Plan and Execution

In the months to come, where Better Call Saul cements itself into the echelon of truly remarkable television shows, this will be one of the episodes pointed to as evidence of the show's greatness. For a "midseason finale", compared to really the only episode that makes sense, "Gliding Over All", this episode is by far the more impactful. The revelation Hank makes at the end of the episode, indeed as with "Plan and Execution" is indeed one that shifts the canvas sideways and completely changes the course of what has been building for four and a half seasons (or five and a half in this episode's case.)

Truly remarkable how something of such levity turned into the headstone that would contain the souls of Jimmy and Kim. Indeed, what was revealed to be their deceit was something that did relatively little harm, but it culminated with a "wrong place, wrong time" scenario whose harm is now immeasurable. The implications this has on the overall tone and writing of Better Call Saul are immense, but it, at the very least, has turned the entire atmosphere into one of morose and taints some of the brighter more congenial moments with a mar of doom. Truly an episode that will, for me at least, keep me from watching the series through such rose-colored glasses that knowing the harrowing outcome of some of these jovial plotlines glues them to the inevitable.

The beauty of Chuck's character is that his attitude and outlook made his death one of calloused exaltation (he indubitably dug his own grave by building the inescapable or perhaps insurmountable walls of isolation that would eventually drive him mad). Not much sympathy is felt for Chuck because he shunned the very world that allowed him his success, the world where Jimmys were allowed their guise, where his peers didn't revere him as a monolith, where his anxieties were tied to his career and not to dealing with the fallout of purposefully maligning his brother. Chuck loved Jimmy, but it was in denying this and failing to see that room exists in this world for Jimmy's antics and that he could even be bested by them should he take them on head-to-head. Chuck very well could have remained at the top if he accepted Jimmy for who he was in the world of law, but he believed that if Jimmy is able to operate in his field it delegitimizes all of the effort and honor and esteem Chuck saw in himself as he saw in the law. By always holding Jimmy to a lower standard, he was able to keep his mind and heart at ease that Jimmy couldn't amount to anything, and it was in this that Chuck saw Jimmy finding success as an afront to his own self-image. If Jimmy could do it, it made Chuck less. What he failed to realize, however, is that sleezy shyster Saul Goodman, if anything made the legal austerity of Chuck McGill that much more legitimate. In a way, having someone like Saul Goodman to undermine and manipulate the sanctity of the law made someone whose earnest diligence and ethical mastery of the law a testament to how prodigious they really were. So, him personally exalting Jimmy of pedigree and using Jimmy's love to lambast this point, effectively forced him to refuse the world of its empathy and drown in a pool of self-pity. It is hard to pity a man whose existence is marked by self-pity, and ultimately when one pities themselves so much they eventually reach the point where it becomes impossible even for oneself to pity themselves, and thus Chuck's story came to a satisfying end.

I won't say why that parallels this episode outright, to avoid spoilers, but to those who watched it, and understand the implication, it should be noted that this sentiment is not shared in light of this episode. It's a good sentiment to have when the main characters are the authors of the disasters in their story, so missing that sentiment after this episode makes it truly a tough pill to swallow.

As far as the episode as a whole went, however, there were moments of cinematographic genius (or stupidity), particularly in the earlier sequences, which really showcase just how much fun this show must be to make for the entire cast and crew. The pacing was stupendous, and I don't think I've felt this season much malaise to knowing how little time was left in the episode, but this episode could have been an hour longer and I would have no complaints. Every second of this episode was thrilling, and every development truly gunning for that endgame importance. With this episode we enter the final stages of the serious, and with this episode, I am, for the first time, extremely nervous how it will play out for Kim and Jimmy (particularly Kim, as we know Jimmy at least survives beyond Breaking Bad.) I'm also left wondering when they season cold opens intersect with the main story as there is very little (roughly 5-7 hours) of screentime left for the series and how those last handful of hours will play out is as big a mystery to me as this universe has ever presented. Surely we all knew Walt would eventually keep from maintaining his façade (technically, he only maintained it for the better part of two seasons until Skyler figured it out), and that it wouldn't end well for many of the actors involved, but only knowing that Jimmy, Mike, and Gus make it to Breaking Bad still leaves a lot of time for everyone else to eat the dust.

Overall, very impressed with this episode and how it weaves into the bigger picture. Still shocked. 10/10.

10/10 this is a masterpiece in television. This is art. It will be a sad day when there is no new content from Gilligan in the BB universe. We are watching Somthing absolutely special here folks.

Thomas Schnauz (Producer, Director and writer) directed this fine achievement in television history, for me it's among the top 10 episodes in Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad, "Plan and Execution" has everything an episode of these shows need to have and it's done brilliantly, crafting an episode you could gladly call cinema and art. There's the black comedy, top notch drama, sequences full of suspension and tension but most importantly unpredictability. No spoilers, but to describe the episode in one word, wow is the word I would use.

"Plan and Execution" is a direct continuation to the previous episode and the tension remains after Kim Wexler making that U-Turn to help Jimmy deal with a last-minute snag in their plan. But there's another story arc in the episode, in the show, it's of course the Cartel one. Lalo Salamanca and Gustavo Fring, how will it turn out? There's truly tension and suspension in every scene, and I loved every minute of it. Seeing D-Day happen and the plan Jimmy and Kim made come to fruition, well, I absolutely loved it. It's some of the best writing I've seen in television and really shows how a slow paced serialized show is the best kind of show, because of the satisfaction of watching 10+ episodes of planning and doing. I'm speechless. This was 50 minutes of superb television.

But the acting, what can I say about that? It focused mainly on Bob Odenkirk, Rhea Seehorn, Tony Dalton and Patrick Fabian. Everyone gives a brilliant and memorable performance. But the episode's best performance goes to Patrick Fabian as Howard Hamlin, I think he deserves it, it's award worthy. But there are so many performances worth talking about from Tony Dalton as Lalo Salamanca to Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill/Saul Goodman, and of course I have to say that Rhea Seehorn has been killing it this season, bringing performances that deserve all praise and acclaim, for this episode, if Seehorn doesn't get nominated for her work this season, it'll be weird. Tony Dalton and Bob Odenkirk is two others who deserves an award for this season, but especially Tony Dalton. He plays Lalo so calm but yet so ice-cold, Lalo Salamanca have grown to be one of my favorite villains in the show.

The cinematography, editing and direction is three things this show and Breaking Bad have never failed as it's always been consistent in quality, extraordinary quality. You notice it in the wide shots, camera placement and everything else the cinematographer does, brilliantly done. The set design, prop placement and well the overall production design, it's perfect and when they set up the camera in their usual remarkable way, everything just looks amazing. It's a team effort, making each scene work from the director to the actors and everywhere in-between.

"Plan and Execution" is an episode that'll leave you on the edge of your seat, with scenes that'll leave you speechless. Vince Gilligan along with the writing team, truly, phenomenal work. Having a guy like Thomas Schnauz directing the episode, a man with such knowledge of the characters and world, but also a veteran so he knows the actors. You see how this is his finest work, in every scene, every frame. He loves the world of Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, and we love him for it. He's one of many who have made this show, Better Call Saul, into the best spin-off show. For a Mid-season finale, this was the perfect way to end it, having us eagerly awaiting the second part of the final season, if it's going to be anything close to what we got in S6A, we're going to be in for one hell of a ride.

All good things come to an end.

With episode 7, the first half of season 6 concludes with a brutalist bang, crushing any concerns about the pacing of season 6 in a heartstopping instant.

Director Thomas Schnauz absolutely delivers:; flush with particularly elegant cinematographic flair, episode was cruel and unrelenting by all metrics, with fiery tension and ramifications that will echo across Gould and Gilligans universe for years.

One thing I particularly noticed was the foreboding sense of despair and downfall that underpinned the plot, travelling exactly where most viewers suspected but in a twisted, unique style packed to the brim with chicanery levels of emotion.

All in all, season 6a has been an emphatic success, with episode 1, 3 and 7 being the highlights.

Following Kim's U-Turn, a regroup and a reshoot, the plan to bring Howard down is finally launched. Meanwhile Lalo continues his slow progress towards bringing Gus down and gaining retribution from those who have done him wrong.

Both schemes collide with shocking, dramatic and tragic consequences.

Another fabulous top-drawer episode for mid-season.