"Better Call Saul" Recap: "Amarillo"

Written by John Edward Betancourt

There is a quote from last week's episode of Better Call Saul that Jimmy said mere moments before explaining the Hoboken Squat Cobbler that continues to resonate with me; "who among us is without sin." It sticks with me for one particular reason...Jimmy is right. We've all made our share of mistakes over the years, but thankfully the vast majority of folks have a moral center and support network that allows for us to right our wrongs and get on with our lives.

Of course there is a flip side to that as well, there are folks without such benefits in life and we know that their stories often end in tragic fashion and then there are people like Jimmy McGill...caught in the middle of it all. I say that because, James is a man always on the edge, now with a good job and a seemingly good support network in his girlfriend Kim...but Slippin' Jimmy is always there with him, ready to take over on a moment's notice, to blur that line between what's wrong and what's right and the conflict between the two sides of his personality took center stage during last night's episode "Amarillo". 

All of this incredible conflict came from a grand attempt from Jimmy to walk the line between right and wrong. Somewhere he truly thought he could find the balance in getting exactly what he needed by any means necessary, all while proving to his brother and others that he is the excellent lawyer we know he can be and well...the results were interesting to say the least and heartbreaking to watch. After all that stunning opening with Jimmy doing his thing and convincing 24 Sandpiper residents was just incredible, until we saw it all come crashing back down to earth with Chuck cutting through the B.S. and pointing out the fact that it was basically solicitation. Which of course led to another Saul Goodman moment with Jimmy making that powerhouse commercial and making the ballsy decision to air the sucker without approval in Colorado Springs.

Those two key points are absolutely killing me when it comes to this show, in a good way of course because holy hell...Jimmy McGill is actually a brilliant man. He knows exactly what to say and how to say it to get under your skin and make you a believer in just about anything and what's just so tragic about this season...is that he is actually trying to do the right thing. He legitimately knows Sandpiper is in the wrong and that these seniors are getting the short end of the stick, he's just going about everything the wrong way and that moral dilemma is what keeps me coming back for more. Fact of the matter is, Chuck is right about Sandpiper's legal team spotting solicitation and in a way he's trying to guide Jimmy and the younger McGill just isn't getting the damn hint.

That makes the ending of last night's episode all the more powerful. Jimmy's quest for justice at any cost may now blow up in his face at Davis and Main since he didn't show or consult Cliff in any form or fashion about his wildly successful video and that's what hurts the most. Jimmy had his chance to show Cliff, to sell the boss on why this is such a great idea and since he made the call on his own...there's likely no hope in backtracking now and the fallout from this may only push Jimmy further toward the dark side.  Either way, this was simply another magnificent episode of the show and to be honest, it really seems that every week the show just keeps getting better and I'm aching to know how this meeting with Cliff is going to go, but sadly we have to wait a week to find out. Oh, and on a side note, kudos to the show for doing its research and getting the call signs and channel number of the TV station in Colorado Springs right, it really is KKTV Channel 11, and being a Colorado native, that's pretty freaking awesome. Until next time. 

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