āBetter Call Saulā is the American series of Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, which is the spin-off of the cult series Breaking Bad. In October 2018, the fourth season ended and the fifth was announced. All information and reviews about āBetter Call Saulā later in this article.
Information
The series āBetter Call Saulā in the crime drama genre first appeared on the AMC channel in February 2015 - a year and a half after the end of āBreaking Badā. The fact that perhaps one of the central characters of the series - lawyer Sol Goodman - will soon become the hero of his own story, the main creator and producer of the series Vince Gilligan hinted back in 2012. At the moment, viewers saw 4 seasons "Better Call Saul." Each season has 10 episodes lasting 45 minutes. As in the series "Breaking Bad", all the filming of "Better Call Saul" took place in the city of Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA).
History of creation
In addition to Vince Gilligan, which was already mentioned above, and Peter Gould, the creator of Sol Goodman as a character, many authors of the Breaking Bad series worked on the series, which helped him maintain the main plot and camera techniques that the audience loved in the cult show. Among them are screenwriters Thomas Schnauz and Jennifer Hutchinson, director Michelle Maclaren, composer Dave Porter. Also, the director of several episodes was Brian Cranston - an actor who played the main role in Breaking Bad.
Saul Goodman
American actor Bob Odenkerk in āBetter Call Saulā played the same role as in āBreaking Badā, but this time he became the main character of the plot. Lawyer James McGill, better known to viewers as Saul Goodman, is shown on the series six years before the events already known to viewers from the original series. During the release of "Breaking Bad", Sol Goodman became one of the most popular heroes. That is why it was decided to tell the audience his story and life from the petty, unknown lawyer Jimmy McGill to the most famous lawyer in criminal circles in Albuquerque, Sol Goodman.
Actors and roles from the series "Breaking Bad"
Since the main category of viewers of the series are fans of the previous story, they were very glad to know that in āCall Saul Betterā, not only Sol Goodman would be a familiar character. The second main character, already loved by the audience, was Mike Ermantraut - a former policeman who decided to start work on the other side of the law. His role was again played by Jonathan Banks. In season three, Breaking Bad fans will be delighted to see crime boss and drug dealer Gustavo Fring again . As before, his role was played by Giancarlo Esposito.
And among minor characters, viewers will be happy to see Tuko Salamanca (played by Raymond Cruz), Hector Salamanca (Mark Margolis), the Salamanca twins (Daniel and Louis Moncada), Don Eladio (Stephen Bauer), Lydia (Laura Fraser) and Gail Bettiker (David Costabyle).
New characters and actors
Actors and roles that the audience did not know before appeared in Better Call Saul. Of the main characters, this is primarily McGill's workmate and girlfriend Kim Wexler (actress Ray Sihorn) and his older brother, a well-known lawyer with mental illness Chuck (Michael Mackin).
Among other characters:
- Howard Hamlin is a lawyer and former boss of Jimmy (played by Patrick Fabian).
- Nacho Varga is a member of the Tuco crime gang and Hector Salamanca (actor Michael Mando).
- Marco Pasternak - in flashbacks, is Jimmy McGill's best friend and his accomplice in fraudulent crimes (Mel Rodriguez).
First season
Season 1 of the series āBetter Call Saulā was released from February to April 2015. The plot begins with the life of Saul after the events "Breaking Bad" - he lives in Nebraska, works in the Cinnabon cafe and recalls his past life. So the viewer is transferred to 2002, learns the real name of Sol and gets acquainted with his brother Chuck, suffering from photophobia. The plot events revolve around the affairs of the Kettleman family, who squandered the budget. They refused the services of McGill, and he, trying to take revenge on them, finds himself embroiled in the dirty affairs of the cartel and the Salamanca family. At the same time, he begins to work with Mike and decides to become a lawyer with older people. At the end of the season, Jimmy learns that his brother is working against him, as he considers him an inept lawyer.
Second season
The plot of the second season begins with the work of Jimmy in the law office of Davis and Maine, where he was invited after successful work. He is filming his first commercial to attract an audience of older customers. At the same time, he helps Mike in court and decides to force Davis and Maine to fire himself by buying colored costumes (in which Sol Goodman will appear later) and arranging various tricks. After the dismissal, Kim also decides to leave his company and together they open their law office. She receives a major client, but Chuck intervenes and lures him to the side of Howard - her protege and former boss Kim. Jimmy decides to take revenge on him and falsifies Chuck's documents for the court, strongly substituting him. The plot ends with Chuck going to the hospital, trying to bring his brother to clean water. Unable to stand it, Jimmy confesses to Chuck of his guilt, but it turns out that he arranged the conversation and recorded his confession on the recorder.
Third season
After Chuck spoke about the film with recognition to Howard, Jimmy burst into his house and destroyed it with witnesses. At the same time, on a tip from Mike, he met in absentia with Guus Fring. McGill may be arrested, a hearing is pending, during which Jimmy may be left without a license, because his brother left a copy of the film. One of the episodes fully demonstrates the court session - in reviews of āBetter Call Saul,ā she is often called the best and most professional for the entire series. As a result, Jimmy receives an annual ban on law practice and community service. Filming another lawyer video, McGill first introduced himself as Sol Goodman. The plot ends with the exposure of Jimmy in the case with the elderly and the fire, inside of which is Chuck.
Fourth season
The plot of the new season makes it clear to the viewer that Chuck did not survive the fire. Jimmy is trying to find a new job and recover from the death of his brother, Kim supports him as best he can. At the same time, relations between the Salamanca clan and Gustavo Fringa are heating up, Mike receives a task from Gus. McGill settles in a mobile phone salon. He dreams of reviving a joint law practice with Kim, but she works herself and does not want to risk it again. As a result of his venture, Kim has to save him. At the same time, Gustavo intervenes in the treatment of Hector Salamanco. At the end of the solution to Jimmyās problem, their relationship with Kim is in decline. He decides to start a new page in his life and work.
Success and feedback
āBetter Call Saulā gathered 6.9 million viewers (at the time of the broadcast of the first episode), which made the pilot release the most successful of all that appeared on American television.
Most viewers were pleased with the series - both as an independent project, and as a spin-off to Breaking Bad. Despite the slow development of the plot, viewers feel an independent zest in it, independent of Breaking Bad, and look forward to when James McGill becomes Solom Goodman. But there are also bad reviews about āBetter Call Saulā - there were viewers who said that the series did not live up to their expectations and, on the whole, exploited the glory of their cult predecessor.