LIVE West Coast BETTER CALL SAUL 'Alpine Shepherd Boy' Recap 3/2
By: Courtney Henley Mar. 02, 2015
Allow me, for a moment, to recap what we have learned so far in the first four episodes of BETTER CALL SAUL. Jimmy McGill (AKA "s'all good, man") starts his career as a public defender, shifts into private practice (if you can call it that) when he defends Nacho and finds the "missing" Kettlemans, and attempts to take down Hamlin with one of Saul's soon-to-be trademarked elaborate schemes.
Tonight, he begins his foray into patent law. That's right: patent law. Why? I have no idea. What we do know is that Jimmy's beginning to embrace his crafty side, and so far, it's paying off - at least professionally. His brother, Chuck, doesn't seem to be too happy about Jimmy's new career choices. Chuck's an honest man who takes pride in fair and honest business practices (hence the irony about him working for Hamlin, who is now trying to cheat Chuck out of well-deserved money). What will come of this dramatic tension?! If the closing scene of last week's episode (you remember, when Chuck ran out of the house wrapped in what was more or less a big swath of tinfoil to find out why Jimmy was hiding the newspaper from him) is any indication, things are going to get more and more wonky as the season goes on.
Check out a teaser for tonight's episode, interestingly titled Alpine Shepherd Boy, here:
As always, join me here and on Twitter @CourtHenley tonight for episode five at 10 PM PST! I'll be live updating again, which means you'll get my unfiltered thoughts and reactions. Who doesn't love unfiltered thoughts and reactions?!
10:01 : Oh hey, it's that lady that was spying on Chuck last week when he ran out to get the papers! She's a nosy little bugger, isn't she?
Oh, I get it, so she's nosy and she called the cops on Chuck. He stole her newspaper, and now they're comin' for him. Shouldn't...shouldn't the Albuquerque Police Department have bigger things to worry about?
But...but...why are they picking on Chuck?
10:07 : Well, this Ricky guy sounds like a happy camper. Let's see what he's all about.
10:09 : ...Right. That's a lot of taxidermy. And a lot of America.
He...he wants to secede from the US? And...and Jimmy said yes? Or rather, yeehaw? This is either desperation or the start of a new scheme.
A million dollars?! Scheme. It's the scheme route. Definitely the scheme route.
HA, lies. It's desperation. Defintiely desperation. That's the fun thing about this show, though: it's never really clear as to where the line is drawn between the two things. Blind desperation and advanced scheming seem to go hand in hand for Saul.
10:14 : HAHAHA wait, that toilet is probably the funniest thing I've ever seen. Oh my gosh, that's so terrible, it's hilarious.
Maybe he'll have better luck at the next house.
10:17 : Or maybe not.
But let's add, "I found the Alpine shepherd boy!" to the list of ridiculous/hilarious quotes of BETTER CALL SAUL.
10:22 : This little relationship Jimmy has going on with Kim (Rhea Seehorn) is kind of adorable. They're rivals, yet friends. I like it.
10:28 : Woah, that was tense there for a second. But...is Chuck really "allergic" to electricity? Kinda thought it was all in his head until now.
It's interesting, you can really see Kim's sympathy and determination in helping Chuck. Maybe that elder law path is the one she should follow.
10:34 : All right, so it is mostly in his head. But if Chuck and Jimmy are happy and content and safe at the moment, and they're both willing to work with Chuck's condition (whatever it may be), can't they just stay that way? At the same time, Chuck could potentially pose a danger to himself, and those safety concerns are totally valid. Looks like this one's up to Jimmy.
That being said, I can't stand Howard.
And I guess Jimmy does, too.
10:43 : Slippin' Jimmy, always lurking in the shadows. Chuck's got a good heart: he just wants Jimmy to be ethical.
"From here on out, I'm gonna play by the rules." Famous last words.
10:46 : Wait, stop, he did not just design a suit that would get old folks to like him. That's too perfect.
I take that back. Advertising on the bottom of Jell-O cups is too perfect.
Now, don't get me wrong, I love the back story and character development, I really do. But...where's the crime? Where's Nacho? And Tuco? We got a taste of it and then the writers just...ripped it away! I want it back!
10:53 : "So...gimme a call...if you happen to know any elders." We're almost there, Saul, we're almost there.
10:56 : Finally, some good, quality Ehrmantraut time. With who I'm guessing is his daughter.
More cops at more doors? Oh. He knows this one. Wait...he knows this one.
Who is this cop? How does he know Ehrmantraut? How does Mike reach is BREAKING BAD level of badness? If you have any thoughts/speculations/viewing party suggestions, let us know in the comments below or on Twitter @CourtHenley!
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