Summary: Jimmy and Kim get used to a life of scamming people together. The time comes for Jimmy to get his law license back but when he goes in front of the bar association, he is denied his law license because of insincerity. Jimmy is enraged and lashes out at Kim. The two of them have a fight. Ultimately Kim decides that she will help Jimmy get his law license back. Mike notices that Werner is troubled and permits him a phone call to his wife. Mike continues to support him to finish his work, but Werner doesn't listen and escapes. Lalo visits Hector and gives him his bell. He goes to Los Pollos Hermanos and offers Gus a deal to work together peacefully.
The Good: This was a great episode, playing off of tension extremely well and including some terrific scenes with consistent and impressive acting throughout. Jimmy and Kim had a great storyline in this episode which culminated in a standout final scene. But before I talk about that, I want to talk about the opening scene. Last episode raised the question of how far Kim would go with her new-found appreciation for conning, and we were answered right away with a terrific scene which showed us how committed Kim is to this as she uses a cheap scam to save her from doing some work on Mesa Verde. It was a great way to establish her morals, set up some threads for the climactic scene later, and also provides us an entertaining opening sequence by showing up Slippin' Jimmy at work with his new partner in crime. Then we get to Jimmy going to get his license back, which I think was a very clever use of audience expectations. Jimmy was so confident about getting his license back, and we know that he continues being a lawyer in the future, so it seemed like a given that Jimmy would be reinstated as a lawyer. That the scene took place in the middle of the episode also supported the idea that nothing too huge would happen here. But then the scene happened and we got to see Slippin' Jimmy at work once more, only this time he is fighting for his law license. It's entertaining as always, but this one has a little more emotional weight to it as the words coming out of Jimmy's mouth are more truthful than usual; he does genuinely enjoy being a lawyer. I thought that his decision to neglect speaking about Chuck would just exist to show us how he doesn't care at all about Chuck's death, but I was wrong, and when the curtain came down and it was revealed that Jimmy wouldn't be getting his license, it felt like a gut-punch. This was an out-of-nowhere tragedy for Jimmy's character, and it was downright heartbreaking to witness. I must hand it to Bob Odenkirk as well, who does a terrific job of showing the many, many layers behind Jimmy as he acted out this scene. The storytelling is outstanding as it provides a genuinely surprising twist in Jimmy's story, and the wonderful irony in the fact that Jimmy was actually being sincere and had he mentioned Chuck, that would have been insincere. Jimmy, a regular scammer, was just punished for his own honesty and that is bound to make honesty a trait that Jimmy may never want to express again, furthering his descent to Saul Goodman in a heart-breaking way. That scene could have been the climax of any other episode and I would have been satisfied, but then it was immediately followed up by a massive fight between Jimmy and Kim. Jimmy is enraged due to being let down for doing seemingly nothing wrong and Kim is the one who has to calm him down. She tries, but it's one slip up, where she says "we will find a way to make you look sincere" that completely sets Jimmy off. In one moment, all of Jimmy's past enemies flash before him as he makes reference to several setbacks he has had to deal with (including a nod to the Kettleman story in season 1 which I especially appreciated) by lashing out all of his frustrations towards Kim, treating her like just another one of the people who always look down on him. Naturally this sets Kim off too and she explodes at his lack of gratitude for her, and it ends up becoming a powerful and sad fight. The best part about this is how realistic and organic the set-up to them coming to blows actually is. It's so relatable which makes it all the more tragic to see them explode like this at each other. The scene is brilliantly constructed and it is a wonderful catharsis for what is now seasons worth of frustration. This moment was a series highlight for sure, and it was carried by some tremendous acting from Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seehorn. I though the following scene at Kim's apartment was another outstanding one. They had clearly never had anything like this before, so both are unsure of what to do. Kim is nervous to approach Jimmy, who is reluctantly packing his stuff into his bag, unsure if Kim would even want him anymore. It's sad to see Jimmy believing that he just ruined the one final good thing in his life, but thankfully Kim's inability to get away from Jimmy pushed her back to him to try things again and to push forwards. I feel like Kim being unable to get away from Jimmy while she had the chance may come back to haunt her. As if that wasn't exhausting enough, there are still two more storylines in this episode, with both of them having important and engaging developments to set everything in place for the season finale. I'll tackle the superlab story first. I thought last episode did a great job of making Werner a character that I care about and I had hoped that this was set-up for something big in Mike's personal story. It seems like that will be the case as Werner shows serious signs of being a potential threat, yet Mike takes the half-measure to deal with him, only letting him call his wife. It's sensible as we can see that Mike and Werner have become friends over the past few months, but it ends up being a mistake as we get the big reveal that Werner escaped the compound and nobody noticed. It's a great surprise to end the episode, and it could very well be setting up for Mike to make a full measure to correct his half measure. I imagine that Mike may very well make his first kill working for Gus, and it won't be pretty, seeing how much I've become invested in Werner. Furthermore, the scenes int he superlab did a great job with tension. Werner having a breakdown alone while doing the blasting was poignant and scary, while the ending scene was shocking and foreboding as you just get the sense that Werner won't be able to make it very far. Lastly, we get to Lalo, who continues to be a wildly entertaining character. His polite and charming nature is a breath of fresh air compared to all of the violent Salamancas, and his mysterious motives (see: The Unknown) make all of his scenes so much more engaging to watch. I enjoyed the first sequence where he gave the bell to Hector. Technically this scene was unnecessary, but I think that Hector getting the iconic bell was important enough that we needed to see it happen, and I think Lalo's interactions with Hector were also significant as they taught us a little more about his character and how he normally behaves. This led to him having a meeting with Gus in a scene which I really loved. Both actors have so much presence, and they played off of each other in an excellent, and different, way. As an aside, I also liked seeing Lyle again, plus it was a smart way to make Gus notice and approach Lalo right away. The Bad: Mike's story doesn't feel like it's significant to the overall plot. Sure it is a very good story, but it just feels too much like filler. Who knows, maybe it will tie into something more important, and if that is the case, I will retract this complaint, but if not, I just don't think it's a necessary story, especially considering how many other important stories are going on. The Unknown: Will Werner get away and go home safely? Will Mike catch him and kill him for his betrayal? How will Gus react to Mike's misplaced trust in Werner? This situation is set up very well for an exciting finale. Speaking of a nicely set-up situation, how will Jimmy and Kim try to get Jimmy reinstated when they appeal? What is their plan? Is there a plan? Also, what is the state of their relationship now? How do they plan to address their futures? Is it possible that Jimmy doesn't get his law license back and would be forced to redo his schooling as Saul Goodman? That could be one explanation of how he ended up as Saul Goodman. Best Moment: The parking garage fight was breathtaking, devastating television which was written and acted to perfection. Character of the Episode: Jimmy. Conclusion: This episode was tremendous with some outstanding moments of storytelling, gripping moments of tension and exciting build-up for what should be a great season finale. This episode delivered. Score: 77
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Summary: Dany is told that Yunkai and Astapor have already been overthrown. She decides to stay in Meereen and rule as a Queen. Tommen is officially crowned as a king. Cersei and Tywin discuss the trial. Sansa arrives in the Eyrie with Littlefinger. She is pressured by the jealous Lysa. It is revealed that Littlefinger instigated Jon Arryn's death. Arya gets more advice from The Hound. Brienne and Pod bond on the road. Jon's group attacks the mutineers and all of them are slaughtered. Locke finds Bran and tries to capture him but Bran wargs into Hodor and kills him. Bran decides to leave Jon as he realizes Jon won't let him go north.
The Good: This was another strong episode with more good developments. This season has been extremely consistent so far and I'm enjoying it. The action at Craster's Keep was really good and a fitting climax for this episode. I enjoyed the action and I thought it was choreographed really well. What worked best though was how we got to see two awful men die, something we rarely get treated to in this show. It's so much more satisfying to see the bad guys die after good guys have died so many times in this show, and I think this episode did a great job of paying off of the show's gruelling nature. I cheered when Jon killed Karl in a brutal way and I was even more overjoyed when Hodor snapped Locke's neck before he was able to do any real damage to Bran or his friends. Everything was done really well and I felt satisfied by the end of the episode. The other moment which particularly pleased me was the reveal that Littlefinger instigated the entire War of Five Kings. This was a massive moment for the show as it answered one of the big long-running mysteries in a way where it meant a lot. Littlefinger was a nobody before everything, and he has orchestrated pretty much the entire show, and it has given him so much more power. After being told many times how dangerous Littlefinger is, this proves his credibility with a great moment and makes him much more interesting to me, which is saying something considering how much I already liked him. I like that Dany had to deal with the fact that Yunkai and Astapor fell back into chaos. Her story has lacked real character development so far, so this feels like a fresh step in the right direction by having her combat these conflicts, showing who she is as a ruler. I love her decision to rule as a Queen as it shakes up her story and also sets up several possibilities for where her character goes next. I really liked Cersei and Tywin's conversation. I thought the reveal that the mines in the Westerlands being empty was handled well and was a great way to demonstrate why the Tyrells are so important to the Lannisters as they very well may be the most rich and powerful family in all of Westeros at the moment. I have already been very open in my love for the Tyrells, so I think this is a great development to make them even more central to the story and it also gives a logical reason for Cersei to be unable to take care of Margaery whenever she wants since she is far too important to kill. There were several other character interactions I enjoyed. Lysa's unhinged jealousy towards Sansa was great and I can't help but still feel sorry for Sansa who just can't ever catch a break as she is now betrothed to Robin and has to put up with her insane aunt. I also liked the interactions on the road between Brienne and Pod as well as Arya and The Hound. The show has been notably good at developing characters by sending them on the road in pairs and I think it has made for some of the best character development and relationship building in the show. Arya got some good advice from The Hound in this episode as she continued her vengeful quest. Brienne slowly beginning to accept the desperate-to-be-useful Pod was decently sweet as well. The Bad: There's nothing I would call bad about this. A solid episode all-around. The Unknown: What is the huge weirwood tree that Bran and Jojen saw? What is the significance of his hands being on fire? Best Moment: The death of Locke was a spectacular moment. It was a huge shift for Bran who got his first big kill and it was also a big moment to Hodor who looks appropriately horrified by what he did. It's a good look at just how horrific Bran's powers really are. Of course this was followed up with a great scene where Bran has to choose to leave Jon which was genuinely touching. Character of the Episode: Littlefinger. Conclusion: This was another really strong episode with a few standout moments. This show is doing some tremendous set-up this season and I'm excited for what comes next. Score: 68 |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
March 2024
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