Albany Times Union (Sunday)

The Goodman, the ‘Bad’ and the wicked: Final season of ‘Better Call Saul’ begins

- By Dana Simpson

Some know him as Jimmy McGill, but everyone remembers him as Saul Goodman. “Breaking Bad” actor Bob Odenkirk returns to his complicate­d triple role as Jimmy, Saul and Gene Takovic in a much-anticipate­d new season of “Better Call Saul.” The show’s sixth and final season, premiering Monday, April 18, on AMC and streaming service AMC+, offers new insight into the formative years of the seediest criminal lawyer in Albuquerqu­e, New Mexico, Saul Goodman, as he defends the guilty and commits crimes of his own before meeting up with his most famous client yet, Walter White (Bryan Cranston) of “Breaking

Bad.”

While “Bad” fans have yet to catch a glimpse of the original series’ meth-cooking character and his equally guilty partner, Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul, “BoJack Horseman”), the past five seasons of “Saul” have given viewers plenty of background informatio­n to take in.

As last season began, Jimmy was still struggling to process the death of his brother, Chuck (Michael McKean, “Laverne & Shirley”), from the previous season, and had just managed to get his law license back with help from his on-again, offagain partner — both profession­ally and romantical­ly — Kim Wexler (Rhea Seehorn, “Things Heard & Seen,” 2021).

Having officially adopted the name Saul Goodman on the job so as not to further tarnish his already damaged given name, Jimmy gets deeper into crime on both sides of the border while trying to separate himself from his pain and grief.

At the beginning of Season 5, Jimmy managed to get several new clients by selling burner phones to criminals. Upon rebuilding his client base under the Goodman name, Jimmy soon becomes the go-to man for criminal defense. While defending others, however, he becomes involved in another underhande­d operation of his own when he agrees to help Kim settle a sticking point in her case with Mesa Verde Bank and Trust. Despite Jimmy and Kim’s plan eventually blowing up in their faces, it does lead them toward a new plan: get married.

 ?? ?? Rob Lowe stars in “9-1-1: Lone Star”
Rob Lowe stars in “9-1-1: Lone Star”

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