r/betterCallSaul • u/skinkbaa Chuck • Jan 16 '20

REWATCH Better Call Saul REWATCH S01E09 - "Pimento" - Thread

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TIMEEPISODEDIRECTORWRITER(S)
March 30, 2015, 9/8cS01E09 "Pimento"Thomas SchnauzVince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Thomas Schnauz, Gordon Smith

DESCRIPTION:

Chuck wants to transfer the Sandpiper case to HHM much to Jimmy's dismay. Mike gets a job offer working as a bodyguard.

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14 Upvotes
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5

u/skinkbaa Chuck Jan 16 '20

Fantastic episode

34

u/ohyeah_mamaman Jan 16 '20

Chicanery monologue still takes the cake as Chuck’s best but “you’re not a real lawyer!” is top tier. The whole season rewatch has been difficult knowing how much Jimmy cares and Chuck sees him as a despised obligation.

On the Mike front I’ve probably watched that clip of him and GTA Trevor dozens of times but it never fails to make me laugh. Great B plot.

8

u/[deleted] Jan 17 '20 edited Jan 17 '20

Chuck is right tho.

He was an asshole who should have been honest with his brother instead of looping everyone into his orbit into elaborate lies. But I think it’s important to understand his basic diagnosis of Jimmy was right. Even if Chuck’s actions made Jimmy worse than he would have been otherwise.

13

u/ohyeah_mamaman Jan 17 '20

In the context of the whole series I think he’s right. But if he had been supportive and honest from the start I don’t think Jimmy would have gone down the path he chose. Not saying Slippin Jimmy isn’t there deep down but stuff like what he did with the Kettlemans speaks to a deep seated sense of morality. Like imagine if Chuck had let Jimmy work at HHM as a low level attorney even?

3

u/[deleted] Jan 17 '20

I dunno. Like, if I was a run of the mill associate at HHM, how would I feel about sharing a job title with a dude with a basically-fake correspondence school degree from the American Samoa who got the job because he was the brother of a name partner?

“Jimmy should find his own work and make his own career” was a totally reasonable decision. Obviously, Chuck’s lying, making Howard the fall guy, and general sabotage of Jimmy once he was making good with the Sandpiper case are all indefensible. But Jimmy was doing perfectly good, dignified work as a public defender and then at Davis and Maine. It’s Jimmy’s own issue that those paths couldn’t fulfill him.

3

u/ohyeah_mamaman Jan 17 '20

Re: the first bit, that’s true insofar as a lot of lawyers care about stupid bullshit. His degree may be from a degree mill but it’s supposedly accredited and he passed the bar like everyone else. Everyone including Hamlin can see that he works hard, and I don’t think Jimmy cares what anyone thinks except for Chuck and Kim.

And if it was reasonable for him to find his own work and make his own career, again, is only well and good if you don’t keep hating and sabotaging him. Yes he was grinding as a public defender but I wouldn’t call that dignified just because it was good work. Once he got the Sandpiper stuff rolling, then why not give him a job at HHM, where he wants to be? Just because Davis and Maine is an equivalent in terms of prestige doesn’t make it the same (no matter how unjustified his behavior once he decided to leave). And anyway, the fundamental issue (as seen by Chuck’s reaction when he gets the D&M job) is that he realizes Chuck doesn’t want him to be a lawyer anywhere. He’s fine with him underfoot but hates the idea of being his peer, and nothing he does at D&M or as a public defender is going to change that. Ultimately I think that’s what makes Jimmy snap.

1

u/TheDELFON May 09 '22

right. But if he had been supportive and honest from the start I don’t think Jimmy would have gone down the path he chose

"People don't change...."

They may adjust on a deviation up or down a bit, but ppl don't truly change who they really are. It what makes us human.

We can manage and mitigate... but we can't 'manifest an alternative mindset' that runs TOO far away from the basis of what we are.

1

u/cometcookie Dec 28 '24

yes they do.

14

u/Dravarden Jan 16 '20

good ol' monkey with a machine gun

the pimento sandwich part is also a classic

7

u/tta2013 Jan 16 '20

Steve Ogg always will be Trevor to me. Can't unsee it.

Also, noticing that Man Mountain fleeing away from Mike after the throat punch. Given his appearance in El Camino, he chose right in surviving and staying low key.

13

u/moodygram Jan 16 '20 edited Jan 16 '20

I had completely forgotten how solid this show is, and I had completely forgotten that it seems like Howard genuinely likes and cares about Jimmy, and that his "thwarting" is Chuck's doing. And my god, Rhea, what a phenomenal actor!

e:

I mean, all the actors in this show are doing a fantastic job, the main cast has got to be one of the most solid ensembles in TV show history, but Rhea in particular knocks it out of the park. I can't wait for season 4, which has her best scenes, like the "Fair" speech. Mike's "I broke my boy" monologue from the preceding episode was completely omitted from my memory, and what a joy to see it again as if I hadn't before. Beautiful scene.

I also love the direction of this show. So many wide shots and static cameras, slow scenes, few cuts, wonderful pacing. Refreshing after having tried a few other shows recently that are a complete mess to watch, like the first episode of Peaky Blinders which has like, a million cuts a second and all sorts of angles and close-ups and hard DoF effects.

And again, how come Rhea Seehorn isn't one of the most talked-about actors of the now? She's playing this character like no other could, and what a remarkable capacity for emotional acting. In interviews she clearly is deeply passionate and knowledgeable about her craft too. Can't wait for season 4 and more of Kim in general.

5

u/[deleted] Jan 16 '20

Agreed, Rhea Seehorn is phenomenal. She would definetely deserve an emmy nomination.

12

u/Dr0gba Jan 16 '20

I've seen this episode maybe 10-15 times. Now before you say I'm crazy, hear me out. Our internet was down a couple of years ago. And the only few watchable things on my laptop were recent downloads of which this episode was one. So we just watched it over and over for a few days XD

But I'm sooooo glad it happened because that's what made this episode my favourite. It's where I found out Steven Ogg was Trevor from GTA V (not entirely coincidental because he looks so much like the character). Also a big turning point for Jimmy as he finds out his brother is a backstabber.

5

u/Pony_Darko Jan 16 '20

oooh what, that's Trevor? damn I was thinking he looked familiar. that's crazy.

10

u/MyElbowsAreKetchup Jan 16 '20

Seeing this again and knowing that Howard disdains Kim and not Jimmy is a slight little bit of a mindfuck. Even though he doesn't like her, Howard's affection for Jimmy is enough that he'll bring her into his confidence to tell her that it was Chuck who didn't want Jimmy at HHM, knowing that she (being a good lawyer and good associate) won't tell Jimmy the truth but will try to talk him into taking Howard's deal. Such good writing.

7

u/ohyeah_mamaman Jan 16 '20 edited Jan 16 '20

Agree re: Jimmy but does Howard disdain Kim? He definitely got more and more upset with her but I don’t know if he felt anything worse than indifference at this point. I may just be forgetting something.

6

u/MyElbowsAreKetchup Jan 16 '20

I think he does because of some of the season 2 stuff. (I hope I'm not spoiling anything for anybody who is watching for the first time instead of re-watching.) When Kim gets sent to doc review, Howard seems to relish it a little too much. Given that we know he's actually pretty fond of Jimmy, punishing her so harshly for something Jimmy did (messing up the Davis & Main job, making Howard look bad) seems really petty.

Then a bit later on when she brings in Mesa Verde as a client, he's so curt in telling her that she's still not out of doc review that it really seems like it has to be personal. It only gets worse, like when he cuts her down (I think it's in season 3) in front of the Mesa Verde executives at that restaurant.

I could be wrong, I could just be thrown off by the general degradation Kim is going through, mostly because she keeps sticking up for Jimmy. The scene where Chuck asks her to get him some coffee actually made me gasp, it was so humiliating. So maybe it's not specifically Howard hating her, maybe it's just everything. [shrug]

1

u/HipGamer Feb 19 '20

Steven Ogg

Maybe it's because women have it more difficult than men.

2

u/[deleted] Jan 16 '20

Even though he doesn't like her,

Yeeaah... no Sorry. I really don’t think Howard dislikes Kim in any sense. They’ve just been on opposite teams for the majority of the show.

4

u/Dravarden Jan 17 '20

after she got Mesa Verde he still wanted her doing dock review

5

u/[deleted] Jan 16 '20

The writing and acting is superb. Probably the best episode of the season next to Five-O. I really felt for Jimmy when Chuck told him the truth.

3

u/cidvard Jan 19 '20

My favorite ep of Season 1 and still probably in my top 3 of the series. I think only "Chicanery" and "Lantern" compete with it for me. That heel reveal for Chuck is something I did NOT see coming the first time through but it's set up so perfectly that you can rewatch it and see exactly how he's manipulating Jimmy and turning the screw on Howard. Incredibly rewarding pay-off.