The first part of the final season of Better Call Saul will soon be upon us, and with the premiere date nearing, critics have began to chime in on Bob Odenkirk’s second-last batch of episodes playing the famed and loved criminal lawyer.
One of the first analyses to come out today was from Entertainment Weekly. In the article written by Darren Franich, he said there will likely never be another show which makes law firms feel epic while considering the etiquette of brutal cartels, and that the show still somehow manages to avoid the issues numerous prequel projects end up having.
“There has always been a vague notion that Saul was going to slowly become the previous show, with greater focus on the Fring-adjacent underworld. But these early episodes confirm the prequel as its own unique entertainment. Co-creator Peter Gould has built out a fascinating corner of the Breaking Bad world originally conceived by Vince Gilligan.”
For Daniel D’Addario of Variety, on the other hand, the endgame beginning on April 18 is a bit of a comedown from the heights hit before. D’Addario writes that the story seems to be rushing towards Breaking Bad, and as a result, the tale loses its realism for an operatic style which does not fit in with the world’s earlier era.
“Better Call Saul is attempting to show how one man gets from small-time crookery to big-league mania, and maybe the fact of its parts fitting together uneasily suggests it’s a harder task than its creators expected. It’s hard not to miss the deftness with which old Saul operated. Fring, for instance, has never fully felt like a real person – just as, say, Darth Vader didn’t.”
Finally, for Fred Topel of UPI, the experience of watching the end was disquieting and compelling. He indicated it was something which will live up to expectations, and hinted at some characters not making it through to life at the end.
“The season premiere of Better Call Saul was worth the wait. It drops the viewer right back into the story without missing a beat and sets up a compelling last rite for Jimmy McGill/Saul Goodman.”
Earlier seasons of Better Call Saul are available to stream on Netflix. The second half of the final season takes a bow on July 11.