Better Call Saul Shows How Jimmy Forgets About Kim In Breaking Bad
Has Better Call Saul season 5 already shown how Jimmy gets over Kim before his debut in Breaking Bad? Bob Odenkirk's Saul Goodman first appears in Breaking Bad as Walter White's crooked lawyer and an associate of Mike Ehrmantraut, but the Better Call Saul spinoff series has dived deeper in Saul's backstory, rewinding to when he was still known as Jimmy McGill. Gradually, across the span of 5 seasons, viewers have watched Jimmy's personality disappear and Saul's larger than life persona emerge, and the current run of Better Call Saul is extremely close to completing that transformation.
One major sticking point between Better Call Saul's Jimmy and Breaking Bad's Saul, however, is the presence of Kim Wexler. Since Rhea Seehorn's character hadn't been invented at the time, there's no reference to her whatsoever in Breaking Bad, and this creates a massive disconnect between the 2 shows. As things stand in Better Call Saul's fifth season, Jimmy and Kim are closer than ever, and Odenkirk's character in particular is hugely dependent on his new wife. Whether Kim lives or dies in the spinoff's remaining episodes, it's impossible to imagine how Jimmy could possibly bounce back into the confident, colorful person seen in Breaking Bad.
Better Call Saul season 5's "Bad Choice Road" might have explained that very mystery, subtly revealing how Jimmy will move past Kim, whether she leaves him and moves away or whether she meets a far grislier end. In the episode, Jimmy is starting to show symptoms of PTSD after his experience in the desert and the violent shootout he was caught in the middle of. Jimmy's friendship with the cartel is only just beginning, and this was his first real exposure to the horrors of that world. Jimmy was also directly involved in a man's death, luring him out so Mike could pull the trigger. "Bad Choice Road" follows-up on this, and features a scene where Jimmy tries to talk to Mike about the experience and gain some level of closure.
Sadly, "qualified therapist" is one of the few skills Mike Ehrmantraut doesn't possess, and his advice is not what Saul wants to hear. Mike tells the lawyer that the harrowing experience will stay with him, until one day Jimmy wakes up and realizes he'd forgotten about it for a brief moment. Once Jimmy knows that he can forget the ordeal, Mike says the future becomes a little easier. Proving no use in the immediate moment, Jimmy walks away frustrated, but Mike's explanation mightn't have been a complete waste - it's possible he was directly foreshadowing how Jimmy will one day get over Kim.
If Kim leaves Jimmy because of his increasingly criminal business strategy, the Better Call Saul protagonist would surely drop everything in an attempt to win her back. Jimmy is nothing if not tenacious, and however much he loves a good scam, it's clear he loves Kim more. Similarly, if Kim ends up dying because of Jimmy's association with the cartel, there's no reason for him to happily continue as their lawyer. Even if, as many fans predict, Lalo kills Kim and Jimmy gets him locked up for life in revenge, it would be weird for Jimmy to continue working within the New Mexico drug business knowing that it got the love of his life killed.
Mike's method for dealing with trauma might help bridge that gap, explaining how Jimmy can lose Kim and still turn up in Breaking Bad as the life and soul of the law. And if Jimmy discovers he can get over Kim, he'll realize he can get over pretty much anything.
Better Call Saul season 5 concludes with "Something Unforgivable" April 21st on Netflix.