Better Call Saul just established a fateful Breaking Bad character connection for Jimmy. As Better Call Saul's final season approaches its midway point, "Jimmy McGill" is desperately struggling to keep his above water as "Saul Goodman" fully takes hold. From Mike Ehrmantraut in season 1 to Spooge in season 6, each illicit Breaking Bad acquaintance made in the prequel brings the gasping Jimmy closer to his future self.
Before the Breaking Bad era finally dawns, there's the small matter of Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler's final scam to resolve. A plot to disgrace Howard Hamlin and settle the ongoing Sandpiper case so everyone gets the money they're owed, the climactic phase hasn't yet played out, but Better Call Saul season 6, episode 6 ("Axe & Grind") sees Jimmy and Kim prepare by visiting local fixer for all things illegal, Dr. Caldera. Though they arrive seeking drugs, the lawyers depart with something far more valuable - the sweet gift of knowledge. Caldera reveals he's ready to retire (from criminality, not saving doggos) and is looking to sell his black book of contacts. Perusing the book is useless since Caldera writes every entry in code, but a single, unassuming business card catches Jimmy and Kim's attention.
The bland white card with equally bland black writing is for "Best Quality Vacuum Repairs." This is the legitimate front business of Ed Galbraith, portrayed in Breaking Bad and El Camino: A Breaking Bad movie by the late Robert Forster. More than his ability to fix your ailing vacuum cleaner, Ed is known as "the Disappearer." For a big stack of cash, Ed will change your identity and arrange a new life away from any police who might want you arrested, or fellow criminals who might want you dead. Walter White and Jesse Pinkman both make use of Ed's services, and given Dr. Caldera's extensive underworld connections, it's no surprise he carries the Disappearer's card. As the first chronological, concrete occasion Galbraith has been mentioned onscreen, this humble business card makes franchise history... and also answers the Breaking Bad question of how Saul and Ed met.
Saul Goodman is the character who introduces Ed Galbraith in Breaking Bad. The pair have clearly worked together several times by this point, and Saul is deeply familiar with how the vacuum salesman operates. Since the pair haven't crossed paths in Better Call Saul, however, the origin of their partnership remains unknown. Robert Forster sadly passed away in 2019, so that's not an encounter we'll ever witness onscreen, but the business card more or less confirms Saul and Ed become acquainted through Dr. Caldera's little black book. The coded criminal treasure trove was shown among Saul Goodman's future possessions in the opening sequence of Better Call Saul season 6's premiere so, one way or another, Jimmy will inherit the veterinarian's jam-packed contacts list. That provides the direct link between Jimmy and Ed that Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad both skipped.
Ed Galbraith's papery presence in Better Call Saul season 6 also carries a much sadder meaning. Though Saul ushered plenty of business the Disappearer's way, the time eventually came to make a disappearance of his own. It was Ed who created the "Gene" identity and sent Saul to hide in Omaha, leading directly to the depressing black-and-white future timeline we've seen (very) slowly unfold throughout Better Call Saul's season premieres. Finding the business card in Dr. Caldera's notebook represents Jimmy McGill taking a tragic first step toward his inevitable cinnamon-fingered future.
Better Call Saul continues Monday on AMC.