The Quirky Math of Saul

[Gibbs]

I love both series but there are some plot problems that make no sense. I'm going to focus solely on the money. 

When we meet Jimmy he appears to be living at the nail salon but in a flashback he and Chuck are sharing a bed in what appears to be a studio apartment. Why is he living in a nail salon? He has the income from the mailroom and then the income from his work as a public defender. He should be able to afford a small Albuquerque apartment and a better used car. Public defenders don't earn much but they can drive a reasonable car and keep a reasonable roof over their heads. They get paid for trials, badly, but they get paid for each plea bargain and Jimmy gets those quickly - a few hundred dollars for a few seconds of dealing in the hallway. We don't really need to feel sorry for Jimmy. 

Mesa Verde should be a a huge win for Kim, but somehow it can't pay half the rent on a cheap office. She is presumably single-handedly doing the work that Schweikart and Cokely need a whole division to provide. Those lawyers make bank in the high six figures. Likewise, Saul, after being disbarred, is selling hundreds of cell phones and presumably not even paying taxes. He should also be able to pay for a new car and his share of the rent for the entire year he is disbarred. 

I would understand accept a far-fetched plot point if it advanced the story but BCS and BB tried to keep things as close to reality as possible by  doing meticulous research. Maybe have Jimmy paying back an enormous fine and damages from his "Chicago sunroof" to explain why he's so poor, Surely a civil suit for emotional damage would net a high figure for a mail room jockey to pay off,

Also, Saul doesn't appear to be taking his own advice and laundering his own money. He surely knows the nail salon business.  He also could be sending his and Walt's money to off-shore banks. He also should own the Cinnabon and be using it to launder the leftover money. Gene doesn't really need to iive the sad sack life we see. 

 

 

[sistermagpie]

When I saw the title of this thread I assumed it was going to be about Chuck and Jimmy's relative ages! 

[gallimaufry]

Interesting comments.  Given how most television series paint a completely unrealistic picture of what's affordable, I love that Jimmy was always living hand-to-mouth.

I'm not sure if the 410 flashback was in their place.  Either way, I think Jimmy at the start of BCS is probably spending a lot of money on a few "loss-leaders" that don't go very far including some impressive suits.

As for Kim, remember the timelines on this - at the end of S3, she's only been with Mesa Verde for a few months.  She took back the debt that Howard was willing to write off (although it's not clear if he ever accepted it), she has her home and car, a paralegal and the administrative costs of a new business.  I'd guess there are some charity donations and other expenses too.  And then she's potentially paying rent on a place twice as big as she needs when for 12 of the first 16 months she's got nobody to help her pay.

Anyway, if this is the most far-fetched thing about the show, it's in a good place!