In “hero” we get to see that
Saul is anything but as the episode starts where last week’s episode left off
after a short trip down memory lane where we see Saul in his criminal pomp back
in Cicero running a con on a mark.
There isn’t much truth to be
found in this week’s edition of Better Call Saul but then again, is there ever?
We begin the episode with Saul and a partner in crime scamming a mark for beer
money and after the opening credits, we hear the bullshit rationalizations from
the Kettlemans as to why they stole money and even why they deserve the money in all fairness!!
However Saul’s not exactly BS
free as he tries to get the Kettlemans to come home so he can get Nacho off the
hook and save his own skin. The Kettlemans however are not so keen on coming
back as coming back will make them guilty despite the fact they’re guilty as
sin.
The Kettlemans are so
determined not to go back or give back the money that they offer Saul a bribe
which he rejects, at first. After
refusing the Kettlemans bribe several times, Saul suggests that he can take the
money as a retainer to represent them legally. Saul then keys into sales patter
selling himself as a better alternative to HHM but is shut down by Mr’s
Kettleman with a galling but truthful line when she tells Saul he’s the “kind
of lawyer guilty people hire”.
Saul has suffered one gut punch
after another with nothing to show for it but in the next scene we see that
this time he come out smelling of roses and lot of money. So far, Better Call
Saul has been a tale about morally flawed man doing his best to fight his own
moral corruption and getting punished for it at every turn but in “hero”, we
see Saul become a little less morally conflicted and in the next few scenes
bask in the “glory” of his ill-gotten spoils.
But before that we see Saul
assert himself after Nacho accuses him of snitching. So far, we’ve seen Saul
wear his fear of Nacho for all to see but in “hero” Saul’s disdain for Nacho’s
crude methods would have got him caught without his “intervention”. Saul’s
disappointed with most things but his pet peeve is inefficient criminals as we
saw him castigate the twins for their choice of victim and rakes Nacho over the
coals for his crude plan to extort the Kettlemans with brute force.
In the few scenes we see Saul
return to his office making a paper trail for his new windfall that day before
spending some of his new funds on a new suit and haircut. However, in the next
scene we see what his transformation was for as Howard and Kim make a short tip
off the highway to reveal a hilariously large advertisement with Saul cut like
Howard from the hair to the winning smile promoting his “JMM” firm using the
same logo and font as HHM. For all the we’ve learned about Saul so far what has
clearly stuck out is his desire to compete with Howard and HHM despite him
knowing he’s up against the odds as he is, in his own words, a lemonade stand
going up against Wal-Mart.
And like the real Wal-Mart, HHM
doesn’t take competition lightly no matter how insignificant it is as we find
out when Kim makes a visit to Saul’s office with a cease and desist letter. Kim
clearly cares about Saul as she probes him over his motivations in poking
Howard and HHM in the eye by cloning his and the firms likeliness. Saul denies
it’s personal but we all it’s definitely personal as Howard, through his
brother, tried to get him to use another name than his own.
Since then Saul’s been looking
for a way to get at Howard and HHM and the ad, placed perfectly in a highway
Howard takes to get to work everday, was just another attempt to do it. Despite
Kim’s attempts to reason with Saul, Saul remains resolute in his personal war
with HHM and Howard in particular Kim (and Saul) knows he can’t win.
In the next scene we see Saul
and Howard in front of a judge making their cases with Howard accusing Saul of
trademark infringement as he stole the HHM logo and “Hamlindigo blue” font.
Saul counters with the fact that he’s being penalized by using his own name by
HHM causing a “restraint of trade” and basically cites them as being anti-competitive.
However, the judge wasn’t buying it and order Saul to take down the ad.
Despite another setback, we get
another montage showing Saul as his best trying to sell a story that frames him
as the little upstart being thwarted by a bigger and faceless corporation in
HHM. When that clearly doesn’t work, we see Saul resort to what he knows best,
the con game. This time Saul plays a con
on the press as he just happens to film a public message attempting to shame
HMM and the court that made him take down the billboard as he “saves” a billboard
installer who hangs suspended in the air screaming for help before Saul climbs
up and pulls him back up.
From the outset of Better Call
Saul we’ve seen that Saul has a real talent for deception and “hero” is no
different as his con on the press works perfectly as his local TV interview
after his “heroic” effort makes it into the HHM boardroom and regional
newspapers. He also gets 7 new messages on his answerphone which just might
help him deal with his painful anxiety in checking his messages in the future.
However his work isn’t done as
he has to hide all evidence of the con away from Chuck who can see through Saul’s
bullshit a mile away. Knowing full well the truth will break his brother’s heart;
Saul lies through his teeth about his recent success crediting his brother’s
sage advice for the turnaround. While pleased with brother’s recent success, it
clear that Chuck smells a rat and thanks to an episode induced by his desire to
read a local paper, his suspicion are confirmed.
All in all, “Hero” was another
solid episode with Bob Odenkirk putting in another great performance.
Till next week!!
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