Better Call Saul is now routinely hailed as one of the best ever TV shows to have graced our screens, which is an achievement in and of itself. But Peter Gould\u2019s masterpiece had a trickier job than most because it was following what is also believed to another of the best TV shows of all time, the very best<\/em> by some: Breaking Bad.<\/span><\/p>\n How on<\/em> earth<\/em> do you follow that? And why on earth<\/em> would you choose to do so with Saul Goodman, the greasy, self-serving lawyer who helped Walter White expand his drug empire?<\/p>\n The man we\u2019re first introduced to in season 2, episode 8 of Breaking Bad, titled Better Call Saul, is a clown and a weasel with no real depth and certainly no redeeming qualities. Saul isn\u2019t someone you could ever root for, or be truly invested in, largely there to serve the viewer some light relief \u2013 which makes him the worst possible candidate for his own show, right?<\/p>\n But in Better Call Saul, Gould introduced us to James Morgan \u201cJimmy\u201d McGill, a man who has real depth, and who had us all intensely invested in his fate across six captivating seasons as we learned how Jimmy became Saul, and what became of him after the events of Breaking Bad and beyond.<\/p>\n I was late to the party, and having been warned by my partner and the internet that the first couple of seasons were a bit of a slog, I tailored my expectations. But instantly, I was hooked.<\/p>\n The dynamic between Jimmy and his brother Chuck is something I still think about regularly, almost as if they\u2019re people from my own life that I once knew. Their relationship was complex, conflicted, desperately sad and always riveting. There was love there, but unlike Jimmy, who admired the man his brother was and all that he\u2019d achieved within the legal profession, Chuck\u2019s love, if you can even call it that, always felt like it stemmed from a sense of obligation.<\/p>\n He didn\u2019t admire his brother, and any opportunity for progression or self-improvement was acceptable, and actively encouraged, so long as Jimmy didn\u2019t surpass him and his achievements.<\/p>\n The complicated nature of their brotherhood, which travelled to pitch black depths, also opened it up for debate among viewers, with many a Reddit thread dedicated to competing versions of what the truth of Jimmy and Chuck\u2019s relationship was. All of them hold weight, and that is the beauty of Better Call Saul. So much of the show is open to interpretation.<\/p>\n Chuck\u2019s mental illness was also a stroke of unexpected genius from Gould. The lawyer believed he was suffering from\u00a0<\/span>electromagnetic hypersensitivity, so much so that he shut himself firmly inside his home and refused to use anything that required electricity, with Jimmy acting as his personal caddy, delivering his Financial Times and <\/span>favourite apples in a display of brotherly devotion.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s an unconventional narrative choice, and not only something I hadn\u2019t really seen before in a TV drama, but also a detail I didn\u2019t expect to feature in a series about a criminal lawyer with ties to a drug cartel. But<\/span> Better Call Saul always marched to the beat of its own drum, acutely aware of what it was doing, even if it wasn\u2019t always immediately clear to the viewer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n It also wasn\u2019t afraid to rip up the rule book, as we saw in the last few episodes, which almost made the final season feel like two different shows. At the time it was jarring, and I also wasn\u2019t sure it was the right decision. But looking back, it was necessary in order to bed in key details as it made its long, slow approach to the final episode, which was masterful.<\/span><\/p>\n Gould delivered the right ending for Jimmy \u2013 the rest of his days behind bars \u2013 but not without first giving him one final opportunity to showcase his flair for undermining the legal system, which has always been one of the most entertaining aspects of Better Call Saul, and it\u2019s also<\/span>\u00a0key to why the character was deserving of his own show in the first place.<\/p>\n But following that, Jimmy was then given the space to<\/span> take accountability for all of his illegal and moral wrongdoings, including the sabotaging of his brother\u2019s career, which ultimately contributed to his suicide \u2013 a stunning moment of self-admission which gets right to heart<\/span> of what Gould set out to do with Better Call Saul: showcase the human capacity for change and self-reflection, even in the most unlikely of cases.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For all of its grisly, exceptionally bleak moments, the finale wasn\u2019t without hope.<\/p>\n But most notably, Jimmy didn\u2019t accept responsibility to benefit himself, his previous <\/span>modus operandi. <\/span>He took that step for Kim,<\/span>\u00a0his former partner in life and in crime, literally.<\/span><\/p>\n Their relationship, also complex, conflicted, desperately sad and always riveting, is one of TV\u2019s greatest and strangest love stories, if that\u2019s even the correct term. They were a modern day Bonnie and Clyde who, for so long, brought out the worst in one another.<\/p>\n Was Kim corrupted by Jimmy? Or did she always have a dark side?<\/p>\n Did she influence him?<\/p>\n Together, they were dangerous and destructive, fatally so, and it made for delicious viewing \u2013 until it didn\u2019t, when Howard Hamlin was murdered. And yet, even though they had to go their separate ways in the final season, it didn\u2019t make it any less heart-breaking.<\/p>\n Another winning quality of Better Call Saul is its ability to leave you feeling conflicted.<\/p>\n Kim and Jimmy\u2019s final conversation lasts less than four minutes. They say fewer than forty words to one another as they share one final cigarette, the end of which glows orange in an otherwise entirely black and white scene.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve still got it.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a quietly assured farewell, entirely free from frills and melodrama, and it\u2019s perfect. Better Call Saul was always at its best when stripped back.<\/p>\n Kim as a standalone character was also Gould\u2019s opportunity to right the wrongs of Breaking Bad, which did many of its female characters a disservice. A person in her own right, not just Jimmy\u2019s sidepiece, she was an enigma who used her legal expertise to help the vulnerable and the voiceless, while also finding a home in Jimmy and their schemes, leaving a trail of destruction behind her.<\/p>\n But that is just one facet of Better Call Saul. I haven\u2019t even touched upon the expansion of Gus Fring, Mike Ehrmantraut and Nacho Varga, who we first met in Breaking Bad, but learned far more about in Gould\u2019s series.<\/span><\/p>\n Michael Mando, who plays Nacho, delivered a breathtakingly good final performance as his character exited the show in brutal fashion that sticks long in the memory.<\/span><\/p>\n There was <\/span>Hector Salamanca, played by the late <\/span>Mark Margolis, and his service bell, which usually spelled disaster for someone, and deserves every plaudit for doing so much with so little.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There was Lalo Salamanca, a drug lord with a smile so seductive you almost forget what he\u2019s capable of, <\/span>with his entrance eventually leading to Bagman \u2013 a masterclass in white-knuckle tension and one of the finest episodes of TV ever written.<\/span><\/p>\n There was also the return of Walt and Jesse, which was a moment of pure joy for viewers, and <\/span>Betsy Brandt\u2019s unexpected and brilliant return as Hank Shrader\u2019s widow Marie, as Gould sought to further illustrate the long-standing, corrosive nature of the violence Walt wrought upon his family.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n I could write a thesis. Someone probably already has.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n In an era teeming with superlative television, Better Call Saul is a show unlike any other and yet, of the 53 Emmy nominations it has received, it hasn\u2019t won a single one, which is staggering. And there will be no further opportunities for it to go again, with the most recent awards<\/a> the final window of eligibility.<\/p>\n But despite its quality, it didn\u2019t have the same cultural impact of Breaking Bad or its main competitor at the Emmys, Succession<\/a>, which even made news headlines following the death of media titan Logan Roy \u2013 although it\u2019s worth noting that Succession\u2019s ratings, which did grow substantially following its debut, didn\u2019t reach stratospheric heights.<\/p>\n That isn\u2019t to say Succession, which took home the gong in all of the categories Better Call Saul was also nominated in \u2013 Best Drama Series, Best Actor in a Drama Series (Kieran Culkin), and Best Writing for a Drama Series (Jesse Armstrong) \u2013 isn\u2019t deserving. It\u2019s Succession! Of course it is!<\/p>\n But it\u2019s like a near perfect Liverpool failing to win the Premier League trophy because they happen to be playing at the same time as Manchester City.<\/p>\n Rhea Seehorn also didn\u2019t triumph as Best Supporting Actress in a Drama, with <\/span>The White Lotus\u2019s Jennifer Coolidge taking home the top prize for the second awards running.<\/p>\n Again, that\u2019s a thoroughly deserved win \u2013 she delivered one of the most iconic TV lines of 2022 \u2013 and <\/span>I certainly don\u2019t begrudge the actor\u2019s moment in the sun following a career that she herself feels hasn\u2019t always been kind to her.<\/p>\n But for Better Call Saul fans everywhere, and I\u2019m sure the cast and crew, who would have hoped that their talents would finally have been recognised in this particular forum, it\u2019s a crying shame \u2013 particularly given that Bob Odenkirk suffered a heart attack during the filming of the final season, made a miraculous recovery, and returned to deliver the performance of his life, which makes it all the more astonishing.<\/p>\n But even without an Emmy to its name, Better Call Saul remains a triumph that went toe to toe with its predecessor, and emerged en equal. There is no greater praise than that.<\/p>\n Better Call Saul is available on\u00a0Netflix<\/a>\u00a0in the UK and AMC in the US.\u00a0<\/strong>Check out the\u00a0best\u00a0<\/a><\/strong>Netflix series<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/strong>best Netflix movies<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to keep you entertained, or visit our\u00a0<\/strong>TV guide<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0for more to watch.<\/strong><\/p>\n The latest issue of Radio Times magazine is on sale on Tuesday 9th August \u2013\u00a0subscribe now<\/a>\u00a0to get each issue delivered to your door. For more from the biggest stars in TV, l<\/strong>isten to the\u00a0Radio Times podcast<\/a>\u00a0with Jane Garvey.<\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n The Breaking Bad spin-off has received 53 Emmy nominations during its time on our screens. It has won precisely 0. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":43934,"template":"","categories":[1,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/better-call-sauls-emmys-snub-is-a-crying-shame-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"The Breaking Bad spin-off has received 53 Emmy nominations during its time on our screens. It has won precisely 0.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/43933"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43934"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43933"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43933"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Gene](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2022\/08\/Better-Call-Saul-Gene-20cb99d.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413\" "\\"Better")
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