[rating=8.00]
“I hate to say it, but it’s kind of a bummer being back in Saul’s company.”
Those were my initial thoughts during “Bingo,” Better Call Saul‘s fifth episode. While the show’s narrative momentum has swung like a pendulum all season, last week’s “Five-O” suggested a thrilling alternate-series focused on resident bad-ass / cop-killer Mike Ehrmantraut. And after that aberration of Breaking Bad-tinted brilliance (flashback to Mike screaming “I BROKE MY BOY!!!), I wasn’t ready to sink back into the murk of Jimmy McGill’s elder law, his awkward sexual tension with stone-faced, possible former fuck-buddy Kim Wexler, and the exhausting Life and Times of Anti-Electromangetism Man (aka Jimmy’s brother, Chuck).
But “Bingo” left me pleasantly surprised — returning to its dominantly dry-comedy format, the show managed to harness some actual plot development. While a Mike spin-off still sounds pretty damn good right now, Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould have re-earned my patience, at least for another week.
Do the Right Thing, a Saul Goodman Joint
In the episode’s most resonant scene, Jimmy places the Kettlemans’ embezzled $1.6 million – including his own hush-money – into a drawstring bag and hands it over to Albuquerque’s soon-to-be fixer, Mike. “What are you doing?,” Mike asks. “The right thing,” Jimmy responds, between sighs.
The set-up: Kim informs the Kettlemans that their best bet is to return the cash, have Craig serve a year-and-a-half in prison, and plan their future. But they’re not interested in cutting deals, so they scurry back to a disinterested Jimmy, who informs them about his new career filing living wills. Only one problem: the $30,000 he weaseled after finding the family on their bullshit “camping trip” in the backyard. After some clever blackmail from the Kettlemans, Jimmy figures out a way to save Kim, the only innocent person in this crooked situation. He must fall on his sword.
So, in an elaborate scene of Breaking Bad-like criminal detail, Mike sends a cash-carrying remote-controlled car to the Kettlemans’ house; once Craig notices the cash – which is stained with chemicals – and picks it up, stashing it away under the bathroom sink. Once the family’s finished with their lame-ass board games, Mike breaks in nonchalantly and hauls off with the loot. Confronting the Kettlemans, Jimmy turns the tables – telling them they’d better come clean (and give Kim their service) now that the money’s on its way to the pesky DEA. Now he can’t afford that fancy new office space, but at least Kim owes him one.
I loved everything about this scenario – from the clever role-reversals to Jimmy’s morality play to, well, Mike being himself.
Fuck Chuck
But, like always, Chuck is ready to spoil the party. But where his stilted electromagnetism subplot reached a pinnacle of pointlessness in “Alpine Shepherd Boy,” at least “Bingo” gave us actual plot advancement, albeit passively. This week, Chuck makes the brave decision to – wait for it – step outside into his yard. It’s an attempt to build his immunity to electromagnetism, and….Jesus, who cares? Week after week, this is the least important part of the show, and it still feels like Gilligan and Gould are unclear of its significance. But…Chuck did step outside. And considering his curious fumbling through Jimmy’s files, it seems like Mr. Space Blanket might be prepping for a return to the law game. Whatever, I’ll take it.
(Also, this scene gave us the amazing pleasure of hearing Jimmy refer to himself as “your friendly neighborhood ice cream man. That’s some Bob Odenkirk circa Mr. Show shit.)
Hot Mike
While “Bingo” was primarily a Jimmy episode, it struck a much better balance between its main characters. Instead of being relegated to a parking attendant booth, Mike is given an opportunity to advance his story; picking up where “Five-O” left off, the outlaw calls Jimmy to help him save face after nabbing the young cop’s notebook. It’s a subtle but effective scene that bridges the Jimmy/Mike stories, and it’s always a pleasure watching those two dudes love to hate each other. They’re TV’s best odd couple (cue the opening credits of an actual Jimmy/Mike Odd Couple series).
And Mike is perfection during the remote-controlled car gambit – his wordless, methodical maneuvering both hilarious and slightly chilling. “We square?” he asks Jimmy afterward. Yep, we square.
