re: tOfficial Better Call Saul S04E01 “Smoke” Thread

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It's also possible Jimmy is just paranoid and has moments like this all the time.

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This is what I'm leaning toward, especially given that during the hospital sequence, the song playing had lyrics repeating the words "my echo, my shadow, and me". Jimmy, Saul and now Gene. He can't escape his past.

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Also, what was Mike's point in going there if he had a cush no-show job? Did he just want something productive to do, or maybe he was truly concerned about security issues at his employer's place of business?

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idk if we'll get a cut and dry answer here, but my thought is that he did it to make sure his own arse is covered. He was already hellbent on not even giving his real name and info on the application, so with all the shite going down (and money coming his way) I can see him being concerned about how tight of an operation they run. I guess he wanted to see if they were just a willy nilly casual operation or actually run a tight ship.

I also wonder what happened at the end of Mike's scene with the guy in the warehouse. He said something like "call your boss, Lydia [whatever]" and then end scene. I'm curious if the dude he was talking to has ever heard of Lydia.

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Isotopes reference and said that it was the wrong time period. She thought the show was set in the 90s, but it's more like early to mid 2000s right?

The baseball team adopted the Isotopes name in 2003, so I think the show definitely didn't screw up the reference.

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I can't remember it specifically, but there was a point I THINK in the S3 finale (I know I saw the scene in question within the last week or so) where Jimmy specifically mentions a year and it was ~2003. I think it was him and Kim on the couch, so maybe it was in the last season finale.

ETA: just looked up the script, it was from the S3 finale. They are watching movies on the couch and Jimmy asks "how's Relax-a-thon 2003 coming along?" So the Gene timeline would be well past that.

I was halfway expecting him to say "who's lydia?" but your thought works just as well.

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Now this brings back the Isotopes cross reference with Mike. I think they are telling us that this is one of Mike's guys or he is another dirty Madrigal employee since the reference happened when Mike got the Madrigal check.

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It seems kind of a stretch to link them that way. Gene called a cab from the hospital. What are the odds that the cab company would dispatch someone who happens to have previously worked for Mike before he died and that the link among criminals would be maintained after Mike’s death?

The scene was a vehicle to showcase Gene’s paranoia is the most likely explanation IMO. When we saw Mike passively watching an Isotopes game, that was to make it clear to us the viewers why Gene would be paranoid about what otherwise might be a random event.

Had to wait and watch it today. What an opener. Jimmy with the savage dunk on Howard at the end denying him closure

I too hope that we get colored version or gene and post Cinnabon era season(S)

Love this show and everyone involved.

Thank you Vince for being legit.

Cab driver was from Albuquerque. Probably drove a cab there too. Obviously proud of his town. Saul was on billboards, benches on the roads, and commercials. He knows his face.

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Cab driver was from Albuquerque. Probably drove a cab there too. Obviously proud of his town. Saul was on billboards, benches on the roads, and commercials. He knows his face.

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Right. The purpose as a story element may be as simple as triggering Gene’s anxiety when he knows he might have been recognized. The writers show a great deal of restraint when including unlikely scenarios, so I’m not buying the suggestion previously posted that some criminal motive was behind it. Someone paid to watch Gene is not going to be reckless enough to hang a memento that will draw his attention.

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but Jimmie is supposed to be a fricked up character, who you love anyways.

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Just like Walt, you will probably hate him at some point and then pull for him in the end.