Clues as to Saul Goodman's past continue to emerge on "Better Call Saul," and for those who have been watching, hints come in the form of everything from graffiti on the walls to cars on the street.
The lead character, whose real name isn't Saul at all, but instead, Jimmy McGill, continues to face his future as the sleazy Saul Goodman with every turn of the compelling "Breaking Bad" prequel.
"We're making the show for an audience that's paying attention," "Better Call Saul" co-producer Peter Gould told the Associated Press. "And if it seems like they have fun keeping the audience on its toes, well, they sure do."
Gould told the AP that through "Better Call Saul," each week the audience looks forward to a glimpse of Jimmy McGill's future and is rewarded with "Easter eggs" that enable the viewer to connect the dots to "Breaking Bad."
So far, Jimmy is a struggling lawyer driving a junky car and trying to win over wills, estates and probate legal work from old people. His brother Chuck, played by Michael McKean ("This Is Spinal Tap"), has been ousted by his giant law firm and is living a bizarre life covered in a space blanket with all the lights shut off inside his home.
McKean told HitFix that his character is like a person who has been hit by lightning. He said his character may have psychosomatic symptoms -- or not.
In the show, Chuck has been suffering from electromagnetic sensitivity - which Jimmy tells the hospital is very real - however the claims are met with skepticism. Chuck ended up in the hospital for his ailment after venturing out of doors and stealing his elderly neighbor's newspaper. She reported him to the police, who busted in to see what actually was going on in the strange, dark home. Chuck becomes hysterical, gets himself tazed and winds up almost dead.
But Jimmy's got more problems than just taking care of his brother. He appears to be a good guy at this point in his life, but he's not above stooping low to get a cheap legal case. Until he runs across a multimillion-dollar theft that he wants a part of, he's just hustling a few hundred dollars here and there.
When the multi-million-dollar scheme goes awry, Jimmy is helped out by an unlikely ally, Mike, the courthouse ticket-taker, who vouches for him despite the continual disagreement between the two over parking ticket validation.
Because he owes him one now, Jimmy is enlisted by Mike to become his lawyer and to help pull off a stunt that results in a dark turn in the episode "Five-0," which aired last week.
Until then, the ticket-taker at the courthouse parking lot, Mike, has been one of Jimmy's most annoying tormentors.
Viewers know him as the tough Mike Ehrmantraut, from "Breaking Bad." Up until last week, viewers familiar with Mike could have believed that he was merely a depressed menial service guy who had a background possibly as an ex-cop, as was hinted in "Breaking Bad." But at this point in his life, he's the unwavering parking lot ticket collector who won't let Jimmy out of the lot time and time again because Jimmy doesn't have the proper amount of parking validation stickers.
Mike does things by the book, it could be assumed.
But Mike's cunning play on two cops -- his former colleagues -- and his vicious revenge for a longstanding hurt, shows his ability to grow into to the man he became by the time "Breaking Bad" started airing.
Portrayed against the character of the loving grandfather, Mike's crime becomes a turning point that may -- or may not -- solidify his relationship with Jimmy.
Gordon Smith, the writer of the episode, told Forbes the team wanted to show how Mike ended up as a ticket-taker in Albuquerque, as well as give insights into the character's future.
"Better Call Saul" airs at 10 p.m. EDT on Mondays on AMC.
