‘Better Call Saul’ Lives Up to Its Predecessor

Bob Odenkirk in Better Call Saul | Credit: AMC

Better Call Saul takes us into Saul (Bob Odenkirk)’s origin story. Before he became Saul Goodman, he was Jimmy McGill, a lawyer just trying to make his way in the world. We see him through all of the highs and lows that lead to his ultimate transformation.

When Better Call Saul first aired, I was skeptical. Breaking Bad is an utterly brilliant show and one of the best TV shows ever — how do you follow that up? I was even more skeptical because the show was centered around Saul, an entertaining character, but not one that I particularly loved. I wondered if they would be able to create a show that was as entertaining as Breaking Bad.

I have learned my lesson. I was wrong to doubt Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould.

After recently finishing Breaking Bad, my roommate and I continued our journey through this world by venturing into Better Call Saul. I had already watched the show once, but it was my roommate’s first time through, so I happily went along for the ride. And it’s much more satisfying to watch directly after Breaking Bad. This go around, I was able to better appreciate how intentional the show is with little details that connect the two series together.

Again, I should never have doubted the incredibly talented team behind these two brilliant series.

Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn in Better Call Saul | AMC

As with Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul is filled with incredibly complex characters. Everyone is so incredibly human, with a mix of good and bad, positive and negative, healthy and unhealthy. We get to watch these characters change and adapt throughout the series, growing more interesting with each decision they make.

Throughout the series, we learn more about Mike (Jonathan Banks), Gus (Giancarlo Esposito), and Hector (Mark Margolis) and how they became the characters we meet in Breaking Bad. And we’re also introduced to some fascinating new characters like Howard (Patrick Fabian), Nacho (Michael Mando), and Lalo (Tony Dalton). This cast is fantastic, as is the writing for each of these characters!

To avoid writing a ten-minute article (though I may do that at one point), I just want to focus on two characters that play a large role in steering the show and help us understand how Jimmy becomes Saul: Chuck and Kim.

We see that Jimmy has a contentious relationship with his older brother, Chuck (Michael McKean), who is also a lawyer. But Chuck isn’t just any lawyer — he’s brilliant in his field and is also incredibly dismissive of Jimmy. He is constantly belittling Jimmy, saying and doing harmful things to his younger and unruly brother.

Because of all of this and more, it’s easy to see Chuck as a villain throughout the show. Thankfully, we also see his humanity. He suffers from a condition where he can’t be around electricity, which has forced him into his home and away from others. We see him fighting this illness, sometimes with success and sometimes in futility, but we learn more about his character in the process.

Even in Chuck’s meanest moments, he’s not some villainous caricature but a complex character who’s at the end of his rope.

On the other hand, we have Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), who I would say is the emotional and moral compass of the show. And throughout Better Call Saul, we see her grappling with increasingly complex situations.

Sometimes, we see her make choices that are good and consistent with her character. We see her going out of her way to serve her clients and her community. Money and notoriety are not the most important things to her; she genuinely seems to want to do good in the world.

Other times, we see her crossing lines that seem completely out of line with her character. But even when she’s making decisions that aren’t in her best interests, we understand how she’s gotten to that point. Even in her worst moments, we can empathize with this wonderful and complex character. Though she has strong morals, Kim isn’t perfect, which makes her entertaining from start to finish.

Side note: I will never understand why the utterly brilliant Rhea Seehorn didn’t get more acclaim and all of the awards for her performance in this. She deserves way more acclaim than she received.

Michael McKean in Better Call Saul | AMC

One of my favorite things about Better Call Saul is that it is completely distinct from Breaking Bad. It might have been tempting to create a show with the same style and pacing, since this is the prequel. But instead, it becomes its own property with its own unique characteristics.

Throughout the show, we hop back and forth in time, with the past being in color and the future (post-Walter White) in black and white. That’s such a brilliant creative choice to mess with us a little bit. In the final season, there are even a few episodes that are primarily in black and white, which is incredibly fun.

Tonally, the show is also a bit different. Jimmy is such a colorful character, even before his Saul transformation is complete, and we see that fun throughout. This show is consistently hilarious while also having some incredibly dramatic and emotional moments.

While there are some really explosive moments throughout the show, it’s not the same as we saw in Breaking Bad. Instead, there are many moments of subdued tension, like when Jimmy is making shady lawyer moves or dragging someone else down with him.

The final episode of the season is a great example of this. There are no explosions or large shoot-outs, but it’s just as tense. We see these characters have to make some difficult choices and have to grapple with what they’ve done. We wonder if characters have grown and learned their lessons or if they are bound to repeat them again.

Because we care deeply for these characters we’ve been with for so long, we’re invested in these final, consequential decisions. There’s tension and resolution, but it’s mostly within the characters, not in their actions.

Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn in Better Call Saul | AMC

Rewatching Breaking Bad and then Better Call Saul has made me appreciate both shows even more. While I think Breaking Bad is the better show, Better Call Saul is still incredibly entertaining. It shows a character devolve in a different way and shows us how one incredibly charismatic person can change everyone in their orbit. It’s filled with interesting characters, loads of drama, and moments of true hilarity.

If you haven’t watched Better Call Saul, I highly recommend it. If you have watched Better Call Saul, it is one that rewards rewatching.