he left the driver alive and they ended up killing an innocent bystander. This also changes him and he realizes killing people in the game is ultimately always better than killing innocent people
I'm pretty sure he also goes out of his way to recover the body so the dead man's family can finally have some comfort. Pretty nice they made a cold ruthless grandpa into a troubled moral man
I just want Vince Gilligan and company to keep on doing more series; I don’t need more breaking bads, I need more of that type of writing and directing; could be any subject or matter, their work it’s too good to be true in the current webseries/apps world
There is no better writing, directing or cinematography in Television. There are tons of great shows that have come out recently (Fargo, Mr. Robot, Succession, Barry, just to name a few) but Vince, Peter and their crew are practically untouchable. This is the caliber of writing George Lucas (and subsequently, Disney) wishes he (they) possessed. " It's like poetry, it has to rhyme."
@@MeanStreamFraudCast Im sorry but "Fargo" is on another tier from Mr Robot, Sucession and Barry. Its an insult to include Fargo with those shows and I enjoy Barry. Succession and Mr Robot are honestly corny in my opinion.
The creators and writers of BCS and BB are truly on another level of storytelling, character building, attention to detail, cinematography and casting. There truly is nothing else out there touching Better Call Saul and ive seen all the "supposed" other great shows but all pale in comparison.
That scene in particular (where Saul realizes Walt killed Mike) is one of my few issues with BCS. In that scene, Saul doesn't really react all that emotionally when confronting the killer of a man he had a pretty tight bond with. In BB we just really got the impression that he was just a 'fixer' type dude that Saul occasionally employed, but in BCS we learn that they have this mutual respect thing and of course about Mike having saved Jimmy's life in the desert. Makes me wonder if there's some sort of falling out between them at end of this show.
@@wyomingptt there's a lot of sauls personal life we don't get to see. I can imagine he was scared to show disapproval in front of Heisenberg. Also at this point he's more corrupted than we saw in BCS. He suggested to Walt to kill someone to get rid of them, which I can't yet picture Jimmy doing. Also also, Mikes in the game and knew the risk, maybe he sees it like that.
Well I don't think I'm in the minority when I say Mike was never a sadistic guy in Breaking Bad, compared to someone like Tuco that enjoys violence. I always viewed it just as a very efficient guy, he doesn't enjoy killing but he also doesn't lie to himself or try to justify his actions, he knows who he is. The parallel between Walt and Werner was cool though I didn't know that
He did start off as a more ruthless character who would kill or injure anyone who stood in his way or whoever he was order to by Gus. He did try to kill both Jesse and Walt at different points and threatened to kill Saul and bury him in the desert if he didn’t give up Jesse. I think BB and (even more so) BCS had to soften his edges in order to make him more likable. Same with Nacho…and probably a bit too much so. He was a foot soilder for the cartel but he was morphed into a bit of a teddy bear/wounded puppy. I understand why, just didn’t make sense overall
@@patrickthomas8890 weird criticism. breaking bad and better call Saul are shows entirely about people losing their moral compass and slowly turning into monsters because of circumstance. As for Nacho, he was always a small time thug. He’s scary in season 1 because we only really see him through Jimmy’s perspective. He steals and rips people off, but he’s not a sadistic killer like the Salamancas and Gus
@@patrickthomas8890 I don't think it's bad or unnatural for Nacho or Mike, as we got to see more of them we see they have family's and at least understood and accepted they weren't exactly doing good things. Even when Nacho's trying to get out of the game by killing Hector they make it a point he's still willing to beat the shit out of Krazy8 without complaint. I'm honestly more curious about Saul, in BCS he's corrupt no doubt, but he's still against killing. Compare this to BB where Saul suggests killing Badger, Hank, and Jesse and has his suggestions shot down by Walt.
@@patrickthomas8890 BB is about characters becoming morally compromised because of the terrible things they do, and you dont think it makes sense for mike to start off as a nicer guy in the prequel? Come on bro
Same feeling when I rewatch Mike & Jesse's road trip, and Mike start to like and protect Jesse like an uncle all along the season 4 of Breaking Bad. in BCS after the "Nacho fate episode", the fact that Mike failed to save"the kid" make me look his relationship with Jesse with more tenderness. I like to think Mike still have Nacho in mind when he helps the "new kid".
The scene where Mike says, "I broke my boy and they killed him anyway," changed the ending in Breaking Bad where Mike dies so completely - it is such genius because he ended up doing the same thing to his crew and Heisenberg kills them all in prison. It's just the same thing over and over.
And not only that, but with Walter breaking his OWN family. I think Jesse was the only one who broke the cycle of constantly doing the same thing over, and over again. He (Jesse) went down the road, but in the end, he didn't have to anything like Mike, or Walt.
An even more clear way in which new subtext is added to Breaking Bad through Better Call Saul is how Gus eventually turns Mike's words of "I don't believe fear is an effective motivator" back on him. This packs a lot of meaning now that we have full context of how Mike was right on how the fear approach backfired on Nacho.
@@juliang8676 Threatening Nacho's father opened up the possibility for a lot of things to go wrong. Nacho was extremely close to going rogue before the Salamanca twins found him and he only went along with Gus' plan after Mike guaranteed his father's safety (ie. Dropping the fear approach) and not even smoothly at that when Nacho's last stand could've put Gus and everyone there in immediate danger had he not gone out on his own terms.
"Werner" "Heisenberg" It's why Mike underestimated Walt in that moment. He thought he was killing another milquetoast guy ike Werner who made some big mistakes. But he underestimated him. "Full Measure" is my favorite episode out of either series.
I love how when Jesse and Walt kidnap Saul, the first thing he asks is if they're with Lalo, it's terrifying to think that the end of BCS will either have Saul not knowing if Lalo is alive or dead, or both Saul and us, the audience, not knowing
He's definitely dead, Gus knows he's 100% still alive, cause he heard him on the phone recording when he called his uncle. And Lalo isn't just going to forgive Gus or move on, he's out for revenge, so it can only end up one way. Specially cause he would never abandon family
I actually thought Mike was sincere when he said it, without seeing BCS. Mike goes out of his way to counsel Walt a few times. Which is why I thought he at least mildly liked Walt.
Yeah I never took his words to be hollow in BB either. He was resigned to the fact and was going to do it without hesitation, but I did take his words as genuine.
He hated Walt later on. I don't think he ever liked him, I do agree his words aren't hollow though. He is apologising, but he won't lose any sleep over it.
@@jamesduffy7549 Well I mean yeah, he ruined his plans and shot him. I also didn't say he wouldn't lose sleep over it. I'm just saying I felt he meant it, before BCS revealed more of his character. Mike is practical. His killing always seemed like business. You see him with his grand daughter, you see him with Jesse. His shields his heart from the work. A lot of people do that.
Extremely impressive analysis from the one and only “Tuff Specialist”. The way he breaks down subtle clues and adds depth to his analysis by showcasing relevant analogies, Mr. Specialist creates a wonderful viewing experience for his target audience. These videos are so good that I lose track of all time, watching each video on replay from sun up to sun down. Cheers to you Mr. Specialist, you’ve changed my life forever.
It's a prequel but there's a sequel timeline (Gene's), that helps a lot with what you said about the prequel problem of knowing what is going to happen to the characters. And to be fair, the uncertainty of Kim's fate is what carries the show.
@@RenaldyCalixte It's depiction of pre-dark side Vader is still class though and makes him easier to sympathise with in ROTJ (despite a particular scene involving younglings)
"There are two types of heists. Those where the guys get away with it and those that leave witnesses" -Mike in Breaking Bad It's very interesting when you consider the fact that, in BCS, Nacho and the Salamanca members are surprised by Mike's decision to spare the driver. Leaving behind witnesses was something the old Mike WAS capable of
Jonathan Banks is such a great actor I felt all that subtext of him talking to Walt even before Better Call Saul confirmed it. What a terrific actor and man.
Honestly on a simpler note, i love that lives actually mean something in Better Call Saul. I had no problem with people dying and killing in BB (maybe besides crazy eight) and the cartel in BB was more of a little team that Walter White would beat easily. but in Better Call Saul i really feel for lives lost and really feel the danger of the cartel.
I understood why BCS is enhancing BB so much when I thought about Werner's fate. I wondered if Werner was buried in that lab, which would add so much sad detail to just the background of many scenes in Breaking Bad. Either way, everytime I see Jesse jumping around in there like a balloon or anything else happening, like the fly, I think of naive Werner dying for it.
Also explains why Mike was so mad at and ready to kill Walt when he found out about Fring's death and the destruction of the lab. He realized that Walt was more dangerous than before and could ruin decades of hard work easily.
Mikes speach about choices is the backbone of what breaking bad and better call saul was built on. Such a brilliant segment from the actor that plays mike
Yeah, Peter Gould and Vince said that we gonna start to see de BrBa characters in a different way, and that's true. Mike in BrBa was just a executioner for me until season 5, and after BCS I could understand how deep and sad this character is, that he don't love to do it, and that after going through so much he will do anything to take care of what left in his life, even if he has to do what he hates most: kill. *I don't speak english very well yet, maybe theres some errors in the comment.*
I write in English for a living and your comment is fine! Not everything is strictly "correct" but it's easy to parse and understand, and any "errors" are roughly in line with how a lot of English slang speakers end up talking anyway, especially online. You're doin' good, dude.
Good English my guy, like the other comment said “don’t” just replace it with doesn’t except for when you write something like “I don’t speak English very well yet”, where you used don’t correctly
Also just to add to this, after watching bcs you really see Walter as more of an evil villain for everything he has done to these characters we’ve started to consider just as central as Jesse or Walter now.
Don’t you just love the algorithm sometimes? Channel with 5k subs is getting some shine because they hit the sweet spot for the algorithm. Hope this spells some success for you my dude.
I’m 100% sure this has been said before, but I also like how Mike’s relationship with Nacho parallels his relationship with Jesse, and adds a whole new layer of tragedy and heart to how it ends in Breaking Bad.
Every scene is a classic. When a new episode comes I realise how lucky I am to experience for the first time. No other series comes close for me - In terms of how much it engages me from the dialogue, to the camera angles, not without mentions the actual story that’s going on. Peter and Vince are maters of their craft. Very Tarantinoesque
3:40 I see the Mike story in this episode as an elaborate way to answer the question Nacho asks in the end. When Mike talks to the gun salesman, the moment he decides to leave and chooses not the purchase a gun is when he remembers the original use of the weapons. He complains about the decision to send the fragile guns into a jungle, implying that he served in Vietnam. The Vietnam war and atrocities committed there are likely the motivators for his pacifism we see in his early years in Albuquerque.
I also like to think that bcs and brb did similar things to their main characters, but do them in opposite ways. Breaking bad starts off with Walter being somewhat sympathetic, he’s a man with cancer and is just trying to leave something for his family, but as the story progresses you see that vault is truly kinda a scumbag and eventually absolutely insane and kinda evil. In better call Saul we get to see the opposite, our starting impression of Saul going into the prequel (assuming you’ve watch breaking bad) is that he was going to be a sleazy womanizing criminal lawyer. But what we see is the tragic sympathetic tale of how someone like jimmy could become Saul
I think part of the reason why BCS worked so well is because it focused on characters who were fairly disconnected to the main series’ plot, characters and their inner circles. For example, a prequel focused on Skylar or Jesse wouldn’t have been as impactful as what we have now. Another example is that I highly doubt a prequel trilogy with Star Wars would have done as well if it focused on Leia, her adoptive family and the workings of Alderaan
The biggest complaints about the prequels were Vader’s origins, the prequel trilogy was way more bogged down by its connections to the original trilogy and fan service. Of course it’s fine if people like Anakin in the prequels but it’s inevitable that the backstory for such an iconic villain would disappoint people.
It amazes me that Hollywood has thousands upon thousands of writers and directors; and it seems like only a very small handful can create such a beautiful art.
@@MitsubishiLancerEvo and then the irony is they end up making money… you’d think Hollywood would catch on. I guess their whole thing is pumping out crap on the smallest budget and wondering why it isn’t working out for them!
@Raylan Givens Shitty movies and shitty TV shows that did nothing but try and make money have always existed. It's not a new thing. The reason why you do not know about them is because of the simple reason of they weren't going for anything but money and have been forgotten to time. Movies/TV are about making money. It may not matter if the person writing or directing it cares about the money, but the producers and ever single "little guy" working on it does care about money. Now making something someone might get something out of and also making money while you're at it is what makes film making stand out from other jobs.
This was a fantastic watch, and the editing that goes along with the narration is top-notch. Wow! I’d love to see you do a similar video, but with Jimmy/Saul scenes. Boy, am I gonna miss this show!
I don’t know about you guys, but my Breaking Bad DVD set already came with subtext. You just need to turn them on in the options menu. Hope this helps somebody!
6:47 just brought back a lot of nostalgia . It was dec 2014, and I randomly click the Amc channel cuz I needed something playing in the background while I played smash bros for the Wii U and a show called “breaking bad” was having a marathon . First scene I watched was a old man and a guy with blonde hair riding a car , dropping off things while a Spanish song played in the background . Then during commercials the better call Saul “ coming soon” commercial would play . Didn’t know who the fuck Saul was or why a old man is giving this guy who is just trying to smoke a cig a pimento sandwich .😂. Don’t worry a couple years later around 2017 I finally watched breaking bad and all it’s glory
something to add: after mike spared the truck driver but they got killed anyway, i think he took on a mindset of "if it's not me killing them it'd be someone else," hence why finger started killing more after that.
I could figure out just by the thumbnail and title that this must be comparing Mike and Werner to Mike and Walt. Helluva parallel and contrast. Glad I knocked right.
Thinking about Werner, it’s crazy how Mike saw Walt as just another problem employee who broke Gus’ trust and needed to be dealt with. Imagine how crazy the following events would look if we didn’t follow Walt’s story and just saw Mike’s perspective leading on from BCS
I never thought Mike heartless, even in Breaking Bad. And though Better Call Saul does add nouance to this already good character, I believed Mike without that context, that he was sorry and that it was unfortunate. He didn't really wanted to do it, but saw no other way (to not end up a target himself). He was more sympathetic for me, than what Walter would become (and already was at that point). I still like your insights here. Thanks for a cool video.
Hey man, your channel is incredible. You do an amazing job with the quality of what you’re putting out. Definitely underrated. I expect to see this channel blow up at some point very soon. Can’t wait to say I’ve been here since around 3.5k subscribers! Very well done. Excited to see more of your work.
This was a great breakdown of how character development is so impressive in this series. Would love to see you do one on Gus as well if you haven't already!
I agree to some extent, but I'm troubled with few other aspects in the subtexting between BB and BCS. Remember the ticking time bomb comment from mike? He saw Walter's lust for power and was alarmed by it. Then why is he fine with Gus is acting in BCS? Is it because Mike sees that Walter is turning out just like Gus? This could make sense if it was not for the sentence Mike said right before he died: 'We had a good thing you stupid ***, we had Fring .....(etc.)'. He appears to value Gus over the moon. When I saw this, I interpreted it the way that Gus really was a good and honourable man. Our perspective through Walter is just biased and Walter is the real bad guy. Then we get BCS. Gus makes Mike murder Werner, forces Nacho in a helpless position and finally makes Nacho kill himself. What a monster! At the time of Mike's words Walter was nowhere near as evil as Gus. You can argue that Walter was after these 9 men of Gus in prison, but on the other hand, killing dozens of people wasn't any big deal for Mike when the Gus asked for it. Somehow Mike regards Gus highly through BB, which doesn't make any sense for me. Especially after how he's been shown to act in BCS.
I didn't get the impression that Mike thought Gus was a good man. Only that he ran a tight operation and provided him with a fortune. Mike respected Gus and the stable business he ran. Still he wasn't that attached to Gus, since he was willing to work with the people who killed him.
At this point, I think the more spin off shows about breaking bad characters the better. Let's get a show about Holly and Flynn and how hard it is for them to grow up with everyone knowing their dad was the most infamous drug kingpin in the history of the United States. Let's get a show about the Salamancas rise to power and infamy in Mexico. Fuck it. Let's get a show all about Huell
we know we are going to see walter and jesse in better call saul season 6 yes, but i just hope we see jimmys reaction to mikes death! we never really saw him react or mention anything about his former companion in crime , and it would be a good time to show it before ending the story
His “older” look in BCS could be explained by him previously being a heavy drinker and depressed over his sons death, and the renewed sense of purpose in providing for his granddaughter and working for Gus brought him back down a few ages.
It's a bit of cruel irony just how opposite the two instances are when Mike was going to kill Walter vs how Walter killed Mike. Mike takes no pleasure in killing Walt / Walt kills Mike out of spite. Walt offers to rat out Jesse to save himself / Mike refuses to release the names of his men "Mike, you don't have to do this" / "I'm sorry Mike. This.. this whole thing could have been avoided"
Exactly. When I first watched BB, even though I enjoyed the character of Mike, I simply saw Mike as a cold-blooded killer villain. I was even relieved when Mike died. After watching BCS, I changed my view of him, his death now makes me choke. Now he is my favorite character.
Mike may have started as an add-on character... But he's quickly proven to be the one that has the strongest code, a code that he fights for all the time, even with Gus...
Part of me wants Vince Gilligan to stay in this universe and do another story about Lalo... part of me wants to see what happens when he is completely free to create a completely new world. Either way, I am excited to see what comes next from this, and I mean this, genius.
I love this video so much and I always come back to it. Idc what anyone says “the guy.” Monologue was about nacho. Sure it was originally about Vincent. But with the context, it becomes “I have never felt so worried about my life since nacho. However, nacho was worth worrying about. You are not.”
you should do an analysis on gus fring saying he doesnt thing fear is a proper motivator, and then parallel it back to Mike's same sentiment. Show the change in Gus's character throughout his rise and fall. It's probably my favorite character arc and commitment to nuance that never wavers. Giancarlo is so consistent, whether he's vile and ruthless in BCS, or has mellowed and sincerely trying to be better as we come to see him in BB.
I don’t think Vince and Co have created a bad or uninteresting character yet. From high up like Walter White or Saul Goodman all the way down to people like Wendy or Ernesto
@@LittlePawPup that’s funny. I almost done with watching season 4 again and I’ve been seeing a lot of Ted and I have to disagree. I think Beneke can hang with the rest of them
I think Mike evolved starting in Breaking Bad bc the writers wanted to/needed to make him more traditionally likeable and become someone to root for instead of just a henchman serving the villain
Instant follow! Such a good show. Saul's character change from better call saul to bb is heartbreaking. It's like he becomes a caricature of himself in bb.
he left the driver alive and they ended up killing an innocent bystander. This also changes him and he realizes killing people in the game is ultimately always better than killing innocent people
Great observation!
I'm pretty sure he also goes out of his way to recover the body so the dead man's family can finally have some comfort. Pretty nice they made a cold ruthless grandpa into a troubled moral man
Yes
He's like Batman in BCS lol
@@billross9132 except for that time he was complicit in dissolving the body of the kid on the bike, erasing any evidence of him
I just want Vince Gilligan and company to keep on doing more series; I don’t need more breaking bads, I need more of that type of writing and directing; could be any subject or matter, their work it’s too good to be true in the current webseries/apps world
Agreed. I can't wait to see what they do after BCS with all the skills they've honed over the last 14 years.
They do got some magic in their fingertips
There is no better writing, directing or cinematography in Television. There are tons of great shows that have come out recently (Fargo, Mr. Robot, Succession, Barry, just to name a few) but Vince, Peter and their crew are practically untouchable. This is the caliber of writing George Lucas (and subsequently, Disney) wishes he (they) possessed. " It's like poetry, it has to rhyme."
@@MeanStreamFraudCast Im sorry but "Fargo" is on another tier from Mr Robot, Sucession and Barry. Its an insult to include Fargo with those shows and I enjoy Barry. Succession and Mr Robot are honestly corny in my opinion.
The creators and writers of BCS and BB are truly on another level of storytelling, character building, attention to detail, cinematography and casting. There truly is nothing else out there touching Better Call Saul and ive seen all the "supposed" other great shows but all pale in comparison.
I also adore how it flavors Mike and Jimmy's relationship. Saul watches this "Walter White" kill the most competent man he's ever met...
That scene in particular (where Saul realizes Walt killed Mike) is one of my few issues with BCS. In that scene, Saul doesn't really react all that emotionally when confronting the killer of a man he had a pretty tight bond with. In BB we just really got the impression that he was just a 'fixer' type dude that Saul occasionally employed, but in BCS we learn that they have this mutual respect thing and of course about Mike having saved Jimmy's life in the desert. Makes me wonder if there's some sort of falling out between them at end of this show.
@@wyomingptt there's a lot of sauls personal life we don't get to see. I can imagine he was scared to show disapproval in front of Heisenberg. Also at this point he's more corrupted than we saw in BCS. He suggested to Walt to kill someone to get rid of them, which I can't yet picture Jimmy doing. Also also, Mikes in the game and knew the risk, maybe he sees it like that.
@@8bitmagic - In the extended scene, "Belize...where Mike went." he's badly shaken.
@@sirkayda7205 we need the extended version of BrBa and BCS. I love some of the cut scenes.
@@8bitmagic - I agree
The criminal world running like clockwork for years upon years:
Some guy with cancer: I'm gonna do what's called a pro gamer move
Walter White Leeroy Jenkins'd Gus Fring's entire operation.
Well I don't think I'm in the minority when I say Mike was never a sadistic guy in Breaking Bad, compared to someone like Tuco that enjoys violence. I always viewed it just as a very efficient guy, he doesn't enjoy killing but he also doesn't lie to himself or try to justify his actions, he knows who he is. The parallel between Walt and Werner was cool though I didn't know that
He did start off as a more ruthless character who would kill or injure anyone who stood in his way or whoever he was order to by Gus. He did try to kill both Jesse and Walt at different points and threatened to kill Saul and bury him in the desert if he didn’t give up Jesse. I think BB and (even more so) BCS had to soften his edges in order to make him more likable. Same with Nacho…and probably a bit too much so. He was a foot soilder for the cartel but he was morphed into a bit of a teddy bear/wounded puppy. I understand why, just didn’t make sense overall
@@patrickthomas8890 There's also the factor that we have a more limited perspective on the characters.
For example, saul's view of what mike was like
@@patrickthomas8890 weird criticism. breaking bad and better call Saul are shows entirely about people losing their moral compass and slowly turning into monsters because of circumstance. As for Nacho, he was always a small time thug. He’s scary in season 1 because we only really see him through Jimmy’s perspective. He steals and rips people off, but he’s not a sadistic killer like the Salamancas and Gus
@@patrickthomas8890 I don't think it's bad or unnatural for Nacho or Mike, as we got to see more of them we see they have family's and at least understood and accepted they weren't exactly doing good things. Even when Nacho's trying to get out of the game by killing Hector they make it a point he's still willing to beat the shit out of Krazy8 without complaint. I'm honestly more curious about Saul, in BCS he's corrupt no doubt, but he's still against killing. Compare this to BB where Saul suggests killing Badger, Hank, and Jesse and has his suggestions shot down by Walt.
@@patrickthomas8890 BB is about characters becoming morally compromised because of the terrible things they do, and you dont think it makes sense for mike to start off as a nicer guy in the prequel? Come on bro
I'm sure it's not a coincidence that Ziegler's first name is "Werner", to complement Walter White's alias, "Heisenberg".
Nothing is a coincidence when it comes to these writers
@@TuffSpecialistYT True!
Sure but it adds nothing to the story. Some bcs fans fawn over easter eggs and camera angles way too much
@@woahblackbettybamalam For me it's just fun speculation. I actually don't take it that seriously to be honest.
@@woahblackbettybamalam it's draws a comparison between Mike's situation with Werner and Walt.
Same feeling when I rewatch Mike & Jesse's road trip, and Mike start to like and protect Jesse like an uncle all along the season 4 of Breaking Bad.
in BCS after the "Nacho fate episode", the fact that Mike failed to save"the kid" make me look his relationship with Jesse with more tenderness. I like to think Mike still have Nacho in mind when he helps the "new kid".
The whole 'you are not the guy' speech hits a lot harder when you're thinking about Nacho.
people always made comparisons between Ignacio & Jesse---
they both reminded Mike of his own son...
The scene where Mike says, "I broke my boy and they killed him anyway," changed the ending in Breaking Bad where Mike dies so completely - it is such genius because he ended up doing the same thing to his crew and Heisenberg kills them all in prison. It's just the same thing over and over.
his relationship with Jesse & Nacho both make alot of sense
Never ending cycle
And not only that, but with Walter breaking his OWN family.
I think Jesse was the only one who broke the cycle of constantly doing the same thing over, and over again.
He (Jesse) went down the road, but in the end, he didn't have to anything like Mike, or Walt.
An even more clear way in which new subtext is added to Breaking Bad through Better Call Saul is how Gus eventually turns Mike's words of "I don't believe fear is an effective motivator" back on him. This packs a lot of meaning now that we have full context of how Mike was right on how the fear approach backfired on Nacho.
Daaaaamn. Didn’t pick up on that, this show only gets better and better omg
Wait how did the fear approach backfire on nacho? Gus using fear essentially saved him when it came to nacho
@@juliang8676 Threatening Nacho's father opened up the possibility for a lot of things to go wrong. Nacho was extremely close to going rogue before the Salamanca twins found him and he only went along with Gus' plan after Mike guaranteed his father's safety (ie. Dropping the fear approach) and not even smoothly at that when Nacho's last stand could've put Gus and everyone there in immediate danger had he not gone out on his own terms.
I mean, if they didn’t kill Werner, a lot of the Lalo stuff that happens wouldn’t have happened...
"Werner" "Heisenberg"
It's why Mike underestimated Walt in that moment. He thought he was killing another milquetoast guy ike Werner who made some big mistakes. But he underestimated him. "Full Measure" is my favorite episode out of either series.
I love how when Jesse and Walt kidnap Saul, the first thing he asks is if they're with Lalo, it's terrifying to think that the end of BCS will either have Saul not knowing if Lalo is alive or dead, or both Saul and us, the audience, not knowing
Welp. Saul knows.
Well NOW we know why Saul was so horrified.
We know he’s dead. Gus confirms it in Breaking Bad season 4.
@@jediman6166 or is that what they *want* us to think.
He's definitely dead, Gus knows he's 100% still alive, cause he heard him on the phone recording when he called his uncle. And Lalo isn't just going to forgive Gus or move on, he's out for revenge, so it can only end up one way. Specially cause he would never abandon family
I actually thought Mike was sincere when he said it, without seeing BCS. Mike goes out of his way to counsel Walt a few times. Which is why I thought he at least mildly liked Walt.
Yeah I never took his words to be hollow in BB either. He was resigned to the fact and was going to do it without hesitation, but I did take his words as genuine.
He hated Walt later on. I don't think he ever liked him, I do agree his words aren't hollow though. He is apologising, but he won't lose any sleep over it.
@@jamesduffy7549 Well I mean yeah, he ruined his plans and shot him. I also didn't say he wouldn't lose sleep over it. I'm just saying I felt he meant it, before BCS revealed more of his character.
Mike is practical. His killing always seemed like business. You see him with his grand daughter, you see him with Jesse. His shields his heart from the work. A lot of people do that.
He didn’t want to kill Walter but definitely didn’t like him, at least after he started to get to know him. Shut the fuck up and let me die in peace
Agreed. Mike seemed to kinda respect Walt at that point for having the balls and sense of justice to kill the dealers that killed Combo and the kid.
Extremely impressive analysis from the one and only “Tuff Specialist”. The way he breaks down subtle clues and adds depth to his analysis by showcasing relevant analogies, Mr. Specialist creates a wonderful viewing experience for his target audience. These videos are so good that I lose track of all time, watching each video on replay from sun up to sun down. Cheers to you Mr. Specialist, you’ve changed my life forever.
I need Rob
First time watcher and all I can say is... YUP!!
Why are you writing an IMDB review for this video ON this video?
I give Tuff reviews Two-Thumbs-up. Keep on keeping on brother
couldnt have put it better myself
The choice road edit beginning from 5:20 was really great. Also even sadder when you remember a certain river😔
It's a prequel but there's a sequel timeline (Gene's), that helps a lot with what you said about the prequel problem of knowing what is going to happen to the characters. And to be fair, the uncertainty of Kim's fate is what carries the show.
Star Wars prequels didn't have a character like Kim that carried the drama of the story.
Nacho's storyline is another one thst keeps peoples attention.
@@RenaldyCalixte It's depiction of pre-dark side Vader is still class though and makes him easier to sympathise with in ROTJ (despite a particular scene involving younglings)
Love how throw away lines from BB can create a whole episode of BCS
"There are two types of heists. Those where the guys get away with it and those that leave witnesses" -Mike in Breaking Bad
It's very interesting when you consider the fact that, in BCS, Nacho and the Salamanca members are surprised by Mike's decision to spare the driver. Leaving behind witnesses was something the old Mike WAS capable of
Mike might say that but he clearly has exceptions, he wouldn’t pull a Todd and shoot the kid for example
Jonathan Banks is such a great actor I felt all that subtext of him talking to Walt even before Better Call Saul confirmed it. What a terrific actor and man.
Honestly on a simpler note, i love that lives actually mean something in Better Call Saul. I had no problem with people dying and killing in BB (maybe besides crazy eight) and the cartel in BB was more of a little team that Walter White would beat easily. but in Better Call Saul i really feel for lives lost and really feel the danger of the cartel.
I think BCS is the better show. For reasons like this.
Ohhhhh, I hadn't even considered this. You're totally right.
Seriously one of the most underrated UA-cam channels, great work as always.
Thanks for watching!
who underrated it? 🤔
@@Woofwoof1929 just saying, deserves more attention
who rated it?😑
on god
I understood why BCS is enhancing BB so much when I thought about Werner's fate. I wondered if Werner was buried in that lab, which would add so much sad detail to just the background of many scenes in Breaking Bad. Either way, everytime I see Jesse jumping around in there like a balloon or anything else happening, like the fly, I think of naive Werner dying for it.
Also explains why Mike was so mad at and ready to kill Walt when he found out about Fring's death and the destruction of the lab. He realized that Walt was more dangerous than before and could ruin decades of hard work easily.
Now we know who's actually buried underneath the lab it's somehow worse
Mikes speach about choices is the backbone of what breaking bad and better call saul was built on. Such a brilliant segment from the actor that plays mike
Yeah, Peter Gould and Vince said that we gonna start to see de BrBa characters in a different way, and that's true. Mike in BrBa was just a executioner for me until season 5, and after BCS I could understand how deep and sad this character is, that he don't love to do it, and that after going through so much he will do anything to take care of what left in his life, even if he has to do what he hates most: kill.
*I don't speak english very well yet, maybe theres some errors in the comment.*
I write in English for a living and your comment is fine! Not everything is strictly "correct" but it's easy to parse and understand, and any "errors" are roughly in line with how a lot of English slang speakers end up talking anyway, especially online. You're doin' good, dude.
Fantastic english, only noticeable thing is that "don't" should be "doesn't" when referring to someone in the third person. Keep learning!
Good English my guy, like the other comment said “don’t” just replace it with doesn’t except for when you write something like “I don’t speak English very well yet”, where you used don’t correctly
Also just to add to this, after watching bcs you really see Walter as more of an evil villain for everything he has done to these characters we’ve started to consider just as central as Jesse or Walter now.
No te perdono
I would honestly love an entire video series that is just talking about context added to BB by BCS
5:20-5:50
Well done arranging those moments
Subbed
Wow the editing from 5:20 to 5:50 is amazing, great video! You got yourself a new subscriber
Totally
Don’t you just love the algorithm sometimes? Channel with 5k subs is getting some shine because they hit the sweet spot for the algorithm. Hope this spells some success for you my dude.
Thanks for watching!
I’m 100% sure this has been said before, but I also like how Mike’s relationship with Nacho parallels his relationship with Jesse, and adds a whole new layer of tragedy and heart to how it ends in Breaking Bad.
You gave me a new way to look at mike. Now I have to restart rewatching breaking bad and then better call Saul.
Every scene is a classic. When a new episode comes I realise how lucky I am to experience for the first time. No other series comes close for me - In terms of how much it engages me from the dialogue, to the camera angles, not without mentions the actual story that’s going on.
Peter and Vince are maters of their craft. Very Tarantinoesque
3:40 I see the Mike story in this episode as an elaborate way to answer the question Nacho asks in the end. When Mike talks to the gun salesman, the moment he decides to leave and chooses not the purchase a gun is when he remembers the original use of the weapons. He complains about the decision to send the fragile guns into a jungle, implying that he served in Vietnam. The Vietnam war and atrocities committed there are likely the motivators for his pacifism we see in his early years in Albuquerque.
I also like to think that bcs and brb did similar things to their main characters, but do them in opposite ways.
Breaking bad starts off with Walter being somewhat sympathetic, he’s a man with cancer and is just trying to leave something for his family, but as the story progresses you see that vault is truly kinda a scumbag and eventually absolutely insane and kinda evil.
In better call Saul we get to see the opposite, our starting impression of Saul going into the prequel (assuming you’ve watch breaking bad) is that he was going to be a sleazy womanizing criminal lawyer. But what we see is the tragic sympathetic tale of how someone like jimmy could become Saul
I think part of the reason why BCS worked so well is because it focused on characters who were fairly disconnected to the main series’ plot, characters and their inner circles.
For example, a prequel focused on Skylar or Jesse wouldn’t have been as impactful as what we have now. Another example is that I highly doubt a prequel trilogy with Star Wars would have done as well if it focused on Leia, her adoptive family and the workings of Alderaan
The biggest complaints about the prequels were Vader’s origins, the prequel trilogy was way more bogged down by its connections to the original trilogy and fan service.
Of course it’s fine if people like Anakin in the prequels but it’s inevitable that the backstory for such an iconic villain would disappoint people.
It amazes me that Hollywood has thousands upon thousands of writers and directors; and it seems like only a very small handful can create such a beautiful art.
That’s because Hollywood makes movies and shows for money. These guys make them to tell a good story
@@MitsubishiLancerEvo and then the irony is they end up making money… you’d think Hollywood would catch on. I guess their whole thing is pumping out crap on the smallest budget and wondering why it isn’t working out for them!
@@MitsubishiLancerEvo That's a bit disingenuous to the rest of professional writers and directors
@Raylan Givens Shitty movies and shitty TV shows that did nothing but try and make money have always existed. It's not a new thing. The reason why you do not know about them is because of the simple reason of they weren't going for anything but money and have been forgotten to time. Movies/TV are about making money. It may not matter if the person writing or directing it cares about the money, but the producers and ever single "little guy" working on it does care about money. Now making something someone might get something out of and also making money while you're at it is what makes film making stand out from other jobs.
5:20 to 5:51 just earned you new subscriber. that was beautifully done mate
I didn't know Heisenberg's first name was Werner. The level of detail is mind blowing.
The editing from 5:25 and on is masterful, love this video! Makes me love both shows even more
This was a fantastic watch, and the editing that goes along with the narration is top-notch. Wow! I’d love to see you do a similar video, but with Jimmy/Saul scenes. Boy, am I gonna miss this show!
Thanks for watching!
Mike is the goat. Another banger video. Impossible for you to miss.
Inconceivable almost
on god
You could make a series of these. Lots of scenes have added depth now. Especially with Mike and Gus.
Dude I loved how you spliced different clips from BCS and BB when Mike was talking to Jimmy about how your choices put you on the road.
The editing sequence in Mikes consequences speech was SO good
I don’t know about you guys, but my Breaking Bad DVD set already came with subtext. You just need to turn them on in the options menu. Hope this helps somebody!
😂😂
6:47 just brought back a lot of nostalgia . It was dec 2014, and I randomly click the Amc channel cuz I needed something playing in the background while I played smash bros for the Wii U and a show called “breaking bad” was having a marathon . First scene I watched was a old man and a guy with blonde hair riding a car , dropping off things while a Spanish song played in the background . Then during commercials the better call Saul “ coming soon” commercial would play . Didn’t know who the fuck Saul was or why a old man is giving this guy who is just trying to smoke a cig a pimento sandwich .😂. Don’t worry a couple years later around 2017 I finally watched breaking bad and all it’s glory
Was it the montage with Jesse and Mike in the car?
@@prot07ype87 yeah with the Spanish woman singing . I didn’t now what the fuck was going on tbh
Amazing work man, really. Hope the algorithm hits on this, because it would be truly deserved 🙏🏻 keep it up!
Thanks :)
something to add: after mike spared the truck driver but they got killed anyway, i think he took on a mindset of "if it's not me killing them it'd be someone else," hence why finger started killing more after that.
another amazing video, and loved the editing. your channel is great so i’m sure you’ll blow up very soon with content like this
Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed
on god
I could figure out just by the thumbnail and title that this must be comparing Mike and Werner to Mike and Walt. Helluva parallel and contrast. Glad I knocked right.
5:41-5:46 those five seconds were beautifully cut!
Thinking about Werner, it’s crazy how Mike saw Walt as just another problem employee who broke Gus’ trust and needed to be dealt with. Imagine how crazy the following events would look if we didn’t follow Walt’s story and just saw Mike’s perspective leading on from BCS
Amazing edit on this essay! You make a great job, especially on the Mike lines about “decisions”. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Well argued. Loved the montage put over Mike's road analogy to Saul, very well edited.
amazing video
thanks
I think about the scene of Mike killing Werner every now a then
I never thought Mike heartless, even in Breaking Bad.
And though Better Call Saul does add nouance to this already good character, I believed Mike without that context, that he was sorry and that it was unfortunate. He didn't really wanted to do it, but saw no other way (to not end up a target himself).
He was more sympathetic for me, than what Walter would become (and already was at that point).
I still like your insights here. Thanks for a cool video.
There are so many stars out here in new mexico. I will walk out there to get a better look.
What a fantastic video and analysis. Explains a significant part of what makes the show so special incredibly well.
Hey man, your channel is incredible. You do an amazing job with the quality of what you’re putting out. Definitely underrated. I expect to see this channel blow up at some point very soon. Can’t wait to say I’ve been here since around 3.5k subscribers! Very well done. Excited to see more of your work.
I'm waiting to re watch Breaking Bad until after this last season of Better Call Saul ends. I'm very excited to watch it with the added context.
There's something hilarious about Better Call Saul's theme song playing over its most brutal moments lmao.
Very good little essay here. Makes me want to rewatch all two shows once season six concludes to see all the parallels
The quality of this video is mind blowing
It's all good, man. Love your essay.
This was a great breakdown of how character development is so impressive in this series. Would love to see you do one on Gus as well if you haven't already!
Really good analysis on such a small topic within such a massive piece of art. Good job.
I agree to some extent, but I'm troubled with few other aspects in the subtexting between BB and BCS.
Remember the ticking time bomb comment from mike? He saw Walter's lust for power and was alarmed by it. Then why is he fine with Gus is acting in BCS? Is it because Mike sees that Walter is turning out just like Gus? This could make sense if it was not for the sentence Mike said right before he died: 'We had a good thing you stupid ***, we had Fring .....(etc.)'. He appears to value Gus over the moon. When I saw this, I interpreted it the way that Gus really was a good and honourable man. Our perspective through Walter is just biased and Walter is the real bad guy.
Then we get BCS. Gus makes Mike murder Werner, forces Nacho in a helpless position and finally makes Nacho kill himself.
What a monster!
At the time of Mike's words Walter was nowhere near as evil as Gus. You can argue that Walter was after these 9 men of Gus in prison, but on the other hand, killing dozens of people wasn't any big deal for Mike when the Gus asked for it. Somehow Mike regards Gus highly through BB, which doesn't make any sense for me. Especially after how he's been shown to act in BCS.
Gus had limits and he knew it, while Walt didn't
I didn't get the impression that Mike thought Gus was a good man. Only that he ran a tight operation and provided him with a fortune. Mike respected Gus and the stable business he ran. Still he wasn't that attached to Gus, since he was willing to work with the people who killed him.
Mike was talking about how Gus had self control while Walt doesn't. Not that Gus had a code of honor.
An amazing video, well done and thank you.
You should really do more videos on this. I'd love to have more of the subtext and subtle dialogue described.
At this point, I think the more spin off shows about breaking bad characters the better.
Let's get a show about Holly and Flynn and how hard it is for them to grow up with everyone knowing their dad was the most infamous drug kingpin in the history of the United States.
Let's get a show about the Salamancas rise to power and infamy in Mexico.
Fuck it. Let's get a show all about Huell
A spinoff with Walt Jr.: BREAKfast.
I love these shows and missed all of this… awesome
i had this idea so much while watching better call saul
we know we are going to see walter and jesse in better call saul season 6 yes, but i just hope we see jimmys reaction to mikes death! we never really saw him react or mention anything about his former companion in crime , and it would be a good time to show it before ending the story
Better Call Saul is probably the best prequel ever made
Honestly Jonathan Banks (Mike Ehrmantraut) is the only actor who looks the same in both Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.
Nah, he looks slightly aged in BCS
He looks clearly older in BCS
This video is the reason why I still come to UA-cam
Love how the production didn't even bother doing cgi to Mike making him younger in better call saul, he's clearly older
His “older” look in BCS could be explained by him previously being a heavy drinker and depressed over his sons death, and the renewed sense of purpose in providing for his granddaughter and working for Gus brought him back down a few ages.
@@Delta_Aves Are you fkn kidding me?
To me they look the same
It's a bit of cruel irony just how opposite the two instances are when Mike was going to kill Walter vs how Walter killed Mike.
Mike takes no pleasure in killing Walt / Walt kills Mike out of spite.
Walt offers to rat out Jesse to save himself / Mike refuses to release the names of his men
"Mike, you don't have to do this" / "I'm sorry Mike. This.. this whole thing could have been avoided"
So in other words- recontextualization is great
Dude amazing video, especially that breakdown of Mike on the car with Saul!
This is a great video. I feel like you could make another entire video on Saul as well.
Petition to run BCS for one more decade!
So you want to ruin the show??
Seriously that was real sincere commentary ... bravo 👏
Exactly. When I first watched BB, even though I enjoyed the character of Mike, I simply saw Mike as a cold-blooded killer villain. I was even relieved when Mike died. After watching BCS, I changed my view of him, his death now makes me choke. Now he is my favorite character.
Mike may have started as an add-on character...
But he's quickly proven to be the one that has the strongest code, a code that he fights for all the time, even with Gus...
Analysis videos on the show are some of my favorite things to watch. Bcs is so good that I could watch videos praising it for hours
I've always interpreted Mike as being the guy in the new context, except I assumed he was military not police.
Breaking Bad explicitly said he was an ex cop though when hank interrogated him
I love that u appreciate both as supposed to say which is better or not
this was some spicy editing 😳
Part of me wants Vince Gilligan to stay in this universe and do another story about Lalo... part of me wants to see what happens when he is completely free to create a completely new world. Either way, I am excited to see what comes next from this, and I mean this, genius.
This is flames. Ross Odonavan
fire comment
I do love this show. I remember first hearing about it and having my doubts but now it’s easily my favourite show on tb
I love this video so much and I always come back to it. Idc what anyone says “the guy.” Monologue was about nacho. Sure it was originally about Vincent. But with the context, it becomes “I have never felt so worried about my life since nacho. However, nacho was worth worrying about. You are not.”
you should do an analysis on gus fring saying he doesnt thing fear is a proper motivator, and then parallel it back to Mike's same sentiment. Show the change in Gus's character throughout his rise and fall. It's probably my favorite character arc and commitment to nuance that never wavers. Giancarlo is so consistent, whether he's vile and ruthless in BCS, or has mellowed and sincerely trying to be better as we come to see him in BB.
"impossible to fill" - until Vince does another show
I have seen neither show but I can't stop watching there clips, serendipitously
I wonder if we'll ever hear the last note of the intro decay away
I don’t think Vince and Co have created a bad or uninteresting character yet. From high up like Walter White or Saul Goodman all the way down to people like Wendy or Ernesto
Ted
@@LittlePawPup that’s funny. I almost done with watching season 4 again and I’ve been seeing a lot of Ted and I have to disagree. I think Beneke can hang with the rest of them
Don't forget the God-tier level character - Huell Babinaux
I think Mike evolved starting in Breaking Bad bc the writers wanted to/needed to make him more traditionally likeable and become someone to root for instead of just a henchman serving the villain
Everything about this video was phenomenal.
Man i agree like most prequels just answer questions but better call saul made us ask questions we hadn’t even thought to ask yet
Instant follow! Such a good show. Saul's character change from better call saul to bb is heartbreaking. It's like he becomes a caricature of himself in bb.