Better Call Saul's latest offering saw Kim make a shocking marriage proposal to Jimmy, but why? Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler have always been a classic case of opposites attracting. Where Kim is a naturally gifted professional who largely sticks to the rules, Jimmy is a hard-working maverick grifter who isn't afraid to bend the law when it suits him. Occasionally, however, Jimmy and Kim's respective legal interests have aligned, and the couple have schemed together, most recently against Mesa Verde in Better Call Saul season 5, attempting to keep Mr. Acker's house from being bulldozed by the bank.
In "Wexler v. Goodman," Kim's professional respect and love of legality won over, and she put a firm halt on Jimmy's underhand plans to blackmail Mesa Verde's CEO, Kevin. Of course, Jimmy couldn't just let a good con go to waste, and he went ahead behind Kim's back, forcing his opponents in ceding Acker's house, among a number of other compensatory bonuses. Kim was livid; not only had Jimmy risked her career and confronted her in the boardroom, he had ignored her express wishes and lied. When the couple return home from an awkward day's work, Kim appears on the edge of breaking up with Jimmy, but then springs another idea out of nowhere - marriage.
Given how angry Kim was at Jimmy's betrayal, her sudden suggestion to tie the knot seems to come entirely out of left field, not just to the audience, but to Jimmy as well. So why has the level-headed and mostly-sensible Kim gone from demanding a break-up to shopping for dresses? There are several contributing factors. From a legal standpoint, Kim might be thinking practically with spousal privilege on her mind. In the U.S., spousal privilege is a feature of common law whereby married couples aren't compelled to reveal their private communications in a court of law, and some states also excuse spouses from testifying against each other.
Obviously, there are certain scenarios where this privilege isn't applicable, but for disputes over land ownership and suing a large bank, Kim marrying Jimmy could mean that the couple wouldn't be forced to hand over their private communications to each other and, therefore, their conspiring against Mesa Verde would be much harder to prove if Rich, Kevin, or anyone else became suspicious.
While Kim's legal nous is no doubt driving her marriage proposal, there is perhaps a more personal (and romantic) element in play also. Throughout Better Call Saul, Kim has shown a clear attraction for Jimmy's courtroom swashbuckling and desire to "stick up for the little guy." Not only did she join him in the Huell scam at great personal risk, but she was happy to involve Jimmy in the Acker case against her own employers. She might've got cold feet eventually, but Kim was very much involved in Jimmy's latest scheme. Although undoubtedly angry that he went behind her back, it's likely that Kim was both impressed by Saul Goodman's unlikely victory against Mesa Verde and drawn to him even more than before. The promise of spousal privilege might've caused Kim's head to propose to Jimmy, but his increasingly outlandish legal maneuvering and David vs. Goliath attitude unquestionably continues to captivate her heart.
Better Call Saul season 5 continues with "JMM" March 30th on Netflix.