Breaking Bad, the Gilliganverse boasts two of the greatest main characters to ever grace a TV screen. Better Call Saul has taken great pleasure in drawing parallels between the two - Jimmy's "God in human clothing" speech mirroring Walt's iconic "I am the danger" scene, for example.
Any comparison between Jimmy and Walt in Better Call Saul's prequel timeline is purely accidental, since the pair hadn't actually met at this point. But during Better Call Saul's Gene era - the black-and-white sequel narrative set after Breaking Bad - Gene Takavic has been unavoidably influenced by Heisenberg, both positively and negatively, consciously and subconsciously.
Better Call Saul season 6, episode 10 ("Nippy") marks the first occasion Gene directly references Walter White. More than just paying tribute to a high school chemistry teacher, however, "Nippy" twice sees Gene employ tactics Walter White used during Breaking Bad.
Gene's Breakdown Distraction Is A Walter White Trick
Gene's masterplan is almost thwarted when Jeff slips over during the Cottonwood Mall heist, and the 3-minute window where Frank gobbles down cinnamon goodness expires. To keep the security guard distracted, Gene pretends to suffer a sudden emotional breakdown, crying about his loneliness in an impromptu existential crisis.
In Breaking Bad season 5's "Dead Freight," Walter White needs to bug Hank's DEA computer. To make his brother-in-law leave, Walt embarks upon a semi-pretend breakdown over his failed marriage and the loss of his family, knowing Hank would feel awkward and quickly exit the room. The distraction is almost identical to Gene's in Better Call Saul season 6 - even down to how both men are actually expressing their true feelings.
While Saul Goodman might've heard about Walt's distraction and felt inspired to try something similar, Jimmy McGill is actually this trick's originator. In Better Call Saul's prequel timeline, years before meeting Walter White, Jimmy cruelly conned an insurance company into raising his brother's s. He pretended to cry during a meeting with the company, offloading all his worldly woes in one massive sob story to the poor insurance worker, but slipped in details he knew would send Chuck's s skyward. Just like Walt with Hank and Gene with the security guard, Jimmy's "breakdown" forces the target to drop their guard by creating an awkward atmosphere.
Gene Copies Saul Goodman's Dark Walter White Moment
Once the Cottonwood Mall heist has been successfully completed and Jeff is enjoying the fashionable fruits of his labor, Gene shifts into badass gear. Laying out the law to his shocked accomplices, Gene assertively reminds them he doesn't exist, they don't even go to Cottonwood Mall, and to cross the street should they ever see him. Rounding off the veiled threat, Gene demands, "Now I need you to say it: 'we're done.' Say it. 'We're done.'" Jeff and his friend finally, fearfully, comply.
In Breaking Bad season 5's "Live Free or Die," Saul Goodman got sick of Heisenberg's increasing demands and told his client "you and me, we're done." Walt calmly rose from his chair, stepped in his lawyer's face, and forcefully reminded him, "We're done when I say we're done." Gene Takavic is channeling that exact same big Walt energy against Jeff in Better Call Saul's "Nippy." Not only does Gene reverse his role from before (he's the one in the driving seat this time), he also borrows Walter White's method of calm, commanding anger as a means of coercion. The only slight change is Gene's message. Rather than "we're done when I say we're done," the Cinnabon manager's warning is more "I say we're done, so we're done."
Equally important is how the scene shows off Jimmy's huge evolution from Breaking Bad to Better Call Saul's Gene timeline. When Saul Goodman told Walter White "we're done," it was a half-hearted, meek effort. Standing in Marion's garage, Gene finally nails the delivery.
Better Call Saul continues Monday on AMC.