands dirty but still has a code to what he would become in Breaking Bad. 

The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc. It has a decent amount of extras spread across the three discs. Every episode has a commentary track that includes at least one of the showrunners, sometimes one or two members of the cast, the writer and/or director of the episode, or other crew members. The extras also include a gag reel, behind-the-scenes material, and a conversation between Mark Margolis and Jonathan Banks, which is very similar to the one on the Season 1 set between Odenkirk and McKean in which they discuss their careers and their characters on the show.

The series continues to be wonderfully written and acted. Even though it is set in the Breaking Bad universe, it has a much different feel than Breaking Bad, as it sets up what would come later. Even though you know that some characters are safe because they have to appear in Breaking Bad, it is still very suspenseful. There is definitely a Cain and Abel feel in the storyline with Jimmy and Chuck, and we see that Chuck has a large role in the creation of Saul Goodman. There is a lot of swearing and violence in the show, and there is a lot of swearing in the commentary tracks (including the use of the f-word). So, the show is not suitable for young kids or the easily offended. Ultimately, however, it is a great season and is absolutely worth watching. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Better Call Saul: Season 1

 

Better Call Saul is the series spun off from the iconic crime-drama Breaking Bad. It is centered around the "criminal" lawyer Saul Goodman. It was created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, the co-creators of Breaking Bad. It stars Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Jonathan Banks, Michael Mando, Patrick Fabian, and Michael McKean. The first season's recurring cast includes Kerry Condon, Julie Ann Emery, and Jeremy Shamos. The ten-episode first season aired in the winter and spring of 2015. The first episode starts out after the events of Breaking Bad, where we see that Saul is indeed working as a manager at a Cinnabon (paying off on the line from Breaking Bad when Saul was about to skip town) in Omaha, Nebraska, under the name Gene. He lives a drab life as a fugitive, longing for his old life. Then, the series flashes back to Albuquerque in 2002, before the events of Breaking Bad (the time period most of the series is set in). We see Saul working under his real name, James/Jimmy McGill, as a struggling solo practitioner who is working on public defender cases for $700 a pop, living and working out of a storage room in a nail salon, trying to drum up clients, and being a caregiver for his brother, Chuck (played by McKean) who was a named partner in one of the largest firms in Albuquerque (HHM) but is not a shut-in because of a hypersensitivity to electromagnetic fields. Chuck has disconnected all the electricity from his house using a lantern and gas stove, and relying on Jimmy to fill a cooler with food and ice. Jimmy's best and seemingly only friend is an associate at HHM named Kim, and Mike Ehrmantraut (played by Banks, reprising his role from Breaking Bad) is working as a toll booth operator at the courthouse. Like Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul is mostly a serial that slowly tells the story of how Jimmy transforms into Saul Goodman. It also has some story-of-the-week procedural elements that are usually secondary to the serial arcs.

The Blu-Ray set is a three-disc set, with the episodes and the bonus content spread across the three discs. The set has a lot of bonus material, including deleted scenes, a gag reel, a conversation between Odenkirk and McKean about their respective careers and their characters on the show, and some behind-the-scenes material. Each episode has a commentary track featuring Gilligan and/or Gould, the writer of the episode, the director and/or a producer, and one or more cast members. The seventh episode has a second commentary track just featuring Julie Ann Emery and Jeremy Shamos in character as their characters, Betsy and Craig Kettleman hilariously reacting to the episode. The episodes can be watched in a "play all" mode or from their own episode pages (which is where the commentary tracks and deleted scenes are accessed). You can stop the disc and pick up where you left off when you resume playing, even when watching the bonus material.

The series is a wonderful spin-off of Breaking Bad. It is well-written and very well-acted. Throughout the season, we see Jimmy transform from a small-time con artist, turning his life around to secretly get a law degree, pass the bar exam, become a very good lawyer, and sowing the seeds of who he would become as Saul Goodman. Odenkirk is fantastic as the series lead, but all the actors are wonderful. While we know the fates of some of the characters (and there are more than just Banks and Odenkirk who reprise their roles from Breaking Bad), the show pulls off the balance of setting up what will come later with telling its own story and standing on its own. Like the parent series, it is very much an adult drama. There is a lot of swearing, violence, and a bit of sexual content. The bonus material contains spoilers, so if you did not watch the series when it aired, you want to watch the episodes before you listen to the commentaries or watch the behind-the-scenes material. Ultimately, the show is an excellent mix of legal, crime, and character-driven drama with some humor. You do not need to have seen Breaking Bad to get what is going on in Better Call Saul, but some things will make more sense if you have. If you have watched Breaking Bad, this is a must-watch. Even if you have never seen a single episode of Breaking Bad, however, this is absolutely worth your time to watch.

TV Series Recap: Breaking-Bad/Better Call Saul (Spoilers)

 

  

Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are basically extensions of each other as a series. Breaking Bad, of course, aired and ended first, with the death of Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse getting away from the Nazi compound and evading the police. We find out in the El Camino movie that Jesse managed to get out of Albuquerque with the help of the vacuum cleaner guy and start a new life in Alaska. Better Call Saul, which was spun off from Breaking Bad, is partly an origin story for the character of Saul Goodman, showing his life before the Breaking Bad timeline as a two-bit slip-and-fall crook turned lawyer named Jimmy McGill who let greed and revenge rule his life (which is where most of the series spent its time) and partly a sequel to Breaking Bad, showing that Saul ended up managing a Cinnabon in Omaha Nebraska under the name "Gene".  Gene could not leave Saul totally behind, and as shown in the second half of the final season, he got greedy and ended up getting caught. 

Between the two shows, none of the main characters had what you call a happily ever after. The closest (at least as we know so far) was Jesse, which to me is actually the best outcome since he was the least "bad" of the worst people in Breaking Bad, never turned into the monster that Walter did, and was ready to let go of that life but was constantly pulled back in by Walter's manipulation. Of course, Walter ended up dying, and as we find definitively out in BCS, Skylar made a deal to avoid prison, and Gus and Mike were dead by the end of Breaking Bad so even if the authorities found out about their roles, they were not around to be punished either. So, ultimately, that left Saul/Jimmy to face the consequences of what happened during Breaking Bad. 

Jimmy was kind of a sad-sack character, at least initially in BCS, who had genuinely tried to move on from his small-time crime life to become a lawyer and follow in his brother's footsteps. Ironically, had his brother not torpedoed him, Jimmy probably would not have made the transition to Saul. But, that betrayal wounded him so much he would always give in to greed and would always get revenge on his perceived enemies, which inadvertently led to the deaths of his brother Chuck and to Howard Hamlin. And, his greed led to him running scams in Omaha instead of getting out when he could have and then taking risks that ended up with him getting arrested in a dumpster. 

Ultimately, Saul was never as evil as Gus or Walter, but he was responsible for Walter becoming as successful as he did and thus had culpability for the things Walter did. For the first time in a long time Saul, having negotiated himself a seven-year prison sentence when he was offered 30 years and facing life plus 180 years if he went to trial, did something against his own interests when he admitted to everything to save Kim, the only person he cared about as much as he cared about himself. So, Jesse ending up in Alaska living free and Saul in prison for 86 years seems to be where the last surviving characters from Breaking Bad should have ended up. Personally, I do not think there is any reason to revisit the Breaking Bad universe and I hope Vice Gilligan and Peter Gould leave it alone. I am not sure that a Kim-centric show is needed, or would be as good as either BB or BCS. I am fine with it just being where it is with everyone living the rest of their lives. If they did want to revive the universe again, a movie in the vein of El Camino with Jesse being caught and extradited to New Mexico with Kim representing him would be a good way to do it. But, I do not think another series is needed and I doubt that they could catch lightning in a bottle a third time and make a series as good as either BB or BCS.