Distributor: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Episodes: 10
Duration: 46 minutes (per episode)
Better Call Saul: Season 2 (Blu-ray) – Series Review
Attorneys don’t always have the best kind of reputation and although a lot of them try to improve this vision by providing the best of services, some of them just try to do things their own way. Jimmy is one of them, trying to do the right thing by bending the rules now and then. This surely isn’t always the good thing to do, especially when you add some egocentric reasons. Let’s go on quite a journey in a land of sharks.
Better Call Saul revolves around the story behind the lawyer we know from the series ‘Breaking Bad’ as Saul Goodman. In the first episodes of this spin-off, you’ll get to know the real person behind this façade and what led him to the person as he is in the first mention series. The complicated relationship with his brother Charles McGill or Chuck (Michael McKean) is shown quite often, while also getting some flashbacks to his past. In the last episodes, it is clear that the huge customer ‘Sandpiper’ is divided by the company HHM and Davis & Main, giving James McGill or Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) the possibility to get a new position in the company.
With this second season we start with the life-changing choice Jimmy has to take. Will he accept the fabulous job as a lawyer of Davis & Main or will he keep his old job and let this opportunity slip away? His choice doesn’t only depend on the bonuses but also on how his fellow attorney, Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn), feels about him. In the end, he declines the invitation and decides to stop his current lifestyle and start doing whatever he wants to do. Kim wants to know why he made that decision and this visit is the turnabout in the whole story.
Next to the storyline of our good ol’ lawyer, you can also follow the intrigues of Mike (Jonathan Banks). He tries his best to help his daughter-in-law and his grandchild as much as possible, which leads him to doing some jobs on the side. Although these aren’t always the most legal ones, he always skips the ones that involves killing people. The question rises if he will be able to keep this pledge or if he needs to turn to bloodshed after all.
The second season has 10 episodes, alternating between the two storylines and even clashing from time to time. This surely is a nice change of scenery, although the overall pace of the series is quite slow. At any rate, don’t expect a lot of action-scenes as it is all about the relationships between the key characters and the underlying thoughts instead of the rough action of bashing someone’s skull in. For instance, the process what Jimmy is going through while working for Davis & Main is surely something that will be prominent on the front-line, which might not be that appealing for everyone. Albeit the pace might be slow, the flow and transition really is suitable the type of the series and fits like a shoe. The story feels coherent and the flashbacks in between give you some details and insights on why some of the characters react on a certain way.
Taking a look at the actors, it’s clear that they really found the perfect artists to play in the series. Although this is a spin-off from Breaking Bad, thus having already some of the actors, their performances in this season just confirms how good they can crawl into their role. Bob Odenkirk just has the visual features to play the more cunning but gentle lawyer while Rhea Seehorn can express her feelings so well in this rather complicated connection. On the other side, Jonathan Banks is able to have the gentleness of an older person and loving (grand-)father while also taking risks and being a die-hard fighter to protect what he loves and earn extras for his family. Combining all these grand performances results in quite a good evening on the couch.
If that isn’t enough, there are also quite some bonuses. Each of the episodes are available with commentary, while others have some more in-depth explanations about how certain scenes were taken. The gag reel couldn’t be missing as well of course. If you even want more goodies, you’ll need to purchase the Blu-Ray version as, for example, the relationship between Jimmy and Kim gets explained.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a good series that takes you on a more physiological lane rather than on a physical one, you’ll surely like ‘Better Call Saul’. Although the pace of the season is quite slow, the events surely will take you on a trip in intrigues and personal problems. Are you ready to dive into this nest of deception, though relationships and more?
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