History Characters / BetterCallSaulCartel

** [[spoiler: After being told that he must keep Lalo's survival a secret, he instantly blows the lid by making peace with Gus. It's an act so stupidly out of character that Gus knows immediately Lalo has to be alive. In fact, his smug smile and direct look at Gus in the eyes, indirectly tipping him off about Lalo's survival, is implied to be the reason behind his later refusal to ever look Gus in the eyes again during ''Breaking Bad'', as Gus's paranoia and preparations for Lalo's inevitable attempt on his life is ultimately what allowed him to triumph, and Hector is acutely aware he blew the best chance his family had of dealing with Gus out of his petty need to gloat against his enemy.]]

* BerserkButton: Granted, it doesn't take all that much to set him off, but it's still frightening to see him lose it completely upon learning that Tuco extended his prison sentence by stabbing a fellow inmate.
-->''"What?! All he had to do was six months! He'll be in there forever!"''

* BerserkButton: The man is a walking, talking minefield of these. One of the reasons he's so terrifying to work with is that it's unclear what will set him off. Simply nicking his car and not being scared of him is enough to drive him into a homicidal rage, and even saying something ''supportive'' might make him lose his mind. One consistent rule, though, is family: threatening or insulting his grandmother is like wearing a giant "please torture me to death" sign on your chest.

A {{Mook}} from a Colombian cartel hit squad that Jan Bolsa sends to intercept Lalo's bail money, which is unfortunately in Jimmy's hands to deliver.

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: He flees the initial shootout with Mike, knowing he can't win there. But rather than pack up and go home empty-handed, he hunts down Mike and Jimmy in a meticulous way.

* NotSoHarmlessVillain: He's just a {{Mook}} but not only survives the massacre of his whole unit - but has the cunning and skills to almost come out on top.

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: He flees the initial shootout with Mike, knowing he can't win there.

----

[[Characters/BetterCallSaulLawyers Lawyers]] ([[Characters/BreakingBadSaulGoodman Jimmy [=McGill=]/Saul Goodman]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulKimWexler Kim Wexler]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulChuckMcGill Chuck McGill]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulHowardHamlin Howard Hamlin]]), [[Characters/BetterCallSaulLawEnforcement Law Enforcement]], '''Juarez Cartel''' ([[Characters/BetterCallSaulNachoVarga Nacho Varga]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulLaloSalamanca Lalo Salamanca]]), [[Characters/BetterCallSaulLosPollosHermanos Los Pollos Hermanos]] ([[Characters/BreakingBadMikeEhrmantraut Mike Ehrmantraut]], [[Characters/BreakingBadGustavoFring Gustavo Fring]]), [[Characters/BetterCallSaulOmaha Omaha]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulPettyCriminals Petty Criminals]], [[Characters/BetterCallSaulOtherCharacters Other Characters]] | -]]]]]

* HumiliationConga: This is his story arc over the time span of Series/BreakingBad and Series/BetterCallSaul, as his position in the Cartel’s hierarchy progressively changes for the worst over time. His first appearances in chronological order are in the Breaking Bad’s episodes "One Minute" and "Hermanos", where he is shown pissing into Don Eladio’s pool (even daring Bolsa to tell it to the boss) and discussing over the phone the opportunity of doing business with Gus Fring. So, he is clearly unafraid of, and even defiant to, the ‘'jefe’’. He is also one of the heads of the Cartel, consulted about any important business decisions. By his next appearance in the flashback of the Better Call Saul’s episode "Sabrosito", his relationship with Eladio and Bolsa has subtly changed: he is unusually subdued and humble and the boss has no qualms about belittling and mocking him in front of one of his subordinates, while Bolsa has clearly become Eladio's, right-hand man. Come the beginning of ‘’Better Call Saul’’ and, while his family still controls a sizeable part of the cross-border drug trafficking and he is still feared, he is seen as a relic of a bygone era and Don Eladio does not even bother anymore to deal with him in person, sending his orders through Bolsa instead. At the end of the series he is a mute cripple confined to a wheelchair, Don Eladio treats him with the fleeting respect one would reserve to a once brilliant but now senile relative, and his family’s territory is unceremoniously reduced to the benefit of the man he hates most, Gus Fring.

* OutOfFocus: After being a major physical presence in the earlier seasons, Hector barely appears after his stroke. His influence is still felt throughout the show but Lalo overtakes his role as the BigBad

* HumiliationConga: This is his story arc over the time span of Series/BreakingBad and Series/BetterCallSaul, as his position in the Cartel’s hierarchy progressively changes for the worst over time. His first appearances in chronological order are in the Breaking Bad’s episodes "One minute" and "Hermanos", where he is shown pissing into Don Eladio’s pool (even daring Bolsa to tell it to the boss) and discussing over the phone the opportunity of doing business with Gus Fring. So, he is clearly unafraid of, and even defiant to, the ‘'jefe’’. He is also one of the heads of the Cartel, consulted about any important business decisions. By his next appearance in the flashback of the Better Call Saul’s episode "Sabrosito", his relationship with Eladio and Bolsa has subtly changed: he is unusually subdued and humble and the boss has no qualms about belittling and mocking him in front of one of his subordinates, while Bolsa has clearly become Eladio's, right-hand man. Come the beginning of ‘’Better Call Saul’’ and, while his family still controls a sizeable part of the cross-border drug trafficking and he is still feared, he is seen as a relic of a bygone era and Don Eladio does not even bother anymore to deal with him in person, sending his orders through Bolsa instead. At the end of the series he is a mute cripple confined to a wheelchair, Don Eladio treats him with the fleeting respect one would reserve to a once brilliant but now senile relative, and his family’s territory is unceremoniously reduced to the benefit of the man he hates most, Gus Fring.

* TheDreaded: While not as powerful as Gus, Tuco is still a force to be reckoned with. Put simply: Even Don Eladio is wary of him.

* TheDreaded: While not as powerful as Walt, Gus, Lydia, or the Neo-Nazis, Tuco is still a force to be reckoned with. Put simply: Even Don Eladio is wary of him.

** He has a silent one, due to his condition, [[spoiler: when Nacho finally tells him that he's the one who's responsible for his condition, by switching his heart medicine with sugar pills and telling him what kind of man Hector truly is. Hector cannot say anything but his face and breath make it clear that he's full of murderous fury, and he uses one of the twins' guns to shoot Nacho's lifeless body after he killed himself]].

* BadBoss: Seemed willing to push Hector aside in favor of Gus. A risky move regarding both people, considering he had Gus' partner murdered, by ''Hector'' no less. His employees seem to be constantly on guard waiting for the moment he decides to kill them. Lalo theorizes Eladio is just enjoying the bad blood between the Salamanca muscles and Gus the earner since it keeps them divided and constantly trying to cater his favors by bringing more money. Eladio has so many people looking at him with hatred Gus doesn't surprise him and thinks he can just cower him with firce.

Character subpage for characters affiliated with the Juarez Cartel in ''Series/BetterCallSaul''. For the Salamancas when they appear in ''Series/BreakingBad'', [[Characters/BreakingBadSalamancaFamily click here]]. For other cartel members as depicted in ''Breaking Bad'', [[Characters/BreakingBadJuarezCartel click here]].

->'''Portrayed By:''' Creator/StevenBauer

->'''Portrayed By:''' Javier Grajeda

->'''Portrayed By:''' Creator/MarkMargolis

* AssholeVictim: A non-lethal variant. While his stroke and subsequent fate is pretty horrible, it’s hard to pity him, given what a petty, cruel and ruthless asshole he is.

* DirtyOldMan: It's actually a ''major'' plot-point. [[spoiler:Once he's in early recovery from the stroke, it's not obvious to anyone whether or not Hector is mentally sound. It's not until Gus catches him perving on a nurse half his age that he realizes that his mind is crystal clear, so Gus has Hector's treatment cancelled so that he'll never be able to physically recover.]]

* EvilIsPetty: His manner of intimidating the customers and Los Pollos Hermanos employees, from blatantly lighting a cigar when its against Los Pollos Hermanos' rules, helping himself to a drink for free, as well as scraping dog shit in Gus' office.

* FauxAffablyEvil: He's much more fastidious than we're used to. He comes at Mike politely and attempts to bribe him into accepting the gun charge. Given what we would see of him in flashbacks in ''Breaking Bad'', this is a surprise. The mask drops completely when Mike refuses his offer. As things continue to get progressively worse for him, his temper (which wasn't great to begin with) degrades. He also tries the charming act with Nacho when he wants to use his father's store as a front, but Nacho's savvy enough about it.

* GoodSmokingEvilSmoking: When coming to Los Pollos Hermanos to meet with Gus, he lights up a cigar inside the serving area in full comtempt of the strict no smoking policy, just to prove a point about the power he holds over Gus.

* HairTriggerTemper: Not as bad as with Tuco, but he can explode at slightest reason.
* HateSink: Ruthless cartel boss aside, Hector is a pretty unlikable asshole who spends most of his screen time jerking around on others, throwing petty tantrums, and lording himself over others. Him being paralyzed does little, if anything, to deter his general nastiness.
* HumiliationConga: This is his story arc over the time span of Series/BreakingBad and Series/BetterCallSaul, as his position in the Cartel’s hierarchy progressively changes for the worst over the time. His first appearances in chronological order are in the Breaking Bad’s episodes "One minute" and "Hermanos", where he is shown pissing into Don Eladio’s pool (even daring Bolsa to tell it to the boss) and discussing over the phone the opportunity of doing business with Gus Fring. So, he is clearly unafraid of, and even defiant to, the ‘'jefe’’. He is also one of the heads of the Cartel, consulted about any important business decision. By his next appearance in the flashback of the Better Call Saul’s episode "Sabrosito", his relationship with Eladio and Bolsa has subtly changed: he is unusually subdued and humble and the boss has no qualms about belittling and mocking him in front of one of his subordinates, while Bolsa has clearly become Eladio's right-hand man. Come the beginning of ‘’Better Call Saul’’ and, while his family still controls a sizeable part of the cross-border drug trafficking and he is still feared, he is seen as a relic of a bygone era and Don Eladio does not even bother any more to deal with him in person, sending his orders through Bolsa instead. At the end of the series he is a mute cripple confined on a wheelchair, Don Eladio treats him with the fleeting respect one would reserve to a once brilliant but now senile relative and his family’s territory is unceremoniously reduced to the benefit of the man he hates most, Gus Fring.

* ItsAllAboutMe: Eladio already has Gus as distributor in New Mexico and Hector brings way less money than him, but Hector wants to do his own racket there and even fashioned himself as being the Cartel. He even wants to take over Nacho's dad's store only because he doesn't have full control over Pollos Hermanos and wants ''his'' front to himself.

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: While he still resents him for his favoritism toward Bolsa and Gus, even Hector fears Don Eladio and knows better that of angering or disrespecting him to his face, becoming unusually quiet and submissive and never acting openly dickish in Eladio's presence.
* LaserGuidedKarma: His BadBoss tendencies and desire to force Nacho's father into becoming an accomplice of his drug operations or die if he refuses backfire hard on him, with Nacho switching his heart medicine with sugar pills in order to kill him and save his father, leading to his near-death experience and leaving him stuck in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.

** He's not stupid all the time but his direct approach to dealing with Gus, Bolsa and Eladio is unsubtle, crass, and suicidally disrespectful.
** [[spoiler: After being told that he must keep Lalo's survival a secret, he instantly blows the lid by making peace with Gus. It's an act so stupidly out of character that Gus knows immediately Lalo has to be alive. In fact, his smug smile and direct look to Gus in the eyes, indirectly tipping him off about Lalo's survival, is implied to be the reason behind his later refusal to ever look Gus in the eyes again during ''Breaking Bad'', as Gus's paranoia and preparations for Lalo's inevitable attempt on his life is ultimately what allowed him to triumph, and Hector is acutely aware he blew the best chance his family had of dealing with Gus out of his petty need to gloat against his enemy.]]
* SuddenlySpeaking: Sorta. In all present-day scenes in ''Breaking Bad'', Hector's stroke had rendered him mute. ''Better Call Saul'' takes place before ''Breaking Bad'' and before Hector's stroke. So this is the first time we've seen Hector speak outside of flashbacks in either show, and also the first time we've seen him speak in English (the two ''Breaking Bad'' flashbacks were in Spanish).

** He has a silent one, due to his condition, [[spoiler: when Nacho finally tells him that he's the one who's responsible for his condition, by switching his heart medicine with sugar pills and telling him what kind of man Hector truly is. Hector cannot say anything but his face and breath make it clear that he's full of murderous fury, and he uses one of the twins' gun to shoot Nacho's lifeless body after he killed himself]].

->''"Our connect was a guy called Dawg Paulson. One day, ­Tuco's settling up with Dawg. He decides to put on his lie detector. Dawg's like, "what the hell?" You know. Tuco just keeps staring at him. Then he goes real quiet. "You think I'm an idiot, Dawg?" He thinks Dawg is supplying his competitor, trying to cut Tuco out. Dawg, he denies it. "No way! Not me!" Tuco doesn't even raise his voice, but suddenly, he's got a sawed-off and... Right in Dawg's face. I was behind him. Sickest thing I ever saw, to this day. [...] The thing about it was, Tuco really liked Dawg. Kind of felt bad afterwards."''

* BerserkButton: The man is a walking, talking minefield of these. One of the reason he's so terrifying to work with is because it's unclear what will set him off. Simply nicking his car and not being scared of him is enough to drive him into a homicidal rage, and even saying something ''supportive'' might make him lose his mind. One consistent rule, though, is family: threatening or insulting his grandmother is like wearing a giant "please torture me to death" sign on your chest.

* DisproportionateRetribution: He plans on brutally executing the Lindholm twins for insulting his grandmother. Jimmy has to talk him down so that he ''only'' breaks one of each of their legs. He also attacks Mike for "accidentally" sideswiping his car (a gambit set up by Mike and Nacho to get Tuco out of the way without killing him). Although Mike did grab him and knock his gun away before he starts seriously beating on Mike but that's like beating someone for defending himself of a mugger.

* RealMenWearPink: Wears a salmon pink shirt in his first appearance. Since hotter colours on the show mean he's further up on the crime scale, this was suitable.

->'''Portrayed By:''' Daniel & Luis Moncada

* CommutingOnABus: They leave Hector's side by Season 3, later only mentioned in passing that they are keeping an eye on Tuco's time in jail among other things. It's entirely possible they were only brought along in order to intimidate Mike, and once he agreed to Hector's deal they simply returned to their own business. By Season 4 onwards, they take more active roles following their uncle's stroke and begin appearing much more frequently.
* TheDreaded: Mike is a mixture of angered and shocked by them just appearing overlooking the pool while he's supervising Kaylee, especially when Marco does a gun gesture towards Kaylee.

* VillainRespect: Interestingly, despite [[spoiler: being mortal enemies by this point, the Cousins seem to indeed have a degree of lasting respect for Nacho. When confronting him face-to-face, they withdraw their weapons and allow him to make the first move with a BringIt gesture, only attacking when he reloads and strikes. This is retroactively in complete contrast to their near-identical encounter with Hank Schrader, where they attack him from behind the moment they sight him. They also appear more hurt than angered when Nacho tells off the Salamancas, and genuinely shocked by Nacho's suicide. ]]

->'''Portrayed By:''' Max Arciniega

** When Saul confronts him at the prison as his lawyer, he's initially confused and standoffish. Upon hearing Saul clarify that Lalo sent him, he [[YouHaveFailedMe assumes the worst]] and anxiously promises he stayed quiet. Saul stops him since they fortunately have something else planned for him.

* ButtMonkey: And how. First he is intimidated by Tuco. Then Hector has him brutally beaten for being short on payments. Then Lalo humiliates him with a nickname that he will be stuck with for years. And then he gets arrested in an incredibly embarrassing manner.

* TheMole: Subverted. He weasels his way into becoming a protected DEA informant, but it's all part of a plan to install him as Lalo's informant in the DEA so he can send the DEA after Gus's operation.

* SlowlySlippingIntoEvil: His first appearances in the show happen when he's still new to the drug trade, and ''very'' naive about how vicious and brutal it is. As he continues selling drugs (and after getting a beating from Nacho for coming up short on cash) he gets a much better understanding of the cruel realities of organized crime, and starts becoming hardened.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ebbc472b_39b0_4600_9a12_b061572726e6.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"''You're gonna back me up or what?''"]]

Muscle for Hector Salamanca.

* AcquiredSituationalNarcissism: After being put in temporary power while Hector has been hospitalized, he believes that he and Nacho are "running things". More obvious when he suggests they push to get 6 keys of product like they did before.

* EmbarrassingLastName: His last name is 'Colon'. Unless he spells it as common Spanish surname "Colón", it is the same as "colon" is the organ which excretes feces from the human body.

* OvershadowedByAwesome: Arturo is fairly threatening in his own right, but he's completely schooled by the much more experienced Mike. He's also fairly small fish when the rest of the pond supports the likes of Gus Fring and the Salamancas.
* SacrificialLamb: Arturo recurred as muscle for Don Hector; he operated on roughly the same level of authority as Nacho and was someone that Nacho seemed to consider a friend, or at least a colleague he got along with. His sudden, brutal death serves multiple purposes for the characters and the show:
** It shows that with Hector incapacitated, Gus feels a lot more free to take direct action.

* MotorMouth: He's ridiculously chatty, but unlike with Krazy 8, who was trying to appeal to Nacho for sympathy over his screwups, Blingy seems to genuinely think there's no big deal in him being short on his payments.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:''El Michoacano'' manager]]
!!Manager
->'''Portrayed by:''' Jose E. Pintor

The cook and manager of ''El Michoacano'', a restaurant where Tuco's branch of the cartel conducts operations. After Tuco is arrested, he finds himself playing host to Hector Salamanca and Nacho Varga.
----
* ApatheticCitizens[=/=]BystanderSyndrome: Does nothing when Nacho drags Krazy-8 into the back for a beatdown, even though the sounds of the beating are clearly audible in the main section of the restaurant.
* PutOnABus: It's suggested that Lalo replaced him as the cook during cartel hours.
* TheQuietOne: Rarely talks.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mouse & Arlo]]
!!Mouse & Arlo
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mooo.PNG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Arlo and Mouse]]
->'''Portrayed by:''' Adrienne Lovette & Spenser Granese
Two street-level dealers managing a crackhouse. They work under Krazy-8.

* DarkActionGirl: Mouse is ready to defend herself and the product with a shotgun if necessary.
* IdiotBall: Scenes establish Mouse as passing packets of drugs down the drainpipe of the house one at a time. When the skells ask for ten, she suddenly decides to dump all ten packets out at once. This causes a clog in the drain, which leads to the skells making a scene and attracting police.
* LockedOutOfTheLoop: They had no idea about who Lalo was and if it was okay to let him in. It leads to a quick misunderstanding that Nacho defuses just as fast.
* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: They desert the house when the police arrive on the scene, then bail without the product when feds surround it.
* ShotgunsAreJustBetter: Mouse's weapon of choice, presumably when dealing with unruly customers.
* SmallRoleBigImpact: They play a role in the sequence of events that get Jimmy involved with the cartel again and put Krazy-8 into being a snitch to the DEA.

* TheDitz: He does not seem terribly bright compared to the other dealers Nacho meets weekly; when short on his payments in the drug dealing world, he doesn't show any apprehension or seem apologetic when meeting his boss, cheerily chattering it up Nacho like it's spilt milk. He's very fortunate Nacho is a BenevolentBoss in this line of work.
* EarAche: Nacho rips his earring out, seriously hurting his ear, when he doesn't have enough money during a weekly check in.
* MotorMouth: He's ridiculously chatty, but unlike with Kray 8, who was trying to appeal to Nacho for sympathy over his screwups, Blingy seems to genuinely think there's no big deal in him being short on his payments.

->'''Portrayed By:''' Manuel Uriza

* MistakenForBetrayal: When his ice cream truck is robbed during a trip across the border, it's believed by Hector that he must have been in on it, as he believes his operation is so airtight there's no way an outsider could have known about the truck being a transport, much less know about the money being hidden in the tires. Also, the thief leaving him alive is so bizarre, the assumption that he was helping with the heist is understandable. However, Ximenez was not in on it, as Mike was able to deduce their method of transporting money and drugs across the border on his own, and left him alive in an attempt to keep the collateral damage to a minimum. It's no shock that Hector doesn't buy Ximenez's story and executes him for his perceived betrayal. Although it's quite possible that Hector could have believed his story and ''still'' killed him just for allowing himself to get robbed at all.

->'''Portrayed By:''' Adrienne Lovette & Spenser Granese

* ScrewThisImOuttaHere: They desert the house when police arrive on the scene, then bail without the product when feds surround it.

[[WMG:Leadership]]

[[WMG:The Salamanca Family]]

[[WMG:Los Pollos Hermanos]]

!!!Leadership
[[folder:Gus Fring]]
For Gus Fring, see [[Characters/BreakingBadGustavoFring here]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mike Ehrmantraut]]
For Mike Ehrmantraut, see [[Characters/BreakingBadMikeEhrmantraut here]].
[[/folder]]

!!!Others
[[folder:Criminal Associates and Los PollosEmployees]]
For all remaining members and associates, see [[Characters/BreakingBadLosPollosHermanos here]].
[[/folder]]

[[WMG:Associates, dealers and soldiers]]

Character subpage for characters affiliated with the Juarez Cartel in ''Series/BetterCallSaul''. For the Salamancas when they appear in ''Series/BreakingBad'', [[Characters/BreakingBadSalamancaFamily click here]]. For other cartel members as depicted in ''Breaking Bad'', [[Characters/BreakingBadJuarezCartel click here]]. For the main character page, [[Characters/BetterCallSaul click here]].

** [[spoiler: After being told that he must keep Lalo's survival a secret, he instantly blows the lid by making peace with Gus. It's an act so stupidly out of character that Gus knows immediately Lalo has to be alive.]]

* He understands the dynamics between Gus and Salamancas and how to use them to his advantage. Also, despite brushing off the Salamanca's testimony, when Hector told Eladio to look into Gus' eyes and see him for who he really is, Eladio sees the immeasurable hate Gus has for him under his polite demeanor.

* ExcellentJudgeOfCharacter: For all his StupidEvil tendencies he is not as thick as he looks when it comes to noticing the dynamics between Gus and Salamancas and how to use it to his advantage. He also knows that Gus has hatred for him so he makes a point of reminding him that Bolsa is his boss.