Better Call Saul Season 3 Episode 2 Review: Witness
Ron Gilmer
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It took nine months of waiting, but guess who finally showed up?
On Better Call Saul Season 3 Episode 2, Mike continued to pursue the unknown baddies who are tracking him, but they proved to be a step ahead of our favorite ex-cop.
The reason he got busted was the razor-sharp hearing of the one and only Gus Fring, the legendary fried chicken king/cartel kingpin. Gus heard the car noise and connected the dots back to Mike and the ice cream truck robbery. Gus is in the house. Yay!
The way he was revealed was classic Vince Gilligan: Jimmy on a stakeout inside Los Polls Hermanos, following the dude who dropped the tracker there the day before.
Jimmy, twitchy as always, was watching the guy, but in the background, out of focus, was Gus. He crept closer and closer, still out of focus, even though he dominated the frame.
Gilligan is a master at visual storytelling, taking more than a few tricks from ol' Alfred Hitchcock.
Starting by focusing on Jimmy's field of vision and then cutting to his reactions is honoring Hitchcock at his best.
Almost half the episode is without dialog, so the Director had better be good at telling the story and building tension visually.
Gilligan does a great job here, whether it's going to close-ups of the character's eyes or details of their actions to ramp up the intrigue.
He also trusts we will go along for the ride. He knows his audience, and not many shows would have the guts to do so much to advance the plot without dialog.
Jimmy: Hey, who's got your back? Me, that's who.
Mike: I'll keep that in mind.
We saw a deepening of the partnership between Jimmy and Mike, and since Mike is about to be drawn into Fring's orbit, it stands to reason Jimmy will become Saul Goodman sooner rather than later.
Jimmy's desperation after hearing about Chuck's taping of his confession is another step down the road to becoming Saul, and again Gilligan did a masterful job at depicting this.
Going from carefully unrolling the painters' tape using his thumbs (like Chuck taught him) to angrily ripping it off the wall perfectly showed his descent into rage at Chuck's betrayal.
For this you destroyed our family? Are you happy now? For what? For nothing!
Jimmy [to Chuck]
It turns out Chuck's endgame was to get Jimmy to confront him and take the tape.
Since we've seen Jimmy in an orange jumpsuit in commercials, I assume this little outburst is what puts Jimmy in the gray bar motel.
Everyone with a legal opinion seems to think Chuck can't possibly win in the end, so maybe he's doing all this just to make Jimmy's life hell. Like I said before, Chuck is a grade A bastard.
Kim is standing by Jimmy, but boy is she pissed! Rhea Seehorn was fantastic when Kim told Jimmy about the tape.
She tried to stay calm, but her hand was balled into a tight fist, and she pounded the chair over and over.
Just like everything here, it's the little things you have to pay attention t because so much of the story is told visually.
Kim: Jimmy, there's a tape.
Jimmy: What?
Kim: There's a tape recording of you talking to Chuck.
Is this the final straw between Kim and Jimmy? We never heard about her being with Saul in the future, but is it possible? I don't see how she can stay with Jimmy long term.
His gradual descent into the slimy Saul Goodman would seem to make him the exact opposite of what Kim is all about.
Maybe she will cut and run. That might be the final blow that will push Jimmy over the edge for good.
There were a couple of other cameos from Breaking Bad, as well.
In case you missed it, Francesca, the new assistant, is the same lady who will work for Saul Goodman years later.
The other was the dude in the black SUV leaving Los Pollos Hermanos.
He is Victor, one of Fring's lackeys, who unfortunately ended up on the business end of a box cutter wielded by his boss a few TV years down the road.
All the intersections with the original show are coming faster now, and it's becoming almost like two shows in one.
My guess is Mike will meet up with Victor next and possibly even Gus.
We know he ends up working for him, so it will be very interesting to see how this will play out.
Chuck will still press on with his vendetta against Jimmy, and Kim will have Jimmy's back.
The wildcard to me is Howard. I don't think he's the cut and dried asshole we are lead to believe.
He seems genuinely troubled by Chuck's actions, so it wouldn't surprise me in the least if he helps Kim down the road.
I'm very excited about where the season is heading. Tell me what you think in the comments section.
And, as always, you can watch Better Call Saul online anytime, right here on TV Fanatic!
