Intimidating badass and general curmudgeon Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks) dropped an Easter egg from Breaking Bad in Better Call Saul season 5, episode 6 “Wexler v. Goodman”. A former corrupt cop, Mike is an expert at technology and surveillance with a deep knowledge of forensics tools and evidence. Currently on Better Call Saul, he is unwillingly being pulled into the inner circle of Gus Fring’s (Giancarlo Esposito) expanding drug empire. Fans of Breaking Bad know he ends up fully entrenched in that world as Fring’s right-hand man.
Mike is a focused and almost totally humorless force on both Better Call Saul and Breaking Bad, so seeing his lighter side come out is always fun. Viewers do get to see him dote on his young granddaughter from time to time, but even that relationship has taken a turn south in season 5. Fortunately, his attempt to frame Lalo brought that side to the surface.
In Better Call Saul‘s “Wexler v. Goodman”, Mike uses the pseudonym Dave Clark to pose as a private investigator. This isn’t the first time he’s been called by that name in the show, with Gus’ doctor referring to his as “Mr. Clark” back in season 3. However, the repeat use does call back more overtly to the alias’ Breaking Bad origins.
![Better Call Saul Season 5, Episode 6 Has A Breaking Bad Mike Easter Egg](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/better-call-saul-gus-and-mike-in-warehouse.jpg)
Dave Clark was first used by Mike in Breaking Bad season 5’s premiere episode, “Live Free Or Die” when making a call posing as a postal inspector while in a room with Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul). He says, “Inspector Dave Clark, like the Dave Clark Five.” The Dave Clark Five, of course, was an English rock band active mostly in the 1960s. There’s no evidence if the person on the other end recognized the reference, but it certainly gives viewers a little background into Mike’s tastes. He is, after all, a baby boomer.
Along with fleshing out characters in much more detail (such as Mike’s tragic backstory), Better Call Saul is also full of Breaking Bad callbacks for fans to catch, often hidden in unsuspecting places. Dave Clark is just the latest, with previous weeks nodding to Saul Goodman’s introduction and possibly even Jesse Pinkman
Lalo was not quite in custody when the “Wexler v. Goodman” episode of Better Call Saul came to an end. In the car and surrounded, he chose to drop his keys out the car window after first contemplating using his gun. It certainly seems that Mike, or was it Dave Clark, had gotten his man. But Better Call Saul always surprises, so we’ll have to see if Mike’s plan worked to get Lalo off the streets for good.