Better Call Saul season 6 episode 4 review: on high alert

NOTE: This recap contains details about what happens in the Better Call Saul season 6 episode 3, "Hit and Run." Read our Better Call Saul season 6 episode 3 recap here.

Let’s be honest, we’re still reeling from the events of "Rock and Hard Place." But after all that, one of the major questions that came up at the end of episode 2 has remained unanswered: who’s been following Jimmy and Kim since the Kettleman’s? By the end of this episode, that’s addressed.

"Hit and Run" does a terrific job helping us carry on after last week's gut-punch ending because it’s another terrific installment of what’s shaping up to be a brilliant and emotional season of television. This one can be credited to its terrific director, Rhea Seehorn, aka, the incomparable Kim Wexler (is there anything she can’t do?). 

The action starts with a bit of a misdirect. A couple is going for a bike ride in quiet suburbia. Turns out, however, the couple concludes their ride at a home that looks very familiar to Breaking Bad fans — 1213 Jefferson Street, the home of Gustavo Fring (Giancarlo Esposito).

Things then pick up with Howard (Patrick Fabian) as he goes to the therapy. But once more, this is a misdirect, as we finally see Jimmy and Kim’s plan in full swing. Their key scheme in the previous episode allows Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) to take Howard’s car while the poor sap is in his session (dressed and spray tanned to perfection to look like Howard). He strategically plants a cone to ensure the parking spot he’s in is reserved, while Kim goes to chat up Cliff Maine (Ed Begely Jr). 

Jimmy then brings a prostitute into his car, as Kim gives him the perfectly timed signal, so he can drive recklessly in front of them, screech to a halt and throw the poor girl out of Howard’s car, all in front of Maine. He comes back to the parking spot to find some jerk moved his cone and parked in Howard’s spot (seriously, who moves a cone?). Jimmy then has to summon Herculean strength to finagle the situation so Howard won't notice.

This entire sequence couldn’t be more hilarious. From Jimmy’s "Howard Hamlin" cosplay to the irony of Jimmy protesting the moral indecency of moving a cone and the last bit of physical comedy; every inch of these scenes is hilarious. In classic heist fashion, we see everything going wrong. It’s the injection of humor the show needs after the heavy episode that was "Rock and Hard Place."

A victory in the Hamlin scheme is soon balanced out by some form of bad news for both Jimmy and Kim. In Jimmy’s case, news that he defended Jorge DeGuzman, aka Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton), spread through the courthouse and Jimmy officially becomes the pariah in the law community that he is in Breaking Bad. It’s a bit tragic given it’s not like he had much of a choice in terms of having to a) defend Lalo and b) remain a "friend" of the cartel’s after. 

But there are, thankfully, unexpected benefits, considering it’s generated a ton of clients for Jimmy, with a line out the door at the nail salon. Perhaps they’re technically the wrong kind, but it’s enough to get this "criminal" lawyer paid. Again, hilarious stuff. We know we’re absolutely in the home stretch for this series now.

Kim also receives news of a troubling sort in a way, but not before doing something incredibly badass. At a certain point, she, unlike her oblivious partner, is wise to the fact they’re being followed. It’s been something she’s picked up on since the Hamlin scheme with the prostitute. She sees the car of her pursuers and confronts them. Kim Wexler is just utterly fearless. Unfortunately, she, like the audience, has no idea who these stalkers are. That is until she gets an unexpected visit from Mike (Jonathan Banks).

Things head back to the place where we started the episode: Gus’s house. Without spoiling anything, Gus is clearly on edge about Lalo and anticipates he’ll be planning some sort of attack soon. We wouldn’t put it past Lalo, who we still haven’t seen since the first episode. Anything can happen here (except Mike and Gus’s deaths since they’re both in Breaking Bad obviously).

It's interesting to see how the non-death of Lalo Salamanca has haunted these characters so far. Gus is taking extreme measures to ensure his safety of course. But so are other key characters in this universe too. After all, one does not simply get over the menacing confrontation Kim and Jimmy had with him in the season 5 finale. We know how terrifying Salamanca is and unfortunately, even for a character like Kim, standing up to a cartel gangster and convincing him to run to Mexico straight to an assassination attempt could paint a target on her back. By the end of the episode, Kim is still certainly checking hers. That’s terrifying for everyone who is trying to #ProtectKimWexler.

We conclude the episode with a moment that, much like the opening, will excite Breaking Bad fans. Jimmy goes to explore real estate for his new office, per his conversation with Kim in the first two episodes. After all, with the abundance of less-than-savory characters flooding the nail salon, it’s a bit untenable for him to continue conducting his affairs in a tiny back office with a futon. Naturally, as legend dictates, he stumbles across an abandoned office space at a nearby strip mall. The rest is history in the making.

New episodes of Better Call Saul air Mondays at 9 pm ET/PT on AMC in the US and on Tuesdays on Netflix in the UK.