‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 Episode 3 Recap: ‘Rock and Hard Place’

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Better Call Saul Season 6 is officially underway, and by episode 3, the AMC show is already proving that it’s not messing around. The latest installment drove home the fact that the Breaking Bad prequel is just as shocking and tragic as the original series. We’re only three chapters in, and we’ve already gotten the final season’s first major casualty. That’s not to mention the predicament Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) and Kim (Rhea Seehorn) are about to find themselves in.

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for Better Call Saul Season 6 Episode 3, “Rock and Hard Place”.]

‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 Episode 3 claims its first major casualty

Michael Mando as Nacho Varga in 'Better Call Saul' Season 6. He's wearing a white T-shirt and has cuts on his face.

Michael Mando in ‘Better Call Saul’ | Greg Lewis/AMC/Sony Pictures Television

Better Call Saul Season 6 Episode 3 opens with Nacho Varga (Michael Mando) running from the Cousins (Daniel and Luis Moncada), but even hiding in an oil rig won’t get him out of the mess he’s in. And Nacho comes to accept his inevitable fate over the course of “Rock and Hard Place.” The episode’s title is incredibly apt as Nacho realizes he was never making it out of Lalo’s (Tony Dalton) assassination attempt alive.

Fortunately, he’s smart enough to save his father from the impact of his actions. During his phone call with Gus (Giancarlo Esposito), he threatens to be honest about who ordered him to kill Lalo — that is, unless Gus and Mike (Jonathan Banks) keep his father out of harm’s way.

Gus is also stuck between a rock and a hard place, and so he caves to Nacho’s ultimatum. He and Mike get Nacho back to the U.S., then set up a meeting with the Salamancas and Juan Bolsa (Javier Grajeda). Nacho tells them Alvarez ordered the hit on Lalo, then goes a bit off script. In his final moments, he makes sure the Salamancas know that he’s reveling in their suffering — and that he’s the one responsible for Hector’s (Mark Margolis) stroke.

Mando gives a stunning performance as Nacho confesses, and sadly, it’s his last as the character. Knowing he’s going to die anyway, Nacho goes out on his own terms, holding Bolsa at gunpoint before putting the barrel to his own head and ending his life.

Jimmy and Kim continue their plan to bring down Howard

Bob Odenkirk as Saul Goodman in 'Better Call Saul' Season 6 Episode 3. He's standing in front of a doorway and holding out some type of chip.

Bob Odenkirk in ‘Better Call Saul’ | Greg Lewis/AMC/Sony Pictures Television

Given the high stakes of Nacho’s storyline in Better Call Saul Season 6 Episode 3, Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) and Kim (Rhea Seehorn) understandably take a backseat this week. The pair continues with their plan to mess with Howard. It’s unclear what they’re trying to accomplish next, but they need Howard’s car for it.

They enlist Huell’s (Lavell Crawford) services to get a copy of the keys when Howard is using valet. Hilariously, Huell asks Jimmy why they’re doing all this when they already make such good money as lawyers. His comment speaks volumes about the psychology behind Jimmy and Kim’s behavior, something the final season will hopefully dive deeper into.

The pair’s plan goes smoothly for now, but they’re pushing further and further into dangerous territory. And Howard isn’t the only thing Jimmy needs to worry about this week.

‘Better Call Saul’ Season 6 leaves Jimmy with a decision to make

Jimmy and Kim’s Howard sheme may get them in trouble at some point during Better Call Saul Season 6, but the show’s main character faces a bigger problem in episode 3. Their colleagues at the courthouse have caught onto the fact that Jimmy helped a dangerous drug lord escape their grasp. And although they believe Lalo is dead, they’ve traced Jimmy back to Nacho and Tuco (Raymond Cruz) — and they want his help tracking them down.

The other attorneys haven’t launched an official investigation into Jimmy’s relationship to the cartel just yet. However, his refusal to help them could prompt one. As Kim notes at the end of the episode, he’s got a decision to make: “Do you want to be a friend to the cartel or do you want to be a rat?”

Breaking Bad fans know which choice he’ll eventually make, but it’ll be interesting to see how he gets there. Right now, the pair doesn’t seem too heavily inclined to help the cartel. It’ll take something big to get Jimmy to start working for them full-time.

New episodes of Better Call Saul Season 6 air every Monday on AMC.