Today AMC released a ten second teaser video for Better Call Saul. The teaser shows Saul comparing lawyers to health insurance, but the biggest bit of information comes at the end when it is revealed that it will air beginning in February. While not giving an actual date, it’s more specific than the previous early-2015 air date. You can find the video on the site here.
I love Breaking Bad, but I’m skeptical about Better Call Saul and this teaser has done nothing to change my skepticism. Breaking Bad was, in my opinion, one of the best shows ever made and the idea of a spin-off kind of cheapens the reputation of a great show. Much like the sleaziness of Saul Goodman, this prequel could taint the legacy of an amazing show. Did I mention how awesome it is? It’s so good that anyone who hasn’t seen it should probably binge watch it because it has one of the most rewarding endings in television history.
According to AMC’s website, Better Call Saul is set six years before Walter White meets Saul in Breaking Bad and this is a good sign. I understand that fans want to see the people that populated Breaking Bad, but it’s just not necessary. There’s always room to visit characters before it all happened, but I don’t see how much insight viewers would get from seeing the same people going through the same things as a retelling of Walter White’s story. Of course it would be exciting to see Jesse, but I would be content with just watching Mike Erhmantraut and the crazy situations he is entrusted to handle. Maybe Mike should’ve gotten his own spino-ff.
Better Call Saul is supposed to show the transformation of Jimmy McGill into the Saul Goodman we know and love from Breaking Bad. It might be interesting to see how this happens, but there’s room for error when there’s such a huge fanbase for Breaking Bad and high expectations. The quality of writing has set the bar high and it’s hard for me, as a fan of Breaking Bad to lower my expectations. More important than simply adding to the Breaking Bad universe is to have a quality, entertaining show that makes viewers want to tune in every week and if Vince Gilligan can do that, I’m hoping I’ll be hooked.