Better Call Saul

As it nears its climax, and we ponder not if but how they’ll stick the landing, Better Call Saul’s steady rise to the giddy heights of all-time classic television drama feels inexorable.

One of many remarkable things about “Saul” is how the writers have defied the common trap of prequels in that we still feel urgency even though we know that nothing too bad can happen to Saul, Mike, Gus, and now Hank because that wouldn’t line up with “Breaking Bad.” ... The truly remarkable accomplishments of “Better Call Saul” that make it arguably the best drama on TV are in the subtlety and nuance of the characters—both in terms of writing and performance.

In order to land some sorrowful emotional beats, these new episodes have to shed some of Better Call Saul’s defining lightheartedness. And make no mistake: The way season four kicks into gear with such confidence and precision has all the markings of Breaking Bad’s clockwork plotting.

[A] marvelously original and instantly engrossing hybrid of origin story, prequel, and spinoff. [1-15 Feb 2015, p.16]

It’s definitely a slow-burn start to season three, but aspects of episode two suggest viewer patience will be rewarded--eventually.

After watching the show's first three episodes, I'm intrigued, if not totally wowed. But I want to see more.

By the third episode of the three sent to critics, the bits and pieces of apparent flotsam from the earlier episodes have begun to form a direction for Better Call Saul and as they do, the series becomes less a comedy and more a serious exploration of a Falstaffian character who may be much more than the buffoon he seems on the surface.

10/10‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎

I consider Breaking Bad to be the best series to have ever graced TV, but BCS doesn't even come close to matching its brilliance. Practically every character is a ridiculous caricature, so much so, it's difficult to impossible to care about or sympathize with any of them. Unlike BB's riveting plot line and pacing, BCS is a borefest in comparison. The series has its moments, but overall this feels more like something written by fans of BB rather than its original authors. The only characters from BB that are given more than cameos are Mike, Fring, and Hector. Walt, Jessie and Hank's appearances are wasted opportunities where they show up for mere minutes in scenes that could have easily been excluded, adding nothing of interest to the plot. Mike gets lots of screen time, but I found his character one dimensional and his side plot underwhelming. Likewise, a good bit of time was devoted to Fring's story which was equally uninteresting. Even the finale was a major letdown. How others are rating this series a 10/10 is beyond me...

Starts slow, gets into its stride, season 5 and 6 are probably not worth watching. It is just closing the loop for Breaking bad to start.

Possibly one of the most overrated series currently on TV. The script is repetitive, the dialogues are boring and any sparkle of fun and humour that used to be linked to the Saul persona is gone. It's like a second-rate, legal drama, where legal tricks are debated endlessly, while in the background some Mexican gang causes a little trouble. No fun, no suspence, no thrills. PS and if somebody implies "you have to understand it" ... this is entertainment, one is supposed to enjoy it without needing to consult an instruction manual first...

This show is a full zero, and yes I watched the first season. Why? Because the writers confuse chaos and entropy for character arc. We are told from the first sequence of the pilot that the main protagonist goes nowhere and end as a nobody, which means that everything that happens in the show means nothing and will be erased sooner or later.