Season two of ‘Better Call Saul’ premieres Monday, Feb. 15 at 10/9c on AMC.
Besides giving Breaking Bad fans some well-received insight into Albuquerque’s shadiest attorney, Better Call Saul‘s first season was full of zingers and quotes ripe for repeating. Jimmy McGill, aka Saul Goodman’s biting sarcasm, was apparent from the first episode and never wavered throughout the season. Season two will almost certainly deliver more moments of hilarity as Jimmy fully adopts his new persona, but for now, let’s look back at those lines that made each episode of season one so enjoyable to watch. (Some spoilers ahead.)
“FYI, old people adore me.” — Jimmy
Allowing elderly clients to pay him whatever they can cough up, hosting Bingo nights, and reminding psychotic gangsters how sweet their grandmothers are. These are a few reasons why old people love Jimmy. And if you’re going to take on a corrupt nursing home that’s been swindling people out of their money, you’d better convince the judge you have those residents on your side. The guy is most definitely getting a crisp five-dollar bill from his grandmother when his birthday rolls around.
“Slippin’ Jimmy with a law degree is like a chimp with a machine gun.” — Chuck
Even with Jimmy running errands and pretty much making sure his older brother doesn’t starve to death, Chuck can’t give him credit where it’s due. Sure, he’s eager to look into the Sandpiper Crossing case that Jimmy brings to the table, but he’s not about to start referring to his brother as an actual lawyer. Comparing Jimmy to a gun-toting chimp, though — ouch, better get some aloe for that burn.
“Hail Satan. I submit to the dark side.” — Jimmy
Not only does Chuck insult Jimmy by disregarding him as a legitimate attorney, but he takes all the wind out of his sails with the Sandpiper Crossing case by arguing they partner up with Chuck’s firm, HHM. There’s just too much information to dig through and in his eyes, the only way they stand a chance… is by sidling up to Jimmy’s own personal devil: Howard Hamlin. It’s a definite blow to Jimmy’s ego and he’s not too happy about pledging his allegiance to the dark side.
“Cocobolo desk. I don’t know what it means, but I like saying the word ‘cocobolo’.” — Jimmy
If Jimmy’s going to be setting up shop in a fancy office building with a killer view of the parking lot, he should have a cool desk with a goofy name. Even if he’s clueless what it means, it’s enough to impress Kim. And in case you’re wondering what “Cocobolo” does mean, it’s referring to a tropical hardwood from the Dalbergia retusa tree found in Central America.
“It’s showtime, folks.” — Jimmy
Saul Goodman isn’t even an idea in Jimmy’s head at the beginning of the season, but we’re shown hints of Saul right away. Jimmy might not yet have switched over to the colorful ties and built up his roster of kingpin clients, but his bathroom pep talk is pure Saul.
“Sorry I called you a pig-f*cker.” — Jimmy
Saul’s somewhat of a standup guy, and that means knowing when an apology is in order. Sure, Howard Hamlin tried to screw over his brother and he’s never taken Jimmy seriously, but that’s no reason to accuse the guy of fornicating with livestock.
“I may have defecated through the sunroof.” — Jimmy
Jimmy obviously wasn’t proud to admit he pulled a “Chicago sunroof,” but at least he can go to sleep knowing that skeleton’s now out of the closet. And in a twisted way… that’s gotta count for something, right?
“Give me a call… if you, uh, happen to know any elders.” — Jimmy
Some of season one’s best moments came from Jimmy and Mike’s interactions at the toll booth. No amount of Jimmy’s schmoozing seems to have an effect on Mike and he works in this nice subtle dig when promoting his business.
“The only way that entire car is worth 500 bucks is if there’s a $300 hooker sitting in it.” — Jimmy
As sly as the skateboard injury scheme cooked up by the skate punks in BCS’s pilot episode was, pulling it on Jimmy was an incredibly bad choice. Let’s be honest, even with a full tank of gas that clunker is fetching $180 at most.
“What are you doing?” — Mike
“The right thing.” — Jimmy
There were surely a flurry of thoughts going through Jimmy’s head when looking down at that $1.6 million in stolen tax money. Only he and Mike were aware of its existence, and while Mike seems completely unfazed by the pot of gold staring them in the face, Jimmy pushes out any idea of cashing in and returns the cash. Jimmy might be about doing the “right thing” but this scene without a doubt hints at some Saul undertones.
“I know what stopped me. And you know what? It’s never stopping me again.” — Jimmy
Maybe it was losing his old con buddy Marco during his trip to Chicago. Maybe it was just a culmination of years of not being taken seriously by his brother and HHM. Either way, when Jimmy returns to Albuquerque, he’s a different man. He’s a man who’s done playing by others’ rules and all it takes is a quick chat with Mike at the toll booth to convince him of which road he’s destined to do go down. He might have pulled into that parking lot as Jimmy McGill, but Saul Goodman pulled out of it.
