You either have well-meaning criminals like Nacho (Michael Mando), cerebral criminals like Gus (Giancarlo Esposito, who was actually born in Denmark to an Italian father and African American mother), fedora-wearing druglord criminals like Hector Salamanca (Mark Margolis), or outright caricatures like the coked-up, murderous brute Tuco Salamanca (Raymond Cruz).Īs if trying to offset a robust cast of brown bad guys, Better Call Saul sprinkles golden-hearted angels into minor roles, such as Ernesto (Brandon K. The Mexicans who make up Better Call Saul are all criminals, their only variation the degrees to which they are vilified. Unlike their white counterparts, we never get to see them portrayed both positively and with dimension, despite the fact that Hispanics make up the largest ethnic group in Albuquerque ( 46.7% Hispanic vs 42.1% non-Hispanic white in 2010*). The depictions of people of color (POC) are awful. Still, even these women are one-dimensional and tangential to the main plots, unlike the bevy of male support characters who dominate the cast of Better Call Saul. In Season 1, nearly all portrayals are sexualized and/or flawed, while Seasons 2 and 3 see more tempered depictions through minor characters like Rebecca (Ann Cusack), the wife of Jimmy’s brother, or Francesca (Tina Parker), the secretary of Kim and Jimmy. In the third season, Kim lands a major client and although the client had to be gift-wrapped and hand-delivered by Jimmy, it nonetheless gifts us with multiple Bechdel Test-passing scenes where Kim discusses work with Paige (Cara Pifko), half of the husband-wife team behind client Mesa Verde.īeyond Kim, representation of women is minimal. Luckily, Season 2 begins to explore Kim’s depth as a capable lawyer and Season 3 is positive enough a portrayal that it bumps this score up a notch.
This feeds straight into the stereotype that men are more creative, and I have no patience for shows that reinforce damaging views that have been revealed over and over again to be false yet continue to have lingering repercussions in real life, particularly in diminished career opportunities for women. Her depiction in Season 1 is awful she is a lawyer and the sometimes-colleague, sometimes-lover of main character Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk) but her small amounts of screen time see her cleaning up after men (literally, putting back a trash can Jimmy once knocks over during a tantrum) and always playing a subordinate, hesitant, and follow-the-rules foil to Jimmy’s harebrained but more creative and exciting schemes. One of the instances: “How’s lunch?” “Fine.” “What’d you have?” “Turkey wrap.” Guys, the Bechdel Test is not that hard to pass.Īs for characterization, the only female with any substantial role is Kim Wexler, played by Rhea Seehorn.
but only twice during all of Season 1 and twice again in Season 2. Instead, the personal journey and exploration of moral ambiguities that make up the latter arc is more developed and intriguing than the show’s tired cliches about Mexican drug cartels.
The former storyline I find bland and-besides the novelty factor that will appeal to fans of Breaking Bad-wholly superfluous. Writers: Vince Gilligan 👨🏼🇺🇸 (40 eps), Peter Gould 👨🏼🇺🇸 (40 eps), Gordon Smith 👨🏼🇺🇸 (22 eps), Ann Cherkis 👩🏼🇺🇸 (11 eps), and various ( 3 ♂, 2 ♀, all white)īetter Call Saul is a meditative exploration of two lightly linked story arcs-one that follows criminals involved in the Albuquerque drug trade and the other, a story of a man’s inner struggle between good and evil and how that affects his relationship with his older brother. Creator: Vince Gilligan 👨🏼🇺🇸 and Peter Gould 👨🏼🇺🇸
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