better cause season six has a new episode on netflix and amc and it's tense riveting
heartbreaking and probably my favorite episode of tv this year from nacho battling to survive
across the border to saul continuing his efforts to take down howard the final season has well
and truly taken us into dangerous territory and it's only the beginning in this spoiler review
i'm going to be giving you my recap of better cool sauce season 6 episode 3 entitled rock and
hard place discussing my general thoughts on the episode but before i get into it if you want to
see more videos on the final season of better call saul and other upcoming shows like netflix's ozark
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but without further ado let's dive into my recap and review for better corsol season 6 episode 3.
so our suspicions about nacho biting the dust this season were proven right
but like much of the shocking moments that the breaking bad universe puts on screen there's much
more emotional and impactful qualities to them that separate it from many shows on television
the episode titled rock and hard place is one that may go down as one of the best in history
with genius writing excellent cinematography and standout moments but what makes this all tick is
the performance of michael mando's nacho varga who dies but like walter white he goes out his own way
with his humanity ever present throughout the show he definitely could have had more screen time but
what we got was an interesting arc that made him a captivating contrast to that of jimmy mcgill
whether it be his dedication to his family his changing loyalties or that his relationship with
mike reflects a certain mirror on that of jesse pinkman in breaking bad it was a proper ending
for him even if it was tragic and watching him and mike give their final glances at each other
may even be a part of the reason why mike took more care of jesse down the line it's sad but it
was needed to truly highlight the two worlds colliding the sacrifice of someone with good
in their hearts and ultimately what this world can lead to coming to the recap of this episode
we start with a cold open involving a long shot of camera movement around a desert bush
the camera moves to focus on a blue flower and then eventually on a piece of broken glass
as it's hit by rainwater from an arriving storm it's a very striking image that becomes the
metaphor for this episode and that is something i will get more into towards the end but we cut to a
very tense scene with nacho who apparently escaped the attack by the twins last week and while he
is almost caught by them on the side of a road he finds a way to hide in an oil tank submerge in the
oil and not be picked up by the salamancas after just escaping them he travels to a nearby service
station and a man who works there could just reject him and hide in fear but instead he offers
him a cloth to help clean off and his phone for him to use this brings us to a heartbreaking scene
that pretty much tells us that this is nacho's last stand he calls his father just to hear his
voice even though he gets a traditional response from him in taking this to the police but we know
nacho knows that he's in way too deep and it really tells us about his character allowing us
to sympathize and care about his loved ones just as much as he does this is now all about nacho
making sure that his father survives even in the instance of himself being killed and that is quite
the powerful thread that reframes your approach in watching this especially when you know that
nacho is not escaping the situation this is then followed by another phone call this time to mike
and there's a brilliant bit of writing where we now see the full conversation between them which
we only got from the hitman's perspective in the previous episode we finally hear nachos part of
the conversation in that he knows that gus needs him dead and that he's aware of the salamancas
potentially torturing him for information he also knows that they will not accept
any statement other than one that frames gus and while he doesn't trust gus like i mentioned before
this is all about keeping his father safe and he knows that if he frames gus when he comes face
to face with the salamancas that his father and family will be killed so there needs to be a plan
in order to keep his father safe and that's what we see play out as this episode kicks into motion
he decides to hand himself to gus and in result his father's safety will be over seen and
later in the episode once nacho gets taken back to the states he meets with mike in a dark chamber
with him unbolting the flooring to reveal nacho in hiding it's very symbolic of someone being buried
again symbolizing the idea that yes nacho is going to die but he's also going to rise for one final
stand and that reflects to the opening shot too with a flower growing in the spot where he does
eventually die but coming back to the scene he gets his final meal during a one-on-one
moment with mike mike of course has a more human element to his character and this is ultimately
what separates him from gus who could easily kill nacho's father if the right motive called for it
but now they know what they have to do and when the order comes that nacho needs to look beaten
up for a meeting to take place between them all and the salamancas it's mike himself who takes
the responsibility to beat him up with the help of some alcohol it's a perfect moment between them
that again reinforces that mike does care about him and it reshapes why he's the way he is towards
jesse in breaking bad and before mike mikey's finally dropped off at a point in the desert
to watch the undertakings with a sniper both him and nacho share a final look at each other
highlighting that the hitman is the last person with a degree of humanity that he will see it's
been a great ride between them and nacho is now off to say his final words but before we get to
that impactful final scene there's of course the other half of this episode that brings us back
to jimmy and kim's developing plan to frame howard as a drug abuser in this episode they are in the
process of stealing howard's car and they bring in huel to pickpockets howard's car valet and then
create a copy of them with his car keys kim likes jimmy's plan and it's just another suggestion that
she's on her way to becoming as or more criminal than our main character and this is even more
evident during a conversation with the assistant district attorney ericsson who tries to push her
into convicting jimmy to talk about his supposedly killed client lalo salamanca it's all in aim to
defeat the cartel that's still in albuquerque new mexico and the attorney believes that kim
can do the right thing but this is of course completely wrong because kim is going further into
darkness even more so than her partner later in the day she brings up this conversation to jimmy
and asks him straight do you want to be a friend of the cartel or do you want to be a rat it's the
question that completely frames this episode's events and it's one that is going to be primal
come the end of better call saw the contrast of that idea between nacho and jimmy in this episode
is quite the telling one and it's only a matter of time before more people are put in danger
whatever the answer to that question is but while nacho goes out with a bang and we see more of the
humanity towards the people he cares about kim seems to be highlighting that you can't go back
instead you have to continue and not be the rat they catch she does tell him that he should do
whatever he wants but jimmy is the person who took the cartel's money in the first place
he's not going to help the attorney that brings up questions though has jimmy reached the path
of saul goodman yet and once jimmy fully becomes the soul we know will there be anything left that
kim connects to jimmy's brief conversation with huel also goes into this very idea
with huel wondering why they as actual lawyers are getting involved in issues like this jimmy
states that there are people whose lives are going to be way better because of what they
are doing but soon there will be consequences and contrastly nachos end perfectly reflects that too
coming back to the end of this episode with nacho it's time we discuss the brilliant final scene
that plays out nacho has had many tough decisions throughout the course of better call saul with
him not really having a choice when it comes down to them but he always finds a way to deliver and
this time while he dies he goes beyond that juan balsa frames the scene by telling nacho that today
you are going to die but there are good deaths and there are bad deaths and while they both situate
on different sides of the pond nacho has a good death where he goes down on his own terms rather
than one carried out by gus or the salamancas and that's essentially what the episode title means
nacho could never escape no matter the outcome of the operation that was carried out to kill
lalo the suspicion towards gus would have always been there sinatra's final straw was in the act
of clearing gus's name and saving his father it's unexpected in the sense that nacho clears his name
yet so fulfilling that he saves his father doing so in a pounding final word he says to juan
that gus lacked the effort to kill lalo and that gus saved hector's life by stopping nacho from
trying to kill hector ultimately putting him in his wheelchair using the piece of glass we saw
in the cold open glass that was created by gus accidentally by smashing a drink in the last
episode he uses it to cut through his tie and then threatens to kill bolsa he commits suicide
but tells them all exactly what he thought of them the dictation of these murderous individuals is a
big reason towards the destruction of the freedom in his life the spot in the opening scene was the
spot where nacho died and the blue flower was symbolic of life blooming here yes nacho made
some bad road choices but he was punished too hard and it's satisfying to watch him tell gus
and the salamancas that he hates every last one of them he shoots himself but he goes out with a bang
and that's what this world does so well many shows fail to capture the pivotal moments in their final
run in a way that honors the characters they tell the stories of better course all knows how
to bring out the humanity in a drear situation for the people we truly care about so better
course all season 6 episode 3 is my favorite episode of television this year and it's only
the beginning gordon smith has to be praised for the wonderful job he did here both in writing and
directing this episode giving us a striking end to one of the show's beloved characters
and in television history the breaking bad universe has consistently delivered with
its primal deaths whether it be water white's eventful end in the final season of breaking bad
the fall of gus or hank schrader's death at the hands of the neo-nazis in aussie mandias better
call saul has finally reached the territory of that show both in quality and certain thematic
context and now it has delivered a death that is all meaningful shocking and heartbreaking
nacho's end is unforgettable and in my opinion michael mando should get an emmy nomination for
his performance here delivering one that is the best of the season so far he went out his own way
like that of water white but you truly get the greater sense of good in his heart even after
all the things he's done in any other show this might have been used primarily as a twist but here
you know nacho is going to die right from the final telephone call with his father
it's the way in which nacho goes out telling them all what he thinks and allowing his father
to be out of the crosshairs making it all the more impactful it's the effect that this world
and these villains put on the middlemen like nacho becoming all the more profound and for the writers
to stress on that and create a truly memorable piece of television in the process is all the more
satisfying it gets me thinking how they will end this show but if this episode is anything to go on
then we are just getting warmed up we still have questions of course like where's lalo and when is
he going to show up and ruin nacho's statement by producing the proof he talks about at the end of
the first episode and how will nacho's death and what's to come link into saul's mention of him and
lalo in breaking bad we are yet to find out the full answers to many questions but this episode
clearly sets those elements in motion with many developments still on the way in the final season
but that was my spoiler review and recap for better cool souls season 6 episode 3. with
rock and hard place bezicle saul has an episode that is exquisitely shot perfectly written and
superbly acted i can't think of anything that holds this down and with bagman from last season
this may be one of the best episodes of the entire show it's an episode that will stay with me for a
long time and i honestly wish i could watch the next one straight after but the week in between
is really helping to sustain the tension and the momentum of this show and this episode is
evidence of that i can't wait for what's to come and i have full faith in the writers to deliver
on what has been a fantastic start to the final season i'm giving season six episode three of
better call saul a rating of 10 out of 10. but to those who have already seen the episode what are
your thoughts on all the events that went down and what do you think will happen in episode 4
let me know down below in the comment section for videos on every episode of better cool souls
season 6 then subscribe to the channel and turn on your notifications also if you enjoyed this video
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but anyway i hope you guys enjoyed it i've been hex and as always make some noise
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