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Plan and Execution

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"Plan and Execution"
Better Call Saulepisode
Poster for the episode featuring two wine glasses and a candle.
Promotional poster
Episodeno.Season 6
Episode 7
Directed byThomas Schnauz
Written byThomas Schnauz
Cinematography byMarshall Adams
Editing bySkip Macdonald
Original air dateMay 23, 2022(2022-05-23)
Running time50 minutes
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
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Better Call Saulseason 6
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"Plan and Execution"is the seventh episode andmid-season finaleof thesixth seasonofBetter Call Saul,the spin-off television series ofBreaking Bad.It was written and directed byThomas Schnauz.It aired on May 23, 2022, onAMCandAMC+.In several countries outside the United States and Canada, it premiered onNetflixthe following day.

In the episode,Jimmy McGillandKim Wexlercarry out their plan to discreditHoward Hamlinduring the Sandpiper settlement hearing. Meanwhile,Lalo Salamancaresurfaces in Albuquerque after discovering the location ofGus Fring's secret meth lab.

"Plan and Execution" was met with critical acclaim for its direction, writing, cinematography, score, and on-screen performances, most notably that ofPatrick Fabianas Howard. It has since been considered by some asBetter Call Saul'sfinest episode and one of the greatest episodes of the entireBreaking Baduniverse.[1]An estimated 1.19 million viewers saw the episode during its first broadcast on AMC.

Plot

[edit]

On the day of the Sandpiper settlement mediation,Jimmy McGill,Kim Wexler,and Jimmy's film crew race to reshoot their photos of the actor portraying mediatorRand Casimiroso the real Casimiro's broken arm will be depicted in the fake pictures. They coat the photos with the pupil-dilating drug they procured fromDr. Caldera,then Jimmy gives them toHoward Hamlin'sprivate investigator, who has been working with Jimmy and Kim all along.

At the Hamlin, Hamlin & McGill (HHM) office, shortly before the mediation session starts, Howard views the photos, which appear to show Jimmy giving someone the $20,000 he recently withdrew from the bank. Jimmy and Kim listen in on the conference call for the mediation. Howard is shocked to recognize Casimiro as the man from the photos and accuses him of accepting money from Jimmy. When Howard attempts to retrieve the photos from his office to prove his allegation, he finds they have been switched for innocuous photos of Jimmy. Howard's erratic behavior causes the end of the mediation conference, and HHM and Davis & Main are compelled to settle the case for less than they expected.

Lalo Salamancaspends several days monitoringGus Fring'slaundry facility. He makes a videotape recording tellingDon Eladiohe has proof of Gus's disloyalty. Surmising that Gus is monitoringHector Salamanca'scalls, Lalo tells Hector he intends to attack Gus that night.Mike Ehrmantrautplays a recording of the call for Gus, then adds additional protection for Gus by redeploying security teams from targets considered low-priority for Lalo. Howard pieces together Jimmy and Kim's con and confronts them at their apartment. Lalo arrives soon afterward. As Kim urges Howard to leave, Lalo kills him with a gunshot to the head.

Production

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"Plan and Execution" was written and directed byThomas Schnauz,a veteran writer onBetter Call SaulandBreaking Bad.[2]The episode features the death of Howard Hamlin, played byPatrick Fabian,a series regular since thefirst season.Fabian had been aware prior to the filming of the sixth season that his character would have an early exit but only received word of his character's death about two weeks before filming the episode, remarking that the writers characterized the moment as "a hinge that swings the rest of the season open".[3][4]Schnauz said Howard's death was "inevitable" because "it just felt like something horrible had to happen as a result of the scam."[3]Rhea Seehorn,who plays Kim, said Howard's death was "the embodiment of what Kim and Jimmy have been pretending is not true this whole season – that there are no consequences to their actions."[5]

The writers explored dozens of possible ways for Howard's story to end. One idea they considered involved the return of the skateboarder twins from thefirstandsecondepisodes of the series. In it, Howard would have been tricked into thinking he had run over and killed one of them. Schnauz said it was one of many "crazy different plots. We work on these stories for so long and so many days and we go down so many different roads that it's hard to say when it felt like we were on the right road. We just go piece by piece." Another idea would have seen Lalo taking Howard, Jimmy, and Kim hostage but they thought Lalo killing Howard was "a perfect way to scare the ever-living shit out of Jimmy and Kim, to put a bullet in this stranger's head and move on to part two of his plan." Schnauz and director of photography Marshall Adams shot Jimmy and Kim's reactions to Lalo's entrance in a number of ways, finding inspiration from a scene in the fifth-season episode "Bad Choice Road"where a series of intercuts show a traumatized Jimmy's reaction to the sounds of a juicer. Two cameras were set up on the face of actorBob Odenkirk,who plays Jimmy, to capture the intercuts. Schnauz and editorSkip Macdonaldinitially submitted a version of the final scene to AMC andSonythat featured a close-up of Jimmy's pupil dilating. When the studios questioned the necessity of the shot, they ultimately decided simpler was better and instead used a shot of Lalo slowly appearing behind Howard as the characters watched in "grave, stunned silence".[2][3][6]

Rumors of Howard's death began to circulate online in December 2021, when Odenkirk shared a photo of himself with Fabian, who was dressed in character and had blood in his hair. After "Plan and Execution" aired, Odenkirk admitted his mistake on Twitter: "Well the truth can be told. I screwed up."[7]Fabian said the crew "just pretended there was nothing there, but I also had plenty of explanations for it as well. So I was glad it didn't go any further than it did."[8]

The trick Howard performs to stop a shaken soda from fizzing was added in by Schnauz, who learned it from his father.[3]Jennifer Bryan was the wardrobe designer for the suits Howard wears in the episode and throughout the season, which were handcrafted inGenoaand put together in Los Angeles by Di Stefano of Italy.[9]Thestorm drainfrom which Lalo looks out with binoculars does not exist. The sewer system was built on a stage using pieces from the oil tanker from the sixth-season episode "Rock and Hard Place".Tony Dalton,who plays Lalo, shot his scenes on the stage. The storm drain was later digitally added to the scenes during post-production.[10]: 23:12–25:35 

In August 2020, series co-creatorPeter Gouldsaid he was not in favor of splitting the sixth and final season into two parts.[11]In February 2022,AMCrevealed they would be splitting the season, with "Plan and Execution" as themid-season finalebefore a six-week intermission.[12]In May, Gould teased the episode by saying the cliffhanger was "a big one. I think this is going to be a painful few weeks for a few people to find out what happens."[13]The day before the episode aired, Schnauz said, "Just to warn everyone: we wrote S6 of #BetterCallSaul to be aired as 13 continuous episodes, but various delays split the season in half. So 607 was not written or filmed as a traditional 'cliffhanger.'"[14]After the episode aired, Gould said "it just so happened that Howard's death came right in the middle of the season. And it was a good breaking point, midseason, for AMC."[15]Schnauz reiterated that the writers did not plan on having the event of Howard's death as a midseason finale and maintained that this was a coincidence.[16]

Reception

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Critical response

[edit]
Patrick Fabian at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con International in San Diego, California.
Patrick Fabianreceived critical acclaim for his performance asHoward Hamlin.

"Plan and Execution" received universal acclaim from critics, with many considering it to be one of the best of the series. On the review aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes,100% of seven reviews are positive, with an average rating of 10/10.[17]Scott Tobias ofVultureand Nick Harley ofDen of Geekshared five out of five ratings for the episode, while Kimberly Potts fromThe A.V. Cluband Steve Greene fromIndieWireboth gave it an "A" grade.[18][19][20][21]Salonnamed it the third best TV episode of the year.[22]Crew members that were recognized for their work on this episode included writer and director Thomas Schnauz,[20][21]composerDave Porter,cinematographer Marshall Adams, and cast members Patrick Fabian, Bob Odenkirk, and Rhea Seehorn.[19][21][23]The first half of the episode, depicting Jimmy and Kim's execution of their plan against Howard, was well received.[20][21][23]Rolling Stone'sAlan Sepinwallgave positive notes to Porter's score during these sequences, calling it "some of his jauntiest caper music of the series' entire run".[23]

The attention to detail, such as the flickering of the burning candle, staging, and performances in the final scene received critical acclaim. Howard's death was compared to that of teenager Drew Sharp's death in theBreaking Badepisode "Dead Freight",in addition to the apartment scene fromPulp FictionwhereSamuel L. Jackson's character casually shoots a man before asking the man's friend, "Oh, I'm sorry, did I break your concentration?"[18][20][23]Melanie McFarland ofSalonnoted the double meaning behind the episode's title and categorized the reveal of what "execution" meant as "one of the darkest [scenes] in the series", though she said it was not on "the same level of tragedy" as theBreaking Badepisode "Ozymandias".[24]Fabian's performance was highlighted as the episode's best.[21][25]Greene said his scenes were "all delivered with the strength of someone who knows he's down to his last few scenes. Yet, Fabian doesn't overplay any of them. Even down to the 'Who are you?' Howard gives Lalo (a perfect delivery that somehow gives some levity to an impossibly tense situation), he never tips that the end is coming right around the corner. Suffice to say, Howard's death marks an undeniable shift for the home stretch."[21]

Ratings

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An estimated 1.19 million viewers watched "Plan and Execution" during its first broadcast on AMC on May 23, 2022.[26]The episode's viewership increased by 87% to 2.2 million viewers after three days of delayed viewership. OnAMC+,"Plan and Execution" was watched 61% more than the season premiere, "Wine and Roses".[27]

Accolades

[edit]

At the74th Primetime Emmy Awards,Bob Odenkirkreceived a nomination forOutstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Seriesfor this episode, whileThomas Schnauzreceived a nomination forOutstanding Writing for a Drama Series.[28][29]

References

[edit]
  1. ^McLeod, Kyle (June 30, 2024)."2 Years Later, I'm Still Amazed By Better Call Saul's Best Episode".ScreenRant.Montreal, Canada: Valnet Publishing Group.RetrievedJuly 9,2024.
  2. ^abFienberg, Daniel (May 24, 2022)."Better Call SaulWriter-Director on the Midseason Finale's Shocking End ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on May 25, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  3. ^abcdShanfield, Ethan (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulDirector, Patrick Fabian Break Down Howard's Fate and Lalo's Shocking Pivot ".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 25,2022.
  4. ^Rosenstock, Ben (May 24, 2022)."Patrick Fabian on Walking Into Violent Half ofBetter Call Saul".Vulture.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2022.RetrievedMay 25,2022.
  5. ^Patten, Dominic (May 23, 2022)."Better Call Saul's Rhea Seehorn On (SPOILER) Death In Midseason Finale, Possible Kim Wexler Spinoff & Keeping Secrets ".Deadline Hollywood.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 25,2022.
  6. ^Greene, Steve (May 24, 2022)."Better Call Saul:One Piece of Advice Made the Last Scene in Season 6's Midseason Finale Even More Shocking ".IndieWire.Archivedfrom the original on May 27, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  7. ^Bonomolo, Cameron (May 26, 2022)."Bob Odenkirk Accidentally SpoiledBetter Call SaulDeath: 'I Screwed Up'".ComicBook.Archivedfrom the original on May 29, 2022.RetrievedMay 29,2022.
  8. ^Davids, Brian (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulStar Patrick Fabian Breaks Down Shocking Midseason Finale ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 29,2022.
  9. ^Hogan, Michael (May 23, 2022)."'My Mother's Going to Be So Mad': Patrick Fabian Reacts to Howard Hamlin's Big Moment onBetter Call Saul".Vanity Fair.Archivedfrom the original on May 25, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  10. ^McCaleb, Chris;Dixon, Kelley;Gould, Peter;Fabian, Patrick;Schnauz, Thomas;Adams, Marshall; Madsen, Kathryn (May 24, 2022)."607Better Call SaulInsider "(Podcast).AMC.Archivedfrom the original on May 25, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  11. ^"Better Call SaulShowrunner Talks Connecting Prequel's Final Season toBreaking Bad".The Hollywood Reporter.August 18, 2020.Archivedfrom the original on November 6, 2020.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  12. ^Porter, Rick (February 10, 2022)."Better Call SaulSets Final Season Premiere Date ".The Hollywood Reporter.Archivedfrom the original on February 11, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  13. ^Mitovich, Matt Webb (May 10, 2022)."Inside Line: Get Scoop onThis Is Us,SVU,Big Sky,Better Call Saul,The Flash,Chicago Fire,New Amsterdamand More ".TVLine.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  14. ^Schnauz, Thomas (May 22, 2022)."Just to warn everyone: we wrote S6 of #BetterCallSaul to be aired as 13 continuous episodes, but various delays split the season in half. So 607 was not written or filmed as a traditional 'cliffhanger.'".Archivedfrom the original on May 28, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022– viaTwitter.
  15. ^Nemetz, Dave (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulEP Breaks Down Finale Shocker: 'This Is a Giant, Giant Step...'".TVLine.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 30,2022.
  16. ^Sepinwall, Alan(August 1, 2022)."Better Call SaulWriter on Finally Entering the World ofBreaking Bad".Rolling Stone.Archivedfrom the original on August 12, 2022.RetrievedAugust 2,2022.
  17. ^"Plan and Execution".Rotten Tomatoes.Fandango Media.RetrievedMay 24,2022.
  18. ^abTobias, Scott (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulMid-Season Finale Recap: The Beginning of the End ".Vulture.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  19. ^abHarley, Nick (May 23, 2022)."Better Call Saul Season 6 Episode 7 Review: Plan and Execution".Den of Geek.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  20. ^abcdPotts, Kimberly (May 23, 2022)."Better Call Sauldelivers a crushing midseason finale ".The A.V. Club.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  21. ^abcdefGreene, Steve (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulReview: Masterful 'Plan and Execution' Shows the True Cost of Unintended Consequences ".IndieWire.Archivedfrom the original on May 26, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  22. ^McFarland, Melanie (December 10, 2022)."The 6 best TV episodes of the year".Salon.RetrievedDecember 11,2022.
  23. ^abcdSepinwall, Alan(May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulMidseason Finale Recap: The Return — and Retribution — of Lalo ".Rolling Stone.Archivedfrom the original on June 6, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  24. ^McFarland, Melanie (May 23, 2022)."OnBetter Call Saul,two devils come knocking, but only one leaves ".Salon.Archivedfrom the original on June 3, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  25. ^Hogan, Michael (May 23, 2022)."Better Call SaulSeason 6, Episode 7 Recap: Howard's End ".Vanity Fair.Archivedfrom the original on May 25, 2022.RetrievedJune 6,2022.
  26. ^Salem, Mitch (May 24, 2022)."ShowBuzzDaily's Monday 5.23.2022 Top 150 Cable Originals & Network Finals Updated".ShowBuzzDaily.Archivedfrom the original on May 24, 2022.RetrievedMay 25,2022.
  27. ^Maas, Jennifer (May 31, 2022)."Better Call SaulSeason 6 Part 1 Finale Jumps 87% With Delayed Viewing, AMC+ Audience Up 61% From Premiere ".Variety.Archivedfrom the original on June 1, 2022.RetrievedJune 1,2022.
  28. ^Andreeva, Nellie; Hipes, Patrick (July 12, 2022)."Emmy Nominations: The Complete List".Deadline Hollywood.Archivedfrom the original on July 12, 2022.RetrievedJuly 16,2022.
  29. ^Davidson, Denton; Beachum, Chris (July 21, 2022)."Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul): Emmys 2022 episode submission revealed ".Gold Derby.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2022.RetrievedAugust 15,2022.
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