The following article contains major spoilers for Better Call Saul's series finale, "Saul Gone," which debuted Monday, August 15 on AMC.
AMC's Better Call Saul was a methodical character study that focused on exploring several characters from Breaking Bad while simultaneously fleshing out new characters. By its anticipated conclusion, the titular character had undergone three identity changes -- all of these alter egos battling within Saul's mind. Better Call Saul's finale "Saul Gone" presented many amazing ideas, but fell short when measured against Breaking Bad's finale "Ozymandias."
Breaking Bad is inarguably one of television's greatest shows. When it came time to end the series in 2013, there were a lot of loose ends to tie up, both in terms of plot and character. Its last episode delivered a melancholy conclusion that satisfied audiences and book-ended the story in a clear and comprehensible manner. Better Call Saul nearly achieved the same feat -- but the prequel muddled its plot when it came to execution.
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In "Saul Gone," audiences were shown several character transformations. Gene Takovic was quickly captured and donned his sleazy Saul Goodman persona during plea bargaining. Yet after discovering that his ex-wife Kim Wexler confessed to the authorities, Saul reverted back to Jimmy McGill by owning up to his mistakes. This transition seemed perfect for a finale, but the series didn't earn it.
The final arc of Better Call Saul focused on Saul's life as Gene, with some partially successful fan service near the end. The show spent more than a few episodes highlighting Gene's downfall back into his old ways -- but in the finale he changed on a dime because of Kim, a character he hadn't seen in six years. Beyond that, Jimmy went right back to being Saul once he was in prison, so it made his heroic turn in the courtroom seem pointless.
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On the other hand, the Breaking Bad finale delivered a well-earned satisfying change of character for Walter White. Audiences got to see the kingpin Heisenberg slowly melt away as he wallowed in exile. When all hope was lost, he made one last ditch effort to make everything right. When Walter visited his wife Skylar, he similarly owned up to his mistakes and gave her something that was supposed to help her avoid trouble.
The series finale didn't spend its time showing him change back and forth between Heisenberg and Walter. It knew that Heisenberg has won, and so Walter left his old life behind and ventured out to finish off the gang that wronged Heisenberg. This clear character change was earned because Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan chose to flesh out Walter's descent into Heisenberg before showing that hard exterior melting away into remorse.
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The Better Call Saul finale had all the same themes that the Breaking Bad finale had, but it lacked focus and so didn't have the same payoff that its predecessor did. By the time the credits rolled, it was unclear if the title character was truly Jimmy, Saul or some blend of both. Fans were left to speculate whereas the Breaking Bad ending was very specific.
Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul will forever be compared because of their shared universe, but they are very different series. The action and plot of Breaking Bad defined an era of television, while its spinoff Better Call Saul was an intricate and masterfully crafted character breakdown. This show's focus on character is what made it different, but it also left the audience unsatisfied, because viewers still didn't have an answer to the character of Saul Goodman.
Better Call Saul is now streaming on AMC+.