"Better Call Saul" series finale Monday, August 15 (new Odenkirk show on AMC)

[EatLeadCommie]

I think they wanted him to end up in a hell of his own making, kind of like The Shield finale which is still one of my all-time favorite finales for a despicable lead character (I can't call Vic Mackey an "anti-hero").

But confessing everything and only getting 7.5 years would be too much like The Shield finale. Also as the ep awkwardly acknowledges Saul is rightfully a hero in prison. It wouldn't be hell because 7.5 years being treated like a hero as a jailhouse lawyer would barely be punishment.

Hell of his own making is a little strong. The camera work when he was baking the bread in prison was a strong allusion to his working at Cinnabons, making us think of the life he was living in Nebraska. He was already living in a sort of prison being Gene, living a mundane life, and no longer being Saul, but now he is in actual prison, at least he can do it as Jimmy. He gets the respect and fame as Saul, but confessing about what he did to his brother makes him able to live with himself again.

I got the impression that everything that has gone on in his life has led to this. The lawyering, the Cinnabon, being too smart for his own good, and, yes, even having an inkling of humanity (which is how his sentence went from 7 years to a de facto life sentence). He has an endless supply of clients while in prison, all perfectly within his wheelhouse thanks to his Saul experience. He also has the respect of the inmates due to the same thing. He can operate in the kitchen thanks to Cinnabon. It's really the perfect place for him because prison will check all his worst instincts. It's basically exactly where he needs to be, and not just because he's a criminal. That's not a deep take, and there's a whole lot of other subtler stuff going on, but I think that's why the finale felt right to me.

Totally agree about The Shield finale, btw...

 

[PhDeac]

Almost missed that Bob Odenkirk has a new show on AMC, Lucky Hank. He plays the chair of an English department going through a midlife crisis.

https://www.npr.org/2023/03/22/1165114938/better-call-saul-star-bob-odenkirk-new-series-lucky-hank-review

 

[BarcaDeac]

AMC has had success with a show about a teacher going through some things

 

[PhDeac]

It seems very similar to Sandra Oh's The Chair on Netflix a few years ago.

 

[BeachBumDeac]

I have never seen the show but I’m calling bullshit on this crossword clue

 

[PhDeac]

Could have gone with “preceded the College Football Playoff.”

 

[PhDeac]

Better Call Saul went 0-53 on Emmy nominations. Here is a breakdown of how that happened.

How 'Better Call Saul' made bad Emmy history

The Emmys have a (new) repetition problem, 'Fargo' ends, 'True Detective' begins, and more

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