Better late than never.

That’s most of what I have to say about the closing moments of Better Call Saul Season 5 Episode 5, "Dedicado A Max."

I’ve previously mentioned the lack of clarity as to why Gus is so keen on keeping Mike around, and now we finally know.

Mike directly asked Gus why Gus wants Mike’s help, and Gus reveals that he believes that Mike understands revenge.

Mike: Why me?
Gus: Because I believe that you understand.
Mike: Understand what?
Gus: Revenge.

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This is true, as Mike has been through a lot having dealt with the loss of his son, and this quote comes at a particularly affecting time for Mike since he’s been reliving the horrors of that saga with his granddaughter’s questions lately.

I feel like a bond has finally been made between Gus and Mike, as empathy is wont to do. I’m excited to see their relationship continue to develop now that we finally have a real launching point.

I’m disappointed, however, in the lack of development with Mike and Jimmy/Saul. I got excited when Jimmy called Mike for a job, until I remembered that Mike is stuck elsewhere.

Not that it mattered, as Mike turned him down anyway. I think the last time these two spoke was over a year ago in the show’s timeline (in ours as well), and this wasn’t the way I was hoping their conversation would go.

Gus and Mike were explored fairly thoroughly in Breaking Bad, so I am still hoping we get to see Mike and Jimmy’s relationship explored a bit more before this show reaches its end.

So you're back to being a lawyer.

Mike

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At least we have some traction for more development with Gus and Mike now.

Kim and Jimmy, on the other hand, are explored deeply.

I love the scenes where Kim and Jimmy just enjoy their time together, as it helps strengthen their relationship and sets them up for the most devastating destruction possible.

(Not that I want to see them destroyed, it’s just good writing.)

For a moment I thought that maybe Kim will be the one who ends up pushing Jimmy too far and turning him into full Saul, as she doesn’t seem capable of letting this battle against Mesa Verde go.

Of course, that’s unlikely, but her insistence to continue with the scheme made it cross my mind.

Saul was ready to move on, though he did have some fun messing with the case. 

Better Call Saul realizes that these sequences are fun for viewers, too, and the editing and score bring with it a zany energy that just makes these scenes a joy to watch.

Better safe than sorry.

Saul

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Some of the schemes are simple and relatively tame, like the address change, which is a nice callback to Jimmy’s earlier scheme to get Kim Mesa Verde in the first place.

Others prove why Saul is so good at what he does, like the Jesus face. That was such a creative, harmless, and effective way to postpone the construction.

In the end it didn’t work, though, as Kevin is too stubborn to let Acker live in peace.

I loved hearing Kevin call Jimmy “Goodman.” It feels like Saul is really starting to make a name for himself, which is the natural sort of buildup to Breaking Bad that makes the series sing as a prequel.

Saul’s getting more comfortable with criminals, as well, as his interactions with his not-Mike investigator showed.

(I believe we've seen this particular criminal before in Better Call Saul Season 1.)

Kim still isn’t quite there yet. She may be calling upon the underground Craigslist to aid her exploits, but she still doesn’t want to bring actual harm to anybody.

Kim likes scheming though, and bringing down the big dog for the underdog gives her an excuse to let loose.

She may not believe it’s for her own personal gain since she’s fighting for Acker, but it is — it just isn’t a monetary gain.

It’s emotional, it’s personal. And that’s probably going to be her downfall.

Gets nasty, gets personal, gets dangerous.

Saul

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At this point, I’m not so sure I’m going to be all too certain Kim didn’t cause her own downfall when it eventually comes.

She’s way past reasonable at this point, just as Jimmy himself says, but she continues. She’s committed to this venture now.

Hopefully it works out for everyone involved, including Kevin because he seems relatively normal. Yeah he’s like, rich and stuff, but he isn’t doing anything really shady.

(Can't say I love him forcing people out of their homes, though).

I’m not sure he’s going to deserve whatever Kim has brewing, but maybe he does! We don’t know what Kim figured out yet, or whether it’s a condemnation of Kevin or just something innocent they can use against him.

Either way, it’s interesting to see how Better Call Saul Season 5 has pushed Kim right up to the center of everything. She’s the lead protagonist of the main storyline this season, roping Jimmy/Saul in to help her.

Jimmy’s most individual moment of the episode was Howard’s phone call to him.

I like Howard. I think Howard is trying to do the right thing and genuinely wants to work with Jimmy.

I don’t like that Jimmy hangs up on Howard. I don’t like that he dropped bowling balls on his car.

I like that I don’t like these things. Better Call Saul has complicated characters who do shady things.

They enable each other to continue to perform these acts. Gus and Mike, Jimmy and Kim.

We see why Kim and Jimmy enjoy working together, and we finally see why Gus has taken such an interest in Mike.

Let’s see where these teams go next! Is Kim going to lose everything she built? Has Mike been convinced to work with Gus? Let us know and don’t forget to watch Better Call Saul online to stay up to date on Saul and Kim's schemes!

Tommy Czerpak is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.