Better Call Saul's Gus Fring is terrifying, villainous, and calculating, but there is one strange thing about him: he owns a lot of yellow shirts. Gus is a recurring character in both Better Call Saul and its precursor, Breaking Bad, and throughout these series, he is often seen wearing a yellow button-down shirt with a black tie. While Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad do color-code their characters, the reason why Gus Fring owns so many yellow shirts is much deeper.
On the surface, Gus Fring is the owner of the fast-food chicken chain Los Pollos Hermanos. Under the surface, though, he is the kingpin of a criminal empire, using his restaurant operations to create, transport, and launder crystal meth. Gus functions as the main antagonist of Breaking Bad while the prequel series Better Call Saul shows his rise to power. Before Gus Fring eventually dies in the former show, the iconic villain is known for his yellow shirts, his chicken, and always being several steps ahead.
Better Call Saul season 6, episode 4, "Hit and Run" gives a tour of Gus Fring's house, at one point showing off his closet. He is shown to own at least seven identical yellow shirts, which could seem funny at first. However, this small detail reflects a lot about the character. Gus is obsessed with order and control. Always wearing the same shirt is evidence of just how consistent Gus desires every factor to be. On top of that, he perfectly organizes his closet, color-coding it to a tee. This shows Gus's desire for perfection, wanting all variables to operate in the most consistent, functional, and productive way possible.
"Hit and Run" shows that these values are not only applied to his drug business; Gus applies them to Los Pollos Hermanos as well. In the episode, when discussing a guard Mike has placed on Gus's kitchen staff, Gus states that he wants to replace him. He cites the fact that the guard is not up to Los Pollos Hermanos standards, and that the next guard must be someone with experience in fast food. Thus, the orderly yellow shirts not only reflect his values in the drug trade but also in his restaurant business.
However, these yellow shirts do not only help illustrate Gus's perfectionist attitude. They also reflect his paranoia. In color theory, yellow is associated with deceit and betrayal, something that Gus constantly fears. Better Call Saul shows this in Gus's dealings with the Salamanca family, and in Breaking Bad Gus threatens to even kill Walt's infant daughter in order to tie up loose ends. Gus will go to drastic lengths to cover his tracks, and his wardrobe reflects the amount of control Gus wishes he could impose on his entire empire. Gus's large amount of yellow shirts in Better Call Saul perfectly represents the villain's motivations, desires, and fears.
Better Call Saul continues Monday on AMC.