I like how he is trying to get away from his scam days. Loved the "montage" of him doing a ton of PD work. We know he's going to fall eventually, but I trust Vince Gilligan to give us a good ride.
0
ComradebotLord of DinosaursHouston, TXRegistered Userregular
I thought it was ok, but nothing particularly special. The intro felt a bit too much like an advertisement for Cinnabon to me, hardly an auspicious start. (Though I suppose it is oddly fitting that a series about Saul Goodman is really just an attempt to get paid through in-show advertisements.)
To be fair,
At the end of BB Saul outright said he was going to Nebraska to work at a Cinnabon. Apparently it wasn't a joke.
And a day in the life of the man formally known as Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill at Cinnabon is a nice sign of holy crap this guy was making millions of dollars and now he's probably just above minimum wage at a McJob at that crappy (but delicious) place at the mall that's usually reserved for high school students.
That, and Gilligan loves his strange montages. Right there with watching the day hooker go about her business.
+1
scherbchenAsgard (it is dead)Registered Userregular
holy shit those two episodes.
I am instantly in love and my heart breaks for Saul.
The moment that absolutely sold it for me was
Saul in the desert.
First he conjures up this FBI bullshit out of thin air only to immediately fold on it because he was then put on the stand and told to tell the truth.
The moment he gets his get out of jail murder free card he cannot help himself. He goes to lawyer for the two skateboard idiots who would have left him to die in their stead without so much as a second thought spent on him.
These two episodes really need to be taken as a unit I think. By itself, episode one felt... well, like half a pilot. Together, it's good stuff.
+4
scherbchenAsgard (it is dead)Registered Userregular
edited February 2015
well rewatching it I like it even better.
Saul isn't a lawyer. he is a businessman.
he is a used car dealer who will try to pull a fast one. he makes deals. he doesn't want to screw you. he doesn't want to screw anybody. he kind of has to and he got some law inside of him and you can quiz him (not contract law though).
he jumps from bullshit (special agent steel, saul, really?) to bullshit (think of their poor mother) to bullshit (you are totally like a judge of biblical proportions!) in order to dodge people who are so much more powerful than him and who have so much more clout.
ironically the one guy he cannot sway is that misterious dude who keeps asking for more stickers.
I am so on board with this show. It's amazing how even though this is in the Breaking Bad universe, I have hardly thought about Walter White at all. Jimmy carries this all on his own.
Just finished the first episode, and I'll check out part two tomorrow.
It is really, really good. I'm especially impressed with how effectively it ran the full gamut of emotional responses, from the hilarious reveal in the courtroom, to the palpable frustration in the law office, to the genuine heartache when Jimmy is talking to his brother. It all just works.
The first half hour was a little slow, but not in a bad way. More in a... deliberate way. There's an upward ramping of momentum from the lingering sadness of the cold open to the final cliffhanger (which I think would work almost as effectively even if I hadn't seen BB), and you very much get a sense of things spiraling. Jimmy is not yet Saul, he is not yet good at this, regardless of how much truth there is to the Ballad of Slipping Jimmy.
But he has potential. And so does this show.
Can't wait to see what happens next.
ElJeffe on
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I agree with what everyone has said in terms of the quality of this show, with might minor quibble... those frickin' skater punks. I am really curious with what made them go with older actors for the role? By old I of course mean just late 20's, but they really stuck out as wanting to be conveyed as much younger. They just came off as super obnoxious and not in a way that was good for their role. It's like they won some competition to be on the show and their acting reeeeaaally stood out like a sore thumb compared to everybody else bringing their A game. The actual teenagers in the courtroom were more convincing.
0
syndalisGetting ClassyOn the WallRegistered User, Loves Apple Productsregular
Aaron Paul was a very weak link in his first few episodes and his performance only got better.
I do not expect these guys to go the Pinkman route, but the low grade criminals being dumb and annoying is a common trait in this universe.
SW-4158-3990-6116
Let's play Mario Kart or something...
0
y2jake215certified Flat Birther theoristthe Last Good Boy onlineRegistered Userregular
I have to wonder if those guys will even really figure into the show again
maybe i'm streaming terrible dj right now if i am its here
0
y2jake215certified Flat Birther theoristthe Last Good Boy onlineRegistered Userregular
Maybe they end up in a badger/skinny Pete role but I could just as easily see them gone
maybe i'm streaming terrible dj right now if i am its here
I agree with what everyone has said in terms of the quality of this show, with might minor quibble... those frickin' skater punks. I am really curious with what made them go with older actors for the role? By old I of course mean just late 20's, but they really stuck out as wanting to be conveyed as much younger. They just came off as super obnoxious and not in a way that was good for their role. It's like they won some competition to be on the show and their acting reeeeaaally stood out like a sore thumb compared to everybody else bringing their A game. The actual teenagers in the courtroom were more convincing.
Hollywood. Adult actors playing teenagers is a time honored tradition.
Just finished the second ep. I agree with @This in that the show works much better with the two episodes together. Which is to say I found the pilot underwhelming and the second episode much more compelling. (This was at least partly because the first episode featured those skater punks a lot more -- really not a fan)
Some thoughts:
kind of surprised slip'n jimmy wasn't made of whole cloth
I think the main difference between this and breaking bad is the absolute focus on the title character. so far, at least, the show is all about Saul. It's testament to Odenkirk that he's able to carry the show so well. I'm sure we'll get sub plots as the show progresses, but right now there have been very few scenes that don't star Saul directly.
"I got you down from a life sentence to six months' probation! I'm the best lawyer."
0
scherbchenAsgard (it is dead)Registered Userregular
me 6 months ago: Odenkirk can't pull this off. it is going to be so boring and one-dimensional and just a gimmick.
me on monday: shut the fuck up me from 6 months ago, you know nothing! you are literally the worst.
I listened to a great interview of Bob Odenkirk on NPR last weekend. Basically he said he based Saul off of Hollywood agents since he didn't know any lawyers. That and when he was first told about the role of Saul Goodman, he added the haircut to the character...combed over, somewhat professional but also a little long. It was pretty interesting...I guess he didn't find the character that interesting at first.
I like to imagine that as part of his life on the run he goes on to be a bumbling sheriff in the Fargo world
+1
minor incidentexpert in a dying fieldnjRegistered Userregular
edited February 2015
Odenkirk’s back must hurt after he picked up this whole production and carried it for two hours. Man. I didn’t think he had it in him. Does VG have some kind of golden eye for plucking comedic actors and dumping them into these kinds of roles?
I don’t know exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. I guess maybe I thought this would be more light hearted, but man. Shit got dark real quick. And it’s kind of amazing. Like right up there with some of the best writing in Breaking Bad. The whole negotiation with Tuco was incredible.
Also: Vic the Dick
Line of the episode?
Discreet. Like a stripper pole in a mosque.
minor incident on
Ah, it stinks, it sucks, it's anthropologically unjust
They should have been left to Tuco to play amateur surgeon on in the desert, they all literally had a get out of jail free card and the second they get the duct tape off their mouth they make things 1000% worse, not to mention having fucked over Saul hardcore before that because they are a couple of dimwitted jackasses.
+7
ComradebotLord of DinosaursHouston, TXRegistered Userregular
Odenkirk’s back must hurt after he picked up this whole production and carried it for two hours. Man. I didn’t think he had it in him. Does VG have some kind of golden eye for plucking comedic actors and dumping them into these kinds of roles?
I don’t know exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. I guess maybe I thought this would be more light hearted, but man. Shit got dark real quick. And it’s kind of amazing. Like right up there with some of the best writing in Breaking Bad. The whole negotiation with Tuco was incredible.
Also: Vic the Dick
Line of the episode?
Discreet. Like a stripper pole in a mosque.
Keep in mind that Bryan Cranston wasn't a strictly comedic actor going in to Breaking Bad. His most well known role was the dad in Malcolm in the Middle, but he'd cut his dramatic teeth plenty of times well before then. The whole reason Gilligan wanted Cranston was because he'd worked with him during an episode of the X-Files where holy crap Cranston acts his ass off.
However, Odenkirk... a decade ago I'm not even sure I knew who the guy was, and if you told me some obscure comedian was going to be the lead in one of the most anticipated dramas of the year... Props to Odenkirk for being a truly terrific actor and to Gilligan and the rest of the BB crew for having the foresight to cast him.
This is great. Pretty much all the great. I want more.
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AbsoluteZeroThe new film by Quentin KoopantinoRegistered Userregular
I'm a little puzzled why Saul wouldn't just call the cops when
he found the supposedly kidnapped family hiding in the woods. Why give them any chance to possibly escape?
Guess we'll find out next episode. My guess is he
agrees to help them hide the money, which will get them out of the embezzlement case. At the same time, he can tell Nacho where the money is hidden to appease him and keep his vital organs on the inside.
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To be fair,
And a day in the life of the man formally known as Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill at Cinnabon is a nice sign of holy crap this guy was making millions of dollars and now he's probably just above minimum wage at a McJob at that crappy (but delicious) place at the mall that's usually reserved for high school students.
That, and Gilligan loves his strange montages. Right there with watching the day hooker go about her business.
I am instantly in love and my heart breaks for Saul.
The moment that absolutely sold it for me was
First he conjures up this FBI bullshit out of thin air only to immediately fold on it because he was then put on the stand and told to tell the truth.
The moment he gets his get out of jail murder free card he cannot help himself. He goes to lawyer for the two skateboard idiots who would have left him to die in their stead without so much as a second thought spent on him.
he is a used car dealer who will try to pull a fast one. he makes deals. he doesn't want to screw you. he doesn't want to screw anybody. he kind of has to and he got some law inside of him and you can quiz him (not contract law though).
he jumps from bullshit (special agent steel, saul, really?) to bullshit (think of their poor mother) to bullshit (you are totally like a judge of biblical proportions!) in order to dodge people who are so much more powerful than him and who have so much more clout.
ironically the one guy he cannot sway is that misterious dude who keeps asking for more stickers.
I wonder what is up with him.
Electromagnetic fields
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_hypersensitivity
It is really, really good. I'm especially impressed with how effectively it ran the full gamut of emotional responses, from the hilarious reveal in the courtroom, to the palpable frustration in the law office, to the genuine heartache when Jimmy is talking to his brother. It all just works.
The first half hour was a little slow, but not in a bad way. More in a... deliberate way. There's an upward ramping of momentum from the lingering sadness of the cold open to the final cliffhanger (which I think would work almost as effectively even if I hadn't seen BB), and you very much get a sense of things spiraling. Jimmy is not yet Saul, he is not yet good at this, regardless of how much truth there is to the Ballad of Slipping Jimmy.
But he has potential. And so does this show.
Can't wait to see what happens next.
I do not expect these guys to go the Pinkman route, but the low grade criminals being dumb and annoying is a common trait in this universe.
Let's play Mario Kart or something...
maybe i'm streaming terrible dj right now if i am its here
maybe i'm streaming terrible dj right now if i am its here
Hollywood. Adult actors playing teenagers is a time honored tradition.
Just finished the second ep. I agree with @This in that the show works much better with the two episodes together. Which is to say I found the pilot underwhelming and the second episode much more compelling. (This was at least partly because the first episode featured those skater punks a lot more -- really not a fan)
Some thoughts:
I think the main difference between this and breaking bad is the absolute focus on the title character. so far, at least, the show is all about Saul. It's testament to Odenkirk that he's able to carry the show so well. I'm sure we'll get sub plots as the show progresses, but right now there have been very few scenes that don't star Saul directly.
"I got you down from a life sentence to six months' probation! I'm the best lawyer."
me on monday: shut the fuck up me from 6 months ago, you know nothing! you are literally the worst.
Shoot, I keep forgetting to watch that. He's in it? Now I definitely need to!
I don’t know exactly what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. I guess maybe I thought this would be more light hearted, but man. Shit got dark real quick. And it’s kind of amazing. Like right up there with some of the best writing in Breaking Bad. The whole negotiation with Tuco was incredible.
Also: Vic the Dick
Line of the episode?
Keep in mind that Bryan Cranston wasn't a strictly comedic actor going in to Breaking Bad. His most well known role was the dad in Malcolm in the Middle, but he'd cut his dramatic teeth plenty of times well before then. The whole reason Gilligan wanted Cranston was because he'd worked with him during an episode of the X-Files where holy crap Cranston acts his ass off.
However, Odenkirk... a decade ago I'm not even sure I knew who the guy was, and if you told me some obscure comedian was going to be the lead in one of the most anticipated dramas of the year... Props to Odenkirk for being a truly terrific actor and to Gilligan and the rest of the BB crew for having the foresight to cast him.
This is great. Pretty much all the great. I want more.
Also, Mike being grumpy = always enjoyable.
That was a great episode, too.
It was the one where he had to keep going west otherwise he'd die, if memory serves.
*googles* Yep.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drive_(The_X-Files)
Guess we'll find out next episode. My guess is he