# Better Call Saul 1.10 "Marco" 4/6/15 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 6, 2015, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987 "2015-04-06T19:58:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/81 "2015-04-09T14:14:50Z")
> [@Skammer](#): > > I’m surprised by the calls to ‘hurry up’ and bring Fring or Jesse (or Walt!) into the show, especially so early. There was no evidence that Saul ever met any of them before BB (although he may have had dealings with Jesse or his friends). I don’t care to see any of those, but I would love to see Hank woven into the story at some point. For my money, he was this most interesting character in BB. ---
**Author:** ![theR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@theR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/theR)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/82 "2015-04-09T14:27:34Z")
> [@soonerblue](#): > > I’m an activist for women’s rights and I say balderdash, bollocks and bullsh\*t (all ‘B’s’) to this idea of “fraud rape” … it’s an insult to all true rape victims. Rape is penetration without consent, penetration with force or threat of force, penetration with a minor, or penetration when the person is incapable of giving consent. Period. > > Okay, what else do you need cleared up? 😉 I suspect the point is probably that anybody who could believe Jimmy was Kevin Costner would have to be blind drunk, thus unable to give consent. I’m not arguing one way or the other, but I’m assuming that is the premise of those arguing in the A/V Club thread that it was rape. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/83 "2015-04-09T14:57:39Z")
> [@Spoke](#): > > I don’t care to see any of those, but I would love to see Hank woven into the story at some point. For my money, he was this most interesting character in BB. Yeah, Hank went from douchebag brother in law to sympathetic good guy over the course of the show, sort of a backwards Walter White. I was pleased with how nuanced his character was in the end. And I can see him meeting Saul long before Jesse or Walt in the course of their respective businesses. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/84 "2015-04-09T15:29:34Z")
> [@theR](#): > > I suspect the point is probably that anybody who could believe Jimmy was Kevin Costner would have to be blind drunk, thus unable to give consent. I’m not arguing one way or the other, but I’m assuming that is the premise of those arguing in the A/V Club thread that it was rape. No, that was more of a backup argument when people objected that if she had any semblance of a clue, she would have known he was not actually Costner. The primary argument was that this was essentially no different from an identical twin brother getting his brother’s wife to sleep with him on the pretext that he was her husband (which is a crime in most states). ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/85 "2015-04-09T15:39:54Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > Yeah, Hank went from douchebag brother in law to sympathetic good guy over the course of the show, sort of a backwards Walter White. Well, he also sort of did a regular forwards Walter White in the final season (wait… why am I picturing this as a gymnastics event? "Two back flip somersaults, and a forwards Walter White… oh, never mind). After all, at the end, he let his ego and pride get to him, and embarked on a rogue Heisenberg chase instead of taking what he had to his bosses at the DEA. And that’s what ended up killing him. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/86 "2015-04-09T15:58:15Z")
I just think Hank would make a good foil for Jimmy/Saul in some interrogation room or courtroom scenes. ---
**Author:** ![cmyk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmyk/32/3353_2.png) [@cmyk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmyk)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/87 "2015-04-09T16:05:56Z")
> [@Casey1505](#): > > [He did wear a ring in BB, yes](http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/q103albany.com/files/2013/09/saul1-630x322.jpg). [Not sure if it was _that_ ring though](http://www.modernreaders.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/content_Saul-Goodman-Breaking-Bad.jpg). He said “I’m not much of a ring guy” at the funeral, so maybe the ring is what makes him Saul (like how Superman is just Clark Kent when he’s wearing glasses.) > [@Red\_Barchetta](#): > > [Yep, it’s the same ring](http://i.imgur.com/wGwkO8b.jpg) HA! Too cool. Don’t know why it didn’t occur to me to Google images of him to check. So, though he may not be Saul Goodman by name yet, I think that ring symbolizes him as Saul Goodman in spirit. Nice touch. ---
**Author:** ![soonerblue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soonerblue/32/3302_2.png) [@soonerblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soonerblue)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/88 "2015-04-09T16:08:33Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > I actually kind of wish they could just go where the spirit takes them, without feeling hemmed in by having to get to the Saul we know from BB (even though I did love that character). I may have said this upthread, or maybe it was on a different board, but I’d be totally down with some kind of “Fringe” occurrence where the show we are watching splits off into a different timeline, and Jimmy doesn’t have to become Saul (though the name of the show then becomes a “Cougar Town” type deal). I suspect though that this would provoke outrage among many fans. Some people think that the finale was so “soft” because maybe when it was written and produced, a second season was not a sure thing, that there was always a chance that this could be the actual show finale. Anyway, I’m glad that Gilligan and Gould don’t feel hampered by the expectations of fans, or the critics. Season 1 showed that they’re more interested in giving us quality storytelling in a refreshing new way. Their balancing act has been to create these real and complex characters without relying on the old familar quick-hits of shock and awe. In the beginning I was hoping for a sort of “Rockford Files” comic noir … no sentimentality, just a dark-humored trip to the belly of the underworld, and the odd characters we’d meet along the way. What we’re getting is a subtle new genre … a mixing and criss-crossing of indie film and TV. I’ve loved every minute of it, best TV ever. I had no sympathy for Walter White - I stuck with BB because of the brilliant way it was crafted - but I love Jimmy McGill and root for him. So… we’ve seen Jimmy go through an emotional woodchipper this 1st season …shattered into many pieces, just like that “World’s Best Lawyer” coffee cup in the opening lead-in, and now we’ll see how he reassembles himself as Saul Goodman. I just hope it takes a looong time before he morphs into the guy who “recommends murder as a business strategy.” All we really know is that doing the right thing is never going to stand in his way again. ---
**Author:** ![soonerblue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soonerblue/32/3302_2.png) [@soonerblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/soonerblue)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/89 "2015-04-09T16:15:30Z")
> [@theR](#): > > I suspect the point is probably that anybody who could believe Jimmy was Kevin Costner would have to be blind drunk, thus unable to give consent. I’m not arguing one way or the other, but I’m assuming that is the premise of those arguing in the A/V Club thread that it was rape. Not arguing mind you, but she was clearheaded enough to remember what he’d said the night before. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/90 "2015-04-09T17:42:50Z")
I don’t understand why the nursing home would let him continue to call bingo after he sued them. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/91 "2015-04-09T18:21:42Z")
> [@corkboard](#): > > I don’t understand why the nursing home would let him continue to call bingo after he sued them. There’s more than one retirement home company in town? Anyway: This is an anti-gestalt episode. The whole is less than the sum of the parts. Lot’s of nice little things. That don’t really add up to much. So Jimmy really enjoys the thrill of the scam _and_ wants to make big bank. Got it, now put something more meaningful in, okay? The scam montage reminded me of the original, great, version of _Ocean’s 11_. Nice touch. Forget Hank, it’s Marie that needed a creative criminal lawyer to get her out of her petty theft jams. Note that hardline parking guy Mike gave Jimmy a pass on leaving the lot so soon. Mike no longer cares about the piddly details of his “regular” job. Although I’m not sure how this fits in with his “That was the job I was paid to do.” ethics. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2015, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/92 "2015-04-09T18:42:05Z")
> [@ftg](#): > > Forget Hank, it’s Marie that needed a creative criminal lawyer to get her out of her petty theft jams. She didn’t need a lawyer, her husband is a fed. As I recall, she was picked up twice. Once Hank came down and once Gomez came down and with a little bit of talking, the charges were dropped within a few hours. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/93 "2015-04-10T01:38:04Z")
> [@Doug\_K](#): > > It wasn’t just the cough. It was a deliberate cough and thumping his chest. I think the idea was he was having chest pains and thought it was just bad heartburn. Aha! That makes perfect sense, thank you! > [@Casey1505](#): > > [He did wear a ring in BB, yes](http://wac.450f.edgecastcdn.net/80450F/q103albany.com/files/2013/09/saul1-630x322.jpg). [Not sure if it was _that_ ring though](http://www.modernreaders.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/content_Saul-Goodman-Breaking-Bad.jpg). He said “I’m not much of a ring guy” at the funeral, so maybe the ring is what makes him Saul (like how Superman is just Clark Kent when he’s wearing glasses.) Isn’t that also the last “Faux-lex” he’s wearing? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/94 "2015-04-10T02:15:07Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > Aha! That makes perfect sense, thank you! > > Isn’t that also the last “Faux-lex” he’s wearing? I believe that Marco coughed and slapped his chest all the way through the episode because of coronary symptoms. Yes, I think Saul/Jimmy is wearing the fake Rolex. I finally watched it tonight. I think he turned down the job because he doesn’t want to become like his brother, and remembers fondly his times with Marco. Doing the right thing lost him $800,000. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/95 "2015-04-10T02:27:33Z")
My wife and I always try to identify the most useless character in a series, who we then refer to as the Janice (Sopranos weakest). When the Janice has a scene, we feel free to take a break from the show without pausing it, certain we’ll miss nothing good. Breaking Bad had two Janices - Walt Jr and Marie. So far, BCS is Janice free. Hope it stays that way. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/96 "2015-04-10T02:45:41Z")
I kind of agree with you about Walter Jr. and Marie…but not about Janice herself! I thought she was an interesting character. ---
**Author:** ![davidm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidm/32/225_2.png) [@davidm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/davidm)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/97 "2015-04-10T05:19:14Z")
> [@corkboard](#): > > I don’t understand why the nursing home would let him continue to call bingo after he sued them. They cannot stop him from seeing his clients. ---
**Author:** ![Gothic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/839c29/32.png) [@Gothic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gothic)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/98 "2015-04-10T12:39:35Z")
> [@theR](#): > > Unlike most of you, I liked it a lot. > > We shouldn’t expect that every big decision point is some dramatic “Breaking Bad” moment. In fact, this episode seems to epitomize Saul since Jimmy not only realized that he had been trying to live up to Chuck’s expectations, but also since he ad-libbed in a situation when the audience thought there was no choice. Instead of taking this great offer, an offer the whole audience thought would be accepted because of the circumstances, something that he previously would have done for his brother, he decided to make himself happy. > > I actually thought they were setting it up for HHM or Kim to screw him over to demonstrate a rift and his need to become Saul, but this actually was better. There is no need for an over-the-top dramatic action to force him into a corner. This feels more realistic to me. He decided he wanted to get away from those making his life difficult (his brother and to some degree HHM) and be his own man. I really liked this episode for the same reasons (although reading this thread first really took down my expectations after Pimento nirvana). It was a great twist because I was expecting the transformation into Saul to be out of bitterness. They beat us over the head that he is slippin Jimmy, I just did not know before I watched it how much he enjoys being slippin Jimmy. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/99 "2015-04-10T12:59:08Z")
> [@Dag\_Otto](#): > > My wife and I always try to identify the most useless character in a series, who we then refer to as the Janice (Sopranos weakest). When the Janice has a scene, we feel free to take a break from the show without pausing it, certain we’ll miss nothing good. Breaking Bad had two Janices - Walt Jr and Marie. So far, BCS is Janice free. Hope it stays that way. I liked Marie, but they really went nowhere with her character. I’m the first to tell you that I never catch symbolism and maybe what she was doing was mirroring something else in the show. But the whole stealing thing felt like a dropped storyline. A dropped storyline that a lot of time was put into. Walter Jr, I understand was just meant to play a ‘good guy’ someone to make Walter feel bad. Family for Walt to tear apart. I get it. But as a character he was obnoxious and they gave him nothing to do but eat breakfast. And it almost seemed like they did that by accident at first and they made it a running joke as the seasons went on. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987/100 "2015-04-10T13:05:10Z")
> [@Gothic](#): > > They beat us over the head that he is slippin Jimmy, I just did not know before I watched it how much he enjoys being slippin Jimmy. Maybe they’re not beating us over the head so much as they’re treating him like an addict who keeps relapsing. Couple of steps forward but then has something traumatic happen in his life and slips back for a few days. Saul might and up being how he reconciles that. Like a heroin addict on methadone or an alcoholic that still hangs out a the bar drinking O’Douls. He’s a real live lawyer with an actual law firm and works in real court in front of an honest to god Judge…but he’s still gets to work some of his old tricks in here and there and it’ll keep him from slippin’ all the way back. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-1-10-marco-4-6-15/716987.md?page=6)