So goes Saul's empire.
Kim: Don't you think Saul Goodman would drive something with a little more... flair?
Jimmy: Such as?
Kim: I don't know, definitely American-made. Something showy... and Saul Goodman has an office. Something eye-catching, good location... a cathedral of justice.
Jimmy: Such as?
Kim: I don't know, definitely American-made. Something showy... and Saul Goodman has an office. Something eye-catching, good location... a cathedral of justice.
Kim plans a risky first strike against Howard, even as Jimmy frets over his commitment. Lalo and Nacho try to throw off their pursuers. Mike worries about getting too close to a loose end.
Tropes:
- Bad Boss:
- Lalo only helped out a couple from a local area to use as assets for any time he'd need to fake his death.
- Despite Mike's urging to get Nacho help, arguing he's done everything they've asked of him, Gus refuses to give Nacho any respite and forbids Mike from assisting him in any way.
- Bait-and-Switch: The opening shows black and white colored ties falling, implying that this is one of the intros to the present day as shown in previous season premiere openings. But then colorful ties also start to fall.
- Bait the Dog: Lalo arrives at a local couple's place to patch up his wounds. He's on amicable terms with them, who pay respect to him as "Don Eduardo". They mention in passing how Lalo has been funding Mateo's dental plan and keeping small talk with his wife about the farm. It's then shown he intends to use them as part of his plan to fake his death, killing them both and using their corpses to set the scene.
- Battle Discretion Shot: The thugs managing the illegal immigration try Lalo's patience when they refuse to give him a refund after his change of plans. Cut to the inside of the haystacks and a few gunshots going off, with a single bullet hole blown through the top of the cargo tarp.
- Bavarian Fire Drill: Jimmy's plot to infiltrate the country club is almost busted when Kevin Wachtell spots him and compels the staff member to deny him a tour. He begins to walk out... only to then turn around and loudly accuse the club and Kevin of discriminating against him (claiming antisemitism because they heard his last name "Goodman" and changed their course). This propels Kevin to almost come to blows against him, and he's allowed into the bathroom in the men's locker room to "relieve his stress", where he can then execute the plan.
- Big Fancy House: It turns out Saul was living in a huge, gaudy McMansion with gold covering almost every appliance and paraphernalia of himself around the place.
- Body Double: Lalo turns out to have one of these, funding the dental plans for a local farmhand to make their records match, while the couple remain unaware of his true intentions for helping them. Before he kills him, Lalo recommends he shave his facial hair to a style similar to his.
- Call-Back:
- The introductory flash-forward to Saul Goodman's home being evicted has a few nods to the previous seasons, such as the cowboy photograph Jimmy and Kim used to threaten copyright infringement charges against Mesa Verde (after the latter wanted to abort this plan), a now-golden-plated version of the shower Jimmy asked Kim to check out when looking for houses, and a painting taken away being the same one hanging from their apartment. It ends with the tequila bottle stopper from the time they scammed Ken Wins, spilling out a drawer and being abandoned to the wayside.
- Jimmy takes out the old brown suit he used to wear as a public defender all the way back in Season 1, offering it to Kim's client so he has something nice to wear in court.
- Like the Esteem's trashing, Kim takes out the "World's 2nd Best Lawyer (Again)" cup and decides to unceremoniously toss it into the trash, showing both of them moving past the identity of Jimmy McGill.
- The District Attorneys and detectives have finished dismantling Lalo's temporary "de Guzman" identity.
- Kevin's still not happy with the headache Jimmy caused, and almost ruins Kim and Jimmy's plan at the country club by demanding he be removed immediately when he's spotted trying to take a tour of the place.
- This isn't the first time Jimmy has faked a medical condition to gain access to a bathroom after being asked to leave; way back in Season 1, he pretended to have Irritable Bowel Syndrome to get into Sandpiper Crossing's bathroom so he could write a demand letter on toilet paper.
- Call-Forward:
- The Twins leave a card of the Mexican saint of death, Santa Muerte, as a sign of honoring Lalo and swearing vengeance on whoever was responsible for his death. It's similar to how they'll make an offering to a shrine to Santa Muerte against "Heisenberg".
- Bolsa calls up Gus to let him know about the death of a Salamanca and discusses the "blood for blood" motto of their family, warning Gus about the dangers he could face with the ongoing suspicion of traitors. Though Bolsa still trusts Gus during this time, he'll be much harsher years later when Gus plans on hiring Walt despite him being in the Cousins' crosshairs.
- Kim notes that a car appropriate for Saul Goodman should be a more expensive American-made car, and that he should think about getting an office state she describes as a "cathedral of justice". Both things describe the white Cadillac Saul drives note and the office he operates out of respectively by the time of Breaking Bad.
- Jimmy relies on his Saul Goodman alias to fake an ethnic Jewish background for his own gain, something he'll later admit to doing plenty of times to "Mr. Mayhew" in his debut episode.
- Lalo plans to join an illegal immigration to make his way past the border without detection from either governments, only to leave the scene with the organizers of the operation dead. It echoes the dramatic introduction the Cousins had in "No Mas", though he at least kept the innocent bystanders alive.
- Lalo uses the same "A-B-C-D" method of receiving answers from his uncle Hector that his other nephews and his nurse will eventually use.
- Chekhov's Gag: Way back in Breaking Bad, Saul told Walt that his real name was McGill and that he puts on an act to cater to clientele that "want a pipe-hitting member of the tribe". Here, he claims Jewish ethnicity to accuse the country club of antisemitic sentiment so he can continue the plan against Howard.
- Cluster F-Bomb: On the phone with Hector, Lalo curses out Bolsa, Eladio and everybody else in Spanish as he plans on traveling back to the States to kill Gus regardless of the consequences.
- Conspicuous Consumption: We finally see what Jimmy's been going home to during the events of Breaking Bad, which is a massive tacky house with gold and marble covering nearly everything. The most ridiculous case of this has to be the golden toilet that has its own dedicated podium and chamber.
- Continuity Nod:
- Juan Bolsa reminds Gus of the Salamanca way when faced with the killing of a family member: "Sangre por sangre".
- Jimmy and Kim discuss what they'll plan to do to Howard in order to throw the Sandpiper Case and get their payouts. Kim reminds him of how hesitant he was the night before, which Jimmy refutes and claims that he's in.
- David vs. Goliath: Kim's case with a juvenile is this. Her client was easily swayed by a rich friend that convinced him to be the unwitting Getaway Driver for him to stick up a local liquor store. When they're caught, the rich kid and his family make sure to shift all the charges onto Kim's client and frame him as responsible for the whole thing, going as far as to hire lawyers from out-of-state to ensure it. Meanwhile, said client can only muster public defense.
- Deadpan Snarker: As Gus points out the glaring inconsistency behind a successful mission from a team that was reported to be completely wiped out, Mike comments "It's been known to happen".
- Dirty Cop: The federales Nacho has to avoid are on the cartel's payroll. The authorities surrounding the crime scene in Lalo's hacienda also let the Cousins on to investigate for themselves, not protesting even as they step over important exhibits.
- Dramatic Irony: The situation and circumstances behind the attack on Lalo's hacienda have become rather muddied for everyone involved.
- The Juarez Cartel believe Lalo is actually dead and concluded Nacho betrayed them, but they don't know the latter is working for Gus.
- Bolsa in particular tells Gus to be careful since nobody will be beneath suspicion during this time, showing he still doesn't know Gus' intentions.
- Only Hector is left knowing for sure that Lalo survived by the end of the episode, with the Twins still believing they saw his actual dead body.
- Nacho thinks Lalo's been killed, only relying on Tyrus' phone call as confirmation. Though on the run from both the cartel and the local federal forces, he doesn't know he could end up running from Lalo at any moment.
- Even on Gus' end, they find it difficult to know if Lalo survived the hit or not. Tyrus is ready to believe he's dead by taking the report from the hitmen at face-value, while Gus and Mike remain wary, all without any surefire way to know.
- Jimmy and Kim are inevitably kept out of the loop. They've eventually accepted Mike's guarantee that Lalo would be taken care of.
- The Juarez Cartel believe Lalo is actually dead and concluded Nacho betrayed them, but they don't know the latter is working for Gus.
- The Dreaded: When the Twins arrive at Lalo's hacienda, it is an active crime scene. However, the agents and crewmen present all know well enough to step out of their way and allow them to trespass and even handle (what they think is) Lalo's body. Some also make sure to avoid eye-contact and hide their faces in the Twins' presence.
- "Eureka!" Moment: While discussing their next steps with Lalo over the phone, Hector asks if he can muster any proof. Lalo says no... only to remember he does have the perfect proof, and that it's not north of the border.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: In true Salamanca fashion.
- The Cousins are horrified to see what is (supposedly) the charred corpse of Lalo Salamanca in his home. Leonel's mouth is agape the whole time as he uses his coat to cover their cousin's body out of respect.
- Hector is close to angry tears while mulling in his wheelchair before Lalo reveals he survived the hit on him. He's shocked then delighted to hear his nephew's voice, and soon the two begin plotting to get back at Gus. It seems to go both ways as Lalo has no problem in keeping the rest of his family in the dark, but does let Don Hector know he's okay, even though he's the one who ends up giving away the ruse.
- Lalo swears he will kill Gus just like how Hector taught him, in honor of their family name and reputation.
- Even Evil Has Standards: Carrying over from the last episode, Nacho is concerned enough over the well-being of the other people in Lalo's hacienda despite their allegiances, asking if they're okay while on the phone with Tyrus.
- Everything Is Racist: Jimmy and Kim's plans for the country club run into a hurdle when Kevin wants Jimmy off the premises immediately. Since he was going by his "Saul Goodman" alias, he claims they only refused to give him a tour when they heard his name and realized he was Jewish, accusing the establishment of antisemitism. "Saul" paints every scathing comment Kevin makes against him as discriminatory.
- Evil Is Petty: The border-crossing operation has a no-refunds policy, taunting Lalo for having already paid up after he changed his mind. It doesn't end well for them.
- Fake-Out Opening: Downplayed. The episode opens on several ties in various patterns and shades of black and white being dropped in a pile against a white background, making the viewer think for a brief moment that they are back in the Deliberately Monochrome flash-forward vignettes showing the life of "Gene Takavic" in Omaha, but then several garishly colored ties start appearing among the monochrome ones, and the scene cuts to establish that the scene is instead taking place in Saul's mansion in Albuquerque, and presumably is happening, chronologically, in the immediate aftermath the collapse of Walter White/Heisenberg's drug empire in the final act of Breaking Bad.
- Faking the Dead: Lalo gets a Body Double in the form of a local civilian he's been helping, making sure their dental records are the same, before killing him and his wife and burning his corpse to make it seem more believable. He makes sure to hide his face and travel discreetly while making sure the only one in on his faked death is Hector.
- Faux Affably Evil: This extremely unnerving trait of Lalo's continues.
- He patches himself up at the home of a couple he's apparently on good relations with, and is extremely friendly and kind to both of them... before eventually killing both of them to aid in the cover-up of his death.
- He tries to politely tell the border-crossing gang he wants his cash back since he doesn't plan on joining them anymore. When they refuse to give him a refund, he warns them that they should have been nice. A few gunshots later, and he calmly tells the passengers that they'll unfortunately have to find another way past the border and gives them their money back.
- Fiery Cover-Up: A variation; to help make his Body Double look more like him, Lalo has a fiery attack faked on his compound, burning and disfiguring the corpse.
- Genius Bruiser: Lalo demonstrates his brains and brawn during the attempted border crossing. He's able to decipher Hector's spelling over the phone without having to write anything down, then handily disarms and dispatches two armed coyotes (human traffickers) without breaking a sweat.
- Genre Savvy: Mike and Gus are both immediately suspicious about the circumstances of Lalo's assassination scene, particularly the fact that all the gunmen are dead and yet the hit was supposedly successful. Mike sardonically notes that "it has been known to happen", but it's clear both men aren't convinced their man is truly dead.
- The Ghost: Eladio doesn't appear in the episode but exposition from Tyrus reveals he put a price on Nacho's head.
- Gory Discretion Shot: We don't actually see Lalo killing Sylvia and Mateo, but we can surmise that Sylvia's murder was very brutal. We still see Mateo's body, however, after it has been burned beyond recognition.
- Greedy Jew: Exploited by Jimmy. When one of the insults that Kevin throws at him is calling him "money grubbing", Jimmy accuses him of alluding to this trope.Kevin: (peeved) You know damn well that's not what I meant!
- He's Back!: A Downplayed case. Jimmy steels his nerves and, after clenching the fist wearing Marco's ring, manages to bluff his way out of trouble in front of the ADA and Detective Roberts with his mental acumen of the law, all while keeping his usual smug and confident demeanor. He only slips up when he accidentally reveals "Jorge"'s real name is Lalo, and even then he just brushes it off with a quick excuse. The moment he gets away, though, it's shown he still has a long way to go for properly recovering.
- Horrible Judge of Character: A Downplayed example here, retroactively knowing their business relationship will sour in the future. Although Juan Bolsa seems to a Professional Butt-Kisser and implicitly trusts Gus, his quip that everyone is liable to suspicion over Lalo's death indicates he's not entirely believing Gus is absolutely not involved.
- How the Mighty Have Fallen: Saul's tacky McMansion housing trinkets from his career and excessive golden decor is seen being rummaged through to be sold following eviction, now that he's disappeared.
- I Never Said It Was Poison: Almost happens when Jimmy calls "Jorge" by his real nickname, Lalo. The ADA questions him a bit, but Saul excuses himself by saying he simply mixed his many clients up.
- Internal Reveal:
- The Juarez Cartel surmise Nacho is a traitor and played a role in the death of Lalo, though they still don't know it was Gus' plan.
- Lalo calls Hector to let him know that he's alive and plans to keep his faked death ongoing until he can get his hands on Gus, before deciding to search for "proof" against him instead.
- Mistaken for Junkie: Turns out to be the start of Kim and Jimmy's plan for Howard, first building him up as a cocaine user by sneaking a packet of baby powder into his locker at the country club.
- Mistaken for Racist: Invoked and Exploited by Jimmy, with Kevin asking the country club to get rid of him. As he used his "Saul Goodman" alias, he claims they only decided to discontinue the tour upon hearing his name. When the director tries to claim there's a waiting list, Jimmy claims it's an exclusionary list and twists Kevin's words to be antisemitic.
- Mugging the Monster: Lalo changes his plans to stay in Mexico to search for "proof" against Gus somewhere south of the border, asking for his money back from the people running the illegal immigration. They mock him and refuse to do so. Cue gunshots, groans, and their bodies on the ground.
- Naked People Are Funny: Right when Cliff and Howard come back from golfing, Jimmy's still in the locker room, so he improvises a disguise. By getting completely naked and hiding his head in a towel as if he just came out of a shower.
- Narrow Annihilation Escape: We pick up where Season 5 left off with Nacho making a run for it while Gus' men enter Lalo's compound, escaping on foot for hours while the cartel slowly realizes his role in the attack.
- Never Found the Body: Lalo deliberately subverts this by killing a man who resembles him (after having also told him to shave his beard but leave a mustache and soul patch) and then burning the body so that it can't be recognized (except by the dental records apparently matching Lalo's, which makes sense since he apparently had a hand in funding the man's oral surgery).
- Pet the Dog: While Lalo kills the gangsters for trying his patience, he leaves their passengers alive and apologizes for forcing them to find another route to take. He even hands them back their money.
- Police Are Useless: In the Corrupt Cop sort of way, as The Cartel holds more authority in these parts.
- The federales allow the Cousins to make their own investigation across the compound, with the Salamanca name far too intimidating to let them resist. They aren't bothered when one kicks part of the scene over while they're walking.
- While Nacho is on the run in Mexico, he knows from Tyrus not to, in any way, trust the federales since killing a high-ranking cartel member as a rat has brought both sides of the law on a manhunt for him. When he sees a pair of their vehicles on the road, he hides quickly.
- Pragmatic Villainy: True to form, Bolsa is distressed by Lalo's death specifically because it will incite chaos, which is terrible for business.
- Properly Paranoid: Gus is disconcerted when learning that Lalo is supposedly dead yet all of the assassins sent after him are dead. Mike dismisses this concern, but Gus is shown to be unconvinced.
- Price on Their Head: Eladio has a bounty put out on Nacho once the cartel figures he's a traitor.
- Refuge in Audacity: A wrench is thrown into Jimmy's plans for a "tour" of the country club in the form of a disgruntled Kevin Wachtell that wants him thrown out. Jimmy's response is to claim the only reason he's only now being kicked out and put on a supposed "waiting list" is because the manager thought he was Jewish from his "Goodman" name and accuses everyone in the room of antisemitism. He twists a few words from Kevin to reinforce his narrative and even slightly puts on an accent whenever he yells. It works despite Kevin's protests and knowing his actual name.Saul: [to the manager] I want you to know, I don't blame you personally. I know you're Just Following Orders.
- Reverse Whodunnit: The authorities in New Mexico are preparing to hunt Lalo down and find out who he really is, after finally dismantling his temporary identity. They have few leads and want to meet with Jimmy to figure out how they can find him, but Jimmy shuts them down (for now at least).
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Kevin accuses Jimmy of being up to something mischievous by just showing up to the golf course randomly, but he suspects that this is most likely by a frivolous lawsuit, when really Jimmy is setting up to ruin Howard and his career.
- Screw the Rules, I Have Money!: What appears to be a major motive of the real culprit in the juvenile case Kim tells Jimmy about. The rich kid felt like sticking up a convenience store just because and believed he had the money to lay all the charges on his comparatively poorer friend by hiring a top-dollar, out-of-state lawyer.
- Shout-Out:
- Lalo likens Mateo's facial hair to ZZ Top before he suggests he change it.
- The Gilliganverse once again uses pool imagery akin to Tony Montana's death scene. This time, it's to represent Saul losing everything with a shot of Saul Goodman's cardboard cutout floating around in the pool.
- The whole cold open is also one to the ending of Citizen Kane, which shows the furniture of Charles Foster Kane's Xanadu packed up and what the workers deem junk being thrown away. Here, the burning of Rosebud is replaced with Kim's Zafiro Añejo bottle stopper rolling into the gutter.
- Some of My Best Friends Are X: Saul uses a slight variant when trying to frame the country club as anti-semitic.
Norm: Sir, we have many Jewish members...
Saul: Oh, good. Well, you met your quota then. Gold star for you.
- Spanner in the Works: Averted. Kevin's arrival and demands to throw Jimmy out of the country club initially looks as though it will throw a wrench in Jimmy's and Kim's plan. But Jimmy plays Xanatos Speed Chess and comes up with the anti-Semitism ruse to keep the plan intact.
- Spotting the Thread:
- Once Gus hears the reports of Lalo's death, he points out how every single member of the team was killed and yet somehow completely successful in their mission. Everyone in the room knows there's a high chance Lalo's actually alive.
- The country club's director for tours and memberships gets a complaint from Kevin when the latter sees Jimmy on the premises. He tries to get him to leave by claiming he forgot there were different policies to cancel the tour, but Jimmy points out he should have known them since he manages those areas.
- The Summation: ADA Gina Khalil and Detective Tim Roberts lay into Jimmy when they cross paths at the courthouse again, debunking the family, records and identity of "Jorge de Guzman" and making their intent to track him down known to Jimmy. It's only really this from their perspective, as the audience already knew by this point.
- Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Nacho lets in the assassins to Lalo's back gate and then flees the scene as the subsequent massacre takes place. As it turns out, Lalo isn't the only one smart enough to piece together Nacho's role in the matter; Don Eladio puts a price on his head and the Mexican federales begin a manhunt for him, both having noticed that he was present at the house before and then vanished right before the assassins showed up, therefore implicating him.
- Villain Respect: Gus admits that Nacho has his respect following his ability to execute every one of their orders. And yet still, this doesn't mean Gus is willing to give him any room to breathe.
- We Need to Get Proof: Hector tells Lalo that he needs to find evidence that Gus has a) betrayed the cartel and b) was behind the attempt on his life.
- Workaholic: Jimmy and Kim are shown to be different versions of this with all the clients they keep on taking. Jimmy excuses himself from the Summation Gathering by mentioning his busy schedule while Kim calls her hectic day "one of the best" in her professional life.
- Wrong-Name Outburst: Or correct name in this case. While dodging questions from the ADA and Detective Roberts about "Jorge"'s whereabouts, Jimmy accidentally calls him "Lalo", to which he covers up by claiming he got another client's name confused.
- Xanatos Speed Chess: Jimmy shows an amazing ability to think quickly on his feet and pull off the planting of the baby powder. When Kevin tries to have him kicked out of the country club? No problem, play with his "Saul Goodman" name and accused everyone in the club of being anti-Semitic. Then he pulls out the "quota" comeback when the membership members cites the club having many Jewish managers. Not to mention twisting everything Kevin says into proof of anti-Semitism, and goading him into a physical attack. It buys him enough time to gain access to the locker room. Then he plugs the toilet to draw the attendant away from his desk and look up which locker Howard has assigned. When Kim texts him to abort because Cliff and Howard are on their way back? Nope, that won't phase Jimmy. He plants the powder, strips naked, and places a towel over his head as though he were drying off to avoid being noticed by Howard.
