Better Call Saul" is the spinoff/prequel to "Breaking Bad." Season 2 of the show just started; it airs on AMC on Tuesdays. If you haven't seen the show yet, go watch Season 1 now—it's on Netflix. It might not change your life, but it will certainly enhance it.
TV used to be a place for immature escapism, filled with the most digestible and safe content producers could, well, produce—and it still kind of is. That all changed (or at least improved) with the success of "Breaking Bad" (praise it). A show that didn't back down in its expose of addiction and the frustration of powerlessness, "Breaking Bad" excited us because it allowed for that ever so rare thrill of pulling off the impossible by combining dumb luck and immense willpower. We rooted for Walter at the start because he's relatable, a good guy who has to do what he has to do. But even at the end, we are still rooting and cheering despite his awful actions because we ultimately want the same thing he wants: the high of pulling off the impossible.
The spin-off series "Better Call Saul" gives us more of the same—but is more vibrant and unapologetic, much like Saul himself.
This would be the spot where I complain about how the TV industry will kick a perfectly good horse into an early grave by pushing it far beyond its original design. But I'm not going to because "Better Call Saul" is amazing and much more enchanting than its source ever was. I'm not knocking Walter; Jimmy (Saul) wouldn't have a story worth telling if it didn't live inside the great Heisenberg's shadow. But living in the shadow of "Breaking Bad" allows for a lot more playfulness without sacrificing depth. Because we already know the endpoint or fate of these characters and the topography of their setting is flat. "Breaking Bad" was like the "Lord of the Rings" saga, while "Better Call Saul" is "The Hobbit." There is just something magical about watching Jimmy/Saul (and Bilbo for that matter) talk his way out of situations with nothing but his own wit and charisma.
We get the same cinematography and attention to detail that defined "Breaking Bad" but with a much more captivating protagonist. Saul is simply the most lovable personality to ever hit any screen. Period.
"Better Call Saul" is more captivating possibly because it's an existential comedy where Jimmy (Saul) battles his own future, doing all that he can to avoid becoming the king rat attorney we all know he becomes. Like Oedipus, Jimmy's transformation is inevitable; nothing he does will prevent his fate (though not for lack of trying). But we will watch him try and try again to be the virtuous lawyer (and an astounding one) and see him thrown into the dirt time and time again until he snaps and transforms into the lovable but greasy Saul.
Season two just started, and while writing this, I haven't had time to see it yet, but I will as soon as I finish.
Can't wait, won't wait. Take me back to Albuquerque, baby