after the end of Breaking Bad. After three brilliant projects set within the same canon, it seemed as though the producers couldn't miss, but they finally ended their hot streak in 2022.

Breaking Bad has a specific tone. It's a grounded and high-stakes show, but also very character-driven. Better Call Saul and El Camino managed to replicate that formula, which is why they worked and how they managed to feel so authentic to the initial vision. Bob Odenkirk leading the end of Better Call Saul neared, AMC tried to double down on what Odenkirk's performance had offered them.

Breaking Bad's Slippin' Jimmy Spinoff Was Terrible, But An Animated Miniseries Had Potential

Better Call Saul spawned a dud for the Breaking Bad universe

2022 brought with it Better Call Saul Presents: Slippin' Jimmy, and it remains a blemish on the Breaking Bad universe. Although it could technically be accepted into the main canon, it's best to just ignore that it even exists. Consisting of just 8 short episodes, Slippin' Jimmy was billed as a prequel to Better Call Saul, showing the early years of Bob Odenkirk's Jimmy McGill. The actor didn't return to reprise his role in the animated spinoff.

AMC's ambition should be respected, even though Slippin' Jimmy was a resounding failure.

AMC's ambition should be respected, even though Slippin' Jimmy was a resounding failure. There have been instances of animated projects adding to the lore of a live-action series, but the Breaking Bad universe probably wasn't suited to such a niche worldbuilding technique. That said, it did have promise, and probably could have been a little more worthwhile if it hadn't felt so thoughtlessly thrown together.

Slippin' Jimmy Needed Better Animation To Compare To Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul

Jimmy McGill's earliest shown years look incredibly low-budget

All the live-action Breaking Bad projects are brilliantly shot, with stellar camerawork and award-winning direction. An animated addition to the franchise needed to at least try to live up to those visuals, but it didn't seem to be concerned with the quality of its aesthetics. While the animation of Slippin' Jimmy does the job, it reminds me more of the flash cartoons that were so popular on the internet of yesteryear, and looked nothing like a show with the backing of a studio like AMC.

At the same time as looking like an indie project from the mid-2000s, Slippin' Jimmy was quite obviously trying to base its look on modern-day animated shows like Big Mouth.

At the same time as looking like an indie project from the mid-2000s, Slippin' Jimmy was quite obviously trying to base its look on modern-day animated shows like Big Mouth. Now, Big Mouth doesn't look amazing, but it has a very simple and effective style that Slippin' Jimmy still failed to live up to. When each episode often clocked in at under 10 minutes long, this is even more disappointing.

A Saul Goodman Series Was Never Going To Work Without Bob Odenkirk

Odenkirk's input behind and in front of the camera for Better Call Saul helped make it what it was

As mentioned earlier, Bob Odenkirk, who played Jimmy McGill/Saul Goodman throughout Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, didn't return to voice his younger self in Slippin' Jimmy. Instead, the role went to Sean Giombrone, most known for his roles as Adam Goldberg in Meet the Goldbergs and Yumyulack in Solar Opposites. Odenkirk perfectly embodies the character of Jimmy McGill, so it was always going to be a risk to replace him, and it didn't pay off. That said, I'm glad he was allowed to focus on Better Call Saul rather than splitting his time between that and Slippin' Jimmy.

Odenkirk's role in Better Call Saul went beyond his performance as the show's title character. He also served as a producer, with his experience of already being part of the Breaking Bad universe before Better Call Saul proving to be instrumental to the show's success. He had an innate feel for how Better Call Saul should be, and no one understood the character of Jimmy McGill like Bob Odenkirk. So, it's not surprising at all that his absence from Slippin' Jimmy was a big part of the reason why the animated show flopped.

The Writing & Jokes In Breaking Bad's Failed Spinoff Needed Improvement

There are very few genuinely funny moments in Slippin' Jimmy

Slippin' Jimmy could have been an insightful look into Jimmy McGill's formative years while also being funny. Unfortunately, it achieved neither of these goals. While it was clear when the show was trying to make jokes, they almost never landed. The scripts left a lot to be desired and felt very directionless, even for their short runtimes and focus on physical gags and lackluster quips. Paired with the underwhelming animation style, the boring stories in Slippin' Jimmy made it stand out in all the worst ways.

Slippin' Jimmy's highest-rated episode on IMDb has a score of just 5.0/10.

What makes Slippin' Jimmy's scripts and their lack of quality even more surprising is the duo that wrote all eight. Ariel Levine and Kathleen Williams-Foshee were both involved with Better Call Saul. Both were part of the writing team, with Levine serving as a staff writer on nine episodes of the Odenkirk-led spinoff, and Williams-Foshee being credited as the script supervisor for 43 installments. So, it's not as though they were newcomers, but maybe the shift in genre from drama to comedy just didn't suit them.

Slippin' Jimmy Needed A Better Reason To Exist In The AMC Franchise

The animated show felt more like a hollow marketing stunt for Better Call Saul season 6

More than anything, Slippin' Jimmy comes across as little more than a marketing stunt to help promote Better Call Saul's final season, which premiered shortly after Slippin' Jimmy's lone season ended. Not only do I think Better Call Saul was successful enough not to require such a gimmicky form of promotion, but the project that was brought into existence for this reason didn't even justify the confusing decision to make an animated addition to the Breaking Bad universe.

If something like Slippin' Jimmy had to exist, it would have been a much better move to tie it in more directly with something that happened to Odenkirk's character in either Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul. Simply making the cartoon for the sake of generating more content hurt the otherwise brilliant track record for the beloved crime franchise. Thankfully, it hasn't harmed the legacy of Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul.

Source: IMDb