‘Better Call Saul’ Recap: ‘Black and Blue’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 605 of ‘Better Call Saul’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
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For the most part, shows that enter their final season, let loose with their storytelling in order to give the audience a farewell to remember. To the point where epic and jaw dropping moments are everywhere to be found, and of course… there are stunning decisions the characters make along the way and sometimes… beloved characters die in the race to the finish line before a powerhouse and stunning finale takes place. One that will move us and leave us talking and revisiting what we’ve seen for days on end and well, this is a formula for a farewell season that works through and through. Because going for broke at the end of the journey… is never a bad thing.
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But some shows… well they don’t completely subscribe to that concept. Instead, they see the final season as an opportunity to stay true to their roots and build toward the ending in a relaxed and unique manner in order to tell a grand and sweeping story on their own terms, and one such show that subscribes to that anthesis… is Better Call Saul. Because outside of Nacho’s exit a few weeks ago, this series hasn’t made a mad dash toward the finish line. It’s been filled to the brim with nuance and wonder and character growth and setup and this week’s episode of this series didn’t deviate from that particular plan in the slightest. Since it carefully set the stage for a pair of showdowns in this universe, one of which… will eventually involve Gus Fring and Lalo Salamanca.

For ‘Black and Blue’ revealed to us… that there was still no sign of Lalo in New Mexico in the slightest. Because despite running protection crews damn near round the clock, Gus was still safe and nothing suspicious was heading his way. But of course, that did little to relax dear Gus. For he was constantly checking his body armor at work and the location of his emergency pistol, and he was so on edge that he consistently kept checking the corners and zoning out over the possibility that Lalo was going to storm into the room and attempt to harm him. Which motivated him to make small preparations for the fight only he thought was coming and well, in the end, it turned out that Gus’ vigilance and concern will indeed pay off in spades.

For we also came to learn that Lalo was out there after all but was playing the long game to victory. Because rather than stalk and carefully watch Gus from afar in New Mexico, he decided that the best way to harm his nemesis… was to devastate his business and leave him destitute, and in order to make that happen… a trip to Germany was in order. So, he could learn about Werner and the strange circumstances surrounding his end and his relationship with Gus. All so he could figure out how to bring Gus and his industry to an utter standstill and well… since this series is so good at intimacy with its characters and knows how to use tension within the moment, this entire setup was riveting despite its simplicity, and the wonder of this episode and this slow-burn approach to building toward the end, continued beyond this sequence.

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Because back in Albuquerque, Howard Hamlin was dealt quite the surprise. In that, shortly after saving the Sandpiper deal from falling to pieces at a town hall-esque meeting with the residents, Cliff finally confronted him about everything he’d seen. Making it appear as though the reckoning we’ve all been waiting for when it comes to Howard was about to drop. But once he came to realize that Kim Wexler was there when Cliff saw Wendy get tossed from the car… two and two quickly came together for Mister Hamlin and he decided that the time had come for a literal counter punch regarding Jimmy and his usual machinations and he scurried off into the day, allowing for the story to catch up with Mister and Misses McGill and what they were up to in their daily lives. 
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Part of which was taking the time to learn exactly who was going to be at the helm of the Sandpiper mess, as part of their plan to bring down Howard and once again… this search seemingly hinted at Kim’s internal conflict with revenge since it was made clear how much she inspires good in others. And while she continued her slightly trepidatious investigation on all things Sandpiper, Saul Goodman’s business continued to grow. Since Francesca Liddy rejoined the firm… after some mad dash negotiations in front of that weird and random toilet. Which served to remind us once again how much closer we are to Saul’s arrival and domination of the New Mexican scumbag law market and this was all a joy to watch as well, since Rhea Seehorn and Bob Odenkirk bring electricity to every scene, they’re in.

But there was mention of multiple set ups for future showdowns and surprisingly… Howard set that in motion here. Because once we got comfortable in watching Kim and Jimmy going about their day, the episode dropped a surprise in our laps. One that saw Jimmy be called to a boxing ring under false pretenses by Howard to take part in an offer. Wherein he could box Howard in a fair fight, and hopefully get the fury out of his system and let this revenge go. An offer that Jimmy of course took up and while he got some solid shots in during round one… Howard emerged the victor and well, in the end… he used this whole fight, to size Jimmy up and saw his desire to fight as confirmation that trouble was brewing, and he quickly put a private investigator upon him.

A move that helped to serve to remind us that Howard Hamlin is no fool, and when properly motivated… can easily step ahead of his opponent, thusly setting the stage for a game of chess between Howard, and Jimmy and Kim and well, it will be interesting to see where all of these setups take us in the next few weeks. But what matters more, is that this episode does a fine job of reminding us of how special this series truly is. Because any other show making this kind of attempt to slow things down and focus on the nuances in its final season, would be lambasted by the fans and met with fury. But everyone that tunes in here… knows that we will be rewarded for our patience and that every little moment will pay off by the end and leave us in awe and wonder at everything we’ve just seen. Until next time.

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