S04.E04: Talk

[Joimiaroxeu]

I don't know about Albuquerque but in other places cell phone stores tend to get robbed. Guess Jimmy doesn't know that?

Holy crap, those Salamanca brothers.

I get that Jimmy's trying to drum up business but would someone doing crimes go to a cell phone store to get a burner phone? Seems like it'd be safer just to go to Circle K or 7-11.

Quote

The opening instrumental sounded  a lot like "Grazing In The Grass".

Guess the show either couldn't get or didn't want to pay for the rights to the original song. Maybe Hugh Masekela's death earlier this year had something to do with it.

[margol29]

11 hours ago, MissBluxom said:

 

I didn't understand Jimmy spray painting a phrase on the store window.

First of all, it's not his store. The store owner didn't seem at all concerned about a lack of traffic. Yet Jimmy didn't bother to ask him about spray painting his windows?

Second, that has to be a very inferior way to advertise a topic and expect it to generate business. Isn't it? How many people driving by the store will take the time to read that message? How many would understand it? There are so many better and more cost-effective ways to advertise that concept.

Third, I found the actual phrase to be rather difficult to understand. I suppose Jimmy meant to say that the phones in that store would defeat all kinds of attempts by someone to listen in. But that is a complicated issue and its meaning is not really well explained in just two or three words.

Jimmy has shown himself to be very smart when it comes to thinking of ways to generate business. What is the point of spray painting that window?  Is it really as poor a choice as I'm thinking? Or maybe he had some other reason for doing it?

 

As we saw with Jimmy's production of the Sandpiper commercial and it's unauthorized airing, Jimmy feels it is better to ask for forgiveness after the deed than to ask for permission. Also, Jimmy is not adverse to doing outrageous things for his benefit. (The rescue of the billboard painter in the early episodes.)

Jimmy has his own style that leads to his becoming Saul. ie. his cons in Chicago with his buddy in the alley and the Chicago Sun Roof incident.

As for Kim, she knew exactly what she was doing "observing" that judge. Remember she asked Viola to take her to the courthouse after the display of Mesa Verde's new projects. She asked for the docket for the day and picked his courtroom to sit in. She knew that judge would do exactly what he did. Kim wants to get back into courtroom trials without actually asking for cases. She is disillusioned with Mesa Verde. Sure it's a lot of money but that is not the reason Kim got into law. 

As for Mike, he is my favorite character of this whole franchise. Such a bad a$$!! He does not express his grief or any major feelings to others. He can't understand why some need these support groups. He does it for Stacy and in doing so for Stacy he is doing it for Kaylee which is his sole purpose in life now. 

On another subject, I was watching the Cubs game Monday night and Bob Odenkirk was up in the booth with Len and JD and sang :"Take Me Out To the Ballgame. They talked a little about Saul and how they missed Chuck and BO mentioned that there might be some flashbacks with Chuck coming up. So we have that to look forward to. 

[Bryce Lynch]

14 hours ago, 100Proof said:

I'm totally lost. What deal was Mike going on with Gus. Who's on whose side with all these drug smuggling operations.... salamancas,  kankamankas...who the hell is on whose side and who's double dealing who? I have no flippin idea!

Gus and the Salamancas both work for a Mexican cartel run by Don Eladio.  Gus and Hector are bitter rivals.  Hector is jealous of Fring's success.  Gus hates Hector because Hector murdered his partner, chemist and dear friend (perhaps more) Max on Eladio's orders.  

Gus and Max started cooking high quality meth in Mexico and provoked a business meeting with Eladio by giving free samples to Eladio's men when they came to their chicken restaurant.   At the time the cartel was mainly smuggling Colombian cocaine across the border.  Gus and Max told Eladio that they could make more money producing and smuggling their high grade meth.  Eladio accepted the proposal, but then had Hector shoot Max to death, in front of Gus, because Gus disrespected the cartel with his trick to get the meeting.

Nacho had tried to hire Mike to kill Tuco Salamanca, because Tuco was nuts on on meth, and Nacho feared Tuco would snap and kill him.  Instead, Mike came up with a plan to provoke a fight with Tuco and get him sent to prison for assaulting and robbing an old man.  The plan worked, but then Hector tried to bribe and intimidate Mike into saying Tuco's gun was his, so he would get a much lighter sentence.  When Mike initially refused, Hector had the Cousins threaten Mike's family.  Mike ended up confronting Hector and demanding $50,000 instead of $5,000, and then told the DA the gun was his.

Mike was still angry and robbed a Salamanca truck smuggling drugs and cash (making $200,000),  When he found out that Hector murdered the Good Samaritan who untied the driver, he decided to kill him.   Gus, who was tracking Mike, put a stop to this because he wants to kill Hector himself, after making him suffer.  Mike still wanted more revenge on Hector so Gus and Mike agreed to have Mike contaminate a Salamanca truck, in Mexico, with drugs, so they would get caught by the border patrol.

Gus tried to pay Mike for this service but Mike refused.  Later, Mike realizing he needed to launder the $200,000 asked for Gus's help.  Gus offered to do this free of charge and got him set up with Lydia for a fake job at Madrigal, which would pay him the $200,000 over 10 weeks.  

Mike knew that Nacho was trying to kill Hector by replacing his heart medication with ibuprofen, but did not try to stop him or tell Gus.  That is what Gus was angry about.  

[aemom]

3 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Gus and the Salamancas both work for a Mexican cartel run by Don Eladio.  Gus and Hector are bitter rivals.  Hector is jealous of Fring's success.  Gus hates Hector because Hector murdered his partner, chemist and dear friend (perhaps more) Max on Eladio's orders.  

Gus and Max started cooking high quality meth in Mexico and provoked a business meeting with Eladio by giving free samples to Eladio's men when they came to their chicken restaurant.   At the time the cartel was mainly smuggling Colombian cocaine across the border.  Gus and Max told Eladio that they could make more money producing and smuggling their high grade meth.  Eladio accepted the proposal, but then had Hector shoot Max to death, in front of Gus, because Gus disrespected the cartel with his trick to get the meeting.

Nacho had tried to hire Mike to kill Tuco Salamanca, because Tuco was nuts on on meth, and Nacho feared Tuco would snap and kill him.  Instead, Mike came up with a plan to provoke a fight with Tuco and get him sent to prison for assaulting and robbing an old man.  The plan worked, but then Hector tried to bribe and intimidate Mike into saying Tuco's gun was his, so he would get a much lighter sentence.  When Mike initially refused, Hector had the Cousins threaten Mike's family.  Mike ended up confronting Hector and demanding $50,000 instead of $5,000, and then told the DA the gun was his.

Mike was still angry and robbed a Salamanca truck smuggling drugs and cash (making $200,000),  When he found out that Hector murdered the Good Samaritan who untied the driver, he decided to kill him.   Gus, who was tracking Mike, put a stop to this because he wants to kill Hector himself, after making him suffer.  Mike still wanted more revenge on Hector so Gus and Mike agreed to have Mike contaminate a Salamanca truck, in Mexico, with drugs, so they would get caught by the border patrol.

Gus tried to pay Mike for this service but Mike refused.  Later, Mike realizing he needed to launder the $200,000 asked for Gus's help.  Gus offered to do this free of charge and got him set up with Lydia for a fake job at Madrigal, which would pay him the $200,000 over 10 weeks.  

Mike knew that Nacho was trying to kill Hector by replacing his heart medication with ibuprofen, but did not try to stop him or tell Gus.  That is what Gus was angry about.  

I was a bit lost too and you saved me a ton of time trying to look this up.  Thanks!

[PeterPirate]

On 8/28/2018 at 1:44 AM, gallimaufry said:

Kim also seemed to move on more than she has in a while despite only being in a few scenes.  I loved her absolute disdain for the cynical judge and her effectively giving him the finger by sitting right back down.  Although he mocked a heroic movie-style case, he's also right: we know she does want to be Atticus Finch.  As ever, I'm intrigued to see where she goes.  I also like that they address last week's ending not with a conversation but with an action - Kim suggests talking and not to her.

 

Kim could take an ordinary case and go rogue.  Casting Ethan Phillips as the judge is to me a huge tell that he and Kim are going to go at it hammer and tongs.  

I can even surmise that Kim will be so exceedingly zealous in her defense of her client that she will cross some ethical line--or get too close to the criminal underworld, maybe even Gus' operations--and end up having to disappear.  

ETA:  I also wonder if she will take on a motion to reduce the sentence of one Tuco Salamanca.  

Edited September 1, 2018 by PeterPirate

[Julia67]

So has Kim relaxed a bit?  Her ponytail certainly has!

[100Proof]

1 hour ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Gus and the Salamancas both work for a Mexican cartel run by Don Eladio.  Gus and Hector are bitter rivals.  Hector is jealous of Fring's success.  Gus hates Hector because Hector murdered his partner, chemist and dear friend (perhaps more) Max on Eladio's orders.  

Gus and Max started cooking high quality meth in Mexico and provoked a business meeting with Eladio by giving free samples to Eladio's men when they came to their chicken restaurant.   At the time the cartel was mainly smuggling Colombian cocaine across the border.  Gus and Max told Eladio that they could make more money producing and smuggling their high grade meth.  Eladio accepted the proposal, but then had Hector shoot Max to death, in front of Gus, because Gus disrespected the cartel with his trick to get the meeting.

Nacho had tried to hire Mike to kill Tuco Salamanca, because Tuco was nuts on on meth, and Nacho feared Tuco would snap and kill him.  Instead, Mike came up with a plan to provoke a fight with Tuco and get him sent to prison for assaulting and robbing an old man.  The plan worked, but then Hector tried to bribe and intimidate Mike into saying Tuco's gun was his, so he would get a much lighter sentence.  When Mike initially refused, Hector had the Cousins threaten Mike's family.  Mike ended up confronting Hector and demanding $50,000 instead of $5,000, and then told the DA the gun was his.

Mike was still angry and robbed a Salamanca truck smuggling drugs and cash (making $200,000),  When he found out that Hector murdered the Good Samaritan who untied the driver, he decided to kill him.   Gus, who was tracking Mike, put a stop to this because he wants to kill Hector himself, after making him suffer.  Mike still wanted more revenge on Hector so Gus and Mike agreed to have Mike contaminate a Salamanca truck, in Mexico, with drugs, so they would get caught by the border patrol.

Gus tried to pay Mike for this service but Mike refused.  Later, Mike realizing he needed to launder the $200,000 asked for Gus's help.  Gus offered to do this free of charge and got him set up with Lydia for a fake job at Madrigal, which would pay him the $200,000 over 10 weeks.  

Mike knew that Nacho was trying to kill Hector by replacing his heart medication with ibuprofen, but did not try to stop him or tell Gus.  That is what Gus was angry about.  

aye yai yai. these series need a college course to keep things straight, lol

Thanks.  So Hector, Tuco and the terminator twins are all salamancas? Are they all blood related... as in salamancas is a family name? Nacho was working for salamancas but wanted to kill off Hector because Hector wanted to get Nacho's father's business involved with the cartel?

Did Gus figure out Nacho tried to 'poison' Hector which prompted Gus to say he now 'owned' Nacho?  What was the purpose of the fake hit Nacho was involved in?  I assume it had something to do with convincing the terminator twins to go kill everyone at that other place.....whoever the hell they were in all this, lol..... because the twins thought they did the hit??  And how did that figure in Gus's plans?  

I think the 'previously on' at the beginning of each episode should be an hour long show in and of themselves, lol

Edited August 29, 2018 by 100Proof

[Bryce Lynch]

6 minutes ago, 100Proof said:

aye yai yai. these series need a college course to keep things straight, lol

Thanks.  So Hector, Tuco and the terminator twins are all salamancas? Are they all blood related... as in salamancas is a family name? Nacho was working for salamancas but wanted to kill off Hector because Hector wanted to get Nacho's father's business involved with the cartel?

Did Gus figure out Nacho tried to 'poison' Hector which prompted Gus to say he now 'owned' Nacho?

Yes, Tuco, and the terminator twins are all Hector's nephews.  The terminator twins are brothers and Tuco is their cousin.  In BB, Tuco was waiting, in a small house in the desert,  for his "cousins" (Marco and Leonel, the "terminator twins")  to come to take him, Walt and Jesse (who he had abducted) to Mexico to set up his own lab.  That is why BB fans often refer to them as "the Cousins".

Yes, Gus figured out Nacho's pill switching plot and says he owns Nacho, because if Hector and the Cousins found out, it would mean a fate worse than death for Nacho (torture and death for Nacho and his Dad would probably be a start).   

[100Proof]

3 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Yes, Tuco, and the terminator twins are all Hector's nephews.  The terminator twins are brothers and Tuco is their cousin.  In BB, Tuco was waiting, in a small house in the desert,  for his "cousins" (Marco and Leonel, the "terminator twins")  to come to take him, Walt and Jesse (who he had abducted) to Mexico to set up his own lab.  That is why BB fans often refer to them as "the Cousins".

Yes, Gus figured out Nacho's pill switching plot and says he owns Nacho, because if Hector and the Cousins found out, it would mean a fate worse than death for Nacho (torture and death for Nacho and his Dad would probably be a start).   

Great, thanks. Now I'm up to speed. :)

except for one thing.... that gang the twins went to with Nacho and decimated. Who was that gang and who did they work for?

I assume it was something Gus wanted out of the way by framing them for the hit

Edited August 29, 2018 by 100Proof

[kieyra]

On 8/27/2018 at 10:15 PM, WritinMan said:

Always surprises me that someone could think this show is dull. There's always so much going on. I don't see self-indulgence at all. This isn't an action show. They're going to tell the story at their own pace. Just like Breaking Bad.

To be fair, people have been calling the show dull since season 1, so presumably you've spent a lot of time surprised. :)

[WritinMan]

23 minutes ago, kieyra said:

To be fair, people have been calling the show dull since season 1, so presumably you've spent a lot of time surprised. :)

Yes, I have. I used to debate this with people on IMDb.

[Bryce Lynch]

23 minutes ago, kieyra said:

To be fair, people have been calling the show dull since season 1, so presumably you've spent a lot of time surprised. :)

I think the show is great, but sometimes the episodes are a bit dull, in the sense that I would like to see more plot movement.  If Breaking Bad moved at this pace, Walt and Jesse would be cooking their first batch of meth about now. :)

[atlantaloves]

Yeah, sometimes the show is a little slow, but it always is about something that moves the plot along later.  I love this show. No, it is not as good as Breaking Bad, but damn, it's pretty good.  Hey, how does Kim even get her new low pony tail done with one arm. I wear a pony tail and I tell you, it can't be done. 

[Delete]

Mike is a tough nut, but he cracked during therapy. He doesn't talk much. He observes. He listens. But here come hell go... when he talks, look out. Whether or not you agree with his assessment what he said was his truth. Ultimately, he's a broken man. He can't feel anything anymore. Just rage, and regret.   What a powerful performance by Jonathan Banks. 

As well, I don't have a shred of compassion for his daughter-in-law. I don't know if it is the actress I don't care for,  but Stacey rubs me the wrong way. 

When the twins show up; so does death. They remind me of Agent Smith from the Matrix. There is nothing else in their mind but killing.    

Nacho is probably going to be a goner. Damn. I love watching his character, but he's in so deep, that there is no way out it now. 

Jimmy's mind is always going. He can't do a mundane job. He's the ultimate hustler.  He's Slippin' Saul. ;-0 

Edited August 30, 2018 by Barbara Please

[MisterBluxom]

5 hours ago, margol29 said:

If I remember correctly, when the car alarm went off the first time the burglar   (don't remember his name) snatched the glove left in the case and then hid back under the desk because guy came back too soon.

Forgive me if this has been answered but I am late to the forum and see that there are four pages already.

It has been answered already but that is not a problem because I wanted to add something about this.

Can anyone guess why the show would show us the glove being left and then being snatched away if they weren't going to make anything out of it in a future episode?

I have no clue why they would think there was any reason to show us this and then just forget about it. Maybe it was for some people who found it exciting when he dropped the glove and then were relieved when he took it back. But I'm still hoping something comes of that glove in a future episode. Although now I guess I can't see any way it can.

5 hours ago, margol29 said:

 

As we saw with Jimmy's production of the Sandpiper commercial and it's unauthorized airing, Jimmy feels it is better to ask for forgiveness after the deed than to ask for permission. Also, Jimmy is not adverse to doing outrageous things for his benefit. (The rescue of the billboard painter in the early episodes.)

Jimmy has his own style that leads to his becoming Saul. ie. his cons in Chicago with his buddy in the alley and the Chicago Sun Roof incident.

As for Kim, she knew exactly what she was doing "observing" that judge. Remember she asked Viola to take her to the courthouse after the display of Mesa Verde's new projects. She asked for the docket for the day and picked his courtroom to sit in. She knew that judge would do exactly what he did. Kim wants to get back into courtroom trials without actually asking for cases. She is disillusioned with Mesa Verde. Sure it's a lot of money but that is not the reason Kim got into law. 

As for Mike, he is my favorite character of this whole franchise. Such a bad a$$!! He does not express his grief or any major feelings to others. He can't understand why some need these support groups. He does it for Stacy and in doing so for Stacy he is doing it for Kaylee which is his sole purpose in life now. 

On another subject, I was watching the Cubs game Monday night and Bob Odenkirk was up in the booth with Len and JD and sang :"Take Me Out To the Ballgame. They talked a little about Saul and how they missed Chuck and BO mentioned that there might be some flashbacks with Chuck coming up. So we have that to look forward to. 

 

Nice post. Thank you for the info.

[Dev F]

23 minutes ago, MissBluxom said:

Can anyone guess why the show would show us the glove being left and then being snatched away if they weren't going to make anything out of it in a future episode?

I have no clue why they would think there was any reason to show us this and then just forget about it. Maybe it was for some people who found it exciting when he dropped the glove and then were relieved when he took it back. But I'm still hoping something comes of that glove in a future episode. Although now I guess I can't see any way it can.

I can only assume it was for the drama of the robbery sequence itself. Like you mention, it's a totally solved problem at this point, so I can't think of any way it would come up again later.

As part of the sequence, though, one thing it does is make it so Jimmy's first attempt to rescue Ira isn't totally a failure. Yes, Neff comes back before Ira can escape, but he does have enough time to grab the glove that might otherwise have exposed him before Jimmy figured out how to get him out of there. Which probably makes it easier to sell Ira's response as "Oh, thank God this guy is busting his butt to save me!" instead of "Goddammit, this fuckup got me into this mess and now he can't even get me out!" And that, in turn, is important for where their relationship goes in this episode and later on Breaking Bad.

Edited August 29, 2018 by Dev F

[ShadowFacts]

2 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

I think the show is great, but sometimes the episodes are a bit dull, in the sense that I would like to see more plot movement.  If Breaking Bad moved at this pace, Walt and Jesse would be cooking their first batch of meth about now. :)

I'd be in favor of a little more movement.  With only 10 episodes and a year or more between seasons, I get a bit antsy.  The last two episodes have been heavy on cartel violence which doesn't thrill me, either.  More Kim and Jimmy, please and something other than warehouse inspections for Mike.  The support group scene was a good change of pace for Mike, but I have a feeling he won't be going anymore, so I hope for more involvement with Los Pollos or Madrigal.  Minor quibbles, really, because there's nothing else I watch that comes close to the quality here. 

[Bryce Lynch]

47 minutes ago, ShadowFacts said:

I'd be in favor of a little more movement.  With only 10 episodes and a year or more between seasons, I get a bit antsy.  The last two episodes have been heavy on cartel violence which doesn't thrill me, either.  More Kim and Jimmy, please and something other than warehouse inspections for Mike.  The support group scene was a good change of pace for Mike, but I have a feeling he won't be going anymore, so I hope for more involvement with Los Pollos or Madrigal.  Minor quibbles, really, because there's nothing else I watch that comes close to the quality here. 

I thought this episode had more going on than the previous 3 episodes of the season.  Someone on reddit made a list of all the stuff that happened and it was pretty impressive.

I think my problem is that, plot wise, there seems to be a lot more set up than delivery.   I still love the show, but I think it is often more fun to think about and discuss afterward than it is to watch.  

[peggy06]

12 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

I am pretty sure Mike knew Gus planned to kill Walt.  Mike was about to kill Walt in the lab in Episode 313 until he knew 

  Reveal hidden contents

Jesse was on his way to kill Gale, which would leave Fring with no meth cook

 

Walt wasn't really "out of control" while working for Fring.  He was content to work for Fring and make a lot of money.  Jesse was out of control.  He tried to poison 2 of Fring's dealers because the used kids and had one kill Combo.  After Tomas was killed Jesse went to try to kill them again and probably would have been killed if Walt had not shown up and killed the dealers.  That wasn't Walt's "ego" as Mike claimed, that motivated him, it was Walt wanting to save Jesse's life.   

Fring would have killed Walt at the first opportunity fro that point on.  The only reason he didn't was that he needed Walt to cook and later because Jesse said he wouldn't cook for him, if he killed Walt.  Fring was about to kill Hank, when Walt arranged for an anonymous tip, which caused Fring to want to kill him over Jesse's objections.

You could argue that Walt was actually more rational at that time than Fring.  He was doing his best to keep Hank off Fring's trail and even caused a car accident to keep Hank from getting to the laundry.   Killing a DEA agent was a rather extreme measure for Fring, and the DEA wasn't buying Hank's "Fring is a drug kingpin" theory.   

I get that Mike was Fring's guy and was loyal to him.  But, I always thought Mike was uncharacteristically biased in how he viewed the conflict between Fring and Walt.  Most of the problems were either Fring's fault, Jesse's fault entirely or only partly Walt's fault.  

I know this is kind of off-topic for this group, but I had to say THANK YOU. I have always felt this, and it's kept me from holding Mike in the same reverential position as most Breaking Bad fans seem to. 

[MisterBluxom]

7 hours ago, Dev F said:

I can only assume it was for the drama of the robbery sequence itself. Like you mention, it's a totally solved problem at this point, so I can't think of any way it would come up again later.

As part of the sequence, though, one thing it does is make it so Jimmy's first attempt to rescue Ira isn't totally a failure. Yes, Neff comes back before Ira can escape, but he does have enough time to grab the glove that might otherwise have exposed him before Jimmy figured out how to get him out of there. Which probably makes it easier to sell Ira's response as "Oh, thank God this guy is busting his butt to save me!" instead of "Goddammit, this fuckup got me into this mess and now he can't even get me out!" And that, in turn, is important for where their relationship goes in this episode and later on Breaking Bad.

 

Good point. Good post.

This next bit is somewhat "off topic". But I'd like to tell you all that I just finished re-watching Breaking Bad and I'd like to recommend to all of you who enjoyed this show that you might consider re-watching it.

For one thing, I hardly remembered any of the details from the first time I saw it (about two years ago).

For a second thing, the team that produces Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul must be one of the very best production teams in the business today.  These shows are just fantastic.  IMO, they are on a level with Game of Thrones.

I enjoyed watching Breaking Bad for the second time even more than I enjoyed it the first time and I believe many of you would feel the same way. It was a great 3 days for me.

Edited August 30, 2018 by MissBluxom

[Quilt Fairy]

Assuming the burglar got out without Neff noticing, I don't think that a glove left behind would be a problem.  Don't forget he was only taking a piece of "junk" from a whole shelf of similar junk that no one paid attention to.  Might someone eventually notice the glove and wonder what it was doing there?  Sure, but it's not likely they're going to call 911 about it.

At the moment, the show might feel slow to some (me included, I admit) because it's following 4 separate storylines - Mike, Kim, Nacho, and Jimmy - and following each one with classic Breaking Bad diligence and detail.  (I hate it when books do this, one chapter for this character, the next chapter for another, etc.)  But I assume that shortly those storylines will converge and the overall pace of the show will feel a lot quicker.

[solea]

On 8/28/2018 at 5:09 AM, SunnyBeBe said:

Did anyone get the vibe that maybe, the cell phone store that Jimmy is now working might not be on the up and up?  When Jimmy's supervisor called, he seemed to be none too bothered that the place was not doing business.  And, he seemed to make up that they just did inventory. Telling him to bring a book to work. Come on?  Would a real person in the business of selling phones be so nonchalant about them not selling phones?

Ah ha. You’re on to something. I thought it was weird that such a slow location would even still be open for business. It didn’t occur to me it was a front, but it must be. Like all those mattress stores. And Jimmy will likely get involved somehow. 

[MisterBluxom]

27 minutes ago, solea said:

Ah ha. You’re on to something. I thought it was weird that such a slow location would even still be open for business. It didn’t occur to me it was a front, but it must be. Like all those mattress stores. And Jimmy will likely get involved somehow. 

Well done SunnyBebe and Solea. Sounds to me like a real fun plot too. I hope you are both right.

[Gobi]

When Vic (is that his name?) asked Jimmy if he knew about any more Hummels, Jimmy hesitated then said "No, not really." To me it seemed that, for a moment, he considered robbing the elderly woman from an earlier season, and decided that he wasn't going to cross that line.

[ShadowFacts]

6 hours ago, solea said:

Ah ha. You’re on to something. I thought it was weird that such a slow location would even still be open for business. It didn’t occur to me it was a front, but it must be. Like all those mattress stores. And Jimmy will likely get involved somehow. 

There was a hardware store next to the phone store and I couldn't make out what the next sign down said, but apparently none of them were too busy because each shot of the store fronts showed few cars, no people.  What was weird for me was the boss letting Jimmy in the store alone the first day.  With what training?  That was weird. 

[SunnyBeBe]

6 hours ago, MissBluxom said:

Well done SunnyBebe and Solea. Sounds to me like a real fun plot too. I hope you are both right.

I don't know what to make of it, but, it just seems off to me.  Maybe it's a tax write off or something and not money laundering, but, with Jimmy having no real sales, the boss unconcerned AND not surprised there were no sales, just seems weird. Of course, perhaps Jimmy will bring in the business and the boss will be pleased. 

[conquistador]

3 hours ago, Gobi said:

When Vic (is that his name?) asked Jimmy if he knew about any more Hummels, Jimmy hesitated then said "No, not really." To me it seemed that, for a moment, he considered robbing the elderly woman from an earlier season, and decided that he wasn't going to cross that line.

I am convinced that he will indeed cross that line later on this season and that it will be a plot point to illustrate Jimmy's descent to Saul.

[Bryce Lynch]

4 minutes ago, conquistador said:

When Vic (is that his name?) asked Jimmy if he knew about any more Hummels, Jimmy hesitated then said "No, not really." To me it seemed that, for a moment, he considered robbing the elderly woman from an earlier season, and decided that he wasn't going to cross that line.

I also took it that he briefly considered having Ira steal Hummel's from Mrs. Strauss and perhaps some of his old Sandpiper clients.  I rewatched it last night, and his hesitation was very, brief.  That made me think that the thought popped into his mind, but he didn't seriously consider it.  

[Bryce Lynch]

19 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I don't know what to make of it, but, it just seems off to me.  Maybe it's a tax write off or something and not money laundering, but, with Jimmy having no real sales, the boss unconcerned AND not surprised there were no sales, just seems weird. Of course, perhaps Jimmy will bring in the business and the boss will be pleased. 

Something definitely seems strange about the CC Mobile store.  It doesn't seem like a great candidate for a money laundering front, though.  I think it would be much harder to avoid detection of fake sales at a cell phone store, as compared to a nail salon, car wash, or other service business that takes mostly cash.

There would be a lot of red flags.  Purchases of inventory (or the lack thereof) would be dead giveaway.  If they claimed $1 million a year in phone sales, but could only prove purchases of $100,000 in inventory, the authorities would know much of the revenue was bogus.  Also, cell phone sales are generally connected to activations with carriers and the individual phones are serialized.   If they are supposedly selling phones that don't exist and never get activated, alarm bells would go off.  

[aemom]

15 hours ago, MissBluxom said:

Can anyone guess why the show would show us the glove being left and then being snatched away if they weren't going to make anything out of it in a future episode?

I think that it was just to up the tension of the scene.

We realize that he's left the glove on the shelf.  We think "Damn!  Will he realize it?"  Then later on we see that he does realize it.  Everyone knows now that he can't leave without the glove so that makes an extra problem that he has to solve before he can get out.

[SoothingDave]

On ‎8‎/‎28‎/‎2018 at 10:07 AM, Bannon said:

I don't know quite what to make of this comment. Mike Ehrmantraut, to me, is a very complex character, and a grief  guilt, and anger filled cauldron of qualities. Yes, he has chosen to participate in a business that ruins lives. That's sleazy. He's also a person who frequently does not try to maximize personal gain. He's nearly unfailingly honest about himself, without a molecule of hypocrisy. He can be difficult to like, but he also can inspire great respect and loyalty from others. I think the portrayal by Banks is magnificent.

Mike did not go in on the Hummel thing because he does not victimize "innocent" people.  Remember, he asked Jimmy what the copier people had done to him (to deserve having their stuff stolen)? 

I don't think Mike has a problem being shady or illegal, but he does what he does for what he considers honorable reasons. 

[SunnyBeBe]

37 minutes ago, Bryce Lynch said:

Something definitely seems strange about the CC Mobile store.  It doesn't seem like a great candidate for a money laundering front, though.  I think it would be much harder to avoid detection of fake sales at a cell phone store, as compared to a nail salon, car wash, or other service business that takes mostly cash.

There would be a lot of red flags.  Purchases of inventory (or the lack thereof) would be dead giveaway.  If they claimed $1 million a year in phone sales, but could only prove purchases of $100,000 in inventory, the authorities would know much of the revenue was bogus.  Also, cell phone sales are generally connected to activations with carriers and the individual phones are serialized.   If they are supposedly selling phones that don't exist and never get activated, alarm bells would go off.  

Good point. I agree that it seems a poor choice. Perhaps, I'm too suspicious. lol Most of the fronts we have seen are pretty busy places too.  We'll see. 

[PeterPirate]

Jimmy does have to learn about money laundering sooner or later, so maybe this is the time and place.

[Eulipian 5k]

• Maybe Jimmy should offer Cucumber Water for Customers Only! at the cell phone store. Could he as an ex-lawyer start a business providing forms needed for filings etc. OJ's lawyer started such a business didn't he? Or he could marry a future social media queen-pin like the other one did.

[qtpye]

On 8/29/2018 at 9:17 AM, Bryce Lynch said:

I am pretty sure Mike knew Gus planned to kill Walt.  Mike was about to kill Walt in the lab in Episode 313 until he knew 

  Hide contents

Jesse was on his way to kill Gale, which would leave Fring with no meth cook

 

Walt wasn't really "out of control" while working for Fring.  He was content to work for Fring and make a lot of money.  Jesse was out of control.  He tried to poison 2 of Fring's dealers because the used kids and had one kill Combo.  After Tomas was killed Jesse went to try to kill them again and probably would have been killed if Walt had not shown up and killed the dealers.  That wasn't Walt's "ego" as Mike claimed, that motivated him, it was Walt wanting to save Jesse's life.   

Fring would have killed Walt at the first opportunity fro that point on.  The only reason he didn't was that he needed Walt to cook and later because Jesse said he wouldn't cook for him, if he killed Walt.  Fring was about to kill Hank, when Walt arranged for an anonymous tip, which caused Fring to want to kill him over Jesse's objections.

You could argue that Walt was actually more rational at that time than Fring.  He was doing his best to keep Hank off Fring's trail and even caused a car accident to keep Hank from getting to the laundry.   Killing a DEA agent was a rather extreme measure for Fring, and the DEA wasn't buying Hank's "Fring is a drug kingpin" theory.   

I get that Mike was Fring's guy and was loyal to him.  But, I always thought Mike was uncharacteristically biased in how he viewed the conflict between Fring and Walt.  Most of the problems were either Fring's fault, Jesse's fault entirely or only partly Walt's fault.  

Yes, Mike anger at Walt, in the beginning, was pure selfishness. He was angry that Walt had "won" because he had such a good thing with Gus. To him, Gus was amazing (if bad) and Walt was just not worthy of taking down such a magnificent man. There was once an episode of Batman the animated series where it seemed like Batman was actually taken down by a low-level criminal (Sid the Squid). No one was more furious the Joker who was horrified that Batman was done in by someone so "unworthy". I think Mike liked Gus and Jessie because like him they did bad things, but operated by a weird code of honor. Jessie would not hurt children (even though one could argue that being a drug dealer he indirectly hurt many children). Gus claimed that he did not no Andrea's brother was used to kill Combo and it would never happen again (do not know if this is true). Mike was extremely loyal to Gus and this loyalty was built out of respect, even though Gus was aiming to be a Kingpin of a disgusting underworld business. Mike knew it was stupid to think that Walter should just let Gus kill him but he did not care. To him, because of Walter, he was back to square one in creating a fortune for his granddaughter and Mike was already getting too old for this shit.

17 hours ago, atlantaloves said:

Yeah, sometimes the show is a little slow, but it always is about something that moves the plot along later.  I love this show. No, it is not as good as Breaking Bad, but damn, it's pretty good.  Hey, how does Kim even get her new low pony tail done with one arm. I wear a pony tail and I tell you, it can't be done. 

Jimmy probably helps her. We know that he can be a great caretaker for the people he loves.

14 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

I thought this episode had more going on than the previous 3 episodes of the season.  Someone on reddit made a list of all the stuff that happened and it was pretty impressive.

I think my problem is that, plot wise, there seems to be a lot more set up than delivery.   I still love the show, but I think it is often more fun to think about and discuss afterward than it is to watch.  

 

11 hours ago, peggy06 said:

I know this is kind of off-topic for this group, but I had to say THANK YOU. I have always felt this, and it's kept me from holding Mike in the same reverential position as most Breaking Bad fans seem to. 

I agree Mike is so engaging that we forget he has some very human foibles.

9 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Assuming the burglar got out without Neff noticing, I don't think that a glove left behind would be a problem.  Don't forget he was only taking a piece of "junk" from a whole shelf of similar junk that no one paid attention to.  Might someone eventually notice the glove and wonder what it was doing there?  Sure, but it's not likely they're going to call 911 about it.

At the moment, the show might feel slow to some (me included, I admit) because it's following 4 separate storylines - Mike, Kim, Nacho, and Jimmy - and following each one with classic Breaking Bad diligence and detail.  (I hate it when books do this, one chapter for this character, the next chapter for another, etc.)  But I assume that shortly those storylines will converge and the overall pace of the show will feel a lot quicker.

I think one of the reasons this show feels so much slower than BB is we know the fates of most of the main characters with the exception of Kim and Nacho. When the twins went into the warehouse guns blazing

Spoiler

I yawned because I knew they would not be hurt.

I was one of the few people who disagreed with the cold opening of the final season because it let us know that

Spoiler

Walt would live to his fifty-second birthday.

I would often even watch a slow episode of BB with my teeth clenched because I never knew if Walt was going to make it or not.  The actor that plays Nacho is excellent but I am just not that invested in his character. I like Kim, but all she has to do to get her life back on track is break up with Jimmy. It will be very sad but breakups happen all the time and it is not that earth-shattering.

[SunnyBeBe]

Mike just cracks me up.  For some reason, I just get this feeling of anticipation, mixed with laughter when he's in a scene. I'm not sure why, but, I just always feel that he's a step ahead of people, that he knows their limitations and has to tolerate them without being too sarcastic, with  the exception of his granddaughter, of course. Even with Guss, he's insolent.  I mean, what did he mean when he told Guss and his guys that if they were going to do something, they better bring it on.  I mean WTH? How could he defend himself from all of them at once?  But, he has the bulls to pull it off. Maybe, that's what appeals to Guss. 

[Milburn Stone]

21 hours ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

Guess the show either couldn't get or didn't want to pay for the rights to the original song.

The websites that track these things say that the version of "Grazing in the Grass" used in the show was the one by The Ventures.

[Bryce Lynch]

30 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

Good point. I agree that it seems a poor choice. Perhaps, I'm too suspicious. lol Most of the fronts we have seen are pretty busy places too.  We'll see. 

I think the cell phone store is very suspicious.  I just think the owner is probably using it for something shady, other than money laundering.  

[Bryce Lynch]

22 hours ago, Joimiaroxeu said:

I don't know about Albuquerque but in other places cell phone stores tend to get robbed. Guess Jimmy doesn't know that?

Holy crap, those Salamanca brothers.

I get that Jimmy's trying to drum up business but would someone doing crimes go to a cell phone store to get a burner phone? Seems like it'd be safer just to go to Circle K or 7-11.

Guess the show either couldn't get or didn't want to pay for the rights to the original song. Maybe Hugh Masekela's death earlier this year had something to do with it.

On an Insider Podcast for BB, they once mentioned that they sometimes use covers, including covers of their own songs by the original artists, to save money.   

[PeterPirate]

Money aside, I think The Ventures fit in with the music on BCS and BB, which has always been somewhat subtle.

I'm thinking about the music they played when Mike retrieved the money from the Kettlemans, and also from episode 508 of BB,

Spoiler

wherein Walt had Mike's guys killed in lockup, and later made meth for Lydia. 

Edited August 30, 2018 by PeterPirate

[ShadowFacts]

44 minutes ago, SunnyBeBe said:

Mike just cracks me up.  For some reason, I just get this feeling of anticipation, mixed with laughter when he's in a scene. I'm not sure why, but, I just always feel that he's a step ahead of people, that he knows their limitations and has to tolerate them without being too sarcastic, with  the exception of his granddaughter, of course. Even with Guss, he's insolent. I mean, what did he mean when he told Guss and his guys that if they were going to do something, they better bring it on.  I mean WTH? How could he defend himself from all of them at once?  But, he has the bulls to pull it off. Maybe, that's what appeals to Guss. 

In that specific instance, I think he was sufficiently confident that Gus had plans for him and wasn't going to kill him, but in general, I think sometimes his bravado covers some sense of inevitability, and not caring too much for his own safety beyond amassing a fortune for his granddaughter.  Which to me always seemed to be the wrong goal -- Kaylee would have been much better served having a father/grandfather figure in her life than both of them gone in an ugly way (and no fortune anyway, as it turned out).   I think he was misguided in that way, though well-intentioned.

[aemom]

20 hours ago, atlantaloves said:

Hey, how does Kim even get her new low pony tail done with one arm. I wear a pony tail and I tell you, it can't be done. 

That's what I love about this show is how they pay attention to all the little details.  When Kim went to see Howard and gave him shit for what he did to Jimmy, she had to get ready on her own, and her hair was in a low pony attached with a hair clip, instead of a rubber hair band.  I'm pretty sure that she had the same thing going when she was at the courthouse.

It's much harder to do, but if you tilt your head back and brush it, you can use a nice big clip and get it all back like that.  You would need some practice though before being successful.   :-)

[Clanstarling]

2 hours ago, Bryce Lynch said:

On an Insider Podcast for BB, they once mentioned that they sometimes use covers, including covers of their own songs by the original artists, to save money.   

My favorite story about song choice was when Battlestar Galactica wanted to use Jimi Hendrix's version of Along the Watchtower. His estate refused (or asked too much, I forget), then they realized it was Dylan's song. So they went to him, and made the deal.

[SoMuchTV]

On 8/27/2018 at 10:10 PM, tiredofwork said:

Did anyone else's station have a strange commercial cut in when the judge was looking to ask Kim to rep the guy in court?  What happened as it came back to a different scene?

I noticed that when I rewatched, but I kind of think it was just an artistic choice, something like "things are going on in the courtroom, but we are going to leave them and go elsewhere".  Or it could have been a goof.

On 8/27/2018 at 10:17 PM, Lonesome Rhodes said:

I am fascinated to know what Kim is doing.  She is at the very beginning of an insane amount of work with "Lane" (Viola) and she decides to just sit in a courtroom?  The reference to "The Verdict" was incredibly awesome timing given the revelations in the dossier/letter just released implicating the Pope himself IRL.

This judge (Munsinger?) wasn't around during the Chuck trial was he?  IMDB says that was the actor's first appearance, but hasn't that name been thrown around before?  Because (and this is pretty far-fetched, I know), the case he was pitching to Kim - the plot of The Verdict - (this is a spoiler only if you haven't seen The Verdict (a 30-something-year-old movie), but now you're planning to)

Spoiler

has a very important plot point that involves a very small illicit modification to a document.

  He wasn't trying to tell her he knows (or suspects) something, was he?

Edited August 31, 2018 by SoMuchTV
explaining reason for spoiler tag

[Bannon]

13 hours ago, MissBluxom said:

Good point. Good post.

This next bit is somewhat "off topic". But I'd like to tell you all that I just finished re-watching Breaking Bad and I'd like to recommend to all of you who enjoyed this show that you might consider re-watching it.

For one thing, I hardly remembered any of the details from the first time I saw it (about two years ago).

For a second thing, the team that produces Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul must be one of the very best production teams in the business today.  These shows are just fantastic.  IMO, they are on a level with Game of Thrones.

I enjoyed watching Breaking Bad for the second time even more than I enjoyed it the first time and I believe many of you would feel the same way. It was a great 3 days for me.

As far as production values, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul are simply in a league of their own, and of course Game of Thrones has a budget for such things which is massively, massively, larger than what Vince Gilligan has for those purposes. 

[PeterPirate]

1 hour ago, SoMuchTV said:

I noticed that when I rewatched, but I kind of think it was just an artistic choice, something like "things are going on in the courtroom, but we are going to leave them and go elsewhere".  Or it could have been a goof.

This judge (Munsinger?) wasn't around during the Chuck trial was he?  IMDB says that was the actor's first appearance, but hasn't that name been thrown around before?  Because (and this is pretty far-fetched, I know), the case he was pitching to Kim - the plot of The Verdict -

  Reveal hidden contents

has a very important plot point that involves a very small illicit modification to a document.

  He wasn't trying to tell her he knows (or suspects) something, was he?

That bit about The Verdict is a fantastic catch.  I would give you ten hearts if I could. 

And it makes perfect sense.  Everyone in the justice system/legal profession is going to know about the death of Chuck McGill, and about the accusations he made about his brother, and how that brother was defended by Kim Wexler.  And I imagine that a lot of people would presume that there was at least a reasonable possibility that Kim aided and abetted a felony.  

After all, how else would a judge in a criminal court immediately recognize a corporate attorney?  

Edited August 30, 2018 by PeterPirate

[Quilt Fairy]

13 minutes ago, PeterPirate said:

After all, how else would a judge in a criminal court immediately recognize a corporate attorney?

We don't know that Kim never did criminal work for HHM.  Also, by the time Kim defended Jimmy in the disbarment hearing she had left HHM, so the judge either didn't know that or was being disingenuous. 

And frankly, if you were a 60-ish nebbishy looking guy, wouldn't you notice the beautiful blonde woman sitting in your courtroom paying rapt attention to the procedings?

[ShadowFacts]

18 minutes ago, PeterPirate said:

After all, how else would a judge in a criminal court immediately recognize a corporate attorney?  

Didn't she represent the Kettelmanns?  He might not have had the case but it was in the news I think.  He didn't seem to know she wasn't with HHM anymore so he might not have been aware of the details of Chuck's downfall.

[PeterPirate]

4 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

We don't know that Kim never did criminal work for HHM.  Also, by the time Kim defended Jimmy in the disbarment hearing she had left HHM, so the judge either didn't know that or was being disingenuous. 

And frankly, if you were a 60-ish nebbishy looking guy, wouldn't you notice the beautiful blonde woman sitting in your courtroom paying rapt attention to the procedings?

 

4 hours ago, ShadowFacts said:

Didn't she represent the Kettelmanns?  He might not have had the case but it was in the news I think.  He didn't seem to know she wasn't with HHM anymore so he might not have been aware of the details of Chuck's downfall.

 

Anything is possible.  It's reasonable to think the judge took note of the good-looking attorney from the Kettleman case.  

That said, even while watching the episode I thought he was only pretending not to know that Kim had left HHM.  I think this judge is one smart cookie.  

 

ETA:  Upon further reflection, I find it incongruous for the judge to know Kim from the Kettleman case, but not associate her with Chuck's death and/or recognize her as the beneficiary of the Mesa Verde Bank controversy.  

Edited August 30, 2018 by PeterPirate

[Dev F]

I'm skeptical that the cell phone store is engaged in anything nefarious at the moment. The whole point is that JIMMY is going to bring in a criminal element with his new campaign, right? It sort of steps on that story if his employer has to be like, "How dare you do crime when I was doing crime!"

I think it's much more likely that this is just a sleepy store in a bad neighborhood where people can only afford cell phones when they're on sale, and Jimmy will have to explain why it's suddenly doing gangbusters business with lowlifes.