- This article is about the Better Call Saul episode. For the Breaking Bad Episode, see Negro y Azul.
"Black and Blue" is the fifth episode of the sixth season of Better Call Saul and the fifty-fifth episode of the series altogether.
Summary[]
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The teaser details the process of a slide rule being encased inside of a block of Lucite for display. The block is inscribed with a phrase in German: "In Liebe... Deine Jungs" ("Love... your boys"). A label is adhered to the underside and the block is then placed inside a decorative wooden box.
Act I[]
In the early hours of the morning, Kim finds herself unable to sleep. Leaving Jimmy in bed, she checks the front door and looks out the window of her apartment. She then takes a chair from the kitchen and props it against the front door. Shortly afterward, Jimmy wakes. Kim tries to make it look as if she is simply looking at a case file, but he notices the chair and deduces that she is as anxious as he has been. Jimmy expresses relief that Lalo is dead, but Kim—having recently been told by Mike of the opposite being true—doesn't correct him. She removes the chair as Jimmy fixes some coffee.
Later that morning, Gus fills out paperwork in his office at Los Pollos Hermanos yet is continuously on-edge about Lalo's whereabouts. He tries to distract himself by taking a customer's order at the front counter but comes to a sudden realization when upselling the newest menu item, Spice Curls. He recalls when he first introduced Spice Curls in a board meeting for the fast food division of Madrigal Electromotive, Los Pollos Hermanos' Germany-based parent company. With no sign of Lalo in New Mexico, Gus realizes the possibility that he could be overseas, investigating the late Werner Ziegler. He is startled when a nearby employee drops a stack of metal trays and storms out of the restaurant.
At Sandpiper Crossing, Erin is speaking before an assembled group of elderly plaintiffs in the Sandpiper case. Howard and Cliff observe the meeting from the sidelines. When they complain that the litigation is taking too long and consider seeking independent counsel, Howard wins them over by stating that the case's longevity is worth getting them the maximum monetary award. Afterward, in the parking lot, Cliff confronts Howard over apparently witnessing him kicking a prostitute out of his Jaguar; noting this and other purported incidents, he insists Howard has a drug problem. Howard is initially confused by these claims. When Cliff reveals that the Jaguar incident happened while he was meeting with Kim, Howard realizes that he is being framed by Jimmy. He reassures Cliff that he's handling it. He contacts his secretary and tells her to cancel his appointments for the week, then drives away.
Act II[]
Francesca Liddy, Jimmy's former receptionist from Wexler McGill, drives up to his new office and walks past the long line of clients outside. Jimmy lets her in and presents her with her temporary work space: a simple folding chair and a table in the middle of a bare room. Francesca questions why he is no longer practicing elder law and is now calling himself "Saul Goodman", to which Jimmy states that he has broadened the mission of his law practice and says, "What Colonel Sanders is to chicken, Saul Goodman is to the law." Francesca turns to leave, but is enticed to stay when Jimmy promises to double her salary and give her a signing bonus. She agrees on the condition that she gets a say in how the new office will be decorated.
At the El Camino Dining Room, Kim meets with Viola Goto, her former assistant at Schweikart & Cokely. Viola, who has been handling S&C's end of the Sandpiper case since Kim left the firm, divulges the name of the person running an upcoming mediation session: Rand Casimiro, a retired judge from Santa Fe. Viola further says that she has grown to admire how Kim shifted the focus of her career to helping the "little guy", saying that Kim has made her "feel better about the law." Kim says that she is "just getting started".
That night, Jimmy drives to a boxing club to meet with a prospective client named "H. O. Ward", who is revealed to be Howard. Howard confronts Jimmy about his recent actions and challenges him to a one-on-one boxing match. Jimmy initially refuses, but decides to give in and accept the challenge. After both men are fitted with gloves and head guards, they spend a round throwing punches at each other. Eventually, Howard hits Jimmy with an uppercut and knocks him onto the mat. As Jimmy writhes in pain, Howard warns that Jimmy misinterpreted his kindness for weakness. Outside, Howard steps into a car to speak to a private investigator, asking him to monitor where Jimmy goes and who he talks to. The P.I. watches as Jimmy, holding an ice pack to his face, exits the boxing club and drives away; he follows Jimmy in his own car.
Act III[]
Kim is smoking on her balcony when Jimmy returns home, still tending to himself with the ice pack. Inside, while he is applying makeup to cover his black eye, Kim shows him a profile about Rand Casimiro from a law magazine. Jimmy admonishes himself for not turning down Howard's challenge to fight, saying that he "let him suck me into his game." Kim replies that Jimmy had his reasons for doing so: "You know what's coming next."
Meanwhile, Mike is driven to the Ryman residence, stowed in the back of Mrs. Ryman's SUV. He finds Gus obsessively scrubbing at wall tiles with a toothbrush in their bathroom. Mike explains to Gus that they are now in a waiting game, telling him that wherever he is now, Lalo will come to Gus's home sooner or later. Realizing that Lalo needs proof, Gus says that Lalo "can't strike" yet. He instructs Mike to tell his men that they will be going out.
Act IV[]
Mike and Gus climb down into the excavation beneath Lavandería Brillante, which has been abandoned since Werner's death. Mike assumes that Gus is considering using the excavation as a potential hiding spot. After Mike is excused upstairs, Gus is left alone to survey the area. He picks up, examines, and unfastens a power cable, then counts his steps and plants his handgun in the caterpillar treads of an excavator. Seemingly satisfied, Gus climbs out of the excavation and shuts off the lights.
At a pub in Berlin, a middle-aged German woman sitting at the bar is approached by a man: Lalo, who is posing as an American businessman from New Mexico named Ben. The woman remarks that she almost visited New Mexico once; she is revealed to be Margarethe Ziegler, Werner's widow. The two engage in conversation, with Margarethe revealing to Lalo that her husband died in a "cave-in" during a mysterious excavation project; that lawyers came to her house to collect "proprietary" material related to the project; and that none of Werner's team, who he purportedly saved in the cave-in, attended his funeral. The two walk back to Margarethe's home and she says she would invite him inside, but she has work in the morning. They part ways.
The following morning, after Margarethe leaves for work, Lalo returns to her house and makes his way inside. After quieting her dog, he goes upstairs and enters Werner's former office, searching his binders for any information related to the project. He is taken by surprise when Margarethe unexpectedly returns home to retrieve her forgotten phone. Lalo takes out a gun and fits it with a silencer while the dog barks at the foot of the stairs, drawing Margarethe's attention. As she climbs upstairs to investigate, Lalo notices the Lucite block containing the slide rule on a shelf. He picks it up and notices the manufacturer's label attached to the bottom. Moments later, Margarethe enters the room to find it empty, but sees that the window has been left open.
Official Photos[]
Trivia[]
- The title of this episode could be a reference to the Breaking Bad season 2 episode "Negro y Azul", which precedes the debut of Saul Goodman in the following episode, "Better Call Saul".
- In addition, the phrase "beaten black and blue" can refer to bruising such as the one sustained by Jimmy.
- Luis Moncada, who plays Marco Salamanca, was the fight coordinator for the boxing match between Jimmy and Howard. He is also a boxing instructor, having given lessons to multiple members of the crew.
- Jimmy puts foundation on his face to cover his black eye, much like Jesse Pinkman in "Cat's in the Bag...", Walter White in "Confessions", and Mike Ehrmantraut in "Gloves Off".
- Kim jokingly comes up with the phrase "I'm Saul Goodman, I'll fight for you" in this episode, which is noted by Jimmy and used later for his commercial in the Breaking Bad episode "Better Call Saul" as well as in the minisode "Fighting for You".
- Costume Designer Jennifer Bryan has a cameo as a judge under the photo of Rand Casimiro in the law magazine.
Production[]
Credits[]
Starring
- Bob Odenkirk as Jimmy McGill
- Jonathan Banks as Mike Ehrmantraut
- Rhea Seehorn as Kim Wexler
- Patrick Fabian as Howard Hamlin
- Michael Mando as Nacho Varga (credit only)
- Tony Dalton as Lalo Salamanca
- Giancarlo Esposito as Gustavo "Gus" Fring
Guest Starring
Co-Starring
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Uncredited
- TBA
Featured Music[]
- "In stiller Nacht" originally composed by Johannes Brahms, performed by Pink Martini & The Von Trapps (teaser)
- "Georgy Porgy" by Toto
Memorable Quotes[]
- "You’ve mistaken my kindness for weakness."
- ―Howard to Jimmy