By Devon Sheridan
The recent track record of television spinoffs provided a healthy dose of skepticism for “Better Call Saul,” the new “Breaking Bad” spinoff that follows everyone’s favorite and seediest lawyer in New Mexico. Surpisingly, the first five episodes of the first season have quelled viewers’ concerns. In fact, the reason behind “Saul’s” success is that it is very different from “Breaking Bad.”
The fifth episode of the season, called “Alpine Shepherd Boy,” marks the beginning of the season’s rising action. By now, the characters have been introduced, fleshed out enough for the audience to begin to care about relationships and motives. At the center of the story is James McGill (He does not even have his same “Breaking Bad” character’s name!) still played brilliantly by Bob Odenkirk (Fargo). Just as fast-talking as his Saul Goodman future-alter ego, McGill is much less successful at this point. He is in constant contact with his brother Chuck, who suffers from a yet to be specified but very debilitating ailment. That ailment has forced Chuck from his position at Howard, Howard and McGill, a high-powered law firm in town whose polished chairman is trying to buy Chuck out.
By episode five, it is clear that Chuck’s illness and his former position at the law firm will play a huge role in James’ future earnings. But that is not the only hint towards the future to which “Breaking Bad” fans are privy. At the end of the episode, an extended scene with Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks, Airplane!) reveals that the beloved anti-anti-hero from “Breaking Bad” may soon need to call James for legal services. Better for the audience and perhaps worse for the characters, the intertwinement of the future duo’s sketchy paths is inevitable.
Although it boasts the same nuanced dark humor and exemplary aesthetics we came to expect from Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould, who are writing and sometimes directing “Saul,” the same way they did for “Breaking Bad,” “Better Call Saul” stands completely alone from its predecessor, so much so that the title character, Saul Goodman, does not yet go by the name that gave him — in fiction and the real world — his fame. Clearly, resting on past laurels is not on the agenda for Gilligan and Gould. “Saul” is not only an entertaining legal drama-comedy, but it is barely identifiable from its predecessor’s style and genre, making it a very good show unto itself.
