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If I began watching "Better Call Saul!" as a skeptic, the first three episodes have mostly made me a believer. There are nods to the parent show — and those are among the more emotionally affecting parts of this young series — but "Saul" quickly learns to function as its own thing. B+

Better Call Saul Review: The Last Hurrah of Difficult Men

The Saul Goodman series starts out already better than Breaking Bad.

Better Call Saul is a nifty and promising comic noir, but it also allows you to ponder certain missed opportunities. 3/4

Like Saul himself, its identity is a work in progress. The energetic visual storytelling engages, but the deliberate pacing left me restless. B

For now, I simply tried to measure Saul by the yardstick: would I want to watch this show if I knew none of the references, none of the characters’ back stories? I was a doubter. But for now, Saul, or should I say Jimmy, has fast-talked me into believing. B

Can Saul compete with Walter White? No. But he doesn't have to. Better Call Saul posses one simple, but fascinating question: What happened to Jimmy McGill that forced him to transform himself into the ruthless, hardened, yet entirely entertaining *criminal* lawyer Saul Goodman? The man that we came to know and love on Breaking Bad. I, for one, look forward to watching that story unfold.

Does the highly anticipated Breaking Bad spinoff deliver? In a word: yes. 8.7/10

I'll keep watching, of course. But there are times, truth be told, when "Saul" seems a little too much like its lead character: Slick, smart, desperate, driven to please and a little bit afflicted by flop sweat. 60%

Indeed, it seemed pretty obvious going in that this spinoff promised to be a narrower concept – and unlike “Breaking Bad,” the show won’t have the luxury of sneaking up on anybody. For now, “Saul” contains some attractive elements, fine moments and a fabulous pedigree, but even Jimmy/Saul might be forced to concede the jury’s still out in terms of proving it has the right formula. 60%

No show in my tenure at Grantland has inspired so many readers to reach out with one straightforward question: Is it any good? In the spirit of justice — a concept that Saul Goodman holds dear, though not nearly as dear as his billfold — let me address it right at the top. Yes. It is. Very, very good.

Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston May Appear in Multiple Episodes of Breaking Bad Spinoff, Better Call Saul

Aaron Paul is not ready to leave Jesse Pinkman and for this we are thankful. A source close to Better Call Saul, AMC's highly anticipated Breaking Bad spinoff, exclusively tells E! News that everyone's favorite sidekick meth cook is in talks for a recurring role when the show debuts in November.

Casting will officially begin at the end of the month, and production begins in May, but our source says the show's creative team is already talking to Paul about reprising his role—for more than one episode.

We are also told that producers very much want Bryan Cranston to appear for a cameo or two, and he has said he is game.

While promoting his new action flick Need For Speed, Paul confirmed that he's in "serious talks" to appear in Better Call Saul, The Associated Press reports.

"Anything Vince [Gilligan] is involved with, I'm there," Paul said. "I owe him my entire career. And the idea of jumping into the skin of Jesse Pinkman again in his lighter days—because it's all a prequel—it would be fun."

there is one familiar face viewers probably won't be seeing: Dean Norris, who played Walt's DEA Agent brother-in-law Hank, as he's currently starring on CBS' Under the Dome.

"I don't think they'll let me do a little cable show," Norris told The AP. "I think that experience was that experience. I'm not a big fan of kind of revisiting something that has already been done. But I think it's going to be awesome. So I can't wait to see it."

And while Better Call Saul will mostly be a prequel, Gilligan has stated that he's open to jumping around in time.

We think, by and large, this show will be a prequel, but the wonderful thing about the fractured chronology we employed on Breaking Bad for many years is the audience will not be thrown by us jumping around in time," Gilligan told Entertainment Weekly. "So it's possible that we may indeed do that, and we'll see the past and perhaps the future."