Better Call Saul's Best Decision? Not Sticking to Its Original Plan
Starting out as the 'little brother' of Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul has done the near impossible, going from a seemingly optional story to an absolute standout.
All because of showrunners' series of fateful decisions.
More or less every outstanding drama series of the last 20 years has told a story of decline: Tony Soprano and Walter White all went down smoothly.
But Saul Goodman's is probably the most interesting of them all – he took the bad road not because he wanted a better life, but simply because it was the most fun.
The show has had well-written characters for six seasons, but it turns out initially they were supposed to be very different.
Firstly, Chuck was not originally intended to be a villain at all, but a disabled person that Jimmy was supposed to take care of.
Although the actor who played Chuck, Michael McKean, gave such an earnest performance that the writers and creators of the show changed their minds and put Chuck in opposition to Jimmy.
This made it possible to show a gradual rather than abrupt transition from Jimmy to Saul. McKean's character changes brought other changes to the script.
It was Chuck who was supposed to show the touching and softer side of Jimmy, but when after another mission was prepared for him, Kim and her relationship with Jimmy took his place.
Chuck also replaced Howard Hamlin, who was originally intended to be Jimmy's main antagonist.
Howard fell under the definition of a "scapegoat" in this story, caught up in the growing conflict between the McGills: Chuck tried to use Howard to get Jimmy out of the firm – and Howard turned out to be the main culprit.
James, resentful of his older brother, raised the company's insurance premiums, prompting Howard to force Charles into retirement – a major burden of guilt still falling on Hamlin's shoulders.
The finale of the series also had a different concept. While Jimmy and Kim share their last cigarette in the series finale, the ending was originally intended to be colder and more distant. Saul sat alone in his prison cell and thought.
But in the end, the showrunners decided that Kim and Jimmy should end the show's six-year run together.
Better Call Saul is a drug mafia thriller, an adventurous comedy and a legal drama. It is a unique show that exists outside of any particular genre.
And fans are grateful to the show's creators for the honesty that has allowed it to become one of the best television series of our time.