"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross."
-- Sinclair Lewis
Friday, November 18, 2016
AMC's supposed "first look" at Season 3 of "Better Call Saul" doesn't give us much to go on, but it's reassuring to know it's coming
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Better Call Saul exec producers Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould watch Bob Odenkirk being made up as Jimmy McGill during filming for Season 3.
by Ken
Bearing in mind how historically tight-fisted Breaking Bad mastermind Vince Gilligan has always been about over-revealing what's to come, it's not entirely surprising that AMC's heralded first sneak peek at Season 3 of Better Call Saul ("First-Look Photos") is noticeably sneakier than peekier.
Okay, this would be the brothers McGill, Chuck (Michael McKean) and Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk), in Chuck's living room.
And this would be Kim (Rhee Seahorn) and Jimmy in an office -- Kim's, it looks like.
In the interest of disclosure, I should note that I've withheld one of the so-called advance pix, which shows Vince Gilligan and Bob Odenkirk sitting on a bench. Oh, what the hell, just to prove that I wasn't suppressing vital visual information:
So now you've seen all of the "first look" pics. For the record, here's what the AMC folks have to say as they share these breathlessly revealing snaps (links onsite):
Season 2 of Better Call Saul left off with Jimmy McGill in a dark place — even if he didn’t know it. After finally coming clean to Chuck about sabotaging his case, Jimmy was relieved to stop lying to his brother. Unfortunately, Chuck seemed to have other plans when he revealed the tape recorder that now contains every last word of Jimmy’s confession.
So, where do things stand when Season 3 begins? These first-look photos offer a glimpse into Jimmy’s shaky relationships with both Chuck and Kim. Plus: It looks like we’ll be seeing Jimmy/Saul’s alter ego Gene once again as well!
Better Call Saul returns 2017. Be the first to receive show exclusives and updates by signing up for the Better Call Saul Insider’s Club.
I just thought that for anyone who was thinking there's not a whole lot to look forward to in 2017, well, here's something.
TV Watch: "Tio" Salamanca talks! Or, how much are we loving Season 2 of "Better Call Saul"?
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Look who's back! In case you were wondering, no, in the future, which is to say in Breaking Bad times, Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) and "Tio" (Mark Margolis) never did meet -- or never do meet? (It's hard to get the verb tenses right.)
by Ken
Okay, I'm reminded in the interview we're going to get to with that great character actor Mark Margolis that in Breaking Bad we actually did see Hector "Tio" Salamanca, the onetime cartel-kingpin uncle of the terrifying Tuco Salamanca, talk: in flashback. And I confess that when -- late in last week's Episode 5 of Season 2 of Better Call Saul, "Rebecca" -- a hatted gentleman strolled into the diner and slid into the booth opposite the still-visibly-battered Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks), it took me a moment to recognize the younger self of one of the iconic Breaking Bad characters.
When last we saw "Tio," late in Season 4 of Breaking Bad --
He was still mute and virtually paralyzed in his wheelchair, with only those amazing eyes -- and of course the finger on his goddamned little bell -- to show us that there was something going on, and possibly a whole lot going on, inside his head.
There was a little surprise in store for arch-villain Gus "The Chicken Guy" Fring (played so gorgeously by Giancarlo Esposito), come to dispose of "Tio."
BRINGING "TIO" BACK TO LIFE
Even on second viewing, it wasn't until after "Tio" started talking to Mike that I recognized him. No doubt other Breaking Bad-aware viewers were quicker on the uptake, but whenever the moment of "Tio" recognition came for any particular viewer, how magical that moment was likely to be! Possibly even better than the moment in the series premiere when we suddenly found ourselves face-to-face with none other than the younger Tuco Salamanca, as gamely re-(pre-)created by The Closer and Major Crimes' Det. Julio Sanchez, Raymond Cruz. Cruz, as you probably know, is reported to have found playing the monstrous meth-addled Tuco so stressful ("frighteningly lethal" is how his IMDb bio aptly describes the character) that he implored the Breaking Bad creative team to set him free, leading to the terrifying Tuco's untimely demise.
What was so stressful about playing the terrifying Tuco?
Hey, it's just acting, right? Or --
Um, nobody ever accused Breaking Bad's Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) of being overly bright, but really, going into Tuco's lair alone and expecting to dictate terms to him? How much imagination did it take to see where that was likely to lead?
THE REAL "TIO" TALKS
How can you not love that jaunty hat on the "young" Hector S?
I've made frequent mention of the lovely online features with which AMC backs up its shows, even the many crummy ones. Following the airing of the episode "Rebecca," I was delighted to find an interview with "Tio" himself, Mark Margolis. In case you missed it:
TV Watch: Seasonal notes -- "Better Call Saul," "The Middle," and of course "Mad Men"
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It's the birth of the "real" Mike! (Foolish as those other guys are made to look, I'll bet the actors were thrilled to be doing a scene with Jonathan Banks.) In this corner, the next-to-last episode of Season 1 of Better Call Saul registered as a "wow!"
by Ken
There's been an inordinate amount of crap to wade through on the TV scene, but also some oases. This includes a number that probably deserve -- and may yet get -- individual attention, but which I didn't want to go uncelebrated.
WASN'T THAT AN AWESOME BETTER CALL SAUL?
"You're not a real lawyer," Chuck McGill says to brother Jimmy. And cruel as it seems, is he wrong? Then again, if he hadn't had Jimmy forced out of the case that he found, who knows?
I'll be interested to go back and rewatch all the episodes, which I've enjoyed thoroughly, but which I suspect will prove even more absorbing now that we've gotten to know the characters so much better. This past week's episode, however, "Pimento," the next-to-last Season 1 episode, struck me as a total "wow!," with the biggest payoff we've gotten to date for our investment in these characters -- notably the four central ones: the brothers McGill, Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) and Chuck (Michael McKean), their lawyer colleague Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), and of course Jimmy's future right-hand man Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) -- the first instance of Mike being Mike.
How great was it to see Chuck fighting his way through his crippling sensitivity to electricity to actually return to HHM? (And the preparations everyone at the firm made, and the reception they gave him?) But more than anything, for me, there were those two great Jimmy-Chuck scenes -- first, as Chuck breaks the news to Jimmy that the two of them can't handle the potential blockbuster class-action case Jimmy has dug up, that there's no choice but to turn the case over to HHM. Already, I found myself remembering that these are two of the all-time great comic actors -- and remembering because there's nothing at all comical about what these guys are doing here. And then there's the scene excerpted in the above clip, as Jimmy reveals to Chuck that he knows it was Chuck who forced him out of the case. Awesome stuff!
MEANWHILE THE MIDDLE'S HAD A "HECK"-UVA SEASON
Sue has figured out that Axl has to be nice to her. (This is the least blah of the three clips ABC extracted for promotion from an episode that had at least 10 splendidly clip-worthy moments. Does the network have any idea what makes this show so good? Could this have anything to do with why so few people know how good the show is?)
I guess it's just a coincidence that ABC's two enduring quality sitcoms, Modern Family and The Middle, both have a daughter facing the agony of college application-and-acceptance. Of course Alex Dunphy (Ariel Winter) and Sue Heck (Eden Sher) don't have much else in common, but both shows have found fresh and engaging angles on the subject. I loved the plot line in last week's Modern Family of Alex's deep depression over her CalTech acceptance. I assumed she had lied about having been accepted, but the actual answer was way better -- especially since it was her grandfather Jay (Ed O'Neill) who instinctively understood, leading to a rare and really sweet moment between them.
For Sue, well, this whole year has been, finally, the Year of Sue. I think it's been wonderful the way the writers have found for her to finally begin emerging from her hard-luck cloud -- in a way that began to allow her to feel some confidence in herself and to imagine some hopes for her future. And that set up the wonderful moment of the Heck family celebration of the fact that -- they're poor! Finally they get to cash in on their financial misery!
It was also an episode that made great use of some of the show's inventory of recurring characters:
• Dave Foley as Dr. Fulton, Brick's (Atticus Shaffer), er, peculiar psychologist-counselor (who might be thought of as either half-hinged or half-unhinged, depending on your outlook)
• Norm MacDonald as Mike Heck's, er, peculiar brother Rusty, with a scene in which Mike (Neil Flynn) suddenly is forced to revisit their relationship through the eyes of a kid brother who worshipped a big brother who pretty much tormented him their whole lives.
• Gia Mantegna as Devin, the latest of Axl's (Charlie McDermott) way-too-good-for-the-jerk-he-is girlfriends, who made it possible for Sue to get some fake but nevertheless demonstrated loving from her tormenting big brother.
And it was an episode in which Frankie (Patricia) performed one of her trademark cringe-worthy meltdowns. Yes, I cringe; this time I'm pretty sure I said out loud, "Stop!" But of course Frankie can't stop. Only this time, with help from, of all people, Dr. Fulton, she fought her way back, and while her effort at mitigating the damage threatened to become as unbalanced as the original wig-out, she got through it, and even saw some payoff.
AND DON'T FORGET, TOMORROW NIGHT IS
THE BEGINNING OF THE END FOR MAD MEN
Matt Lauer talks to the Mad Men crew on Today.
Naturally the folks at the AMC blog have some suggestions to prepare for this final run of episodes.
The Final Episodes begin this Sunday at 10/9c — are you ready? Here are 10 ways to prepare for the beginning of the end…
1. Missed any episodes last year? Catch up with the Season 7 marathon on AMC, beginning Sunday at 2:30/1:30c and running until the premiere at 10/9c. You can also watch full episodes on amc.com (cable/satellite provider log-in required).
2. Relive the whole story with The Complete Mad Men Fan Companion. View props, blueprints, sketches, and photography, which include behind-the-scenes quotes and potent moments from all seven seasons.
3. Watch Matthew Weiner’s commentary on ten Fan Favorite Scenes, including the “Lawnmower Incident,” Lane’s fistfight with Pete, and the reunion between Don and Betty.
4. Take in the cast perspective with the Last Round With the Cast videos: Don’s Secret, Pete’s Life Lessons, Roger’s Awakening, Peggy’s Transformation, and Joan’s Ambition.
5. Get the scoop on all of last week’s Mad Men events, with full photo galleries.
6. See what other fans have to say: Watch the full set of Mad Men Tributes as Gary Oldman, Sarah Silverman, David O. Russell, and others reminisce and say goodbye to a favorite show.
7. Count down each and every punch, cigarette, and affair with Mad Men by the Numbers.
8. Check in on Mad Men: The Fan Cut. Watch fan versions of scenes from the very first episode, and share your favorites.
9. Put your knowledge of Mad Men trivia to the test with all the Ultimate Fan Games.
10. Join the Mad Men Social Club for early and exclusive access to photos, videos, interviews, features and more.
A FIRST LOOK AT THE MoMI MAD MEN EXHIBITION
(PLUS: THE WIZARD OF OZ IN GORGEOUS 3-D)
Don's Season 4 office, one of the two Mad Men sets reassembled in the Museum of the Moving Image's Mad Men exhibition, is apparently featured in this AP video accompanying Frazier Moore's rave review. (Maybe you can get it to play.) There's now a line on the museum's Web page for the exhibition which advises: "To avoid lines on weekend days, visitors are encouraged to arrive before 2:00 p.m.")
Today, following a screening at the Museum of the Moving Image (in Astoria, Queens) of Warner Bros.' spanking gorgeous 3-D digital restoration of The Wizard of Oz (there are daily screenings at 12:30pm through April 12; there's also a daily 45-minute "Wizard of Oz Character Remix" every day 12 2:30pm, recommended for ages 5-10), I finally got upstairs for my first look at MoMI's much-heralded Mad Men exhibition, which runs through June 14 and has been really packing crowds in.
At the wonderful sold-out March 20 MoMI event celebrating Mad Men and creator Matthew Weiner, the honoree tried to describe his reaction to seeing the exhibition, for which he and the rest of the Mad Men team had provided abundant cooperation. He had first seen it the day before, he said, and was kind of overwhelmed by seeing seven years of his life on display. (There are, among lots of goodies, a generous assorment of his notes, memos, and scripts.) Seeing it again that day had made it all a lot more manageable, he said.
The crowd today was so abundant that I focused on the things that were viewable without shuffling through the enormous procession, like the two actual rooms reassembled from warehoused sets: the original Draper kitchen and Don's Season 4 office. Not only has each set been lovingly put back together, but for each there's a screen display with an assortment of scenes shot on that set! Beyond that there's just so much that I know I'll have to clear more time to take it all in.
TV Watch: About the special "Better Call Saul" thrill of reencountering an old compadre from "Breaking Bad"
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It's kind of a shame that we already knew that Jimmy McGill going to tangle with this familiar-to-us face, but the producers had to give us something in the name of -- gasp -- publicity, if only to guard the important secrets.
"You also realize that it wasn’t the drug that made him that way. Deep down inside, he just has anger issues."
-- Raymond Cruz, on playing Tuco Salamanca again,
but now six years before Breaking Bad
by Ken
You know how I always say I'd like to know as little as possible about a TV show or movie I'm going to watch? Case in point: the premier episode of Better Call Saul. Which means that if you haven't seen it yet, don't read this!
No, I'm not thinking particularly of the driblets of information that the show's creative team was compelled to leak in the name of -- sigh -- publicity. Although, now that you mention it, some of the fun was taken out of that first unhappy encounter between not-yet-Saul Goodman lawyer Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk) and the parking attendant who turns out to be none other than our old Breaking Bad compadre Mike Erhrmantraut. I mean, wouldn't it have been fun to have been surprised, that very first time, to see Mike there in his little booth collecting parking payments at the lot outside the court building? Just think, ohmygod, it's Mike!!! Still, it's a piquant enough bit that even if we've already seen it, it's still fun, especially now seeing it happen in context. And goodness knows, the show makes the most of repeat encounters between Jimmy and the man he screamingly dubs "employee of the month."
And obviously, in the interest of -- sigh -- publicity, the BCS folks has to spill some beans.
The better to protect the real jolts, like the one that came at the end of that first episode. You know, after Slippin' Jimmy tracked down his new young scam-artist protégés to the house where we last saw the brothers being unceremoniously dragged in the door by . . . well, who knew whom? And Jimmy knocked, and tried to peek inside, and did his "officer of the court" patter, and then the door opened, and . . . . And then, in the final shot of the episode, standing there in the door was --
(Again, if you haven't watched the episode, for Pete's sake don't keep reading!!!)
Standing there in the door was Tuco Salamanca! Yikes!!!
Of course, since the actor in question is Raymond Cruz, it could conceivably be The Closer and Major Crimes's Detective Julio Sanchez, for some reason holed up in Albuquerque. But no, glint in the eyes, the fright-inducing scowl, that could only be Tuco!
It's a younger Tuco than we knew from Breaking Bad, of course, since the action of BCS is set back in time all those years from BB. But nobody who watched BB is apt to forget the time we spent in the psychopathic company of one of the scarier presences ever captured in moving images. In a Q-and-A actor Raymond Cruz did with the AMC blogfolk back in the BB days, he said, "I’m not going to make a judgment and say Tuco is out of his mind, but his parameters are definitely a lot further out there than other people’s." I like that -- "his parameters are definitely a lot further out there than other people’s.")
For Episode 2, Raymond Cruz was listed right-and-proper in the guest-starring cast. But can you imagine how much less fun we would have had at that parting sequence of events at the end of Episode 1 if we had been tipped to Raymond Cruz's presence?
By way of celebration, the AMC blogfolk have posted a Q-and-A with Tuco, er, Raymond. If you think it's easy playing a character like this, think again. And find out how he winds down after a day of doing it.
Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) and Tuco (Raymond Cruz) in Episode 2
Q: How did you react when you first learned Tuco was going to appear on Better Call Saul? Did you ever think you’d get another chance to play him?
A: I really didn’t. I thought Tuco was a done deal, dead and gone, but I heard about the show and the fact that it’s a prequel, and I thought, “Wow! How are they going to twist this around?” It worked out, and I was excited about it.
Q: Better Call Saul is set six years before Breaking Bad. How does Better Call Saul Tuco compare with Breaking Bad Tuco? Did you approach playing him any differently?
A: Oh yeah, of course. Tuco, at this point, is not discovered through meth. He’s not as explosive, but you also realize that it wasn’t the drug that made him that way. Deep down inside, he just has anger issues! [Laughs] This guy is a complete walking menace, and the drugs just amplify that. When I first did Tuco, I had to first build the character and then figure out how the drugs — physiologically, psychologically, emotionally — affected him. You layer that on top of the character. With Better Call Saul, my work was done. It wasn’t like I had to build a whole new character. I was just revisiting him and taking him to a different point in his life.
Q: Are there any inspirations behind your portrayal of Tuco?
A: No. I use my imagination.
Q: It’s just all you?!
A: [Laughs] It’s all me! It’s very interesting, because when they were first looking for Tuco, before Breaking Bad ever aired, the casting director approached me and said they couldn’t find anyone to do the part. I read the script and said, “Wow, it’s great! The writing is great!” He said, “Can you do it?” I said, “Yes!” He said, “Will you do it?” I said, “No!” They didn’t know what they were asking for. I knew where they wanted to take it, and that to make it work would be so much effort, and it was. I ended up doing the part, and it was strictly because of the challenge of it.
Q: You’ve spoken before about the physical, emotional and mental demands of playing such a high-energy character. Were you at all reluctant to revisit Tuco?
A: I was. It was more physical and mental than anything, and I remember getting injured several times doing Tuco. I almost broke my nose, and I pulled a muscle in my back. It’s such high energy, and his outbursts are so dramatic. You lose your voice by the end of the day, and you’re drained emotionally and mentally. It’s not a part you look forward to! It’s more like, “Can I do this again?”
Q: How do you wind down after a day with him?
A: I read, I don’t make a sound, I don’t even want to talk. When you shoot, you’re doing it for 12 to 14 hours a day and you don’t do a scene just once. You do it several times from different angles — and I never hold back. I remember when I was shooting Breaking Bad, one of the directors came up to me and told me I didn’t have to do what I was doing, but I do. Reactions are just as important as what I’m doing. It makes such a big difference, especially with this character.
Q: As a Breaking Bad alum, were you excited to return to Albuquerque to work with Vince and the crew again? What did you look forward to the most?
A: It was like going back home, going to a familiar place and seeing familiar faces. To come off of this great program and to go back into the same atmosphere with the same people and the whole crew, and you’re making great television. Albuquerque was one of the reasons I took the job in the first place. When I saw the cinematography, the vistas, this huge sky and how they were contrasting the dry landscape with this urban drama, it was so interesting to me. You would never expect it, and you look at the desert as if there’s nothing there, but there is — and you don’t believe what you’re seeing. There are harsh shooting conditions though, and sometimes the weather itself is a whole other character.
Q: You’re currently continuing a long run portraying a detective on television. Which do you enjoy playing more, cops or criminals?
A: I just look for challenges in parts. My detective character is so underplayed and is a complete contrast to Tuco, so to communicate his point of view is great. You want to watch a show and root for the good guy. Who would stop the bad guys?
Q: Is there any “good guy” in Tuco?
A: People aren’t one-dimensional. There’s always something, and with Tuco, it’s his sense of family and community. If he’s behind you, he’s behind you 100%.
Q: What’s your all-time favorite Tuco line?
A: I don’t have an all-time favorite. It’s just the combination of the writing, the performance, and this whole way of thinking about what comes out of his mouth. When I first read Breaking Bad, I thought “dark comedy,” and that’s how I approached it.
Q: I’m partial to his use of “bizznatch.”
A: [Laughs] I think people are going to walk around saying “bizznatch” now!
As you know, since you've already watched Episode 1, it was Jimmy and his young friends' misfortune that the very day they pulled their scam, not only did the brothers hit the wrong station wagon, and not only was their unintended victim a little old Spanish-speaking victim, but she happened to be the adored abuelita of Tuco, who by even worse luck happened to be visited her that day by her doting grandson. With the results we've already allluded to.
So perhaps you too are concerned that Tuco never did fetch that club soda his abuelita kept insisting he would need in order to get out that, er, salsa stain out of her rug before it dried, at which point it would be impossible to remove. Bad Tuco!
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY'S ON THE JOB
I see that, two episodes in, EW's Dan Snierson has really been doing a job on the first two episodes of Better Call Saul, tapping into the thoughts of the creative team for insights I thought we might have to wait for the DVD special features for.
I'm delighted that the BCS guys are becoming regular Chatty Cathies once an episode has aired, which is just the way it should be. As Dan S puts it in his piece following the airing of Episode 2 "Peter Gould on the return of a Breaking Bad villian" (prefaced with a lovely in-no-uncertain terms boldface spoiler alert):
The creators of Better Call Saul were not loose-lipped in interviews when asked which characters from Breaking Bad might pop up in their prequel spin-off, but they wound up giving the audience a tight! tight! tight! treat in the very first two episodes: the resurrection of Tuco Salamanca.
So how did the return of Tuco come about? Peter Gould told Dan:
It’s very simple. We had this situation where Jimmy was going to knock on a door with a full head of steam and we thought to ourselves, "Who is the worst person to be on the other side of that door? Who is the person you’d least like to meet with on the other side of that door?" We certainly thought about a lot of different possibilities, but I have to say, Tuco was the answer to that question.
(What I didn't realize was that the Breaking Bad team had always wanted more Tuco, maybe lots more Tuco, but Raymond Cruz found the character so demanding that he asked the BB creative team to kill the character off in Season 2.)
Bob Odenkirk reported a great reaction to the return of Tuco:
The first time I read the first script and got to the end and Tuco opened the door, my heart dropped. I went, "How did Vince and Peter get me to that place in one episode where I went, 'Oh, s—!' out loud?" It’s just amazing. They’re master storytellers.
Dan has lots more to share on the subject, including a stalwart refusal by Peter G to tell us how much more of Tuco we'll be seeing. Not only are Vince and Peter master story-tellers, they know when and how to keep their mouths shut!
And going back to the beginning --
I was even more delighted to see that for his piece timed to the airing of Episode 1 Dan S really went to town on the amazing six-minute pre-credit sequence of Episode 1, the altogether extraordinary flash-forward to Saul Goodman's post-Breaking Bad life in Omaha, shot in black-and-white and played out without dialogue to the soulful accompaniment of the song "Address Unknown." (I've already watched it four times, I think, and I hoped there would be a clip to share, but I haven't found it yet, though there are snatches in the producers' excellent "Inside Episode 101" recap.)
What the producers did was to give Saul exactly the future he had joked about before his departure in the next-to-last episode of Breaking Bad:
Vince Gilligan told Dan S that plunking Saul down in a Cinnabon in Omaha "was an idea that made us laugh." But it couldn't have happened if the Cinnabon people hadn't gone along -- and and not just gone along but offered lots of coooperation. (The scene was shot at a Cinnabon in Albuquerque, and the two female employees are the genuine article.)
Bob Odenkirk, Dan reports, "had two distinct reactions to the scene --"
one when he read the script for the first time, and the other when he saw the finished product onscreen. “Reading it was very sad and I was just thinking about this character and how completely f—ed he was, like a guy who’s dead but walking around,” he tells EW. “And yet when I watched it, because I’m also a fan of Breaking Bad, it made me satisfied. I was glad to see he was somewhere in the world, and it just made me happy to know where he ended up. It’s such a smart thing that these guys did. Because it made it okay for me to go back in time. If they hadn’t actually addressed where he went, it would have been harder to go, ‘Well, let’s go back in time.’”
Bob also had a lot to say about the second part of the sequence, showing Saul, or rather "Gene," as his Cinnabon name tag identified him, holed up in his Omaha apartment. If Dan keeps this up, I suspect I'm going to make it a habit to check out his episode-by-episode coverage.
Tomorrow night brings, at last, the "Better Call Saul" premiere, and another episode of "Grantchester"
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Bob Odenkirk talks to Jimmy Kimmel about Better
Call Saul, and shows him some, er, surprising clips
Jimmy tells Bob he's really enjoyed the two episodes he was given to watch. Bob tells Jimmy he's only seen one -- but hopes the second one turned out well. "I spent 14 hours on my knees in the desert for that second one."
by Ken
Okay, friends, it's finally here: the two-night premiere of AMC's Breaking Bad spinoff Better Call Saul, created and overseen by Breaking Bad mastermind Vince Gilligan and collaborator Peter Gould -- tomorrow and Monday nights at 10pm (or possibly some other time where you are -- you know about checking your local listings, right?). Then, as a commenter noted her previously, the show settles into the Monday-night time slot. (That's a great relief for me. Sunday is the one night of the week I can barely manage, even with the DVR at full throttle.)
In a more "normal" clip, the creative team and cast
introduce us to "The Characters of Better Call Saul"
BUT LET ME ALSO PUT IN A GOOD WORD FOR PBS MASTERPIECE MYSTERY'S GRANTCHESTER
In Episode 1, the vicar of backwater Grantchester, Sidney Chambers (James Norton), has his seemingly inauspicious but in fact fateful first meeting with local police Inspector Geordie Keating.
It sounds like a scraping of the bottom of the British-mystery-possibilities barrel: In 1953, the vicar in an English backwater, who suffers nightmarish wartime flashbacks, teams up with the local police inspector to -- yes! -- solve crimes. (It's based on a series of Grantchester Mysteries by James Runcie.) And yet, three episodes in, out of a first series of six (Episode 4 airs tomorrow night on most PBS stations, but again, check your local listings), I'm not only enjoying it but looking forward to more.
Certainly an important part of that appeal is the interestingly delineated pair of central characters.
James Norton and Robson Green talk about the show.
Sidney, for starters, isn't just any vicar. Oh, he's totally serious about his job, but it's not lost on anyone, least of all himself, that he's a heartthrob-quality hunk with unconventional interests, at least for a vicar, including a soul-mate-type relationship with ravishing young Amanda (Morven Christie), the upper-crust daughter of a "sir" of some sort, a schoolmate of Sidney's scholarship-student sister Jenny (Fiona Button).
Although Sidney's relationship with Amanda showed signs in Episode 1 of significant degress of inappropriateness, there is of course nothing inherently inappropriate about an Anglican priest enjoying the company of women. In fact, a lot of Sidney's parishioners, not to mention the vicarage housekeeper Mrs. Maguire (Tessa Peake-Jones), seem concerned that he still isn't married, as a proper vicar ought to be. What's never stated, and took a slow-on-the-uptake viewer like myself a couple of episodes to puzzle out, is that a match between them is unthinkable on grounds of class incompatibility.
Despite Sidney's history of hobnobbing with his social betters -- it's not hard to see why he was so popular among Jenny's heavy-breathing schoolmates -- and his status as vicar allows him to fraternize, up to a point, as we see in this clip from Episode 2, he's treated by Amanda's father, Sir Edward Kendall (Pip Torrens), with a combination of long-time acquaintance and a condescension that borders on contempt. (It won't be long before we see Sir Edward's condescension cross theborder.) In the clip we see Sidney suffering through an engagement party for, yes, Amanda! The guests include his sister Jenny (the blonde) and her escort, Johnny Johnson (Uweli Roach), and insufferable other school friends.
Inspector Geordie, meanwhile, is thoroughly, defiantly, chip-on-his-shoulder working-class, and it's quite charming to see Robson Green in a role that makes no claim to stylishness or glamor. And I think he's quite terrific here. Geordie is as dedicated to his job as Sidney is to his, and once Geordie begins to discover that the vicar is almost as much an outsider relative to the area swells as he is, he mellows enough to allow for the possibility of a friendship. That friendship is handled much the way of one of the all-time great screen friendships, that of Mary Richards and Rhoda Morgenstern: By the end of Episode 1, the possibility of a thaw was established, and by Episode 2 they were best friends.
The friendship between Sidney and Geordie is as intriguing and appealing as it is improbable. Now we just have to hope that the creative team continues to find crimes that can plausibly be solved by the copper-and-priest crime-fighting duo.
It should still be possible to catch up with the earlier episodes online or "On Demand." The PBS Masterpiece website has Episode 1 (through February 15), Episode 2, and Episode 3. If you miss Episode 4, I expect you can find it in turn in the same places.
TV Watch: "This show has been a crazy ride for us" ("Better Call Saul" showrunners Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould)
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Better Call Saul showrunners Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan
"The character of Jimmy McGill has taken us places we never expected. Jimmy's not yet Saul Goodman: he's his own man, and he's messy and struggling and still finding himself."
-- from the open letter from Vince and Peter
by Ken
I realize that I'm risking becoming a PR shill for Better Call Saul, the Breaking Bad prequel that AMC is unveiling in a two-part premiere Sunday and Monday, February 8 and 9, at 10pm/9pm CT. But frankly I worry more about the possibility of being let down by one of the few upcoming televisual events I'm actually looking forward to, coming as it does from people who have shown that they really and truly know what they're doing in producing TV drama.
The upshot is that here I am, passing along the latest promotional crumb from the AMC folks, or rather from the Better Call Saul folks, showrunners Vince Gilligan (creating and mastermind of Breaking Bac) and Peter Gould (a BB writer-producer who is credited with creating the character of that lawyers' lawyer Saul Goodman).
Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill
Welcome to the world of James M. McGill, Esq.
For viewers of Breaking Bad, there’s much that will be familiar in this series: the bright Albuquerque skies, the dark humor, and — most of all — the passion and devotion to detail from cast and crew.
Having said that, Better Call Saul is a brand new show. We’re telling a different story here — one with its own rhythm, its own look, its own tone. We’re excited to share it with you.
This show has been a crazy ride for us. The character of Jimmy McGill has taken us places we never expected. Jimmy’s not yet Saul Goodman: he’s his own man, and he’s messy and struggling and still finding himself. One day he’ll transform into Albuquerque’s favorite criminal lawyer, but right now he’s a more or less law-abiding underdog on the bottom rung of the legal system.
We’re loving every moment of Bob Odenkirk’s deeply human performance as unstoppable, inventive Jimmy races through an ethical slalom course, trying to make a name for himself.
TV Watch: "Better Call Saul" is almost here. (Patience, people! It's just a few more weeks.) Now how 'bout "The Rise of Gus"?
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"Money is not 'beside the point.' Money is the point."
-- Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk), aka Saul Goodman,
in AMC's Better Call Saul
by Ken
Thanks for clarifying that, Saul . . . er, Jimmy. Note that as we edge closer to the two-night premiere of Better Call Saul, February 8 and 9, AMC has released this "extended trailer."
Which still leaves the matter of a second possible Breaking Bad prequel that has been discussed, The Rise of Gus. While rummaging around online, I found this interview with Giancarlo Esposito which was posted in May 2014. You've probably seen it, but I hadn't.
Amid the enormous gallery of memorable characters created by the Breaking Bad team, two always stood out for me as just plain riveting -- Saul Goodman, of course, but also the chicken magnate who happened also to be a big-time vicious drug lord, Gus Fring. In this interview Giancarlo has lots of fascinating things to say about the way he fleshed out a character who was originally written as a waiter appearing in one or maybe two episodes. By the time he got off the plane after finishing that first episode, he tells us in the interview, his phone was ringing asking him back. He also talks fascinatingly here about the experience of working with Bryan Cranston.
Giancarlo tells us that a phrase he was given by BB mastermind Vince Gilligan triggered his imagination in creating Gus: "hiding in plain sight." From that germ he imagined the character who was so meticulous and methodical and also personally gracious -- "someone we all might know" who is at the same time "doing something quite different from what we might expect."
In particular, Giancarlo talks about his hope that we may yet see a Rise of Gus spinoff from BB. Apparently Vince G and his people talked to the AMC people about spinning off either Gus or everybody's favorite shyster, Saul Goodman, and the Saul project, being more fully developed in the creative team's minds and also promising to be fun to do, won out.
As of the time of the interview, Giancarlo said he'd been asked to make an appearance on Better Call Saul, but said he was inclined to pass, to leave the Gus we know fully created, unless he could do several episodes which would allow us to see more of who Gus was. I have no more recent information, so I have no idea how those conversations turned out, but Giancarlo is awfully persuasive in suggesting that the way should be wide upon for showing us The Rise of Gus.
One thing we certainly saw in BB, thanks to Giancarlo's incredibly meticulous portrayal, was Gus's almost compulsive attention to detail just as a businessman, in the no-detail-too-small-to-obsess-over, service-driven way he ran Los Pollos Hermanos, his chicken restaurant. Back in the day, before I had Gus's name lodged in memory, in chatting with our Noah and about BB, I always referred to this guy, who after all was a big-time drug lord, as "The Chicken Guy." And while it's true that, as Giancarlo says, Gus was always hiding something, he also thinks there's more to his personality as "a citizen of our society," with a deep sense of responsibility that was shown in the elaborate lifetime-care plan he arranged for his chemist.
(I think my next two nominees for BB Hall of Fame-dom would be Jonathan Banks's Mike, Saul's one-man clean-up and enforcement squad, and David Costabile's Gale, Walter White's spectacularly competent meth-cooking assistant -- who, come to think of it, in the end, long after his own demise, is responsible for Walter's.)
Giancarlo would also like us to see Gus's prehistory in Chile, and what happened to twist this scion of a prominent family, whom he imagines as a "rogue son" in the manner of Osama bin Laden. He makes clear that he's happy for everyone involved in what became Better Call Saul, but he thinks there's still room for, say, a 13-episode Rise of Gus.
I find references fromJune and July in which Giancarlo continued to talk up the Rise of Gus idea, but I have no more recent information. So how 'bout it, Vince and AMC?
If you're reading this now, chances are pretty good that you're not in at the start of AMC's complete-series segmented marathon of Breaking Bad, which began this morning at 10am ET/PT, 9am CT, and 8am MT (as best I can tell -- if ever there was a time to consult your local listings, this is it), but you've still got oodles of time to join in. run continuously through Tuesday morning, December 30, then start and stop at various times, with some repeats, timed to reach the end in time for the launch of the BB prequel Better Call Saul, as we've reported, Sunday-Monday, February 8-9. The marathon schedule is here.
MEANWHILE, AMC'S BREAKING BAD BLOG OFFERS--
10 WAYS TO GET READY FOR
THE BREAKING BAD MARATHON
[Links here]
1. Explore the Breaking Bad Binge Companion, which includes behind-the-scenes details, videos and polls for each episode. 2. Transform your name into an elemental grid with the Breaking Bad Name Lab, then share it on Facebook as your profile picture or cover photo. 3. Test your Breaking Bad knowledge with these Ultimate Fan Games, then challenge your friends to see who among you is the Ultimate Fan. 4. Check out interviews with Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Vince Gilligan and the rest of the cast and crew to find out how Breaking Bad was brought to life each season. 5. Listen to Breaking Bad‘s Emmy-winning editor Kelley Dixon’s Insider Podcasts with Vince Gilligan, Bryan Cranston and other cast and crew. 6. Read the Breaking Bad comic book, All Bad Things, then play the graphic novel games: Track down stolen cash as Jesse in “The Cost of Doing Business” or interrogate a suspect as Hank in “The Interrogation.” 7. Check out Walter, Jr.’s Save Walter White website (as seen in Season 2, Episode 12, “Phoenix”). 8. Relive memorable moments from the series — like “I am the one who knocks!” — with these Breaking Bad quote cards. 9. Watch the video extra "Finding Comedy," in which Vince Gilligan talks about the show’s lighter side. 10. Rank your favorite Breaking Bad episodes by season: Season 1, Season 2, Season 3,Season 4, Season 5.
HANG ON! HERE'S ANOTHER BETTER CALL SAUL MINUTE: WHEN SAUL MET MIKE?
TV Watch: AMC's "Better Call Saul" premiere is now scheduled as a two-night affair, February 8-9
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by Ken
Don't get too excited -- there's not much to it, but come on, it's been two full weeks since we passed on news of the Breaking Bad prequel Better Call Saul. I realize we're being manipulated shamelessly by the AMC publicity machine, dribbling out snitches 'n' snatches of not much, but what're ya gonna do? Anyway, here is the "Tingle Fingers" promo:
As to the breaking news about the Better Call Saul rollout, the deal now is that Episode 1 will air Sunday night, February 8, in what I take to be the show's regular time slot, and Episode 2 has been slotted in for a special Monday-night airing. [UPDATE: Check the comments for the understanding of the commenter that Monday, not Sunday, is to be the show's regular day. Thanks, Michael!]
Meanwhile, here's a clip we haven't passed along before called "Better Call Saul: The Song," described as "an exclusive video featuring an original song performed by Junior Brown, with lyrics by show creators Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould."
TV Watch: Come on, February -- "Better Call Saul" is getting closer! (And Mike Ehrmantraut lives!)
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Updated, with the actual clip embedded
Latest tidings from the Better Call Saul set in Albuquerque
by Ken
Be still, my heart! I know the above picture is crap [UPDATE: all fixed! see the explanation below -- Ed.], but yes, that really is our very own Saul Goodman -- or rather, I gather, some yokel named Jimmy McGill. And Better Call Saul is apparently on target for a February rollout. And the 2:27 tease is authentically worth the trouble for anyone who's looking forward to the series as much as I am. It's got a slew of in-front-of-the-camera as well as behind-the-camera people, many of them people we've known, or whose work we've known, going back to the early Breaking Bad years.
I'm sure it's of no concern to the folks at AMC that, with the passing of Breaking Bad and the countdown counting down to the end of Mad Men, I'm on the brink of being a former AMC viewer. The AMC folks seem to have as many fans as they need for their other shows, so they don't need me, or perhaps even want me. Which is fine, since I can't imagine watching any of them except perhaps on a bet. (If there are any takers, I could probably whip up a rate card for how much you'd have to pay me to watch them.)
So, in case you haven't noticed, I really have my fingers crossed for the Breaking Bad spinoff Better Call Saul, masterminded by Mr. Breaking Bad himself, Vince Gilligan, and his BB associate Peter Gould, giving us the back story on one of the most inspired Breaking Bad characters, that lawyer's lawyer Saul Goodman, created by Peter Gould and of course played so memorably by Bob Odenkirk. If you haven't already zapped off to watched the clip, would it help if I told you that among the in-front-of-the-camera people you'll see is another of Breaking Bad's Best-Loved, Jonathan Banks? Yes, remember that the calendar has been rolled back to 2002, and Mike Ehrmantraut lives! After all, how could you have Saul without Mike?
Is it February yet?
FOR THOSE WHO SAW THE EARLIER VERSION OF THIS POST
The original graphic and caption (with the link fixed!): I wasn't able to embed it, but you can find this new Better Call Saul tease, along with some earlier ones, here.
The only thing was, the link didn't work! Luckily, Howie -- who tells me now that he's binge-watched the whole of Breaking Bad (he assumed he'd told me before!) and loved it -- found the YouTube version of the clip. I've substituted the correct original link here for the original bum one, so you can find this clip along with others the AMC Web team has posted, including this one --
BONUS: 30 SECONDS OF PETER GOULD AND VINCE
GILLIGAN ON JIMMY McGILL (aka SAUL GOODMAN)
"What kind of problem do you have that becoming Saul Goodman solved it?" (Peter Gould)
The good news is: AMC's "Better Call Saul" is now in production, aiming for air in the first quarter of 2015
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In this powerfully dramatic Better Call Saul "first-look photo," we see the man himself, Albuquerque shyster Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), with co-showrunners Peter Gould (who created the character) and Vince Gilligan (who's directing the premiere).
"Production on Better Call Saul is underway, and we could not be more proud of, nor more excited about, the work to date. We join the fans in eager anticipation for this series, and today we happily confirm that our initial Saul order is for two seasons and a total of 23 episodes."
Oh sure, I could be fulminating about that thieving fat bastard NJ Gov. Kris Krispy and the latest teams of investigators circling his smelly butt, focusing on some of his more colorful fiscal hi jinx with the Port Authority of NY and NJ. (I even have a title slotted in: "Is it time yet for that thieving fat bastard NJ Gov. Kris Krispy to pack his toothbrush for prison?") But NJ Fats isn't going anywhere, alas -- at least not till it's time for him to take up (hopefully permanenet) residence in prison.
But let us turn instead to breaking news about another lawyer, the kind Governor Kris probably would have liked to be if it didn't involve so much hard work and a certain deep-rooted but nevertheless present bare-bones human decency. Yes, we have the release by AMC TV of its first "first-look photo" for Better Call Saul, the "Breaking Bad prequel" that began production this month under the watchful eyes of co-showrunners Vince Gilligan (who's directing the premiere episode) and Peter Gould.
A "reel" of Saul Goodman testimonials and commercials
Vince G, of course, was the creator and start-to-finish mastermind of Breaking Bad, and Peter G, it turns out, is the BB veteran who created the character of Saul Goodman, the world's most unprincipled -- or should we say "flexibly principled"? -- lawyer, played so memorably by the one and only Bob Odenkirk. (We took an up-close and personal look at Saul G in August 2011, noting that the Albuquerque shyster was not to be confused with the New York Philharmonic's longtime and legendary principal timpanist of the same name.)
Not surprisingly, Peter and Vince are tapping the Breaking Bad talent pool. As today's AMC blogpost reports:
In addition to Gilligan and Gould, several Breaking Bad writers have returned to work on Saul, including Thomas Schnauz and Gennifer Hutchison. Bradley Paul has also joined the writing team, along with Gordon Smith, who was a writers' assistant on Breaking Bad.
Better Call Saul is executive produced by Gilligan, Gould, Mark Johnson (Breaking Bad, Diner, Rain Man) and Melissa Bernstein (Breaking Bad, Rectify, Halt and Catch Fire) with Breaking Bad alums Stewart A. Lyons and Schnauz as co-executive producers for Sony Pictures Television.
Presumably important parts of the Albuquerque team, not to mention the various other components of the behind-the-scenes team that did so much to make Breaking Bad what it was, have been reassembled for Better Call Saul. As network president Charlie Collier went on to say in the statement from which I've quoted at the top of this post, "We have a strong history with Vince, Peter, Bob, the studio, and so many involved with this production; we are enjoying the process on Saul and all share a focus on making it a true television event. No half measures."
It's official now that the 10-episode first season, currently penciled in for the first quarter of 2015, will be followed by a 13-episode second season, penciled in for the first quarter of 2016.
Movieline posted this Better Call Saul update five months ago. Already the cited premiere date, November, is history -- talk now is of first quarter 2015.
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