# Better Call Saul Episodes 1 and 2 **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2015, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074 "2015-02-07T23:03:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/181 "2015-02-13T17:36:32Z")
Judging from his house, he probably isn’t impoverished, just sort of middle class. I’m guessing he works at the Cinnabon more to explain his income than financial need. He’d been raking in the money a long time before Walt, a lot of it legally through personal injury cases. When he said he was going to be managing a Cinnabon in Omaha, I wonder if that was something he actually knew and had worked out with the vacuum cleaner repairman or if that was just a joke for the fans. ---
**Author:** ![MeanJoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanjoe/32/5693_2.png) [@MeanJoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanJoe)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/182 "2015-02-13T17:57:27Z")
I had a totally different read on Chuck’s health situation. I assumed that he is suffering from some real physical illness, most likely cancer and the prognosis is not good. I assumed that the lack of electricity, leaving anything that generates an electromagnetic field outside, etc., to just be a dying man grasping onto odd-ball “ways to beat cancer” when the conventional medical establishment has told him there is no cure. I guess what reinforced this for me was Jimmy’s unwavering and emphatic insistence that Chuck will NOT be returning to work. Ever. Just my 2 cents. Market value may vary. MeanJoe ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/183 "2015-02-13T18:38:30Z")
Could be a brain tumor that’s affecting his thinking/behavior and is inoperable. Obviously he has a phobia of cell phones, but I wondered if the reason the power’s off is simply they’re behind on the bill. That’s a big place, after all. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/184 "2015-02-13T18:48:40Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Could be a brain tumor that’s affecting his thinking and inoperable. > > Obviously he has a phobia of cell phones, but I wondered if the reason the power’s off is simply they’re behind on the bill. That’s a big place, after all. He was a very successful trial lawyer before his illness made him stop working. He gets a stipend from the law firm. He has people ground themselves outside before walking in. I don’t think he uses lanterns and ice chests because his power bill was late. I do wonder why Saul is so sure Chuck won’t get better. He admits he has a problem. He doesn’t say “I’ll go back to work when the entire world learns to shun 20th century technology”. He says he’ll get better. Isn’t that a big part of getting better, admitting you have a problem and making an effort to improve? I’m not a psychiatrist, nor do I know anything about his specific illness, but it doesn’t seem like he’s ignoring reality when he says he’ll get better and go back to work. I’m not sure if Saul has selfish reasons for wanting Chuck to cash out, or if he sincerely believes it is best for his brother, or both. But I’m not a lawyer. Maybe the meager stipend would be enough to convince a judge the firm owes Chuck nothing, but I highly doubt it. He’s still 1/3 owner of the firm no matter what they pay him, right? Unless he signs over his ownership stake in the company, I don’t see how he could ever lose it. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/185 "2015-02-13T19:14:52Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Obviously he has a phobia of cell phones, but I wondered if the reason the power’s off is simply they’re behind on the bill. That’s a big place, after all. He pulled the breaker boxes out of the wall. The lack of electricity is self-inflicted. ---
**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:** [February 13, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/186 "2015-02-13T19:18:38Z")
I think chuck is suffering from “Idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields”. Something which is almost certainly psychosomatic. > **[Idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields...](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19681059/)** > > Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF; formerly 'electromagetic hypersensitivity') is a medically unexplained illness in which subjective symptoms are reported following exposure to electrical devices. In... > [@](#): > > Idiopathic Environmental Intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF; formerly ‘electromagetic hypersensitivity’) is a medically unexplained illness in which subjective symptoms are reported following exposure to electrical devices. In an earlier systematic review, we reported data from 31 blind provocation studies which had exposed IEI-EMF volunteers to active or sham electromagnetic fields and assessed whether volunteers could detect these fields or whether they reported worse symptoms when exposed to them. In this article, we report an update to that review. An extensive literature search identified 15 new experiments. Including studies reported in our earlier review, 46 blind or double-blind provocation studies in all, involving 1175 IEI-EMF volunteers, have tested whether exposure to electromagnetic fields is responsible for triggering symptoms in IEI-EMF. No robust evidence could be found to support this theory. However, the studies included in the review did support the role of the nocebo effect in triggering acute symptoms in IEI-EMF sufferers. Despite the conviction of IEI-EMF sufferers that their symptoms are triggered by exposure to electromagnetic fields, repeated experiments have been unable to replicate this phenomenon under controlled conditions. A narrow focus by clinicians or policy makers on bioelectromagnetic mechanisms is therefore, unlikely to help IEI-EMF patients in the long-term. The conversation between Chuck and Jimmy about Jimmy paying for the broken legs makes me believe that Jimmy believes that his past “Slippin’ Jimmy” behavior is at least partly responsible for Chuck’s emotional problems. Jimmy keeps saying things like “please take off the space blanket, I’m not backsliding”. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/187 "2015-02-13T19:44:00Z")
A pity Chuck couldn’t have a place like Walt’s digs in New Hampshire. ---
**Author:** ![DrCube](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a3d4f5/32.png) [@DrCube](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrCube)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/188 "2015-02-13T20:09:44Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > The conversation between Chuck and Jimmy about Jimmy paying for the broken legs makes me believe that Jimmy believes that his past “Slippin’ Jimmy” behavior is at least partly responsible for Chuck’s emotional problems. Jimmy keeps saying things like “please take off the space blanket, I’m not backsliding”. I wonder if “Slipping Jimmy” is responsible for Chuck’s success, if not the whole law firm’s? ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2015, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/189 "2015-02-13T20:18:38Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I’m not sure if Saul has selfish reasons for wanting Chuck to cash out, or if he sincerely believes it is best for his brother, or both. But I’m not a lawyer. Maybe the meager stipend would be enough to convince a judge the firm owes Chuck nothing, but I highly doubt it. He’s still 1/3 owner of the firm no matter what they pay him, right? Unless he signs over his ownership stake in the company, I don’t see how he could ever lose it. I think the issue is whether acceptance of the stipend means that Chuck and the Firm have come to an agreement that Chuck is not cashing out now. Sure, Chuck may be a 1/3 owner. But he’s operating under the notion that “when he gets better” he’ll just go back to work. The Firm is encouraging this notion - and, by paying him a stipend, they are giving it an air of reality. That means the Firm gets to keep playing with Chuck’s 1/3 share, instead of paying it over. The Firm no doubt hopes this can go on for years and years. Thing is, Chuck is clearly (somewhat) delusional. Odds are he’s not “getting better”. “Saul” could no doubt force the issue by attempting to obtain some sort of power of attorney over Chuck’s affairs, but for whatever reason, he’s unwilling to do it. ---
**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:** [February 13, 2015, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/190 "2015-02-13T21:30:38Z")
Also, by paying him a stipend, they prevent him from having to cash out because of financial desperation. It seems obvious the firm would be in trouble, maybe even fail, if he decided to cash out and they’re trying to hold it off as long as possible hoping that they can somehow improve the firm’s financial health in the meantime. I get the impression that Chuck was their big earner (maybe through slippin’ Jimmy?) and they may be struggling without him. ---
**Author:** ![Disgruntled\_Penguin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a8b319/32.png) [@Disgruntled\_Penguin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disgruntled_Penguin)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/191 "2015-02-14T01:05:03Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I wonder if “Slipping Jimmy” is responsible for Chuck’s success, if not the whole law firm’s? Really? Jimmy is responsible for making a firm worth several million dollars and he’s dead broke with a crap car? I know lawyers get a lot of the money but I’d think the plaintiff would get at least something. Plus, wasn’t the scam to fleece the victim without having to get the authorities involved? ---
**Author:** ![jrepka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ee59a6/32.png) [@jrepka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrepka)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/192 "2015-02-14T21:51:03Z")
> [@DrCube](#): > > I do wonder why Saul is so sure Chuck won’t get better. He admits he has a problem. He doesn’t say “I’ll go back to work when the entire world learns to shun 20th century technology”. He says he’ll get better. Isn’t that a big part of getting better, admitting you have a problem and making an effort to improve? I’m not a psychiatrist, nor do I know anything about his specific illness, but it doesn’t seem like he’s ignoring reality when he says he’ll get better and go back to work. It depends upon what “problem” Chuck believes he has. Chuck believes that he has Electromagnetic Hypersensitivity Disorder, and that exposure to electromagnetic fields makes him severely ill. When we first meet him, he’s writing a letter to a Finnish researcher who is apparently doing studies on the effects of EMF on lizards. When Chuck says “I’ll get better,” he’s saying that he believes that there will be a medical solution that “cures” him of his physical illness. But Chuck’s illness is entirely psychosomatic. His “problem,” as Jimmy/Saul recognises, is that his illness is entirely in his head. This is treatable, with the right therapy, but not if Chuck doesn’t admit that his problem (and solution) lies in that direction. Jimmy/Saul knows that his brother is delusional about his illness, and thus doesn’t see much hope for his improvement. ---
**Author:** ![Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/son_of_a_rich/32/5439_2.png) [@Son\_of\_a\_Rich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Son_of_a_Rich)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/193 "2015-02-14T22:04:25Z")
When Jimmy was at the skate park and mentioned Cicero I thought for sure he was beginning a parable about Al Capone. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/194 "2015-02-14T22:30:23Z")
> [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > If it is the same car, that means that she would have had to stopped somewhere, gotten out, and let Abuelita drive the car away. > [@DrCube](#): > > So the same make, model, color AND the license plate started with the same number?? And it was on the same street at the same place and time the other car was expected, and the other car Saul saw the Treasurer’s wife leave in was nowhere to be found? > > There’s something fishy going on here. Its problems like these that are making it difficult to watch this show. The same kind of stuff that made me quit Breaking Bad. > [@Sam\_Lowry](#): > > Good TV shows can have coincidences, as long as they don’t have too many of them in order to drive the story. They’ve already reached that limit if you ask me. > [@davidm](#): > > If you want a contrived coincidence; how lucky were the skateboarders that the truck they were hanging onto followed Abuelita most of the way home? That was pretty special, wasn’t it? 😃 > [@rock\_party](#): > > My aunt lives in Holiday Park. While it’s not huge, it’s like 20 or 30 streets and there’s no way Jimmy could turn into Holiday Park and stumble on the Tuco house (you see him drive by but notice the car and back up). Also pretty special. And why would Saul even give it a second look, since its been established it was _in fact a different car?_ 😕 I hate to sound like a dick, but I really don’t think the writers of these shows have an ounce of respect for the audience and expect the viewers to gobble down bowls of shit and beg for more. I bailed on Bad, and if things keep going the way they are here, will most likely stop this show as well. Too bad, I’m an Odenkirk fan. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/195 "2015-02-15T01:43:09Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Also pretty special. And why would Saul even give it a second look, since its been established it was _in fact a different car?_ 😕 “Gee, that tan station wagon has a smashed windshield and there’s two skateboards next to it, but ohhhhh, nope, it’s a Taurus not a Sable!” :rolleyes: Those old Taurus/Sables were like cockroaches back then and having no way to positively identify the mark’s car when they drive one of the most common cars on the road sounds more like a weakness in the plan, not a huge disbelief-straining coincidence. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/196 "2015-02-15T03:09:50Z")
it does seem like a weakly supported coincidence. They could’ve easily made it more plausible if Saul had said to the kids “be on the lookout for an old brown station wagon” without specifically showing them the car. Or they could’ve made the car less distinctive - say, a mid-90s white civic, which a large percentage of the cars on the road would look similar to, that would be easy to mistake. Vince Gilligan has said that he doesn’t mind using coincidences to get characters in trouble, he only refrains from using them to help characters dig themselves out of a bad situation. And I can agree with that in principle - it doesn’t really wreck the show for there to have been an implausible coincidence like this. It’s not deeply unsatisfying in the way it would be if such a coincidence were to solve a problem the characters had. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/197 "2015-02-15T03:20:08Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > “Gee, that tan station wagon has a smashed windshield and there’s two skateboards next to it, but ohhhhh, nope, it’s a Taurus not a Sable!” :rolleyes: I hear ya\*. I can do the mental gymnastics to justify most of the stupid so far (Okay, the truck guy was a friend hanging around and chased down the car, Okay, Jimmy was close enough to see which way the truck went and found the house, Okay, the skateboarders actually did manage to keep their mouths shut when in the emergency room and not implicate anyone, bringing down heat all over, Okay, nobody that saw the “hit and run” bothered to call the cops, the same cops who didn’t see a truck driving down the road towing two dudes on boards, etc. etc. etc. etc.) But for me, stupid compounds. And it reaches a critical mass. There is a lot of stupid piling up. Now, I caught a _train-load_ of grief for supposedly shitting in Breading Bad threads, so I’m trying to point out exactly what I have a problem with in this show. It looks like I’m not alone in getting hit with the stupid. A little is fine, to move the story. But, come on guys! \*But, remember, it was Saul that set this _whole thing up!_ He knew _exactly_ what car he should have been looking for! **Greasy** , would _you_ mistake a Sable for a Taurus? ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/198 "2015-02-15T03:59:11Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > \*But, remember, it was Saul that set this _whole thing up!_ He knew _exactly_ what car he should have been looking for! **Greasy** , would _you_ mistake a Sable for a Taurus? At a casual glance, yes. See posts #174-175! Upon further inspection, I’d probably only be able to distinguish them because the vacuum cleaner-esque lightbar grille on the Sable always makes me giggle. > [@SenorBeef](#): > > it does seem like a weakly supported coincidence. They could’ve easily made it more plausible if Saul had said to the kids “be on the lookout for an old brown station wagon” without specifically showing them the car. Or they could’ve made the car less distinctive - say, a mid-90s white civic, which a large percentage of the cars on the road would look similar to, that would be easy to mistake. The 80’s Taurus/Sables have started precipitously vanishing in the last 5 years or so, but Ford sold zillions of the things. Maybe they were a little less common on the coasts where the Japanese ruled the roost, but in flyover country the Taurus platform cars were utterly ubiquitous. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/199 "2015-02-15T04:11:17Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > I’d probably only be able to distinguish them because the vacuum cleaner-esque lightbar grille on the Sable always makes me giggle. I’ve never pictured you a “giggler”. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [February 15, 2015, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074/200 "2015-02-15T15:42:29Z")
> [@davidm](#): > > So, is this literally an omnibus thread? Will all episodes go here, or should we start a new one for each episode? Too late for me to agitate for separate threads, but man, it would’ve been nice if we could’ve had separate threads. Unless a show is quite niche, these omnibus threads become terribly unwieldy quite quickly. Oh well. Looking forward to the Game of Thrones Omnibus Thread. > [@PSXer](#): > > Saul drinks about 10-15 cups of coffee in the episode. He’s be awake for days if that happened Moreover, he’s giving at least some of that coffee to the officer outside the courtroom. > [@Gatopescado](#): > > Its problems like these that are making it difficult to watch this show. The same kind of stuff that made me quit Breaking Bad. > … > I bailed on Bad, and if things keep going the way they are here, will most likely stop this show as well. Too bad, I’m an Odenkirk fan. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. One wonders why you thought the same writers and producers were going to produce a markedly different show that you would enjoy. The carping on supposed coincidences is a bit odd to me. We do know where Jimmy/Saul winds up, right? So he’s going to have to get there. He could’ve run into drug people in the course of his practice; as it happens, he runs into them when, in a moment of weakness, he’s trying to run a scam. It’s unlucky that he happened to accidentally involve the wrong person in the scam, but from the point of view of his present day, it’s not a coincidence so much as an isolated, freak event–that just happens to be the first domino that eventually leads to the Saul Goodman we know and love. That we have folks in the same thread (maybe the same folks? I don’t watch usernames closely enough) trying madly to get Tuco’s abuelita involved in crime is just… :smack: Oh well. It’s a good show so far, and I’ll enjoy watching this little side show as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074.md?page=9) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/better-call-saul-episodes-1-and-2/712074.md?page=11)