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Better Call Saul S3 |OT| Gus Who's Back - Mondays 10/9c on AMC

Apoc29

Member
They never explained how Jimmy weaseled his way into the chair yoga gig. His excuse was "Sandy's daughter has a cold"...I'll bet he gave her that cold the rat bastard!

J/K. I'm sure whatever he did was on the up-and-up.
 

Grinchy

Banned
They never explained how Jimmy weaseled his way into the chair yoga gig. His excuse was "Sandy's daughter has a cold"...I'll bet he gave her that cold the rat bastard!

J/K. I'm sure whatever he did was on the up-and-up.

He probably used Lily of the Valley
 

caliph95

Member
Oh, by the way...just wanted to say Cornballer, you've done a stand-up job maintaining this thread this season, especially when it's come to keeping the discussion up to date by supplying us with lots of relevant articles and interviews and the like. I imagine it must take up a lot of energy, so thank you! You helped make this a really great thread for us to discuss the show.
He does for a lot of the television threads and i greatly appreciate that
 

SalvaPot

Member
I was wondering, what if next season is about Chuck's Will and both Howard and Jimmy want the money, while blaming each other for the death of his friend/brother.

I think that could be interesting to deal with.
 
The ratings have fallen a bit from season 2 but they're still decent for a cable drama and higher that Breaking Bad's season 3 ratings. Plus it's the only show on AMC still getting Emmy attention and AMC is desperately trying to maintain its perception as a prestige channel. Doesn't make any sense for them to cancel it.

That being said, AMC is notoriously bad at being a network and making sensible decisions, so...we'll see.

This.

Also regarding the ratings, overnights and even 7-day consolidated numbers are becoming less and less relevant. 30-day and general series reach is the new focus with advertisers shifting their interests to targeting VOD viewers instead of live broadcast.

I'd expect AMC's analytics teams will compile a full season report over the next month or so and that will have the numbers that's the bosses will be interested in.
 
Once again, don't fret the renewal. From the THR interview:
We know you're not ending the series here. We know the show does well for AMC. What is the hold-up on the official renewal for a fourth season?

Gilligan: Honestly, it's obviously not a secret that Zack Van Amburg and Jamie Erlicht left Sony TV and there's just a little bit of reorganizing going at Sony, but the ship, there's still folks at the tiller and and it's just a matter of … Who the f--- knows? (Laughs.) It's gonna be fine. The timing was a bit unfortunate in that there's a little bit of stuff up in the air over at Sony, but it'll all get worked out. A couple of good guys left Sony, but there's a lot of good people still at Sony and it'll all get worked out. We're going forward with the certainty that there is gonna be more and it's just a matter of logistics as to when, exactly, it gets going. We're not worried. I say that having absolutely been worried in the past. I'm not worried at all right now. We're gonna forward. There will be a season four. The only question is when will it go on air.

Gould: I think we feel very supported by Sony and by AMC.

Gilligan: And that's the important part.

Gould: We now have a 10-year relationship with these two companies, which is something so special and rare in show business. There's been definitely some folks coming and going and anyone who reads the trades can figure that out, but I think we feel really good about where we are. It's just a matter of time.

Gilligan: In years past, it was often a matter of "if." This year it's not a matter of "if," it's just a matter of when. Our blood pressure is pretty low here, relatively speaking. Certainly compared to previous seasons of Breaking Bad.
 

duckroll

Member
Here's a thought. I don't think Howard wants money from Chuck, he certainly doesn't need it, but... Howard agreed to buy out Chuck's share of HHM. Chuck killing himself doesn't negate this because his partnership and share in HHM is a real tangible thing of value. What happens to it now? Did Chuck negate the agreement in his will? Did he not leave a will? Did he appoint Jimmy as his executor? All of this could play into Jimmy and Kim going up against Howard again.
 
I really hope we get 3 more seasons. 1 more to solidify Saul, 1 after for Jimmy to alienate Kim(if he hasn't already), and a final season with half Gene and the other Saul. A parallel season with a very much alone Jimmy doing horrible things, living in misery, and a Gene who's finding himself again, maybe even redeeming himself in some way, or going out in a blaze of glory.
 

barit

Member
Yeah still waiting for that mini cameo of the White family in the background in a Wall Mart or something like that. Just a little nod. You know.

Great show tho
 

Einchy

semen stains the mountaintops
Yeah still waiting for that mini cameo of the White family in the background in a Wall Mart or something like that. Just a little nod. You know.

Great show tho

The only time I want Walter to even be brought up is if it's by Gene.
 

pigeon

Banned
I was wondering, what if next season is about Chuck's Will and both Howard and Jimmy want the money, while blaming each other for the death of his friend/brother.

I think that could be interesting to deal with.

Also, Chuck was pretty clearly not in his right mind for many years before he died, which means the easiest route to challenge a will would be to claim he was insane at the time that he made it. That would certainly lead to some interesting court scenes.
 

_Rob_

Member
Also, Chuck was pretty clearly not in his right mind for many years before he died, which means the easiest route to challenge a will would be to claim he was insane at the time that he made it. That would certainly lead to some interesting court scenes.

There could also be some added drama from Chuck's ex wife. She didn't seem to pleased with Jimmy the last time they met, so may hold him responsible.
 

JOKERACN7

Member
Damn this season has left me speechless, this is how you take advantage of the TV format, implementing such an in-depth characterization through splendid visual storytelling, pitch perfect acting and stellar writing with exposition at the most appropriate time.
 

RangerX

Banned
When was the last time you guys watched Breaking Bad? I'm rewatching with my GF. By episode 3, they already have a more interesting relationship than Jimmy and Chuck.

We must be watching different shows. Chuck and Jimmy's relationship is definitely more interesting to me. They seem more well drawn. I still love Walt and Jesse though.
 

Chumley

Banned
looking back on this season and all the events that occurred it does feel like this could serve as a series finale. and maybe they were thinking this because of how poor the ratings have been this season.

Dude not even remotely are you serious. There's still the Post-BB stuff and finding out why Kim isn't with Jimmy during BB. Huge portions of the story are missing.

That said I can easily see S4 being the last one with these ratings.
 

Grinchy

Banned
I'm pleasantly surprised not a single person here mentioned how good Rhea looked in her PJs. It was all over Reddit in a good-natured way.

She's 45 years old. She's stunning.

Oh, I noticed immediately. I'm a big fan of all of her scenes wearing those nice, tight jeans. Her ass looked amazing in those PJs.

You just have to be careful around here when talking about being attracted to women.
 

Jofamo

Member
Mike knew about Nacho's plan. I just assumed Mike would have told Gus already.

Mike has not told Gus, or Gus would have killed Nacho before he even got a chance to swap the pills. The entire point of the Gus/Mike introduction was that no one is allowed to kill, or harm Hector except Gus. That's his mouse to play with.
 

SpaceWolf

Banned
I'm pleasantly surprised not a single person here mentioned how good Rhea looked in her PJs. It was all over Reddit in a good-natured way.

Kim's ass in those pyjamas. Yum.

tumblr_inline_n16rrwq6Uj1qcfsc4.gif
 
Oh, I noticed immediately. I'm a big fan of all of her scenes wearing those nice, tight jeans. Her ass looked amazing in those PJs.

You just have to be careful around here when talking about being attracted to women.

No, you just have to be careful not to sound like a massive creeplord
 
Sepinwall and Grubb spent a while talking about BCS on their podcast this week. A couple of things that they brought up.

1) How involved is Howard next season? They'd be stupid to not continue on with him in some fashion, but it's not immediately clear how that would happen. His personal reaction to Chuck's demise is important on some level as is probably dealing with the legalities of this, mainly where Chuck's money ends up and where things stood on the HHM buyout.

2) How much material do they have left in the current time period and Jimmy's transformation into Saul?

3) What are your priorities in terms of what the show has left to cover. Grubb said that Kim's fate and the Jimmy to Saul transition were the two most important to him. Mike seems like he's in a place where they can continue to use him on the show, but I'm not sure there's that much necessary material to bridge from here to when we meet him on Breaking Bad. There's more to tell about Nacho, though it's not critical that we see it.

They also brought up that if this is the incident that does the damage to Hector, he won't have any more speaking lines on the show. *ding*
 
This.

That being said, I like her business skirt/suit selection. Besides sounding like a creep, they really fit her well.
Tidbit from the insider podcast: her skirts / pants never quite match her jackets. It was a choice made by the wardrobe director (I may be mistaking the title) -- the thinking is that Kim still shops at places like Marshalls for her attire and has to mix and match off-the-rack pieces. It's part of her character since she came up through the mailroom and is basically trying, but not quite succeeding, at fitting into a different social / economic class. And what's more interesting is that it's not so much for the audience (we can't really tell), but rather for the actress as part of embodying the character.

The level of care and thought that goes into this show is impressive.
 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
Sepinwall and Grubb spent a while talking about BCS on their podcast this week. A couple of things that they brought up.

1) How involved is Howard next season? They'd be stupid to not continue on with him in some fashion, but it's not immediately clear how that would happen. His personal reaction to Chuck's demise is important on some level as is probably dealing with the legalities of this, mainly where Chuck's money ends up and where things stood on the HHM buyout.

2) How much material do they have left in the current time period and Jimmy's transformation into Saul?

3) What are your priorities in terms of what the show has left to cover. Grubb said that Kim's fate and the Jimmy to Saul transition were the two most important to him. Mike seems like he's in a place where they can continue to use him on the show, but I'm not sure there's that much necessary material to bridge from here to when we meet him on Breaking Bad. There's more to tell about Nacho, though it's not critical that we see it.

They also brought up that if this is the incident that does the damage to Hector, he won't have any more speaking lines on the show. *ding*

One thing I've been wondering is whether they intend to cover any of Saul during the Breaking Bad period. I'm not sure whether it's wholly necessary, but it might be interesting to see Saul during that time aside from his interactions with Jesse and Walt. Possibly even during Breaking Bad, but prior to Saul's introduction as well. Having just recently watched Breaking Bad again, I had forgotten how little Saul is actually featured on the show. It could add more depth to his character by showing how he is off the clock, so to speak, but I think it would also be challenging to do it in an organic fashion. Doubtlessly, that would appeal much more to people who have seen Breaking Bad before as well, which would also be a challenge. Again, not sure if that's something that's necessary exactly to get into, but it's interesting to think about.

In terms of your questions, for the first one, I guess there's still the Sandpiper stuff, and Chuck's buyout, as mentioned. People have mentioned Chuck's will, which could also possibly be a point of contention. I think delving into the growing bitterness between Kim and Howard could also be something for them to look into.

Definitely hard to say on the second point. There'd almost have to be some time jumps you'd think at some point. It continually seems like they're on the cusp of him fully transitioning, but then they curb it a bit. Personally, I'd say at least by the end of next season he should be Saul proper, but knowing them I could see it being mid-season. What amount of time that will cover though, I'm not totally sure right now.

I'd certainly like to see more of Nacho, particularly in relation to Saul, since we already know they get involved in something prior to Saul's introduction in Breaking Bad. Mike, I guess we'd probably just see more of how he grows more attached to Gus. It's curious that he still helps Jimmy out in Breaking Bad at least, I'd like to see more of that here as well. Kim and Jimmy to Saul are definitely the most important bits though.
 

Fuu

Formerly Alaluef (not Aladuf)
Tidbit from the insider podcast: her skirts / pants never quite match her jackets. It was a choice made by the wardrobe director (I may be mistaking the title) -- the thinking is that Kim still shops at places like Marshalls for her attire and has to mix and match off-the-rack pieces. It's part of her character since she came up through the mailroom and is basically trying, but not quite succeeding, at fitting into a different social / economic class. And what's more interesting is that it's not so much for the audience (we can't really tell), but rather for the actress as part of embodying the character.

The level of care and thought that goes into this show is impressive.
Yep. The other show I remember seeing this level of care in a purely realistic wardrobe was Mad Men. It even inspired an entire column about the clothing choices for each episode.
 

Blader

Member
Great season, excellent finale. Every scene with Irene was killing me.

I am dreading how the show creates the inevitable schism between Jimmy and Kim.
 

Robot Pants

Member
I'm pretty sure there will be five seasons total. Don't need anymore than that.
I do feel four will be one too few, they still need some breathing room to make a real impact. It's gonna be rushed otherwise.

I just hope Sony and AMC let them do it.
The ratings thing isn't really an issue. I'm pretty sure they are right where they expected to be. And also, I know a TON of people who are waiting for it to be all over before they start watching this season. Netflix has spoiled us with the way they release TV shows and a lot of people prefer to just binge.
I know I do.
 
I've been rewatching the first season and man it's just such a fantastic show. Bob Odenkirk and Jonathan Banks both do such a superb job when it comes to acting and their scenes just never get old. That first meeting of the two for example, it always makes me smile.

And of course Jimmy and Chuck. I really like how they are still friendly and normal to eachother there. A real brotherly bond. If you look at that it's just a shame what became of that but I get it. All part of the show. And I didn't even mention the awesome scenes with the skaters and of course Tuco. My bro for example calls it slow show, too slow he says and I just don't get it. I love it.

And the episode Five-o, nuff said.
 

Slacker

Member
Great season, excellent finale. Every scene with Irene was killing me.

I am dreading how the show creates the inevitable schism between Jimmy and Kim.

I'm glad we got as least one happy season finale with them together. Calm before the storm of course.
 

Turin

Banned
Great finale. There isn't much for me to say that hasn't already been said in several different ways.

What I'm curious about now is where Kim goes from here in relation to Jimmy. After the first two seasons, I hoped she would eventually wash her hands of all of this and leave town but now I'm not so sure. She seems more than subconsciously aware of Jimmy's nature as a destroyer and possibly even attracted to it.

Still rooting for her but I'm worried.

Nacho wasn't poisoning him. He replaced the medication with a placebo. The point was for Hector's heart condition to go unchecked until he had a heart attack/stroke.

He replaced Hector's medication with ibuprofen(advil) which can significantly increase the likelihood of stroke.

I don't know.

I take it that Jimmy does feel a measure of empathy and regret for what he did, not just because it wasn't the way he wanted it to happen for himself. If nothing else, it feels like it'd take an incredible amount of integrity to give up a million dollars because you don't feel you personally did a job right.

I feel it's more that the characters these particular showrunners write go through a series of micro arcs rather than one big arc from A to B. By the end of BB, we could conclude that Walter White was firmly a monster (and even then, there are debates about how pure he was in that regard), but over the course of the show he'd just constantly swing back and forth. Here he is doing something for his family, here he is escalating things needlessly, here he is being selfless, here he is being selfish.

I think it's something like that. This arc had Jimmy come closer to Saul than any other previously, but it ended with his most unselfish act thus far. And it will go on like that. From here, something will prompt him to act selfishly again, then decently, then selfishly again and so on until we end up at Saul Goodman.

And I feel like that's something that would be a detriment to most other shows. But here, it just makes it feel real. All these random real life events that pull the characters this way and that, changing people but not really changing, conflating motivations, etc. It makes it really compelling.

That's pretty much what I took from it.
 
Man, this show.

Once they cut back to Chuck that night after the scene with Jimmy's regrets all the alarm bells went off. An innocent moment of taking some pills and checking his journal but my heart already knew.

Also loved their technique for dealing with Kim's lost time, and they properly set it up for its use later in the season.

Great stuff.
 
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