The debate over whether Better Call Saul or Breaking Bad is better has been raging ever since the spinoff started, but there is one exact moment where the prequel became better than the original series. Breaking Bad and its prequel series Better Call Saul are two of the most critically acclaimed shows of all time, with them being consistently beloved throughout their runs. Now that the Breaking Bad universe has concluded, a lot of analysis is going into which show is better, with the obvious answer being Better Call Saul due to this one scene.
Upon the announcement of a Breaking Bad prequel focusing on Saul Goodman, many fans of the original series were left confused. It didn’t seem as if there was enough story to warrant an entire show focused on the comedic side character, and after the legendarily high-quality run of Breaking Bad, creating a spinoff series risked tarnishing the original show’s legacy. However, when Better Call Saul started, it quickly became apparent that the team knew what they were doing. Better Call Saul was praised throughout its early seasons, but the show’s true quality became known in this scene.
Better Call Saul Got Better Than Breaking Bad After Season 3, Episode 5
For about half its run, Better Call Saul attempted to outdo the legacy of Breaking Bad. However, it finally managed to pull off reaching this goal in Better Call Saul season 3, episode 5, “Chicanery.” The episode centers around a hearing that is tasked with deciding if Jimmy McGill should be disbarred, with this coming from him allegedly tampering with Chuck’s evidence. This is already an incredibly interesting story, as Jimmy getting disbarred would immediately raise the stakes of the show.
However, Better Call Saul’s “Chicanery” truly becomes a masterpiece when Chuck decides to testify against his brother. Jimmy’s scheme to reveal Chuck’s condition as fake is one of the most clever bits of writing in the show, and Chuck’s ranting monologue in the scheme’s aftermath is possibly the most iconic scene in the series. Jimmy’s clear pain in exposing his brother makes this one of the most emotional scenes in Better Call Saul, with the emotional complexity of this Jimmy and Chuck climax elevating the prequel over Breaking Bad.
“Chicanery” Elevated Better Call Saul And Changed The Show Forever
Jimmy exposing Chuck is the true turning point of Better Call Saul, with Jimmy’s betrayal of his brother being the push that sends Jimmy down the dark path that he can be seen on in Breaking Bad. While Breaking Bad was an incredible series, the complexity of the emotions seen in “Chicanery” can only be found in this episode, with the prequel not having to rely on tension in order to be compelling. “Chicanery” is the true start of Jimmy’s downfall in Better Call Saul, which is why the show gets so much better after this point.
Better Call Saul Somehow Continued To Get Better After Season 3
Although “Chicanery” was an incredible episode, Better Call Saul somehow managed to get even better after season 3. Better Call Saul season 3 was still heavily focused on the legal aspect, and while Nacho was around, the beloved crime storylines didn’t come back in full force until even later. The reintroduction of Gus Fring in Better Call Saul made the terrifying villain even more interesting, and the addition of Lalo Salamanca to the prequel series led to a villain who was able to be just as interesting and fun as Gus was in Breaking Bad.
Jimmy’s arc for the rest of Better Call Saul also only got more interesting after season 3. Jimmy’s descent into criminality only continued to get worse after discrediting Chuck, with this bringing him closer to Jimmy and Kim’s final plan to discredit Howard Hamlin. Jimmy and Kim’s romantic relationship was also incredibly interesting, with the tragic conclusion of it in Better Call Saul’s future timeline not playing a part in the series until the very end of the show. So many of Better Call Saul’s best moments didn’t come until after “Chicanery,” proving that there was still room to grow.
Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul Are Both Fantastic (No Matter Your Favorite)
Although everyone has a favorite, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are still both fantastic shows. The two series are easily some of the best TV shows ever made, with comparing the two near-perfect programs being a hard task. It is hard to find a flaw with either series, and the most interesting part is that neither would work without the other. Better Call Saul wouldn’t make sense without Breaking Bad, and knowledge of Jimmy’s fate in Breaking Bad makes Better Call Saul so much better, and this only works because both shows are as good as they are.
