Better Call Saul - Why Tony Dalton Is So Captivating As Lalo Salamanca
This video essay analyzes Better Call Saul's Lalo Salamanca, played by Tony Dalton. Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad have no other character like Lalo Salamanca. He feels different to everyone else? But why? This video will clarify the key elements of Tony Dalton's performance that make Lalo stand out.
FAIR USE NOTICE:
This video may contain copyright material; the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. This material is made available under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made "fair use" for the purposes such as criticism, comment, review, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that otherwise might be infringing. All rights belong to its owners.
Music used:
The Loner by DJ Williams
The Sound of a Dollar by DJ Williams
Cancun by Topher Mohr and Alex Elena
Tumbleweed Texas by Chris Haugen
Falling Rain by Myuu
Cumbia City by An Jone
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
1:37 Smiling
5:20 Physicality
9:01 The Stare
#bettercallsaul #lalosalamanca #tonydalton
To come on the show as late as he did, and still be one of the most memorable characters in the whole universe, is insane.
It's also recency bias. But mostly I agree
@@whirlwind872 how? Lalo was around for multiple seasons with multiple years between. Lots of time to digest that character.
It really shows how bad seasons 1-4 were
@@whirlwind872 is it though? His performance in season 5 especially remains one of my favorites from both shows.
@@nyjel2813 Literal chicanery
The casting of Tony Dalton as Lalo Salamanca is pure perfection
All the casting choices of BB and BCS were pure perfection
But why didn't he support homosexual special rights ?
@@benjurqunov cos hes not gei duh 🙄
@@benjurqunov another W
@@krishnakhanna6058 yikes
I don't think his smile is a bluff, I think it's scarier than that. He IS having a good time. He likes who he is and THAT is what is scary about it.
I agree with your assessment.
I agree. His demeanor is so genuine I don't think it's a bluff either
it works to mask his intentions as a genuine smile just as well as a fake one
This trait is shared amongst all the Salamancas they have no duality or moral hinderance for their actions.
literally what the video says
From a throwaway line, "did Lalo send you?" To the most enjoyable villains this side of Ledger's Joker is PURE ART!
it was Ignacio!
Abocado! Amigo del Cartel!@@twopieye69420
Up there with Anton Chigur
"No Lalo??" Makes me laugh every time I think about it
@@carlnorris2392Anton Chigurh is on the other side of Heath Ledger's joker
He, nachos dad, and a small few other actors were the only ones who genuinely spoke Spanish with a Mexican accent. Outstanding!
Juan bolsa
Yeah, Lalo, Bolsa and Nacho’s dad were the only ones whose spanish was great.
Bolsa’s spanish was bad, Nacho’s was better. Nacho’s father and Lalo were the best ones. I’m mexican by the way.
@@Gatitasecsii Bolsa was not good. Not as terrible as Gustavo's but still pretty bad. Nacho wasfairly decent, but his father and Lalo actually sounded mexican
nacho’s spanish is pretty bad ngl, he got that english accent
The fact that even Gus Fring was afraid of this guy is another level of scary
Gustavo wasn't afraid of him. He was disgusted by him. And he killed him in the end
He had every single right to fear him as he got check mated by him at the end and barely survived him with the teeth of his mouth (or whatever the expression is) a single man stroked the fear and almost won a multi billion dollars buisness man with an entire crew and tons of men working for him
@@mateuszpapla2163 Gus in general hated the entire Salamanca family. But Lalo was the only one who almost made him piss his pants. Gus was freaking out the entire time.
@@anjaneyasreetrout2444 Before he saw Lalo choking on his own blood Gus was panicking, probably thinking he'd missed his shots and that Lalo would jump out of the darkness and kill him.
@@teamofwinter8128 Skin of his teeth
Tony Dalton was born to be in a Tarantino movie. As Tarantino is reaching his 10th and final film, I’m worried that collaboration will forever be left to the imagination. He gives off a savant killer energy very similar to Christoph Waltz.
Hundred percent
God i would love to see this
I wish I never saw this comment I would have been fine not knowing how perfect a collaboration between the two could have been. But now I have to go on knowing that collaboration will probably never happen and we are worse off for it
yea
I hate you now, because now I'm worried that might never happen
I think whats terrifying is how Lalo treats other characters like children. To him, all of them are just children playing around and are no threat to him.
Except for Kim. That was one of the best scenes ever. 509.
@@jennifermeyer704 Definitely, Kim was the one who stood her ground against him and he respected that.
@@barakaobama4017 Yes. Lalo met his match in Kim. He actually had to back down which he probably isn't used to doing. She humiliated him and he left dejected.
lol true didnt think of that yet good observation
you misread the signs,Lalo respected her "ladyballs" and found it funny because this probably didnt happen before,especially from a woman,with her husband a crying mess,that was pure luck.@@charliewatts6895
Howard's story is BY FAR the most heart breaking in BB and Saul. He did not deserve that at all.
I agree and I thought it was incredibly lazy writing from a creative team that had rarely put a foot wrong.
@@mirrorblue100 Wow, I experienced it so differently. The moment that candle flickered, suddenly the whole past season(s) made sense to me. _Of course_ Howard would be the ultimate innocent victim of Jimmy and Kim's downward spiral, and of course that would give Jimmy the push to become the weasel he is in BB. I thought it was just perfect, and executed so well. As OP said: heart breaking and undeserved. But not lazy - at least I didn't feel that way.
Why lazy ? Its not the ending he deserved, but isnt that exactly the point.
As William Munny says in "Unforgiven," "Deserve's got nuthin' to do with it."
@@mirrorblue100 strongly disagree - the writers needed it to be as tragic as possible to split Kim and Jimmy. It would be lazy to have something that wasn’t senseless
The fact that Lalo was smart enough to outplay both Gus and Mike is amazing. At fist I didn't like the way he got killed, but after a while I understood that the only way he was getting killed was by a stroke of luck
I like how you put that.
I agree and actually even Gus realizes he had luck. You can feel this when you hear him breathing after shooting Lalo. He is so scared !
@@pierre69002 Yeah and Lalo laughing at him before death is the cherry on top.
@@WhyTho525"I'll see you in hell, Gus :)"
Plus he’s hot
Dalton's portrayal was pure genius. Even though Lalo was the sort of guy who'd stab you in the back in an instant if it served his best interests, you couldn't help but think "yeah, I'd like to drink a beer with this dude." Now _that_ is evil incarnate.
When nacho sat by the fire with him at 2:50am I was jealous that i wasn’t able to be in that spot
Yeah he's charismatic
Like George W. Bush who Karl Rove presented as the guy who you’d want to have a beer with, responsible for a million dead Iraqis for no good reason
@@stevencoardveniceas is typical of a sociopathic narcissist
“If it served his best interests” is what’s scary, no remorse or debate if you’re in the way you’re out. Not like some Tuco naturally violent speed freak. They scare other Neanderthals maybe Lalo scared Gus.
I loved this character so much. He plays him so well. He is like the only Salamanca that is happy while being a psychopath. - Tuco : Angry sob while being out for blood. - The Cousins : Out for blood, no emotion. - Hector : Angry sob while being out for blood. - Lalo : Happy fella with a sense of humor being out for blood.
Kind of a more charming version of Anton Chigurh from " No country for old men"
@@williamwalker8107 I love that movie. Call it. Edit.Ok yeah. You made me watch it again. 😁
@@thepcgamer8386 heads
@@nateortiz3364 * Moves hand away from coin and looks at it. 👀 * Well done but don't put it in your pocket. It's your lucky quarter.
One thing I love about Lalo is he is the complete antitheses of Gus. Gus being smiley and friendly is him putting on an act, but Lalo is quite genuine with his upbeat persona. Even when he’s alone and has no one to try to gain the trust of or manipulate, he is all smiles. He also just happens to be a drug lord murderer
I disagree. The scene with Gus and the bartender shows that he can be genuinely warm and pleasant, and we can see him don his drug lord mask at the end. It seems that both his nice restaurant owner persona and his chilling drug lord persona are just acts, and below the surface is an actual warm, sophisticated man that essentially never has a chance to come out (and that's the point of that scene as I understand it). I agree though that Gus has multiple masks, whereas Lalo just has multiple facets of his personality. Lalo is always genuine.
@@Darkprosper I guess the point would be that Lalo doesn't need to put on a mask to be a warm & upbeat person or a murderous sociopath.
But his whole smiley shtick is of a sociopath who is in complete command of any situation he's in. His upbeat persona is not him being friendly, it's actually an act of intimidation. It's of a cat toying with a mouse... in a way being playful, but not really. Similar to Hans Landa from Inglorious Basterds.
@@brandall101 Both are psychopaths not sociopaths Psychopaths are calculated and are fully aware of what they are doing Sociopaths are unaware of the pain they cause others and are impulsive
@@allaboutthemurzic And both are bs pop terms used to excuse the evil ordinary people are capable of when raised under the correct conditions. In the past it was vampires, and now it is this. I find seeing these terms used very irritating due to the sheer lack of self reflection they represent on the part of humanity as a whole. Its almost as if ww2, and the ukraine war are not a thing.
I hope Tony Dalton gets a lot of great roles now. Giancarlo Esposito had a similarly impressive performance in Breaking Bad and it was awesome to see him in The Boys, The Mandalorian or heck, even the main antagonist in Far Cry 6 after Breaking Bad ended.
He was in Hawkeye!
@@PatrickWDunne he was absolutely wasted in that
@@merpleberg yeah :( but as many characters were introduced (all on disney + series)... I hope he gets back on Echo and Daredevil.
Besides this, Esposito's best work was on Community, and I am both shocked and appalled it wasn't mentioned here.
dont forget payday 2 where he was one of the main contractors in the game
Something has to be added about his physicality. His physical feats bordered on superhuman. For me thats one of the main things that made him terrifying. We constantly see him using agility and strength to get things done. Besides leaping down onto Saul's abandoned car in a gulley like a boss, he crawled through a fan duct, hid and then shot four trained armed guards that Mike trusted. He casually slaughters five hitmen by physically dodging, running, and hanging upside down and shooting them one by one like a virtuoso. Remember Lalo started with no weapon, while they had assault rifles, body armor, radios, and were trained killers with the element of surprise. Who can do that? And the one that blew my mind so much I rewinded it over and over while standing up and shouting at the screen in shock; He vaults himself into a ceiling, climbs over a bulletproof barrier, drops effortlessly to the floor and murders the attendant without being even slightly winded. Contrast that with Nacho, who is very physical, but grunts, sweats and has to gather courage to start moving. Nacho feels like everyman overcoming challenges with physical strength. But Lalo feels diabolic, infused with otherworldly energy, slick and effortless. His raw strength physicality was awe inspiring, some of it feeling olympian or even superhuman. He was about as perfect a villain as I have ever seen, rivaling Anton Chigurh. I cant think of a better compliment.
Good words there. Lalo was just about as good as it gets.
Gahdayummit this is brilliant 💯
making is super jarring when the german engineer nearly kills him
Rest in piece Howard. You were a good person who truly cared for those around him even your enemies. You were one of the best and good hearted people in this universe
rip howard😔
Dude it's a tv show...
@@user-gv5qv5uj5tYOU should've been burried! Not Howard!!
@@user-gv5qv5uj5tlet him have his moment
He was awful to Kim
His eyes are just so soulless on certain scenes. His movements and chatter are in line with a charismatic persona, but his eyes reveal that he is just dead inside. I can’t even tell you what makes his stare so chilling, it just does. You can tell from a subconscious level. Tony really gave an incredible performance.
He has very good control over his emotions and what he displays towards other people
I think it's the fact that he rarely fucking blinks. Like a lizard, a reptile hunting it's prey.
His smile reminds me of a shark or a crocodile
You watch too much anime.
there were some scenes where his eyes reminded of pennywise. especially when he was surprised or didn't get what he wanted. the cold stare going straight through you
Lalo is the Hans Landa of Better Call Saul. He's a charming, unnerving and terrifying. He's a detective of the highest order who can sniff out the tiniest lie and make you so uncomfortable that you couldn't hide it any longer.
That's an interesting comparison. Reincarnation.
Great call
@@navarjak Thanks.
Great comparison!
Thank you. My exact thoughts watching BCS. Also there’s that scene where there’s the dude chopping logs in the woods may his cabin and Lalo appears reminding me of the opening scene of Inglorious Bastards.
Lalo was scarier than Hector, Tuco, and the cousins put together. Like a shark, he shows you a toothy grin--just before he bites. The comparison of Ron Burgundy, Dick Dastardly and Anton Chigurh was spot on. Nothing worse than a smiling, amiable psychopath with that predatory stare. One of the best performances in a show full of stellar performances. Dalton nailed it.
This guy was truly one of the greatest things in the show. Let's have a Lalo-Spin-Off.
I hope so
If only
Not all characters work out as main characters.
Better Call Lall!!
The word "mercurial" describes part of what makes Lalo scary. He's not just pretending to smile. He's genuinely smiling, because HE ENJOYS THIS. Even if he's about to kill you. His smile isn't just some calculated technique to disarm you and allay your suspicions. It seems more like a genuine reflection of how he's feeling, but it's unnerving because he is fully capable of enjoying himself while he kills you.
@george floyd’s fentanyl folly what doesn't? the dude's right, stay mad
Mercurial as in Merkur the planet?
@@davidhimmelfahrt3732 "Mercurial" as in "subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood."
@@davidhimmelfahrt3732 Mercury the planet, yes, and like the other person said it also means unpredictable change, not unsimilar to mercury the metal, also known as quicksilver, which is a metal that’s liquid at room temperature (liquid being a more chaotic state than solid of course). Mercury the planet in astrology also represents Gemini, the sign that represents duality and change and is commonly referred to as two-faced.
@@cucumberwater6 wat
Lalo was hands down my favorite Salamanca. He is brilliant and unpredictable. It’s good him and Walter White never met. He would’ve been a force to be reckoned with against Walt.
He'd probably mess with his wife too lol
That’s one of the greatest what ifs in tv history
he would have killed Walt instantly
@@antenanashi Exactly, the salamancas were diminished by the point Walt took off and Gus made the mistake of not killing him sooner. Gus liked to control people more and Lalo put you on a short leash. Walt fit Gus' motivations, Lalo wouldn't have cared about blue meth.
Realistically Lalo would have destroyed Walt but because Walt is the main character Lalo probably wouldn’t be able to beat him
I think perhaps the most chilling/telling moment for Lalo's character is when he's in court as Jorge De Guizmann, and he asks Jimmy who the traumatised people in the public gallery are, and Jimmy/Saul tells him they're the family of (name of the guy who was murdered). And Lalo curiously asks who that person is, and when Jimmy/Saul explains to him (ya know, he's the guy who was murdered - by you), and Lalo just kinda nods along indifferently, as if his curiosity only lasted as long as it took for him to ask the question, and now he's thinking about something else already. It's eerie AF. I always figured they showed Lalo with his hands dangling by his sides as a tribute to the old westerns, to put the other character (and the audience) in mind of the way the gunslinger would always be quick on the draw.
Guizmann?
Yeap!!!!!! Amazing comment.
It's just his language imo. No other character in both series swings between english and spanish as comfortably as Lalo does, he expresses himself perfectly while speaking both. I wish people talked more about this, the awful spanish that most supposedly spanish talked always took me out despite how much I loved BB, and finally seeing a native speaker expressing himself so naturally just made me fall in love with him. I hope someone takes notes for this and starts hiring actualy spanish speakers for this type of role.
I don't speak Spanish, but even I winced at Gus's pronunciation. Esposito is an amazing actor in most ways but not everyone can fake a foreign language. I don't know if the fact that he's fluent in Italian helped or hurt. Anyway, Lalo was clearly the best on that front, even I could tell!
I am grateful I don't understand spanish or the accents would take me out of it too
@@cbarnes2160as a native Spanish speaker, I wasn't sure if I was imagining things or if it really was that bad
@@1zy in breaking bad, when taking to the police, gus claims to be from Chile, presumably something he would want confirmed if they checked with other people he knows, including Spanish speakers who could tell his accent. And while there aren't large numbers of black people in Latin America (aside from Brazil), there are communities everywhere, never mind situations like people marrying foreigners and bringing them back to their country. So his skin color in no way precludes him being a native Spanish speaker. But then we're back to the problem that the actor clearly isn't...
@@1zy you can be black and a native speaker. Unless the word you’re searching for is American
It really comes down to the brilliant writing of the character as well as Tony Dalton's calm and charismatic performance that makes him so terrifying yet intriguing. Dalton has been one of my favorite actors for a very long time even before he came into the American mainstream scene, but this role here might just be his best work to date. He's the kind of guy that you would like to have a drink with, but would be completely horrified if you got on his bad side.
or you think you'd like to have a drink with, and as the evening wore on, you'd see little edges of his real character, and spend the rest of the night with an encompassing cold terror, trying to figure out how to end the evening without leaving any kind of impression whatsoever on this completely unhinged sociopath and never see him again.
It's also kind of accurate, cartel guys aren't these stoic sinister monsters, those are the enforcers they hire. The top guys are usually charismatic cowboy types, like Lalo in a way. Just look at the way narcos portrays them for example. They're businessmen with a penchant for business that's chaotic and violent. I think of them as wall street stockbroker types who got into the drug business instead of stock trading. Psychopaths still, but not as stoic and mysterious as we like to think of them.
Agreed. This character was not INVENTED in BCS, but DESCRIBES one pure type of psychopath we can meet in our everyday lives. Thanks for pinning the picture of a type in BCS!
Even on his good side would be too much for me!
@@thor3279*psycopath
I disagree about Lalo never caring about Nacho. After he gets his talking to from Kim, he realises that Nacho is pretty much the only person he can actually trust, and is clearly genuinely excited to introduce him to the staff at his compound. He even calls him ‘Nachito’ which I’m told in Spanish means that he’s using Nacho’s name in a familiar, endearing way. When he’s out chilling by the firepit, I always got the impression he just wanted to hang out and drink with Nacho for a bit. When Lalo figures out that Nacho betrayed him, you can see the genuine hurt turning to anger on his face. I think there is a kernel of humanity buried deep deep down inside Lalo (we know he cares for his uncle).
as a native spanish speaker, the way he called nacho "nachito" felt sarcastic, pitiful even. we also use the "ito" suffix to mock or diminish!
The only time you can see Lalo genuinely worry in his face is when Nacho talking with Don Eladio, Lalo definitely trust Nacho at this point in the story
I agree, I think he did care about him and if not he at least trusted him
Nice analysis. And oooh he cared for his Tio Hector indeed! The acting of their mutual bond was so chillingly good
he has affection for nacho because nacho is crazy like he is (he doesn't realize why Nacho is doing all this). he likes nacho. but that doesn't mean that he would necessarily care if nacho were butchered in front of him. I think that mix makes him a more dynamic and scary character. it's not that he doesn't like anyone, it's that he likes people but he's willing to kill them anyway. I think he showed genuine affection for the people in his village, yet he murdered two of them in cold blood. and you can see that he felt something, the look in his face as he stares at the guy in the mirror is complicated. he likes these people, but he doesn't really mind killing them.
One of the most entertaining characters in TV history. Stole every scene. He was just so fun to watch and the producers knew it. It made no sense to make Lalo a major character.. but he was just so good I assume they couldn't help themselves.
Showing a clip of Lalo’s last smile as he’s dying would’ve been the icing on the cake to this video
Something that cannot be understated about his character/performance: he _actually_ speaks Spanish😭
Do most actors on the show have bad spanish or something? I wouldn't know
@@christyler5409 terrible spanish, he is the only one who actually speaks it
@@christyler5409 NONE of the other characters speaks spanish natively. Gus is specially pathetic because you can tell his lines were learned phonetically.
@@cbarkerb he's not Spanish he's black and Italian
@@luisvega209 Don Eladio and bolsa speak Spanish too
Most of the BB villains are extremely cold, stoic, and silent. Lalo is a breath of fresh air in that regard.
I mean, Tuco, but he doesn't last very long so, yeah. Does Eladio count ?
@@Darkprosper Eladio could but he lacks screen-time compared to Lalo.
smile too
"Most of the BB villains": literally just Gus and the Salamanca twins
@@mattb.7079 Nope. Jack also.
he absolutely dominates every episode in which he's present. outstanding performance (possible due to outstanding character development and writing to be fair)
I didn't even think about how late he came on the show. He seems like he was always there. He's one of the most memorable villians ever. Definitely one of favorite performances. Lalo had me on edge every time he was on screen. Bravo Tony Dalton
As if the show wasn’t amazing enough as it was, the introduction of Tony Dalton into the series thoroughly elevated the series into incredible new heights because of his portrayal of a suave and charismatic psychopath. Truly masterful work.
It blew my mind. I have never seen anyone portray a psychopath as charismatic before. The way he didn’t seem to care about the people he killed was, as you say, masterful.
I hope people liking my comment understood I was being ironic lol
Dont worry, we do 😄
Bravo Vince moment.
Lalo was the best of the Salamanca's He had the mercilessness of Hector, capable of Tuco's violence, the stoicism of the Twins (when he needed it), and he was far more intelligent than anyone else in his family. Not to mention his German is great, "Verner ZEEE-glur."
I read somewhere that when the writers and Dalton were "workshopping" the character's origins, they thought that Lalo was the Salamanca that the family sent to elite boarding schools in the United States and Europe, but instead of going on to an Ivy league university, joined the family cartel business.
@@juniorjames7076 oh wow that's brilliant and makes so much sense for the character haha He's the star child!
@@KalebPeters99 The Michael of the family.
@@KalebPeters99 To be honest, the tragedy of Lalo is that if he were not born into a family of criminal psychopaths, he would mostly likely be graduating from Harvard Law or Stanford and be CEO of some Silicon Valley tech start up!
Yeah, that was I thought too, he is the perfect mix. Only Mike is able to win him on a smart game, and he’s colder than Gus.
Tony Dalton is seriously underrated. Hell of a performance.
I’d love to see him in bigger roles! He’s great!
He is a papi. I literally have never wanted a TV show character more. Never fancied one even as a kid but THIS GUY MAKES ME 🥵🥵🥵
Bruh
I feel the same. We, women, are stupid for guys like him sometimes.
9:00 I also find it really cool that Lalo's stare is foreshadowed all the way back in S1. Nacho begrudges Tuco for doing the same thing, says that when Tuco thinks someone is lying, he'll sit there and stare at them for 5-10 minutes before deciding what to do next. I strongly believe the implication here is that Tuco watched Lalo do this same thing to great affect, but not necessarily understanding the real intricacies of how Lalo manipulates people, and just assumes that the Tuco stare will do the same thing.
daaaaaamn I never made that connection before but bro you 100% right
No
@@georgerafa5041 frr
Yes you're right. Tuco learned the stare maybe from hector but did know quite how it worked.
How many times have you seen this show 😂? Also Bravo Vince!
Tony Dalton made a series called "Sr. Avila" where he plays a cold calculated assasin, when he was talking with Vince, he said he's been playing that kind of character for years (like Fringe) so he suggested doing something different, people should recognize a little more the participation he had creating Lalo Salamanca, he even re wrote lines some even on Spanish for accuracy.
I heard that they let him make Lalo's personality on his own just like how they allowed Jonathan Banks to make Mike.
"Sr Ávila" is a calculated assasin but he is not cold, he cares for his family and that is his weak point, Lalo on the other hand, seems to not care and makes it his strength.
The cockroach scene was amazing he sees the cockroach and immediately thinks of Saul but in reality he was the one forced to lurk in the sewers as he did his dirty deeds injecting chaos into gus's meth operation... So as a true psychopath he can not see the similarities in his own situation instead it's his way of looking down on someone from the literal sewer... Which is also ironic because Saul is the only one who truly went out of his way to help lalo. To his credit I also believe that's why he didn't kill Saul and Kim...
The way Dalton played him, with that charm and charisma, is the reason it works so well I think. He's completely captivating and steals every scene he's in. And the fact that he can go from smiling to killing in the blink of an eye is what kept viewers engrossed whenever he was on screen.
i love how when a character tells a story/lies to lalo, he just gives a pause and a smile, and then simply says, "show me :)". gives me the same chills i get when gus drops his smile and gets serious
Because he knows your bullshitting.
I think I’m in the minority that thinks Gus’ character was super far-fetched and borderline cheesy. Nothing “intimidating” about him at all. What I love about Lalo is how relatable his character is - the way he looks and acts is far closer to what an average Mexican cartel person is like, compared to Gus’ overly stoic, “look at how badass my serious face is” persona.
@@AdamKeithMedia by minority, you mean completely by yourself
@@AdamKeithMedia Well yeah thats because Gus doesn't belong in the cartel,he just works for them cuz he has no choice being in their territorry and wanting to infiltrate to destroy them.Hes a stone cold crimelord businessman with patience and long term goals of money and revenge
@@bloodhoundo9320 nah, I actually agree with him. I also feel the same way about Walt and Jesse. they’re cartoonish caricatures, like cardboard cutouts they stick out like sore thumbs. I can’t stand Breaking Bad because of them and the only reason I watched BCS is because they weren’t in it.
Lalo was also a lone wolf, unlike most other villains.
I mean he had nacho and a few thugs to back him up in a lot of scenes but usually when he was doing detective type work ya he worked alone
Would be awesome to see a spin off series that is set before breaking bad and is about the salamancas. Of all the current ones and how they all got into the business and all the other family members we never see, like lalo, the twins and tucos parents and how they all relate to hector and so on
Even when he himself died there still was a smile on his face, showing how careless he truly is
the first scene with Lalo in Jimmy's apartment was the most intense scene in the entire series. I think it was close to 10 minutes long, but felt like it was going on for hours. It was done so well.
Yes agree wholeheartedly.. What a great scène that is! Three people in a room, no real violence but tense as hell.. Such a great viewers experience Don't know if you are a Daredevil fan but S3 the Karen vs Fisk confrontation has that same impact.. And mind it needs all the previous episodes to raise the bar, all the background stories, personal situations and all
It was the "boxcutter" moment of better call saul
@@ppvk2610 Iam about to watch that episode with my younger bros. I cant wait XD
What really stood out to me about Lalo is that he's one of the only characters shown to have the same level of ingenuity as Mike. Where Mike is always 2 steps ahead of his adversaries, this comes from his experience, caution, and careful observation. Lalo is just as observant and insightful, but it seems to come on an instinctual level which adds a level of unpredictability that makes him a perfect adversary for Mike.
That was probably the bitter sweet thing about Tony Dalton’s performance. He played the character Lalo so well, intimidating and unpredictable. He really felt like he should’ve been in Breaking Bad. Probably would’ve been an even bigger force to be reckoned with than Gus, if he had the chance to grow. He could’ve been someone even Walt would’ve had a hard time trying to deal with. But it sucks he died before Breaking Bad. Before anything happened. Now he’s just legend… buried at the bottom of an underground meth lab.
Lalo's "friendliness" and initial likeability is the scariest thing in a Sociopath, and made him one of the most dangerous characters on the show.
The way he switches between and even combines his intimidating/welcoming personality is what really keeps your eyes on him in every scene he’s in
At first Lalo fools you with his good looks and charismatic personality, but soon enough you start to realize what kind of man he really is. From that moment on you cannot take your eyes off of him anymore, as you realize this charming but ultra dangerous psycho can start killing at any moment.
Lalo’s introduction, being so disarming, also contrasts perfectly how Saul first mentions him in breaking bad. “Did Lalo send you? ….OH THANK GOD” and “It wasn’t me it was Ignacio!!!” Perhaps meaningless when it was first written, but in a couple lines, Lalo is set up to be so feared, that after learning that it wasn’t him, Jimmy is remarkably calm despite being tied up in the desert, guns on him, in front of a makeshift grave. In the same set of lines, he sets up Nacho as someone to be thrown under the bus, a hint at his ultimate fate.
In some ways, Saul felt clear to "throw Nacho under the bus" because by that point Nacho was already dead and had offered himself up as a scapegoat for Gus and others - so Saul, ingeniously, also got on the bandwagon to use Nacho.
So true!! And never in the history of television has a throwaway line ever resulted in anything so excellent, mesmerizing, a powerhouse of a character!
I just cannot seem to believe that this was a throwaway line. I think the plot existed very clearly behind every character. They just decided to turn BCS into a show later and expanded the details. But the plot was always there.
PHENOMENAL CHARACTER. PHENOMENAL PERFORMANCE. Thank you Tony Dalton for coming out of nowhere and giving us a lovable interesting villain. To stand out so much in such a loved and already set in stone universe is really something amazing. That smile is worth a billion. I hope we see more of this actor; happy he got into the MCU.
Lalo was the most dangerous of the Salamancas and the most fascinating. He was also may be the most charismatic character of the entire show and may be even the whole Breaking Bad universe. Brilliantly played by Tony Dalton!
I love to contrast the scenes with Gus in the restaurant with Hector and Lalo. Hector is so blatantly threatening, literally taking over Gus's office and creating a borderline hostage situation with the customers. Lalo has a friendly chat with a smile, even offering to team up with Gus - and yet somehow Lalo is 10x more threatening.
Because when you encounter people like Hector you just know that they are dangerous while men like Lalo could convince you that are not. Basically Hector is a sociopath while Lalo is a psychopath.
I think there was the suggestion that Hector had risen up to, and maybe a little beyond, his level of competence. He tried to bully his way through situations that he couldn't think or charm his way through.
Don’t forget the twins in the restaurant, I feel they were also very noteworthy as they were the muscle of the cartel and despite being so dangerous they sat quietly and surveilled Gus and putting the heat on him without saying a word
@@calving7215 Gus was more annoyed than threatened in that scene tho
Hector was a pushover compared to Lalo. Gus knew exactly how to behave to stay on the good side of the cartel.
Describing him as a combination of Ron Burgundy, Dick Dastardly and Anton Chigurh was not ridiculous at all. That is a perfect and accurate observation.
Tony Dalton's portrayal of Lalo Salamanca is one that's arguably much more believable than the main characters of anything in film OR television; there are many moments when I found him more convincing than the characters of Walter, Jesse, Saul, etc. He somehow manages to be both unrealistically charismatic in his speech, mannerisms, actions, while never coming across as too subtle, either. Dalton somehow found that perfect balance in between, which was specifically how any writer wants their characters to be understood and translated from the pages, but only very, very rarely does it happen so, and even more elusively as Tony Dalton did with Lalo. He convinces you that he's this charming, carefree kind of guy who's not so bad for a cartel underboss, to reminding you that there are swift, brutal, and oftentimes deadly consequences for trying to get away with anything behind his back, and somehow right back to making you think he's got a good heart deep down. It makes me think of the way an alligator might slowly rise from beneath the surface of the water, watch carefully for as long as it needs to register a target and route of attack, before moving in with that big, unnerving smile and snatching its victim before it has a chance to realize what happened. As much as I loved Lalo, I would be disappointed if he ever featured in any further BB/BCS media, not for fear of Dalton getting rusty, but because why would anyone want a sequel to the Mona Lisa? It's perfect. I would say without question that Dalton was the best actor ever cast in either series of this universe.
The only person that stood up to Lalo that even got him speechless was Kim, it was my favorite scene.
What fascinated me about Lalo was how vulnerable he was. The Salamancas were crippled (literally), Gus ruled Albuquerque and was preferred by the Cartel, and he knew Lalo’s every move. Lalo had all the strengths an individual could have, but he was alone.
And he still managed to fuck with Gus in every possible way. It's brilliant!
@@shubhangbhargava682 He is also the only one who terrified Gus.
@@WhyTho525 He might be the smartest/most capable characther in Breaking Bad universe along with Walter at the end. He did the most, with least resources out of anyone.
@@tyqwe45qe walter is genuinely stupid
that rubs me in the wrong way too,why is he so alone and so vulnerable? He is supposed to be the new don.
Tony is amazing as Lalo. The way he asks "Michael, is that you?" knowing that he won't respond and asking Nacho "show me" makes us think how things can take a wild turn.
Lalo is such a great character - hands down one of my absolute favorites. Tony Dalton's performance was just amazing.
I loved Lalo because imo he had the best style out of everyone in the series
He absolutely singlehandedly made his character into the star of this series! He was by far my favorite actor.
He can play the range from charming to mischievous to sadistic and everything in between. Not many actors can pull that off.
Yeah. Definitely great performance
3:08 is wrong. Lalo definitely cared about Nacho. He brought him to Don Eladio after a few months. Look at Lalo in the backgroUnd when Nacho talks to Eladio, he genuinely looks nervous for the first time ever.
the jumping into the ceiling scene could be played as a gag just as easily as it was played as something out of a horror movie
As a mexican myself, i've been watching Tony's work for years and its great that hes finally recognized world wide. If any one cares to see one of Tony's best early movies, search for "Matando Cabos"
Peter Gould and Vince Gilligan surely deserve credit for their insight in creating the Lalo Salamanca character, but Tony Dalton turned it into one of the greatest villains in TV/Cinema history.
not Vince, he didnt even want Lalo in the show it was all Gould
Dalton was PHENOMENAL in this role. He came on the show late in the game, and absolutely owned it. What a talented actor. Just nailed it from the get go.
When the smartest character with multiple death squads, assassins, and bodyguards is so scared of a character that he wears a bulletproof vest in his own home after said character is believed to be dead makes the viewers know they should also be scared.
It's funny, when Lalo first appeared, I wasn't too sure what to make of him, as he seemed so different from the other Salamancas, and he appeared to be more open and friendly. He was also much more efficient than the likes of Tuco or the Cousins in regards to how he operated. I think the scene that molded him into one of my favourite characters on the show was when he escaped his house from Gus's men. So much was displayed about his character in that one scene- his seemingly warm nature, his cunning tactics, and his soulless efficiency.
To me he's the "perfect" psychopath who is also pure evil. The other psychopathic characters in the show at least have some personal flaws that make them manipulable to a certain degree or can change their motivations. With Lalo, he does not have any weak spots because he's utterly nihilistic; what's lost is lost and he doesn't feel any regret or sorrow about it; he just keeps going. He represents the "dark empathy" trait of psychopaths so well - he understands what motivates other people and uses that to manipulate them while at the same time absolutely and utterly being free from any kind of sympathy or, you know, the good kind of empathy.
My favorite Lalo scene is when he confronts Saul and Kim in their apartment is my favorite. The way he gradually switches from his usual sense of humor to being so serious and angry makes the anger so much more frightening and menacing than what many other villains do.
He is just archetype of ultimate human: happy, intelligent and sociopath... at least from his perspective.
"And just staring into his Saul"... loved it
I literally have nightmares about Lalo. Last night he gave me a piece of paper with a math equation on it and told me to solve it in 10 minutes. I asked what would happen if I didn't and he just stared at me, smiling. I tried to cheat off the other people in the room but I couldn't read the numbers long enough to work out the answer in my head. At 5 minutes he came over and pointed a gun at me smiling letting me know we were getting close. I woke up before we were finished cuz I was scared lol
LMAO
Lalo would have made a great math teacher if he wasn't so bloodthirsty. Nobody would have dared to leave their homework unfinished.
had a dream where lalo was hired to kill me... can imagine how it ended lmao (spoilers i got shot in the head)
@@battybabybat "Mr. Salamanca, I did the homework!" "Ok. Show me!"
Sending you on a trip to Belize
Such a scary character in the funniest way - I absolutely love how his scenes make me laugh whilst being scared of what his next move could be. Tony Dalton does an incredible job, and is up there with Nacho for the best character! Also want to say how ridiculous that travel wire scene is - Lalo silently climbing into a super high ceiling, walking over those flimsy ceiling panels you get in offices, and falling perfectly onto his feet at the right time with his gun in hand. It's so cheesy but who cares because the acting is incredible.
Yeah anybody who has ever had to do any sort of work on those ceilings was thinking the same thing. Trust me. Those supports wouldn’t hold a medium sized dog. 🤣
@@bradmerilic6848 I remember in school we had them too! They were so light that throwing a ruler at them could move them - so yeah a human is definitely not able to climb on those haha
What a wolf Lalo was. You’d think you’re in the clear with him and the next minute he’s in your living room with a pistol. A whole different monster than Tuco
2:34 I have a completely different take. I think Lalo IS worried. But if he were to tell Nacho that then Nacho might be even more worried, hence the reluctant smile. We even see Lalo constantly looking at Nacho during the meeting later, hoping it all goes well. Not to mention that earlier Kim had told him off for practically being alone and having no one to trust. Lalo is basically putting all his eggs in one basket with Nacho. If he doesn’t have Nacho, then he doesn’t have any true partner. I really don’t get how your assessment was that Lalo didn’t care about Nacho’s wellbeing. I guess he only does up to a certain point, but he wouldn’t have brought Nacho to Mexico if not for Kim putting those specific thoughts in his mind.
It's an actor's dream to play a character like Lalo. Being busy doing something eliminates the "what do I do with my hands, how should I be standing" feeling. But also, when you're not busy with something, you get to be fiercely captivating in a subtle and surprising way. Lalo's that guy you don't worry about until you suddenly realize too late you really should've.
Not to discredit the writing at all, but one thing i found really interesting is that Vince even admitted that he had no idea how much charisma and charm the character would have until Tony started playing him that way. Tony had very little direction so he had a lot of freedom to explore the character however he wanted and I think Vince and Peter could are very happy they allowed that to happen. It seems like they really understand that sometimes the less directing, the better, when they have such a phenomenally talented cast.
He also rewrote some of the lines to make them more characteristically Mexican. I think he did a phenomenal job overall.
@@Pantano63 I like that he did that because I’ve heard many native Spanish speakers have great dislike for the Gus and Hector Spanish speaking scenes. So it’s good to see a vocally active main character who speaks Spanish and English well
You just summed Lalo in the perfect way. A mix of Tuco and Gus. A perfect blend of the two no less. Absolutely brilliant.
The reason i find Lalo so terrifying and entertaining at the same time, is the fact that he treats all those around him except his family, like tools. He's always confident in his ability and if he's not, then he calculates his choice carefully. Like if he wants to be at someone's house he will, if he wants to kill someone, sooner or later he will. If he needs to do something, he will. He got to Gus so easily and his intellect shouldn't be underestimated. The only reason he died was because Gus outsmarted him and basically won cause of pure luck in a pitch black gun fight. I'd love to see an alternative reality where Lalo survived, or even make another show where he's in Mexico, similar to Narcos: Mexico.
The whole Salamanca family are violent psychopaths but each character has a unique way they present themselves. Lalo was smart and charismatic. Tuco was short-tempered and aggressive. The twins were calm and collected. Hector seems to have characteristics of all 3.
Hector is the unmasked Don behind all three chaoses of evil.
"cabrón, i want to see your balls" -hector salamanca
Oh, I don't know how charismatic Hector was. He was mean and cranky, to my mind.
It's the perfect blend of charisma and menace. After he looked toward the fire to realise Nacho betrayed him and walked toward the camera with the sound of thunder in the background, I knew he was my favourite villain in the BB universe but then he added another dimension to his character through those scenes with Werner's wife. The man was smooth as hell! He elevated the show from a very good/great show to one of the most compelling and greatest shows of all time.
Nacho displeases me as a character, he is a whelp who does not enjoy inflicting pain on others, and struggles to come to terms with his own death, a true Based Chad enjoys the taking of life, as well as the losing of it.
@@victorochoa3662 alright then Victor Ochoa
@@victorochoa3662 I really don't know what to make of this
It means that he's a thug, and too small minded to see the bigger picture. Most discoveries and inventions mankind has made has been at the hands of empathic individuals, and every tragedy and blunder at the hands of people to uncaring to realize that it might backfire on them. A based Chad is a caring Chad. The Chad that doesn't care is one not long for this world.
@@victorochoa3662 nah, that's what made him interesting. He looked similar abd was assumed to be but inside he was so different from all the boring thugs around him.
Having the final showdown between Lalo and Gus and not Mike was a great decision. The fact, that Lalo even outsmarted Mike, put him on an even higher tier. And the fact, that Gus himself pulled the trigger showed to me, that Lalo was never just a pawn to do dirty work for Eladio, like Mike did for Gus. He was the worst, that cartel could bring up, after Hector had his stroke. And while I underestimated him for five seasons and thought, he was a kinda nice guy, Gus never underestimated Lalo for one second. The final showdown was a matter for the bosses.
2:44 he isn't dismissive of Nacho's worry because he doesn't care, but because he planned Nacho's intro to Don Eladio. Lalo gifts Eladio a Ferrari and a box of neatly packed cash to ensure he is in a good mood, that's why he says that Nacho will be fine, he does care.
I agree, I interpreted his response as basically him saying "this is small potatoes." He already knew how it was going to go because he's Lalo, of course he planned this out. Nacho doesn't need to worry because he's with *Lalo*! It wasn't apathy imo, it was just his usual casual/condescending tone.
Tony Dalton absolutely NAILED the performance. Imo, he would have been the perfect character for the finale of Breaking Bad instead of the neo-nazis
I would have been interesting to see how Walter dealt with Lalo. That certainly would have been a match.
100%!
exactly 😭
Yeah the neo nazis totally ruined the last season of Breaking Bad for me to be honest, i’ve felt that way ever since I first watched the show back in 2013-2014
@@LosHuxleys Season 5 is still great, but the neo-nazis always felt quite underwhelming as the final antagonists, compared to previous characters like Tuco or Gus. With the season 4 finale, it was so great having Gus be the main villain because we'd seen the rivalry play out between them. Plus, Gus was amazing because he represented who Walt wanted to be in the drug world - a cool and calculating businessman. Uncle Jack had none of that. I suppose you could say that the neo-nazis are kind of fitting as they show the true consequences of Walt's actions, that he was willing to ally with extremists to get his work done and it blew up in his face. You know, similar to that old saying of 'libs who support commies still get the bullet, and conservatives who support fascists still get the bullet too'.
In the scene where Lalo was interrogating Jimmy about what happened in the desert I was 100% convinced he would suddenly take his gun out and shoot Kim when she spoke up... I guess they saved something similar for later, but from all that we know about this guy, Kim probably was narrowly escaping death there.
Wow you explain subtle characteristics so well. I have spent time with these kind of people in real life. Lalo is just like a real Latin American high ranking cartel. There are many mannerisms that men model to be intimidating and alpha in that world. Pushing boundaries, respect games etc. It's always going on in that world. Whichever you describe well. It's basically the highest testosterone possible, which can go beyond just masculinity into playfulness and must always be utterly fearless. And yes this guy is an incredible actor and of course incredible writers help
this is one of the most well-prepared and well-scripted video essays that I've ever seen, kudos.
Then you have to consider the fact that Lalo got close enough and entwined himself with a guy that could pass as a double for him. Took care of the family, stayed interested enough in their lives so that he would know the questions to ask to sound friendly and concerned when he saw them. And this is all the while knowing that someday he would kill this guy when it suited him and he needed a body to pass for him.
This makes it so much sinister 😢
It’s pretty f’ed up
I like how his name is already innocent sounding, "Lalo", how cute is that?!
How very observant you are! I just mused what a curious character Lalo was. You really nailed all the nuances of Tony’s performance, and just how magnificent it was. I really look forward to his work in the future. Thanks
When you can’t wait to see what they’ll do next and you can’t get enough of them, you know you have a memorable character 💪
He's handsome, charismatic, upbeat, smart, and effective. You want to be his homey, but then he's a cruel murderer, so you have mixed feeling.
I found it really hard to explain Lalo to someone who was a fan of Breaking Bad but has never watched BCS. He definitely added a valuable depth to the series.
I wish Lalo and Walter would have crossed path at some point - bank, hospital, etc. Would have been an interesting scene without any of them knowing the gravity of the other.
It's also kind of interesting that most of Lalo's murders occur offscreen instead of being shown outright. I wonder if that was done to preserve our feeling that we should like him as a character or just to make Howard's death that much more shocking.
To hide the cartel violence from pussy Americans
I'd say both. It also creates a mystery. We know that he is a cold blooded psychopath. But we never see it and are always left guessing about his murderous nature
The difference between all the other characters that he killed is that they all were looking at him face to face, expecting Lalo to kill them. Howard wasn't even facing him and genuinely thought he was just the average client of the sketchy Saul Goodman
Lalo is fucking terrifying. He's smart, strong, creative, totally ruthless, and has incredible intuition that helps him overcome most situations, even when faced with more intelligent and prepared opponents. Also add being charming, fearless, and ridiculously determined....a terrifying combination of traits when you add them to sociopathy...:O
Tony Dalton completely exceeded expectations on a character that could induce lifelong fear in somebody as unshakeable as Jimmy/Saul. He killed it right out of the gate in the scene in the kitchen cooking up tacos. So much charisma.
I like how competent and proactive he is almost as soon as he comes into the show. He’s the brains but also very hands on in the Salamanca operation.
...Show me :)
lalo is not only my favorite villain in the bb universe but my favorite character as a whole, beside jesse. he’s attractive and insanely charismatic.. i would pay to watch lalo just do whatever he wants for ten hours lol