Better Call Saul - Season Three Discussion

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by stereoptic, Jan 16, 2017.

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  1. Gems-A-Bems

    Gems-A-Bems Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Duke City
    Maybe this is a "chicken and egg" dilemma for you, because if you had actually been paying attention to the narrative you wouldn't be insisting that the lingo had no basis in the character.
     
  2. I'm not sure I see a correlation between Skinny Pete not knowing squat about home theater gear and being able to play the piano well. Is it that all musicians should know about audio gear, or maybe that all audio gear folks should be musicians?

    It's actually more of a true character moment that we note how talented Skinny Pete is (that obviously he was a kid once who probably took many piano lessons), by giving us a taste of how much he has wasted a large part of his life.

    I mean, I once knew a very talented drummer - I'm talking professional quality - who destroyed his life with drugs before he could even "make it," even though he had his shots. In fact, no joke - it's a big coincidence - that I was shopping for a keyboard for my daughter, and while I was going back and forth between boards, this scruffy as hell young guy comes in and starts improving on a keyboard. Jazz, blues, rock...really playing with ease. The guy is super skinny, blond hair, dirty pants, T-shirt hanging off of his shoulder blades, and wearing a faded ball cap. I kid you not; he knew a thing or two about keys...and then he walked out.

    I never thought to wonder how much he knew about home theater kit.
     
  3. misterdecibel

    misterdecibel Bulbous Also Tapered

    The word is "jargon".
     
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  4. Splungeworthy

    Splungeworthy Forum Rezidentura

    I would watch a show that only had a closeup of Jonathan Banks' craggly mug for an hour. What was it about Tamara Tunie's story that changed his mind about helping Baseball Card Guy?
     
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  5. Tim S

    Tim S Senior Member

    Location:
    East Tennessee
    Anita's husband disappeared hiking in Gila, a large national forest near the Mexican border. Many of these areas are known for lots of drug activity. I think Mike suspects this is what happened to her husband and he might be able to use his connections (specifically Nacho) to find out what happened and give her closure. Her situation also probably reminded him of his son and his death. I also saw some romantic sparks going on between them, so that probably motivates him, too. Would be fun to see Mike have a romance.
     
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  6. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    That's actually a standard thing even with digital, kind of done for "luck" and tradition more than anything else. I've worked with several directors who say that on set. They also still say "roll camera" (and one guy I know says "roll film!"), even though technically nothing is rolling... it's just a solid-state drive that begins recording.
     
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  7. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Sorry if I didn't explain my point well. The regression into topics or skillsets that seem overtly related to the script or the actors instead of the actual character/plot is a problem in BB and to a lesser extent in BCS. I thought those scenes with Skinny Pete were a good example.

    I think the audience is already well aware of drug use leading to wasted lives. Showing the skill at the piano like that was purely a reminder to the audience that they are not watching a meth addict but an actor who wants airtime and parts that showcase his talent. That's what I mean about being pulled out of the narrative.
     
  8. Gems-A-Bems

    Gems-A-Bems Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Duke City
    Some viewers see a character that has more than one dimension.

    You don't speak for "the audience". Not everyone watching is inventing reasons to pull themselves out of the narrative.
     

  9. Well, far be it from me to tell somebody how to watch a show, or what they should pull from it, or how to interpret art at all, for that matter. In this case, and others (like the jerky camera movements when Chuck is having one of his episodes), I don't believe - though I could be wrong - that it should be taken so meta.

    For the few shows that I watch, while I'm actually watching the show, I tend to let myself go. "Turn off your mind, relax, and float downstream." I don't want to see Oz behind the curtain; I want to be engulfed in the show, so I pick shows that do that for me, thus tuning out the outside world for a little bit. It's escapism, but it's also good old fashioned entertainment.

    Only after the show is over will I indulge in conversations like this, because it's fun, and a lot of people have great things to say, including you. Yet, in that special moment - between me and a special show - I simply don't want to look into the mechanics of it. I want to enjoy it. Otherwise, it's a waste of my time.
     
    Last edited: May 25, 2017
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  10. rburly

    rburly Sitting comfortably with Item 9

    Location:
    Orlando
    The same thing happened to me watching Twin Peaks. I started watching and strange things were happening and I just along for the ride. I didn't try to make too many connections. It was a wonderful experience letting Lynch & Frost take me places I'd not seen in a long time.
     
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  11. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Obviously I speak for myself only and many disagree with me, but that doesn't change my mind. But let me be perfectly clear: it's jarring to see this sort of thing. It starts a thought process that goes something like this.

    Why are these guys in a music store? -> Wow, he's playing Solfeggietto in C minor rather flawlessly for a meth addict -> Why did he get the air time to perform this? -> Does he know one of the producers or network execs?

    Note how I've been taken from the original point of interest about why the characters are in the music store (it was to buy gear to transport the lab equipment) and am now pulled out of the show completely and thinking about the actor. Indeed this was apparently an intentional thing. Q&A – Charles Baker (Skinny Pete) If you read the interview, the goal was to call attention to the actor, not stay true to the story.

    My point is rather logical. I'm glad it works for you guys but it's jarring for me.

    Exactly. I want to be entertained and a good show offers that escapism. If the show is constantly calling attention to itself as a production and the characters are constantly calling attention to themselves as actors, you are only seeing the man behind the curtain and it jars you out of your escape. That's my whole point.

    Totally agree!
     
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  12. Good points. And even in discussions like ours for BCS, I dig it more when all of our theories are wrong and the show pulls twists and turns that we didn't anticipate.

    As much as I like to theorize, after Jimmy has been suspended, I can't think of a single thing to guess about now. This thing has blown wide open where anything can happen! I just hope there's no aliens.
     
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  13. George P

    George P Notable Member

    Location:
    NYC
    ...or zombies.
     
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  14. Gems-A-Bems

    Gems-A-Bems Forum Resident

    Location:
    The Duke City
    I think he mentions his former partner Emilio having used Saul's services, not Skinny Pete
     
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  15. That's right! Emelio is cousins with Krazy 8. This dude Jesse knew since they were kids.
     
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  16. EddieMann

    EddieMann I used to be a king...

    Location:
    Geneva, IL. USA.
    Pete's gonna be in jail with Tuco. If Tuco gets out during BCS, maybe we see Pete.
     
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  17. FVDnz

    FVDnz Forum Resident

    And I have to say, it made me smile in the guitar shop when he mentioned the Fender Strat signed by Ritchie Blackmore! How many times did he say his name during that scene trying to school his ignorant film crew lol?! Another Brick in the Wall? OK, I thought that was forced. ;)
     
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  18. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Not even the occasional white walker?
     
  19. Bingo Bongo

    Bingo Bongo Music gives me Eargasms

    Location:
    Ottawa, Canada
    Is Season 3 over??? There wasn't a new episode last night!
     
  20. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

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  21. rburly

    rburly Sitting comfortably with Item 9

    Location:
    Orlando
    I started watching the BCS Marathon yesterday and then looked at 10 pm. Rerun. I can wait another week I suppose. (Like I have a choice!) :p
     
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  22. Thomas D

    Thomas D Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bradenton, FL
    Maybe I'm mis-remembering, but this thing about these Sunday night shows postponing a week due to holidays or events like the Oscars seems new. Like a new way to prolong the season and the viewership the shows bring. Others have done it lately - Twin Peaks as well. I don't remember this in the past for these sorts of shows. Seems new.
     
  23. GregM

    GregM The expanding man

    Location:
    Bay Area, CA
    Isn't this a Monday night show? I think most air regularly on holidays like Memorial or Labor day, but there are exceptions.
     
  24. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    I watched the most recent episode again last night. I thought of something as I watched the scene where Nacho tells Mike that he plans to switch Hector's heart attack pills for empty pill capsules, while the pills are inside Hector's jacket, which he always hangs up. Nacho hopes that this will cause Hector's death. Mike tells him to be sure to switch the pills back, because there will be many eyes on the situation.

    In Breaking Bad, right after Walter has first met with Saul Goodman, Walter and Jesse wear hoods over their heads and take Saul Goodman outside at night and threaten him. Saul yells something like "it wasn't me, it was Ignacio." (He is referring to Nacho). Just then Walter coughs, and Saul recognizes the cough and knows that it is Walter.

    So it now occurs to me. Maybe Nacho pays Jimmy well to switch the pills, and switch them back. This would have been done at Mike's suggestion, to keep Nacho out of trouble if things go wrong. This payment helps Jimmy get out of his current financial crisis, and also turns Jimmy further into Saul Goodman, meth business defense attorney.

    Then in Breaking Bad, years later, Saul thinks that Hector's organization has figured out what happened with the pills and that Jimmy did it, and thinks that Walter and Jesse are Hector's thugs coming to kill him. So he tells them right away that it was Nacho's idea.

    We will see. Usually my guesses are wrong.
     
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  25. Squealy

    Squealy Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    Vancouver
    Better Call Saul airs on Monday nights, but it was still about the holiday.

    HBO often doesn't show new episodes on Sundays during holiday weekends. And of course network shows don't air new episodes around Thanksgiving or all through the Christmas season.

    Twin Peaks did air on Sunday, btw.
     
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