Breaking Bad fans will recognize the setting of the opening scene. Don Eladio’s back! Sure, he was a pretty minor character, but he sure was an entertaining one. It’s also nice to see another glimpse behind the cartel, as it sheds more light on the origin of the nefarious Gustavo Fring.

Speaking of Gus, Giancarlo Esposito turns in one of his best performances to date in this episode. The dichotomy between his ruthlessness and genuine kindness was brilliantly displayed this week. He’s a horrible person – but he cares about his employees at Los Pollos Hermanos. By separating these two aspects of his life, he gives himself the ability to justify his actions, no matter how despicable they may be.

That entire sequence at Los Pollos Hermanos was terrific. Better Call Saul continues its excellent streak of populating one-off characters with excellent actors, as the employees of Los Pollos Hermanos didn’t really look like actors in the traditional sense. But they sure could act. The escalating tension was incredibly drawn out – almost too much so – but it justifies its lengthy runtime by the end. It also reinforces the tried-and-true Better Call Saul theme of someone’s actions having swift and far-reaching consequences. As you’ll remember from last week, Mike’s sabotage of Hector Salamanca’s delivery trucks forced Hector to put the squeeze on Gus, thereby bringing him closer to Mike. Everything has a purpose in this show, which makes it uniquely entertaining and satisfying to watch.

However, that’s not all that happened this week. We picked up with Jimmy and Kim’s battle against Chuck and Howard, and things aren’t looking good for our dynamic duo. Chuck is as layered and human as ever (as well as extremely punchable), but he’s definitely showing some cracks in the armor. Jimmy’s speech to him has obviously really rattled him, and he’s allowing his hubris to cover up his weaknesses, in a way that actually suggests some hope for the team of Wexler and McGill.

The show looked great again this week, but we’re still a little off from the high-water mark set by the first two episodes of the season. I’ll keep talking about the cinematography until I go blue in the face. It’s worth it.

So it’s another week, and another excellent episode of Better Call Saul. The two halves of the show still feel divided (and I noticeably winced when the episode made the hard pivot to Kim working in her office), but everything else about this week’s entry was pretty great. Please watch this show.

4.5/5 Manila Folders

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As Mike’s storyline rapidly hurls towards the high-stakes crime of Breaking Bad, Jimmy’s story has suddenly become a full-blown law procedural. Both are effectively told and wonderfully written, but I felt the direction was a little off this week. Without Vince Gilligan’s steady hand and visual composition, we were treated to some very Breaking Bad-esque sped-up sequences and over-saturated highways. Better Call Saul has done this before, but it’s been a long time. It just feels like a big change from last week, which is a problem given that this episode starts moments after the previous one.

That being said, the writing keeps it tied together. The script is courtesy of Gennifer Hutchison (previously a writer on Breaking Bad), and she clearly relishes getting to play around with Gus Fring once again. That scene with Mike on the highway near the beginning of the episode was wonderful. It must have been an intimidating task to write dialogue between two characters who don’t talk that much, but Hutchison rises to the challenge with aplomb. Mike and Gus are two people that we know will be in each other’s lives for a long time, and Hutchison gives their first meeting all the tension and intrigue one might expect. Crucially, they both get something that they need out of the conversation, which foreshadows their working relationship. More with these two, please.

Now let’s talk about the other half of this show. After the whole fiasco last week that went down at Chuck’s house, Jimmy’s in some deep trouble. His back-and-forth battle between Kim with regards to his legal representation was one of the standout moments of this episode, as it provided a terrific showcase for Rhea Seehorn and Bob Odenkirk’s chemistry. If anything, this shows that even when the show threatens to come unmoored, it will always be dragged back to earth because of the superlative writing and acting involved.

Other highlights of the episode included: Chuck’s smile turning to quivering fear in the wake of his younger brother turning the tables on him, the sneak flash-forward at the beginning of the episode, as well as the shot of Kim and Jimmy smoking outside their legal practice, silhouetted by the warm light from inside. I also loved the whole sequence of Mike setting up the trap for Hector Salamanca’s associates, from how he bought the drugs to how he brilliantly made them think that hunters were in the area. These scenes of Mike planning and executing a plan continue to be a delight to watch. We’ve been treated to one in each of the first three episodes of the season, and I’m loving every minute of them.
Better Call Saul still remains essential viewing, but some of this direction felt too sharp of a change from last week. We are undoubtedly headed into Breaking Bad territory (and it’s about time), but hopefully they’ll find a better way to smooth out the change over the rest of the season. Despite some of my small issues with this episode, it set up some tantalizing storylines that should be a pleasure to watch play out over the next seven weeks.

4/5 Manila Folders

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