Ellaria

Regarding the timeline, this is from Alan Sepinwall’s episode review for Rolling Stone: ”Saul Goodman met Walter White in 2008, and the entire plot of Breaking Bad spanned roughly two years. One of the few clues about the Gene timeline was that we saw that his car registration was good through 2012. This episode may have gotten more specific, as Frank goes on and on about Nebraska football coach Bo Pelini (who was the Cornhuskers’ head man from late 2007 through late 2014) and refers to Taylor Martinez, who was the Nebraska quarterback from 2010-2013. There are also references to Nebraska playing Texas and Oklahoma State, which they last did with that group in 2010. That means that Gene has been managing the Cinnabon for less than a year when we caught up to him in the Saul series premiere.” https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-recaps/better-call-saul-recap-nippy-black-white-1386524/ I’m surprised that the events of this episode are so close to the end of Breaking Bad. I imagined that Gene had been on his own much longer, years rather than months.

I enjoyed this episode. I’m interested in Gene and the choices he makes going forward. Clearly, there is a lot of Saul still in him. That look at the paisley shirt and striped tie are evidence of it. I’m curious to see how the next 3 episodes are split between Saul and Gene. We know much of what’s to come for Saul although I expect there are things that will be expanded on. For example, how did he come into possession of the diamonds? We are likely done with Jeff. Now Gene will need to decide if he wants to continue to live in the shadows. Carol Burnett was great. I couldn’t watch that security guard eat all of those cinnamon buns.

Such a simple, straightforward answer to the question of “what happened to Kim.” She walked away. Was it heartbreaking? Not really. It was necessary for her to save her soul (or what’s left of it). She did what Jimmy - and Walt - could never do…walk away. I don’t feel any satisfaction with her choice because, on her way out, she had to do further damage to Howard’s reputation and to his wife. I don’t know if we will ever see Kim again. I think her storyline has ended. What a brilliant character! I suspect that we will see more of Mike before this series ends. I’m fine with not seeing anything further of Gus or the cartel. We know what’s coming for all of them. Hector and Don Eladio annoy me to no end so if this was their last appearance in BCS, I’ll be happy.

Well said. I love the symbolism of being the two halves of Jimmy/Saul. Agree. There will be things happening around them in their normal routine (the courthouse, etc) as Mike pointed out. How they respond to these outside forces, the rumors, the questions will be fascinating. We will find out if Kim is truly made of “sterner stuff.” How will the guilt affect them individually and their relationship? And Gus knows about her. Does he perceive her to be a loose end or a potential asset?

Not quite understanding your comment but... Saying that the writers should write the story that best fits the charcters is not an unpopular opinion. Why would it be? I have confidence in these writers...more so than many other TV writers. Having said that, I would not be thrilled if Kim ends up at the "vaccum man." That is simply my opinion. However, I'm happy to see how it all plays out and equally happy to be wrong

Perhaps this is an unpopular opinion but I will be disappointed if the “vacuum man” solution is used for Kim. It shouldn’t be the definitive storytelling choice for the main characters in this universe. I think - I hope - that these writers are better that. Agree. We know that Jimmy moves forward as a “criminal lawyer.” I’m hoping that Kim does not. I want her to acknowledge her bad decisions and choose a different way of life.

Apologies if I missed something but has it been confirmed that she is playing Howard’s mother or is this speculation?

Agree that they did a great job. Jimmy hasn’t seen the dead bodies of Nacho or Lalo. Mike did not say the words “Lalo is dead.” In desperate moments, it is not hard to believe that his paranoia about those two bubbles to the surface. Interesting points here. There are plenty of people that are aware of Jimmy and Kim’s scam. There are others like Cliff that must have questions. There are five episodes left. Is there enough time to investigate the events that preceded Howard’s death? And to what end? I think that Howard’s “suicide” will be accepted but the humiliating series of events that occurred prior to his death will raise questions and concerns. Some of these questions will come back around to Jimmy. There is “something yet to come” that fully drives Jimmy into Saul. The interactions between Jimmy and Kim will play a role. I have contemplated the possible scenarios for Kim a bunch of times. I can’t come up with one that makes sense to me. Overall, this episode was brilliant. There was tension from the start to the end. Again, poor Howard. He deserved none of this, including his final resting place. Tony Dalton was a great screen presence…in a show full of them. Still, I’m happy to be done with Lalo. As always, the cinematography was stunning and unique. No other show can match it.

What I want for S5... Keep the characters together for the majority of the season. This show is at its best when these wonderful, quirky characters are fighting evil together. I want The Duffers to tell the story that they have planned. I don't want them to make plot choices based on what they think their viewers want, including what characters may die. Shorter episodes even if it means more episodes. A new haircut for Will. Jonathan's renewed interest in photography. He was a lot more interesting in the earlier seasons. No more bullies in Hawkins. (I'm overly protective of these kids.)

Agree. Nailing the ending is most important. As mentioned, there are plenty of shows that could not do that. The Duffers need to tell the story that they want to tell without worrying about the viewers. Stay true to their intent. Yes. I’ve been saying this from the start of the season. Keep them together. Let them fight evil together. That’s when the show is at its best.

Wow! I still love these characters. Sadie, Caleb and Gaten were absolutely terrific. I assume (hope) that Max will be back. And Steve is still with us; thank goodness. I hate that we lost Eddie. Joseph Quinn brought a lot of humor and charisma to the role. And yes, he is a hero. I enjoyed the finale but it was a LOT. I wish that these characters were brought together sooner. That’s really the show’s strength. The Russia plot line amounted to little and too much time was spent there. At least we got to see Jaqen again. Overall, I was skeptical that this show would hold my interest after being gone for so long. I was pleasantly surprised with this season and realize that I am invested in these characters. However, I think that these episodes were too long, for the most part. I hope that the Duffers can find a way to end this wonderful story in a more concise way.

Wow…what an episode! I’m also glad that Brennan is finally gone for good. Matthew Modine was excellent in this creepy role but I was done with him a few seasons ago. Happy that Eleven didn’t give him the absolution that he wanted. The music choices were fantastic. Playing “Fire and Rain” while Steve was telling Nancy about the future that he wanted was sad and ominous. Count me among those that believe that Steve will die. I hate the thought. And I agree that Journey playing over that end scene is iconic. Will’s speech was well done and it was beautifully highlighted by Jonathan’s reactions. These are the type of character moments that make this show special to me. If Steve doesn’t die - and I hope he doesn’t - then I fear that Eddie will. I loved his scene in the field with Dustin. One way or another, this show is going to break my heart. This show’s strength is the lovable, quirky characters and I don’t want to lose any of them. Needless to say, I’m scared for what is coming.

For me, THIS is the question. What pushes him to become that person? We are still about 3-4 years away from his first appearance in BB. It is likely that Howard’s murder is the first step down the path to full-on Saul. However, there will be the “last straw” and I don’t know what that is. Kim’s betrayal is my best guess but I don’t know what that looks like. I don’t want her to be a cartel lawyer. We have seen Saul’s home and we know that there was something of Jimmy left: the stopper from the tequila bottle. A reminder of happier days or a warning of when things began to go wrong? All of this feeds into the question of what Gene does next. Silencing the cab driver? That seems too easy. Gene has something bigger in mind.

Loved seeing these characters again. I have missed them. As far as the movie itself…meh. I really didn’t care about the movie-making within the movie but I’m glad that the (real life) financial demands of maintaining a castle were addressed. Also, the need to pair off everyone is a bit silly but I do want the characters to have happy endings. Unfortunately, it looked like spray tans. Surely there was something that make-up could have done to make some of the actors look less orange. It was distracting. The cinematography and the costumes were stunning, as expected. The wigs less so. Unpopular opinion: as much as I have enjoyed DA, I don’t think that a 3rd movie is needed.

Agree on the time jumps. It really took me out of the episode at some points. I don't know how anyone that was unfamiliar with this case prior to watching the series could follow the narrative. That's exactly what I took away from the focus on Kathleen's name at the end. This story should be about her but it always comes back to that creepy little narcissit and his stupid pipe. I ws critical of some of the middle episodes that focused on Michael's prison drama and Sophie's infatuation. However, I appreciated that the last two episodes took a deeper look at the lives of the children. I have mixed feelings about them. However, there is no doubt that Michael was a destructive force in their lives starting long before Kathleen's death. I've asked myself what HBO was trying to accomplish with this dramatization. After all, this story is well-known and I'm not sure that this series said anything new about the case itself. Ultimately, I think it was about truth (or lack thereof) in the way that our legal system presents itself as well as truth in our relationships and truth to one's own self. IMO, the version of Michael that we see in this show knows that he isn't authentic...that what he portrays himself to be is fake. Michael looked haunted throughout this series and I loved that interpretation. The acting was incredible. Colin Firth may not look like Michael but - wow - he captured all of his nuances. Toni Collette and Parker Posey were great.

Since we are speculating… In “Magic Man,” we see that Gene has a small box containing diamonds. Where did these diamonds come from? And what will Gene use them for?

I agree. The non-linear storytelling is not advantageous to what they are trying to communicate. I enjoyed this episode more than the past two. The fictionalized scenes with Kathleen were well-done. While no one - sadly - knows what she may have been feeling in the last days of her life, I’m glad that this show is making an attempt to tell us. It takes the focus away from Michael himself and instead places it on the destructive force that he may have been. Alternatively, I don’t care about Sophie. This show seems to think that I should. I don’t like that they have transformed her into an intrepid investigator trying to prove alternative theories. They are using this character to tell missing elements of the story but it’s not working for me. The acting continues to be terrific. Parker Posey is excellent as Freda Black. Overall, I don’t think that the show has done a good job of pulling together the odd aspects of this story. It’s one thing to depict them. It’s an entirely another thing to create a narrative with them that provides unique insight. There is something missing for me.

Hope that they get the band back together soon. The strength of this show is having this great group of quirky characters fighting evil side-by-side. So far, the story is getting too big, with too many characters, trying to do too much. However, I still love the “kids.” The years haven’t dulled their bonds of friendship. I’m not enjoying the Hopper storyline. Now Joyce and Murray are also captive…meh. I’m not watching this show to see some sort of Cold War prison camp escape drama. The “jocks out for revenge” could get old quickly but we’ve seen that one of them had a nosebleed and…well, that’s not good. Hopefully, they stop looking for Eddie and join with the forces to fight evil. Of course, even Dead Billy is a jerk. And Dustin and Steve are still the best!

So much of this case is shrouded in mystery or dependent on Michael’s recollection of things that it’s difficult to formulate motive. The one thing that the show does well is demonstrate the type of stress that Kathleen may have felt: financial issues, possible loss of job, Clayton’s troubles. Again, assuming that the common telling of the story is true, she likely saw the gay porn/escort emails, etc on his computer. Then she confronted him about all of it. He flies into a rage and kills her…not necessarily because she found the gay porn but because his comfy lifestyle is about to come to an end.

It is needlessly confusing. This is a story that is still shrouded in mystery and the non-linear storytelling makes it worse. There are ways to use that tactic to emphasize certain elements of a story but this isn’t it. That’s my issue as well. I’ve watched the documentary and read a lot about this case. When I heard that HBO was doing a series on this subject, I wondered what they could add that would enhance it. So far, I don’t think that they’ve been successful. The acting is great but I don’t have much else positive to say. Maybe the final two episodes will surprise me.

Yes - I think that the documentary is worth watching. It has an inherent bias but the actual people involved in this story are interesting and infuriating. I’m disappointed in the dramatization because I don’t think it is adding to the story in a meaningful way. There is likely only one living person that knows the truth about what happened that night. He is too much of a narcissist to ever tell the complete truth.

We have the HBO dramatization which, as we know, isn't completely factual. We have the documentary which didn't present the events in an unbiased way. And that's fine; it's two different approaches to this weird story. However, there are many aspects of this story that I'd like to see addressed instead of Todd and Clayton's wild party and Michael's prison drama.

I understand that this HBO series is a dramatization of the actual events but some of the storytelling choices seem unnecessary. Maybe I am misinformed but I've not found anything to suggest that Sophie was involved in the "investigation" (for lack of a better word) of the owl theory. Did she actually call Caitlin and ask that she exhume her mother's body? Did she meet with Deborah Radisch? If not, why create the scenes? Just to give Juliette Binoche something to do? The owl theory is interesting on its own, in part because Michael's neighbor, Larry, put it forth in 2008/2009. It didn't need embellishments. Although I've seen the documentary, the non-linear storytelling is often hard to follow. The casual reference to the Thanksgiving incident in an earlier episode was finally addressed in this episode. Did this happen? If not, why include it? To show us that Kathleen was angry and demanded a different (better) Christmas celebration...one that she didn't live to see? Alternatively, I hope the show revisits the suggestion that Michael wanted to split up Margaret and Martha, if it is true. Overall, the last two episodes have been disappointing.

Well, it would not be a massive disappointment for me if Kim did not "disappear." I feel that they will have gone to this storytelling well once too often. I'm not saying that it will not happen. Rather, I don't like that end for Kim. Someone in the BCS/BB universe needs to face the consequences of their actions...consequences that are beyond their control. Not every character should have the option of running/hiding and then spending their days sulking at Cinnabon. Agree. This isn't a world of happy endings. I like that Gene is taking matters into his own hands and doesn't want to be "disappeared" again. I can't even guess where that leads but I assume that he is finally willing to accept the consequences of his misdeeds...the ones that landed him in Omaha in the first place.

I thought so, too. Clearly, they were still enjoying their victory. Of course, Jimmy didn’t know that Lalo was alive until he walked in. Yes. Lalo isn’t going to offer assistance. Jimmy will call Mike. And Mike won’t be happy. Maybe now we understand Jimmy’s “throw-away” line in BB about Lalo. After what happened in his apartment, he may never truly believe that Lalo is dead unless he sees it with his own eyes.