Although it hasn't quite reached Breaking Bad levels of fame and fortune, Better Call Saul - the spinoff series centered on Saul Goodman/James McGill (Bob Odenkirk) and his future assistant Mike (Jonathan Banks) - has been a hit with critics and the general consensus among viewers is that the series will go down as a prime example of how to successfully execute a spinoff of a hit show. Despite being a more considered, slower-paced affair than Breaking Bad and featuring considerably less action scenes, Better Call Saul finds itself gearing up for its third season, as protagonist James "Jimmy" McGill edges ever closer to his Saul Goodman persona.
Last time fans saw Jimmy, he had just - typically - snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. After he and his girlfriend Kim (Rhea Seehorn) established their own legal practices, Jimmy resorted to underhand tactics in order to steal a huge case from his brother Chuck's rival firm. Of course, Jimmy had hoped to take advantage of his brother's health issues to get away with the scheme but underestimated his older sibling and ended up making a full confession - with Chuck secretly recording every word.
AMC has now released a brief promo clip (watch it above) for Better Call Saul's upcoming third season and the teaser hints at dark times ahead for everyone's favorite cowboy lawyer. The fifteen-second promo shows a sullen looking Jimmy lining up down at the police station ready for his mugshot, with the double meaning of his famous 'Criminal Lawyer' line from Breaking Bad duly highlighted.
Of course, Jimmy McGill is no stranger to finding himself under arrest, having spent his youth as a con artist, but it's likely that the charges against him this time around are a little more serious. The natural implication is that Jimmy's brother Chuck has shopped his younger sibling to the law on charges of falsifying legal documents or fraud and if this is indeed the case, Jimmy's law firm - as well as his relationship with Kim - is likely to come under considerable pressure.
As Better Call Saul fans will no doubt be aware however, Jimmy McGill is never more dangerous and cunning that when his back is against the wall and if season three does kick off with the character in police trouble over his actions last season, this would set up an interesting angle for the new batch of episodes and would likely push Jimmy even further towards his Saul alias - something that many viewers are itching to see.
With that said, Better Call Saul's second season did see a dip in viewership compared to its first outing and its possible that in order to bring back some lost ratings, Vince Gilligan may be tempted to introduce some more familiar faces back into the mix. Rumors of an appearance by Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman have been circulating for a while now and Walter White himself, Bryan Cranston, has expressed a willingness to be involved. Better Call Saul's narrative and characters may be as strong as fans have come to expect but an added link to the show's Breaking Bad heritage may just give it a shot in the arm ratings-wise.
Better Call Saul returns Spring 2017 on AMC.
Source: AMC