No, Howard Hamlin Was Never A Villain In Better Call Saul (& 1 Detail Proves It)

Summary

• Howard Hamlin is not a villain in
  Better Call Saul
  , just an antagonist to Jimmy and Kim.
• Despite being an imperfect boss, Howard never intentionally does anything morally wrong in the series.
• Viewers’ perception of Howard as a villain is influenced by
  Better Call Saul
  being told from Jimmy’s and Kim’s perspectives.

Patrick Fabian recently denied that his Better Call Saul character is a villain, and the actor is right to defend Howard Hamlin from such accusations. Howard isn’t the most likable character in the Breaking Bad prequel, but he’s far from intentionally cruel or evil. Despite this, it seems viewers are labeling Howard as villainous because he’s an antagonist to Jimmy McGill and Kim Wexler. Given Breaking Bad‘s focus on morally dubious leads, it’s hard to equate antagonists with all-out villains in the AMC franchise.

Fabian described Howard Hamlin as “the only one who is actually constant in his character” during an interview with MovieWeb, and his assessment isn’t wrong. Howard hardly changes over Better Call Saul‘s six seasons, and he doesn’t start the series from a malicious place. It’s not surprising that viewers take an uncharitable view of him, especially when following the show’s other characters. However, Howard Hamlin is far from a bad person.

Patrick Fabian Is Right: Howard Hamlin Was Never A Villain In Better Call Saul

He Doesn’t Do Anything Morally Wrong In The AMC Series

Howard Hamlin has privileges in Better Call Saul that the other characters don’t, and he sometimes makes questionable choices when it comes to HHM and its employees. The way Howard treats Kim makes the case for him being a poor boss, but he’s far from a terrible person. He never does anything morally wrong in the Breaking Bad prequel. And even when he makes questionable decisions, he tends to believe he’s doing the right thing. You rarely get the sense that Howard is being intentionally cruel, even when he’s putting Kim in doc review.

Compared to Better Call Saul‘s other characters, Howard plays by the rules and comes off as fairly level-headed. This doesn’t make him the most interesting person in the AMC series, and that may be why he doesn’t resonate as much with viewers. However, such qualities also fail to make Howard a villain. While Jimmy and Kim have questionable — and constantly wavering — morals, Howard remains consistent in his views. He has flaws, but he doesn’t seem bitter or resentful like Chuck, either. Howard’s an ordinary guy, and he even tries to do right by Jimmy.

1 Better Call Saul Detail Proves Howard Wasn’t Such A Bad Guy

Howard Wants Jimmy At HHM

Despite how Jimmy and Kim perceive him, Howard never does anything particularly villainous in Better Call Saul. And one detail proves that he’s a good guy, as he actively tries to do the right thing and repair his relationship with Jimmy. Better Call Saul reveals that Howard was willing to offer Jimmy a role at HHM years ago, and Chuck was the one against that decision. Viewers might be disappointed that Howard listened to his business partner, but it doesn’t seem like there was much of an alternative.

And after Chuck’s death, Howard proves he isn’t a villain by attempting to hire Jimmy at HHM. Although Jimmy turns down this offer — he has too much resentment towards Howard at this point — Better Call Saul season 6 does see Howard trying to fix his past mistakes. At most, Howard is a flawed but decent person throughout the Breaking Bad prequel. But even his flaws seem less extreme compared to everyone else’s. It’s surprising anyone labels Howard a villain, but it makes sense when you consider whose perspective the story is told from.

Why Howard Feels Like A Villain In The Breaking Bad Prequel

Viewers See The Story From Jimmy & Kim’s POV

Although Better Call Saul follows a large cast of characters, the majority of the narrative is told from Jimmy’ and Kim’s perspectives. This is why people see Howard Hamlin as a villain; both leads build him up to be a terrible person, as they have personal reasons to dislike him. Jimmy and Kim feel wronged by Howard and HHM, and since we follow their struggles, we’re inclined to believe they’re right about him. However, the fact that they’re so torn up over Howard’s death proves that the bad blood between these characters is over mostly insignificant things.

Jimmy and Kim feel wronged by Howard and HHM, and since we follow their struggles, we’re inclined to believe they’re right about him.

Howard’s connection to Chuck also makes him difficult to like, as audiences automatically associate him with Jimmy’s brother. While Chuck isn’t a clear-cut villain either, he fits the description much better than Howard. Chuck actually gives Jimmy — and viewers — reasons to be angry with him. He thwarts his brother at every turn, and he’s arguably responsible for what Jimmy becomes. Unfortunately, since Chuck and Howard are a team for much of Better Call Saul, Chuck’s actions reflect poorly on his business partner and friend. Later seasons prove Howard isn’t nearly as bad.

Source: MovieWeb