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canyonwalkerIn my previous blog I wrote about where some of Better Call Saul's supporting characters landed at the end of season 3. I wrote about Mike and the drug gang led by Hector and Nacho. What's interesting about them is that they're all characters in Breaking Bad, for which this series is a prequel. But two significant supporting characters in BCS, Kim and Chuck, are not in BB. What's interesting about that is what I call the Star Wars: Rogue One Rule: whenever key supporting characters are introduced in a prequel and are not part of the original story, you know they've got to meet some demise. 😱
With that said, here's what happens to Kim, Jimmy's best friend/girlfriend/law partner; and Chuck, Jimmy's older brother, at the end of Season 3.
Kim has her hands full with her first solo client, a regional bank. She then takes on another client, an oilfield owner recommended by the bank CEO. It's more than she can handle, but she's concerned about money. Jimmy's scrambling to cover his bills after being suspended by the state bar. We see Kim working marathon days, pulling all-nighters at the office and showering at the gym nearby instead of going home. Burning the candle at both ends catches up to her in episode 3.09 when she blacks out while driving and crashes her car on the side of the road.
Mindful of the rule above that the story's got to provide justification for why Kim isn't in BB, I thought to myself, "Oh, shit, is Kim dead?"
Fortunately, no, Kim doesn't die— at least not yet! She's just injured. And I say fortunately because Kim's a good person. She's smart, hard working, and honest. She's frankly the only genuinely sympathetic regular character, the only one we in the audience can legitimately root for without an, "Okay, but..."
Kim's survival is also fortunate because she's a big part of Jimmy's humanity. Throughout this series we see that Jimmy sincerely cares for her as a friend— a capability that he, as Saul, does not possess in Breaking Bad. I can see that without Kim to ground him, Jimmy will spiral into totally unethical behavior.
Then there's Chuck.
I'll cut straight to the chase. There's no Chuck in Breaking Bad because he dies. Chuck commits suicide in episode 3.10.
Chuck's death is a tragedy for a number of reasons, not the least of which is because he and Jimmy are locked in a struggle to destroy each other. Jimmy effectively gave the "You're dead to me" line to Chuck in ep. 3.03 when Chuck got him arrested. Jimmy then embarrassed Chuck in front of the state bar when Chuck testified to have him disbarred in ep. 3.05. Jimmy then finds an opportunity to hurt Chuck's career over malpractice insurance in ep 3.07. The insurance trouble leads Chuck's law partner, Howard, to push him out of the law firm he (Chuck) co-founded. Chuck, disowned by his brother, forced into early retirement by his partner, and unable to gain control over his mental illness, ends his own life.
With that said, here's what happens to Kim, Jimmy's best friend/girlfriend/law partner; and Chuck, Jimmy's older brother, at the end of Season 3.
Kim has her hands full with her first solo client, a regional bank. She then takes on another client, an oilfield owner recommended by the bank CEO. It's more than she can handle, but she's concerned about money. Jimmy's scrambling to cover his bills after being suspended by the state bar. We see Kim working marathon days, pulling all-nighters at the office and showering at the gym nearby instead of going home. Burning the candle at both ends catches up to her in episode 3.09 when she blacks out while driving and crashes her car on the side of the road.
Mindful of the rule above that the story's got to provide justification for why Kim isn't in BB, I thought to myself, "Oh, shit, is Kim dead?"
Fortunately, no, Kim doesn't die— at least not yet! She's just injured. And I say fortunately because Kim's a good person. She's smart, hard working, and honest. She's frankly the only genuinely sympathetic regular character, the only one we in the audience can legitimately root for without an, "Okay, but..."
Kim's survival is also fortunate because she's a big part of Jimmy's humanity. Throughout this series we see that Jimmy sincerely cares for her as a friend— a capability that he, as Saul, does not possess in Breaking Bad. I can see that without Kim to ground him, Jimmy will spiral into totally unethical behavior.
Then there's Chuck.
I'll cut straight to the chase. There's no Chuck in Breaking Bad because he dies. Chuck commits suicide in episode 3.10.
Chuck's death is a tragedy for a number of reasons, not the least of which is because he and Jimmy are locked in a struggle to destroy each other. Jimmy effectively gave the "You're dead to me" line to Chuck in ep. 3.03 when Chuck got him arrested. Jimmy then embarrassed Chuck in front of the state bar when Chuck testified to have him disbarred in ep. 3.05. Jimmy then finds an opportunity to hurt Chuck's career over malpractice insurance in ep 3.07. The insurance trouble leads Chuck's law partner, Howard, to push him out of the law firm he (Chuck) co-founded. Chuck, disowned by his brother, forced into early retirement by his partner, and unable to gain control over his mental illness, ends his own life.
