The Tiny Chuck Detail In Better Call Saul Season 2 That Fans Love
"Better Call Saul" character Chuck McGill (Michael McKean) may be gone from the show, but he definitely hasn't been forgotten by the fanbase. In spite of his passing over two seasons ago, he's still remembered — fondly and not — by those who found his titanic moral struggle against his brother Jimmy (Bob Odenkirk) to be one of the AMC drama's most important plot elements. Jimmy and Chuck both experience falls from grace during the first three seasons of "Better Call Saul." While Jimmy fails to become a respectable lawyer and has accepted the mantle of "Slippin' Jimmy" because his temper (and Chuck's lack of support) have pushed him in that direction, Chuck's own anxieties push him towards isolation and selfishness, causing him to forgo the reputation for respectability he's built over his career ... and ultimately, leading to his death. Jimmy has since continued along on his twisting, winding pathway to becoming crooked lawyer Saul Goodman, without his brother hanging over his shoulder trying to stop him from finding (dodgy) success.
A show like "Better Call Saul" encourages fans to rewatch episodes, and when they do, they often come to the program's subreddit to discuss details they've noticed. Looking back, some viewers have picked up on a small detail about Chuck that is leaving them delighted.
Chuck doesn't seem to own any pictures of his brother
A deleted user posting to the subreddit noticed that Chuck doesn't have a picture of his brother on him when he shows up at the copy shop in Episode 9 of Season 2, "Nailed." Trying to describe Jimmy to the person working there, Chuck (in the user's words) "has to show the 'idiot from the copyshop' the news-article from his billboard stunt, of all things."
u/SPedigrees noted that someone else on the subreddit took a screencap of Chuck's living room recently, and "[o]ddly there were no photos of Jimmy (with or without himself in a shot) but instead were some pictures of a family that none of us could identify." This point was contradicted by u/r2NeverHaveBeen, who posted a screencap of the interior of Chuck's house and noted that there appears to be a picture of a young Jimmy and a tiny Chuck there. But many fans posting to the thread pointed out that it's unlikely that Chuck would have a picture of his brother in his wallet, either due to the fact that it's not common for adults to carry pictures of their grown siblings with them or because of Chuck and Jimmy's ongoing animosity.
Meanwhile, u/_NRNA_ also points out that Chuck's exacting tendencies might be in play here, causing him to dig up "the MOST recent pic of Jimmy he had, with no exceptions, even if it likely wouldnt have made a difference."
While some fans think the theory is "a stretch," to quote u/josephexboxica, there are others who think it might be an intentional gesture to point out Chuck's rottenness. Either way, it's fun to speculate about the intent of the show's writers, particularly in a TV franchise known for its fastidious approach to worldbuilding.