Warning: The following contains SPOILERS for Better Call Saul.
The Better Call Saul season 6, episode 11 ending provides several vital expansions for both the show itself, and its iconic predecessor Breaking Bad. In Breaking Bad, the episode "Better Call Saul" marks the first appearance of Saul Goodman on the show, which the Better Call Saul "Breaking Bad" episode flips through Walter White and Jesse Pinkman making their anticipated debut in the spinoff. However, this isn't the only reason why the episode is called "Breaking Bad."
There are two crucial moments in the ending of Better Call Saul season 6, episode 11. In 2008, Saul Goodman goes to the school where Walter White teaches - despite Mike warning Saul to avoid Walt because he's dangerous. This is when the Better Call Saul timeline finally addresses Saul Goodman's first appearance in Breaking Bad. Meanwhile, in 2010, Buddy refuses to continue a scam because Gene's mark is revealed to have cancer, causing Gene to fire Buddy and break into the mark's home to finish the scam himself. Both Saul and Gene are about to see a man suffering from cancer, which seems an intentional move.
The Better Call Saul season 6, episode 11 ending foreshadows a dark ending for Gene. Apart from Walt and Jesse's first Better Call Saul appearance, the episode's title refers to both Saul and Gene's decision to finally break bad - with Saul deciding to contact Walt, and Gene crossing a moral line for a scam. Here's everything else audiences might have missed in the ending of "Breaking Bad."
How Saul Goodman Going Into Walter White's School Sets Up Breaking Bad
Breaking Bad season 2, episode 8 "Better Call Saul" is when Saul first tracks down Walt at his school to offer his services for a cut of Walt and Jesse's profits. This moment marks the beginning of the downfall of both Saul and Gene. Blinded by the profit potential of Walt's superior meth, Saul ignores Mike's warnings about Walt. With Better Call Saul revealing how Saul and Mike came to trust each other over a series of life-threatening experiences, this punctuates just how far the reckless Saul Goodman has come from the calculating Jimmy McGill. Moreover, while it's unclear what happened when Gene called Kim, Gene's emotional phone booth scene is a reminder that it was Kim leaving that caused Jimmy to fully transform into Breaking Bad's iconic Saul Goodman.
Why Gene Still Goes Into The House In Better Call Saul S6, Ep 11's Ending
Gene goes into the house because he finally accepts his true nature as a scam artist. Though Buddy reminds Gene that their target has cancer, Gene is quick to fire back with a remark about how cancer patients aren't necessarily good people. Rather than being thwarted by discovering that his target is taking cancer pills, Gene is instead reminded by the last cancer patient he took pity on and blindly trusted, Walter White. In effect, this only strengthened Gene's resolve to stick to what he does best, ignore any distractions that are in his way, and finish the scam according to plan.
Better Call Saul Season 6, Episode 11's Ending Is Saul & Gene's Downfall
Better Call Saul season 6, episode 11 not only marks the spinoff's first real steps into the Breaking Bad timeline, it also provides the first real clues that things will end darkly for Gene. Up until this episode, Better Call Saul did a fine job of hiding whatever fate awaits Gene in the season 6 finale. Even as Jimmy falls deeper and deeper into his Saul Goodman persona, there have always been clues that Saul can still somehow become Jimmy again, even when he was Walter White's consiglieri in Breaking Bad.
However, now that Gene is fully back in the game, and is apparently willing to cross any moral line for money, Gene and Saul's dark fate seems to be all but sealed. As it seems that Gene also has no hope of getting back with or even just contacting Kim Wexler again, Jimmy McGill is as good as dead. Even the Better Call Saul Cinnabon scam, how Gene manipulates his subordinates, and Gene's overall look are direct references to Walter White, implying that Gene will eventually suffer the same fate.
Better Call Saul, on the other hand, could just be leading audiences to follow a red herring with all this heavy foreshadowing, which would be exemplified by the Better Call Saul season 6, episode 11 ending. Given the show's twists, it's just as possible that Gene's fate will somehow turn around in the final episode. Though the overall Better Call Saul narrative points to Gene's dark ending, this might just be what the writers need in order to deliver a truly surprising finale.