Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul (SPOILERS)

Considering that last night's episode had to function as both a finale to Saul and a coda to the Breaking Bad universe as a whole, I thought it did an admirable job. This is a show that managed to accomplish what many spinoffs fail to do - building off the success and capturing the spirit of an earlier series while still functioning as a great show on its own terms. However, just as there is no Better Call Saul without Breaking Bad, there is no downfall of Saul Goodman without the downfall of Walter White, and I quite liked the way these last four episodes captured the tone of latter-day BB while still feeling like a capper for the 59 episodes that preceded them.

I thought Marie's appearance in the crux of the finale was ingenious, as she was always something of a second-tier character on Breaking Bad but still arguably lost more than any of the other original characters by the end. Walt got everything he wanted, Jesse drove off into the sunset, and we're left to assume Skylar and Walt Jr. got the money they needed - but Marie lost her husband and never got any real personal retribution. So it was great to see her confront Saul, the last remaining survivor of Walt's criminal enterprise, and unburden all her emotions on him. It's a nice reminder that, no matter how many seasons we spend watching Jimmy McGill sliding into his inevitable future, he's still not the ultimate victim.

As far as the debate between the two shows go - I'd probably slightly take Breaking Bad over BCS, even if the latter has a clearer overall structure and more established visual palette (building off the already great palette on BB). But it's really close, a testament to just how good the writers have been at crafting this universe and building it in new and thrilling ways.