For a show billed as a Breaking Bad, spinoff centering on criminal lawyer Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk), the first season of Better Call Saul had a conspicuous lack of Saul Goodman. Instead, we were treated to an agonizing series of unfortunate events plaguing Jimmy McGill, a breezy grifter who tries to right his moral compass and live up to the expectations of his brother, Chuck (Michael McKean). Delivered with equal parts of comedy and tragedy, the first season revealed that Jimmy is a naturally gifted lawyer and, at heart, a decent guy. It also revealed that Jimmy has the deck stacked against him, and that he’ll never be allowed to enjoy an honorable life—after all, the show is Better Call Saul, not It’s Jimmy’s Wonderful Legal Practice.
The teaser for the show’s upcoming second season doesn’t reveal much, except a dejected, angry Jimmy pondering his next steps. As he walks away from one chapter, and towards the next, key voices from last season remind us that Jimmy McGill has nothing left. And if Breaking Bad taught us anything about men with nothing to lose, it’s that they don’t tend to make very noble decisions.
We’ll find out how much longer Jimmy holds onto his McGill persona when Better Call Saul returns to AMC in 2016.