Better Call Saul Season One Starts Tonight

[Luke]

I have actually heard that cameos are largely being avoided for the time being - and maybe for the duration of the show.

Over time, for sure.

I wonder how many people miss the point that his name is " S'all Good man".

[dsheinem]

...caul?

I don't know what you are talking about.

[Ziggy]

So who watched the first episode? I thought it was great.

[Nemoide]

Well the library I work at is closed today due to snow, so I watched the first episode on demand. (I'm not scheduled for tomorrow so I should be able to stay up and watch tonight's episode to!)

I have to say, I'm impressed! I loved Breaking Bad but wasn't totally sold on the idea of a Saul Goodman spinoff. Breaking Bad was brilliant because it was tragedy (something PRETTY RARE in American entertainment) and part of what made Saul so great in the show was because he helped lighten the mood. I was kind of wary because I was assuming this would be closer to a straight-up comedy show. So I was surprised by how dark in tone the first episode was!

This show has a lot of potential. For as comedic as Odenkirk's performance can be, it's really interesting to actually see the transformation from his early days of desperation to what he became in Breaking Bad and then what he was in this show's opening B&W segment! Vince Gilligan always said the character-transformation was what is central to Breaking Bad and that could very well end up being true of this series too, just in a very different way.

I'm not really a TV person, but Breaking Bad was amazing and I'm glad I decided to bother trying out this series too!

[Ziggy]

^ I agree with everything you said.

I loved the B&W opening, showing Saul after the events of BB. And I admit that I too was scared how a Saul spin-off would be compared to BB. But from the first second of the first scene, you can tell instantly that it's in the BB family. It's shot in the same style, and just from the first episode it seems like the writing will be as good. Perhaps even better, as the series goes on (who knows?). I mean, right in the first episode Saul gets into a situation that just screams "This is what happens in Breaking Bad."

And the origin of Saul Goodman is already very interesting. Does it have parallels to Walter White? Is this how Saul (Jimmy) broke bad? He's a struggling lawyer trying to make ends meet. Maybe he's not a saint, but it seems like he's trying to make an honest living. Public defending is not paying well, and his office is in the back of a nail salon (or whatever it is). Maybe his reasons for breaking bad aren't as noble as Walter's, but it's out of desperation nonetheless. It doesn't even seem like it's greed, it seems more like he might feel like the world is keeping him down. It seemed like the thought of not being able to use his own name hurt him.

Any skepticism I had is gone. I'm on board. Can't wait for tonight's episode!

[Forlorn Drifter]

I've only caught one or two episodes of Breaking Bad, but after watching this premiere I'm hooked on Better call Saul. The character is relatable, which makes a huge difference in anything I watch. The shows use of sound is incredible too, in my mind, especially during the court scene, the black and white scene, and a couple of other areas. I like seeing things that aren't constantly covered with background music and such, letting the sounds of the area permeate and create a more realistic, and understandable, environment.

[Jrecee]

A+

A continuation of Breaking Bad without making you spend the duration of the episode thinking about Breaking Bad.

Fantastic acting on Bob's part to bring us a version of the character who feels like Saul, but isn't.

Nitpick... it's 2002. The skater twins felt a little too 2012ish.

[Nemoide]

I felt like the second episode was slightly weaker than the first. It feel like they should back off from the cameos a bit.
Slight spoiler about them:

The amount of times they showed Mike as the parking attendant was a little too much. I feel like they're just going "hey remember this guy from Breaking Bad? Huh, huh? Do you? He sure was a great character in that show, let's feature him just a little more!"

The second episode is also SUPER FUNNY but in a really dark way. I don't mind that tone at all!
Also, I don't know about anyone else but I wasn't 100% clear on Chuck's relationship to James/Saul until looking it up online after the fact (they're brothers). Was this ever explicitly stated? Did I miss it? His condition, along with the fact that he's so different from his brother, makes him a character with a lot of potential for interesting stuff.

[Jrecee]

I knew the cameos would be subjective and that some would see it as just winking at the audience. I did not feel that way about them though. I think if you were to look at this show without any prior knowledge of Breaking Bad, none of the cameos would stand out as out of place. Mike's repeat appearances as the parking attendant weren't any more abundant than the other segments in that montage, and I'm assuming that Mike will be a major part of the series, unlike Tuco.

For a good example of constant winks at the audience and attempts to link a show to an already successful series, see Agent Carter on abc. Can't go an episode without a reference or flashback to the Captain America movies.

[Ziggy]

Mike was shown that many times because it's building up to something, and I believe we'll see it in the next episode.