Better Call Saul - 2 questions

dano

I preferred BCS to BB. 

BCS first season starts a bit slow, a bit to legal drama like LA Law etc. Then when Mike as a character starts taking off and Lalo Salamanca appears it becomes absolute first class TV

duotone

1. No
2. Yes

beed84

I recently re-watched BB with my mum, who hadn't seen it. At the end, she said, "I think it's the best series I've ever seen." The most she usually says if she likes something is "I liked it".

As for BCS, it's arguably the finest cinematography and storytelling you'll see. I'd honestly stick with them both and just let them unfold and take their course. Honestly, they're waaaay too good to miss.

CaseOfAce

There's a lot I liked about Better Call Saul - as someone mentioned Lalo, Mike and Gus - and for me the whole notion that ..hey these meth labs don't just build themselves - there's logistics involved... BUT... there's a lot of filler material in there - the whole feuding brothers thing just drags on and on for the first few seasons (I get it - Saul is living in the shadow of his brother etc...) and much like Walter's wife in Breaking Bad - why does Vince Gilligan write female leads as killjoy scolds like Kim? The pacing can be slow but ... the visuals are breathtaking at times - and there's some killer tension in there.

There's worse stuff out there and Breaking Bad is rather decent as well. It can be bleak at times but then again - Mexican cartels aren't exactly joyous cause for celebration.

Timcito

DrCornelius said:.

Awesome, thanks Tim, sounds like its next on our list after Shogun finishes - gracias (I'll stop derailing the thread now- sorry all)

You're very welcome. If you do get round to watching it, I'll be interested to hear what you think.

FelineGuitars

Both BB and BCS are slow burn kinds of shows where they just get you hooked more and more 

Took a season or more of BB to get really going.

Kind of the same with BCS , although having watched BB you already have a fondness for Mike and his side of the story gets started quite quickly.

As the BCS seasons progress things start feeling more like BB and it’s a ride worth waiting for.

There is great acting throughout and the brothers and lawyers side stories are well done.

I watched I Claudius back in 1981 when I was 16 and kind of enjoyed it when it came out and a few years ago I bought it on DVD and rewatched it including the bits I probably found boring as a teen and it was just brilliant.

Musical_Mystery_Tour

BCS can easily stand alone, there is no need to have watched anything prior. It's one of the best TV shows ever made, consistently good all the way through.

richman6100

FelineGuitars said:

Both BB and BCS are slow burn kinds of shows where they just get you hooked more and more 

Took a season or more of BB to get really going.

Kind of the same with BCS , although having watched BB you already have a fondness for Mike and his side of the story gets started quite quickly.

As the BCS seasons progress things start feeling more like BB and it’s a ride worth waiting for.

There is great acting throughout and the brothers and lawyers side stories are well done.

I watched I Claudius back in 1981 when I was 16 and kind of enjoyed it when it came out and a few years ago I bought it on DVD and rewatched it including the bits I probably found boring as a teen and it was just brilliant.

This, very much. Haven't watched I Claudius for many years though. I loved both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, for different reasons. BCS is particularly slow burn. Personally, I think that the Sopranos is a more complete show with more complex and varied story lines. It's less linear and has more sub-plots. All three are superb though and only bettered by The Wire. The latter is much less slick, grittier in its theme and filming, but is utterly superb. In my humble opinion, it's the best drama ever. I never thought that the Sopranos could be bettered until I watched The Wire. I once told a very knowledgeable mate that The Sopranos was the ultimate TV drama. He flatly disagreed and said that it's the second best. He then leant me The Wire and I had to begrudgingly agree. The Sopranos, BB and BCS are all more cinematic though. As is Men Men, which is wonderful too. 

Timcito

FelineGuitars said:

I watched I Claudius back in 1981 when I was 16 and kind of enjoyed it when it came out and a few years ago I bought it on DVD and rewatched it including the bits I probably found boring as a teen and it was just brilliant.

It really stands re-watching, like a great record or film or any work of art, really.

Timcito

One particular strength of BB, in my view, is a central character with a dilemma we can identify with and who, I think, most of us care about on some level. Walt seems a fundamentally good and intelligent man, a devoted husband and father, who gets sick of being taken advantage of. Indeed, he gets so sick that he allows himself to do bad in order to even things up. It's an existential choice that probably most of us have faced in varying degrees of seriousness throughout our lives. Do we go for personal gain, or do we stick to the rules, the playbook, the letter of the law and let the man stick it to us once again? In this, Walt is someone I think we get behind, despite the terrible things he does.   

boogieman

I like both BB and BCS. It’s not vital to watch BB first but it will give you the background on some of the characters. BCS then fills those out more. As said, they both take a couple of episodes to get into, but it’s well worth it as they’re excellent *

* although not as good as The Sopranos. Still the best tv drama series I’ve ever watched. Each to their own of course. 

motorhead

Sopranos was indeed the best ever TV at its time, and then TV went crap generally so I stopped watching completely. Had a 21" in the playroom for the kids and that was it. Then someone mentioned BB to me as a recommendation so I watched the first few episodes, and fell for it immediately. Over about a month I got fully caught up on three seasons on my shiny new 60" with surround, stuck with the weekly episode releases till the end and then started over. There were slow patches, like Walt's kleptomaniac SIL. But mostly there was a great plot with loads of great story arcs, technical interestingness (sitting there, iPad in hand, cross checking Walt's science experiments), great scripting, production and cinematography. And phenomenal acting as noted by Anthony Hopkins. At the end of the second viewing, the ex who'd been kind of watching out of one eye said "could we just put on the first episode again", which led to a third complete viewing.

BCS is a different animal, as mentioned further back it starts very slowly, like yet another dull legal drama. But the point isn't boringness, it's building out the characters. The episode that was the back story of Mike was especially good. I enjoyed it immensely but don't necessarily feel the need for a re-watch.

I would like to re-watch the Sopranos, but can't find it streaming anywhere. It too was masterful, but so long ago I don't remember much other than thinking it was fantastic at the time.

Stuck about two seasons of The Wire, but couldn't quite take to it. Excellent TV for sure, maybe just too bleak for me. There was no let-up anywhere.

So, I'll still consider BB the best TV ever, with BCS a good candidate for second. Between them they had some of the best on-screen characters I've seen.

Here's Mike (BCS scene): 

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/17/anthony-hopkins-bryan-cranston-breaking-bad-fan-letter

Kurtis

BB was just too stylistic (not sure that's the correct term). Too over the top and unrealistic.
Veeeerrryyy slow too. 
Don't really like the wee guy either. 

I realise that's not the popular view. 

boogieman

motorhead said:

Sopranos was indeed the best ever TV at its time, and then TV went crap generally so I stopped watching completely. Had a 21" in the playroom for the kids and that was it. Then someone mentioned BB to me as a recommendation so I watched the first few episodes, and fell for it immediately. Over about a month I got fully caught up on three seasons on my shiny new 60" with surround, stuck with the weekly episode releases till the end and then started over. There were slow patches, like Walt's kleptomaniac SIL. But mostly there was a great plot with loads of great story arcs, technical interestingness (sitting there, iPad in hand, cross checking Walt's science experiments), great scripting, production and cinematography. And phenomenal acting as noted by Anthony Hopkins. At the end of the second viewing, the ex who'd been kind of watching out of one eye said "could we just put on the first episode again", which led to a third complete viewing.

BCS is a different animal, as mentioned further back it starts very slowly, like yet another dull legal drama. But the point isn't boringness, it's building out the characters. The episode that was the back story of Mike was especially good. I enjoyed it immensely but don't necessarily feel the need for a re-watch.

I would like to re-watch the Sopranos, but can't find it streaming anywhere. It too was masterful, but so long ago I don't remember much other than thinking it was fantastic at the time.

Stuck about two seasons of The Wire, but couldn't quite take to it. Excellent TV for sure, maybe just too bleak for me. There was no let-up anywhere.

So, I'll still consider BB the best TV ever, with BCS a good candidate for second. Between them they had some of the best on-screen characters I've seen.

Here's Mike (BCS scene): 

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/17/anthony-hopkins-bryan-cranston-breaking-bad-fan-letter

The Sopranos is rerun on Sky virtually constantly. I recorded the whole lot and have rewatched it a couple of times. Still stands up as a great series. I’ve tried The Wire but couldn’t follow the dialogue. I should have another go, with subtitles. 

motorhead

Thanks, maybe I'll go back to Sky for a bit then. Found it hard to justify when the kids got bored with the kid's channels, and walking the dog in the rain seemed a better use of Sunday afternoons than sleeping in front of F1 . 

AK99

motorhead said:

So, I'll still consider BB the best TV ever, with BCS a good candidate for second. Between them they had some of the best on-screen characters I've seen.

Here's Mike (BCS scene): 

Mike Ehrmantraut is truly one of TV's great characters
A study of morality.

fretmeister

The Wire season 1 is my favourite of all time. The subsequent seasons are still very good, but variable in places - certainly by Season 5.

BB started a lot slower but then kept high quality all the way through - and (not saying his name for Bertie's sake) - it bought us one of the best villains in TV history. Across the entire run BB beats The Wire for me. Just.

I'm currently watching The Sopranos for the first time. It's good, certainly top 10 but so far I'm not getting much more than that from it. But it's an enjoyable thing to watch.

motorhead

Indeed. And for amorality (is that a word ?), there is Lorne Malvo.



That first season is another all time great TV show.

gubble

Loved them both but preferred BCS

An intentional slow burner building up to these characters which I genuinley cared about. Everyone watching knew that Jimmy eventually became Saul but we still all wanted him to reach his potential as the good guy.

The final few episodes were nothing short of a masterpiece for me.

fretmeister

boogieman said:

The Sopranos is rerun on Sky virtually constantly. I recorded the whole lot and have rewatched it a couple of times. Still stands up as a great series. I’ve tried The Wire but couldn’t follow the dialogue. I should have another go, with subtitles. 

Accurate Baltimore accents! Amazing considering 2 of the leads were Brits.

Not really a spoiler - there's a bit in Series 2 when McNulty (British actor Dominic West) needs to do a British accent. So he does it as a Baltimore resident trying to do a British accent.... it's hilariously bad!