The episode opens with a scene of Jimmy reaching out to elderly clients. It's great to see him working his wiles, and it reminds us why the old folks love him. Bob Odenkirk is almost hypnotizing in this scene. As you watch it, you don't even notice what he's doing is morally ambiguous. When others begin pointing it out, at first you feel outraged. You feel that Jimmy has done nothing wrong. But you gradually realize that they're right. This is exactly what you would expect from Slippin' Jimmy with a law degree.
When that first season twist was revealed, I hated Chuck. But after re-watching the first season and starting this season, Inhave to admit that he's kind of right. Jimmy is a little unorthodox to be a lawyer. This is the true brilliance of Gilligan and Gould's writing; even the "surprise villain reveal" is actually a sympathetic and understandable character. I've found every scene between Bob Odenkirk and Michael McKean this season to be utterly enrapturing, and this episode was no exception.
Until now, all we've seen of Jimmy is him being forced by others to stay down. It seemed that the crushing force of the world would force him into becoming Saul Goodman. Instead, he's got his promotion, and for the first time in a while, we see Jimmy failing because of flaws in his own character. This episode is the beginning of a deeper and more complex arc for the show. We get to see that Chuck's worst fears may have been true, that the combination of Slippin' Jimmy and James McGill will create Saul Goodman.
The episode also had a good setup for some stories with Mike, although I do wonder if it will ever tie back into Saul. This was a pretty great episode.
