The 8 Better Call Saul Moments That Defined The Show (2024)

Throughout six seasons, Better Call Saul had countless definitive moments, which categorized the series as among the finest prequels ever made. By telling the story of how Jimmy McGill turned into the sleazy criminal lawyer Saul Goodman, Better Call Saul managed to add depth and nuance to the overall Breaking Bad universe while delivering one of the greatest character studies television had ever seen. With a career-defining performance from Bob Odenkirk, Better Call Saul was filled with memorable moments, insightful scenes, and sequences that positioned it as a modern TV classic.

While there were plenty of Better Call Saul scenes that hit harder thanks to Breaking Bad, lots of other moments defined the show and stood out as important aspects of the series' legacy. This included moments that callback to previously established events in Breaking Bad, as well as instances that set the show apart as its own narrative, which arguably even outdid the original series. Looking back on the show today, several moments defined Better Call Saul.

8 Tuco’s Back

Season 1, Episode 1, “Uno”

Better Call Saul had a lot to live up to in its pilot episode, as it had to contend with setting up a prequel story while being mindful of the legacy of Breaking Bad. This was a fine line to walk as viewers tuned in to witness the Saul Goodman they knew and loved, only to be met with a struggling Albuquerque attorney named Jimmy McGill. While the opening post-Breaking Bad black-and-white flash-forward did hint at the series' history, the majority of the episode was focused on setting up new narratives.

However, this all changed in the episode’s final moment, as Jimmy was pulled into a house by none other than the terrifying drug dealer, Tuco Salamanca. The appearance of Tuco in the first episode of Better Call Saul was a definitive moment that showcased that anyone from the Breaking Bad universe had the potential to show up in this new prequel series. With knowledge of Tuco’s reckless personality and unpredictable nature, this moment highlighted that the cartel would play a major part in Better Call Saul and that Jimmy’s associations with the Salmanacas predated the story of Walter White.

7 Jimmy Flicks The Light Switch

Season 2, Episode 1, “Switch”

One of the primary themes of Better Call Saul was that no matter how much Jimmy tried to bury his passionate impulses they always found a way back to the surface. In the Season 2 premiere, Jimmy accepted a job with the Davis & Main law firm and appeared to finally achieve his ambitions of becoming a successful lawyer. However, a sense of sadness pervaded this decision, and Jimmy felt out of place amid the strict do-gooders of his new job.

Jimmy’s need for excitement in his life was part of what later turned him into Saul Goodman, and this was represented by the light switch in his new office, which read, “Always Leave ON!!! Do NOT turn OFF!!” Once he saw this note, Jimmy could not help himself and, of course, turned off the light switch just to see what would happen. This decision revealed a lot about Jimmy’s character and showcased his need to rebel and just how out of place he was amid the stuffy, rigid rule followers of Davis & Main.

6 A Battery In Chuck’s Pocket

Season 3, Episode 5, “Chicanery”

The relationship between Jimmy and his brother, Chuck McGill, was central to the earliest seasons of Better Call Saul, and their dynamic together gave incredible insight into the psychology of the McGills. As a fraught but at times loving connection, Chuck resented his brother’s morally dubious behavior while Jimmy struggled to look after Chuck as he delved further into mental illness, which he attributed to electromagnetic hypersensitivity. All of these issues came to a head in the courtroom scene in Better Call Saul Season 5.

This was when Chuck was brought into a hearing room to testify that he did not want to hire Jimmy at HHM and showcase a lack of nepotism. However, Jimmy used this as an opportunity to plant a phone battery in Chuck’s pocket, which he used to discredit his mental fortitude and cause him to have a breakdown in the hearing room. As Chuck berated Jimmy for a lifetime of bad behavior, the rest of the court could only look on in embarrassment, as Chuck had completely discredited himself and made it clear he had a vendetta against his brother.

5 Jeff Recognizes Saul

Season 4, Episode 1, “Smoke”

As a Breaking Bad viewer, one of the most exciting aspects of Better Call Saul was the flashforward sequences, which showcased Jimmy’s new life as Gene Takovic, a Cinnabon employee in Omaha. Gene’s new life was a far cry from the high-falutin lifestyle of Saul Goodman, and he lived in fear that one day he would be recognized and discovered. Then, in a definitive moment in the Season 4 premiere, it looked like it was all going to come crashing down for Gene when a taxicab driver appeared to recognize him.

Jeff, the taxicab driver, was an instigating factor for much of the final episodes of Better Call Saul as his recognition of Gene as Saul toppled a house of cards that led to his arrest. The panic and anxiety Gene felt upon noticing Jeff’s Albuquerque Isotopes air freshener was palpable, as he feared the jig was up and he was about to be caught once and for all. This was an important moment in Better Call Saul’s post-Breaking Bad narrative, as he suggested the story of Saul Goodman may not have ended in Albuquerque.

4 Kim Does The Finger Guns To Jimmy

Season 5, Episode 10, “Something Unforgivable”

Kim Wexler was among the most interesting characters in Better Call Saul, who struggled with the contradiction between her idealistic nature and tendency to give in to her unethical impulses. This morally dubious side of Kim was part of what attracted her to Jimmy McGill, as she admired his willingness to con others for his own self-interest. This darker side of Kim came to a head in Season 5 when she discussed plans to dismantle her rival lawyer Howard Hamlin’s career with Jimmy.

While Jimmy was shocked at how willing Kim was to destroy the career of another person, she replied to him by shooting finger guns in a powerful representation that she had finally broken bad. This was a definitive moment for Kim’s character as she pushed Jimmy into ethical territory that even he was uncomfortable with. The symbolic importance of their finger gun gesture was even carried forward to the final episode, when Kim subtly returned Jimmy’s finger guns.

3 Saul’s Mansion

Season 6, Episode 1, “Wine and Roses”

The Season 6 premiere of Better Call Saul featured a flashforward into the luxurious home of Saul Goodman. This powerful scene began with a black-and-white segment that hinted at yet another glimpse into the life of Gene Takavic as every previous premiere had begun; however, the scene soon gained color as audiences witnessed a glimpse into a large Albuquerque mansion. As authorities stripped the house of evidence, it was clear this was police raiding Saul’s house after the fallout of his association with the meth kingpin Walter White.

This was a definitive moment in Better Call Saul as it signaled the series collision with the Breaking Bad timeline as Jimmy’s entire world was about to come crashing down. This was the first glimpse audiences got into Saul’s life behind the scenes in Breaking Bad, and Saul’s home was full of Easter eggs for viewers to spot. With Kim no longer in his life, viewers had the sad realization that Saul filled his days with empty consumerism while living in a luxurious mansion after every important person in his life had deserted him.

2 Howard And Lalo Buried Together

Season 6, Episode 7, “Plan and Execution”

The story of Better Call Saul can be separated into two major sections: the legal side of things, which included Howard Hamlin, and the cartel side of things, which included Lalo Salamanca. For the most part, these two worlds remained separated from each other and Howard and Lalo only ever met each other once in a chance encounter at Kim and Jimmy’s apartment. This ended with Lalo shooting and killing Howard, and when Lalo was later murdered, both of their bodies were disposed of together.

In a definitive Better Call Saul moment, Howard and Lalo were buried underneath Gus’s superlab, which made all of the lab’s scenes in Breaking Bad hit different as viewers had the knowledge their bodies lay underneath Walt and Jesse’s feet while they cooked. This was a dark and harrowing end to the story of these two disparate characters, who would remain together forever under the ground. Their burial scene was just one of many Better Call Saul moments that recontextualized the entire Breaking Bad universe.

Season 6, Episode 12, “Waterworks”

It was always exciting when characters from Breaking Bad appeared on Better Call Saul and the return of Walter White and Jesse Pinkman in the final season was the most highly anticipated moment in the entire show. However, a true definitive moment came when Kim Wexler and Jesse shared a cigarette outside Saul’s office. This was significant as Kim had previously been separate from Breaking Bad’s narrative, and to see her interact with Jesse felt like the truest representation of the two shows coming together.

Watching Kim share a cigarette with Jesse felt profound as the two characters' stories oddly mimicked one another. Both Kim and Jesse struggled with the darker sides of their human nature, and they were far more morally conflicted about their bad behavior than either Saul or Walter. Although their stories did not overlap in a major way, it felt like an important moment of cohesion for the entire Breaking Bad universe that they would share this brief moment together in the rain.

Better Call Saul

Comedy

Drama

Crime

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Set in times before, during, and after Breaking Bad, the AMC crime drama spinoff follows the trials and tribulations of criminal lawyer Saul Goodman (Odenkirk) as he looks to make a name for himself at his firm located in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The show digs deeper into the events that crafted Saul and the repercussions of his actions.

Cast

Bob Odenkirk , Rhea Seehorn , Jonathan Banks , Patrick Fabian , Michael Mando , Giancarlo Esposito

Release Date

February 8, 2015

Seasons

6

Network

AMC

Franchise(s)

Breaking Bad

Writers

Peter Gould , Vince Gilligan

Directors

Vince Gilligan , John Shiban , Keith Gordon

Showrunner

Peter Gould