# Better Call Saul 2.08 "Fifi" 4/4/16 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 4, 2016, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208 "2016-04-04T23:42:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/141 "2016-04-09T06:25:49Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Non-compete clauses are strictly forbidden in the legal profession. > > The idea is that the client has an absolute right to hire an attorney of his or her choice. If Mesa Verde wants the services of Kim Wexler, it would be unethical for HHM to deny them their preferred choice of counsel. That would explain Chuck’s feigned glowing evaluation of Ms. Wexler’s abilities while at the same time damning her with faint praise. ---
**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 9, 2016, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/142 "2016-04-09T14:05:29Z")
> [@Biffster](#): > > That would explain Chuck’s feigned glowing evaluation of Ms. Wexler’s abilities while at the same time damning her with faint praise. I’d imagine that there are also ethical proscriptions about denigrating another lawyer to her clients or potential clients. ---
**Author:** ![btcg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@btcg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/btcg)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/143 "2016-04-09T18:00:54Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > He worked there for quite a while, if they used a watermark, I’m guessing he’d know it. > That place was some sort of machine/industrial/mechanics/truck shop. That fact that you heard a pneumatic wrench hardly implies that they were disassembling the truck that just pulled in to remove drugs from it. I’m not saying it’s not the case, just saying that it’s a leap. > I hear those guns all the time at service stations, doesn’t mean they’re removing the tires (or even drugs) from the last car I saw pull in. The have drills, they use drills. > > Though I have to say I don’t remember hearing it myself, I just recall the door closing and Hector standing outside smoking. We know from BB that this crew makes its living smuggling drugs: so it’s logical, not a leap. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/144 "2016-04-09T18:31:03Z")
Also there were no drill noises until the truck pulled in, iirc. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/145 "2016-04-09T19:48:33Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > But we don’t all know. If they want this to be a stand alone series they can’t do anything like that without a couple of BCS episodes that gets everyone caught up as needed on BB. If you think about it though, now that they’ve introduced the Gene character at all they _have_ to jump ahead to his story. It wouldn’t make sense to just have those flash forward scenes of Gene and then never explain how he got in that situation and what happens to him now he’s there. They can’t just leave it as those few scenes showing him working in a takeaway joint and then never explain it. As you say it’s a stand alone series so at some point it’s going to have to jump to a point at which Gene is the present day. And once we’re at that point all of Breaking Bad has happened and there’s no reason why characters from BB can’t turn up (or Kim and Chuck as well). (unless Gene and the food takeaway scenario isn’t set after Breaking Bad after all - do we know for a fact that it is?). ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/146 "2016-04-09T20:02:01Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > If you think about it though, now that they’ve introduced the Gene character at all they _have_ to jump ahead to his story. It wouldn’t make sense to just have those flash forward scenes of Gene and then never explain how he got in that situation and what happens to him now he’s there. That was explained in _Granite State_, the next to last episode of _Breaking Bad_. Saul has paid Ed “the Extractor” to disappear him and relocate him to a new life. It’s mentioned that he is getting a Nebraska driver’s license. Saul says “If I’m lucky, a month from now, best case scenario, I’m managing a Cinnabon in Omaha.” Based on this line, Vince Gilligan took the joke and ran with it for the opening of BCS. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/147 "2016-04-09T20:26:10Z")
OK but BCS is a stand alone series. It assumes no prior knowledge of BB. They can’t have something in BCS that only makes sense if you’ve seen BB. So they are going to have to explain what Jimmy McGill is doing in the Cinnabon calling himself Gene, and what happens to him now that he’s there, at some point. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/148 "2016-04-09T20:28:56Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > If you think about it though, now that they’ve introduced the Gene character at all they _have_ to jump ahead to his story. It wouldn’t make sense to just have those flash forward scenes of Gene and then never explain how he got in that situation and what happens to him now he’s there. They can’t just leave it as those few scenes showing him working in a takeaway joint and then never explain it. Of course they can. > [@scoots](#): > > OK but BCS is a stand alone series. It assumes no prior knowledge of BB. They can’t have something in BCS that only makes sense if you’ve seen BB. So they are going to have to explain what Jimmy McGill is doing in the Cinnabon calling himself Gene, and what happens to him now that he’s there, at some point. Says who? ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/149 "2016-04-09T20:40:07Z")
Well it wouldn’t make any sense to someone who is watching the series who hasn’t seen BB. They have no idea who that character is. It would be completely random. Maybe they realise it’s Jimmy (although he looks quite different) but then they would have no idea why he’s there. Have you ever seen any other TV series do that? Just have random scenes showing the main character in a completely different situation in the future and then never tie it up? It would be weird (and bad writing). Having said that, I have no idea how they are going to summarise the whole of BB in order to get to Gene’s story. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/150 "2016-04-09T20:40:23Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > OK but BCS is a stand alone series. It assumes no prior knowledge of BB. They can’t have something in BCS that only makes sense if you’ve seen BB. So they are going to have to explain what Jimmy McGill is doing in the Cinnabon calling himself Gene, and what happens to him now that he’s there, at some point. While it’s possible to watch BCS without having seen BB, I think the assumption is that nearly everyone watching _is_ familiar with BB and where the characters end up. They’re not taking any time explaining who Tuco, Hector, and Krazy 8 are. There are frequent call-outs to BB like The Dog House, Saul’s pinky ring, Belize (mentioned by Jimmie during the bingo game), that are only going to be appreciated by BB fans. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/151 "2016-04-09T20:50:00Z")
Yeah but Tuco, Hector and Krazy 8 have all been explained in-story. They all appeared as new characters. They are still going to need to offer some kind of explanation for Jimmy working in the Cinnabon. As I say, it would be bad writing if they don’t and the standard of writing in BCS has been A1 so far so I can’t see them leaving loose ends. ---
**Author:** ![btcg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@btcg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/btcg)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/152 "2016-04-09T20:58:27Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > OK but BCS is a stand alone series. It assumes no prior knowledge of BB. They can’t have something in BCS that only makes sense if you’ve seen BB. So they are going to have to explain what Jimmy McGill is doing in the Cinnabon calling himself Gene, and what happens to him now that he’s there, at some point. Now… that’s a leap. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/153 "2016-04-09T21:01:07Z")
Maybe. But that means it’s not a stand alone series. Which is a risk because it means it’s going to leave people who haven’t seen BB puzzled. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/154 "2016-04-09T21:02:45Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > Well it wouldn’t make any sense to someone who is watching the series who hasn’t seen BB. They have no idea who that character is. It would be completely random. Maybe they realise it’s Jimmy (although he looks quite different) but then they would have no idea why he’s there. Have you ever seen any other TV series do that? Just have random scenes showing the main character in a completely different situation in the future and then never tie it up? It would be weird (and bad writing). > > Having said that, I have no idea how they are going to summarise the whole of BB in order to get to Gene’s story. Well one way they could do it: Once we are fully in the Saul Goodman era and he knows he’s dealing with dangerous people we could have him meet the extractor and talk about how one day he’ll need that service. Fade into Gene drinking in front of the T.V. Let the audience fill in the blanks. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/155 "2016-04-09T21:12:31Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > Well it wouldn’t make any sense to someone who is watching the series who hasn’t seen BB. They have no idea who that character is. It would be completely random. Maybe they realise it’s Jimmy (although he looks quite different) but then they would have no idea why he’s there. Have you ever seen any other TV series do that? Just have random scenes showing the main character in a completely different situation in the future and then never tie it up? It would be weird (and bad writing). > > Having said that, I have no idea how they are going to summarise the whole of BB in order to get to Gene’s story. I remember seeing an eyeball floating in a swimming pool throughout the whole second season of BB and it wasn’t explained until 210, the season finale. It’s often better to just “let the mystery be” as they say on The Leftovers. It makes the big reveal far more tasty. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/156 "2016-04-09T21:25:26Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Well one way they could do it: Once we are fully in the Saul Goodman era and he knows he’s dealing with dangerous people we could have him meet the extractor and talk about how one day he’ll need that service. Fade into Gene drinking in front of the T.V. Let the audience fill in the blanks. Yeah. I hope that’s how it’s done. Get it all over in a couple of minutes. We don’t want some long boring exposition. The eyeball was eventually explained within the same series though so that’s not the same as not explaining something at all. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/157 "2016-04-09T21:37:25Z")
> [@scoots](#): > > Well it wouldn’t make any sense to someone who is watching the series who hasn’t seen BB. So what? As has been mentioned, the majority of the audience has seen it, and even the Dinsdales of the world who haven’t are mostly at least _aware_ that this is a spin-off series based on a character from another show. > [@scoots](#): > > They have no idea who that character is. It would be completely random. Maybe they realise it’s Jimmy (although he looks quite different) but then they would have no idea why he’s there. Have you ever seen any other TV series do that? Just have random scenes showing the main character in a completely different situation in the future and then never tie it up? It would be weird (and bad writing). I’ve seen TV shows do all kinds of weird and inexplicable things that sometimes never get explained (_Lost_ was the uncontested king of this behavior). So yes. You’re making a lot of decisions about what the show creators “can” and “can’t” do, based on the fallacious assumption that they have some kind of duty to make sure every person in the audience fully understands the context of every scene without outside references. They have no such duty, and can do whatever they want. And doing so does not make it “bad writing” by any stretch of the imagination. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/158 "2016-04-09T21:44:51Z")
So they should follow Lost’s example? Oookay. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/159 "2016-04-09T22:03:43Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > So they should follow Lost’s example? Oookay. Whoa now, I didn’t say _that_. Let’s not get too crazy. My main point is that this is a show for BB fans. I’m sure they’re delighted to get other viewers who aren’t familiar with it, and while it can and does stand on its own merit, that doesn’t mean they have an obligation to fully explain any possible reference to it. ---
**Author:** ![scoots](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b77776/32.png) [@scoots](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scoots)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2016, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208/160 "2016-04-09T22:12:13Z")
> [@Rigamarole](#): > > You’re making a lot of decisions about what the show creators “can” and “can’t” do, based on the fallacious assumption that they have some kind of duty to make sure every person in the audience fully understands the context of every scene without outside references. No. I’m basing my assumptions on what I’ve seen of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul both of which have very tight writing. I watched some of Lost (at the beginning) before I lost interest. The writing was not as tight so it’s not comparable. BB and BCS didn’t do any “weird and inexplicable things” at any time. Ever. So I have no reason to think they will suddenly start doing them now. Doing weird and inexplicable things for no reason is bad writing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-2-08-fifi-4-4-16/751208.md?page=9)