Warning: Contains SPOILERS for Better Call Saul season 6, episodes 1 & 2.
Jimmy and Kim's plot to scam Howard Hamlin begins in Better Call Saul season 6 - here's every step in episodes 1 & 2 explained. When Better Call Saul began, Rhea Seehorn's Kim Wexler held a top position at a prestigious law firm, while Bob Odenkirk's Jimmy McGill was the struggling underdog harboring a penchant for small-time cons. Things have, er... changed a little since then. Jimmy's legal services are now integral to New Mexico's criminal underworld, and Kim is reveling in the illicit excitement even more than her husband (yes, they're married now too). By the time Better Call Saul season 5 drew to a close, the McGill-Wexler criminal partnership had developed into quite the enterprise.
Buoyed by successes over Lalo Salamanca and the various gullible judges of Albuquerque, Better Call Saul season 5's finale saw Kim float a shocking idea for their next scam - ruin Howard Hamlin. The smarmy HHM boss has been no friend to Jimmy or Kim over the years, and an opportunity for revenge - alongside the promise of a big bucks payout, of course - proved too tempting for Kim not to consider. Though the scale of her envisioned con shocked Jimmy, he didn't exactly refuse...
Hence, Better Call Saul season 6 finds Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler putting the first phase of their "Bring Down Howard Hamlin" plan into action. Here's a full breakdown of their scheme in the opening two episodes of Better Call Saul's final season.
Why Jimmy & Kim Are Scamming Howard In Better Call Saul
Howard Hamlin is no friend to the McGill household. A partner and close confidante of Jimmy's brother, Chuck, Howard would often belittle and patronize the younger sibling, and the two men have spent Better Call Saul's entire 5-and-a-bit season run antagonizing each other. Jimmy is definitely guilty of overlooking moments of kindness from Howard, but it's fair to say the pair won't be swapping Christmas cards anytime soon. As a colleague of Howard's at HHM, Kim Wexler was considerably closer to him than Jimmy, but was never truly a fan of the hotshot legal eagle, and the pair fell out big time in Better Call Saul season 5.
The motivation behind Jimmy & Kim's scam isn't just a revenge trip, however - there's a major financial element. Back in Better Call Saul season 1, Jimmy unearthed a massive lawsuit at Sandpiper Crossing retirement home, whereby the owners were systematically overcharging elderly residents. Jimmy passed the case onto HHM and Davis & Main, but is entitled to a 20% cut. Unfortunately, he hasn't seen a dime since, with Sandpiper's lawyers still going back-and-forth haggling over the settlement sum. Kim theorizes that if she and Jimmy can destroy Howard Hamlin's professional reputation, Cliff Main (he of Davis & Main fame) would immediately agree to the settlement Sandpiper was offering, fearing the potential damage a disgraced Howard could do to their position. That offer currently stands at $26 million, mean Jimmy would receive a cool $2 million.
Step 1: Planting Drugs On Howard
Better Call Saul's first season 6 mention of the Howard Hamlin scam comes while Kim and Jimmy frequent a diner in premiere episode "Wine & Roses." Her position has softened a little since season 5, believing they can force a Sandpiper settlement by only "bruising" Howard's professional standing. Their first task is sowing seeds of doubt about Howard in the mind of Cliff Main.
Step 1 begins with Jimmy planting a bag of "drugs" (actually baby powder) in Howard's golf club locker while he's on the course with Cliff. Saul has pre-booked a tour of the establishment (golf clubs tend to be a little choosy about letting folk in off the street), and intends to find an opportunity to sneak the fake drugs into place. The plan almost runs off track when Kevin Wachtell - another big name in Albuquerque's legal world that Jimmy has upset in Better Call Saul - turns out to be a member of the same club, and demands Jimmy be kicked out. Sensing his opportunity slip, Jimmy spins the situation by insinuating the club is ejecting him for being Jewish. In classic Saul Goodman fashion, Jimmy goes overboard on the theatrics as he pleads antisemitism, and convinces the red-faced, deeply apologetic manager to let him use the bathroom before leaving.
Now successfully inside the clubhouse bathroom, jamming a toilet distracts the attendant, allowing Jimmy to sneak into the members only locker room. A second unforeseen wrinkle arises when Howard and Cliff return earlier than expected. Jimmy has planted the drugs by this point (notice the little off-camera rustle), but doesn't have chance to escape before they enter. If Howard caught sight of Jimmy, he'd immediately realize how a strange bag of white powder somehow materialized among his belongings. Improvising once again, Jimmy strips off, covers his head with a towel, and pretends to be drying himself - the vague glimpse of butt crack deterring Howard from looking too closely.
The rest of Jimmy McGill & Kim Wexler's step 1 goes perfectly according to plan. Howard opens his locker, the drug bag tumbles out, and Cliff Main sees it. Howard, quite rightly, pleads his innocence, but Cliff's suspicions have already been raised. And that's exactly what was supposed to happen as per Jimmy & Kim's plan. As Kim said back in the diner, none of this needs to stand up in court. No one needs to prove the bag contains cocaine, or provide evidence that it actually belonged to Howard... just so long as doubts begin creeping into Cliff Main's mind.
Step 2: Make The Kettlemans Report Howard
Jimmy McGill's golf club infiltration successfully raised the possibility of Howard Hamlin having a drug addiction in Cliff Main's mind. Jimmy & Kim's next step is subtly suggesting that Howard's extra-curricular activities might be impacting his legal work. For this, Jimmy initially intends to invent a client who'll approach Davis & Main claiming they've heard about the HHM boss' coke habit, but here's the tricky part - the fictional client needs to be convincing enough to reach Cliff Main's ear, but flimsy enough to avoid the lawyer actually accepting the job, because then Jimmy & Kim's subterfuge will be exposed by medical checks and closer examination. Kim hits upon a solution with a light bulb moment - the Kettlemans from Better Call Saul season 1.
Back in Better Call Saul's debut run, Craig and Betsy Kettleman hired HHM for a plea bargain after Craig found himself accused of embezzling over $1.5 million. Thanks to the fine efforts of Howard Hamlin and co., Craig was slapped with a vastly reduced jail term. In Better Call Saul season 6, Jimmy pays the Kettlemans (Craig has now served his time) an unexpected visit. Jimmy dangles the tempting possibility of legal exoneration, whereby Craig Kettleman will be officially cleared of all wrongdoing. Lying through his teeth, Jimmy tells the Kettlemans that Howard Hamlin was higher than The Beatles making the White Album while representing Craig. That's grounds for malpractice, and would, according to Jimmy, allow for full exoneration. During the pitch, notice also how Jimmy very deliberately name-drops Cliff Main as a rival lawyer...
The Kettlemans then do what the Kettlemans did in Better Call Saul season 1 - reject Jimmy and take their business to a "better" lawyer. This time, however, Jimmy is banking on their betrayal. The Kettlemans run straight to Davis & Main requesting a civil suit against Howard Hamlin for being incapacitated during Craig's representation. Just as Kim predicted, the story is interesting enough to earn an audience with the Main man, but turned down because they lack any kind of evidence. Once again, Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler's goal is achieved. Having already seen the bag of baby powder in the golf club locker room, Cliff Main is now seriously sweating about Howard Hamlin, and to sweeten the deal, the Kettlemans shared their story with three other local lawyers.
What Next For Jimmy & Kim's Howard Hamlin Scam In Better Call Saul Season 6?
After four separate lawyers tell them the Howard Hamlin case is a non-starter, Craig and Betsy Kettleman figure out Jimmy used them for a smear campaign. Jimmy believes he can buy their silence, but Kim takes a harder line, threatening to report their business for tax fraud if they go squealing to Howard.
In all probability, Jimmy & Kim are still just getting warmed up. The golf club and Kettleman stunts have successfully ignited rumors within the legal world regarding Howard Hamlin's dependence on a certain illegal white powder, but the baseless word of a convicted felon won't be enough to sway Cliff Main on the Sandpiper settlement. During the diner scene of Better Call Saul season 6's premiere, Kim laid out her intentions - "The trick is we're not working on Howard - not at first." This line implies more direct scheming against Howard is yet to come. Perhaps Jimmy repeats the trick he used to discredit Chuck in Better Call Saul season 2, falsifying documents to make Howard look unreliable - as if this fictitious drug habit is affecting his work. Or maybe Jimmy & Kim find some way to rile Howard into an embarrassing public outburst, prompting a flood of former clients coming forward with complaints identical to the Kettlemans.
Once the pressure increases, Cliff Main would have little choice but to settle Sandpiper as soon as possible, and Jimmy gets his long-awaited cash prize. The larger question hanging over Better Call Saul season 6 is how far Kim Wexler will go to reach that point...
Better Call Saul continues Mondays on AMC.