Lantern (Better Call Saul)

"**Lantern**"
"Lantern"
Better Call Saul episode
Episode no.	Season 3; Episode 10
Directed by	Peter Gould
Written by	Gennifer Hutchison
Original air date	June 19, 2017
Running time	56 minutes
Guest appearances
	Javier Grajeda as Juan Bolsa; Jessie Ennis as Erin Brill; Bonnie Bartlett as Helen; Jean Effron as Irene Landry; Phyllis Applegate as Myrtle; Carol Mansell as Rose; Francesca Liddy; Juan Carlos Cantu as Manuel Varga; Vincent Fuentes as Arturo Colon; Hector Salamanca;
Episode chronology
← Previous; "Fall"	Next →; "Smoke"
	Better Call Saul season 3
	List of episodes

"Lantern" is the tenth and final episode of the third season of the American television drama series Better Call Saul, the spinoff series of Breaking Bad. Written by Gennifer Hutchison and directed by series co-creator Peter Gould, "Lantern" aired on AMC in the United States on June 19, 2017. Outside of the United States, the episode premiered on streaming service Netflix in several countries.

In the episode,

Hector collapses from a stroke caused by Nacho

.

The episode was seen by an estimated 1.85 million household viewers upon release, the most watched episode of the third season. This episode marks the final regular appearance of Michael McKean (Chuck McGill).

Plot

Opening

In a flashback, a young

Jimmy McGill in a tent outside their family's Cicero, Illinois

house. The camera zooms in on a lantern.

Main story

Following her car crash,[a] Kim Wexler's broken arm has been put in a cast. She returns with Jimmy to the site of the crash and Jimmy picks up her scattered papers. The following morning, Jimmy feels responsible for her accident because she took on a second client partially to help pay for their shared office space. Jimmy and Kim vacate their office to save money by having Kim work from home.

Juan Bolsa. Juan says Gus' organization will permanently handle cross-border smuggling for both Gus' operation and Hector's. An enraged Hector suffers a stroke. As Mike Ehrmantraut advised,^[b]

Nacho takes the fake nitroglycerin capsules that Hector dropped and replaces them with the real ones. Gus looks at Nacho suspiciously but says nothing.

Jimmy expects Irene Landry's friends to forgive her after she accepted the Sandpiper settlement. However, he finds they still do not trust her, because now they think she will do anything to get on their good side. He stages an argument with

Erin Brill

and "accidentally" admits to tricking Irene, vindicating her to her friends and causing her to withdraw her acceptance.

Chuck promises to abandon his lawsuit if he can stay at HHM. Instead, Howard presents Chuck a check for $3 million—the first installment of Chuck's buyout. Howard criticizes Chuck for prioritizing his vendetta against Jimmy but praises Chuck profusely as he informs HHM's employees of Chuck's immediate retirement. Jimmy tries to make amends with Chuck but Chuck says Jimmy was never all that important to him. After Jimmy leaves, Chuck's EHS symptoms return and he destroys the walls of his house while trying to find the device that is making his electricity meter run. Unable to find the source, he destroys the meter in frustration. Five days later,^[c] Chuck sits back in a chair and kicks his desk several times, deliberately knocking over a gas lantern and starting a fire.

Production

Michael McKean made his final regular appearance as Chuck McGill in this episode

The episode was directed by series co-creator Peter Gould, who previously co-wrote "Mabel" earlier in the season, and written by Gennifer Hutchison, who previously wrote the episode "Sunk Costs".

Casting

This episode marks the final regular appearance of

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline's toll-free number also appears onscreen.^[1] However, McKean confirmed that Chuck is indeed dead, stating, "If Chuck is the person that Jimmy cared for and took care of, and who transformed into his antagonist, and then transformed into this wreck — this person who has no choice but to try and fix himself and has no tools for himself — it seemed like a logical step."^[2]

Reception

Ratings

Upon airing, the episode was watched by 1.85 million American viewers, and an 18-49 rating of 0.6.[3]

Critical reception

The episode received a great deal of critical acclaim. On Rotten Tomatoes, it attained a 92% rating with an average score of 8.79/10 based on 13 reviews.^[4] Terri Schwartz of IGN rated the episode 9.5/10 stars, saying "Better Call Saul pulled off a fantastic Season 3 finale that perfectly balanced its storylines and brought a big lesson to Jimmy's doorstep. With some hugely impactful moments that were both incredibly emotional and long-awaited by fans, "Lantern" proves that Better Call Saul is better than it's ever been with Season 3."^[5] Alan Sepinwall of Uproxx praised the final scene, remarking "the focus was primarily on sending off Chuck, and the finale did it right, in painstakingly painful fashion."^[6]

Notes

^ As depicted in "Fall".
^ As depicted in "Expenses".
^ As stated in "Smoke".

References

^ Dwilson, Stephanie Dube (June 20, 2017). "'Better Call Saul': What Happened to Chuck in the Finale? [SPOILERS]". Heavy. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2021.
^ Keene, Allison (June 20, 2017). "Better Call Saul Season 3 Finale Explained: Chuck's Fate, More". Collider. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
^ Welch, Alex. "Monday cable ratings: 'Better Call Saul' season finale ticks up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
^ "Lantern". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on December 14, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
^ Schwartz, Terri (June 20, 2017). "Better Call Saul:"Lantern" Review". IGN. Archived from the original on June 20, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2017.
^ Sepinwall, Alan (June 20, 2017). "'Better Call Saul' Takes The Darkest Of Turns In Its Third Season Finale". Uproxx. Archived from the original on February 16, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2017.

External links

"Lantern" at AMC
"Lantern" at
IMDb

[1] As depicted in "Fall".

[2] As depicted in "Expenses".

[3] As stated in "Smoke".

[4] Dwilson, Stephanie Dube (June 20, 2017). "'Better Call Saul': What Happened to Chuck in the Finale? [SPOILERS]". Heavy. Archived from the original on February 25, 2018. Retrieved March 29, 2021.

[5] Keene, Allison (June 20, 2017). "Better Call Saul Season 3 Finale Explained: Chuck's Fate, More". Collider. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2020.

[6] Welch, Alex. "Monday cable ratings: 'Better Call Saul' season finale ticks up". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on June 21, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2017.

[7] "Lantern". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on December 14, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2020.

[8] Schwartz, Terri (June 20, 2017). "Better Call Saul:"Lantern" Review". IGN. Archived from the original on June 20, 2017. Retrieved June 20, 2017.

[9] Sepinwall, Alan (June 20, 2017). "'Better Call Saul' Takes The Darkest Of Turns In Its Third Season Finale". Uproxx. Archived from the original on February 16, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2017.

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