Better Call Saul: Switch review

I’m happy to begin regular reviews for this show, having not started my blog when the last series was around. Better Call Saul is a great show, as intricate and well made as Breaking Bad and, it’s important to note, a different beast to the meth-focused predecessor.

Don’t think this is a show about crime and criminals though that is a part of it, this is a show about law and how Jimmy McGill became the morally bankrupt Saul Goodman. How many shows do you know in which you know exactly where the main character is heading and it’s about him becoming a bad man that makes it interesting?

Any spin-off of one of the most successful and lauded TV shows of all time would have a hard time of convincing people of its own merit and whilst Saul has such a strong connection to Breaking Bad, through the main character, it manages to be as interesting and meticulously thought out as it’s parent show.

The first episode of the new series is deliciously crafted, with excellent writing, beautiful cinematography and great performances. The attention to detail is intelligent and fascinating and the amount of depth woven into the script is breathtaking.

The black and white visions of future Saul in a Cinnabon are developing more and I hope we will get to see more of it in the future. The moment where he approaches a fire exit and doesn’t go through it because of his past is a moment that shows how different he is from his Breaking Bad days.

The rest of the episode plays out as Jimmy struggles with his morals and his slippin’ Jimmy ways. He lounges in a pool after turning down a prestigious job offer, cons a sleazy businessman with Kim and ends up going to work for another law firm, but with something other than the law on his mind.

We also catch up with Daniel, the man who Mike acted as a bodyguard for last season, and who, after deciding to go to his meeting with Nacho alone, becomes the subject of a robbery. It’s great how the writers choose to spend so much time with something or someone that seems unimportant, there are a good few minutes spent with Daniel being investigated by the police and it’s interesting to see these sort of scenes play out in relation to the main thrust of the show.

So far this is a solid and enjoyable show and with it’s continued detail and excellent writing, it can be a truly great piece of work.