History YMMV / BetterCallSaul

** For all of the show's interesting tie-ins with ''Series/BreakingBad'' and prominent showcasing of the Salamanca family, this show doesn't reveal anything more about minor members of the family who were briefly seen or indirectly referenced in the original show and could have done interesting things with the Salamanca dynamics. Specifically, Hector's niece/Tuco's sister[[note]] Hector's niece (Tuco has a sister, given how he is unmarried and his enforcer Gonzo is his brother-in-law [[/note]] (given her romance with a family enforcer, apparent role in having not been brought up by Hector like her brother and cousins, and status as a rare Salamanca who seemingly survives both shows), siblings (the parents of the nephews he raised), sole biological son (whose relationship with his unhinged cousins who view Hector as a ParentalSubstitute could have been interesting), and grandson Joaquin (the only known Salamanca in the youngest generation, and a FutureBadass who may be in a UsedToBeASweetKid phase at this point in the franchise).

* DracoInLeatherPants:
** Ever since TheReveal that [[spoiler:Chuck is the one who decided to not hire Jimmy at HHM and that he actually likes Jimmy very much]], many viewers have been willing to overlook Howard Hamlin's more {{jerkass}} moments and behavior, like sending Kim to the "cornfield" twice, or the way he and the rest of the board behaved when choosing which pupil to award with the scholarship. Many are willing to reinterpret him as a selfless (to a certain extent) man who's had to take a bullet or two for his partners thanks to the [=McGills'=] antics. Given that Chuck was set up to be Jimmy's main friend and the extent of his betrayal, this is sort of understandable.
** No matter how many lows he sinks to or how many terrible things he does, many fans will excuse Jimmy for his crimes and blame all of his unsavoury actions on Chuck, while ignoring the fact that, like Walter White, Jimmy had the perfect opportunity to avoid a life of crime for a legitimate path. His chance to clean himself up as a lawyer at Davis and Main, only to instead embrace the path of an AmoralAttorney, shows it isn't just Chuck he'd need to fight, but also his own worst impulses.
** Lalo. Even though he's a quite obviously a sociopathic murderer, he's a charming, affable killer with a hidden soft side (see his interactions with the people in his complex). Of course, there are also those who were drawn in by Tony Dalton's good looks and charisma, which he uses to great effect. This comes to a head in the Season 6 mid-finale where people seem more furious with [[spoiler: Kim and Jimmy to an extent for getting Howard killed, content to overlook the person who actually pulled the trigger and the fact that Kim and Saul both attempted to get Howard to leave the house in a failed attempt to save him.]]
** This continues with Gus from the previous series. While Gus has one or two softer moments, the show goes out of its way to show that he is a cruel and ruthless criminal with very few scruples. Despite that, many fans still openly root for him and downplay his evil. In particular, you'd think it would be hard for anyone to defend Gus after he threatened Nacho's dad, confessed to sadistically torturing an animal as a child and intended to kill Werner's innocent wife had Mike not intervened.
** Kim tends to be treated by some as a pure, virtuous innocent who is far too good for Jimmy and is being "destroyed" by her association with him. While this may have been more valid in early seasons (and even then, WordOfGod is that Kim isn't without her own dark side, it's just much better hidden), it starts becoming a lot less the case in later ones, especially in season 6, as she begins encouraging and enabling Jimmy's worst tendencies while making decisions of her own that leave even Jimmy feeling uncomfortable. Apparently Rhea Seehorn and Bob Odenkirk had fun joking about it, [[https://www.avclub.com/interview-rhea-seehorn-better-call-saul-emmys-finale-1849420004 as when]] Jimmy screwed up it was seen as his inevitable downfall, but whenever Kim screwed up (eventually leading to her own downfall), it was always dismissed.

* AwardSnub:

** The show missed its final opportunity at MTV Movie & TV Awards nominations too, specifically Best Show, Best Performance (for Bob Odenkirk) and Best Villain (for Tony Dalton).

** The malicious slander that Jimmy piles on Don Wachtell with his ads in "Wexler v. Goodman" (one of which accused him of ''funding terrorism'') becomes this when Don's actor, Jay Johnston, was arrested for taking part in the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

** Many fans were livid when Creator/JonathanBanks did not win the MediaNotes/EmmyAward for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance in "Five-O". Creator/PeterDinklage, who won the award for Season 5 of ''Series/GameOfThrones'', was so surprised by the result that he specifically cited Banks in his acceptance speech. Banks losing to Dinklage is seen as especially bad given many say "Five-O" was the best work that the former has ever done while the latter was seen as underutilized that season, and his win is seen by many as a ConsolationPrize. The fact that Banks has yet to win for his work in later seasons as well only makes this snub sting more for fans.

** For all of the show's interesting tie-ins with ''Series/BreakingBad'' and prominent showcasing of the Salamanca family, this show doesn't reveal anything more about minor members of the family who were briefly seen or indirectly referenced in the original show and could have done interesting things with the Salamanca dynamics. Specifically, Hector's niece/Tuco's sister[[note]] Hector's niece (Tuco has a sister, given how he is unmarried and his enforcer No-Doze is his brother-in-law [[/note]] (given her romance with a family enforcer, apparent role in having not been brought up by Hector like her brother and cousins, and status as a rare Salamanca who seemingly survives both shows), siblings (the parents of the nephews he raised), sole biological son (whose relationship with his unhinged cousins who view Hector as a ParentalSubstitute could have been interesting), and grandson Joaquin (the only known Salamanca in the youngest generation, and a FutureBadass who may be in a UsedToBeASweetKid phase at this point in the franchise).

** Werner Ziegler frustrated more that a few viewers during his tenure in Season 4 for his clueless behavior while working with drug dealers like rambling about the top secret job Gus has him assigned to a couple of men at a bar or snapping from homesickness and attempting to escape to see his wife. With that said [[spoiler: hardly anyone was cheering when Mike was forced to shoot him because of these mistakes]].
** [[spoiler: Marie was far from the most popular character in ''Series/BreakingBad'', but her surprise return in the GrandFinale is absolutely devastating, showing how she has still being unable to move on from Hank's death and leaving the room indignant when it looks like Saul is gonna get away with it]].

* CatharsisFactor: After years of watching Jimmy hide from himself as much as possible, having done it in the past too and putting on Saul Goodman as a mask, the cheer [[spoiler: where he asks to be called James [=McGill=]]] was massive.

** Many fans were livid when Creator/JonathanBanks did not win the UsefulNotes/EmmyAward for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for his performance in "Five-O". Creator/PeterDinklage, who won the award for Season 5 of ''Series/GameOfThrones'', was so surprised by the result that he specifically cited Banks in his acceptance speech. Banks losing to Dinklage is seen as especially bad given many say “Five-O” was the best work that the former has ever done while the latter was seen as underutilized that season, and his win is seen by many as a ConsolationPrize. The fact that Banks has yet to win for his work in later seasons as well only makes this snub sting more for fans.

[[folder:F-M]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:N-W]]

[[folder:A-H]]

[[/folder]]

[[folder:I-Z]]

** This continues with Gus from the previous series. While Gus has one or two softer moments, the show goes out of it's way to show that he is a cruel and ruthless man with very few scruples. Despite that, many fans still openly root for him and downplay his evil. In particular, you’d think it would be hard for anyone to defend Gus after he threatened Nacho's dad, confessed to sadistically torturing an animal as a child and intended to kill Werner's innocent wife had Mike not intervened.
** Kim tends to be treated by some as a pure, virtuous innocent who is far too good for Jimmy and is being "destroyed" by her association with him. While this may have been more valid in early seasons (and even then, WordOfGod is that Kim isn't without her own dark side, it's just much better hidden), it starts becoming a lot less the case in later ones, especially in season 6, as she begins encouraging and enabling Jimmy's worst tendencies while making decisions of her own that leave even Jimmy feeling uncomfortable. Apparently Seehorn and Odenkirk had fun joking about it, [[https://www.avclub.com/interview-rhea-seehorn-better-call-saul-emmys-finale-1849420004 as when]] Jimmy screwed up it was seen as his inevitable downfall, but whenever Kim screwed up (eventually leading to her own downfall), it was always dismissed.

* EvenBetterSequel: While it's by no means a majority viewpoint, some fans feel that the show is even better than ''Series/BreakingBad''. Especially since it focuses on some of the most memorable characters from BB like Saul, Mike, and Gus while also introducing new characters who became popular in their own rights like Kim, Nacho, Lalo, Howard, and even [[LoveToHate Chuck]], making the whole package feel like it has an EnsembleCast full of equally important main characters, instead of one compelling character like Walter White. None other than Creator/GuillermoDelToro said he found the show an improvement, due to Jimmy's moral fall being far more believable and poignant than Walt's. Its widely beloved finale has only increased this sentiment and many have started comparing it to ''Film/TheGodfather Part II'', as a follow-up to a medium-defining masterpiece that is, against all expectations, almost universally seen as equal, if not better, in quality.

* FanficFuel: The finale had a RayOfHopeEnding, with Gould, Gilligan, Seehorn and Odenkirk all saying the intention was for the audience to carry on Jimmy and Kim’s love story (as well as both working towards being better people: Jimmy at peace with who he is, Kim coming out of her rut). So there’s plenty of fiction about either Kim [[spoiler: getting him out early, or figuring out a way to make prison marriage work]].

** Some will take Howard in “Plan and Execution” completely at heart, deeming Kim a sociopath and Jimmy born evil like Chuck said. This forgets that while Howard’s point was sound (they’re both fucked up, perfect for each other and the excuses they have don’t amount to doing this), he has plenty of Chuck issues as well, and even Fabian has pointed out that every character is just working with the knowledge and bias they have. There’s also the opposite, “Howard gets some things wrong so his point is null and void”.

** In-universe, the members of the local legal system believe Saul crossed it with his tricks in support of Lalo Salamanca. All of the people in the courthouse Saul had spent years successfully charming? They won't talk to him. The assistant district attorney Saul has been playfully sparring with all series? He tells Saul that what he did was "just wrong." Tricks and schemes are fine, but lying and creating an elaborate fake identity for a sociopathic drug lord, which lets him go free? That crosses a line.

** To Spanish speakers, any time Hector speaks Spanish due to it sounding very unnatural. His actor, Mark Margolis, doesn't actually know Spanish, and it shows.

-->'''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=cZ5H_cfYDHk Odenkirk]]''': The writers acknowledge that it really is this relationship that was the real life of this show.

** In a PlayedForLaughs example similar to Darth Jar Jar, fans tend to joke that the meek and unassuming Lyle was the ''real'' [[TheManBehindTheMan mastermind]] behind Gustavo Fring's criminal empire and remains at large after the show ended.

** For all of the show's interesting tie-ins with ''Series/BreakingBad'' and prominent showcasing of the Salamanca Family, this show doesn't reveal anything more about minor members of the family who were briefly seen or indirectly referenced in the original show and could have done interesting things with the Salamanca dynamics. Specifically, Hector's niece/Tuco's sister[[note]] Hector's niece (Tuco has a sister, given how he is unmarried and his enforcer No-Doze is his brother-in-law [[/note]] (given her romance with a family enforcer, apparent role in having not been brought up by Hector like her brother and cousins, and status as a rare Salamanca who seemingly survives both shows), siblings (the parents of the nephews he raised), sole biological son (whose relationship with his unhinged cousins who view Hector as a ParentalSubstitute could have been interesting), and grandson Joaquin (the only known Salamanca in the youngest generation, and a FutureBadass who may be in a UsedToBeASweetKid phase at this point in the franchise).

** Jimmy posing as Creator/KevinCostner to get a woman to have a one-night stand with him. [[https://uk.movies.yahoo.com/post/128190642621/smuggler-pretending-to-be-kevin-costner-illegally Then talk about the man who used Kevin Costner's identity to import cigarettes illegally]].

** Throughout its entire run, ''Better Call Saul'' was nominated 53 times in various Emmy categories and won exactly 0 awards, setting the record for the most number of Emmy nominations received without a win.