" And Jimmy does one other important thing here: he leaves behind client files, which he observes Chuck examining. It’s unclear what’s going on there"
It’s Jimmy trying to tickle Chuck’s hidden lawyer. Trying to add motivation for his recovery. He wants Chuck to get the bug again, and therefore speed up the process of getting back to work.
Came here to say this. Yes. It shows some of the goodness that’s really at the core of Jimmy, that he would never regret.
I also think Jimmy intentionally said “file a 413” when he meant “513”, just so his brother might correct him and have another way to feel good about himself, and feel a bit more motivated to dive in.
Think I noted something, and thought it was neat enough to comment on. If I’m right, potential spoiler alert I guess so be warned.
Did you notice when Jimmy is flipping through the dictionary, the topic we notice that’s alphabetically before “embezzlement”? It’s “electricity”.
Maybe his brother Chuck’s aversion to electricity, is a neurosis he’s developed to shield him from thoughts about the next word - embezzlement. Which could mean, maybe Chuck did some embezzlement from Hamlin Hamlin & McGill, probably in a weak moment, which hasn’t been found out yet. Perhaps for some difficulty their mother found herself in, such as health, losing her house, or some other similar problem. Or, perhaps Chuck just found himself dipping more and more into the till.
In which case this potential problem could cost Chuck his law partnership, and more importantly his own integrity and view of himself. As well as Jimmy’s respect, and even hope, as the one man he respects and considers universally good shows feet of clay.
That’s my thought. So love the show. For me, this creative team is coming through in every way.
The deep foreshadowing with the Electricity, I noticed that too, is like the episode in season two where they cook up the KGB poison features a non-sugar sweetener, just like Lydia years later.
The problem is if they squeeze them for ratings or chop the show off suddenly we never get to find out what the clues mean even if we know it leads to a future Breaking Bad.
Like Lost when it got all lost in itself creating mysterious stuff for ratings but changing their minds or simply never satisfactorily explaining a dropped plot clue, like freaking Walt&Whitman, was that going to be a joke?
Damn, I love this show.
Also just pointing out the fun touch, that one of the guys seen on the initial “Wanted” board is also the same guy who roughly shoves Jimmy out of his way in the diner bathroom. : )
Interesting symbolism at the end when Jimmy is leaning against the window, The window frame makes the shape of a crucifix behind a suffering Jimmy, like Jesus on the cross.
Jimmy sacrificed his future law practice for Kim.
I didn’t understand the ‘losing it all’ angle both you and the article talk about. By doing the right thing he lost a (bad) client, used up a favor from Mike and the ill-gotten cash he seemed to be saving up for the nice place.
But he did seem to solve the situation at hand without ending up (so far) in jail or in the hands of violent criminals, is in good terms with someone he cares about personally and professionally and still has his modestly paid bingo lawyer thing and the ‘guy from TV’ reputation going on. What did he sacrifice?
I think it’s a similar situation like in The Godfather… Jimmy feels like the bingo lawyering gig is enough. He, like Michael Corleone, desperately wants legitimacy (on this show, in the form of better. “real” clients, a decent office, prestige, etc). and the bribe money would have been a step on that goal.
It seems he sacrificed his dream of being publicly respected, which is a deeper tragedy - it shows how he’s disoriented on a pretty deep level. That big respectable office was his dream - and what it meant, being seen as legit.
Instead he let it all go, largely because he wants Kim’s respect and also genuinely wants her to do well, or at least not do badly because of him. And he let it all go - even letting go of money no one else would know about and that he could get away with keeping, because it would be as he says with finger quotes “the right thing”.
But he doesn’t have it straightened out. It hurts him awfully. He feels like a failure, because of how he fears other people see him - and how he wants to be free of that fear, but hasn’t thought it through in that the only way to really be free is not to care.
That’s what I see, anyway…
I wonder if Chuck has been actually been putting on an act this whole time for some reason and that’s what Jimmy might be checking on with his leaving of the files.
I love this show. And it does keep getting better though the Kettlewoman bugs the heck out of me. Hopefully that’s the end of that saga.
Exactly, which is why I wondered why he gave up the new office. His future income was undamaged.
I’m not entirely convinced that scene was about him giving up his fancy office but that it was about him giving up kim by doing the right thing, he could have easily played that to work in his favour but right now he is trying not to go back to being slippin’ jimmy and betraying the second chance that chuck gave him. Also i’m pretty sure the substantial outlay for that office would have come from the bribe he gave back, wasn’t it $30,000 or something? I don’t think he’s been doing enough elder law yet to make that kind of scratch.
Yeah, it definitely seems clear that the huge office was coming from the bribe-ahem-retainer. Returning that means giving up on having that office.
He’s probably making some money from the elder law, but from what we were seeing last episode it was basically $140 from seniors divvying up their hummel figurines to settle scores with their relatives. There can be quite a few of those, but it hardly seems to be more than a middle-class income at this point. Not the high-flying lawyer Jimmy wants to be…
I do agree that impressing Kim really matters to him. But I don’t think he gave up Kim by doing the “right thing” - more like that money was something he wouldn’t want her to know about. Which is not going to bode well for him, the deeper he gets into the shit that’s coming.
This topic was automatically closed after 5 days. New replies are no longer allowed.
